The words silenced the room in their wake. His father’s face reddened with fury, and his mother’s paled with shock.
“What do you mean?” his mother asked, rising from her seat. “She is your mate. You must marry her.”
“Why? Because gods whom we haven’t seen nor heard from in thousands of years said so?” he challenged.
“Because it will put our kingdom in danger,” his father bellowed and stood. “Of all the selfish, immature things you’ve done, this is too far. Youwillmarry Vivian.”
Roman stepped closer and snarled, “No, I will not.”
His mother’s voice quieted. “Why, Roman? What could be important enough to forsake your kingdom and defy the gods?”
Roman shifted to look at the woman who’d taught him the importance of love. He’d planned to wait until Violet agreed to marry him to reveal his true reasoning, but he knew the only way to win his mother over was to tell her the truth.
“I’m in love with Violet.” He stared at her, imploring her to understand. “I always have been. The gods made a mistake. I know they did.”
“Love?” the king scoffed. “You would put your entire kingdom at risk because of an infatuation? Son, think about what you’re saying.”
Roman’s head twisted eerily slow to look at his father. “There is nothing in this world more important to me than Violet Maekin. Nothing. Not even you two.”
“And how does Violet feel?” his father asked snidely. “She has a serious boyfriend. Confident of you to think she’ll give him up.”
Roman threw his head back and laughed maniacally. “You think I’m worried about Titus?”
At the same time, his mother surprised the hell out of both men by saying, “People disappear all the time.”
Roman gaped, and his father blanched. “Sarah, do you hear yourself?” the king asked his wife.
“What?” She placed her hand over her heart. “I knew he loved her when they were kids. EvenIthought the gods were mistaken, but eventually they outgrew their young love.” Her warm fingers wrapped around Roman’s, and the king mumbled to himself as he paced the length of the room.
“I thought you outgrew it,” his mother continued, “but had I known, we could have announced her as your mate instead. No one in the kingdom would have been the wiser.”
The guilt in his mother’s voice made his heart swell with gratitude. But none of this was her fault. The gods dealt Roman a shitty hand that he must rectify himself.
He smiled wryly. “I’ll have her. Even if I must kill any man who stands in my way.”
His father’s head whipped around so fast, Roman thought it might snap off. “Dear gods, there are two of you.”
Sarah smiled sweetly up at her son, ignoring her husband. “Okay, honey, but we can just as easily send him to another kingdom. It wouldn’t be the first time.”
The king looked between his wife and son. “You two cannot go around killing and exiling people for dating the ones you love.”
The queen’s face darkened. “Tippy Glenn did notdateyou, and if she had, more than her grabby hands would be fertilizing my garden.”
Roman’s father rubbed his forehead. “Maybe diluting the bloodline wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world,” he mumbled under his breath.
Roman stared at his mother, wondering how she’d kept animals from digging up the remains in her garden. It was the main reason he didn’t leave bodies there, like Kincaid. The man’s body had finally given out, and Roman had been forced to get creative with his disposal.
Roman’s mother sniffed and lifted her nose in the air. “Hush. We need to meet with the scholars and come up with a plan to lessen the blow when we announce Roman’s decision.”
* * *
Roman stared longingly at his bed the next morning. His nightly routine, while worth it, left him tired most days until he had his morning coffee. Each night after Titus left Violet’s house, Roman came back home for a few hours of sleep and would wake in the early hours of the morning from a nightmare. He’d then slip back into Violet’s house to check on her and watch her sleep until just before dawn.
If he thought he could survive on no sleep, he’d stay with Violet all night, but he couldn’t. He’d tried a few times.
Roman rubbed at his sternum, annoyed with Vivian’s giddy excitement laced with a strange sort of anxiety.Odd. If there was one thing about Vivian, she rarely experienced anxiety or fear.
A knock on his door interrupted his thoughts. He passed through his sitting room and opened the door to find his parents on the other side. He stepped aside and waved them in. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
