It’s not a question. I can hear years of being misjudged in his tone.
“I wasn’t handling it well. I needed time to work out my thoughts,” I whisper. “When I saw her on your lap, every fear and insecurity I had when it came to us rushed in. Every warning Patterson had given me, every tabloid story, and every voice in my head told me how stupid I was for believing we could be something real. A princess would be easier for you.”
His brows furrow. “Those voices in your head can shut the fuck up. I only want you. I want you to be my wife, Addison. I want to raise a family and get a dog and rule Montclaire with you by my side. No one knows what’s best for me other than me. I choose you.”
“I choose you too,” I say, wanting all those things as well.
He searches my eyes. “If we’re going to do this—really do this—you can’t run from our problems. You have to give me a chance to explain, but know I’d never throw away what we have for anything. Not Tatiana. Not my family. Not the crown.”
I swallow hard. “I’m scared, Louis. I’ve never let anyone this close before, and there is so much to lose.”
“I know.” He presses his forehead to mine. “But I’d rather be terrified with you than safe with anyone else.”
“That’s either the most romantic thing anyone’s ever said to me or the dumbest.”
He laughs. “Probably both.”
I wrap my arms around his neck. “I can’t promise I won’t freak out again. This is a lot. I’ll try to let you explain before I spiral and get in my head.”
“That’s all I’m asking.” He kisses me. “And I’ll try to make sure you never have a reason to doubt the way I feel again.”
The tenderness of his words makes me want to cry.
His voice shifts, suddenly firm in a way that makes me payattention, when he says, “If the council tries to force me to be with someone else, I’m prepared to walk away from this.”
I blink. “Louis?—”
“I mean it.” He holds my gaze, and there’s no hesitation there, no doubt, nothing but absolute certainty. “I’ll give up the crown, the palace, and the power. I’ll move to New York and learn to take the subway. None of it matters without you.”
I shake my head. “You can’t.”
“I can.” He grins. “I’ve spent my whole life doing what I was supposed to do and being who I was supposed to be. And I was fucking miserable, Addison. Empty. Going through the motions.”
“But the crown?—”
“Is a title.” He shrugs like he’s talking about giving up a watch, not a kingdom. “The palace is just a building. None of it means anything without someone to share it with.” His thumb traces my cheekbone. “Withoutyouto share it with. You’re the only choice.”
The magnitude of this is almost too much.
“Louis …” I don’t have words because no one has ever loved me enough to sacrifice everything. “I don’t want you to give up your life. That’s not what I want.”
“It’s not what the council wants either. I will call their bluff, so be ready.” He presses his palm against my cheek. “But know when the final moment comes, and I’m asked to choose, it’s you. Every time. Without hesitation. So, please win that fucking contest and stay.”
I lean into his touch and close my eyes, letting this sink in. This man would walk away from centuries of legacy, from family expectations, from everything he’s ever known for me.
“So, we continue to play the game?” I ask.
“Yes.” He kisses my forehead. “And we try our best to win.”
He pulls back and studies my face, and something shifts in his expression. The intensity softens into something warmer. A slow smile spreads across his lips.
“What are you doing tonight?”
The energy around me changes, and things don’t feel as heavy as they did when I arrived.
“I don’t know. I planned to eat a pint of gelato while plotting revenge on a princess.”
“Sounds like a villain origin story,” he says with a laugh. “Cancelyour plans. I’m taking you somewhere.” He presses a kiss to my knuckles.
