Chapter 17
Leo had seemed so…perfectat the door. Those brown eyes of his stared into her soul like he saw her.
Despite that she’d demanded a divorce, he’d showed up to talk with her.
And it wasn’t because of the village tour for photographers because that had been cancelled due to the storm.
He’d come because he’d wanted to see her, and his voice had been deeper than usual, which made her spine tingle.
She shouldn’t want him. He was going to be a father. She should let him go, but the idea of not seeing him made her pulse skyrocket.
Anna cleaned her face and washed away all traces of crying.
Maybe it was wrong but her heart lifted that she might stay with him.
Perhaps she was a glutton for punishment. It was probably a horrible idea to go, but her skin just felt more alive as she readied herself to talk with Leo. What would he say? Did it change anything?
At least her face had color in it again as she pinched her cheeks.
She lifted her chin and stared at herself in the mirror, looking for flaws. Her flowered shirt was straight and her face was clear.
Now she just needed her head to be clear.
In a few weeks, her weekend with Leo would haunt her dreams.
In a few years, she’d hopefully look back at these days with fondness.
Anna had to face the consequences of loving a man who didn’t love her back.
The best thing for both of them was ending this, which had nothing to do with Francesca. Leo deserved to be happy one day and she deserved to find someone who might love her.
Anna Camila was excellent at doing the right thing. Except she’d asked for a divorce and the Aussas were pillars of respectability, which meant even if she pushed ahead with her demand earlier, she’d cause a scandal.
The thought left her cold.
The right thing to do was… nothing, but that didn’t solve the cries of her soul. Be strong.
She finished her pep talk and let herself out of the bedroom.
The halls didn’t seem any different than when she’d first entered them after leaving Leo.
The stillness remained in every step. The rain echoed outside the windows.
The staff redirected her to his suite, not the library, and she didn’t argue. She didn’t speak much and opened the door without knocking.
Leo instantly left the closed window near the balcony and turned toward her. “Anna.”
She passed the giant bed in the center of the chamber. Royal suites were made for the mother to be on display when she gave birth, back during the renaissance, so everyone could see that the royal prince was naturally born and nothing sneaky happened. The idea of people drinking wine while a woman screamed in pain had always seemed twisted, but luckily that was in the distant past. She’d… no, whoever was the next princess would give birth like a normal woman, with doctors or whoever she chose to surround herself with.
“I had agreed to meet you in the library.”
“We have more privacy here.”
Fair. She took Leo’s outstretched hands in greeting and a spark raced through her. She pulled her hands away. “I said everything I needed to say to you.”
He lowered his voice. “But I didn’t get to speak.”
Her heart hammered and part of her wall melted, just from his warm breath near her cheek. This wasn’t fair but she glanced into the sexy hue of his eyes. “What is it you need to say?”
