Chapter 13

Author’s POV Lucian's smile was the sort you'd flash at an opponent across a chessboard—polite enough to pass in public, but with all the warmth of a winter kill. It barely veiled the underlying contempt shimmering in his eyes.“No comment.” Darius stiffened, trying to recall if there had ever been a moment—intentional or not—where he had slighted the Blackwood heir. Nothing surfaced, but the tension threading Lucian's posture told him loud enough: any offense had already been taken. Likely long ago. He turned instead to Dorothy.She wasn't looking at him. She was absorbing the ballroom, calm and confident, shoulder-to-shoulder with Lucian like they'd always belonged side by side. Darius's throat tightened. He couldn't remember the last time Dorothy had stood that close to him willingly. Couldn't recall those eyes lighting up for him as they did now when Lucian whispered something under his breath that made her smile. Were they… together? Had she already moved on—weeks, barely weeks—afte