Chapter 31 The King's Weakness

• Dominic’s POV
• The garden was quieter than usual, the late-afternoon sun cutting soft and warm lights through the hedges. Bees worked the roses in steady hums while the rest of the estate slept in shadows. I chose this hour for a reason. The world felt gentler in the fading light, and if I was going to do the unthinkable, speak my truth, I needed the cover of something calm.
• I waited at the stone table beneath the wisteria trellis, a sweating pitcher of chilled white wine between two glasses. My men lingered far back near the house. For once, I had given no orders to watch every move. This was not business. It was something infinitely more dangerous.