ALPHA LUCIUS’S POVMy beta, Marcus, brought me another letter from Rose. I could feel the weight of it in his hand as he approached me. "Your Grace, another letter from Lady Rose," he announced.I waved a hand dismissively, irritation prickling at my senses. "Read it aloud, Marcus," I commanded, resigned to hearing her desperate pleas once more.Marcus cleared his throat before beginning, his voice steady as he recited Rose's words. "My dearest Lucius, I beg of you to reconsider. Come back to me, my love. I cannot bear to be without you," he read, his tone tinged with a mixture of sympathy and annoyance.I gritted my teeth, the familiar surge of frustration rising within me. Rose's incessant pleas grated on my nerves, a constant reminder of the mess I had made of things. "Continue," I ordered, though every fiber of my being longed to be rid of her words.Marcus obliged, reading through Rose's letter with a detached efficiency that belied the turmoil brewing within me. With each word, t
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