Starling (49 page)

Read Starling Online

Authors: Fiona Paul

“Beware the vines of desire: beautiful,
entangling, suffocating.”
—THE BOOK OF THE ETERNAL ROSE
twelve
F

alco,” Cass gasped, pulling back from his hungry lips.
“Yes, starling?” He placed his hands on her waist and
drew her away from the center of the room. He leaned in
to kiss her again.
“Falco, enough.” He might have dressed himself up in fancy nobleman’s clothes, but underneath, he was the same old Falco who
would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. Panicked, she pulled
away from his embrace, her head whipping back and forth to take in
the roomful of partygoers. Several of the nearby guests were glancing
at the two of them curiously, a couple of the women frowning at the
inappropriate display of affection. Seraphina, seated on one of the
divans near the doorway, nodded her approval and gave Cass a coy
wink.
“You’re going to wreck everything,” she hissed. “People are staring. Someone might recognize me.” Obviously, even the wig and cosmetics weren’t helping if Falco had recognized her in a matter of
minutes.
He held up his hands in mock surrender. “
Mi dispiace,
starling. I


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