Page 66 of Dancing With Demons

“Stop looking so perpetually pleased with yourself. It makes people want to punch you.”

“No one wants to punch this face.”

“Your face isn’t as disarming as you think. Matter of fact, this morning you were looking positively ugly.”

He rolled his eyes. “If you’re speaking of your childish antics with your little marker, then I hope you enjoyed that little victory for the ten seconds it lasted. Glamour or no, the embodiment of sloth cannot and never will be ugly.”

My satisfaction went nowhere. “Oh, I know your little glamour magic vanishes the slightest imperfection from that punchable face. I figured it out the first time it happened. That’s why I took pictures of the rest.”

Ronin stilled. “Pictures?”

“Oh, yeah.” I winked. “And don’t think you’re going to break my phone this time, because I carefully hid it away. Now, I may not know much about how things work around here, but I do know that you skate by on a lot of crap because you’re a pretty face.

“So what happens if all of hell sees Ronin Belphe with flies and stink lines on one cheek, and a cock and balls on the other?” I couldn’t contain my giggles. “Not a single person will take you seriously, emperor of sloth.”

“Hmm.” Ronin moved away from the fireplace. I tracked him as he slowly started circling me. “And you’re saying you’ve hidden the phone in a secret location?”

“That’s right.” Confidence crept into my voice. Was this really working? Were a few embarrassing pictures really enough to ruin his reputation? “And don’t even think about threatening Dora for them. If her name even comes out of your mouth, all the pictures are going up on DeadDrop along with the announcement that the empire of sin is going ahead, but you’re planning to only marry Sauda, Kama, and Eris.

“Raven and Ursula won’t get to join in the grand new future of hell, and when gluttony–who must have everything for herself—and wrath—who very much does not do well with rejection—hears that, you really will be too preoccupied with their retaliation to worry about me.”

“Retaliation?” Ronin repeated, his voice the symphony of mild. “Why would there be retaliation? You’re just a random mortal woman with no House, no power, and no ties? Why would anyone pay attention to the rumors and lies you spew out?”

I smiled wider. “Of course they’re going to pay attention. You just said that I came up with the most brilliant coup in all of hell history. News of the empire of sin will spread all over DeadDrop, and the very idea that two princesses will be kept out of it will be humiliating for them.

“Raven and Ursula will demand that you address the rumors. They’ll demand that you denounce them as lies, and officially name all five of them as your fiancées for all of hell to witness—and if you don’t? If you keep stalling and fence-sitting...” I whistled. “Well, that won’t work out too well for you, will it?”

Ronin stared at me for a long time, completely expressionless, then he burst into a smile. “Amazing,” he whispered. “You’re incredible.”

I blinked. “Excuse me?”

“The way your mind works. So devious,” he hissed, closing the distance. “So clever. So ruthless. And all for the sake of another.” Ronin’s eyes flicked to the door, and Dora on the other side. “Why? What’s a sister even worth? Why do all of this for her?”

I couldn’t explain it, but somehow I knew, he was genuinely curious.

“Because I love her.”

“Love?” He frowned, brows crowding together. “You’ve said that word before. What does it mean?”

My jaw worked. “It’s... Love is hard to contain in a single definition. There are so many kinds of it. Love for your parents, love for your friends, love for your children, and love for your siblings. All I know is that I want to protect Adora. I love her because I want to see her happy, and support her in all her goals and dreams. I put Dora first,” I said firmly. “That’s what love is.”

Ronin nodded, shrugging his lips as he studied the rafters. “I see. And do you believe your precious Adora loves you in return?”

“Of course she does.”

“Well then, how is either one of you supposed to move forward, if you’re both standing there expecting the other to go first?”

“I...” I frowned. “No, that’s not—”

“Not what?” Ronin dropped, voice flat. “You just said that love means putting someone else’s happiness and goals before your own. Even if they want to do the same for you, won’t there come a time when those goals conflict? When you want one thing and they want the other? Who then must make the great sacrifice if you both love each other so?”

Dora’s words on that last, fateful night roared through my mind.

“I’m upset because you were supposed to be the one driving off in your new car to your first-choice university. You were that one until you had to drop everything, give up your place at NYU, and come home to look after me.

“You spent the last four years scrimping and saving to send me to college, and now you’re going to spend another digging yourself out of debt. Char, you had your own life and your own plans before... before.

“How do you think it makes me feel watching you give all that up for me?”