That earned him a glare over a partially bared shoulder. A nice one. She’d initially protested when he wanted to stick around, but once he started talking, she had a lot of questions, and complaints—and sarcastic retorts that made him chuckle.
“You dance?” she said skeptically.
Tanzie snickered. “He and his brother are right dandies when they try.”
“It’s not enough to sometimes be a king; you have to play the part,” he defended.
“The question is, are you really faking, or do you like the pomp and ceremony?” she asked.
The right answer was no, but the truth was, sometimes Roark enjoyed it. It reminded him of how far he’d come. “I do what I must to protect my kingdom.”
“Which is a way of saying shut up and endure the dress.” Her nose wrinkled. “I guess I can tolerate it for a few hours.”
Tanzie wisely didn’t say anything about the hair and makeup to come. As Roark left Casey in her capable hands, he passed someone at the door carrying a bubbling pot of goo that had numerous flat wooden sticks poking out of it. The waxing of all the hair on her body was also something he didn’t warn her about. He didn’t mind the hair, but they were going to a ball held by the duke. The only person higher was the king. They wouldn’t take her seriously if he let her attend in her leathers and boots with that fat braid he wanted to wrap around his fist.
As he prepared himself in another room, he did hear a few yells, and a distinct curse word or two. No one came in a panic asking for his aid, which he took as a good sign.
The shower left him refreshed. The shave to his jaw left him smooth with only a hint of shadow to match the hair on his head. He’d thought long and hard about his disguise for the night. The choices truly were endless. He could have even snuck around the inner Enclave ring itself with no one noticing. However, thus far, subtlety hadn’t netted a thing. He needed to shock something loose. With that in mind, he dressed. He doubted Casey would approve of his choice.
When he knocked at the door to her room and she said enter, he forgot any arguments he’d prepared as he beheld her. “You look magnificent,” he breathed as he entered the room.
The simple black gown had been hemmed and restructured to flow only over one shoulder. The skirt cut high up a thigh, and her leg flashed when she moved, showing off a garter holding a tiny jewel-hilted dagger. No one would think anything of a puny weapon like that. They’d be too busy wondering if she wore any underclothes.
The scowl on her face didn’t detract. “I look ridiculous.”
“The countess don’t like compliments,” Tanzie retorted, “or so she claims. I think she complains to get more.”
“Stop calling me Countess!” Casey yelled. “I do not like this at all. I feel so…Ugh.” She stalked the room, the high slit on the dress revealing the lean line of her leg and smooth curve of her calf. She had flats on, not heels, a concession probably, given she had no experience he’d wager tottering on the stilts some preferred. The dress hugged her frame and had sections cut out. She even had some simple jewelry. Metal bands around her forearms, a pendant that hung between her breasts, the theme matching that of her garter.
“Did you adorn her in daggers?” he asked.
“Since there is no way she can pass herself off as Port City born and bred, I had to give her a persona.” Tanzie’s smile held a hint of mischief. “They won’t think twice if a foreigner shows up wearing shocking attire.”
Casey’s lip curled. “In other words, I don’t speak fine enough, and I curse a little bit—"
“A little?” Tanzie snorted.
“—so I’m going to be some kind of visitor from a remote island.”
“A violent one, given you look as if you could kill,” Roark said.
“Exactly. No one will think of screwing with her.”
“They also won’t want to tell her anything,” he grumbled. “The women will hate her because she’s too beautiful. The men will lust after her.”
“I am not too beautiful,” Casey huffed, her cheeks a brighter red than before.
“You are not from around here, which makes you an exotic treat,” Roark claimed. They’d take one look at Casey and would desire her or hate her. It was the same in