This is the hardest thing I have ever had to do, and if I were a stronger man, I would have told you in person.
Before I say this, know that I do love you, and part of my heart will always be yours, but the rest has always been elsewhere. That day I walked into your tent and saw your face, I was stunned into silence. You look just like her, but different in your own, beautiful way.
I am ashamed to admit that when I asked you to dinner, it was with revenge in mind. Vivian and I have been in love since late childhood, and when the prince announced her as his mate, I’d never felt such betrayal and heartbreak in my life. She never told me why she wanted to keep us a secret, but I loved her too much to deny her anything.
When I took you out for the first time, you surprised me. You are so full of life, and you made me laugh more than I thought possible. The more time we spent together, the more I realized I didn’t care about hurting Vivian anymore. I cared about making you happy, and bit by bit, I fell in love with you too.
But Vivian still haunted me, and when she came to me weeks ago and begged me to run away with her, it felt right. You must understand that fate forced us apart, not our own choices, and it wouldn’t have been fair to you if I’d stayed.
I will never forgive myself for breaking your heart, but you deserve a man who can give you their all, and that man isn’t me.I wish it had been you.
With Love,
Titus
The paper slipped through Violet’s fingers and joined her on the old wooden floor. She didn’t know when she’d slid to her knees, but she knew the exact moment the shards of her heart pierced her lungs on their way to the ground.
The betrayal didn’t cut deep, it sliced her all over in a thousand tiny knicks, drawing blood and pain from every piece of her.
Her dinner from last night evacuated her stomach, and she alternated between shaking, crying, and cursing the two people responsible.
A strangled sob ripped from her throat as a gaping hole formed in her chest.
She’d never hated someone before, but in that moment, she hated her sister more than anything in the world.
“Violet,” a deep voice rumbled on the other side of her front door. “It’s Roman, let me in.”
Violet hung her head and cried harder. If she ignored him, he’d go away eventually. Falling back on her butt, she leaned her head against the cabinet behind her. A muffled curse followed by footsteps pounded down her porch steps.
Did Vivian leave him a note? Is he devastated like me?
Violet’s kitchen window crashed open, and she screamed, her broken heart beating erratically. She scrambled across the floor on her hands and knees, narrowly missing the vomit, and tried to hide under the table.
Large hands wrapped around her waist and stopped her escape. She thrashed around, but they pulled her against a warm body. “It’s me, princess,” Roman murmured and settled on the ground with her still in his arms. Tugging her into his lap, he moved one of the chairs and tried to scoot them both under the table, but his large frame wouldn’t fit. Instead, he held her tight and whispered apologies.
Fur brushed against her leg, and she lifted her head to see a fuzzy blue lorix blinking back at her. She pressed closer into Roman. Lorix were cute, but they were deadly.
“Tilly,” Roman said sharply. “You’re scaring her.” He ran a soothing hand down Violet’s back. “She’s my mother’sfamiliar.” The lorix ignored Roman and scooted closer to Violet.
The adrenaline wore off, and Violet tried to move out of Roman’s lap, but he refused to let her go. “What happened?”
Violet sniffled. “You don’t know?” Her watery eyes raised to his.
“Is Vivian dead?” he asked cautiously.
She jerked back. “What?”
“The bond is gone,” he explained. “I thought maybe something happened to her.”
He thought Vivian died and looked not the least bit upset.The bond is broken.Violet’s breath hitched and a fresh wave of tears swarmed her. If their bond broke, then VivianmarriedTitus.
I fuckinghateher.
“Sh-she ran away with T-Titus,” Violet hiccupped. The lorix climbed into her lap and wormed its way under Roman’s arm to snuggle against her stomach.
“Shewhat?” Roman boomed, making her wince. Funny, he seemed more upset to know she’d married another man than he had thinking she’d died.
“If you’ll let me up, I’ll show you.” Violet was proud of herself for managing not to blubber her words. Roman reluctantly released her, and she retrieved Titus’ letter from the floor. “Last night Titus paid the post extra to hand deliver this to me this morning.”
