“Briony?”
She turned and flashed a brittle smile at her brother.
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to disturb you. I’m just heading to my room...”
Her voice trailed off as she caught sight of Clara standing behind Alaric. She drooped in relief.
“Where’s Cassius?”
She blinked. “Cass? Oh, he’s...um...well, that is to say...”
Clara surprised her by brushing past Alaric and coming up to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder. Her eyes were surprisingly kind.
“Did something happen?”
Briony swallowed hard.
“We...that is to say, Cass ended our engagement just now.”
“What?” Alaric snapped. “Where is he? I’ll—”
“Hush, Alaric,” Clara said in a firm voice. “Briony, come inside, dear. Tell us what happened.”
Briony let Clara lead her into the office and sit her down in one of the stiff-backed chairs in front of Alaric’s desk. Alaric circled around and sat opposite her, steepling his fingers as he stared at her with his arctic gaze. Despite his power stance, he looked decidedly unsure of himself. If she hadn’t been so upset, she would have found the sight of her older brother at a loss for words humorous.
“Why did Cass end the engagement?” Clara asked as she pressed a glass of water into Briony’s hands.
Briony breathed in deeply. “I fell in love.”
By the time she made it through the whole story, the painful ache had eased a fraction. Clara had filled her glass once, only interrupting here and there to ask a clarifying question. Alaric had watched her with a detached gaze the whole time.
Briony forced herself to swallow the rest of the water.
“I’m sorry, Alaric.”
“Sorry?” he repeated softly.
“Without Cass’s money, the country—”
“Damn his money.”
Unlike his father, Alaric didn’t need to raise his voice to be heard. The deep tones resonated with a barely suppressed fury that made Briony shiver.
“But—”
“I detested this arrangement from the start.” He paused for a moment, as if trying to formulate his words. “But when I saw how the two of you were together, it convinced me that perhaps you could also be happy.”
Briony smiled weakly. “For a brief time, I was.”
Clara squeezed her hand. “Take it from me, Your Highness. You do not need a man or family to be happy.”
Alaric frowned in his assistant’s direction before he directed his attention back to Briony.
“The ambassador was impressed by what we’ve started to rebuild in such a short amount of time. Switzerland is ready to offer financial aid in exchange for several things we can offer, such as building a port along our northern coast. We won’t get as much done as quickly as we would have with Cassius’s money,” Alaric admitted, “but we can still accomplish a great deal and become independent. You have not ruined this country, Briony. Far from it.”
Relief swamped her. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Now, what will make you happy?”