“Take her to her family?”
“No,” I said.
“Tell her the truth?”
“I can’t do that either.”
“Well then I’m sorry. I cannot cure a condition like yours,” the woman said.
“What condition?”
She gave me an affectionate shake. “Love.”
I shot her a quelling look, but the healer continued anyway.
“Don’t try to deny it. It’s obvious to us all,” she said. “And we understand—we all love Raewyn. We want her to stay, just as you do. But things cannot go on like this.”
My response was begrudging. “I know. I’m just not sure what to do about it.”
“Love her,” the healer said, as if it was obvious. “I believe she loves you, too—or could, if you’d give her the chance.”
“That’s not an option,” I informed her.
The healer’s well-meaning advice wasn’t any more useful than the matchmaker’s glamour. My love and desire for Raewyn had never done anything but hurt her. It was who I was.
I got up and left, not wanting to leave Raewyn’s door but desperate to get away from Elanor’s annoying sympathetic expression.
Chapter 17
What You Most Want To See
Pharis
For the next several days, Raewyn didn’t leave her room. She’d informed her ladies’ maid and Elanor alike that she did not want any visitors.
Hoping to entice her to dinner, I sent up a new dress in her favorite color—pink—only to find it a short time later lying on the floor beneath the second story gallery.
On the third day of Raewyn’s self-imposed isolation, Kem came to me in my study.
“May I have a word, My Prince?”
“What is it? Is Raewyn asking for me?” I asked eagerly, rising from my chair.
The maid’s face colored slightly, and she looked down before answering.
“No, My Prince. That is what I wished to discuss with you.”
The young woman wrung her hands together in front of her.
“She doesn’t want anything or anyone,” she said. “She’s barely eating enough to stay alive. She won’t even read. She’s either sleeping or sitting in the window seat, staring out thewindow all day. She hardly speaks when spoken to. I’m worried about her.”
Leaving the study, I went right to the stairs.
Kem followed at my heels. “She doesn’t want to see… anyone, My Prince.”
“That’s too damned bad,” I said over my shoulder. “Because she’s going to. Stay down here.”
The maid stopped on the stairs, and I continued to the top, taking several of them at a time. Striding to the end of the hallway, I charged into Raewyn’s room without knocking.
