Jinxed

T W E N T Y - T H R E E

CHAPTER 23: A BATTLE OF WITS

EMILIA

"Are you sure about this Em?" Kai asked for the millionth time as we stood in front of our room door "Because if you're not, we can make something up to get you out of this."

I smoothed my hands over my dress for the fifth time, picking at the imaginary lint of such a delicate piece of fabric.

To say I was nervous was an understatement.

I was absolutely terrified at the prospect of going into this dinner alone.

For a multitude of reasons...

The main one being that I didn't have Kai at my side.

Because as much as I hate to admit it, and I REALLY hated to admit it, I felt completely safe with Kai at my side.

We've never been separated for more than two hours in this hellhole and even then, he was literally 10 feet away from me in the next room.

"I'm fine" I sent my best reassuring smile his way "It's only dinner. It shouldn't be too long. Besides, what's the worst thing that can happen at this point?"

Famous...Last...Words.

~~~~~

The moment I arrived downstairs, I was whisked away by a maid and escorted into the grand dining room.

Once we were in the dining room, the maid politely ask me to sit and wait for the Masters.

The moment she disappeared through the servant doors, I jumped up from my seat and started to explore.

This room was different from the formal dining room we saw on the tour, most likely due to Hurricane Katrina that happened in 2005 that flooded most of New Orleans.

While there were the same tall columns and sweeping arches, the room was definitely much bigger than it's future counterpart, holding a not only a bigger dining room set but also a table fit for the Palace of Versailles.

When I took a closer look at the settings on the table, I finally noticed that instead of three place settings, there were only two.

Two settings.

One at the head of the table and the other right next to it, on the right of him.

I blinked down at the table, my eyes immediately sliding to the seat across from mine.

No dinner setting.

"I am starting to understand why my Fiancé enjoys the presence of your company so much" A deep and familiar voice started, the timber of his voice raising goosebumps on my arms "When someone says something, you both tend to do the opposite of what the person says."

He startled me so bad that I tripped over my chair's leg and accidentally clanked against my utensil set.

I whirled and watched as Lord Devereux strutted towards the table, a small smirk gracing his face.

He stopped behind me, holding onto my chair and motioning for me to take a seat in the outstretched chair.

"I blame my curiosity on your beautiful home for my recent lapses in judgement" I said, sending my most innocent smile his way "I've never seen something quite as magnificent as this."