Page 41 of Crowned In Sin

He could not wait for anything. He could not even wait to see how my courting of the princess progressed. Casen had to have her, so he took her, when I had not⁠—

“When did this begin?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper. Many times. Many nights.

He waves his hand. It is a signal I have come to know over the years. It means earlier, or before.

Before I came to the castle. Before I was even here.

“You bastard.” The condemnation is a hiss on my lips. My voice is too loud. I know at once that the furnishings in the sunroom will not absorb it. People in the hall may hear me.

In the corner of my eye, there is movement at the door to the sunroom. I know from the color of the gown that it is not staff. The woman is Isabel, or it is Cora, but I cannot spare her a glance. I cannot think of manners right now. I can only think of the pain of this betrayal and the hatred that burns in my heart.

Hatred, and yet still there is guilt. I hate that the emotion that overwhelms me is so complex. Casen is my brother. He has been at my side for as long as I can remember. I told him how I felt about Cora—I told him about how it felt to have her with me when I took her from the castle.

I am so angry with him, and yet there is a part of me for which the betrayal runs deeper. It is much more shameful.

Because Casen has known what it’s like to have Princess Cora. He knows her soft curves and the sweetness of her⁠—

“I wish to banish you. I wish never to see your face again.” My tone is stern and even as my temper rises, I maintain composure.

Someone gasps at the doorway. I am sure it is Cora now. I cannot help but to spare a glance. The king is with his daughter, a hand on her elbow to restrain her from coming into the sunroom. Her friend, Isabel, hangs back in the hall with her eyes as wide as saucers.

When I look back at my brother, I know I have struck him in a place he did not anticipate.

His face has gone pale, which makes the red scarring stand out. For the first time, it occurs to me that perhaps he chose this path because he was afraid to face this in the garden. Perhaps he wished to make his confession last night, but could not bring himself to do it.

Now I have threatened to go back on one of our oldest promises.

Casen takes a deep breath as his expression crumbles with pain.

Before I can say a word, he turns on his heel and leaves, brushing by the princess and the king with only a minimal attempt at a bow.

Cora stands frozen in the doorway, her mouth open and her eyes brimming with tears. As soon as Casen’s footsteps have faded, she covers her mouth with her hands and rushes away.

The king glares at me from the doorway. My anger has not faded—I do not know if it will ever fade—but my stomach goes cold at the judgment and power in his gaze. I cannot be sure what he intends to communicate to me with that glare, but there is no doubt that he disapproves.

Does the king know of what my brother told me?

No, he cannot.

The king only knows that I have upset his daughter, Princess Cora. My brother and I have both upset Princess Cora.

This is a disaster for any proposal I hoped to make, and there is nothing I can say right now to fix it. There is still far too much that I must come to terms with. There is still too much I don’t know.

Perhaps the king will throw us out and put an end to all of it.

But he does not speak to me or give orders to the servants. He only holds my gaze for another long second before he turns to follow Cora.

Chapter 18

Casen

My brother was correct to call me a bastard.

I am a bastard for what I’ve done. I knew it with every kiss and every touch as I fell deeper and deeper under the spell that is the princess’s affections.

I told Jasper I’d come here and observe Princess Cora. He didn’t have to tell me what he feared. He didn’t have to tell me what to look for. He wanted to know if the princess would be worth courting. He didn’t want to lose his heart to her only to find that she would never accept him because of his…defect.

I was only to observe and report back as to whether or not the match would be what he was after. But once I knew her… And I knew…