by Ruby Vincent
Off with their heads.
Nathan whistled. “Damn, girl. Is it your solemn duty to make every person in each room you walk into feel like they’re wearing a trash bag?”
I sat where I placed my card—between him and Preston. “Nope. It’s my solemn duty to get everyone wondering who my designer is, so I can collect potential buyers as I tell them it’s me. Never too early to build my fan base.”
“Smart.”
On Nathan’s right was Carter, Hazel, and Zion. On Preston’s left was Delilah and Mila. I thought it was a pretty good arrangement, but Delilah kept looking around, shooting me suspicious looks.
“I didn’t approve this seating chart,” she said. “Adler, did you change it?”
“From my sickbed? How would I have done that?”
“I think we’re all where we’re supposed to be.” Preston found my hand under the table and linked our pinkies. A happy shiver ricocheted up my spine.
“No, Delilah is right,” Carter said. “I should be seated next to my wife-to-be. You look amazing, baby.”
“Blow it out your shorts.”
He laughed uproariously over Hazel choking on her sip of painted roses. “All the couples that last say the key is never losing your sense of humor.”
“What do the couples that last say about shotgunning your bride down the aisle? I have a feeling that puts a damper on the long-term prospects.”
The two of us hadn’t talked since that fated night in the ocean. I couldn’t get what Carter said to me out of my head. That we were a tragic love story. It played on a constant loop and the phantom touch of his strong arms beneath me added to my maddening confusion.
Did he mean anything he said that night, or was it more crap to reel me in? He said he wanted me back, but how could that be true after what I did to him? I knew where we stood when he was bullying and torturing me, but this...?
This was even worse.
“Actually, the divorce rate for arranged marriages is four percent,” Carter said. “Good news for us.”
Carter was truly gifted. Not just for his ability to put on a black suit covered in red hearts and reduce nearly every man around him into a clown playing dress-up, leaving him the only one standing as king, but those crystal-chipped eyes and wicked grin made real that if any head was coming off, it was mine.
“Is that true?” Mila spoke up. “While couples who choose each other sit at fifty percent? Doesn’t give much hope for love.”
“Don’t say that,” Delilah replied. “I’d rather take the chance at real bliss than spend the rest of my life with someone I don’t care enough about to leave.”
“Would you?” she challenged.
On that note, we picked up our forks and started eating. The community built its future on arranged marriages and making the right connections. What could any of us say about it?
I polished off half my chicken and had enough. “We’ve gotten too quiet,” I said. “This should cheer everyone up. I have a surprise coming.”
“Surprise?” Delilah repeated. “I didn’t approve any surprise.”
“It’s a surprise for you too. Think of it as a thank-you for picking up the slack while I was out.”
Her eyes narrowed to slits. “What did you do?”
“It’s good, I swear. It’s the final touch this party needed.”
“What this party needs is dancing.” Nathan held his hand out to me. “May I?”
I hesitated, looking around. “Should we?”
“One dance wouldn’t kill us.”
I want to even if it does.
Nathan was a freckled masterpiece in a bloodred suit. It clung to him in all the right places with bespoke precision above my level. Putting clothes on this man was an honor worthy of hanging your painting in the Louvre. Until I earned it, I’d be happy I was the one who got to take his clothes off.
On the dance floor, Nathan spun me out and reeled me in. I bumped against his chest, laughing. “Nice moves, Prince.”
“You’d know.”
I linked my fingers behind his neck, marveling at the way our bodies fit together like puzzle pieces. “You said my gift was creative threats. Yours is making every comment dirty.”
“I take great pride in that.”
“How did the call with your mom go last night?”
“It was supervised like I’m a damn inmate,” he gruffed, “but she was happy telling me about a book she’s reading. The colonel didn’t pull any crap and try to cut our talk short, so I guess I should be thankful.”
“You shouldn’t be thankful of that man for anything. He created the problem and then grants a small reprieve like he’s doing you a favor. It’s what narcissists and manipulators do.”
