Page 38 of Five Stolen Rings

“You sure?” he says, keeping his voice low. He raises one brow at me, a challenge.

“I can’t lie to everyone,” I say. It takes me a second to realize that I’ve tightened my grip on his arm, and I let my grip loosen a bit.

“We’re lying about being in a relationship,” he points out.

“It’s different.” Don’t ask me why. “So…yeah. I’m sure.”

“They might ask questions,” he prods.

“Or they might not be interested enough in one person to delve that deep,” I say.

“That’s possible too.”

“I’ll just divert attention to my successful, handsome boyfriend.”

Jack’s body freezes, his steps stuttering to a halt for no more than a second before he starts moving again.

“Never thought I’d hear you call me that,” he murmurs. “But I didn’t hate it. See if you have any more compliments floating around somewhere, Princess.”

“Cut it out,” I say, but a smile tugs at my lips. “You know you’re attractive.”

“And successful.”

My smile tries harder to break free. “That too.”

“Ah—we’ve been spotted.”

And we have—by Sophronia and Lucretia Willstead, both wearing silver mini dresses in differing styles. Sophronia sees us first; she nudges Lucretia and then hurries toward us.

“Here comes Lucretia,” Jack says under his breath.

“That’s Sophronia,” I reply through the bright smile I’ve just fixed on my face. “Lucretia is in the sleeveless dress. Hi, Sophronia,” I go on, more loudly now.

“You came!” Sophronia says, beaming at us. She’s not subtle, and neither is Lucretia; her surprise at our linked arms plays clearly over her face, as it does her sister’s when she joins us. “You guys are?—”

“Together?” Lucretia breaks in, her gaze sparkling with interest. “Is that what we’re seeing here?” Then a frown puckers her forehead. “You didn’t act like a couple the other day.”

“We didn’t,” I agree. “We were having a fight. Jack has been contemplating a life of crime, and I was mad at him.”

Next to me, Jack coughs, suddenly spluttering as he chokes on nothing but air. But the twins laugh, and I find myself laughing too—more genuinely when Jack glares at me.

“Just kidding, of course,” I say, patting his arm.

“Well, I guess I’m not surprised,” Lucretia says with a sly smile. “Back at Windsor you were always staring at him when you thought no one was watching.”

In my peripheral vision I see Jack’s head whip toward me, but I just clear my throat and try not to think about the fact that my face is probably turning the same red as my dress. “Was I?” I say, and my voice comes out high pitched and nervous. “I don’t remember that.”

It’s true. I don’t remember doing that. But I guess it’s possible. I missed him back then; I missed having him around.

“I wouldn’t read too much into it,” Jack cuts in, looking back at the twins. “She thought I was devastatingly handsome, but she figured I was way out of her league.”

“He really was,” I say with feeling. He was self-assured, strong—he didn’t care what anyone thought of him. And I was a coward; I treated him like garbage.

He was out of my league in every way.

Still is, for that matter.

“This place looks amazing,” I say, because I desperately need a change of topic. “Did you guys do all this yourselves?”

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