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“Great,” Tabitha said dully, falling back onto the bed. Was there even any point in staying in America anymore? JK didn’t want her, at least not enough to fight for her.
She couldn’t bring herself to leave, though. Leaving would mean leaving JK behind forever, and Tabitha couldn’t do that. Even if JK didn’t want her, Tabitha couldn’t bear to close the door between them permanently.
Maybe some small part of her was hoping that JK would change her mind. That part was probably foolish.
Tabitha knew JK well enough to know that she was fiercely determined to protect those she cared about. She had decided that being with her would be harmful to Tabitha, and Tabitha knew that JK loved her enough to want the best for her. JK loved her. And she loved JK. Wasn’t love supposed to be enough?
She was deluded in thinking that being apart would be better for Tabitha, but as long as she held that delusion—and Tabitha had no idea how to break it—she would stay away, for what she thought was Tabitha’s own good.
Tabitha sank into the blankets, pulling them over her head entirely, wishing she could believe that this whole thing was just some awful nightmare and she’d wake up in JK’s arms.
This was no nightmare, though. This was her life now.
Facing life without JK felt like a living nightmare, and there was no way for Tabitha to wake up.
8
Jk
JK felt like she was being torn in two. Her body was leaving the mansion, but her heart was saying behind, with Tabitha. The look on Tabitha’s face when she realized that JK didn’t intend to stay with her had nearly broken JK.
She had to stay strong, though, for Tabitha’s sake. Tabitha needed her, even if it wasn’t in the way she thought she did. She needed JK to be strong and walk away, because Tabitha certainly wasn’t going to and one of them had to, to protect Tabitha’s future.
It was so unfair. Why did Tabitha have to be royalty? If she had been anyone else, she and JK would have been free to be together, but their worlds had never been compatible.
JK had always known that, and she had done the one thing she swore she would never do. She had fallen in love with Tabitha.
Of course, it wouldn’t have been fair to say that to Tabitha, not when she was leaving. The unsaid words felt like they were burning the back of her throat, but JK knew that it was a burn she would have to get used to, just like the ache of her broken heart.
She hesitated in the hallway, wondering if she should stop by Tabitha’s room for one last goodbye, but decided that she couldn’t risk it. If Tabitha asked her one more time to stay, JK feared that she would say yes, which would only lead to Tabitha’s ruin.
So, she walked away, bitter tears running down her cheeks.
She got home and flopped onto the couch, unsure what to do now. She should probably do practical things like shop for groceries or at least unpack her suitcase, but she couldn’t bring herself to do any of that. It felt like her life had stopped and to start moving again would be to leave Tabitha for good.
Tabitha was still in the U.S., though. She wasn’t gone entirely. JK made her decision. While Tabitha was here, JK would protect her. She didn’t know if the new bodyguard they hired would be any good—the market was unfortunately flooded with frauds—but regardless of his skills, she would follow from a distance and watch out for Tabitha.
By the time Tabitha returned home, perhaps JK would then be ready to accept her fate. For now, she couldn’t bring herself to let go completely. She was probably just prolonging her pain, but the thought of never seeing Tabitha again made it difficult to breathe. She couldn’t live with that.
With renewed purpose, JK got into her car and drove back toward the mansion. She was careful to park a few blocks away and walk the remaining distance. If she was spotted anywhere near there, it would cause trouble for Tabitha for sure. That was the last thing she wanted.
JK watched the house but wasn’t surprised to see no one come in or out that day. She didn’t imagine Tabitha was up to much right now. She would need time to grieve, but she would move on. She was young; she had her entire life ahead of her. Any woman would be crazy not to want to be with her.
JK was resigned to living the rest of her life with a broken heart, but she felt sure that Tabitha would find love and move on. She hoped that after a while, Tabitha would be able to look back on their time together with fondness. JK supposed she would never know if that came to pass or not.
JK stayed until late in the evening before finally driving home. She knew that the alarm system that was set at night was top-notch. Tabitha should be safe enough with that on. It was during the day, when the beams weren’t on, that she would need watching.
The next day, JK returned.
Tabitha still didn’t leave the house.
Every day for a week, JK came back, and Tabitha hadn’t left the house. JK was going out of her mind with worry. What was wrong with Tabitha? Was she sick? There hadn’t been any doctors coming or going. Even worse was the thought that she was too heartsick to leave her bed. JK had done that to her. She hadn’t had a choice, but she still felt awful about it.
She knew that Tabitha had let herself get attached, just like JK had. Unlike JK, however, Tabitha seemed to have developed a notion that things could somehow work between them long-term. This must be doubly hard on her, and JK hated herself for it, but she knew it was for the best.
She jumped as her phone chimed and quickly looked around to make sure Peter wasn’t nearby. JK had yet to see him patrol the property, which didn’t give her much confidence in his skills, but she supposed that if Tabitha wasn’t leaving her bed, Peter needn’t do much more than hang out in the house.
Still, it would be prudent to ensure that there were no lurking threats. It was a good thing JK was on the case. She looked at her phone and her heart clenched. It was a message from Tabitha.
