Chapter 130

Chapter 130:

He had saved her life. He had nearly died for her. And she had broken his heart entirely by mistake.

Monday morning. The door opened and Augustina Koch walked in.

She looked impeccable in a cream suit, her hair perfectly coiffed, but there were dark circles under her eyes. She carried an air of judgment that lowered the temperature in the room.

“Mrs. Koch,” Eliza greeted her nervously, trying to sit up straighter.

“Eliza,” Augustina said coolly. She didn’t ask how Eliza was feeling. She drew the chair closer and sat. “We need to talk about Dallas p>

“Is he all right?” Eliza asked at once.

“He’s alive,” Augustina said bluntly. “Physically. Liam has him on a powerful antibiotic drip, but it will take time to work. Emotionally — he is a crater p>

Eliza looked down at her hands. “I know he saved me. I know I confused things p>

Romаnс𝘦 ո𝗼𝘃e𝗅𝗌 oո

“Confused?” Augustina raised an eyebrow. “You told Anson Hyde you loved him while holding his hand. That is not confusion. That is cruelty p>

“I thought it was Dallas!” Eliza said, her voice rising. “I couldn’t see. I felt a hand and I thought it was my husband p>

Augustina studied her face, searching for a lie. She found only desperation.

“Do you love him?” Augustina asked. The question hung in the air, heavy and absolute. “Dallas p>

Eliza went still.

She thought of the prenup. She thought of the “debt.” She thought of the way he had walked out without a word, convinced she wanted Anson. She thought of what he had said to Augustina: Let her go.

If she said yes and he wanted to be free — was she only trapping him? Was she just a burden, a girl who always needed saving?

“I don’t want to hurt him anymore,” Eliza faltered.

“That is not an answer,” Augustina pressed.

“If he wants to be free — if he believes I love Anson — maybe it’s better,” Eliza said softly, tears falling onto the sheets. “Maybe he deserves someone who isn’t broken p>

“Better?” Augustina stood up abruptly, her chair scraping loudly against the floor. “He almost died for you, and you think a divorce is better p>

“I didn’t say divorce!” Eliza sobbed. “I just — I don’t want to be a burden. I don’t want him to stay out of obligation p>

Augustina looked at the crying girl. She heard the self-doubt, the fear of not being enough. But filtered through the raw fury of an aunt who had watched her nephew choose to drown rather than lose this woman, it sounded like an excuse. Like a surrender. He needed a woman who would fight for his kingdom — not a girl who would abdicate out of fear.

Her voice turned to ice. “I see. You are still the girl who needs saving — not the woman who stands by him p>

She turned toward the door. “I will tell him you want what is better for him p>

“Wait!” Eliza called out — but the door closed.