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I glanced at René and then winced at the smirk on his face. This wasn't going to end well. "René—"
René stepped forward. "I'd be happy to discuss it with you, Your Highness."
Oh god.
Chapter Twenty-Four
~ René ~
"Your mate seems a bit concerned."
Oh, he was.
"I am not a fan of high society functions. I think he fears just how much I will share with you."
"Is there a reason you wouldn't share everything with me?"
"That depends." I looked the king right in the eyes. "How much truth do you want to hear?"
"Preferably all of it."
I smiled. "Excellent."
I grabbed a flute of champagne and then looped my arm through the king’s. "Shall we?"
The king lifted an eyebrow.
I started talking as we strolled toward the reception hall. "My parents knew they were mates and had to fight their parents to be together. They were both ostracized by their families. When Pierre came into the picture, it got even worse."
"Ostracized how?" the king asked.
"My father's family left his clan and my mother's family refuses to have anything to do with us other than to call up and scream at us if they thought we had done something wrong. Pierre hasn't even been allowed to take his rightful place at my father's side. He has to live in the shadows, pretending to just be my mother's twin brother. He only got to be with my father behind closed doors."
"I see."
"Whenever my mother's family attends some sort of function I am forced to attend, they are very disdainful. They whisper behind my back, gossip about me with their elite friends, and refuse to speak to me unless they are yelling disturbing things at me. According to them, I'm an abomination that should have been put to death before I even took my first breath."
"Do you have to attend functions with them often?"
"Not for a long time, but I think that's about to change. As Alessandro's consort, I'm kind of expected to attend these things."
"Too true." King Constantine patted my arm. "I often find them tedious, but have to attend them due to my station in life. I'd rather be home in my lounge pants watching vintage movies or something. Tuxes make me break out in hives."
I got that.
"Tell me more about the dynamics of your family."
"Oh, well, we never really got along, not even when I was a child, so—"
"No, your close family. Your parents and such."
Oh, them.
"Well..." I began explaining the relationship between my parents and their mates, including my mother's recent mating with Isabella. I also explained what Pierre had gone through over the years because of his loyalty to my father and his position.
"Pierre seems like such a nice young man and he is very clearly devoted to his mate. I don't understand how anyone can't see that."
I shrugged. "I grew up around the three of them. I don't understand why anyone can't see the bond between all of them. My mother and father are best friends. While they love each other, they are notinlove. My father is totally in love with Pierre."
