This wasn’t good. Rex told her not to be emotional.
Jade’s expression remained steady, but Alina felt her shaking through the embrace. For the first time in seventeen years, she understood her caretaker. Their connection went beyond their clasped arms, and Alina held on much longer than she should.
The next evening, Jade and Alina walked to Rex’s home as the leaves transformed from emerald green to golden yellow, orange, and crimson. The Harvest Feast launched summer into autumn, patterned after one of Carthem’s few beauties. Immortals craved variety, so Pria revolved through the seasons with leaves changing in autumn, snowflakes falling in winter, bright blossoms in spring, and countless flowers in summer. Outdoor recreation rotated through the seasons, the years, and decades. Sometimes Sampson constructed mountains with sheer cliffs and powdered slopes for skiing or blue-green lakes for boating and deep swimming. People climbed those same cliffs to leap from their heights and explore the valleys—always searching for bigger thrills and prettier flowers. Sampson had a demanding job, trying to keep his subjects entertained.
Yet nothing enthralled Alina. The snow drifted, new flowers bloomed, fresh fruit grew—but underneath it all, Pria remained the same.
Alina smoothed the curls in her hair and fidgeted with the bodice of her scarlet gown, which was too low-cut for her liking. She and Jade shopped for hours but found nothing that flattered her body. Most women loved to flaunt their perfect figures, but Alina knew the more she covered, the better she looked.
Lights pulsed on Infinite Way, flashing over the writhing dancers who crowded the street. Occasionally someone sprinted across the roof of Rex’s estate and hurled himself into the air, landing in the center of the dancers. Long tables filled with wine bottles, crystal goblets, and trays of food lined the road. Swarms of people hovered nearby, laughing, kissing, or nuzzling with each other. The music throbbed through the ground up into Alina’s bones, and her teeth chattered nervously. She wiped her clammy palms on her dress. Her task overwhelmed her. Could she pretend to love Pria when she despised everything about it? She might do well tonight, but what about the next celebration? Or school next week? Jade flashed Alina a sly smile, then spun on her heels and strode toward a man and woman conversing nearby, holding glasses of blood red wine.
“Donovan! Selena!” Jade’s voice rang out.
The couple shared a surprised glance as Jade walked toward them, her sapphire gown clinging to her long legs. “I haven’t seen you in so long! Isn’t the wine divine tonight?” She gave an exaggerated but plausible giggle. Alina looked down and smiled. Jade hadn’t tried the wine. Rex spoke the truth—she was a good actress.
She’s showing me how it’s done.
Alina squared her shoulders and followed Jade, wobbling in her jeweled heels. Jade’s body swayed as she prattled and flirted, and before long a small crowd gathered around her. Alina joined in and forced laughter until her eyes bulged. She could never hold a group’s attention like that. Too bad she wasn’t more like Jade—she’d have no problem convincing Sampson she loved Pria. But she couldn’t feign interest in their shallow words. Bored, she turned her head and scanned the crowd for the person she most wanted to see.
She found Zaiden a short distance away, standing with his caretaker and a woman who looked vaguely familiar. Maybe his caretaker had a partner, and they raised him together. This was rare, but not unheard of. Alina smiled as she watched him, hoping he would turn and look at her. He looked perfect in his tailored suit and white collared shirt, his hair slicked back, his square jaw shadowed with facial hair.
Her smile faded as a girl approached him and placed a manicured hand on his shoulder. Her flaming red hair swirled past her shoulders and her silver gown shimmered as she slunk around him. She was so stunning, all the women around her seemed plain.
Alina’s face burned as Eris batted her eyelashes and stroked Zaiden’s arm. She tossed her hair and leaned in toward him, but he stepped away.
Alina bit her lip to suppress a laugh just as Eris looked over Zaiden’s shoulder and met her eyes. Eris flared her nostrils, dropped her hand from his arm, and started toward Alina.
She turned to Jade for help, but Jade was deep in conversation with a man Alina didn’t know. She glanced back at Eris and caught Zaiden’s eye instead, who had turned to see what captured Eris’s attention.
His eyes lit up and he smiled at her. She started to return his smile, but Eris’s sour, puckered face interrupted them.
“Alina, darling! You look almost decent tonight. How much makeup did it take?”
Alina rolled her eyes. This time she wouldn’t give Eris the pleasure of a dramatic reaction. She smiled sweetly. “At least makeup can make me look better. No amount can hide a sneer, but you did your best.”
Eris glowered at her. A sneer made a woman wholly unattractive, and to point one out was a terrible insult. Zaiden kept glancing at them, and without meaning to, Alina’s eyes flickered in his direction.
Eris turned and caught Zaiden as he looked away, then let out a high laugh. “So, you have your eye on Zaiden! How perfect. Did you know my caretaker is dating his? I’m seeing him a lot these days, and he likes that. It was a game for me, but now that I know it’ll break your heart, I think I’ll get more into it.” She pivoted in her stiletto heels and pranced back toward him, her curls bouncing against her bare back.
Zaiden watched her as she approached, his face a mix of suspicion and interest, and he shot Alina a careful glance as Eris slid her arm through his. Alina’s heart dropped. She had no hope of getting to know him with Eris hanging around, and now she couldn’t convince anyone she was having a good
