Grey had had plans to sequester himself somewhere, drink a few Cokes (which were being served in the original glass bottles), and then leave early. The only reason he was here was because DE and Leo had begged and begged, unrelenting, and he didn’t have the energy to fight with them any longer. They were hoping that he and Jaya would begin speaking again, he knew. He might’ve tried to fight his feelings for a while, but apparently they were no secret to the others.

Then he saw her. Like a twenties film star, in her green dress, her ornate half-mask, and her hair in waves. She hadn’t seen him yet; she was marveling at the yacht, how it was done up. Watching the naked awe on her face, the way she loved these social shindigs in a way he could never begin to understand, Grey was sure there was an iron fist around his heart, squeezing and squeezing and squeezing.

It took a moment, but then she turned, and their eyes met. Her face lit with joy for a brief microsecond, only to be immediately replaced by… sadness.

Sadness?

Not irritation or weariness or, even worse, indifference, but sadness. But why would she be sad when she was the one who’d broken up with him? They kept staring at each other, neither able to look away.

Grey wanted to cinch his arms around her waist and press his mouth to hers. He knew what she’d taste like: heartbreak and hunger, regret and reconciliation.

He’d barely finished the thought when someone shoulder-checked him. He automatically grabbed the person’s arm—they were a few inches shorter than him—before noticing it was Alaric.

“Watch where you’re going,” the dude practically sneered. The way he was looking at Grey made it obvious it hadn’t been an accident.

Grey’s anger surged, making him feel more alive than he had in weeks. He tightened his grip on Alaric’s arm, taking note of the glass of scotch in his right hand. “Don’t push me, Konig.”

Suddenly Jaya was at his side, looking between them, her eyes wide. “Why don’t we all—”

“Jaya and Grey!”

They turned to see Caterina bustling toward them, wearing a very slinky black-and-gold dress. Alaric tossed a last sneer at Grey as he roughly pulled away and then disappeared through the crowd. Grey heard Jaya breathe an audible sigh of relief at Caterina’s approaching form, and glanced at her. She looked up at him, a tentative smile at her lips.