Edmund grimaced. “That was a bit trickier to manage, as you were... incapacitated at the time and the general does out-rank me. Fortunately, your aunt was cognizant enough to step in and inform the other lieutenants of the situation. He's been placed in the dungeons until further notice, same as the prince.”
Josselyn shook her head. “I can't believe I just passed out and missed everything.” She looked him over. “You're looking better than you were. How are you holding up?”
“Right as rain.” He winked. “I'm way too manly to let a short stay in the dungeon wear me down.”
Josselyn laughed, reaching out to ruffle his hair before letting her hand fall back in her lap, the laughter fading from her lips as her eyes darted toward the door. “And... everyone else? Have they recovered, as well?”
Edmund leaned back on the bed, his expression remaining carefree even as she saw a hint of vulnerability flicker in his eyes.
“Your aunt seems to be back to her old self, not that you'd believe it from listening to her. She'll complain at length to anyone with ears about her 'horrendous brush with death'.”
Josselyn smiled. “That does sound like her. I'm glad she's doing well, though.”
Edmund nodded, his fingers tracing the swirling patterns of her bedspread. “Your friend Lily was given a room in the castle, where she's been resting, though she didn't pass out like someone else did.” He looked up with a quick, teasing grin, before letting his gaze drop back down. “The woman... Luxeos... she left as soon as things settled down. Strange lady, that one.”
There was an awkward pause. Josselyn bit her lip, watching Edmund fiddle with the blanket for a moment before asking softly, “And Alex? Is he recovering, as well?”
“Ah, right, that guy. Yeah, he's doing alright, I guess. Too stubborn not to, really.” Edmund looked up, catching her eye for a moment before shifting his gaze to the door. “I'm surprised he hasn't shown up here yet, seeing as he's been by to check on you every hour, despite the physician telling him he needed to stay in bed himself. Guy takes his job pretty seriously...”
He trailed off, swallowing as he turned back to face Josselyn. “That's all it is, right? Joss?”
She felt the back of her eyes burn as she stared back at him, searching for the right words to say. Were there any right words, though? The outcome would be the same, no matter how prettily it was presented.
“It's not." She twisted her hands together in her lap, wanting to look down even as she forced herself to look him in the eyes. “He... I...,” She shook her head in frustration. Just spit it out already.
“I'm in love with him, Edmund.”
His face fell, but he twisted his mouth up into a wry grin anyway. “Sure, you were in love with him, I know that. But that was a long time ago. We can move on from there.”
She kept her gaze steady. “I never stopped loving him, Edmund, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, but I can't... I can't marry you. It wouldn't be fair to either of us.” Her voice caught. “I love him too much.”
“Yeah, I guess I know that, too.”
He brushed her cheek with the back of his fingers, his gaze lingering there for a moment before he drew his hand back, running it through his hair with a rueful look. “Though I can't for the life of me fathom what you see in the guy.” He smirked. “He isn't half as handsome as I am.” He stood and stretched his arms up over his head, “Well, I'm sure the ladies of the kingdom will thank you, at least, now that I'm an eligible bacheloragain. Speaking of which, what's the deal with your friend Lily? She's rather intriguing...”
Josselyn laughed, throwing yet another pillow at his head. “You're insufferable. Leave my sweet Lily alone.”
He threw up his hands in defense of any more pillows that might be coming his way. “I was only wondering. You can't keep everyone to yourself, you know. That's just greedy.”
She made a face at him and was about to reach for another pillow to throw when they were interrupted by a light knock on the door. Edmund chuckled, but there was a rawness to the sound that matched the shadows lurking deep in his eyes.
“Like I said, every hour.” He moved to the door, pulling it open a crack. “Do you mind? I'm in the middle of a rather intimate moment with my lady love.”
“Get out,” Alex's voice growled from the other side of the door, just as another of Josselyn's pillows smacked into the back of Edmund's head.
“Yeesh,” he complained, rubbing the back of his head. “You'd think you could be a bit gentler on a man who's just been jilted.” He opened the door wider, stepping to the side as Alex prowled past him, his eyes locking onto Josselyn's as if the other man hadn't even spoken.
“I'll just see myself out, then,” Edmund grumbled. “But I'm leaving this door open. Behave yourselves.”
Josselyn listened as his steps faded down the stairs, all the while keeping her eyes on Alex as he glanced around the room for a place to sit before finally pulling a chair up beside the bed. He sat down, leaning forward as he looked her over with concern.
“How are you?”
She smiled, letting her hand slide across the bed to capture his own and entwining their fingers together. She heard his breath catch, and her smile deepened.
“Better now.”
He squeezed her hand lightly. “You were out for a long time. Even longer than the first time you brought your beast out in the forest. We were all pretty worried.”
“I suppose I shouldn't have kept Kella out quite so long, especially with whatever Luxeos did to increase their power, but I was too caught up in everything to consider the after-effects.” She lifted her shoulders in a slight shrug. “I imagine I have a lot of training in my future if I want to gain full control over the whole celestial beast thing.”
He nodded, glancing down at their hands. “And you'll have several new duties to attend to, now that you're about to be crowned queen.
