His left foot moved in tune to the music, his right foot following suit.

“Relax, you’re frozen stiff," he whispered, as I scrambled to move in sync with him, cursing my body for refusing to make any kind of muscle memory when it came to dancing.

“I am relaxed. You relax,” I huffed under my breath. I wasn't unsure if he’d heard me considering how far up his ears were.

“How can I relax when I’m holding my future wife like this?” His hand on my back jerked me forward, pushing my body flush against his.

I almost stopped breathing.

Despite my earlier conviction to not look him in the eyes, I lifted my eyes to his so that he could see the flames burning there.

A flicker of amusement crossed his face, leaving as fast as it arrived.

This jerk, he was clearly looking to get a rise out of me.

I’ll show you a rise, I thought,and promptly landed the heel of my shoe onto his foot.

His grip on my hand tightened and I swore I head a low grumble coming from his chest, but I had to give him credit for not missing a beat.

“Oh, I’m so sorry. Dancing really isn’t my forte,” I said sweetly, giving him an apologetic grin, but we both knew what I was really saying -

Try me and I'll step on your feet the rest of this dance.

We moved to the music without another word between us, gliding across the marbled floor flawlessly, as if we’d done this a hundred times before. When the last note of the music swelled and died, the thundering applause of the audience filled the air instead.

Prince Itarus gracefully brought us to a stop, but his hand lingered on the small of my back.

“Well,” he drawled, his eyes pinning mine. “it’s good that you have some fire in you.”

I furrowed my brows. What was he trying to say?

He bent his head low, his lips coming so close to my ears that I could feel the warmth of his breath.

“I like my meals a little spicy, if you catch my drift,” he purred, and straightened to his full height once more.

His lips stretched into a wicked smile, the tips of his fangs poking out like pearly knives. 

My mouth dropped open, and all I could do was stand dumbstruck as he let me go from his grasp, his eyes sparkling with dark amusement. 

He offered me his palm once more - it was protocol to escort me back to my seat - but my hands itched to just slap it away. It would probably hurt me more than it would hurt him, so instead I just bit my tongue and lifted my hand to his.

We walked back up the stairs.

"Do you say that to all the girls you dance with?" I grit out between clenched teeth.

He gave me a side eye glance. 

"No," he breathed, "Just the ones I like." The corners of his lips twitched.

This jerk. 

I couldn't wait to be rid of his touch quick enough. I tried to pull my hand away from his even before we had stopped walking but his fingers held firm, not even budging one bit. He didn't even seemed bothered by my attempt to pull away, as if it required no real strength on his part to hold firm. 

We reached my chair and I felt his grip loosen. I quickly stole away from his side and sat down into the safety comfort of my chair. 

"Thank you for the wonderful dance, Princess," he spoke, loud and clear so that the entire court could hear him, bowing his head low. He seemed the picture of gentlemanly conduct. 

I could hear the ladies in the audience swooning. My jaw clenched.

If these people only knew...

He straightened back up and gone was the expression of polite formality. That wicked smile was back on his lips, his gaze like a cat playing with a mouse. 

"I'll see you in school then," he whispered, so that only I could hear him. His smile grew darker. "Don't be a stranger, wifey" he crooned. 

He gave me a wink of the eye before swiftly turning and returning to his seat.