Aimilia looked up in the mirror. The bags under her eyes were deep as she fought the bile threatening to come up her throat. He’d lied to her. He’d used her. He’d arrested her and had her suspended for daring to defy him.
She’d wanted time to think; she had it now.
Aimilia could not deny she felt something for Nikias, and of all the terrible things she’d ever done, this was the worst.
If she loved Nikias…
If.
If she loved him, it was the worst betrayal she had ever committed, to Gavril and Marcella, her grandfather, Faustina, and to herself.
Hypatia’s words stayed with Aimilia like a pebble in her sandal.
Hypatia hadn’t outright said it was Nikias manipulating her and setting up a trap, but he’d done so before. Had he really changed?
Or was she the fool falling for his lies again?
Who was Nikias?
Was he the man he asserted he was, or was he just as skilled a manipulator as he’d always been? Was he manipulating her again? Had he been playing her all this time, tricking her into falling for this façade he put on until she landed in his trap and had no chance of escaping?
Was he lying about switching his and his mother’s papers to earn points with her to make himself look noble? It would be easy. She’d never know if he did or didn’t. He could easily rig the competition so she’d lose, and if she did, she would have no choice but to marry him.
Or, if he rigged it in her favor, ensuring she won, but making her believe it was because he’d been making noble sacrifices for her to win her affection, he’d still win if she bought it and chose to marry him and gave up the title.
He claimed he wanted her to want to marry him. What better way than to manipulate her into falling for him?
The way he’d looked at her that night he’d pulled her into his web… It was the way he looked at her now. The things he’d said… He knew her better than she could have ever imagined. He knew all her insecurities and how to take advantage of them. Nikias had known exactly what to say to her to bend her to his will. He’d done it before. He could be doing it again.
But…
Aimilia spun the ring over and over her finger.
What if he wasn’t?
What if Hypatia’s premonition by some miracle was referring to something else? What if Nikias had changed? What if it wasn’t a façade?
What if this was real?
It was still a betrayal of so many she loved. But…
If this was real, then Nikias might be one of them.
If she loved him, how could she not choose him?
But loving him didn’t erase the treason she’d committed. What would Nikias do if he ever discovered it? Could she love him and still take that to her grave?
Aimilia sat on the edge of her bed, burying her head in her hands. It took all her willpower not to be sick.
She didn’t know how she could have let this happen, but it was too late. She couldn’t change it. She couldn’t claw the warm affection that had snuck up on her over the past few months out of her heart. Nikias had found a place in it despite all logic and reason and even in spite of himself.
Aimilia took a deep breath.
There was only one path forward.
Aimilia had to become the next Head of House Mitis. It was the only way she would ensure she had the freedom to refuse Nikias as well as give her enough time to discover if this was just another grand scheme executed to perfection by the cunning man.
She could not afford to lose.
