If Daud is annoyed by the tugging, he doesn’t show it much. Shura isn’t the first tipsy reveler who’s tugged him into festivities, and she won’t be the last. He lets himself be pulled away from his card game, nodding at his fellow players — he wasn’t playing for anything more substantial than sweet rolls of bread and another cup of wine.

“If you insist.” Just for that ‘shy’ crack, though ... in a smooth motion, he twists in her hold, aiming to tug at her instead and smoothly dip her backward, one hand firmly planted at her back to support her weight.