I blink at her. “Have you lost your fucking mind?”
“Have you?”
I sigh. “You’ve given me a week of excuses and obstacles that only seem to affect my ability to see Addison.” I push off from the door and take a step closer. “Either you’re incompetent, which I don’t believe, or you’re playing fucking games.”
She studies me, and then she smiles. It’s evil and controlled. “I’ve been thinking about our arrangement, and I’ve realized there might be a better option for both of us.”
I slide my hands into my pockets as my jaw clenches. The exhaustion I’ve been ignoring all week catches up with me. “Explain.”
“Marry me.” She holds up a hand before I can respond. “Hear me out. Your mother wants this alliance, and my father wants this alliance. The council, the advisors, everyone with any power in either of our countries wants this marriage to happen. You can fight it, but you’ll lose. You might delay it, but the pressure will become unbearable, and you’ll have to choose between the crown and your happiness.”
“I’ve already made that choice.”
“Have you?” She tilts her head. “Because from where I’m sitting, you’re still here, still playing games with me, still hoping for a miracle that isn’t coming. You know we’d be good together. Look at what we’ve accomplished so far.”
My nostrils flare, and I find the conversation unbelievable. “We had an agreement. This ends at the ball in front of everyone. What about your secret relationship?”
“He can come here. We can both have our lovers on-site. The public is obsessed with us, Louis. It would do good for both of our countries.” She stands. “This way, we can have what we truly want.”
“You can have what you truly want,” I say.
“I have your best interests in mind as well.”
She moves closer, and I hold my ground even though my jaw is tight enough to ache.
“Marry me. Be my husband in name, in appearance, in all the ways that matter to our parents and the endless parade of diplomats who care about alliances and bloodlines. And in private …”
She reaches out to touch my chest, and I catch her wrist before she makes contact.
“Give me a baby. You can keep Addison. Live out your fantasies together.” Her gray eyes meet mine, steady and calculating. “We’ll create several heirs. While you have your fun, I’ll look the other way and deny any allegations. You can love her however you want, and I’ll never say a word. She becomes your secret, and I become your wife. Everyone wins.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Think about it, Louis. I’m offering you my loyalty. My allegiance to the Crown. And everything I am. However you want me, I’m yours.”
She takes a step forward, and I take a step back.
“Your mother will never accept her. You can threaten abdication all you want, but we both know you won’t actually do it. Not for a woman. You love this country too much to deny it of you. There is a part of you that enjoys this, or you’d have ended it weeks ago.” She steps back to give me space, playing reasonably. “You’ll have everything you want.”
“I want Addison asmy wife. She’s the only woman I could ever see ruling Montclaire beside me.”
“The American?” Tatiana’s voice sharpens. “Hilarious, considering, right now, she’s painting your engagement portrait to the future queen of Montclaire.”
“If you don’t follow our plan and you break your word, you will regret this for the rest of your existence.” I force my voice to stay level even though I want to shake her. “We had a deal, Tatiana. I trusted you, and you don’t want to break that. At the ball, you make your accusations, we have our public breakup, and you get to play victim. Everyone feels sorry for you, and then we will walk away from each other.”
“Are you living in a fairy tale, Louis?” She sarcastically laughs. “Your mother is ruthless. She will not accept defeat. You think she’ll welcome Addison with open arms because you want her to? She’ll find another princess, another alliance, another woman to parade in front of you until you finally give up. You sold your soul to the devil, Louis; you should’ve never signed that contract. I’m offering you something you will find with no other princess. Do you understand that?”
“I will not settle,” I state. “I will face the consequences.”
“You don’t have to do this alone. We could be partners.” She softens her expression, shifting back to the vulnerable woman who cried in my room. “I’m offering you a solution, Louis, a real one that lets you keep everything you want.”
I shake my head. “No thanks.”
“You’re not going to consider it at all?” she asks.
“The answer is, fuck no.”
She sighs and moves back to the vanity. She picks up her brush and runs it through her dark hair, and I watch her reflection watch me. “What some people will do for love. You’re willing to risk it all because you feel all fuzzy inside? Give me a break.”
