responds, her words peppering my chest with poisoned knives.
Miracle.
It would have been a miracle for her to wait for me. For her to stay true to her word. She wouldn’t have run off with my brother. She’d have been by my side until I was better.
But no.
She chose the brother that was whole. The one who could walk. The one who could make her a Queen.
I shift in my seat, and my body screams.
The pills have already worn off.
It’s Cara’s fault. If she’d stop looking at me with her big, brown, magnetic eyes, my body wouldn’t be a bubbling cauldron of suffering. If she’d stop slapping me with that honeyed voice, I’d be able to breathe properly.
“So, are you staying?” Theo asks, arching an eyebrow.
The vindictive part of me wants to say no. The cruel part of me wants to tell him I’ll be right beside him until Cara comes back to me.
To my surprise, though, those aren’t the words that come out of my mouth. “Yes,” I say, bringing my spoon up to my lips to taste sweet, tangy raspberry sauce. “I’m staying.”
When dinner finishes, I can finally slip away. I feel Margot’s eyes on my back, and Cara’s gaze in my soul. I don’t look back.
Letting my feet carry me down to the kitchens, I ignore the castle staff as they bow to me. I make my way to the pastry room, only to be disappointed when Ivy isn’t there.
Stalking through the hallways, I know I can’t go back to the formal living room where the two royal families are sitting around, dousing each other in empty compliments.
One good thing about being sent off to Singapore for five years? There were no royal events that seem to have the sole purpose of boring me to death.
Instead of rejoining the dinner party, I head outside and light up a joint. I shake a painkiller from the pill bottle in my breast pocket and swallow it down before taking a puff.
Exhaling, I loosen my tie.
My body immediately relaxes, and the shots of pain that have plagued me all evening start to subside. Heading through the topiary garden, I make my way to the pool at the back of the estate.
The doctor was very clear last night—I can’t get the wound on my head wet. But my body is screaming for some water.
When I was in Singapore, being in the water was a big part of my physiotherapy. I’ve always been a swimmer, but having a spinal cord injury only made me love the water more. It’s what got me moving again. It’s what built up the muscles in my atrophied legs enough so that I could walk.
So, when I reach the edge of the pool, I strip down to my underwear and slide into the cool water. My joint is still hanging on the edge of my lips, and I blow out some smoke around it.
The cold water hugs my body tight, and I ease deeper into the water. Staring up at the starry sky, I let myself drift to the middle of the pool. One by one, my muscles relax. The burning pain in my nervous system eases as the cold water laps my body.
“You know you’re supposed to wait an hour to go swimming after you eat, right?”
I lift my head to see Ivy at the edge of the pool, grinning. She crouches down, running her fingers in the water before shivering at the coldness.
“It’s beautiful in here, you should come in.”
“Didn’t bring my swimsuit to the formal dinner that my sister dragged me to, but thanks.” She stands up, crossing her arms over her chest. My eyes drop to her breasts and then slide back up to her face.
Ivy glances at me, arching an eyebrow. “I didn’t appreciate the ash on my bedside table, by the way. Or the soiled sheets.”
“I didn’t soil them,” I grin. “I wouldn’t do that without you.”
It’s too easy to make her blush, and far too much fun for me to stop.
“You’re disgusting.”
“I think you like it.”
“Of course you do.” She shakes her head.
“When are you going to make me some more cinnamon buns?”
“When hell freezes over.”
I chuckle, standing up in the pool. I suck on my joint and nod to Ivy. “Do they let you wander around the castle grounds on your own? Doesn’t seem very secure.”
“I’m an employee now,” she grins, dangling a lanyard in her hand and lifting a bag. “George offered to train me. Just went to the