“You may leave us and return for the trolley later, Lewen,” Jaryk said.
“As you wish. Enjoy your meal, Your Highness, Kismet Kennedy.”
“Please, call me Kismet,” she said.
“My apologies. I’m afraid I can’t do that,” he said and left them to their meal.
“Please, begin.” Jaryk picked up his fork.
The acoustics were great; she had no problem hearing him, but the distance was silly. She started to askpermissionif shecould join him at his end of the table and then stopped herself.Screw that.She was his wife inname only, but what the hell!
She picked up her plate and utensils, set them next to him, and sat down. “You don’t really eat dinner all by yourself at this big table, do you?”
“Quite often, I do. Sometimes my brother eats with me, or I go to his quarters. Maybe once a week, we join our parents in their apartment, and then there are banquets in the main dining hall I’m required to attend.”
“How many can be seated in the main dining hall?”
“A hundred and fifty maybe?”
“A hundred and fifty?” She gasped.
“More or less.”
“It must be a long room.”
“The table is an open rectangle with the family and any high-ranking guest at the head, and the other guests along the sides.”
“I assume staff organize those banquets.”
“Of course—but they consult with my mother on her wishes and the guest list. I suspect it is a lot of work for her.”
She suspected it was, too. Jaryk would be king someday, and banquet responsibility would fall to his wife, the future queen. Thankfully, she wouldn’t be around for that. She felt in over her head without any responsibilities.
But loss and regret panged. One year from now, they’d part ways, and they’d never see each other again.Don’t get attached. It’s okay to like him, but don’t fall in love.
“Again, I apologize for my father’s behavior.”
“It’s okay.”
“It’s not, but that’s the way he is. That’s what I’m up against.” He paused. “He has his good moments, though. And he is a fair and just ruler. He cares for the people of Kaldor. He is 100 percent dedicated to them.”
Which is why arranging a political marriage is so important.No wonder he got so angry. And adding insult to injury, he was blindsided.
She had nothing to offer the people of Kaldor.
“For the good of the kingdom, I probably should have married Alia,” he said, echoing her thoughts. “And I’d intended to.”
“But you didn’t.”
“My father and mother love each other deeply. They are devoted to each other. My father would give up the kingdom for her. Though they don’t realize it, they set an example. My brother and I desire what they have.”
And I’m not it.She heard what he didn’t say—she couldn’t provide the love he sought but hopefully would clear the obstacles to him getting it. She’d agreed to the arrangement. But she felt like he’d stuck a knife between her ribs.
Although finding a love match through Cosmic Mates had been a gamble, it had beenpossibleuntil she discovered she’d been misled about the true reason for the marriage. Not to mention, Karma had deleted other potential candidates before she’d seen them. What if one of them had been her soulmate? The deck had been stacked against her. Like the king, she’d been blindsided.
She’d given up her chance for love to give Jaryk a chance with someone else.
Shouldn’t altruism feel better than this?
