Page 117 of Conform
“I promise to return her for a dance soon, brother,” Nora told Collin, who simply nodded at her before he captured my hand and placed a kiss upon it, and that magnetic power tugged on me.
Nora pulled me away as I heard one of the men say, “There is no way you make two more moons.”
“It will be a testament to my willpower if I do.” I felt Collin watching me as we walked away.
Nora leaned into me. “I am sorry I didn’t come sooner. I just saw Collin’s signal.”
“Collin’s signal?” I asked as we stopped on the opposite side of the ballroom.
“Yes, to rescue you,” Nora said, grabbing a glass. A golden ring with a large emerald gleamed on her finger. “Like my dress?” Nora asked, swishing golden fabric about. “I was inspired.”
“I like the color,” I told her.
“How have you been? I am sorry we haven’t gotten together. I wanted to reach out, but I had my visiting days for Arabella and James. Eleana’s is next week.”
“How are your offspring?” I asked.
“They are healthy and well cared for.” Nora smiled sadly. “Still, the goodbyes seem to get harder. I usually find it difficult to leave my bed afterward. It’s why I didn’t reach out.”
“I assumed you heard my argument with Collin and decided against being my friend.”
Nora tilted her head. “Why would you think that?” She waved over a man in gray carrying a tray.
“Well, he’s your twin,” I stated, like it should be obvious.
Nora shook her head, grabbing several sweets from the tray and handing them to me before taking some for herself.
“Don’t go far,” she warned the man before eating a delicate dessert. “I am more than aware of how enraging he can be. I do not fault you. Collin has always acted first and informed later,” Nora said, rolling her eyes.
“But Nora, I am a Minor. Why would you want to be my friend?”
She smiled, her eyes traveling over every inch of me. “I do not see a Minor. Even with your eyes, Emeline. I see a woman who has been treated unfairly.”
I remembered the day I had met her. My defect had been exposed, and she hadn’t said anything.
I took a bite of the food, praying it would carry the knot in my throat away. The drinks had left me dizzy. Or maybe it was the conversations or the incessant noise of my thoughts. I didn’t know anymore.
I glanced up at the stars, my thoughts and feelings as endless as the sky above. Was that why I was always at war with myself—perpetually enraged by the depth I always carried? The peace it stole from me?
“I can see you discrediting yourself,” Nora said softly. “I will not try to dissuade you. I know better.” She searched the dance floor. I was sure she was seeking out a certain man with brutally short hair. “If any of my offspring had been deemed a Defect at birth, I would love them all the same. We women, regardless of status, are all vessels in the procreation system. We are all alike if we care to see it.”
“You believe that?”
Nora turned toward me, her eyes burning with the fierceness she sometimes showed. “With everything I am. I hope one day we’re more. Arabella is almost of age—I cannot stand the idea of one of these men with his hands on her.”
The music changed, an upbeat song replacing the slow, melancholy one. Nora’s face shifted as she bounced on the tips of her toes, looking wildly around us. “I told William I would meet him on the dance floor for this song. It is my favorite.”
“Go,” I told her. “I’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, go,” I assured her.
“I’ll find you after,” she exclaimed as she pranced to the dance floor, ditching her glass with one of the many men in gray.
I watched her meet William, smoothing her dress, before a quick curtsy and the song began. I stood mesmerized as she danced, her joy lighting up the entire room. Her lithe steps shined upon the dance floor.
She switched to another partner, staying in his arms for just a moment, and her smile spilled into the sky above. Gregory held her, spinning her. He smiled too—a real one. Time slowed. I swore even the stars halted their celestial dance as two souls held each other.
