Page 166 of Dukes Are Forever
"Oh, Malloryn." She rolled her eyes. "We've been a formidable pair ever since you surrendered to me."
"Did I surrender?"
Adele shot him a wicked smile. "Many, many times."
* * *
The paradethrough the streets was a nerve-wracking affair.
Adele waved at the crowd from a closed carriage with Gemma, Ingrid, and Lark, whilst Malloryn rode at the head of the column and deployed his teams of Coldrush Guards with a stern hand. Adele forced herself to smile, buoyed by the throng of humans and mechs who swarmed the parade route, waving the queen's colors in the air.
Nothing had been left to chance.
Charlie and Jack were working with a scrambling device Lena had created during the revolution in order to counteract any automaton attacks; Obsidian, Byrnes, and Kincaid made dashing Coldrush Guards; and the Nighthawks' dirigible prowled overhead. Several nearby contingents were prepared to whisk her out of the way the second any signs of danger erupted.
Balfour, curse the man, declined to accept the opportunity they'd presented, though an assassination attempt during the parade had been the lowest of Malloryn's suspected possibilities for the day.
Gemma eased a sigh of relief as they rode beneath the arches of the gate towers that guarded the Ivory Tower. "Well, ladies. It looks like tonight is going to be the night."
Adele breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness. I can't wait to get out of this armored corset."
"I'm sure Malloryn will assist you." Gemma looked completely innocent.
"But then we'll never get to the ball."
* * *
Everyone who wasanyone in the Echelon was invited.
Especially those on a certain membership list.
Malloryn wanted nothing left to chance. He wanted them to take their shot at him when he dictated, not when they did.
The ballroom practically glittered, there were so many lights, and the mirrors that lined the chamber made it seem as though there were thousands of guests.
"What the hell is Balfour waiting for?" Adele murmured as she accepted a glass of watered-down wine that Malloryn provided for her. Her husband was carefully managing the aristocrats who attempted to get close to her, keeping them at enough distance to maintain her subterfuge, but her nerves were frayed around the edges.
"A chance," he murmured, surveying the ballroom and the Nighthawks who were wearing the Coldrush Guards uniform. They surrounded the ballroom discreetly.
"Maybe you scared him away?"
"He'll be here. I can feel it."
There was a slightly feral gleam to his eye, and black bled through his irises. Every inch of him quivered with the intense desire to finally get his hands on Balfour.
Out of everything, it was this fact that bothered her the most.
She couldn't help feeling as though their time together was slowly ticking to an end.
People danced. Debutantes laughed. Lords watched her with glittering eyes.
She recognized several of their faces as men to be wary of. They circled the ballroom in small droves, and Adele tried not to stare at them. Sweat dripped down her spine. Thank goodness she'd told Lena and Hattie to avoid the celebrations tonight. She could almost feel that target painted between her breasts.
But when she blinked again, only friendly faces smiled back at her.
Barrons started a toast to the queen. "…and as we usher in a new day, so do we celebrate a new era of…"
She could barely make out what he was saying. "Where have they all gone?"
