Hesitantly, I placed my hand on his, letting him pull me to my feet and gather closer to his warmth. His heady cologne filled my senses as we swayed slowly along with the harmony. Gazing at my eyes, he tucked a strand behind my ear.

“Did I say how beautiful you’re looking tonight?” his low voice said.

With heated cheeks, I shook my head.

“Well, you’re looking enchanting tonight, Rosebud,” he rasped.

I blushed some more. “Thank you. You’re not looking bad either.”

“That’s it? Nothing more I get to hear?” He raised his brow.

I rolled my eyes. “You’re looking good.”

“Just good?”

I glared at his mischievous gray eyes. Though he teased me, I could feel the change of mood in him after the dinner. His shoulders were tense, eyes were disturbed.

“What happened? You look tense,” I asked.

The smile slipped off his face. He shook his head. “Not now. Later, Rosebud. Let’s enjoy our dance first.”

With a sigh, I nodded and allowed him to pull me closer to his chest and hug me. I placed my head under his chin, closed my eyes and enjoyed our slow dance, the music, and his warmth without objecting. Just as he said.

“Check mate!” I said, lining my soldier right before his king.

With his hands adjoined before him, he just stared at the chessboard in silence.

After our dance, he led me inside to play chess, just like old times. In the first match, he won, as always. But in the second match, I won. Same went with the third one. Not because I was better than him on the chessboard, because he let me win. His mind was somewhere else.

The more time that passed, the more his stance got tense. Those gray eyes grew more anxious as our game came to an end. He was stalling, I was aware of it.

And even I was now afraid to ask questions. What happened in the past to make him this agitated by the revelation?

What terrified me most was the fear in those gray pools. Tonight was the night I discovered his many faces. But I didn’t ever expect I’d see fear in his eyes.

“Ace? You again let me win. It’s not fair!” I pressed my lips together. He used to do it in our childhood. He’d always let me win and even after I was aware of the fact, I’d be jumping up and down on my seat out of excitement. And he’d just watch me. But I wasn’t the little Emerald anymore.

“No problem. We can play another match,” he said, rearranging the board.

I stopped his hand. His stormy gray met my turquoise. “Three matches are enough for tonight. Don’t you think it’s time to fulfill your promise?”

His jaw clenched, eyes looking away from me.