#Chapter 73: Conflicted

Kayla Everyone’s eyes were fixed on me, waiting for my decision. But all I felt was Nicholas’s gaze—sharp, steady, and yet holding an undercurrent of pain and anger that only I could feel. This all felt so… wrong. So unfair. So forced. “Prove my devotion,” I murmured before I could stop myself, barely able to keep the sarcasm out of my voice. I lifted my eyes slowly, meeting Mr. Gray’s condescending smile with one of my own. “Isn’t that what I’ve already done? I’ve told you time and time again that I’m devoted to Nicholas, but you don’t believe me. How should I know you’ll believe me now?” Nicholas shifted beside me, his body a statue of calm, but I could feel the storm under his skin. His shoulders were too tense, his hand curled just slightly into a fist against the table. Still, he said nothing. Not yet. “Words mean little, Miss Sterling,” the guildsman replied smoothly, lacing his fingers together on the table. “We’re not just asking you to say t