It didn’t matter. Either way, she had failed.
She turned around to face him, only to find herself looking at his chest. She stumbled back. “And in all this, you hadn’t thought to stand up for me. Do I mean nothing to you?”
“Of course you mean something.” His head turned down to meet her sharp gaze. He took a breath as his mouth formed a placating smile. “You’re misunderstanding me.”
“No, I think I understand you quite clearly.” Clía lifted her chin. She hoped her legs weren’t unsteady like her pulse. “You have no understanding of strength—whether of person or of will. Until now, I was under the impression we would be married, an impression you encouraged. Myparentsare still under that impression.Everyoneis under that impression. And now you come here to tell me you’redone? That after our entire life leading upto this, you decided you needed someone better? I’m sorry—notyou. Yourfatherdecided. You won’t even fight for our future.”
“Who said I wanted to fight for it?” His voice echoed throughout the courtyard. It was hollow and cold and nothing like the prince she had once known.
He continued. “Did you actually believe that we might find true happiness? We’re here for our people. To rule and guide. Nothing more, nothing less. Our lives belong to our kingdoms, not ourselves. And it’s these exact fanciful notions that show you could never be the queen my kingdom needs.”
The silence pressed down on her, its force crushing.
Clía tried to force his words out of her mind. To forget the hope she’d put in him, in them together.
“You’re upset, I can tell.”
Anger filled the cracks that grew deeper the more he spoke. She glowered at him. “Oh, really? What gave you that impression?”
“The Tinelann and Ionróir threat is real, and you would falter under the pressure of war. I need to be with someone who can not only survive the battles to come, but win. I need a strategic thinker, someone strong under fire. I need more than a pretty face by my side.”
The words slid into Clía’s chest like a dagger. Her entire life, she’d molded herself into the perfect daughter. The perfect princess. She’d worn the mask because it was what they wanted. She’d thought that was something he understood.
“Is that all you ever thought I was?” If anything, Domhnall should have known there was more to her than met the eye. He was herfriend. Could he not see the truth beneath the act?
“No, no! Clía—everything is coming out all wrong. I didn’t mean for it to go like this.”
“Then how did you expect this to happen?” The anger that fueled her was so much easier to feel than the doubt that threatened to creep closer. “Did you think I would be happy that you’re completely throwing away my—ourfuture? That I would be glad everything I had planned for was taken away without me even having a say? Tell me, how did you expect this to go?”
His eyes were pleading; his hands stretched out into the space between them. “Let me start over.”
“No.” She closed her eyes, and when they opened again, she looked past him. Everything she had planned, everything she had worked toward, had crumbled before her and there was nothing she could do to stop it. And her friend, the man she thought she might one day love, was the one tearing it down. “I think I’m done.”
Chapter Four
Ronan stood awkwardly beside a shrub.
“That went well,” Domhnall stated after Princess Clíodhna fled the courtyard, sitting down unceremoniously on the bench. The garden was empty except for the two of them. For a moment, Ronan thought he saw a glimpse of hurt in the prince’s eyes, before it was replaced by resolve. “I can’t say that went as I expected, but nothing ever does.”
“Whatdidyou expect?” Ronan could have told Domhnall that the news wouldn’t go over well. He didn’t really know the princess, but he had the common sense to know breaking a near-finalized betrothal, especially one as awaited as theirs, would not incite a positive response.
And now, after having seen the princess, Ronan was just grateful that Domhnall had left the exchange alive. There had been fire in her hazel eyes, and he wouldn’t have been surprised if in that moment, she pulled out a dagger and stabbed the prince in his heart.
However, anger wasn’t the only thing he saw. Defeat had crept into the set of her shoulders as she turned to leave. For a moment, Ronan couldn’t help but pity her. Without any warning, the future that had been planned for her since birth was taken away. He didn’t have to like her or her family tounderstand that such a loss would be a heavy blow. Especially when dealt by a friend.
Domhnall turned to Ronan, looking almost helpless. “I guess I thought she might understand?”
“Understand that you and your father think she’s too weak to rule?”
Domhnall groaned. “Perhaps that was a little harsh.”
“Perhaps?” Ronan raised a brow. It was strange, this urge to defend her. But he understood Domhnall’s situation.Kingdom comes first. Duty was a common language between the two men.
Ronan took a seat beside the prince on the stone bench. It helped the aching in his legs that was a result of hours stuffed into a tiny carriage. The pain always got worse when he traveled. “You want my honesty? You could have handled it better. But it’s over now—there’s no use worrying about it.”
“Ah, your inexperience with romance is revealing itself if you think I have no cause for concern here.” Ronan balked at Domhnall’s comment.Inexperience?But the prince continued talking. “Clía won’t forget this. I’m worried I lost a good friend today.” The forced levity had left Domhnall’s voice. When Ronan looked at him and saw his shoulders slumped, gaze trained on the sky as if pleading with the gods, he didn’t see a prince. He saw his friend.
Thiswas what Domhnall had been dreading in the carriage. The prince didn’t want to abandon the princess, but he felt he had no choice. If King Cathal was truly against the match, it would be pointless to fight for it. The end was unfortunate but unavoidable.
