Margot straightens up, smiling sadly at me. She gives me a soft nod.
I can’t move from the armchair where I’m seated. I’m pinned to the cushion, staring up at the woman I love.
She thinks she’s doing this for me, but she can’t see my heart being ripped out of my chest right in front of her. She can’t see the hope being extinguished inside me.
There won’t be someone else who’s happy, and healthy, and unencumbered. I already know that. The only woman who has made me want to live my life to its fullest has been Margot. In all the years I’ve been on this earth, she’s the only one who’s made me want to leave Argyle.
There’s no one else. There never will be.
But Margot still walks away. I listen to her footsteps fade as she makes her way back up to her room. I sit on her sofa, shell-shocked, heartbroken, and alone.
34
Margot
I thought I’d go straight up to my room and cry, but instead, I lay in bed and a feeling of complete calm washes over me.
I’m sad, of course, but I’m strong.
For the first time in my life, I’ve faced my problems head-on. I told him the truth, and I took the hard path. The right path.
Dante deserves better.
I love him with all my heart, and that’s why I need to let him go. Now, he knows why. He can have closure. Even if he says he wants to be there for me, he doesn’t understand, and I don’t want to be the one to hold him back.
Still, when I lay in bed, I think about seeing him at family events. Ivy is married to Luca, so I’m sure I’ll cross paths with him.
What if he gets married to someone else?
Pain slices across my chest and I squeeze my eyes shut until it passes.
It’s for the best.
Letting Dante go is the first truly good thing I’ve ever done. It’s the only time I’ve been strong not only for myself, but for someone else. It’s the first step in being the kind of person I want to be. The kind of person I need to be for my child.
I close my eyes, and another wave of pain washes over me. I can sense Prince Dante’s presence downstairs, even though I can’t hear anything. I can feel him in the house, so close to me.
But I can never have him.
Knowing that I told him the truth, and that I broke it off with him for his own sake gives me strength. Any time I feel the urge to tiptoe out of my room and go find him—even for one last kiss—I hold myself back.
I’m strong.
I’m honest.
I’m doing this for him.
When I hear the guest bedroom door close down the hall, a tear escapes my eyes. It soaks into my pillow, and I turn my back to the door.
I made the right choice.
It had to end.
It’s the only way.
…Right?
The next morning is cold and grey. When I go downstairs, Dante is already gone. Luca tells me he flew out of the Kingdom at first light, and a sharp pain pierces my chest.
It’s for the best.
I know it is. I keep telling myself it is. Last night, I was even proud of myself for breaking it off with him for good.
So, why does it hurt so badly?
I wrap my fingers around a mug of herbal tea, bringing it up to my lips. Ivy pads into the kitchen, glancing at me. She wrinkles her nose.
“I’d kill for a cup of coffee.” She glances over at the coffee machine, her eyebrows arching wistfully.
Squaring my shoulders, I fling my tea into the sink. “Fuck it,” I say. “Me, too. The doctor said a coffee once in a while would be fine for the baby. I think we deserve one today. It’s nearly Christmas.”
Ivy grins, nodding. “I like the way you think.”
As soon as the smell of coffee hits my nose, I let out a soft moan. For those few minutes while the coffee is brewing and I drink it, I only think of the pleasure of the hot, bitter liquid on my tongue.
I don’t think of Dante or of being alone. I don’t think about the fact that he left without saying goodbye, or that I might have to watch him fall in love with someone else.
I just sip my coffee. Bitter, black, liquid gold.
When my mug is empty, though, the Prince floods my mind again. My eyes prickle, and I