*Ciana*
I didn’t have a response for Theo when he said I must want to marry Warren. His cold words had taken their toll on , and I was done.
“You know what, Your Highness? It’s been a long day and you’re right, I should go.”
With that, I turned around and walked away from the three of them, even though Warren shouted my na for to co back.
I was done playing this ga with Theo. He continued to baffle and confuse at every turn, and I just couldn’t take much more.
I walked back to my room and my initial plan was to start packing—I needed to go check on the situation in my own pack anyway, but I found myself sitting on the edge of the bed, thinking about Theo.
A sharp knock on the door got my attention. It wouldn’t be Brook, because even her knock was gentle. I walked over and flung it open, not really wanting to put up with anyone else at the mont.
I was a little surprised to see Sophia standing there, but only because she had knocked. It seed to be more like her to just barge in. “What do you want?” I asked her.
However, if I hadn’t heard it with my own ears, I would never have imagined those words were from her mouth in my wildest dreams.
“You should give Prince Theo another chance,” she blurted out. “I think he likes you.”
With my eyes bulging, all I could do was raise an eyebrow and stare at her for a second before a sarcastic laugh bubbled up and out of my lips.
“Why do you say that? Didn’t you just overhear what he said to in the garden?” She was right there with us!
“Yes, I was there,” she admitted. I went back to my bed and pulled out my suitcase.
Sophia bringing up the situation from her perspective only made feel more inclined to pack and leave. After all, Theo certainly wasn’t interested in . He’d made himself clear more than once, and I was sick and tired of being his punching bag.
Sophia followed into the room and stood at the foot of my bed while I threw my clothes into my bags.
“Listen, Ciana, it’s not what you think it is,” she said.
“What do you an?”
“I an... the only ti he ever wants around is when you’re there. He summons whenever he knows you’re going to see the two of us together, and then he pretends like he might be interested in . But the mont you’re gone, he discards without a care in the world.”
I stared at Sophia for a long mont, not sure what to make of her statent. It didn’t seem to like it could possibly be the truth. After all, this wasn’t the first ti Theo chose her over as his attendant anyway.
She made it sound like he was intentionally trying to make jealous, but that didn’t make any sense to at all.
I continued to toss my clothes into my luggage, not knowing how to respond to her absurd comnts. But then I realized, she wasn’t here out of concern for or for Theo.
“What do you want to do, Sophia?And why would you want to do it?”
She swallowed so hard, I could see the lump in her throat. “I want you to try and win Prince Theo over, get him to admit he has feelings for you, so that Prince Warren gives up on you and doesn’t try to pursue you. Especially now that the king has given Prince Warren permission to choose a woman as well.”
“And...” I began, “why in the world would you want to do that?” I already knew the answer to my own question, of course, but I had to ask anyway. I wanted to hear it from her own mouth.
She wasn’t so quick to tell the truth and answered my question with another question.
“Prince Warren is wasting his ti on you if you already like Prince Theo, isn’t he? Why would you want to torture a good man like that?”
I smirked at her. “Sophia, tell the truth or else you can forget about doing anything except for packing up and catching the next train out of here to go back to my own pack. After all, it’s not like I owe you anything.”
She grunted and shook her head.
“Fine,” she said. “Prince Theo is... cold. He’s aloof. I can’t get him to open up to no matter how hard I try. But Warren... Prince Warren is different.”
I knew exactly what she was talking about, of course. Theo never let his walls down for anyone, whereas Warren was an open book. He was always willing to open up and talk about anything, including his feelings. They were quite opposite to one another.
But I still hadn’t gotten an adequate response from her. “So why does it matter to you that the two brothers are different?”
“Well, because... I want Prince Warren to give up on you.”
“Let get this straight.” I watched her eyes shift uncomfortably under my scrutiny. “You, Sophia, the girl who has everything, who barks orders at us right and left... you’re interested in the gentle and mild Prince Warren but not the bold and powerful Prince Theo?”
She narrowed her eyes at , and I thought I was about to get a taste of the attitude I’d just reminded her of.
But she lifted up her chin and looked firmly in the eye. “Yes, I like Warren,” she confessed bravely.
