Page 105 of Between Two Kings

“Aren’t they? Then what exactly was that conversation we just had?”

“That was…just a discussion.”

“A discussion?”

“We’re just…trying our best to coexist.”

“I don’t see Evelyn trying to coexist. I see her trying to bring back the exact thing that caused the problem in the first place. It’s almost as if she wants another war.”

“That’s not her goal. She would never do that.”

“She would if you let her.”

“Well, I won’t.”

“Won’t you?” The words came out before she could stop them.

But the hurt that flashed across Leo’s face was unmistakable. “Do you truly think so little of me?” he whispered.

“I think you’ve forgotten your priorities.”

Leo downed his drink with a grimace. He looked down at the empty glass between his hands, and his next words were a whisper. “She’s going to be my wife, Tem. She has to be my priority.”

The word he’d chosen to emphasize was unmistakable. Tem fought a sudden swell of tears. “I know that,” she whispered back. “Trust me, I know.”

Their eyes met.

They stared at each other in the dim light of the dining room. It was all too much. She’d tried to do the right thing, and she had failed. She’d tried to protect him, and it was clear she hadn’t done that either.

“She’s not the same,” Leo said, his voice barely a whisper. “She’s changed.”

“What do you mean she’s changed?”

“When I look at her, I—I—” He shook his head, searching for the words. “I don’t understand who she is now. She never used to be like this.”

“Like what?”

Leo took a long time to answer. When he did, the word was as sharp as a blade. “Greedy.”

Tem had no idea what to say to that. It was a shock to hear Leo describe his own fiancée in such a way. But she couldn’t pretend she hadn’t thought the same thing. Evelyn was greedy. She coveted gold and placed value on physical items. Tem couldn’t relate to such fancies. And despite growing up in a castle full of them, she knew Leo couldn’t either.

“We used to talk for hours,” Leo whispered. “Now we barely speak. She never even apologized for leaving.”

Tem couldn’t take any more. It was all wrong. Evelyn was supposed to be the love of Leo’s life. They were supposed to get married and have babies and love each other until their dying day. They were supposed to be worth it. But now Tem couldn’t shake the inescapable feeling that she’d made a terrible mistake—that in a moment of pity after cresting Leo, she’d damaged his entire future. It was an unacceptable result. His next words only confirmed it.

“I don’t want this, Tem.”

It was all he said, but it was so much more. It was true that Tem had ordered Leo to find Evelyn. But every decision after that had been his own. She hadn’t told him to propose, hadn’t told him to bring her back here, hadn’t told him to let her seep her way into every aspect of his life. Those were his own choices, and they had nothing to do with the crest or with Tem. He was becoming someone she didn’t respect, someone she was not safe around. Tem stepped closer. Leo’s eyes widened as she did it.

She lowered her voice, speaking with unquestionable authority. “We are done cutting ourselves open for you.”

“Tem,” he said desperately. She could hear the tightness in his throat. “Please.”

“Please what, Leo?”

Tem wanted to hear him say it—wanted him to acknowledge that he was nothing but a horrible, predictable hypocrite. Leo just shook his head.

At his silence, Tem allowed herself to hate him, just this once. She wanted him to feel the pain she felt—to understand exactly what his decision was going to do. There was only one thing she could say that would cut him deep enough: