emotions is coursing through me. I’m being torn apart by everyone in my life.
Luca wants me to forget about my sister and pursue my own selfish dreams. Hunter wants me to be a doormat for him to walk over on his eternal climb up my sister’s ass.
But it’s Margot I’m most worried about. My sister, who’s relied on me since we were little, who has provided me a life I never could have created on my own, who’s everything to me, stared at me like she didn’t even know me.
I feel stupid for thinking she’d be happy for me. I’m an idiot for thinking she’d understand my relationship with Luca.
How am I supposed to choose between them?
“I got to go, Luca,” I say through gritted teeth.
“Call me when you get to the twins’ house, okay?”
“I’ll text you.”
“Ivy…”
“Bye, Luca.” I hang up the phone before he can say anything else.
Pain shatters through my chest. How is it that a few hours ago, his voice made me melt, and now it makes me recoil?
I can’t get rid of the nagging feeling that my fairytale is coming to an end. It was too good to last. There was too much happiness in a short amount of time, and I can feel it slipping away like sand through my fingers.
Texting Georgina that I’m coming over, I don’t even wait for a response. I know it’ll be okay for me to sleep there. That’s one good thing about having two best friends.
I swing my leg over the scooter, turning the key in the ignition. The scooter roars to life. There’s a finality to the sound that I don’t expect. I’m about to drive away from my sister. My family. My entire life.
For what? For a man who would toss my sister aside so easily?
I lean into the scooter, speeding down the streets. Even the whip of the air around my face does nothing to calm my nerves.
Something has changed, but I’m not sure what.
34
Luca
Leaving Ivy behind feels wrong. Every hour I spend in Argyle feels wrong. The elation that I felt when the plane landed has evaporated, leaving a hole in my chest in its place.
Ivy needs me. I should be with her.
Taking a deep breath, I shake my head. She needs time with her sister. There have been huge changes in her life in the past couple of months, and I need to respect the time it takes for her to process things.
If she sounded distant, it’s because she needs to come to terms with things. Margot will come around. She has to.
I overanalyze the entire phone call as I make my way to my childhood bedroom. When I walk inside, a wave of nostalgia hits me.
I wish I could show this to Ivy. This room is where I grew up. This castle is my home.
As much as I resented my family sending me away, and as much as I hated the fact that they never visited, I know now that I pushed them away. A lot of the pain that I felt was my own mind. I tortured myself, and now it feels good to be home. The only thing that doesn’t feel good is the fact that Ivy isn’t beside me.
Cringing at my own comments over the phone, I promise myself I’ll make it up to Ivy. I know she cares about her sister very, very deeply—more deeply than I can understand.
Ivy sends me a message to let me know she’s safe at the twins’ house, and I breathe a sigh of relief.
Before I fall asleep, I vow to return to Farcliff as soon as I can.
The next day, there’s a big ceremony to welcome me back to Argyle. I’m surprised to see the crowds that gather in the streets as we drive through. People have t-shirts with my face on them, they wave signs, and scream my name.
Dante grins at me from the seat behind me, shielded from the crowds by dark-tinted windows. He hasn’t had his face shown to the public in years. “You’re a hero, Luca. We broadcasted a video of your first steps, and the whole Kingdom celebrated for three days.
“It did?” I frown, glancing at him. That was the day I found out about Cara and Theo. I don’t remember any celebrations about me.
Was I in such a dark hole that I didn’t even realize the impact my story was having?
Dante claps me on the shoulder. “It was a nightmare,” he laughs. “We kept trying to urge