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“I can’t do this,” she whispered.
“Let her go,” I demanded, but he ignored me.
“Do what, Little Monster?” he whispered so softly I almost didn’t hear him. What the fuck? They had pet names now? I needed a cute name for her. Like mine or tightest pussy I’ve ever dicked.
She sighed, her pouty lips parting and wobbling with emotion. “I can’t be with you. I’m getting married, Atticus. It’s not fair to either of us—”
“Since when do I give a fuck about what’s fair? And yeah, you’re getting married. An arranged marriage you don’t want—”
I was about two seconds from punching him in the jaw, but Christine spoke before I could risk my life and beat the ever-living shit out of him. “But I do want to marry August. Maybe not like this. Maybe not in this damn castle in these damn clothes under a damn microscope, but…” Her eyes fluttered to me for a brief moment. “I do love him.”
And it should have felt good. I should have been fucking fist pumping the air with excitement. But she sounded like loving me was the worst thing in the world. And she was right. None of this was ideal. Christine deserved better, and I didn’t know how to make that happen.
“Look,” I said. “I’m not thrilled about Atticus trying to get in your pants.” Yeah, real eloquent, Your Majesty. “But did something happen?”
Christine jerked out of Atticus’s hold and looked at Leo, as if willing him to explain himself. Atticus followed her gaze, and I knew that the second she was out of the room, he’d be slamming his fist into the guard’s jaw.
And if I was being honest, I’d probably get a kick or two in, also.
“I just realized it’s not fair,” she mumbled. “I…I care about you. All of you. But what kind of person would that make me? It’s hopeless to pursue something, so I need to take a step back.”
I was in a tricky spot. Part of me wanted her all to myself, but the other part didn’t want to make this shitty situation even worse. She’d been through enough.
“Atticus is your friend,” I said, putting emphasis on the word friend because I didn’t want him trying to lick her kitty. Give him an inch, and he’d take a fucking mile—and her ass. “You can still talk to him. And Leo is boring as hell, but there’s no reason to cut them out for our sake.”
She shook her head and folded her arms around herself, like they were a protective barrier. “I can’t just be friends with either of them. I…”
She didn’t finish her sentence, because she didn’t have to. Yeah. I understood. And it pissed me off.
I didn’t have time for this. Things would be a lot better for all of us if I were enough.
But I wasn’t enough.
I was a shitty king. A shitty fiancé.
I didn’t deserve Christine and that’s why she needed to find comfort elsewhere.
I took a step closer to her, knowing that I had to burn my pride to say what I needed to say. “Baby,” I whispered. Maybe this was what love meant, saying shit that killed you from the inside out, if only to do the right thing.
Her eyes were misty as she looked at me with shame. “August, I’m sorry. I feel so stupid.”
And then she started full-on crying.
There was something awful about a crying woman. The way her slender shoulders shook from the force of it made me want to punch the drywall.
I wrapped my arms around her, making Atticus growl and Leo shift uncomfortably on his feet. “I love that you want to marry me. I love that we have our whole entire lives to look forward to.”
She nuzzled my neck, and I swear if cuddling could get me off, I would have splooged into my pants. “I know. It’s why I need to focus on us,” she admitted, though she didn’t sound happy about it.
I clenched my jaw, hating every fucking second of this. “No, you need to focus on being happy. This job—this kingdom—has stolen enough of your peace already. Does Atticus make you happy?”
She nodded against my skin, and that simple move made me want to punch something.
“Does Leo make you happy?” I forced out. Fuck Leo. And fuck Atticus, too. They could both suck a dick made of thorns for all I cared.
She nodded again.
“Okay,” I whispered. It was like chewing on tar. Bitter to the taste. Uncomfortable. Unnatural. “Then be happy.”
