choices, either of which will do, either of which will suit you. So go ahead, you choose—which name do you prefer: Lauricia or Aurelia?” Her eyes flashed as brightly as the jewels that swung from her ears. “Hurry! We must decide quickly,” she whispered,
nodding toward the opposite side of the room, her voice brisk and impatient, when she added, “In case you haven’t yet noticed, you’ve managed to cause quite a bit of a stir with one guest in particular. And from what I can tell it’s just a matter of time before he’ll be standing before us, demanding to know who you are, and we’ll need something to tell him, now, won’t we?”
I paused for a moment, acting as though I was giving serious consideration to each name, when the truth is I’d already chosen Aurelia. I’d claimed it the moment I heard it. If for no other reason than it reminded me of Aurora—the most beautiful, serene, accomplished member of the Council, who, as it just so happened, was also my favorite. And yet, it also contained a hint of my own name as well, which pretty much made it the perfect combination.
But before I had a chance to inform Messalina, the boy from across the room was already standing before us. His gaze darting between Messalina and me, as he said, “Messalina, always a pleasure.” He ducked his head low, taking her hand in his so that he could bring his lips to it. Then nodding toward me he added, “And who is this you’ve brought with you?” His gaze locked on mine.
Messalina shot me an anxious look—unsure what to call me. Though it’s not like it mattered. At that moment, it was like time was suspended.
As though the entire party was set on pause.
As though nothing else existed but his dark tousled hair, smooth olive skin, and deeply brown, almost black eyes that made my head swirl.
“My name is Aurelia,” I said, my voice surprisingly sure, extending my hand with a strange rush of calm.
I had no idea where it came from. No idea how I’d found myself slipping so easily into the role of a young and sophisticated Roman aristocrat. And yet, there I was—my gaze lowered shyly, my lips curving flirtatiously, a puff of air rounding my cheeks, as I waited to feel the brush of his palm, the brief sweep of his lips on my hand—the standard greeting of the time. It was as though I really was Aurelia, and at that moment, I preferred her to me.
“Aurelia, this is Dacian,” Messalina informed me, her eyes flashing knowingly. “As you well know, Dacian is the son of a senator,” she added, carefully stating her words, clearly wanting me to get the significance. Dacian was important, someone I should at least pretend to know.
“Strange we have not met before,” Dacian said, his voice as perplexed as his face, as though he truly was struggling to make sense of it.
I shrugged, my shoulders rising and falling as I cast my gaze to the side, amazed by the amount of cool I displayed,
though it wasn’t long before it began ebbing away and I was cast out of the role Messalina insisted I play.
I wasn’t used to being around boys that cute—and Dacian definitely fell into the category of Seriously Cute. I mean, I’d known him for less than a minute and he’d already claimed the top spot on my “Top 5 Cutest Boys Ever” list—the one that included living people, ghosts, and celebrities (and this despite the fact that his outfit pretty much resembled a dress).
Aurelia shined at that sort of thing, Riley didn’t. But as much as I wanted to be Aurelia again, she was drowned out by the warning that blared in my head, an annoyingly cautious voice shouting: Do not get distracted! Your name is not Aurelia, and Dacian is not on your agenda, no matter how cute he may be. You are here to find Theocoles and cross him over—that’s it!
The voice was loud—a lot louder than I wanted it to be. And yet, it didn’t stand a chance against Messalina’s when she clasped my hand in hers, instantly silencing my thoughts
nodding toward the opposite side of the room, her voice brisk and impatient, when she added, “In case you haven’t yet noticed, you’ve managed to cause quite a bit of a stir with one guest in particular. And from what I can tell it’s just a matter of time before he’ll be standing before us, demanding to know who you are, and we’ll need something to tell him, now, won’t we?”
I paused for a moment, acting as though I was giving serious consideration to each name, when the truth is I’d already chosen Aurelia. I’d claimed it the moment I heard it. If for no other reason than it reminded me of Aurora—the most beautiful, serene, accomplished member of the Council, who, as it just so happened, was also my favorite. And yet, it also contained a hint of my own name as well, which pretty much made it the perfect combination.
But before I had a chance to inform Messalina, the boy from across the room was already standing before us. His gaze darting between Messalina and me, as he said, “Messalina, always a pleasure.” He ducked his head low, taking her hand in his so that he could bring his lips to it. Then nodding toward me he added, “And who is this you’ve brought with you?” His gaze locked on mine.
Messalina shot me an anxious look—unsure what to call me. Though it’s not like it mattered. At that moment, it was like time was suspended.
As though the entire party was set on pause.
As though nothing else existed but his dark tousled hair, smooth olive skin, and deeply brown, almost black eyes that made my head swirl.
“My name is Aurelia,” I said, my voice surprisingly sure, extending my hand with a strange rush of calm.
I had no idea where it came from. No idea how I’d found myself slipping so easily into the role of a young and sophisticated Roman aristocrat. And yet, there I was—my gaze lowered shyly, my lips curving flirtatiously, a puff of air rounding my cheeks, as I waited to feel the brush of his palm, the brief sweep of his lips on my hand—the standard greeting of the time. It was as though I really was Aurelia, and at that moment, I preferred her to me.
“Aurelia, this is Dacian,” Messalina informed me, her eyes flashing knowingly. “As you well know, Dacian is the son of a senator,” she added, carefully stating her words, clearly wanting me to get the significance. Dacian was important, someone I should at least pretend to know.
“Strange we have not met before,” Dacian said, his voice as perplexed as his face, as though he truly was struggling to make sense of it.
I shrugged, my shoulders rising and falling as I cast my gaze to the side, amazed by the amount of cool I displayed,
though it wasn’t long before it began ebbing away and I was cast out of the role Messalina insisted I play.
I wasn’t used to being around boys that cute—and Dacian definitely fell into the category of Seriously Cute. I mean, I’d known him for less than a minute and he’d already claimed the top spot on my “Top 5 Cutest Boys Ever” list—the one that included living people, ghosts, and celebrities (and this despite the fact that his outfit pretty much resembled a dress).
Aurelia shined at that sort of thing, Riley didn’t. But as much as I wanted to be Aurelia again, she was drowned out by the warning that blared in my head, an annoyingly cautious voice shouting: Do not get distracted! Your name is not Aurelia, and Dacian is not on your agenda, no matter how cute he may be. You are here to find Theocoles and cross him over—that’s it!
The voice was loud—a lot louder than I wanted it to be. And yet, it didn’t stand a chance against Messalina’s when she clasped my hand in hers, instantly silencing my thoughts
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