Page 17

Mia kept her smile in place even though the nerves she’d been fighting all day were at the forefront, ready to take her down.

As in she was pretty sure she might be sick if she got pulled up on the massive stage now occupied by the queen and king of the Nova realm.

But so far everyone in her artists’ compound had been pulled up and introduced to what felt like the kingdom at large. There were thousands upon thousands here tonight, far more people than she’d imagined. Way too many eyes watching.

Luckily, Tiber and Octavia had created a sort of bubble around her, so no one was too close to their little group.

She also spotted Cyprus with some other large (even for dragons) warriors.

It was difficult to tell for certain if they were part of Tiber’s guard, and she knew he wouldn’t tell her.

Or she didn’t think he would. If they were current assassins, obviously, he wouldn’t tell her or anyone else their identity.

But she was curious by nature.

By the time Queen Soleil finished, Mia could finally breathe and practically sagged into Tiber, who’d been a steady sentry behind her ever since they’d arrived at the outdoor gala. She’d been so worried that there might be a miscommunication, and she’d end up on stage staring wide eyed at everyone.

Including her ex. And it would be even worse because she knew he was out there, watching her.

At least now she didn’t feel so on display.

And with Tiber beside her, she knew no harm would come to her.

That was a lot hotter than it should be.

Mainly because she shouldn’t be thinking about Tiber in those terms at all.

He was not for her—even if he did look good enough to eat in his formal tunic with intricate stitching that no doubt indicated some sort of service to the kingdom.

Tonight’s festivities required formal dress, and instead of street vendors, there were massive tents held up by some kind of magic in case the weather changed.

The tents housed a couple dance floors, plenty of tables, and there were so many servers carrying flutes of something similar to champagne and hors d'oeuvres (including blueberry cucumber caprese bites she’d been eyeing).

Now that she knew she wasn’t going to be called up to face the massive crowd, she actually wanted to try some of the food. And… she snagged a drink from a passing tray and maybe drank it too quickly if Tiber’s surprised expression was anything to go by.

“I’m nervous,” she said, her tone defensive.

“I didn’t say anything.” He paused, grabbed another drink, and handed it to her. “Why are you nervous? I will allow no one to harm you.”

Her stomach did a flip at the growly words.

“It’s not that…” Maybe it was a little that. She glanced around to make sure no one could overhear them. She hadn’t seen Charles anywhere, and didn’t actually feel him watching her or anything, but her imagination had always been a wild one.

It was so crowded now, but having Tiber next to her definitely kept people at bay, even as they made their way to the tables to find seating.

“I just don’t like crowds. Not like this.

And I was worried the queen might accidentally call me up on stage.

” She wouldn’t have been able to say no then.

That would have just drawn more attention to herself.

“Honestly, I’m just a ball of anxiety on a good day,” she blurted, then wished she could take the words back.

He was a powerful, confident warrior dragon.

No wonder he thought humans were weak and beneath him.

Looking away from him, she took another long drink of the bubbly and made a note to stop after this one.

It was stronger than human alcohol and she didn’t want to be carried out of here. Even if the thought of Tiber carrying her spread warmth through her abdomen.

“Here.”

She turned to find Tiber holding out his arm toward her.

He nudged his elbow out once in encouragement. “Take my arm and I promise you no one will want to get close to you.” He motioned with his other hand. “You can think of this as your anti-anxiety space.”

She laughed lightly at his unexpected words.

He was definitely different than she’d originally thought.

“Thank you.” She slid her hand into the crook of his arm, was surprised by how warm he was.

The man was pure power and muscle and was going out of his way to take care of her, to ease her nerves.

Talk about a powerful aphrodisiac. “You’re better than a coat.

” Something she’d eschewed tonight because it hadn’t gone with her mermaid-style shimmery emerald gown that wrapped around her like a second skin and sparkled with every step she took.

Jonothon had told her that this dress deserved its day in the sun.

Or night under the moon as it were, the stars and thousands of magical lights blanketing the air above them.

“Sorry if that’s a weird thing to say,” she added.

“I like that I never know what you’re going to say,” he murmured. “And for the record, no one holds a candle to you tonight. You’re a brilliant gem.”

She blinked up at him in surprise, ready to rebuff the compliment, but she was trying to get better about that.

To simply take compliments. She knew who she was and had no doubt that she didn’t rank in the top anything of gorgeous people here, but his compliment was sincere—and it made it even harder to ignore her attraction to him.

“Thank you. Also, where are you taking me, because I’m certain that our table is on the faaaar side of those tents. ”

“It is, but there’s a path we can take that loops around the festivities. Normally it would be longer, but with the amount of people here, it will take far less time, and you won’t be faced with the crowd all at once.”

“That’s very thoughtful.” Did that sound like an accusation? Why was he being so wonderful?

He lifted a shoulder. “People from the outer regions are here. That’s why it’s so crowded tonight. This is considered one of the larger events of the year, let alone this week.”

