Page 27 of The Crownless Prince

“Marcus?” A glittering tear squeezed from her eye to trail down the side of her nose. “You—you’re—are you…” She curled over her stomach with a sob, and Marcus darted forward to take the candle before it could slip from her grasp.

He set it on the nightstand and sat beside her. How he longed to pull her into his arms.

“I thought you died! My father—” She turned away and bit her knuckle, taking in several rasping breaths.

Marcus reached for her but let his hand fall, lost on how to comfort her when he was the reason for her distress.

“I overheard that awful knight telling Father that he…he…” Tears slid down her cheeks. “He said your companion mourned you; that he saw your grave. But you’re alive. You’re really real, right?” She tentatively reached toward him, as if afraid he’d turn to smoke.

He took her hand, threading his fingers between hers. “Yes. I’m real, and I’m alive, and I’m here.” He gulped. “Is that knight…also here?”

“No.” She tightened her grip as the word ripped from her in a growl. “I told Father he could force his only daughter to marry some man I don’t love, but will he really force me to see the man who murdered my beloved in my own home? He promised that so long as I remain in Faine Castle, that knight won’t set a foot within its walls. He sent him to serve another lord for now. Still, I haven’t spoken to Father since.”

My beloved.She didn’t desire this marriage, and she still loved him. But would she feel the same once she understood his current position?

Adriana scooted closer, scrutinizing his forehead. Gingerly, she reached forward and brushed her fingertip over the tiny, faint scar near his temple. “He said he put a dagger through your skull.”

Marcus snorted. “He grazed me. It bled enough, though, that since he didn’t get a good look at me, he believed Edwin’s act that I’d died.”

She shuddered, and he chided himself for mentioning his death so casually.

“I’m sorry—”

“No, Marcus… I…I’msorry.” She wiped her face, but her tears didn’t cease. “It’s my fault he tried to…to…” She sobbed, and Marcus couldn’t resist any longer. He wrapped his arms around her and held her while she cried.

After several moments, Adriana spoke quietly. “When my father returned home and announced he’d defeated your father, the first thing I did was ask him about you.”

Relief flowed through him. She hadn’t forgotten him.

“I think he’d forgotten about you, but he said you likely had diedin your tower, as your father couldn’t have been sending you supplies. I asked him to find you and bring you here, and that’s when…that’s when…”

Marcus rubbed her back and rested his cheek against her head, unsure what else to do. “That doesn’t make it your fault—”

“He told me he’d arranged my marriage to Lord Thorne,” Adriana burst out. “I told him I would never marry another man while there was even a chance you lived. He said he’d send someone to discover if you’d survived, but instead he sent someone to kill you. When I overheard the assassin giving his report, Father claimed it was because he feared you would rally any remnants of your family’s supporters against us, that killing you was for the good of Aedyllan.”

She shook her head, her voice small as she said, “I know it was because of me. Marcus, I—”

“Hush, beloved, no.” He tightened his hold on her, as if he could squeeze his reassurance into her. “Thank you for asking for me. You couldn’t have guessed that’s how he would react, and you didn’t send that assassin. That wasn’t your doing.”

She sniffled. “I’m so glad you’re alive. But…why are you here? There’s nowhere more dangerous for you. If Father discovers you—”

“He won’t recognize me. Besides, he believes I’m dead.”

“Is Edwin still with you?”

“Yes. I’d…” He stopped himself before saying he’d have died at the knight’s hands, if not for Edwin. “I’m not sure how I would have handled the last week without him.”

“Good. I always liked him.” She curled tighter against him. “Whereare you staying?”

“Erm…” This was the complicated, embarrassing part. “Downstairs.”

Adriana shifted out of his arms so she could meet his eyes. “Downstairs? What does that mean?”

“On the ground floor of your father’s castle.” He scratched at the side of his neck as he struggled to force the words out of his mouth. “With the…other servants.”

Chapter 12

Adriana stared at Marcus, her confusion mounting. Perhaps it was her exhaustion from poor sleep and being awoken in the middle of the night, or perhaps it was due to the riot of emotions sparked by finding Marcus alive and in her room. Either way, she couldn’t comprehend what he was saying.

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