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F elix traversed the streets in a fog. The ache in his nose was nothing compared to the searing pain in his chest.

How had that gone so terribly wrong?

Lucretia hadn’t listened to him, that was how. She hadn’t heard how much he loved her, how he wanted them to be together forever.

No—she had heard him. She had just heard all the things he didn’t want her to.

She heard how he’d schemed against her. How he’d disregarded the terms of their truce. How he’d bragged about not doing something reprehensible.

He could explain it away as just business, but he would be lying to himself. It hadn’t been just business with Lucretia for a long time, despite both of their best efforts to pretend otherwise.

And now he’d ruined everything.

Instead of going home, he walked to the harbor. He stood on one of the piers, feeling the sea breeze whip at his bloodied clothing. A spray of salty water from a wave hitting the side of the pier stung his eyes.

Further out in the harbor, large ships—several of them his—sat at anchor in the deeper water.

Little boats ferried goods and people to and from the ships.

Smaller vessels were docked at the various piers dotting the edge of the harbor, each with a hive of activity surrounding it as goods were loaded, unloaded, inspected, and haggled over before being transported down the Tiber toward Rome.

This was what he’d worked for—this relentless cycle of buying and selling, profit and risk. He’d been willing to sacrifice so much for a chance at a bit more money in his coffers. He had betrayed Lucretia, the woman he loved, out of nothing but greed and the desire to win.

Now, he would have gladly given up all his ships if he could take back what he’d done.

But there was no way to undo something so heinous. His greed had ruined everything between them.

Maybe she was right: how could he be certain that one day, sooner or later, he wouldn’t have tried to persuade her to transfer all of her assets to his control?

That hadn’t been his motivation to marry her, but he knew himself well enough to know it wouldn’t have been long before the idea occurred to him.

He might not have been able to resist the prospect of getting everything he wanted: Lucretia as his wife and control over her ships.

That was why he’d stammered and hesitated at her accusation. He hadn’t been able to summon an instant, convincing denial because as soon as she’d raised it, he knew it sounded exactly like something he would do.

Lucretia deserved better than him. She deserved a man who would support her, not scheme against her.

If he truly loved her, then he had to recognize he wasn’t right for her.

This was one scenario where there was no way to win, nothing he could plan or scheme or negotiate to get what he wanted. For the first time, he’d lost.

After Felix left, Lucretia took a moment to gather herself. She could feel the heavy pressure of tears building in her nose and behind her eyes, but she staved them off. Felix didn’t deserve her tears.

She intended to go speak to Marcus, but he beat her to it. His head poked around the doorframe of the dining room. “He left?” Marcus asked.

Lucretia wiped a hand hastily over her eyes. “Yes.”

Marcus entered the room with hesitant steps. “I heard yelling.”

“Yes,” she said again. “I rejected his proposal.”

“Oh,” Marcus said, relief coloring his voice. “Well, everything’s all right then, isn’t it?”

She forced a smile, rising to her feet. “Yes. Everything’s all right.” Marcus didn’t need to know of everything else that had transpired between her and Felix. “But you shouldn’t have hit him, even so.”

He adopted a look of wide-eyed innocence. “Shouldn’t I have?”

She shook her head firmly. “It was impulsive and reckless. You can’t go around punching people with no provocation.”

“There was provocation!” Marcus objected indignantly. “He was touching you and—”

Lucretia folded her arms over her chest. “Did I ask for your help?”

“Well, no, but—”

“Did I look distressed at the time?”

He chewed his lip. “I-I didn’t notice—”

“Exactly,” she said. “You didn’t take the time to suitably assess the situation. The impulse to defend someone is all well and good, but it must be properly applied. If you’re going to learn to fight, you also need to learn when to do nothing.”

Marcus listened to her words without meeting her gaze. “I thought I was helping,” he said in a small voice.

“I know.” She stepped forward and folded him into her arms. Felix was nothing to her anymore. Marcus was all that truly mattered.

He allowed the embrace and even hugged her back for a brief moment before withdrawing.

“We needn’t worry about it any more,” she said, giving him a gentle smile. “It’s over.” The words sat like lead in her stomach, but she refused to let her smile waver.

Felix jumped to his feet in surprise when Marcus trotted into his office the following afternoon. The boy looked so carefree, Felix wondered if he’d forgotten about the events of yesterday.

“Marcus,” Felix managed through the astonishment. “What are you doing here?”

Marcus shrugged and seated himself in the chair opposite Felix’s desk with languid ease. “I usually come here after school, if we’re not meeting at the gymnasium.”

“But—yesterday—”

“Mother told me what happened. She rejected your proposal. So that’s that.”

Felix held a deep envy of the boy’s nonchalance about the situation, though it was clear that Lucretia had only given Marcus the abridged version. Felix had a feeling that if Marcus knew everything, his healing nose would rapidly be under renewed attack. “Does your mother know you’re here?”

“Dunno. She didn’t tell me not to come.”

She likely thought she didn’t have to . “I’m not sure she would be happy with you being here.”

Marcus ignored him, instead surveying Felix’s bruised face. Felix knew it was a rather hideous sight: a black eye had bloomed overnight, and his nose was puffy and tender.

“I’m sorry about your nose,” Marcus said. “I shouldn’t have hit you.”

Felix accepted the apology with a nod. “For what it’s worth, it was a well-executed punch. Though I’d have preferred a different target.”

Marcus beamed at the praise. “Do you think I can start fighting real people at the gymnasium now?”

Thus far, Felix had only permitted Marcus to practice on the leather boxing bags with occasional matches against Felix himself, fearing that another opponent would pummel the boy into the dust. “Perhaps. But I’m not sure our lessons should continue.”

Marcus nodded. “Right, we have to prepare for our trip. I can’t believe we leave next week!”

Felix pressed his lips together. He hadn’t thought this would be a conversation he needed to have with Marcus, but clearly Lucretia had been very generous with her version of yesterday’s events. “Marcus, I don’t think you can accompany me to Cyrene anymore.”

His face dropped. “But…why?”

Felix’s insides twisted. Marcus had been so excited about this trip, and it pained him to take it away. “I have a feeling your mother will no longer want you to come.”

“But she said I could,” Marcus insisted. “She agreed to it. Remember?”

“Yes, but that was before…all of this. I believe her rejection of my proposal served to implicitly withdraw her consent.”

Marcus absorbed this with a long, considering look. “Do you still want me to come?”

Felix knew he should refuse, so at least then Lucretia wouldn’t be the sole villain in this scenario.

But he couldn’t bring himself to distress Marcus, to break the trust that had been growing between them.

Besides, Felix also had been looking forward to the trip.

There were so many things he could teach Marcus, so many opportunities to broaden his knowledge.

“I do want you to come,” he finally admitted. “But you need to discuss it once more with your mother.”

“Fine.” Marcus let out a resigned sigh. “I’ll do that.”

“Good.” Felix knew that, if given the opportunity, Lucretia would firmly forbid Marcus from ever seeing Felix again, much less going on a long journey together.

So this would likely be their last time together.

Another pang of regret hit him. His actions had deprived him not just of Lucretia, but of Marcus as well.