Chapter l158

Chapter 0158

Nicholas held my gaze the longest.

He finally glanced away when a girl tugged on his arm. The music started and she pulled him toward the

dance floor.

It seemed that anonymity made everyone feel a bit bolder than usual tonight.

Myself included.

I stopped by the drink table to grab a flute of champagne. It was easier to lose myself with a hint of

alcohol in the system. Yet before I could even take a sip. I looked out at the dance floor once more and

forgot the drink entirely.

The girl who was dancing with Nicholas had both hands on his chest and was rubbing them up to his

shoulders with an unwelcome familiarity that made my skin crawl.

I lowered my drink back to the table and then stormed across the room.

“Excuse me,” I said, when I was close enough to them. “Do you mind if I cut in?””

“Yes,” snapped the girl.

Nicholas searched my face. Then, he reached up, grabbed the girl’s wrists and pulled her hands away

from his chest.

She huffed in annoyance but didn’t argue. She glared at me as she walked away.

Nicholas held out his hand to me, and I placed mine in his.

“I feel as if I know you,” he said. His deadpan expression made it difficult to tell if he was teasing or not.

I suspected he was, however. He, of course, knew everyone here.

I

But did he know specifically who I was? That was the question.

I placed one hand on his shoulder. His free hand sat comfortably on my waist. Together, we began to move with the music. We glided over the floor as if a single b*dy, a single heart.

Without the interference of our real–life problems, being with Nicholas was as easy as breathing. Here, where we could pretend to be other people, nothing stood in the way of indulging in this fantasy.

“You dance very well, my lady,” Nicholas said.

7 helps to have an excellent partner,” I replied.

Eventually, Nicholas led our dance out onto the balcony, where we were alone. Slowly, he stopped turning, ending the dance. He did not move away, however, keeping his hand on my hip and the other

clutching mine.

I didn’t move away either.

What happens now? My mind whispered, as my heart took flight in my chest.

A bolder woman would say something flirty, and well, I could be anyone tonight.

“You look handsome in the starlight, my prince.”

He smiled, wider than usual, and my knees felt weak.

“Thank you, my lady, but it is your beauty that has stolen me away. This is a lovely dress, but I suspect the woman underneath is even more stunning.”

Nicholas released my hand to bring his own to my face. Gently, he traced my cheek along the edge of my mask.

Then, he leaned forward.

My breath caught in my throat. He came closer and closer. I felt his hot breath on my skin.

My eyes fluttered closed. I parted my l*ps.

I desperately wanted him to close the distance and k*ss me. The very thrill of the near possibility had me buzzing out of my skin.

Tonight was a night of magic. Anything felt possible. Even this. Maybe especially this.

His l*ps brushed mine and I gasped.

It was the barest press, but it made my heart clench.

Then, however, a hint of panic sneaked in. He didn’t perhaps think I was someone else, did he? With mask covering most of my face, and my hair hidden, he might not have known it was actually me.

But then he said, voice breathy and soft, “Piper.”

And I wanted him to k*ss me aga

getting to my wolf. A piece of me was so near, and when it was, I felt so whole. I couldn’t resist it even if I wanted to.

I turned and dashed into the ballroom as fast as I could in my heels. I followed the feeling, searching the room. Then I saw someone I hadn’t seen before.

A woman stood there in a long, black dress with black feathers sticking out at the shoulders and in her hair. A black mask covered half of her face. Feathers shot from along the top of the mask and into her hair.

I didn’t know who she was. She hadn’t been with the candidates earlier, unless someone had changed. I didn’t have time to look for the others and do a head count.

Her eyes locked with mine for a brief moment. She seemed familiar, but I couldn’t place her. Quickly, she turned away and began walking from me. That’s when I realized she was the one with my

wolf.

I gave chase, following even as she ducked into a side room, and then another side room from there. Every time I thought I had her cornered, when I entered the new room, she had vanished into the next.

Then I entered into a room that was already occupied. Terry sat relaxed on a leather sofa, his arm

thrown across the back. He was drinking from a flute of champagne when I entered. He lifted a brow at

me as I came through the door in such a rush.

“Have you seen a woman in black?” I asked, looking around. I didn’t notice any other doors out of this

room, except what was clearly a bathroom.

I

I could feel my wolf moving farther away. I was desperate to catch it but the trail had stopped cold here.

When Terry didn’t answer me, I spoke again. “Is there another exit from this room?”

Terry placed his glass on a tray beside another flute. He lifted the bottle of champagne and poured the bubbling liquid into the second cup

“Sit, Piper,” he said, motioning to the open couch beside him. “We should talk.”

I narrowed my eyes. He had to have seen that woman. Was he covering for her? Did he truly know more about this whole thing than he let on?

Perhaps, I reasoned, I could get more information out of him if I talked to him. Julian had been very tight- l*pped about the full extent of Terry’s possible involvement. If I couldn’t gamer more information from Julian, then perhaps it was smart to go straight for the source.

Terry clearly liked me. If I played into that, even just to be nice, maybe I could bring out some revelations.