He finally looked directly at me, once again nearly knocking me over with his gaze. “Yeah?”

“Next time… next time you want to talk to me about something—anything—you don’t have to drink to work up the courage. Just tell me.”

“Easier said than done.”

“Not really.” I tried for the door again, and this time, he stopped me, resting a hand on my shoulder.

“Sage?”

I turned. “Yeah?”

“Do you know why I don’t like him? Brayden?” I was so astonished he’d gotten the name right that I couldn’t voice any answers, though several came to mind. “Because of what he said.”

“What part?” Seeing as Brayden had said many things, in great detail, it wasn’t entirely clear which Adrian was referring to.

“‘Historically inaccurate.”’ Adrian gestured at me with his other hand, the one not on my shoulder. “Who the hell looks at you and says ‘historically inaccurate’?”

“Well,” I said. “Technically it is.”

“He shouldn’t have said that.”

I shifted, knowing I should move away… but I didn’t. “Look, it’s just his way.”

“He shouldn’t have said that,” repeated Adrian, eerily serious. He leaned his face toward mine. “I don’t care if he’s not the emotional type or the complimentary type or what. No one can look at you in this dress, in all that fire and gold, and start talking about anachronisms. If I were him, I would have said, ‘You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen walking this earth.’”

My breath caught, both at the words and the way he said them. I felt strange inside. I didn’t know what to think, except that I needed to get out of there, away from Adrian, away from what I didn’t understand. I broke from him and was surprised to find myself shaking.

“You’re still drunk,” I said, putting my hand on the door knob.

He tilted his head to the side, still watching me in that same, disconcerting way. “Some things are true, drunk or sober. You should know that. You deal in facts all the time.”

“Yeah, but this isn’t—” I couldn’t argue with him looking at me like that. “I have to go. Wait… you didn’t take the cross.” I held it out to him.

He shook his head. “Keep it. I think I’ve got something else to help center my life.”

CHAPTER 15

I FELT SO BAD for Brayden the next day that I actually called him, as opposed to our usual texting and e-mailing.

“I’m so sorry,” I said. “Running out like that… it’s not my usual style. Not at all. I wouldn’t have left if it wasn’t a family emergency.” Maybe that was stretching it. Maybe not.

“It’s okay,” he said. Without seeing his face, I couldn’t tell if it really was okay. “I suppose things were winding down anyway.”

I wondered what “things” he meant. Did he mean the dance itself? Or was he talking about us?

“Let me take you out to make up for it,” I said. “You always do everything. I’ll handle it for a change. Dinner will be on me, and I’ll even pick you up.”