At Any Cost by Kate Sparkes

tongue parted her lips with that same gentle force. This was not a man accustomed to being denied anything. The idea should have sent her running, yet all she wanted was for the governor’s mansion to disappear, to find out where this might go, to ignore reality for as long as possible.
    Against the protestations of her body, Maggie pulled back. For the briefest moment Ulric held on, and then released her. She stepped back and placed a hand lightly over her mouth as she drew deep breaths to ground herself. The kiss had left her lightheaded and disoriented. Ulric leaned back against the railing and looked down at his feet.
    “This can’t happen,” she said when she’d found her voice again. “It’s too dangerous.”
    “For both of us, no doubt.” He didn’t sound concerned, but added, “I hardly think your father needs more reason to hate me. Even if he doesn’t hold power here, he has great influence.” He squeezed his eyes closed. “I shouldn’t have come out here, yet I can’t seem to walk away. What do you make of that, my dear regular person?”
    Maggie crouched and rested her face in her hands, the full skirts of her dress pooling around her. The unfairness of it all pained her. If not for his position, he would be perfect. Charming, gorgeous, powerful but willing to humble himself for her, drawn to her though he cared nothing for her father’s good graces.
    And married, she added to herself, and the thought threw cold water over the fire in her blood. She forced her mind to focus and remember what she’d read. Of course he had a queen. But if she recalled correctly, there were more wives. Hadn’t she and a few young Sorceresses once been disgusted by that fact? Marriages of political convenience, she assumed, as happened in so many lands. Surely the king they had discussed couldn’t be the same as the man who had just kissed her.
    She couldn’t think straight. Couldn’t remember.
    He rested a hand on her shoulder, which she shook off as she stood and stepped away from him. Did he have children? She couldn’t remember reading anything at all about that, as their births would likely have been too recent for her general interests. Her knowledge of history was useless when the present stood before her, his hand stretched out, waiting for her to speak.
    “I suppose you should get back,” she said. The cool distance in her voice pleased her.
    Ulric searched her gaze, which she refused to turn away. He swallowed hard and nodded, then pulled his hands through his long hair. “Of course. Just tell me you’re not saving your foolishness for any of those fellows in there. You deserve better.”
    She didn’t smile. “Good evening, your highness.”
    She forced her eyes away from his, from the loneliness and confusion she saw there, and retreated again. When her father came looking for her an hour later, he found her asleep on a settee in the parlour. He didn’t ask where she’d been, and had no need to ask why she didn’t want to return to the party.
    They climbed into the carriage without discussing the dinner. She glanced down at the front of her dress, where a few stains showed against the dark fabric. When she closed her eyes, she felt warm fingers tracing the skin above, and shifted uncomfortably as she tried to erase the image of his face from her mind.
    The night was filled with dreams, pleasant and dangerous, in which there was no dinner party, no guests. Only the two of them, a balcony, and all the freedom in the world.

5
    Belleisle
    M aggie tried to forget . After confirming the existence of several wives and discovering that this arrangement was, in fact, expected of any Tyrean ruler, she returned her history books to the library and vowed to put Ulric and his affairs out of her mind.
    I’ve had worse heartbreak, she told herself as she shelved the last volume and slipped out of the school library. She’d waited until long after everyone else was in bed, not wanting to answer questions.