I swallowed and kept quiet after that.
The conversation around me slowly drifted from the horses, to the ride itself, to the process of The Selection, but I couldn't focus. David wasn't looking at me, was acting as if I wasn't even there and I didn't understand.
At some point I breathed an excuse and turned away, expecting to find Ash behind me, swooping down to shadow me like he usually did—but then I remembered. There were guards around the banquet hall. Stark had taken the Defenders. We weren't supposed to leave the room.
I started to walk a circle, forcing myself to smile at any of the other women who caught my eye. Emory was in one corner with another woman I didn't know, and a noble couple, speaking animatedly. She saw me and there was a question in her eyes, but she was clearly having success with her conversation, so I shook my head slightly and walked on.
