I stood at the center of the grand ballroom, the crown jewel of the palace glittering under the dazzling chandeliers, with Adriana clinging to my arm like a second skin. Her smile was radiant, her gaze full of love.
She looked up at me like I was her sun, her stars, her every breath. But all I could think about was the ache pounding in my chest and the storm brewing in my mind.
Eyes. Hundreds of them. All on me. Watching. Waiting.
My hand tightened around the champagne glass in my other hand. Raven stood somewhere among the crowd. I knew it without even looking. I could feel her gaze like a phantom touch, like a whisper brushing down my spine. It made it hard to breathe, harder to speak.
Adriana’s fingers curled a little tighter around my bicep, her smile not faltering, but I saw the flicker of tension in her eyes. She could sense it too—the tremble in my bones, the chaos clawing to break free.
I raised my hand and struck the glass with a silver knife.