filthy rich denizens of this city.
I select a handful of gowns and sip Riesling as I try them on. My assistant zips me into them and looks at me with a critical eye.
The entire thing is a farce, and I’m nothing more than a child playing dress-up in my mom’s fancy clothes. But I play the part. I have to. This is what the Sovereign expects me to do. And I know without a doubt they’re watching my every move. So, I drink my white wine and try on dress after dress until I find one that fits the occasion.
“Classic, clean lines, and elegant on you. It accentuates your long neck and high bust and helps subdue the widening of your hips.” Jeanette taps her finger on her lips.
We wouldn’t want anyone being offended by my figure, now would we? I would laugh if I’d had more to drink. Or maybe if my heart wasn’t sinking lower and lower with every second I get closer to the Acquisition affair. Just thinking about it makes my stomach churn, and I have to put my glass down.
“We have it in black or deep wine.” Jeanette cuts me a sharp look when I start pulling the gown off.
“Allow me.” She hurries behind me and strips me out of it.
“I’ll take it in the wine color, please.”
“Yes, ma’am. I’ll take it to the seamstress myself. It will fit you like a glove.” She squeezes out the door and closes it, and the moment she’s gone I sink onto the white chaise along the back of the dressing room.
I shouldn’t be here. I should be out meeting with shareholders and board members, putting the stranglehold on Magnolia. Instead, I’m just trying to keep it together. I knew taking Magnolia would be difficult, but I didn’t plan on the rest of it. Not the Sovereign, and certainly not the way Lucius gets under my skin.
He was so untouchable, like a dream to me when I was young. Now, he’s a shadow that I glimpse at the edge of my vision. He’s there, watching and waiting. The moment I stumble, he won’t be there to catch me. He’ll be there to rip me apart.
“Fuck.” I rub my temples.
“Such language from a lady of your breeding?” The door opens and the man from the elevator walks in.
I sit up and glance at my bag. My pistol is there.
“Don’t get up for me, Evie.” He closes and locks the door behind him. When his gaze slides down my body, I snatch the silk robe from the back of the chaise and drape it across myself.
“What do you want?” I lean back, as far away from him as I can get.
“Nothing really.” He only has to take one step to be close to me. Too close.
Panic starts to rise inside me, my airway closing and my heart thrashing against my ribcage.
“Where were you last night?” He looms over me, his blond hair and sharp blue eyes a façade to cover the darkness inside.
“I don’t answer to you.” I stand and pull on my robe, then move to step around him.
He grabs my arms in a rough grip and holds me in front of him. “I asked you a question, Evie. Where were you last night?”
I’m trapped. He isn’t going to let me go, and no one can help me. I have to get out of here.
He leans down until he’s only inches away from my face. “Answer the question, Miss Witherington.”
“I don’t answer to you, asshole.”
He smiles. It sends terror cascading down my spine.
“You know, Evie, I’d hate to think you were doing anything that could jeopardize your standing with the new Sovereign.”
“What I do is my business.” I say the words, and I know they come out sounding confident, but inside … Inside is another story.
“That’s where you’re wrong. What you do is my business and the business of the Sovereign. If he were to suspect that you were on pleasant terms with a certain member of the Vinemont family.” He grimaces a little when he says the name. “That would cause a problem. I’m here to help you avoid those problems.”
“Good thing I don’t need your help.”
His jaw tightens, and he pushes me back until I’m against the wall.
Fight or flight is having a hell of a disagreement in my gut.
“You should be careful, Evie. Tomorrow night is important for you, for the future of our world. And while the Sovereign is pleased at your efforts to take