"Did you decide to be social again?" she asked, voice light, but her gaze had already catalogued the room, the cut of Alexandra's blouse, and the faint shadows under Gabriel's eyes. She'd grown up in this world of measured smiles and hidden daggers; she knew what the court would see and how they'd spin it.
"No," Gabriel said flatly. "I decided to survive."
Irina's lips curved. "Then you called the right reinforcements."
Before Gabriel could retort, another figure slipped in with all the grace of a deliberate entrance. Rafael, in a sharp suit in dove-gray, with a faint smile curving his mouth like he'd stepped out of a noble family portrait. Even Alexandra arched a brow at the sight.
Gabriel's eyes narrowed. "I didn't call you."
"No," Rafael agreed mildly, holding up a cream card stamped with Crista's seal. "She did. Apparently, the Dowager believes my presence will lend 'balance' to the room."