Nathan brushed his lips over my cheek. “Let’s not talk about him. You’re mind-blowingly gorgeous in that dress and all I want to think about is a certain promise to screw my brains out.”
I smiled into his shoulder. “I’m ready to make good on that when you are.”
“What are we still doing here?”
He raced off, dragging me along, and I pulled us up and wrapped his arms around me again.
“Slow down, Prince.” I rested my forehead against his. “I like this song.”
Lead singer Cari Max was spinning a melody of dangerous, obsessive love, and the girl who overcame. That’s a song a girl like me had to listen to, dance to, absorb into my bones and pray one day she’d be singing that song about me.
“Kelli,” I murmured. “Did you get a chance to talk to her?”
“I did. She got the highlights, but that’s enough to paint a picture. I don’t see it working out for us.”
“Why not?”
“Negotiations fell apart somewhere around nursing home.”
“You could explain to her that—”
“I’m not marrying her, Belle. Putting Mom aside, it’s obvious that she believes we’ll be one of the ninety-six turning an arranged marriage into a lifelong commitment. It wouldn’t be fair to give her the hope that goes along with I do. My search for a wife continues.”
“Let’s stop talking about this too,” I said, dropping my head on his shoulder.
“Don’t like the thought of me pursuing other women?” he teased.
“Not even a little.”
“Do you like the thought of me covering you in caramel sauce and licking my way to the tasty parts?”
“Hmm. Tell me more.”
“Remember two summers ago when we broke the bed? We’re going to make that time look like two fumbly teenagers who learned all they know about sex from eighth-grade health class.”
“Nathan, what are we still doing here?”
We turned to rush off and I was nearly taken out running into Carter.
“Whoa.” He steadied me. “No need to run to me. I came to ask you to dance.”
Seeing him brought me sharply into focus. “Sorry, Nathan. I can’t run off. I have to stay for the party.”
“Are you sure?”
I kissed him. A quick peck but what I’d been dying to do all day. “There’s still the surprise,” I said.
Nathan held my hand till the last second, and then we were alone.
Carter reached for me. I skipped out of the way. “Sorry, but I can’t dance with you either. I’m done with your mind games, Carter. This is where we stand. You drop this proposal garbage and we both move on. As friends. As strangers. As people who nod to each other at parties and never speak. Whichever you want, but we agree to leave the past in the past.
“If you don’t drop it, I’ll treat you as you obviously see me: as an enemy.”
Carter listened to my speech with an open face and relaxed stance.
“Well?” I prompted.
“I must be playing mind games if this still isn’t clear to you, so let me spell it out in no uncertain terms.” He swallowed the distance, bearing down on me. “I will not drop the proposal until you admit you lied about that day in the woods. It doesn’t matter what y
ou say or do. I won’t change my mind. Was that straightforward enough, or should I say it another way?”
I fisted my satin ruffles—fury eating away my last ounce of doubt. “Remember you said this.”
“Another infamous Adler threat?”
“The threats are over. My pleading with you is done. I’ve hung up my last attempt at appealing to your better nature. You forget how well I know you, Carter Prince. I know all the buttons to push and the strings to pull.”
“Is that supposed to mean something?”
“Like I said, I’m tired of going around and around with you.” I flicked over his shoulder to the clock. “You’ll see what I mean soon enough.”
Sidestepping him, I walked out of the ballroom and through the front door. The gates were always left open, but guards encircled the fence, double the presence than there were a week ago.
I posted up to wait. I told them to arrive at nine thirty on the dot. If they were the punctual type, they’d top the hill in the next three minutes.
The cars rolled up in two.
“You can let them in,” I told the guards. “They’re tonight’s entertainment.”
We went through the process of stating names and checking IDs, and finally they were let through. I hurried up the path, my surprise falling in line behind me.
“Do you need anything before you go on?”
“No, Miss Adler,” said Mr. Joseph, the man I spoke to on the phone. “Give us ten minutes to change and we’ll be ready for your introduction.”
