Page 130 of Bitter Prince

“There’s nothing wrong with being in love,” I said while signing at the same time, jutting my chin stubbornly. “You even write about it, Athena, and we all read it. So be happy for me and stop nagging me.”

Phoenix sighed. So did the rest of my friends. Raven’s cheeks dimpled, although worry lingered in her eyes. She’d been burned, and it made her cautious. I understood it, but I didn’t agree with it.

I had a plan to get back to Amon, and I was going to stick to it.

* * *

Two hours later, I was in front of his penthouse apartment with my heart hammering and a big smile on my face. He said he’d leave the door open, so I entered the cool, air-conditioned foyer to find it quiet and in disarray.

“Amon?” I called out.

A woman stepped out of the bedroom, and it felt like being sucker-punched in the gut. My duffle bag slid off my shoulder and fell onto the ground with a loud thud.

“Who are you?” Maybe she was Amon’s cleaning lady, although she looked way too pretty—and young—to be. She had golden skin and dark eyes. High cheekbones. She was tall and graceful, and so different from me.

“Amon’s—”

She never finished her statement. Amon stepped out of the bedroom, his hair disheveled and a crazed look in his eyes. His steps faltered when he saw me, and I knew something was wrong. He didn’t look at me the same. There was no softness or stars in his eyes.

A painful, breathless silence stretched between us before he said, “What are you doing here, Reina?”

My heart pounded so hard I was certain it would be bruised.

“I promised I’d be back.” Roughness laced my statement. My hands shook. Pain throbbed in my chest. “W-what’s going on?”

My eyes flicked to the woman next to him, then to the apartment that had seen better days.

“Nothing.” His hands fisted. “You shouldn’t be here.”

My eyes burned and my nose tingled. “You said for me to come back.”

Fire flashed in his dark depths. “I don’t want you here anymore.”

“W-what?”

“I. Don’t. Want. You.” A muscle worked in his jaw. “I don’t want you here.”

It took every ounce of effort to swallow past the lump in my throat.I don’t want you. I don’t want you.

The words screamed in my skull, piercing my brain. I wanted to roar until my throat was raw, but I couldn’t find the strength.

“Y-you don’t want”—my voice broke, a tear streaked down my face—“me.”

The crack of my heart was audible in the silence of the apartment. It spread, slowly but surely. The air crackled with thousands of lashes. He didn’t want me. There was nothing in this world that could hurt more than hearing those words leave the lips that had kissed me mere hours ago. That had begged me to come back.

“Was any of it real?” I rasped, my throat squeezing painfully. “Or was it all a lie? Every word. Every—”Touch. “Am I that easy to leave, my bitter prince?”

The lump grew and oxygen was sparse.

“Yes.”

“But I love you,” I whimpered, desperate to grasp on to something. I wasn’t ready for this. But I knew deep down I was being a naive, romantic fool.

“Forget me.” He wore a dark, impassive mask, and I knew his words and this moment would haunt me forever. “Go love someone else.”

“I… I don’t want to love someone else.” The lump in my throat grew, my heartbeat felt hollow and my soul shattered with each passing second, but more tears never came. “I loveyou.”

He was my everything. My dream. And he was turning into my nightmare with each passing second and cruel word spoken.