She nodded, then laughed in delight as the stones beneath them lit up under their steps. She was wearing shimmery slippers and they seemed to almost spark under the illumination. “This is beautiful.”

“All the pathways around the castle are imbued with the royal family’s magic. It’s like this all the time.”

“Well, it’s delightful.” She glanced over her shoulder, saw that Cyprus was following them, though he was hanging back a good bit.

She wondered where Octavia was and hoped she’d found the courage to talk to the male she was interested in.

Mia still wasn’t sure what was going on with Octavia other than she “wanted to get someone’s attention.

” “Is there a reason Cyprus is following us?”

“He doesn’t like crowds either.”

“That’s not fair.”

“What isn’t?”

“I can’t tell if you’re lying.” She nudged him in the side. “Though I’m pretty sure you are. Because Cyprus seems to get on with everyone. And you have the ability of scenting when I’m less than truthful. Feels a bit unfair.”

“Considering the advantage you have, it evens the scales.”

Frowning, she started to ask what he meant when Charles stepped out of the trees like a wraith, his movements elegant, liquid, and his presence utterly terrifying.

Tiber tensed next to her, his body going bowstring tight.

She dug her fingers into Tiber’s steely forearm, resisting the urge to hide behind him. Because that would just give Charles what he wanted.

“Mia, how lovely to see you. I saw you sneak away and thought I’d catch up. I’m Charles.” He looked at Tiber as if he was eyeing a bug. “I take it you’re her saveur de la semaine,” he practically purred at Tiber.

“This is my friend,” she said in a taut voice when Tiber didn’t respond one way or another.

He just watched Charles as if he was food.

She wasn’t sure if he understood Charles’ sad attempt at an insult, but it clearly didn’t bother him. If Tiber was her flavor of the week, well, she could do a lot worse.

“It’s such a surprise to see you here,” he continued, his voice gentle, each word refined, but she could see what she hadn’t before. The real man behind the mask. Anger lurked in the depths of his dark eyes, hiding behind his too perfect face and charm that he could drop at a moment’s notice.

She nodded politely. “I’ve been here for months.”

“I was surprised the queen didn’t call you onstage for introductions.” He made a sort of tsking sound as if embarrassed for her. “You are, of course, talented, but there is so much competition in this realm.”

Somehow, she kept her smile in place when she wanted to smack his smirk right off.

“Soleil displayed her work in a solo exhibition last fortnight. She would not need to introduce her again. An artist like Mia deserves to shine solo, like the star she is.” Tiber’s words were perfectly spoken, but she could feel the rage rolling off him.

And she also noted that he called Soleil by her first name. He was making it clear without saying anything what his standing was in this realm. He was also lying through his teeth about a private exhibition, but clearly Charles didn’t pick up on that.

His gaze narrowed to slits for just a second before he nodded. “Ah, that is not a surprise at all. I must admit I tried to purchase a couple of your paintings earlier in the week, but they were all scooped up so fast.” He said something in French she couldn’t understand, then laughed lightly.

She wasn’t certain of his exact heritage, but she knew he was from a British royal vampiric line. Yet he spoke French fluently and favored it more than the other languages he spoke.

“I was hoping I could commission a piece before I leave,” he continued.

“How long will you be in the Nova realm?” she asked, ignoring the question. She would never paint anything for him.

“Not much longer, I’m afraid. But I would happily return to own something of yours.”

The way he said “own” sent a shiver down her spine, but she managed to keep her expression neutral. Hopefully bored, but if she could keep neutral, she considered it a win.

“She has commissions for the next two years,” Tiber said before she could respond.

“But you’re welcome to join the waiting list. If you speak to her agent, she’ll be able to help you.

Now if you’ll excuse us, we don’t want to keep our companions waiting.

” His voice was like liquid gold; deep, delicious and he was absolutely done with Charles.

It was so obvious he was dismissing him and even better, Charles knew it too.

She didn’t have time to say a word before Tiber basically dragged her off with him.

When she glanced behind them, she didn’t see Cyprus or Charles.

“Cyprus is tailing him now,” he murmured, his voice so low she almost didn’t hear him.

“You were sort of magnificent back there. I never knew how to handle him, even before I ended things. Not well anyway. He always acted like such a baby whenever I told him no, and I realize it’s not my responsibility to manage his emotions, but he was so exhausting.

And you just…” She smiled. “You just politely cut him off, shut him down, and that was that.” When she looked at him, she found Tiber’s amber gaze was too bright, too intense, short of shimmering almost gold instead of their normal amber-gold hue.

The way he watched her brought out far too many emotions she didn’t want to acknowledge. So she looked away and focused on the glowing stones in front of them as they wound their way back to the party. “Anyway, thank you,” she murmured.

“It was my pleasure.” There was something else in his voice. Something dark and not altogether human. Or maybe she was reading too much into it, but she swore she could hear the rumble of his beast.

And she liked it far more than she ever could have imagined.