Only when he seems certain he has avoided the RIA agent does he shift his glare to me. “Send Elliot away. If you’re not willing to admit that you’re in love with him yet, that’s fine, but—”
“Wait.” Putting my hand on his arm, I have to fight through a wave of dizziness that washed over me as soon as he said Elliot’s name. “What do you mean, send him away? I didn’t send him anywhere!” The last time I saw Elliot was in my parents’ sitting room, and… “No.” I grip his arm tighter as I realize why my mother seems so concerned whenever she looks at me. “Mum sacked him? But he didn’t do anything wrong! Why would she fire him if he was the best protector I have ever had? If she found out about the kiss we shared, then I should take the blame. I’m the one who asked him to—”
“Mum?” Hex wrinkles his nose at me, but the longer he looks at me, the more he seems to be putting together pieces of a puzzle I cannot see. “No, Freya,” he says, gentler now. “You picked Grimstad and broke Elliot’s heart, so now’s he going back to the Special Forces because he’s a bloody hero and can’t learn to keep himself out of danger.”
“Back to the Special Forces?” I whisper, panic rising in my throat. “But he can’t leave.”
“He can, and I don’t blame him if he does.” Hex frowns at me. “Did you really expect him to stay at your side and watch you devote yourself to another man? Elliot’s a solid bloke, but no one is that perfect.” He looks behind me and groans. “Excepthemust be if you chosehimfor the rest of your life.”
Completely overwhelmed, I spin around right as Markham reaches my side and cups my elbow with his palm, looking at me with concern.
“Freya, are you alright?”
I am far from alright, but I can barely process my thoughts let alone explain my panic to Markham. Ididexpect Elliot to stay by my side, selfish as that is. After he all but told me I should make the choice I did, I thought we could find a new normal and move forward as friends.
I thought I could learn to shift my affection from him to Markham.
With the way my heart pounds now at the mere thought of Elliot leaving, that change will not be so easy.
“Freya,” Markham says again, moving his hand from my elbow to the small of my back. “You’re pale.”
I look at Hex, who clenches his jaw and looks down. Disappointed.
“Freya,” my mother says behind me, choosing the worst possible moment to interrupt. “It is nearly time to make your announcement.”
Already? My eyes dart around the room. Looking for an escape? No. I made this choice. It is what Candora needs.
“Let’s give her a moment, Your Majesty,” Markham says, pressing his hand harder into my back. For support, I assume, but I feel crowded and want to shrink away from his touch.
I find Derek in the same place he was before. His gaze is already on me, worry in his eyes, and he steps toward me, ready to come tell me what to do. But a hand lands on his shoulder, holding him in place as someone…
“Elliot,” I whisper.He’s here.
Elliot holds Derek back as he comes into view with his eyes focused on me. Everything around him seems to fade, leaving my full attention fixed on where he stands. His tux matches Derek’s, but something about his bearing makes him look more impressive than his cousin, and I cannot help but compare the two of them as they stand next to each other.
When I first learned of their family connection, I could see the similarities, but this is the first time I have seen them side by side. Derek, with his dark hair and blue eyes, has a more striking appearance, while Elliot’s lighter hair and brown eyes give him a softer feel. But they have the same jawline, and their noses look almost identical. As Derek leans closer to Elliot to mutter something in his ear, they get the same wrinkle between their eyebrows.
“Vitte,” Hex says, “they’re practically the same person.” He must be seeing what I am.
“Hendrick,” Mum scolds, “that language is unbecoming of a Prince of Candora.” But her fingers are on her jaw as she also studies the two men.
“Who is that with Reid?” Markham asks. “A brother?”
“Derek Riley,” I say with a frown. “Elliot’s…cousin.”
Both Derek and Elliot notice my frown and step forward, pausing to look at each other before Derek nods and urges Elliot onward.
I do not take a breath until Elliot reaches our little gathering, stopping on Hex’s other side so I am surrounded by the four of them. If I felt crowded before, now I am entirely trapped.
“Your Highness,” Elliot says and bows to me.
Has he ever bowed to me? His head, perhaps, but never a formal bow like this. It feels wrong to see him bent at the waist, a fist over his heart.
“Where have you been?” I ask, the words coming out shaky.
As he stands, Elliot’s eyes shift from Hex to Markham to my mother in quick succession, then land on me. His expression shows me very little of what he is feeling, but Hex called him heartbroken. If that were true,surely he would not look so indifferent. “Forgive me, Your Highness. I had something unavoidable come up, but I’m here now.”
Stop calling me that. Those are the words I want to say, but they stick in my throat. Along with others.I don’t want you to leave.
