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“It’s stupid though, isn’t it? She has to know that you’re going to send her home.” She crossed her legs and smoothed her skirt. “It’s not like you care about her anymore.” Though I felt her stare, I couldn’t meet it. Gwen’s tone turned urgent. “Leo, there are no feelings there, right? You’re just going to send her home…”
“It’s not that simple.” I drew in a shaky breath. “I have a job to do. Nolcovia has to come first. If Chantal or Esmerey could be queen, shouldn’t I give my people what they need?”
Gwen’s foot bounced, something she did when she felt emotional. Finally, she spoke again, but her voice remained subdued. “So, they have a chance?”
I couldn’t admit it out loud. I hated the thought because it meant my own misery, but I couldn’t think solely of my feelings anymore.
“That begs the question then, dear Leonidas…” Gwen waited until I looked at her. “Why am I here? You’re looking for a wife, so why did you invite me?”
This was a conversation I’d dreaded since I’d invited her. The answer wasn’t easy, and considering our history, I knew it wouldn’t go over well.
Gwen did not back down. “I longed for this in the past. You know that.”
I hadn’t forgotten that rainy day in our last semester where she’d confessed her feelings to me and asked if I felt the same.
Unfortunately, I hadn’t
I never considered her as anything more than a friend.
“I know. I wasn’t ready back then.”
Her eyebrows lifted in question. “Are you ready now?”
“I don’t have a choice.” Feeling cornered, I unintentionally snapped at her. “I have to be ready.”
“So,” she shook her head as if disbelief had taken hold, “you plan to change our friendship into something more? You believe it will work? Like, you can suddenly manufacture feelings that have never existed for you?”
I didn’t mean to hurt anyone, but I had. Despite my romantic nature, practicality must also be considered. “You understand me and the people of Nolcovia.” I couldn’t give her the romance she wanted, at least not yet, but logically, she was my best bet. “If you don’t want to stay because it’s too complicated, I understand. You can always tell me no.”
Her face averted, longing for escape. With a bitter laugh under her breath, she almost whispered, “You know you’re the prince, right? It isn’t exactly in the noblewoman’s handbook to turn you down, is it?” With a wry smile, she echoed the phrase taught to every young noble girl. “When the prince calls, you answer.”
Taking a chance, I set my hand over hers. “This is us, Gwen. We’ve rarely followed the rules.”
She paused for the slightest moment, then slipped her hand from beneath mine. “That’s my time.” Rising to her feet, she covered the distance to the doorway, but turned to look back. “Do what you must, Leo, but do it for the right reasons.”
She left me in silence, more conflicted than ever.
Michaela
As the last one left in the parlor, I felt like I was going to develop a complex before this whole competition was over. Even if I wasn’t a part of the tournament, I kept getting singled out as the loser. No one ever returned. I wasn’t sure what I was walking in on after I followed the guard down the shadowed hall.
He stopped early and motioned with his arm for me to head toward an open door. Maybe Fitz had sent everyone home. Maybe the prince was calling the whole thing off. Some of his prospects would make me want to run. I stole a quick breath of courage before I stepped into the light of the doorway.
He didn’t notice me at first. Fitz leaned forward, elbows on his thighs, face buried in his hands. The crown he’d worn earlier rested on the table beside him, leaving him looking more like himself. Racks of books filled the walls beyond him, and a large desk faced the window. I gathered it was his office, a place he should have felt relaxed. Instead, tension gripped his shoulders and arms as though he’d already given up hope.
My first instinct was to go to him and set my hand on his shoulder to let him know he wasn’t alone in this, I’d come thousands of miles to help him carry the burden, but my mind quickly reminded me of the whole interaction in the parlor. He wasn’t just my friend anymore, and the cameras needed to be respected, even if I couldn’t see them.
“Your Highness? You summoned me?” I curtsied but kept my chin up to see his reaction. As his head came up, relief spread over his features.
“Coco,” the tension in his shoulders released all at once, “I thought you’d never come. Where have they been hiding you?”
The familiarity of his tone eased my nerves. Whatever existed in the parlor had faded in this room. Having him talk to me like a friend with our familiarity restored, I felt silly for ever doubting our connection. Of course, he had pretenses to keep up in public, but in private things could be normal.
“What about the cameras?” I tried to shield my mouth with my hand, but Fitz only laughed at my antics.
“Don’t fret. They aren’t recording in here.”
I pulled a face as I started toward him. “They’re not recording interviews at all? That seems crazy. This is exactly what the people will want to see.”
