Page 97 of So This Is Christmas

“You were an enormous help. At Daniel—”

“You would have arrived at the same conclusion, Ms. Delaney,” he said curtly.

Ms. Delaney.The formal form of address felt like a blow, like he’d insulted her. But she was the one who had asked that they revert to how things had been before.

She turned to the king. “Your equerry’s help was invaluable.”

The king nodded, and as she got up to leave, Matteo rose, too. Now they would have to be alone together.

“Mr. Benz, will you stay a moment?” said the king.

Thank goodness for small mercies. As Cara made her way down empty corridors, she thought some more about Matteo’s voice. About how shocking it had been to hear, at the end of that meeting, but also how familiar it was. About how many times, these recent weeks, she’d felt as if his voice was sentient. As if it could touch her.

It was entirely likely that she would never hear it again.

She picked up the pace, and she managed to hold back the tears until she made it out the main door.

“Benz, how are you holding up?”

Matteowasn’tholding up. His heart was broken, and it was all the more painful knowing he’d brought it on himself. Once again, he had to concede that Ms. Delaney had been scrupulously honest from start to finish. A moment ago, she’d even insisted on crediting him for his help.

But that wasn’t what the king meant. He was talking about Noar. Morneau. The layoffs that were coming. “I’m fine, thank you, Your Majesty. It’s a blow, of course, but—”

“No, I mean you. How areyouholding up?”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Something’s clearly bothering you, something beyond today’s news. You don’t seem yourself.”

“My apologies, Your Maj—”

“There’s no need to apologize. Just tell me what it is.”

Could he actually... do that?

“Out with it, Benz.” The king’s tone had taken on an annoyed edge.

“I’m afraid I’ve fallen in love with someone,” he blurted. “It’s entirely unexpected and terribly inconvenient.”

The king smiled, a warm, wide one at odds with the day’s grim news, not to mention the monarch’s usually taciturn personality. “It’s wonderful.”

“It isn’t, though. She doesn’t feel the same.”

“Do you know that for a fact?”

“I do.”

“How do you know?”

Good lord. Were they really going to do this? Have a conversation about poor Matteo and his hurt feelings?

The king was looking at him expectantly. “Well?”

Apparently they were. Well, he couldn’t make himself more abject if he tried, so why not? “I made a mortifying declaration only to have it thrown back in my face.”

The king winced in sympathy.

“Indeed. And to make matters worse, we still have to—”

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