Alexander didn't answer his question.
Not right away.
He held Lucien from behind, arms firm around his waist, mouth warm against Lucien's neck soft kisses that felt like comfort and apology wrapped together. But when Lucien asked it Are you protecting me… or controlling me? Alexander went still.
Not frozen.
Just… quiet.
Like he was choosing which truth wouldn't hurt more.
Lucien hated that he noticed. Hated that he could feel the weight of Alexander's restraint in the air between them.
For a few breaths, all Lucien heard was the faint rustle of leaves outside the window, the distant echo of footsteps in the corridor, the palace moving on as if the two of them weren't standing at the edge of something sharp.
Alexander finally spoke, voice low. "Both can look the same when people want you gone."
Lucien turned slightly in his arms. "That's not an answer."
