A Treacherous King- Dark Mafia Romance

thirty five

Maeve

I approach Nadia who seems to be having a passionate conversation with some red head.

"There you are!" She chirps as I approach. "I want to introduce you to some of my friends." She says excitedly.

Although the idea sounds positively torturous, anything was better than watching Caine and Viktoria eye fuck each other.

I glance over in Caine's direction to find him talking to two older gentlemen. He doesn't even glance in our direction. I suppose my absence doesn't seem to bother him the way I had hoped. My eyes burn with tears but I take a few shuttering breaths trying to hold them at bay. I am thankful for Nadia and her distraction as I try to ignore the tightness in my chest.

Nadia introduces me to several of her friends, all of whom are pleasant enough and attempt to make conversation with me although I am in no mood. The language barrier was another added defeat. It was exhausting, Nadia constantly having to translate at every turn.

The tightness in my chest grows even thicker when the music takes on a more intimate note and several couples take to the middle of dance floor.

I watch as Viktoria touches Caine's arm lightly, drawing his attention away from the gentleman he was talking to. She leans in and says something in his ear. Then she's leading him out to the floor. His palm rests on her waist, her hand landing on his broad shoulder.

I couldn't help but think how much sense they made together. Both tall and confident, powerful and rich. They had drawn the attention of people standing to the side of the floor. The onlookers watched in admiration at the way they gilded along the dance floor.

I felt physically sick, the air too stifling and thick for me to draw even breaths. I knew if I didn't step away now, I'd lose it in front of all these rich people.

I spot two open double doors towards the back of the room, and swiftly make my way towards them. I step out onto an expansive deck. A few small tables and chairs are set up. Fairy lights and vines hang about, some wrapped around pillars on either side of the deck.

I go over and grasp the railing, taking in lungfuls of fresh air. My skin feels overheated and flush with anger. I didn't know whose eyes I wanted to claw out more, Viktoria's or Caine's.

Fuck him for bringing me here and making me think tonight was special. It obviously meant nothing to him. I was only a object for him to toy with until he grew bored and moved on to the next much shinier thing.

I clutch the necklace Caine gifted me, the diamonds lying cool against my chest. Why would he gift me something so beautiful only to rip my heart out a mere hour later? He was so flighty. One minute he was all but admitting he had feelings for me and the next he was referring to me as nothing more than a houseguest. His indecision made my head spin.

The chilly night air eases a little of the pressure in my chest, but I still feel like walking out of the ballroom and never looking back. I'm not even sure if he would notice if I was gone. He hadn't noted my disappearance yet, or if he had, he just didn't care.

"What is a pretty thing like you doing out here all alone?" A silky thick accented voice sounds behind me. I turn and am met with eyes the deepest shade of sapphire. The man regards me with an amused expression, a playful smirk playing upon his lips. He's tall, not as tall as Caine I think begrudgingly, but still a few inches taller than me. His hair is a warm honey color, styled neatly in a modern cut. He's wearing a well tailored tux, a black satin tie tied around his neck instead of a bow tie.

"I was just getting some air." I say, before turning away. I had hoped he would find me uninteresting and leave but he comes to stand beside me, leaning against the railing. He doesn't say anything for several moments, just takes in the courtyard behind the hotel like me.