I was becoming a masterpiece of deception, and the performance was suffocating me.
The role came naturally now, walking beside Luka during public visits, my spine straight and my smile practiced to perfection.
At court dinners, I sat at his side, listening as nobles praised me for bringing "softness" to their future king, for tempering his strength with feminine grace.
"Princess Penelope has such a calming influence," Duchess Maren observed during the latest gathering. "You can see it in how Prince Luka looks at her."
"She'll make him a better ruler," Duke Aldric agreed. "A gentle hand to guide his decisions."
Luka was always kind during these moments, his touches gentle and respectful. His hand would find mine across the table, his thumb stroking across my knuckles with quiet affection.
His attention never wavered, never strayed to other women the way some nobles' did.
"Are you happy?" he would ask at night, after kissing my forehead with tender reverence. "Truly happy?"
"Yes," I always replied, the lie coming easier each time. But behind closed doors, the weight of those lies felt heavier each day.
I began taking walks alone in the evenings, telling myself I needed air, space to think.
The palace corridors were quieter at this hour, most of the court retired to their chambers or private entertainments. I told myself I wasn't hoping to see anyone in particular.
I told myself I wasn't looking for him. But sometimes I caught glimpses, his back turning around a corner, his form vanishing into shadows before I could be certain it was really him.
We never spoke during these encounters, never acknowledged each other's presence. But every time I saw him, my breath shortened and my pulse quickened in ways that had nothing to do with surprise.
The worst moment came during a formal court gathering. I stood beside Luka, accepting congratulations from a visiting lord, when I felt my prince's arm wrap around my waist with casual possessiveness.
And that's when Rios entered the room.
Our eyes met across the crowded hall, his unreadable as always, giving nothing away. But my body betrayed me instantly. My pulse jumped in my throat, heat blooming across my skin where there should have been calm.
The simple black attire he wore made him look like a shadow among the brightly dressed nobles, dangerous and beautiful in ways that made my chest tighten.
Luka's hand tightened slightly on my waist, drawing me closer against his side as he continued his conversation. To anyone watching, it was a gesture of affection.
But I felt it like a brand, marking me as his while my entire being ached for someone else.
I broke eye contact first, turning my attention back to Luka's conversation about trade agreements and diplomatic relations. But I could feel Rios' presence like electricity in the air, could sense him moving through the crowd even when I wasn't looking.
"You seem distracted tonight," Luka murmured in my ear during a lull in conversation.
"Just tired," I lied smoothly. "The court season is exhausting."
His concern was genuine, his suggestion that we retire early born from real care for my wellbeing. I nodded and let him guide me from the hall, playing the part of the devoted consort who needed her prince's protection.
But that night, alone in my chambers, I lay awake staring at the ceiling. The silk sheets felt like chains against my overheated skin.
I pressed my thighs together under the covers, trying to ignore the ache that had been building all evening. The memory of Rios's eyes, the way he'd looked at me across that crowded room, sent fire racing through my veins.
I didn't dare say his name aloud. But I thought about it, again and again as my hand slipped between my thighs, finding the slick heat that betrayed every lie I told during the day.
My body arched against my own touch, desperate for release from the tension that consumed me. I imagined his hands instead of mine, his voice whispering commands in that low, controlled tone that made me shiver.
The fantasy was so vivid I could almost feel his breath against my skin, I could almost hear him telling me to let go.
When the climax finally crashed over me, I came undone with my hand pressed firmly over my mouth to muffle the cry that wanted to tear from my throat.
My body shuddered with waves of pleasure that left me gasping and spent.
But as the sensation faded, tears gathered in my eyes, not from shame this time, but from something far more dangerous. I was living a lie that was beautiful and suffocating in equal measure.
Playing a role that satisfied everyone except the woman I was becoming in the dark hours of night.
I had no idea how much longer I could keep pretending before the truth destroyed everything I was supposed to protect.