“Because I knew I was lost to the castle forever,” he whispered. “I wanted you to have a shot at a better life. A life without all of these stupid fucking complications. A life plagued by the media. Plagued by my mother. You didn’t have to have any of this, Henry.”
“But I wanted you,” I said.
He shook his head slowly, his eyes sadder than I’d ever seen them. “I’m not worth all of this,” he whispered.
I got up before I even knew what I was doing. I crossed the room, wrapping my arms as tightly as I could around Sebastian.
“You’re worth everything I could ever give.” My voice was broken and hoarse.
“I wanted so badly to protect you,” he said. “But it wasn’t my call to make. I fucked up. I have—I have so many regrets, Henry.”
“You didn’t fuck up. And no,” I said firmly. “You shouldn’t regret a thing.”
“I regret it,” he said, solemn and defeated.
“Well, you don’t have to anymore,” I said, pulling back and looking him in the eyes. “You don’t have to when you’re with me.”
“I’ve hurt you,” he whispered.
“And I’ve hurt you,” I said. “But have you ever stopped loving me? Even for one second?”
He shook his head. “I couldn’t.”
“There’s no world where I don’t love you, too,” I said.
There was a knock on the front door, and in the bottom of my stomach, I knew it couldn’t be anything good. Sebastian was trembling as his eyes darted toward the door, and I brought the back of his palm up to my lips and pressed a kiss there.
“We will get through this,” I said. “Together.”
“Together,” he repeated, nodding even though the fear in his eyes didn’t go away.
I knew it might be the queen on the other side of the door. Or twenty news cameras, or hundreds of reporters.
But when I took a deep breath and opened the door, it was Genoveve standing there, her hair a wispy mess from the wind.
“Henry,” she said. “Is the prince—is he—”
She broke down crying and I pulled her inside quickly, grabbing her suitcase and bringing it in.
“He is here, yes,” I said, locking the door behind her.
“I’ve been fired,” she said. “It’s all over.”
I shook my head. “Nothing is over. You came to the right place. Do you want a drink? Whiskey? Coffee? Hot cocoa?”
She sniffled, taking off her gloves and nodding. “Whiskey sounds lovely. Thank you so much, sir, I can serve myself—”
I puffed out a small laugh. “No. In this house, you don’t have to do any work. Come to the living room. Sebastian is by the fireplace.”
She looked so relieved to hear that he was there. It was clear that Genoveve really trusted Sebastian, and I couldn’t imagine how upset she must be that her dream job was gone.
After grabbing more whiskey for the three of us, I went to the living room and found her on the couch next to Sebastian, wiping away her tears. When we were younger, Sebastian had constantly talked about how he’d wished he had another sibling, anyone to take some of the attention and burden away from him.
In this moment, I felt like I was seeing Sebastian and Genoveve as if they were brother and sister. It was clear that they felt comfortable around one another, and that even in the midst of upheaval, Genoveve knew Sebastian was looking out for her.
“I’m glad you’re here, Genoveve,” I said as I crossed over, passing each of them fresh drinks. “Even if the circumstances are awful, it’s good to have you.”
“It’s very good to be here,” she said, clutching her drink and taking a small sip. “The castle is not a place anyone would want to be right now.”
“That bad, huh?” Sebastian said.
“Certainly seemed fine from the interview,” I said.
They both shook their heads in unison, making them look even more like long-lost siblings.
“It’s chaos there,” Genoveve said. “Like I’ve never seen before.”
“I could tell,” Sebastian added. “She seemed so calm on TV, but sometimes when her public face seems calmest, she’s a complete storm on the inside.”
“That makes sense, I guess,” I said.
“Right before the people from the news arrived, the queen was shrieking and losing her mind,” Genoveve said. “She fired me, of course. She discovered I had a part in transferring some of your funds this morning.”
“Shit, Gen,” Sebastian said. “I’m so sorry.”
She shook her head. “I knew the risk I was taking. And I knew it was worth it, to help you.”
“You’re amazing.”
Genoveve took a deep breath. “Thank you, Henry, so much, for inviting me into your home. My family is thousands of miles away. I wouldn’t have anywhere else to go.”
“Of course,” I said. “There’s a spare room here. Used to be my childhood bedroom, actually. The windowpanes are a little thin, and the carpet is green, but I’ve got plenty of cozy blankets. And lots of pancake mix for tomorrow.”
She smiled. “I’m so grateful.”
“Shit. You two probably haven’t had pancakes from a box mix in years, have you?”
“Oh, it’s all I would eat, growing up,” Genoveve said. “I miss it, actually. The prince, on the other hand… I don’t imagine he’s ever had boxed mix.”
“Oh, he has,” I said, giving Sebastian a playful look.
Sebastian smiled, nodding at Genoveve. “On Saturday mornings, sometimes I was allowed to come here to Henry’s house, and sometimes his mom would make us pancakes.”
“Right from the box?”
“Of course,” I said.
“And I loved them,” Sebastian said, leaning back on the couch. “More than the fancy kind at the castle.”
“How fancy could pancakes even be?” I said, rolling my eyes.
“Believe me, my mother tried to get the cooks to make them exactly the way she’d had them at a smaller castle in France,” Sebastian said. “They could never quite get it right.”
Genoveve laughed, taking another sip of her drink before letting out a long sigh. “I…” she started to say before going quiet.
“What is it?” Sebastian asked.
She shook her head. “I shouldn’t.”
“Say what’s on your mind, Genoveve,” I said. “There’s nothing to worry about here.”
She looked up hesitantly, big eyes moving between me and Sebastian, before ultimately settling on him. “I know I shouldn’t ask this, but… is it… is it true, Sebastian?”
He cocked his head to one side. “What do you mean?”
“Your secret.”
“That I’m gay?” he asked plainly. “Of course it’s true, Genoveve. You knew that.”
She shook her head. “I didn’t know. But I’m so happy you can marry a prince, if you choose,” she said. “I would never have known the queen would allow this.”
Sebastian’s eyes fell. “Well, I definitely won’t ever be marrying a prince.”