Two Hundred-Eighty-Two

I nod, take a deep breath, and turn around. As the next song starts, Malik bows as I curtsy. He then steps closer and places his hand on my waist as my hand goes to his shoulder and our other hands connect. He then starts us dancing.

I must admit he wasn’t a bad dancer, but then I had only learned to dance first from Zachariah and then from Edward. Malik takes us around the dance floor, not stopping as one song turns into two and then, by the end of the third song, he has this strange smirk on his face.

When he stops, he takes a small step back allowing him to bow slightly as I curtsy once more, he then steps back into me wrapping his arm around my waist and holding me close and tight as he leans in and skims his lips against my ear and whispers,

“You have failed, my dear, and now that I have you in my arms, he's not getting you back. You have had his pups. Now you can give me the heir that Rania never could…”

“In your dream