She gasped when Roman shot to his feet. “No.”
Stunned, Violet leaned her head back to stare at him. “No?”
One step and he’d crossed the distance between them. One second and he’d dropped beside her. “No.”
“You can’t say no,” she argued with bewilderment. “It’s inappropriate for me to feel this way. It’swrong.” Her lower lip tried to tremble, but she willed it to hold steady. “I’m a terrible person,” she whispered. “Who falls in love with their sister’s future husband?”
Roman stabbed a hand through his hair and tugged on the short strands. “You don’t get to decide for me if we stay friends or not,” he informed her with finality. “What about me? You can dispose of me that easily?”
Violet scoffed, her anger rising. “I am making this decision forme. Being in love with someone promised to my sister is wrong anddevastating.”
She jumped to her feet, throwing up her hands and letting them fall. “You’re not listening. I love you, Roman. Giving you up will hurt more than anything I’ve experienced, but watching you fall in love with Vivian will destroy me. I need time to get over you before I’m subjected to that. Why can’t you understand? How can you ask this of me?” She swiped at her stupid tears, hating that she cried so easily.
He glared at her and maneuvered her around a large root until her back hit the tree. “Did it ever occur to you that I love you, too?”
His words sank in.No.
“Did you ever think of what losing you and watching you fall in love with someone else will do to me?” His strong arms caged her in on either side of her head. “You might get over me, but I won’t get over you. How canyouask that ofme?”
A pain like she’d never known enveloped her, weighing her down, like being buried under a pile of stone. Despair beat at her until there was nothing left. Roman was everything she’d ever wanted. Having him tell her he loved her too, knowing she could never have him, altered something inside her. If she thought unrequited love hurt, it had nothing on this.
He loved her, yet she would watch him fall out of love with her and in love with his mate. Nothing hurt more than knowing she had his heart but couldn’t keep it.Nothing.
Imagine starving, having foregone food for a week, then being presented with a juicy steak, only to have it yanked away after one bite. “You’re going to marry my sister,” she whispered. “Loving me doesn’t change that. She’s yourmate. The gods made you for each other, and one day, you will love her and she’ll love you.” The muscle in his jaw flexed. “When that day comes, I want to be happy for you. I want you two to be happy, but in order to not taint that happiness with hurt and resentment, I need to move on.” She closed her eyes. “And so do you.”
Roman pressed his forehead to hers. If he kissed her, she wouldn’t have the strength to push him away. If he asked her to be his, she’d give in. Part of her wanted him to, and the other part screamed for him to let her go.
He pushed off the tree and stepped back. “I’ll give you anything you want, princess.” His voice held no emotion, but his eyes gave away his every thought. The hurt they held made her want to take everything back. “If space is what you want, space is what you’ll get.” He spun on his heel, and she swore she heard him whisper, “for now,” as he walked away.
Violet watched him leave and gave in to the sinking feeling pulling her down. There, on the forest floor, she released her anguish, crying until her throat grew raw. Everything in her dimmed, and she knew there was no bouncing back from this within a day or two.
Despite never wanting to speak of this again, Violet went home and told her mother part of the story, just not the who. She’d considered faking sick instead, but then they’d call a healer. Going with half-truths seemed to be the best option, and she could only pray her mother would understand.
Looking back on her conversation with Roman, she realized her foolishness in thinking she could ever get over him.
* * *
Roman pressed his forehead against the cool glass of Violet’s window as he strained to see against the afternoon glare. For a week he’d watched through her window as her beautiful complexion paled from staying inside and the light in her eyes dulled from grief. The same grief that held him prisoner.
Their souls were anchored to the ocean floor, weighed down by their confessions.
Roman had fought his every instinct to pull her into his arms when she’d sobbed on the ground after breaking his heart. The next day, when she stayed home from school, claiming illness, he’d skipped his own classes and sat outside her window.
Meri opened the curtains during the day to let in the light, allowing Roman to observe Violet. During the night, his access to her closed, and all he could do was listen to the sounds of her soft cries.
Accusing her of being able to give him up easily was cruel. The girl he watched day in and day out mirrored what he felt inside. His soul had fallen into a dark and lonely abyss, taking the joy out of everything he’d once cared about.
He didn’t need a bond to tell him Violet was his true mate. Every royal found their soulmate at thirteen years old, but Roman had found his at twelve, only to have her ripped away.
For two weeks he and Violet wallowed in their grief, as star-crossed lovers do. Meri finally coaxed Violet into attending school, and Roman vowed to break thousands of years of tradition to marry her at any cost.
Nothing would stop him from having her, not even the gods themselves.
10
SEVENTEEN YEARS OLD
Roman raced toward the palace, his heart pounding in his ears. Violet needed him. Faceless figures tried to slow him down, but nothing mattered more than getting to her.
