23
Andy
Blood poundedin my ears as I looked at Kit’s guilty face, stomach knotting up painfully.
He’d lied to me.Again.
And this wasn’t about who his dad was, this time. It was about whohewas.
And who I’d have to be if I wanted to be with him. Who Icouldn’tbe.
“What did he mean, you’re the Duke of Hartsworth?” I asked, voice barely loud enough for me to hear myself over my own pounding heart.
Duke was the rank below prince, sort of. That was what Kit had said.
Kit waspractically a prince. The closest available thing to it. He’d said so himself, when he was talking about Will.
“I… it… Robert isn’t really my maternal grandfather’s son,” Kit stammered. “Which, umm. Which makes me the oldest male heir of that line.”
My head was spinning.
“How long have you—this is what your dad wanted to tell you, isn’t it?” I asked as realization dawned.
Kit bit his lip, which I took as confirmation.
I couldn’t be the consort to the Duke of Hartsworth, whatever the fuck that meant. I didn’t even knowwhatit meant.
I couldn’t keep Kit. I was losing him.
“I did try to tell you,” Kit said, looking down at his shoes.
“Why the fuck didn’t you?” I asked, trembling.
I was losing Kit. He’d been trying to tell me. Since at least last night. That was why he’d burst into tears, right?
“Because I knew I was going to lose you the moment I did and I wanted to keep you for one more day. I’m sorry.”
Fuck.Fuck.
“You promised me no more secrets,” I said. “Youpromised.”
But it wasn’t the secret I was mad about, not really. He hadn’t kept it, he’d been waiting for a moment when he could tell me. I knew that, in my head.
My heart was busy trying to bust out of my ribcage so it could run screaming into the hills instead of shattering in my chest.
“I know, Andy. Please—”
He took a step toward me, reaching out, and my body stepped back without even needing to consult my brain.
The thing was, I wanted a hug. I wanted a hug fromKit,because I loved him, because he meant the world to me, because he was comforting and soothing and he lit up my life like a million Christmas lights at once.
But all I could see right now was the friendship bracelet tied to his wrist.
He was my best friend in the whole wide world, the only one I’d ever had. I loved him. And I couldn’t be part of his life anymore.
This was why neither his mom nor Will thought I was good enough for him. Because Iwasn’t. I couldn’t be. I didn’t even know where to start.
We couldn’t bejust Kit and Andyanymore.
