“No, it does matter.” His voice peaked higher on the end. “What’s going on, Ara?”
A few guests passed us and offered congratulations on the baby, Mike and I taking a moment from our conversation to humour them, and as they danced away again, the music stopped suddenly, Mike looking off to his right when a man tapped his shoulder.
“May I?” Jason asked, stepping into view.
“You may.” Mike laid my hand in Jason’s, patting his shoulder. “Just return her in one piece this time, mate—unlike the last ball.”
Jason stiffened, catching my eye quickly. “I—”
“He was just joking, Jase.” I smiled, watching Mike blend in with the crowd.
“It wasn’t funny,” he said, taking me up in his arms like I was some precious stone.
“I think he’s just trying to show us that he’s passed all that now.”
“No, he’s not. He’s just holding it together for you tonight.”
I nodded, feeling my crown brush Jason’s jaw. “How did the meeting go today—before I got there? Were they nice?”
“Surprisingly?” he said, pausing for a second. “Yes.”
“Was Mike?”
“He was quiet, but I think he knew there was no point arguing my position.”
“Good. I’m sure he’ll have something to say about it in private, but I’m ready for him.”
Jase shook his head, smiling distantly. “Just don’t upset yourself over it. I can always counsel you privately, if need be.”
“The need won’t arise,” I said, and left it at that, focusing on the rhythm of our dance for a while instead. Jase always was such a magnificent dancer. He had a kind of grace and fluidity that David lacked. I guess it came from being so in touch with his emotions—not being afraid to feel or being seen to feel. There was this strange sensation that always came with it, too, much like that connection David and I had one of the first times we went out to the lake: the . . . gravitational pull.
“Has anyone told you how beautiful you look tonight?” Jase asked, distracting my thoughts.
“Of course.”
He leaned down a little and kissed my head. “When I saw you up there—” he nodded to the top of the stairway, “—I was sure I felt my heart beat for the first time in a century, Ara. I mean, every time I look at you, I think you’re the most beautiful girl in the world but, tonight, even you’ve outdone yourself.”
I blinked back the tiny pool of tears around my lashes. “Thank you, Jase.”
His lips pressed firmly into my head again. “You’re welc—”
“Break it up, you two,” David snapped, drawing us suddenly apart.
“David!” I shrieked, looking around to see if anyone noticed. Only a few people looked up, but politely went about their own business.
“You both know the rules.”
“Rules?” Jase asked.
“You two are not allowed contact.”
“Who says?” Jason stepped between David and I a bit.
“I do.”
“You have no say who she—”
“David, Jason is one of my council members now. We can dance if we want.”
I went to step into Jason again, but David grabbed my wrist, yanking it away. “That’s it, you’re coming with me.”
“David, let go of me.” I tugged against him.
“Stop wriggling. You’re making a scene.”
“You are the one making a scene, brother,” Jason said, blocking his path. “You have no right to order her around this way.”
“No right?” David asked in a high tone. “I am her husband. I have every right.”
“No.” Jason moved closer, lowering his voice so it came as just a whisper through his teeth. “You left her. You are bound only by a contract that states she is queen and you are king. Nothing else.”
“Precisely.” David shoved past him, dragging me along again. “I have every legal right to do with her what I see fit.”
“If you touch her, I’ll—”
“Go ahead, brother.” David spun around, warding Jason off with an icy gaze. “Hit me. Give me a reason to arrest you.”
“Jason,” Arthur called, sending a very stern gaze across the crowd and into Jason’s intentions, altering them. Jase didn’t move or shift in any way, but something in his eyes said he’d backed down.
“Yeah, I didn’t think you’d have the guts,” David said, and led me away.
I stumbled along, checking over my shoulder, but Jason was gone. “We were just dancing, David.”
“To dance, one does not need to kiss.”
“You were watching us?”
“I noticed,” he said dully and shoved me into a chair in the corner under the stairs. “There’s a difference.”
I landed hard, my teeth clucking as the chair slid an inch and hit the wall. No one looked up. No one even noticed. Or maybe no one really cared.
“You will stay here for the remainder of the evening, Ara, unless I say otherwise.”
“But—”
“I said sit.” He forced me down again by aim of that stern, pointed finger. It made no physical contact, but I wasn’t willing to challenge it. “I want you where I can keep an eye on you.”
“You can’t make me sit here.”
“I can, and I am. I will not have you making a slut of yourself in front of all these people. Now sit here and behave.”
He turned away, dusting his hands off, and I heard the tail end of some smart remark about disciplining his wife, shrinking into myself when everyone nearby laughed. They waited until he walked away before casting their judging eyes on me, sending shrink rays onto the surface of my body.
I turned in my seat, hunching over a little. I didn’t care if my posture slacked or if I looked less than noble. I just wanted to hide in the darkest corner I could find.
“Would this pretty little girl in her party dress care to dance?”
I looked up to Arthur’s kind, smiling eyes. “Arthur, I can’t. David said I have to stay here.”
He drew my hand toward him anyway, helping me stand. “Let’s see him challenge his old uncle, ehy.”
I smiled, but it wasn’t Arthur David would challenge; it was me. Except, I knew he’d wait until we were alone. “I’m trying not to make him mad right now. He needs time to—”