Page 86 of A Touch of Poison
A total idiotandcapricious, it seemed.
Lucky for me.
A voice came at my shoulder. “Despite being a Day Prince, His Highness’s attentions wax and wane like the moon.”
I spun on my heel and found Caelus, chestnut hair gleaming like the sun was upon it, even now in the dead of night. “Just who I was looking for.”
His eyebrows flicked up. I didn’t miss the pleased smile that ghosted on his lips. “And I was looking for you—the guest of honour. Join me?” He gestured along the loose path that opened up through the guests, and I fell in at his side.
“You know they held a ball just before I left Lunden, but without you there, it was entirely dull.”
“Oh, you mean no one interrupted any important rituals or smashed priceless glassware?”
The corner of his mouth twitched. “I believe one glass was broken, but not a single ritual was interrupted by anyone taking poison.”
“Howboring.” That’s it, put him at ease. I eyed his drink as I swirled mine. Somehow I had to getarianmêlin there.
“Even more boring—your uncle spent the whole time trying to ingratiate himself with your queen. Kept going on about how you were his niece and had saved the country. It was quite embarrassing.”
My throat tightened, and I went to tug at the necklace that was no longer there. Uncle Rufus could embarrass the Ferrers name for all I cared, just as long as he stayed far, far out of my life.
“I’m sorry—it looks like I shouldn’t have mentioned anything.” Caelus wore a pained look as we passed a set of doors leading out into the gardens.
You’re meant to be tricking him into spilling what he knows about unCavendish, not making him feel bad.
I needed to get the hip flask ofarianmêlout of my garter and pour some in his drink. Somehow.
So I waved him off and forced out a breezy laugh. “Heisa fool. But aren’t we all fools, sometimes?”
“I think perhaps I was at the last party we both attended.”
My breath caught at the reminder of him asking if I would share myself with him as well as Bastian. He’d seen Bastian make me come undone, and that made my face burn, but perhaps it opened up an opportunity…
He winced. “I should never have—”
“MaybeIwas the fool.”
His attention honed in on me, as focused as the pressure at a blade’s point. I made myself wait—one, two, three—before turning and giving him a meaningful look.
Lips parted he held my gaze and there was such hope in them that for a moment I hated myself.
But only for a moment.
Because I needed to know about unCavendish, and if that meant crushing Caelus’s heart—well, so be it.
The changeling had helped destroy my heart—in some warped way, it felt like a fair exchange.
“You know,” I went on, voice lower, “we never had a chance to drink one of those shots together at that party. What were they?Ariammel? Aria—?”
“Arianmêl.”
“That’s it!” I touched his arm, my glove keeping him safe. “They had shots of it at the door, didn’t they? I swear that stuff was responsible for…” I looked away and focused on the memory of him watching me, hoping the heat in my cheeks translated to a blush. “Well, me getting up toall sortsof things. We could remedy that now.” Slowly, I bent over, conscious of how it emphasised my cleavage—the only skin I had on display.
Caelus’s stare burned into me as I pulled up the hem of my dress and retrieved the hip flask.
I waited long moments before letting the hem down again, letting him get a good view before I waggled the hip flask in front of him.
His eyes narrowed as he eyed it, then me. Not convinced. Suspicious, even.
