Chapter 84: The Morning After

Chapter 84: Chapter 84: The Morning After

Marian did not sleep.

Not properly.

Not in any meaningful sense of the word.

She closed her eyes.

She opened them.

She stared at the ceiling.

Then she remembered everything.

Which immediately proved to be a mistake.

For several long moments, she remained buried beneath her blankets, wondering if society would notice if she simply ceased to exist.

Unfortunately, society was persistent.

Breakfast was apparently mandatory.

And breakfast meant people.

More specifically—

Breakfast meant Adrian.

Marian groaned and buried her face deeper into her pillow.

The previous evening replayed itself mercilessly.

The confession.

Cassian’s answer.

The hand holding.

The hug.

The confrontation.

Adrian.

Gods.

Adrian.

Her face immediately became warm.

Then cold.

Then warm again.

Because the memories insisted on arriving in the worst possible order.

One moment she remembered Cassian looking at her beneath the moonlight.

The next she remembered Adrian standing in the forest saying:

"I don’t agree."

Marian rolled onto her back.

And stared at the ceiling.

Again.

The worst part was that he meant it.

Not emotionally.

Not impulsively.

Not as a wounded man lashing out.

Adrian genuinely meant it.

And somehow that frightened her more.

By the time she finally made her way downstairs, she had accomplished absolutely nothing except making herself nervous.

--

The dining hall was already occupied.

Several nobles sat around the long table.

Servants moved quietly between them.

Breakfast had already begun.

Then Marian saw Adrian.

Seated at the head of the table.

Of course he was.

For one terrible moment, she considered turning around.

Unfortunately, Adrian noticed her immediately.

Their eyes met.

Just briefly.

Then Adrian inclined his head.

Polite.

Controlled.

Flawless.

"Lady Marian."

The formal greeting landed like a stone.

Marian forced herself to smile.

"Your Highness."

Then she moved toward her seat.

The one beside Adrian.

There was nowhere else she could reasonably sit.

Not without inviting questions.

Not without making the situation even more awkward than it already was.

Nothing had been announced.

Nothing had been decided.

Officially, she was still the Crown Prince’s fiancée.

So Marian sat down.

Then immediately became aware of Adrian’s presence beside her.

Which was unfortunate.

Very unfortunate.

Because suddenly she was aware of everything.

The quiet rustle of his sleeve.

The movement of his hand as he reached for his cup.

The fact that he was close enough to speak to if either of them wished.

Neither of them did.

Marian fixed her attention firmly on the table.

A strategy that proved completely ineffective.

--

Then the doors opened again.

Marian looked up.

And immediately regretted it.

Cassian entered.

Nothing happened.

At least externally.

No dramatic music.

No revelation.

No lightning from the heavens.

Cassian simply walked into the room.

And Marian’s heart immediately forgot how to behave.

Which was ridiculous.

Completely ridiculous.

She had seen him less than twelve hours ago.

She had literally spoken to him the previous evening.

Yet seeing him again still made her absurdly happy.

The realization was embarrassing.

Worse—

She suspected it showed.

Marian immediately lowered her gaze to her plate.

Unfortunately, that only made her more aware of everything.

Cassian taking his seat.

Cassian speaking to another noble.

Cassian existing.

An absolute disaster.

--

Adrian watched the exchange.

Only briefly.

Only long enough.

Then he looked away.

His expression never changed.

Which somehow made it worse.

Because Adrian knew Marian.

Perhaps better than anyone.

He knew when she was nervous.

When she was embarrassed.

When she was hiding something.

And for eighteen years, those reactions had belonged to him.

Now they didn’t.

Something unpleasant tightened inside his chest.

He ignored it.

Breakfast began.

The conversation revolved around hunting.

Travel.

Road conditions.

The weather.

The sort of topics people discussed when they desperately wanted to avoid the important ones.

Marian contributed exactly three sentences.

All of them completely meaningless.

At one point she became so distracted she nearly added salt to her tea.

The servant discreetly stopped her.

A humiliation she intended to remember forever.

Across the room, Cassian noticed.

The corner of his mouth twitched.

Marian wanted to disappear.

The morning continued.

Awkward.

Painfully awkward.

And somehow nobody acknowledged it.

Then Adrian set down his cup.

The sound was soft.

Yet Marian immediately looked up.

So did Cassian.

So did several others.

Because Adrian rarely did anything accidentally.

"We’ll be departing within the hour."

Simple.

Reasonable.

Expected.

The hunting retreat had lasted three days.

The invitation was fulfilled.

It was time to return to the capital.

Yet the announcement felt strangely final.

The forest.

The lodge.

The isolation.

Everything that had allowed this situation to exist.

Was ending.

They were going home.

And home had consequences.

Then Adrian continued.

Calmly.

Measured.

Perfectly composed.

"Upon our return, there are matters regarding the engagement that require discussion."

Marian blinked.

Discussion?

The word settled inside her mind.

Discussion sounded promising.

Reasonable.

People discussed things when they intended to resolve them.

Didn’t they?

For one brief moment, hope appeared.

Small.

Careful.

Fragile.

Was this the formal part?

The practical part?

The difficult but necessary conversation?

Was Adrian beginning to accept it?

Would they return to the capital and finally decide how to separate properly?

For one brief second, Marian felt relief.

Then she looked up.

Their eyes met.

And the relief vanished.

Because Adrian had seen it.

The hope.

The expectation.

The relief.

Every bit of it.

Of course he had.

Eighteen years was more than enough time to learn a person’s expressions.

For one ridiculous moment, she had looked happy.

Happy.

As though the difficult part was over.

As though all that remained was a conversation.

A formality.

An ending.

Something sharp twisted inside Adrian’s chest.

Because she was already looking ahead.

Already standing somewhere he had not reached.

Already imagining a future without him.

And the worst part?

She looked relieved by it.

His gaze shifted.

Past her.

Toward Cassian.

Calm.

Composed.

Seated exactly where a duke ought to sit.

Looking entirely too collected for Adrian’s liking.

A bitter thought surfaced.

Unwanted.

Unwelcome.

Impossible to stop.

Three days.

Three days in a forest.

And somehow eighteen years had become this.

No.

Adrian’s jaw tightened.

Barely.

Imperceptibly.

No.

He did not believe it was that simple.

Perhaps that was unfair.

Perhaps it was irrational.

He didn’t particularly care.

Cassian had known.

Cassian had stayed silent.

Cassian had watched everything unfold.

And now Marian looked relieved.

As though the answer had already been decided.

No.

That wasn’t what they were going to discuss.

Not at all.

Breakfast continued.

Conversation resumed.

The room moved forward.

Yet for the three people seated within it, nothing felt normal.

Because the forest was behind them now.

The secret was gone.

And the capital waited ahead.

For Marian, it felt like uncertainty.

For Cassian, it felt like a coming battle.

For Adrian—

It felt like the beginning.

And that frightened everyone for different reasons.

End Chapter 85