“So fast? Wow. That’s why you’re the professionals,” I said. “You go on in eleven.”
I took them up the back way into the room where they’d get ready. “After you’re changed, we’ll enter through the ballroom’s back door and I’ll announce you. This will be great. Everyone’s going to be so excited.”
“We’re excited,” Joseph replied. “Every three years, you all step onto our tiny patch of rock and shake things up. It’s an honor to be a part of your event.”
I shook his hand. “Trust me. The honor is all mine.”
Stepping out, I gave them privacy to change and counted down the clock the entire time.
“Ready.”
I faced them, seeing the group in all its glory.
“Perfect.”
We were a silent troop marching through the halls. I let us in through the back just as Purely Pink wrapped up their first set. Everything and everyone was on time today. Rarely did good fortune smile on me.
“Fan out,” I said. “A few of you have the stage and the rest can interact with the audience. I made sure you had enough room.”
Nodding, they passed around their equipment and sorted themselves out. Some went to the left, the others moved to the right, and the rest stayed put to join me on stage.
Raucous cheering sounded my cue.
“Thank you, everyone,” Cari Max said. “We’re taking a short break, but we’ll be back in thirty.”
I high-fived the girls on their way down and took their place. “Fellow captives, are we having fun tonight?” Whoops and claps were my answer. “What would you say if I told you there’s more?”
We were a small group, but dang could we work up noise to blow you away. Everyone stomped, cheered, and shouted for me to bring it on.
“I have a very special treat,” I continued. “Wonderland is a world of time-telling rabbits, flamingo mallets, and fish footmen. If we’re emulating a land of fantasy and adventure, it’s only right we have a little whimsy of our own.” I threw out my hands. “Joining us for the first time is the famous, prize-winning Citrine Troupe. The cove’s first, oldest, and only band of acrobatic clowns!”
The troupe streamed out from behind the stage, twisting, flipping, and cartwheeling to their cheering audience. At his assigned front row and center table, Carter shot to his feet.
“Thank you for standing up, baby.” I pointed to the wide-eyed, stark white King of Hearts. “I’d like to take this moment to thank my fiancé-to-be. You keep me on my toes, Carter. Remind me every day to never give up or give in. I’m so excited for our life together because I know every day will be just. Like. This.
“Troupe,” I cooed. “Get in close with my hubby. I want us to take a picture.”
The clowns descended on him. Carter tripped over his chair trying to get away. He fell hard, crash echoing through the hall, and good friends they were, Nathan helped him up while Preston attempted to hold the troupe back.
“Wait, hold up.”
“Don’t be shy, honey,” I spoke over him. “Just one picture.”
Surrounding him, one of the clowns went to put an arm around him and Carter spun fit to put a ballerina to shame. Stumbling over his feet, Carter got free and broke into an all-out sprint.
“Goodness,” I said as he escaped out the door. “He must really need to go. Don’t mind us, everyone. Dance. Have fun. Keep the party going.”
They were only too happy to. Our stand-in mix hit the speakers and everyone flowed onto the dance floor as the clowns began their performance. It was all a blur of color and noise around me. I dropped the mic and marched off the stage, setting on Carter’s trail.
“Fuck!”
The shout bounced through the empty hall. Picking up speed, I headed in its direction and jerked when a screech soon followed it.
Carter burst out onto the patio. He streaked out of sight, and then abruptly returned into view, holding a lawn chair aloft. He threw it with a roar, and the clang as it collided with the metal pool railing rattled my bones.
“Carter!”
He spun on me—frosty blues melting in raging, darkening fire. His chest heaved, ragged pants wracked his body and spewed bloody spittle from his mouth. You would’ve thought the clowns had taken him out back and jumped him. “I told you in confidence! You swore you would never tell!”
“You swore we’d be best friends forever, so I guess we’re both full of shit!”
“You went too far!”
