"Trust me, and I'll give you the world," she whispered, her warm breath in the winter room. "All of it. Just take my hand, and I will make sure that you never face any threat to your position as the Crown Prince."
The hand in his tightened on reflex right before memory slammed into his head like ice crashing against the shore.
Li Xuejian opened his eyes.
Not slowly. Not with softness.
He snapped awake to a room he knew well and a voice he knew better. Before the rest of him could catch up, he wrenched his fingers free and struck Bai Yuyan hard enough that her cheek bloomed red against her white skin.
She staggered back a few steps, hand to her face, eyes wide with something between hurt and calculation.
She had the same prettiness. The same tilt to the mouth. The same certainty she could sell him the same future.
Only this time, he wasn't dumb enough to listen.
"Guards," he said, flat.
