A look of annoyance took its place as he glanced up at Violet. “Trying to work your way through the harem?” she added, gesturing to the room at large.“I see I underestimated you … partner. Clever. Any rebuttal on my part will only make me look worse.” Violet shrugged. “She was never in any danger of taking you seriously. Were you, Amaryllis?” Amaryllis glanced uncomfortably from Violet to Cain. He was angry, no matter how well he hid it, but the question was, angry because what Violet had said was the truth? Or because she was lying and he couldn’t defend himself without looking as bad as she’d painted him? She managed a tight smile. “We’re all bored and anxious, Violet, but I don’t think trying to create trouble among ourselves is at all wise.” Surprise flickered across Violet’s face, but anger quickly supplanted it. She leaned down until she was almost nose to nose with Amaryllis. “Then maybe you should consider who you dangle after,” she said through gritted teeth.
