Also V for Valentina.
It’s wrong to lie to Max after what he's shared with me tonight. But what else can I do? I can't blow my cover with this man, not when I'm finally starting to understand who he is beneath his public persona. Not when I’ve got a job to do.
Not when I feel what I do for him.
"You two are close."
"She's all I've got," I reply before I can stop myself and immediately bite my lip.
Keep your guard up, Valentina.
"You said you’ve lived with your nona since you were twelve?"
“That’s right.”
The sheets rustle as he turns over to face me, his scent filling the air once more. It causes my brain to go temporarily offline. "Why? What happened when you were twelve?" he asks, his voice close to my ear. "If you don't mind my asking."
My belly twists at the memories of how my life wasturned on its head, how I was forced to grow up almost overnight. But what can I tell this man whose father I have to blame for my trauma?
I need to tell him something, and a partial truth seems like the safest option. “My dad had to leave Ledonia.”
“Why?”
I scrunch my eyes shut. “Can we…not?”
He places a warm hand on my shoulder, and I almost levitate off the bed, I’m so filled with tension. “I’m so sorry. You clearly don’t want to talk about this. It’s none of my business. It’s just…”
“It’s just what?” My heart is banging against my ribs.
“I want to know you,” he says simply.
We fall into silence, and I wonder what Max now makes of me. What questions must be running through his head? I want to answer his questions, and I’ll give him as much information as I can share. He deserves that much from me.
“My family circumstances changed when my dad left Ledonia. He wanted me to continue my education here, so he sent me to live in Villadorata with my nona.”
My words fill the surrounding air. Words I've never spoken to another soul. They might not be the full truth, but they're still the truth.
“That must have been so hard for you.”
Hard? Try devastating.
“It wasn't exactly a royal parade.”
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“It's been just me and Nona for all these years. I see my dad once or twice a year, but it's different from living with him.”
He's quiet for a moment, and I can practically hear him processing, trying to piece together the puzzle of my life with the limited information I'm giving him.
Part of me wants to tell him everything. About watching my father’s face crumble when he realized we had to leave everything behind. About his late-night escape. About me having to learn in my new life to make myself invisible, because visibility meant vulnerability.
But I can’t. Not unless I’m planning on blowing up my entire life.
"What about friends?" he asks softly. "Growing up, I mean. That must have been lonely."
"I kept to myself, mostly. Focused on school."
"And now? You must have colleagues, people you're close to."
