Beneath a Midnight Moon - By Amanda Ashley Page 0,51
in his arms, to look into his eyes, to see him smiling down at her.
Before she quite realized what was happening, he had danced her onto the balcony. Taking her hand, he led her into the shadows.
“Kylene, we have to talk . . .”
“You never told me you had brothers,” she said.
“And a sister. You’ll meet her one day.”
“Perhaps,” Kylene said evasively. “Can all your brothers change shape as you do?”
“No.”
“Can your mother?”
“Of course. I inherited the ability from her.”
“How does your father feel about that?”
“I never asked him.”
“Oh. I guess—”
“Kylene, stop it.”
She looked up at him in wide-eyed innocence. “Stop what?”
“Stop your babbling. I know how you feel.”
“Do you?”
“I never meant to hurt you.”
“You promised me . . .” She turned away lest he see her tears. It didn’t matter what he had promised. She’d known he could never be hers, that she could never be his. It had all been a silly dream, as tangible as a will-o’-the-wisp.
Hardane placed his hands on her shoulders. “I know what I promised,” he said, the hurt he’d seen in her eyes making him forget, for the moment, what he’d brought her out here to tell her.
“Always and forever, you said,” Kylene whispered. “Why did you make me hope when you knew it could never be?”
“I meant what I said. I’ll not let you go again.”
She whirled around to face him, tears of pain and fury shining in her eyes. “You can’t keep me here against my will! I won’t stay and watch you marry my sister. I won’t, and you can’t make me!”
“I’m the heir of Argone,” he reminded her, his anger rising to match hers. “I can do whatever I wish.”
Her rage melted like snow in the sunlight. “If you care for me at all, you’ll let me go.”
“Kylene, listen to me. Haven’t you figured it out yet? You and Selene are sisters, twins.”
She looked up at him as if he weren’t very bright.
“We’ve only Selene’s word that she’s the firstborn. I think she’s lying. Wait!” He held up a hand to silence her protest. “Just think about it. It’s the only explanation that makes sense. It explains why I can read your thoughts, but not hers, why I can walk in your dreams. She isn’t the firstborn. You are.”
Kylene stared at him in speechless wonder. It sounded so logical, so sensible, she wondered why it had never occurred to her, but even as she grasped at the idea, she pushed it aside, afraid to hope.
“Surely if I was the firstborn, Selene would know.”
“Of course she knows,” Hardane said, his voice harsh.
“But . . . but that means she lied to you. To me.”
Hardane nodded, his eyes dark with unspoken anger.
“But there’s no way to prove it. Only her word against mine.”
“There’s a way, lady,” he said, gathering her into his arms. “There’s always a way.”
“What is it?”
“You’ll have to wait until the day of the wedding to find out.”
“Why?”
She felt his arms tighten around her, as if to protect her.
“It’s a test, of sorts,” Hardane replied, his voice low and strained.
Kylene drew back so she could see his face. “What kind of test?”
“I can’t tell you. It’s a closely guarded secret, meant to insure that the heirs of Argone marry only the bravest and the best of women. Or, in this case, the right woman.”
“Hardane? Hardane, are you out here?”
Kylene moved out of Hardane’s arms, a guilty flush heating her cheeks at the sound of her sister’s voice.
“Oh,” Selene said, her gaze darting from Kylene’s flushed face to Hardane’s impassive one, “there you are, Hardane. Your father is ready to make the announcement.”
She held out her hand, but Hardane refused to take it.
“Are you sure you want to go through with this?” he asked brusquely.
It was all Selene could do to keep from flinching under his cool stare. “Of course.” She glanced at Kylene. “Dubrey is looking for you. I shouldn’t be surprised if he proposes soon.”
The sooner the better, Selene thought, annoyed. She’d seen the adoring look Kylene had bestowed on Hardane, the barely concealed jealousy in Hardane’s eyes when he heard his brother’s name mentioned in connection with Kylene’s.
Selene placed a proprietary hand on Hardane’s forearm. “Shall we go?”
Hardane shrugged Selene’s hand from his arm, nodded briefly in Kylene’s direction, and returned to the ballroom. Wordlessly, Selene turned to follow him.
Kylene stared after them for a moment, her mind in turmoil. Knowing she couldn’t bear to hear Lord Kray announce Hardane’s forthcoming marriage, she made her way