Page 12 of Royal Games (The Royals of Monterra)

The scent got stronger, and I could see the barn through the tall fence in front of it. It had to be about eight or nine feet, made out of patterned wrought iron. I tugged at the gate, but it was locked. There was a row of decorative spiky arrowheads all along the top. I knew that I should probably go back to the party. But if there were horses in that barn, I would much rather spend the evening with them than the women back at the mansion.

I checked behind me to make sure that I was still alone, and then I hiked up my skirt. I grabbed the metal bars and started to climb. This did not turn out to be as easy as you might expect in high heels and formal wear. The soles were so slippery. I considered kicking them off but was worried I might hurt my feet.

That decision turned out to be a huge mistake. I got toward the top, grabbing a couple of the arrowheads to pull myself up. I threw my left leg up to go over, and my right foot gave way underneath me. I yelped as my foot slipped and I started to fall.

Some of my skirt caught on one of the arrowheads and abruptly stopped me from falling. I was hanging awkwardly, holding the top of the fence, my legs dangling and my skirt caught on the top of the fence. Both of my shoes slid off my feet and dropped to the ground.

It was so ridiculous I had to laugh. I was trying to figure out how to get down, but I couldn’t stop laughing. This wassosomething that I would do. I wasn’t particularly accident prone, but I was very good at finding ways to embarrass myself.

I tugged a few times at my skirt, still giggling. It wouldn’t come loose. I had to give mad respect to the designer, because this thing was sturdy. I worried about ripping the dress completely. It didn’t belong to me. Would the show charge me if I came back with the skirt all shredded? I could possibly fix or explain one hole, but an irreparable tear was a different story.

Then I tried pulling my legs up higher, but I wasn’t strong enough. I was so stuck. I laughed again.

“May I be of assistance?”

I looked over my shoulder to see Dante standing there. He had undone his bow tie and the first few buttons on his tuxedo shirt. He seemed both amused and concerned.

“Yes, I could definitely use some help.”

He took off his jacket and scaled the fence much more easily than I had. I hoped I wasn’t flashing him, but he didn’t even look. He easily lifted the dress up, with me still in it, over the spikes. He used just one hand. I couldn’t help but be impressed. Finally free, I regained my footing. The iron felt cold and rough against my feet.

“Thank you!” I said. He had possibly just saved me thousands of dollars.

“My pleasure,” he said. There was a heat in his eyes that I hadn’t noticed earlier. It made my skin tingle with delight.

“Race you down?” I asked. He smiled, and my heart sped up in response to it. He had a breathtaking smile.

“What do I get when I beat you?”

“What makes you think you’ll beat me?” I said, trying not to laugh again. Something about him made me feel even happier than normal.

His response was to scale down a few feet and then jump the rest of the way. “That’s what makes me think I’ll beat you.”

“Cheating?” I responded.

“It’s not cheating. Just superior climbing skills.”

“When you save a damsel in distress, you’re not supposed to leave her behind,” I teased him.

He put his hands back on the bars, obviously intending to climb back up.

“No!” I called down to him. “I was kidding.” I tried not to laugh, seeing the annoyed expression on his face. He seemed to take the jab at his honor very seriously.

I carefully climbed back down, and he stood respectfully off to one side, but still within arm’s reach to catch me if I fell. It wasn’t necessary, but it was sweet. When I got down I grabbed my heels and held on to the fence while I slipped them back on. I inspected the new hole in my dress. I had a small sewing kit in my suitcase. “Maybe I can stitch it up without them noticing,” I murmured.

When I glanced up at Dante, I realized that he was studying me with a serious look in his eyes. There was a sadness there that I hadn’t noticed earlier. It made me want to hug him and make everything better. “You were laughing.”

“What?” I laughed a lot. That wasn’t very descriptive, so I tried to clarify. “When?”

“When I found you. You were laughing.” He said this like it confused him and he didn’t understand.

I shrugged. “I was laughing because it was funny. You have to admit that what just happened was pretty funny.”

A smile played at the edge of his lips. “It was, but I’m too much of a gentleman to say so.”

That made me want to laugh again, but I just grinned at him instead.

“Is this situation so terrible that you were trying to escape?” He gestured toward the fence.

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