Joanne’s POV
Alexander stilled at my words, and then he slowly turned to look at me, the defeat clear in his eyes, making me feel even worse than I had a moment ago. For a long while, he didn’t say anything.
He just stood there, eyes on me, face unreadable. The silence stretched so long that I wished I could take the words back, swallow them whole, pretend I hadn’t let him see that part of me… I wish he hadn’t seen that vulnerability.
When he finally spoke, his voice was low, rough around the edges.
“No,” he said. “I don’t regret you.”
I blinked, unsure if I heard him right.
He took a step closer, then another, until he was standing right in front of me. The light from the lantern caught the tired shadows under his eyes. He looked worn down, not from battle or command, but from
