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Liam suddenly turns to face us, chest heaving rapidly as an angry flush creeps over his cheek. “What the fuck do you two think you’re doing?”
“Oohhh... Liam said a naughty word.” I stand behind Drake, wrapping both my arms around his middle and resting my chin on his shoulder.
“Callum, come on…” Drake whispers, half-heartedly trying to keep the situation from escalating.
Liam looks apoplectic now, his usually unruffled demeanor completely shattered as he paces in front of us, red-faced and muttering.
“Apologies, Your Highness.” I smirk, a nasty, petty little part of me enjoying Liam’s clear discomfort.
“Why are you even here, Callum?” Liam asks, exasperated.
“I was invited, darlin’.” I tighten my arms around Drake. “Why wouldn’t come to enjoy the spectacle?”
“You invited him?” Liam shouts, lunging towards Drake.
I quickly push Drake behind me and intercept Liam, sending him staggering back with a rough shove. Liam charges me again, attempting to slip around me and get to Drake.
“You invited him to my engagement party and then you had the audacity to fuck him five minutes before you knew I’d see him again?” he shouts.
“Technically,” I begin.
“Shut up, Callum!” the two men scream in unison.
Chastised, I stay quiet and concentrate on keeping the two friends apart.
“I didn’t know what else to do,” Drake tries to explain. “You can’t marry Madeline. You won’t be happy with her.”
“So you decide to bring in the man who broke my heart?” Liam asks, completely incensed.
“Oh bullshit,” I scoff. “You didn’t care. All you cared about was your precious reputation and keeping Constantine happy.”
“You have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“I don’t?” I can feel my blood pressure slowly starting to rise. “You let me know more than once that it didn’t matter how you felt about me, you would do what was best for Cordonia.”
“You think I didn’t want to? That I never thought about what it would be like to walk away from everything and just be with you?” Liam asks quietly.
“How would he know?” Drake interjects. “You never told him. The night he left the palace you couldn’t even be bothered to try and stop him.”
“I didn’t know he was going to leave!” Liam explodes.
“I tried to tell you!” Drake shouts back. “Twice that day I tried to tell you, but you prioritized Madeline because you didn’t want it to seem like Callum was getting special attention. Even though anyone with eyes knew that he was the one you wanted to be with.”
“What was I supposed to do, Drake? Just call off competition? Send all the other suitors home because I fell in love?”
“Yes!” Drake throws his hands up and glares at Liam. “That’s exactly what you were supposed to do. To put something above your duty to Cordonia for once in your fucking life.”
Well this was a terrible idea... Time to make the situation worse.
“We both know Liam would never do that though, don’t we, Drake?” I ask snidely, examining my nails.
“Too bad you didn’t stick around to find out,” Liam snaps.
“Stick around for what? Watching you make out with Olivia some more? To keep being reminded that it didn’t matter how much I loved you, you’d still choose someone else if they were better for Cordonia?”
Liam clenches his jaw and avoids my accusing stare. “There are ways we could have still been together… had I married someone else.”
“Don’t,” Drake growls. “Don’t you dare give him the same bullshit speech you gave me.”
I glance back and forth between the two men, desperately trying to put together the puzzle but realizing I’m missing some very important pieces. “I don’t understand…”
“Nobility in Cordonia have long enjoyed the tradition of having romantic partners outside their marriages. And providing that the relationship is… discreet, no one takes issue with it.”
I stare at him, clenching and unclenching my hands as the implication of what Liam just said washes over me. “A sidepiece? You would have asked me to stay in Cordonia as your fucking SIDEPIECE?!?”
Liam flushes with shame and avoids my eyes as Drake caresses my shoulder in a futile attempt to calm me down. Something else rattles around in my brain, something that paints Liam and Drake’s friendship in a whole new light.
“You said ‘Don’t give him the same speech you gave me’,” I murmur.
The two friends freeze in place.