Arthur woke before dawn. Sleep had never found him—only brief shadows of rest that slipped through his fingers. He sat in the darkness of his office, nursing a cup of black coffee that had gone cold. He felt worn out, stretched thin between protecting Reina, keeping Rylan at bay, and the gnawing worry that his presence in her life could make things worse.
A soft knock broke his thoughts. His housekeeper peeked in.
“Sir? Breakfast?”
He shook his head. “I'm not hungry.”
As the door clicked shut again, Arthur’s eyes found the photo on his desk—a candid shot of Reina he'd found on her f*******: page. Her laugh looked real in that picture. It was the only time he'd ever seen her that happy and expressive—full and free, her eyes sparkling without fear. Before everything went wrong.
His jaw
