Viola had always been confident. Unshakable. No one denied her.
Until Marco.
His rejection hung between them, thick and suffocating. He should have reacted. He should have wanted her. Everyone else did. But Marco wasn't like the others. He stood before her, completely naked and unmoved, his expression unreadable. He hadn't hesitated, hadn't faltered. Even now, his silver eyes remained steady, as if she was nothing.
She forced herself to breathe, to keep her smirk in place.
"I'm not interested," Marco said coldly, pulling hand back and throwing her a blanket. "Cover yourself."
The words landed like a blade to the gut. Viola stilled, her pulse thrumming beneath her skin. She waited for him to take it back, for the smug amusement to crack and reveal the truth beneath. But Marco simply stared at her, unyielding.
She let out a small, breathless laugh, her fingers tightening into fists at her sides. Nobody says no to Viola.
"You're joking," she said, though her voice wasn't as sharp as before. "Are you into men, then?" Her tone was mocking, teasing, but the words felt wrong even as she said them. "Just say it, Marco. Do you like boys too?"
Marco's expression didn't change. If anything, the slight tilt of his head made it worse. He wasn't amused. He wasn't offended. He was simply… done.
"You're grasping, Viola," he said.
Her breath caught. A flicker of something ugly and unfamiliar curled inside her chest.
"I don't believe you." She stepped closer, searching his face for anything, any crack in that icy façade. "Who? Who could possibly be worth more than what I'm offering?"
He didn't hesitate.
"Someone back home."
Viola felt her body go rigid, her nails biting into her palms.
Someone back home.
A girl.
His girl.
Something cold and dark twisted in her stomach. She exhaled slowly, forcing a smirk back onto her lips. It was a lie. It had to be.
"Ah, some weak, lowborn she-wolf everyone's talking about? Didn't know that you'd stoop that low." She tilted her chin, watching him closely, waiting for the words to sting. "And you think your father will just take it?"
Marco didn't answer, he still didn't flinch. He simply regarded her with disinterest, like she was an obstacle to step over.
His next words shattered whatever illusion she had left.
"He doesn't have to. When I return, I will ascend to his throne. And I will make her my Luna."