Her honesty surprised . I would’ve thought Sophia was the type to go after power, yet, here she was, admitting her feelings in front of soone she never got along with.
She certainly had her reasons. “He’s different from any of the other n I’ve ever been interested in, that’s true. But from the mont I first laid eyes on him, I’ve just thought... he was wonderful.”
Yes, I could understand what she ant. After all, I’d had a crush on Warren for years, from the ti I only knew him as the boy from the forest.
Now that I’d gotten to know him, however, he wasn’t quite the man I’d thought he was back then.
True, that he was sweet and kind hearted. He was thoughtful, patient, and caring. I couldn’t think of anything bad to say about Prince Warren at all.
However, for the reason I couldn’t understand till this day, he didn’t ignite a spark of intrigue in . I started to think that there must be sothing wrong with . How could any girl turn down a man like Warren?
“Work with on this, Ciana, then we’ll both get what we want.”
Although she didn’t use the word “please”, this was the first ti I’d actually had a normal conversation with her. It was probably the best attitude I could get out of her.
“Oh, well, I am here to serve you,” I said sarcastically, but I couldn’t help but smile at her at the end of the sentence. She hung her head a little bit, like she was a bit uncomfortable.
I guess she was too proud to ask for help. In the past, she only needed to give the orders, and soone would just get it done for her. Anyhow, I’d stopped packing. Maybe I shouldn’t do any more for a little while.
Or maybe I should just go ahead and finish tossing my stuff into my suitcases and get out of here, cut my losses, and go back ho where it was quite clear my pack needed my help.
“Ciana...” Sophia said, with a question mark hanging over her head, “are you interested in Prince Warren?”
Quickly, I shook my head. That much I knew to be fact. “No, you don’t have to worry about that.” I saw the breath of relief she released as it practically stirred the curtains across the room.
“I’m not sure if what you have had to say about Theo is true or not, but I can promise you that I am not interested in Warren.”
“So... if he asks you to stay here and be his woman, you won’t do it?” she clarified.
I shook my head again. “No, I won’t stay for Warren.”
“But... you might stay here for Prince Theo?” A crooked grin spread across her face, and for once it wasn’t malicious, just curious.
“I honestly don’t know... I would say, most likely, no.”
Surprisingly, this ti she didn’t continue to pry. I figured she’d gotten the answer she wanted already.
I had a lot to handle back ho. I’d delayed long enough already... A few days ago, I felt that I owed Theo his berry and wanted to make sure he was okay before I left the palace, and both of them were checked off my list. There really wasn’t any reason for to stay.
She nodded. “That’s all I can ask for. I do appreciate your candor. I know you and I have never been friends, and perhaps we never will be, but I do respect that you never back down from what you believe in.”
“Thank you.” I tried to think of sothing nice to say back to her, but it was hard. I grabbed the low hanging fruit. “I’ve always thought you were very pretty. Perhaps the most beautiful woman here.”
Sophia flashed a broad grin and said, “I know.”
She straightened her hair and spun on her heel, headed out the door, leaving chuckling at her antics.
Then, I thought of Theo, and I wasn’t laughing anymore.
A thought ca to my mind. Perhaps I could give him one more chance, but I couldn’t approach him directly like I had earlier in the day. No, I had to be more subtle.
With a deep breath, I left the room, my bags packed but not within my grasp.
It took a little while to find the man I was searching for, and when I approached him, I was a bit leery of which version of him I’d find.
Theo wasn’t the only one who ran hot or cold around here.
Thankfully, when Beta Jake turned to look at , he had a smile on his face. “ I see you haven’t left yet.”
It was almost like he was happy to see .
“Not yet,” I confird the obvious. “Can you do a favor?”
“I can try.” He gave a firm nod.
“Will you deliver a ssage to your Alpha for , please?” My heart was beating out of my chest as he nodded that he would. “Will you please let Prince Theo know I’ll be at the pavilion at midnight. If he wants to see before I go, he should be there, too.”
Jake replied, “I’ll let him know, Ciana.” I could hear the sympathy in his voice, and that made wonder if I was doing the right thing.
How would I feel if he didn’t co?
Broken, probably.
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