Shock and alarm bubbled in my chest. Was he drunk? He didn’t sound like the Kai I knew at all.
“Um…” I let out an uncomfortable laugh and tried to twist out of his hold, but it was hard in my dress. “You’re right. Itistoo soon. And, while I really like you as afriend…” I emphasized the last word. “I’m not sure I want to date right now.”
He wasn’t listening. He was too busy looking over my head with a wicked smile.
“Here he comes,” he murmured.
Before I could ask who he was talking about, a warm,familiarhand landed on my shoulder.
“Take your hands off my fiancée.” Dark and turbulent, the order was packed with so much tightly leashed danger it was a spark away from combustion.
“Apologies.” Kai released me, his expression strangely self-satisfied. “I didn’t realize…”
“I don’t give a fuck what you did or didn’t realize.” The lethally quiet statement poured ice down my spine. “Touch Vivian again, and I’ll kill you.”
Simple. Brutal.Honest.
Kai’s eyes flickered along with a ghost of a smile. “Noted.” He inclined his head at us. “Enjoy.”
I watched him walk away, too stunned to speak.
It was only when Dante whirled me around and clasped my hand in his that I found my voice.
“What are you doing here?” My feet followed his lead out of instinct, but the rest of my body tingled with alarm.
His presence was too powerful, his scent too all-consuming. It crowded my lungs, filling them with clean earthiness and rich spices.
When I was around him, it was easy to lose myself, no matter how upset or heartbroken I was.
My ability to breathe ceased when his eyes connected with mine.
Dark hair. Sculpted cheekbones. Firm, sensual lips.
It’d been less than a week since we last saw each other, yet he was somehow more beautiful than I remembered.
“I was invited. By you, I believe.” The cold brutality vanished, replaced with warm amusement. It was like Kai’s departure had flipped a switch.
I thought I detected a hint of nerves as well, but I must’ve heard wrong. Dante was never nervous.
“You know what I mean. What are you doinghere, dancing with me?”
His palm practically burned mine. I desperately wanted to pull away, but I couldn’t with everyone watching. It seemed like every set of eyes was trained on us.
“Because you’re my fiancée, and this is your big night. You’ve worked months on the Legacy Ball, Vivian. Did you think I was going to miss it?”
The words were needles to my heart, injecting it with a rush of electricity and adrenaline before I forced it to calm.
If the past week had taught me anything, it was that every high came with a devastating crash.
“I’m not your fiancée anymore.”
Dante fell silent.
At first glance, he looked every inch the enigmatic CEO out on a night on the town. His custom-made tuxedo molded to his body, emphasizing broad shoulders and sleek, powerful muscles. The soft lights threw his bold features into sharp relief, and his chin held its usual proud, arrogant tilt.
But a closer look revealed the faint purple smudges beneath his eyes. Lines of tension bracketed his mouth, and his grip was tight, almost desperate when he replied.
“We had a fight,” he said, his voice low. “We didn’t officially break up.”