Page 111 of The Promised Prince
“No one will even notice that I’m gone.”
“Ezra will.” Seran’s lips tugged further downward. “He notices everything about you.”
Renna’s stomach began to churn, and suddenly it was hard to breathe.
“You know, sometimes I watch him watch you.” Seran gracefully sank onto the edge of her bed, squishing a pile of undergarments in the process. “His eyes always find you, but the look on his face is the most interesting part. Everything about him brightens.”
Renna swallowed back the rising bile in her throat. How long had Seran known about them? “Seran, I—”
She put her hand up, stopping Renna. “At first, I was angry with you. You’re not chained to a marriage alliance. You can fall in love with and marry whomever you want. Why did you choose theonlyman I can be with?”
“I...” Renna shook her head. Her chest tightened and it was hard to find her voice. She swallowed. “I didn’t choose him. I would never intentionally do that to you.”
Seran nodded. “Do you want to know the worst part?”
Renna didn’t dare answer.
“The worst part is none of us will truly ever be happy. No one wins in a situation like this.”
Emotion crept its way up Renna’s throat, but she refused to let it out, refused to let her own pain diminish the significance of Seran’s. She swallowed back the lump forming in her throat, willing herself to stay strong.
“I feel awful,” she managed to get out. “What can I do to fix this?”
Seran’s lips lifted into a small smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “There’s nothing to fix. You’ll go away, and I’ll pray that Ezra forgets you someday.”
Renna felt numb.
“I’m scared to marry him. Not just because he has feelings for you, but because Idon’thave feelings for him,” Seran admitted. “I know that’s probably the last thing you want to hear me say, to complain about marrying a man you’d give anything to be with.”
Renna had thought she would give anything to be with Trev but seeing the hurt in Seran’s eyes ripped her heart wide open. Seran was right; no one won. “I wish you were free to do what you want with your life.”
“I do too.” Seran’s eyes dropped to her hands. “And what about you?” She abruptly stood. “Will you be happy?”
Renna nodded her head, not daring to speak, afraid if she did she might crumble to pieces right there on Seran’s floor.
“Well,” Seran pulled her into a hug, “good luck, Renna.”
This was another goodbye. If Renna was going to cut Trev out of her life, she had to cut Seran out too. She was the closest thing to a sister Renna had ever had. Even though they were different, Renna was going to miss her.
There were probably a hundred things Renna should say to Seran, but all that mattered now was that Seran and Trev found happiness. “Take care of each other.”
“We’ll try,” Seran said, giving her one last hug.
* * *
Renna was allpacked and ready for Wellenbreck—it wasn’t as complicated as Seran’shoneymoonpacking—so she decided to spend some time on the roof. She had only discovered the roof last week. With lots of time on her hands, she had followed a staircase in the west corner of the palace, finding it led to the roof. It wasn’t the entire roof, more like a little section above the west tower, but it was secluded and had picturesque views of the city and the changing leaves on the mountains. Renna wished she had known about it earlier. She could imagine hours of stargazing from this spot.
She pushed open the steel door and walked through, letting it slam behind her. The late afternoon sunlight was blinding, but her eyes still made out the outline of Trev. He sat on a cooling unit with his elbows on his knees, staring out across the kingdom, his back to her. The door slammed shut behind Renna, causing him to flip his head around.
There was nowhere to run.
Nowhere to hide.
There they were, face to face for the first time since he’d kissed her. He looked somber, but handsome as ever.
There was a slight hint of stubble on his face like he’d forgotten to shave that morning. His clothes were casual—a green t-shirt and black athletic pants. And his blue eyes, Renna had forgotten how blue his beautiful eyes were. She would have to forget that again. The realization made her sad.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know you were up here.” Her words came out rushed, and she turned to go.
