Semua Bab Tempting the Wrong Prince: Bab 11 - Bab 20

Cassandra's POVThe ballroom shimmered in gold and crystal, a stage crafted for perfection. Music floated through the air, violins weaving together with the low hum of conversation. But for me, everything blurred the moment Arden stopped in front of me.His eyes caught mine, steady and knowing.“How have you been?” he asked, voice low enough to belong only to me.I let out a breath I hadn’t realised I was holding. “Fine.”A single word, a flimsy shield.But the knowing look in his eyes stripped it away. He didn’t believe me. The way no one else ever bothered to.I tried to look away, but he tilted his head slightly, a faint smile tugging at his lips. “Dance with me.”My chest tightened. “Here?”“Why not?”I hesitated, my gaze flicking toward the sea of eyes watching me from every corner of the room. Already I was a spectacle. Already the whispers had carved me into a scandal.And yet…“Yes,” I said softly.He extended his hand. I placed mine in it, and heat surged through me, undeniab

Cassandra’s POV The chamber was silent when we entered, the thick oak doors closing behind us with a finality that pressed against my chest. Gold sconces cast heavy light across the room, but the King’s face was shadowed, unreadable. He sat at the head of the long table, his hands folded. Expressionless. Watching. Waiting. Ivana was the first to break the silence. She moved forward quickly, her gown trailing like a dark tide behind her. “Darling,” she said smoothly, her voice dripping with practiced sweetness. “This should never have come this far. Arden should not be allowed to indulge Cassandra like this. Their business is private; the couple should solve their problems without outsiders interfering.” The King’s eyes flicked to her, sharp as a blade. “Then perhaps you shouldn’t have meddled in their business to begin with.” His voice was low, cold. “If I have learned correctly, Richard says you were the one who gave him the idea. Why would you do such a thing?” Ivana stiffened,

Richard’s POVI had worn a crown since I was a boy, if not on my head, then on my spine. Stand straight. Speak carefully. Smile on command. But tonight the metal felt like wire pulled tight through bone, humming with humiliation every time I breathed. Arden’s smirk wouldn’t leave my skull. The study was too small for my anger. I paced the Persian rug like a caged thing, fingers drumming the desk, the mantel, the window latch. Arden’s words from the gala bit in a loop: Or else what, little brother? The court had watched him peel my hand off Cassandra as if I were a servant clutching at a guest. Cameras had flared. Whispers had swelled. And she, my wife, had stood there composed while I drowned. A soft knock. I whirled, ready to lash whoever dared. “Papa!” Two shooting stars slammed into my legs. James and Eleanor. Arms flung high, cheeks warm from running, the scent of milk and biscuits still on their breath. My anger fractured; something human slipped through. I crouched, p

Cassandra’s POVThe knock was sharp, urgent, and wholly out of place in the stillness of my quarters. Diana, ever cautious, went to the door. I barely lifted my head from the book I hadn’t truly been reading; my mind had been elsewhere, circling endlessly like a moth around a flame that could never be touched.The door creaked open, and then her sharp gasp told me everything before I even looked up.It was Richard.For a moment, I was frozen. Of all the people I had expected to darken my door tonight, he was not one of them. My heart lurched before I caught it, smoothed my features, and sat up straighter. Surprise had no place here. Not in front of him.“Your Highness,” Diana said stiffly, her tone edged with suspicion.Richard’s eyes flickered to her, then to me, weary yet determined. “Diana,” he said softly, “if you’d excuse us.”She looked to me, reluctant, her eyes saying what her lips did not: Do you want me to leave you alone with him?I gave a slow, measured nod. “It’s fine. I

Cassandra’s POVThe storm inside me hadn’t stilled since the broadcast. I paced, cloak in hand, ready to march to the courts and demand answers, when the knock came again.But this time, it wasn’t Diana at the door. It was the guards.Two of them stood stiff, armored, their spears crossed like a warning.“You are not permitted to leave your quarters, my lady,” one said firmly. “By order of the crown. Until the investigation is concluded, you must remain here.”My heart stopped. It wasn’t phrased as an arrest, but it might as well have been. Stylishly wrapped in courtesy, yes, but a cage is still a cage, even when gilded.I swallowed hard. Remaining here meant suffocating. Remaining here meant Ivana had already cut the ground beneath me. If she had orchestrated this, if she had tied my parents’ fate to mine, then the next step would be my silence. My erasure.I turned back inside, forcing my breathing steady. Diana’s face was pale, her hands clutching her skirts.“My lady, ”I cut her