Standing there was a man 6ft tall dressed in a simple dark tunic of a merchant, was Orel.
Alinda struggled to maintain her composure, her heart racing, memories of there time together flooded her mind, " Orel.. what are you doing here?" Alinda.
" I provide the wine that fuels this celebration" Orel.
His gaze sweeping over her stunning appearance, the moonlight still seemed to cling to her hair. " You look every bit of the queen they think you're, but I still see the girl who used to find ecstasy in the simple pull of an ocean" Orel.
Before Alinda could respond she felt a heavy, hand land on her back. "Alinda? I thought I lost you to the crowd",Apolio.
Stepping up behind her his eyes narrowing as they landed on the merchant. "Is this man bothering you my lady?He is here to deliver the vintage" Apolio.
The tension In the air becomes a physical weight, Alinda stood trapped between the two, the man who represented the power she craves and the man who held her heart she thought she had buried.
Alinda felt a surge of cold electric power, she didn't pull away from Apolio's touch , nor did she look away from Orel's eyes. Instead, she stood taller, the white silk of her dress glowing around her like a shroud of light.
" Bothering me, Apolio?" She asked, with a voice steady and calm, carrying just enough volume to make both men lean in, she turned her head slightly to look at Apolio , her smile sharp. " Orel is not capable of of bothering me.
He is a man who understand the value of what is rare. Just as you do." Alinda.
She turned her eyes back to Orel, her eyes dark with hunger that was raw and unapologetic.
"I am no longer a girl by the ocean Orel. And I am not a trophy for your father's halls, Apolio," she said, her voice dropping to a seductive whisper that belonged to neither of them, " i am a woman who seeks ecstasy in its most untamed form, I do not follow the rules of light or shadows," " I will have my satisfaction" she murmured, and I will have it on my own terms.
She handed the half empty glass back to Orel, her fingers rubbing his wide palm one last time, a deliberate spark to keep his disire burning.
"Enjoy the party , gentlemen, I suddenly prefer my own company to the suffocating heat of your expectations."
She left them both there: the prince and the merchant, both silenced, both yearning, and both realizing that the woman they love was a storm they couldn't hope to contain.