Dimitri POV
In the formal dining room, Elina shook her head, holding a glass of wine. The disapproval hung in the air between them.
"I wasn't going to let her go back to Luc," Dimitri said in answer to her silent accusations.
Elina wasn't buying it. "Did you have to get her pregnant and marry her? You know that's what your parents wanted."
"Yes, but I did both on my own terms," Dimitri explained, reaching for his wine glass.
Elina sniffed. "Are you sure about that?"
Glaring at her, Dimitri snapped, "YES. I'm not being manipulated. Her parents are harboring Luc. Luc, of all people."
Elina's words brought him up short. "And how do you know that this isn't just a scheme of hers to trap you? To get you and Ariana to lower your guard while she and Luc plot to retake the throne."
He'd considered that, of course. But Irina seemed so disaffected, so ... so ... done with Luc and her parents.