Chapter 19
758 Words
Chapter 19: Between Us
The restaurant was quiet.
Not empty—
just calm enough to feel like the world outside didn’t exist.
Soft lights. Low conversations. The faint clink of glass.
Normal.
Something Monica hadn’t felt in days.
She sat across from Kian, her fingers lightly tracing the rim of her glass, her thoughts still somewhere else.
Not here.
Not fully.
Kian noticed.
Of course he did.
“You’ve been quiet,” he said.
Monica let out a small breath, shaking her head slightly. “I’m trying not to think about it.”
“About him?” Kian asked.
She looked up.
“…Everything,” she admitted.
A brief silence settled between them.
Not uncomfortable.
Just heavy with everything left unsaid.
“I didn’t expect it to feel like that,” Monica continued softly.
“Like what?”
She hesitated.
“Like I was already… part of something I didn’t agree to.”
Kian leaned back slightly, his gaze steady on her.
“You’re not,” he said.
“It doesn’t feel that way,” she replied.
Her voice wasn’t breaking.
She wasn’t falling apart.
But the pressure was there.
Clear.
Real.
“They’re not just asking me to marry someone,” she continued. “They’re deciding my future like it’s a business deal.”
Kian’s jaw tightened slightly.
“It is a business deal,” he said.
Monica gave a small, humorless smile.
“Exactly.”
Silence again.
But this time—
he moved.
Kian reached across the table, his hand covering hers.
Warm.
Steady.
Grounding.
Monica looked at him.
Really looked this time.
And for a moment—
everything else faded.
“You’re not alone in this,” he said quietly.
She exhaled softly. “I know.”
“Do you?” he asked.
That made her pause.
Because it wasn’t a question meant to challenge her—
It was a reminder.
Kian’s grip tightened just slightly.
“I meant what I said,” he continued. “I’m not letting this happen without a fight.”
Monica searched his eyes.
“And what if they don’t care?” she asked softly. “What if this is already decided for them?”
Kian didn’t look away.
“Then we make it matter,” he said.
Simple.
Direct.
Certain.
Monica felt something shift inside her.
Not fear.
Not pressure.
Something stronger.
“You make it sound easy,” she said.
“It’s not,” Kian admitted. “But I’m not backing down.”
A small silence followed.
Then—
Monica smiled faintly.
Not because things were okay.
But because she believed him.
Her fingers turned slightly, intertwining with his.
A quiet decision.
“I don’t want to lose this,” she said softly.
Kian’s gaze softened.
“You won’t.”
She held his hand tighter.
“You don’t know that.”
“I do,” he said.
There was no hesitation in his voice.
No doubt.
“Because I’m not giving you up,” he added quietly.
The words landed deeper than anything else.
Monica’s breath caught slightly—not from surprise—
but from the certainty behind them.
For the first time since everything started—
she felt steady.
“Okay,” she said softly.
Not a full answer.
Not a full plan.
But something real.
They stayed like that for a while.
Talking about smaller things.
Laughing lightly.
Holding on to something that still felt theirs—
despite everything trying to take it away.
Until—
Monica’s phone buzzed.
She glanced down.
And immediately—
her expression changed.
Kian noticed.
“What is it?”
Monica didn’t answer right away.
She opened the message.
A single line.
From an unknown number.
“Miss Hale, I trust you had time to consider the situation.
I would like to meet you properly.
Tomorrow evening.
—Alexander Montclair”
No greeting.
No unnecessary words.
Just—
intent.
Monica stared at the screen.
Her chest tightened slightly.
Kian’s voice was low. “Him?”
She nodded.
A quiet silence followed.
Different this time.
Heavier.
Kian leaned back slightly, his expression unreadable for a moment.
Then—
calm.
Controlled.
“Then we meet him,” he said.
Monica looked up. “We?”
Kian’s eyes met hers.
Steady.
Unshaken.
“You’re not doing this alone,” he said.
Monica exhaled slowly.
The weight hadn’t disappeared.
The pressure was still there.
But now—
it felt different.
Because this time—
she wasn’t facing it by herself.
And somewhere in the city—
Prince Alexander Montclair had already made his next move.
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