I am never, ever going to chase after a man straight into a trap ever again, I resolved quietly to myself as I walked through the doors with Nadir.
The world beyond the double doors was so refined that it made the balls I’d been attending previously look like children playing pretend. It was clear in comparison just how paltry the parties were that I had been able to attend, as the daughter of a debt-ridden baron.
My attention was diverted from my self-deprecation back to reality when Nadir nonchalantly stepped on my foot. What kind of man steps on a lady’s foot on purpose?!
I subconsciously glanced at the face of the man escorting me. He bore a serene smile, looking nothing like the blackhearted jerk who’d forcibly made me his partner moments ago.
Indeed, Nadir knew what he was doing. As I sat there stewing in frustration, his hand, which was coiled around my waist, pinched my side. Was he telling me to pull myself together? He had to be, right? Trying my hardest to do away with the tension on my face, I put on my best smile. It must’ve been a good enough attempt, because his grip relented.
People approached us as we strolled leisurely around the venue. It made sense. He was the host’s son, so greetings were in order.
“I thank you for your generous invitation, Lord Nadir,” a guest said.
“You look splendid as always,” said another.
“Do you remember me?” a third asked.
Nadir handled the constant flow of guests with practiced ease. A high noble through and through—nothing like me. It was all I could do to keep my cheeks from twitching.
Rich bachelors came to greet us, one after another. Ah, what a waste. They would’ve never approached me like this had I been alone! So many promising single noblemen, all gathered in one grand ball, and I couldn’t even strike up a conversation with any of them. I had a smile on my lips and a knife in my heart.
“Incidentally,” one of them said, “who might this lady be?”
Oh, crap.
My shoulders tensed and twitched. Nadir gave me a look as if to tell me to introduce myself.
“A pleasure to meet you, my lord,” I said with a light curtsy. “I am Brianna, daughter of Baron Lariquel.”
My greeting might’ve perhaps been lacking for a higher-ranked noble, but apparently, social ranks weren’t much of a consideration at tonight’s ball. Which was impressive—an event of this magnitude, a casual party?
“Oh my,” the guest said. “And where might you have found such a lovely lady?”
“An acquaintance of my sister’s,” Nadir explained.
“Oh! Of Her Highness the Crown Princess!” the guest, a count, exclaimed with admiration in his voice. Clearly his perception of Leticia was quite different from the reality of the young woman I’d seen merrily climbing trees just yesterday.
“Now then, we should go see my father,” said Nadir, smoothly leading me out of his social circle.
“Your father?” I repeated, the word making me uneasy.
He smirked at me in a way I hadn’t quite seen before. “My parents are the hosts tonight. It stands to reason we would greet them, no?”
True. There was no need to deliberately avoid his parents. Still, I had a bad feeling about it. I tried to wiggle so as to create some distance between myself and Nadir, but he held on tight, negating my efforts.
He slowly pulled me to where his parents were standing, and I felt a growing sense of dread. I did not want to meet them.
Naturally, my wishes went unheeded, and soon we stood before a kindly-looking couple who absolutely did not look like the parents of someone like Nadir. The contrast between them was such that I wondered whether he might’ve been an illegitimate child. He glared silently at me when I glanced his way. Had he read my mind?
“Nadir,” said the woman, presumably his mother, in a gentle tone. “It’s been a while.”
“You haven’t changed at all, mother,” Nadir replied with an easy, charming smile. Was he acting nice? Pretending to be a good boy in front of his parents?
Perhaps he’d once more read my thoughts, because he stepped on my foot again. Stop stomping on a lady’s foot!
“We haven’t seen you much since you sent us away,” his father said, seemingly on the verge of tears. “Oh, my Lettie...”
Oh. So Nadir didn’t pretend to be a good boy to his parents. He was just keeping up appearances due to the other people around them.
“Leticia is a happily married woman now,” he said.
His father sobbed. “I wanted to keep her close longer, shower her with more affection...”
This anguished, weeping man had such a different feel to him than his son. They looked nothing like parent and child. And, judging by the duke’s words, Nadir had even gone as far as removing his own parents from the picture to marry his sister off. Truly a terrible person.
As I watched the two, sympathetic to his teary father’s plight, his mother noticed me, tilting her head.
“And who might this beautiful young lady be?” she asked.
Flattery or no, being called beautiful was always pleasant. I smiled politely at her and curtsied. “I am Brianna, daughter of Baron Lariquel,” I said. “I am accompanying your son to the ball tonight. It is an honor to meet you, my lady.”
I made sure to emphasize I was his partner for tonight, but nothing more. His mother seemed to understand the nuance, and offered me a small smile in turn.
“I’m Shelly, Nadir’s mother,” she said before turning to her husband. “Now, now, dear, please do not embarrass us by crying at the ball.”
“Oh, I’m Curtis,” the duke said between sobs, spurred on by his wife. “A pleasure...”
Just as I sighed with relief at having successfully navigated the situation, Nadir smiled brightly, then dropped a bombshell on us all.
“She’s my fiancée,” he declared.
I gaped at him, speechless. Duchess Shelly gave a small, awkward smile, as if saying, Oh dear. And Duke Curtis, for some reason, cried even harder.
The awkward silence that hung in the air was interrupted the very next second by the piercing shrieks of the young noble ladies who’d been watching the scene unfold.