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Her eyes welled with tears “Let o”
“No” Never
“You don’t need me—”
“But I do” Always
“Those are just words!”
But words didn’t come easily to him, either
What he longed to do was take her in his arms He wanted to hold her and co tested He was battling to keep it all together He hated as happening to thes than their own personal drama
“We will get through this,” he added quietly “I promise”
“You disappointher face
He flinched but said nothing
She blinked hard, adding, “I kept thinking we had a shot atreal between us But I rong There is no us in your world—there is just you It’s your world, your title, your futurenot mine It was never mine”
She rong There was an us, but he didn’t have the energy to argue, and so he stopped focusing on Josephine’s words, unable to take thes as a boy He’d been brutalized in the boarding school by other boys because he’d dared to careto hurt
In the navy, he’d been drilled to be tough Feelings, once again, had been shameful They ical and strong
So no, he wouldn’t feel her pain, and no, he wouldn’t let her words register because it would do no good Her pain and disappoint
His father was dying
The country would need a new king
His mother would be ed and displaced
Alexander needed to do nohat he’d been raised to do Shoulder the weight of Aargau Do right by the crown Honor his father’s memory and name
He didn’t knohy he’d been on the yacht near Khronos, and he didn’t knohat had happened on that yacht or why she’d been there to save hi was about to change
Josephine , but she’d rise to the occasion He knew she would Just as he’d known she’d do the right thing by their child
Josephine understood honor And in her oay, she understood responsibility and duty She’d be an excellent queen one day He just wished the path could be less painful
“You can return to Khronos after the wedding,” he said “You can take some time once we’re married I will speak with the security—”
“No Not after There is no after—”
“Josephine, stop for a er picture, if you can”
“You mean you and what you want?” she flashed bitterly
He ground his teeth together She didn’t understand that he was trying to do the right thing nohich was give his father peace of o of this life and the pain racking his body Because his father wouldn’t let go, not if he believed the family was in crisis