Gracelynn sighed, her brows furrowing. “Oh, Julianna.”
“I fear losing that. Him. The feeling he gives me. The emotions he evokes in me. I don’t want to lose that, Gracelynn,” I confessed, my deepest fear pouring into my words.
“Yes, but our father – I am the woman Killian is meant to marry,” my sister said, deeply troubled. “In fact, Killian thinks he’s marrying Gracelynn, the eldest daughter of Bishop Romano.”
Even though my sister wasn’t in love with Killian, she would never disappoint our father. She’d go ahead with this marriage, even if it meant losing the man she loved.
She was selfless.
And I was selfish.
My heart seized in my chest. The mere thought of my sister and Killian together made me sick. I imagined his lips on hers and bitter jealous crawled up my body, digging itself deep into the pit of my stomach. I couldn’t bear it – to watch him hold Gracelynn as tenderly as he held me.
I knew that eventually Killian would fall in love with my sister. It was bound to happen. Gracelynn was beautiful, smart, selfless, understanding… everything Killian Spencer needed in a wife. Someone who would rule by his side – his Queen. His equal.
My stomach hollowed and I fought the urge to retch.
“But he’s been courting me,” I whispered. “He’s mine.”
“Killian is not an object, sister.”
“I know that,” I hissed.
When I tried to pull my hand away, Gracelynn held fast. Our eyes locked and she held my gaze with utter seriousness. “He needs to know the truth, so he can make his choice.”
“I can’t,” I choked, my chest tightening in a way that hurt. “He’ll hate me.”
My sister shook her head, solemnly. “He’ll find out either way. Soon enough. But he needs to hear it from you than someone else.”
“You don’t even want to marry him,” I said, lamely. “You’re pregnant with Simon’s child and I know abortion is not an option for you. How unfair is that to Killian if you marry him?”
That made Gracelynn pause. She cocked her head to the side, her brows furrowing thoughtfully. “You’re right. I don’t want to marry Killian. I think… we might have a solution to our problems.”
I straightened at that, hope blooming in my chest like a fragile rose. “What do you mean?”
Gracelynn had been in love with Simon for three years. He was her bodyguard in France. They spent every breathing moment together – of course, it was bound to happen. Simon was everything my sister wanted in a man.
And I knew their love was true. I saw it in Simon’s eyes. The way his gaze tracked my sister, so carefully, so tenderly whenever they were in the same room together.
I noticed his mischievous grin and her hidden smile.
The look of longing and the little stolen touches.
Their love was never meant to be, like my own with Killian.
But fate – oh how cruel it was. Destiny brought two men into our lives. Men we couldn’t have, yet we had succumbed to their charms. Such forbidden love was a tragedy in the making.
Gracelynn’s gaze met mine. “What?” I breathed, my heart galloping.
“I think I have a plan.”
I curled my arm around Killian’s waist, pressing my face into his neck. My nose brushed along his throat and I inhaled his musky and earthy scent. “My father would blow a fuse if he were to see us like this, alone,” I whispered.
Killian worked through my thick tresses with expert fingers. My lips twitched with a knowing smile. “You do this on purpose,” he accused, softly. “I used to hate strawberries, but now I find myself eating them more often because they remind me of you.”
I swooned. For the third time in my life.
All three times had to do with Killian Spencer.
Once my tresses had come undone, he made a sound of approval in the back of his throat and my smile widened. Killian raked his fingers through my blonde hair, curling a strand around his finger. “You’re my wife-to-be. Your father can’t stop me from seeing you.”
“Yes, but he specifically said we needed a chaperone,” I said. “He’s old-fashioned like that.”
“Fuck that.” Killian rolled over, dragging me under his body and pushing my back into the blanket. He hovered over me. “We were seeing each other before we were even betrothed. If I hadn’t defiled you then, I promise to protect your virtue now. I mean, apart from some stolen kisses and touches…”
We were both still fully clothed, but his warmth seeped through our many layers and I could feel it on my skin. “Oh please, don’t ever say that in front of my father.”
Killian gave me his signature crooked grin. “It’s our secret,” he breathed.
“Our secret,” I whispered.
Little does he know…
My eyes darted to the dark sky, just in time to catch what we had been waiting for. “Look!” I whisper-yelled, excitement coursing through my body. “The first shooting star. Oh my, it’s beautiful.”