Cassian Ashford disliked gossip.
This was ironic.
Considering how much gossip involved him.
The Empire’s most eligible bachelor.
The Empire’s greatest flirt.
The Empire’s most handsome nobleman.
People invented stories about him constantly.
Most were exaggerated.
A few were true.
One or two were unfortunately true.
Still, Cassian disliked gossip.
Which was precisely why he found himself irritated by the latest whispers surrounding Adrian.
At first, they had been harmless.
The Crown Prince and Elena Hart.
Committee meetings.
Medical initiatives.
Charity projects.
Professional interactions.
Nothing unusual.
Nothing worth discussing.
Then people kept discussing them.
And that was when Cassian began paying attention.
Not because he suspected Adrian.
Because he trusted Adrian.
More than most.
The Crown Prince was disciplined to a fault.
Responsible.
Predictable.
Painfully honorable.
If anyone in the Empire could be trusted around a beautiful woman, it was Adrian.
Which was exactly why the rumors were irritating.
They made no sense.
Yet they persisted.
And persistent rumors had an unpleasant habit of becoming problems.
The Autumn Reception was crowded.
Music filled the ballroom.
Crystal chandeliers illuminated the polished floors.
Nobles laughed.
Politicians schemed.
Young ladies attempted to attract Cassian’s attention.
As usual.
Cassian ignored them all.
Instead, he found himself searching the room.
Looking for someone.
Not Elena.
Marian.
The realization annoyed him.
Slightly.
In truth, he hadn’t intended to look for Marian.
Yet after his conversation with Adrian, he found himself doing exactly that.
Across the ballroom, he found her immediately.
Of course he did.
Everyone always found Marian immediately.
Lady Marian Valmont stood surrounded by several noblewomen.
Laughing softly at something one of them had said.
Elegant.
Composed.
Entirely at ease.
Cassian frowned.
That wasn’t what he’d expected.
If half the rumors circulating through court concerned his fiancée, shouldn’t Adrian’s future wife look concerned?
Suspicious?
Irritated?
Something?
Instead, Marian looked perfectly happy.
As though she hadn’t heard a single whisper.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Cassian leaned against a nearby column.
Watching.
Not inappropriately.
Merely observing.
The way one might observe a political situation.
Or a potential disaster.
Or a horse moments before it kicked someone.
Then he saw it.
One of the women mentioned Elena Hart.
The name drifted through the conversation.
Cassian watched carefully.
Waiting.
For jealousy.
For discomfort.
For anger.
Nothing happened.
Well.
Almost nothing.
Marian paused.
A tiny pause.
Barely noticeable.
Then she smiled.
The conversation continued.
Effortlessly.
Naturally.
As though the name meant absolutely nothing.
The sight surprised him.
Most women would have demanded answers by now.
Most women would have started a war.
Marian simply trusted Adrian.
The realization landed unexpectedly.
And with it came another thought.
A troubling one.
If Adrian ever hurt her, she would never see it coming.
Cassian disliked that thought.
More than he should have.
His gaze returned to her.
Lingering this time.
Actually looking.
Not at Lady Marian Valmont.
Not at the future Crown Princess.
At Marian herself.
And suddenly he understood something.
He had seen her countless times.
At court.
At banquets.
At national celebrations.
At family gatherings.
Always beside Adrian.
Always where she belonged.
Which was precisely why he’d never truly looked.
She existed in the same category as the palace.
As the throne.
As tomorrow’s sunrise.
Permanent.
Certain.
Untouchable.
Until now.
Now that he was actually paying attention, details began registering.
Golden hair.
Not blonde.
Gold.
The sort of color painters spent years trying to recreate.
Sapphire-blue eyes.
Bright even from across a crowded ballroom.
Porcelain skin untouched by imperfection.
Graceful movements.
Effortless elegance.
Beautiful.
Absurdly beautiful.
Cassian immediately dismissed the thought.
Beauty alone meant nothing.
He had known hundreds of beautiful women.
Possibly thousands.
Most became boring within minutes.
Yet his gaze remained.
Annoying.
Very annoying.
Because the thing holding his attention wasn’t her appearance.
It was the expression on her face.
The certainty.
The happiness.
The complete lack of doubt.
Marian looked like a woman utterly secure in her future.
A woman who believed herself loved.
A woman who expected that love to remain.
And perhaps she should.
After all, she was Adrian’s fiancée.
No one questioned that.
No one had ever questioned that.
Not seriously.
Not until recently.
The thought lingered unpleasantly.
Across the ballroom, Adrian appeared.
As though summoned by the mention of his name.
Marian noticed immediately.
Of course she did.
The transformation was subtle.
Yet unmistakable.
Her eyes brightened.
Her smile softened.
The kind of unconscious reaction a person could never fake.
She moved toward him without hesitation.
Without thought.
Without doubt.
And Adrian—
Adrian smiled the moment he saw her.
A genuine smile.
Rare.
Unguarded.
The sort most people spent years trying to earn.
The sort Marian received effortlessly.
Cassian watched the exchange.
Then looked away.
Because suddenly he felt as though he were witnessing something private.
Which was ridiculous.
They hadn’t even touched.
Hadn’t exchanged a single word.
Yet the intimacy remained obvious.
Years obvious.
History obvious.
Love obvious.
The sight should have reassured him.
Instead, strangely, it didn’t.
Because for the first time, he found himself wondering whether Adrian still looked at Marian the same way she looked at him.
The question arrived unexpectedly.
And once it arrived—
It refused to leave.
Far across the ballroom, Marian laughed at something Adrian whispered.
Completely unaware that Duke Cassian Ashford had spent the evening thinking about her for the first time in his life.
And equally unaware that this would prove to be a very dangerous mistake.
Not for her.
Not yet.
For him.