My eyes bugged. “I went too far?! You lied to my parents and blackmailed me, but clowns are too far?!”
“Arrrgh!”
I screamed as another chair went whizzing over my head.
“Why are we doing this, Belle?! All I wanted was for you to tell the truth!” Carter reached out, hands clawed and grasping like he wanted to grab and shake me. “There was a man in the woods that day. He attacked us. He did this to me!” Carter swiped so hard at his scar, he left angry, red prints. “Why won’t you admit it?!”
I ran from him.
“Belle!”
Thunderous footfalls chased me. I fled down the beach, tears frozen and snatched by the wind. I splashed in the shoreline and his grip seized me, spinning me around.
“He was there, Belle!”
“Carter!”
“He was real!” Huge, manic eyes filled my vision. “Tell me he was real!”
“He was!” The scream tore from my throat. “It all happened! Exactly how you remembered it! I lied, okay?! I lied!”
Carter staggered back like I struck him. Feet tangling, he tripped and fell in the surf. I dropped in front of him, taking his stricken face in my hands.
“I lied.” My voice was the barest croak fighting to be heard above the ocean. “That day your nanny took us to the park. We snuck away from her like we knew we weren’t supposed to do, and we went to the big rock where we weren’t supposed to go. I didn’t know we were being followed. That he had f-found me again.”
I stopped, taking in a shuddering breath. Carter was pale and immovable before me.
“When he appeared, emerging from the woods like creeping fog, I froze. I couldn’t speak even to tell you to run. He grabbed me and you flew at him. My best friend,” I whispered. “Trying to save me.”
Years and years of struggling to forget, and my mind supplied the memories as if it was yesterday. Mal’s arm a bind around my stomach, crushing me breathless against him. The pungent scent of his sweat and favorite Creed cologne. His l
ips on my ear as he growled not to scream.
My eyes pinched shut as it all came back. “He backhanded you, slicing your cheek with his spiked ring. He was known for that back home. Most of his men walked around with scars on their faces—forever marking them... and you.”
“Who is he?” Carter rasped.
“What he is, simply and honestly, is my stalker. He’s pursued me for years. Followed me across the entire country and will stop at nothing to get me back. He’s sick, Carter. He believes he’s in love with me. Raised in blood and warped by violence, he’s gotten everything he’s ever wanted by taking it with force. Mal thinks I should be no different.”
His face crumpled. “In love with you? But we were attacked by a grown man.”
I said nothing. Just nodded.
“Oh my god.” Carter sunk his head in his hands, face bleaching whiter than the moonlight. “I don’t understand, Belle. Why did you lie?”
I couldn’t look at him. “He threw you and you smashed your head on the boulder. I saw you lying there still and bleeding, and I screamed. I screamed and screamed. The nanny heard me and called out for us.
“Mal panicked. He tried to run off with me, but I bit him and made him let go. He dropped me and I rushed to you. Mal came after me, skidding to a stop when Nanny called again, closer that time. He lost his chance to get away with me clean. He had to run before she saw him, and she didn’t. She walked into an empty clearing and found me crying over you. When they asked what happened, you told the truth, but I—”
“Told everyone I fell climbing the boulder, cut my cheek on a rock, and was lying to get out of trouble. You swore there was no man.”
I cried. Great, hiccupping sobs that made it almost impossible to speak. “I’m sorry, C-Carter. I’m so sorry.”
“Why?”
“I told you.” I stroked his cold cheek. “I did it because I loved you.
“I loved Hawk’s Bay. I loved my school, and my friends, and my life. If my parents had known he found me again, they’d have packed me up and moved the next day, and I couldn’t stand to lose you.
“In my stupid, selfish, twelve-year-old mind, my only option was to lie,” I said. “I lied to your parents. My parents. The police. The doctors. Everyone. I lied until I almost believed it myself... but you didn’t. I j-just wanted us to go back to how we were. I was so desperate to convince you your head trauma made you imagine him, that I argued and fought you. I called you crazy.