"I don't know."
"Your Highness?"Viktor approached from across the gallery, his expression concerned."Might I borrow you for a moment?There's a donor who specifically requested to meet you."
I glanced at Archie, who looked like he wanted to argue.But we were in public, surrounded by people who were watching our every interaction.This wasn't the time or place for the conversation we needed to have.
"Of course," I said to Viktor.
As I followed him across the gallery, Archie's gaze on my back was like a physical touch.When I glanced over my shoulder, he was still watching me, his expression unreadable.
The donor Viktor wanted me to meet turned out to be a duchess from Belgium who spent twenty minutes telling me about her own charitable work.She was kind and enthusiastic, and I managed to hold a decent conversation despite my brain being elsewhere.
By the time the reception ended, I was exhausted, physically and emotionally.I'd smiled for a thousand photographs, shaken hundreds of hands, and navigated countless conversations where people were trying to determine if I was scandal-ridden trash or a princess worth supporting.
I was walking back to my rooms when I passed the palace library and noticed light coming from under the door.Curious, I pushed it open and found Archie standing at one of the tall windows, looking out over the harbor.
He turned when he heard the door."Hi."
"Hi."
We stood there in silence for a moment, the vast library feeling somehow intimate in the late-evening quiet.
"I've been thinking about what you said," he began."About needing time.And you're right.You should take whatever time you need."
"Okay."
"But I want you to know something first."He moved closer, stopping a few feet away, close enough to talk quietly but not close enough to touch."This morning, when I said those things to you, I was wrong.Not just wrong to say them out loud, but wrong to think them in the first place."
I sighed.
"Please.Let me finish."He took a breath."You were twenty years old, living a normal life, having normal experiences with your friends.The fact that someone weaponized those experiences against you is despicable.And the fact that I joined in that attack instead of defending you is unforgivable."
"I don't know if it's unforgivable."
"It should be."His voice was rough."You trusted me last night.You were vulnerable with me.And then this morning I threw it in your face because I was jealous of some guy you went on three dates with years ago."
"You were hurt."
"I was an insecure idiot who let my feelings override my judgment."He ran a hand through his hair."I looked at those photos and all I could think was that he got to see you like that, relaxed and laughing and completely yourself.And I was jealous because that's all I've wanted since the moment I met you.To see the real you without any royal performance."
The honesty in his voice made my throat tight."You've seen the real me."
"Have I?Or have we both been performing for each other this whole time, trying to figure out if we can make this impossible situation work?"
"I don't know."I moved to the window, looking out at the same view he'd been watching."Maybe a little of both."
He was quiet for a moment.Then: "For what it's worth, last night was real.What happened between us.That wasn't performance."
"I know."
"And this morning, when I said those things, that wasn't real either.That was fear and jealousy and all the worst parts of me that I usually keep under control."He turned to face me."The real me is the person who thinks you're remarkable.Who watches you read to children and sees someone who's going to be an incredible princess.Who wakes up with you in his arms and feels lucky for the first time in years."
I closed my eyes against the words."Don't."
"Don't what?"
"Don't say things like that when I'm trying to stay angry at you."
"I'm not trying to make you less angry.I'm trying to be honest."He paused."You asked me this morning if I believed you.The answer is yes.I believe every word you said about Chilly Baker.I believe someone set this up to hurt you.And I believe I played right into their hands by attacking you instead of standing with you."
