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The king takes her hand and leads her onto the dance floor as the musicians begin to play again. He places one hand against her waist, and they sway together beneath the golden chandeliers.

Everyone watches. Their attention is drawn to him, exactly as he intended.

I glance at Lucan.

He isn’t watching the king.

Instead, he lifts his goblet and downs the entire glass in one gulp.

I blink.

Before I can say anything, he reaches over and takes my goblet from my hand.

“Lucan—”

He downs mine too.

I stare at him, utterly baffled.

He swallows and casually sets both empty goblets onto the tray of a passing servant.

“What was that for?” I whisper.

The corner of his mouth twitches. “Liquid courage.”

My brow furrows. “For what?”

Lucan reaches for my hand. His large fingers curl around mine, warm and reassuring. He leads me away from the ballroom and toward one of the hallways branching off the grand entrance.

He glances down at me, mischief glinting in his eyes. “For what we’re about to do.”

Chapter Sixteen: Lucan

Sneaking around a royal palace is difficult when you’re seven feet three inches tall. Each bootstep sounds like a clap of thunder echoing through the empty halls. I wince as the sound reverberates off the stone walls.

Micah trails behind me as I lead him through the maze of hallways, his hand tightly gripping mine. Every few steps, he glances over his shoulder, as though expecting a squadron of guards to come barreling around the corner.

“Lucan,” he whispers.

“Aye?”

“We’re going to get caught.”

“No we won’t. All the guards are in the ballroom.”

Micah lets out a soft whine. “Lucan—”

“Trust me, Doc.”

He sighs and squeezes my hand. “I do trust you. That’s why I’m following you into a restricted area of the royal palace.”

I bite back a grin. “Good.”

We continue down the corridor.

I keep my eyes peeled for any sign of guards, but the palace is remarkably quiet away from the ballroom. Faint music drifts through the stone walls behind us, accompanied by the distant murmur of voices.

Everyone is too busy watching the king dance—exactly as I’d hoped.