Page 25 of A Yulean Sister’s Guide to Getting Kidnapped

I had to bite my lips to hold back my smile that threatened to come too easily.

“If you’ll excuse me,” I started, stepping away and towards the bar.

“Wait—” he was quick, his hand darting out to grab my wrist. I didn’t expect it, but it wasn’t unwelcome either.

“Yes?” I looked at him through my thick lashes, knowing exactly the face I was putting on. And could tell by his eyes it was working. But normally, when I caught them in my trap, I felt nothing. Sometimes maybe satisfaction that men were so easy, but for once, the feeling was almost returned.

Was I okay?

He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bouncing hard as he did. “Would you like to go for a walk?”

Chapter 8

Adrian

The stone I had in my pocket weighed heavily as Sage and I made our way to the dark hall. With the party in full swing and no signs of stopping soon, the magestone lights were set to very dim, to save power I assumed.

It was much quieter, able to hear the princess’ shoes clicking on the stone of the hall. I had no clue where I was leading us. It needed to be somewhere quiet and remote, but it would be too much of a red flag to just bring her to my room.

I wasn’t sure where Bramwell had gone. Tonight’s festivities were for everyone, even if staff was expected to wait on the edges of the room in case their employer needed something. In our case, it worked out well. He was essentially a ghost to these people, meaning he could slip around undetected. Though I wasn’t sure if he was following, or was keeping wait in the room to make sure no one noticed our absence. For someone so large, he could be very sneaky.

It was a slight risk, but I walked her down to the garden we were in this morning. The manor was a rectangle, and the ballroom was on the far east wing. The garden was on the west, on the opposite side of the property from the party, so even though we were outside, we were away from prying eyes. It seemed like the west wing was meant mostly for staff, but all of them would be too busy with the party to be over here.

“Eager to show me your work?” she asked, once she realized where we were going.

No, I was actually quite eager to obtain the necklace and get the fuck out of here.

“I thought you’d like to see our hard work,” I said instead.

“I hardly got through anything before I was dragged away,” she said.

“That’s not true, I was only left to bury the last few rows, which I did do perfectly.”

She smiled. “I knew this was a bragging trip.”

This was a lighter smirk than she had in the ballroom. There, her smile was tight, almost looking rehearsed. When she was actually happy, her expression was relaxed, the smile softer, rounder in the corners.

Not that I was paying that close attention.

We went over to the plot with the replanted flutoras and she looked around. The way she squatted down was careful, obviously aware she was in a nice gown. Her hands floated over the leaves, touching them gently before standing back up, brushing her hands together.

“These look good,” she said. “As long as they get watered, they’ll probably thrive over here.”

“I’m glad you think so.”

“How has your evening been?” she asked, guiding us towards a stone bench under the large tree we planted the flowers in. We sat together, me more carefully perched on the edge while she got comfortable, fanning her skirts a bit until the soft fabric touched against me.

“Invigorating,” I said with more of a sarcastic edge than I probably should have.

“Not one for parties then?”

“It isn’t my normal scene, no,” I confirmed.

“I can’t say I agree,” she said. “I love a good party.”

“What about them do you find so engaging?”

“Mostly the dancing. I love to dance.” She paused. “Come to think of it, I haven’t seen you out on the dance floor at all.”