Just One Dance

Chapter 21 - Have A Drink...Or a Punch

Wilfred's POV

As I left the Morgan house, a butler tried to stop me. "Don't touch me," I say in a cold voice. "I never want to see that liar again." Without another word, I walked out and got into the car. Claude and I drove back to the palace in silence.

Three Days Later

Blind. She's blind. How could I not see that? It all made perfect sense. Why she never made eye contact, Sasha, knowing braille, why her parents broke the betrothal, never dancing... It was all so obvious.

I sit behind my desk, staring at a bottle of red wine. I've already had half the bottle, and I'm debating on drinking another glass. Alcohol may not be the answer, but the thought that I might forget her is so tempting. She lied to me. The words repeat themselves over and over in my mind. She lied...

"Your highness," Claude interrupts my thoughts, "Lady Katelyn's nurse, Sasha, is here to see you."

How dare he come here? Anger swelled in my heart. Before I can give my permission, Sasha stepped into the room silently.

"What are you doing here? Go back to your patient." I say, setting the bottle to the side and rising from my seat. He didn't move. He simply waited a moment before speaking.

"I have words for you," he finally says. "I will have my piece, and no one stop me. I give you piece of mind as you say."

"Do you know who I am?" I almost growl. "I could have you sent back to Russia if I wanted to."

"Ja, I think you could, but I will speak first. This is no matter of rank." He crosses his arms. He stands big and imposing.

"Very well," I say walking around my desk so I stand before him. "I have no complaint with you, so speak your piece."

"You hurt Kate," he begins. "I do not like this."

"She lied to me." I spat. The punch that knocked me to the ground was the hardest I had ever felt in my life, and it sobered me almost completely.

"You beat me later, but do not speak badly of Lady Kate."

I rubbed my aching jaw. "Just say what you came for." I remained seated, so Sasha squatted to look me in the eye.

"Kate collapsed when you left." He shook his head. "She no leave bed since. You break her heart. She try avoiding you at beginning. When she go for tea, I no tell her you be there. She surprise. I push her to text you. She think maybe you be friend, and she want to tell you. She almost did when you come for tea, but she scared you reject her, so she stay quiet. She go to ball with plan to tell you, but she in love, and think you no love her if you knew. I think she tell you at ball, but her parents look for her, and I interrupt. It my fault she no tell you sooner, but you react badly." He frowned. "She worse now than before, and it because you no want explanation." He looks away, as if staring into the past. "In hospital, she tell me that she want to meet you, but she embarrassed and sad."

"What happened next, Sasha?" I ask in a quiet voice, realizing how cold I was to her.

"We come back to Philip. She no leave bed for months." He shook his head. "She cry every night. She even apologize to you in her sleep. Until she hear music. I play 'Can't Help Falling in Love' by Elvis Presley and she say, this the song I want played at my wedding but now, I never marry. I tell her to no feel sad. So she say 'why live' and I say 'God wake you up this morning, so you still needed somewhere by someone.' She get up. She learn every piece of furniture in her room, then whole house, so she no need help got walk around. After, she learn braille. Then, she teach braille to other children. She teach five others than Chelsea. She learn piano and teach two little girls. In only two years, she start living, but then she meet you. It hard at first. She wanted to stay away, but you pop up again. Then she fall in love. Her eyes sparkle for first time. Now..." he took a deep breath, "she no leave bed. She no tell you because she want to be normal." He looked at me. "You know what she say to me after first party you meet? She say she no be treated like she diseased. She say she feel normal."

Nothing could have gotten me to move. I had no idea...

"She say talking to you is good. You no treat her like fragile blind girl. You talk to her normal; you get mad when you mad. You even flirt with her. She never had boy flirt with her, and she feel normal for first time in long time. Longer it went, the harder it was to say truth. She think it hurt you, so she scared to tell you. She care about you, and now she hurt. I no know how much more she take."

I laid my head in my hand. I have been selfish to not consider her side. Even though I was hurt, I should have stayed and heard her out. "Sasha, tell Katelyn I'm sorry. Tell her I want to see her so I can apologize in person." I look up, hoping to see encouragement in Sasha's eyes, but he is gone.

"Prince Joshua, Prince Glen, and Prince Roberto are here to see you."

"Send them in," I mutter, standing from the floor. A moment later, the princes enter.

"Hiya, Wils!" Roberto smiles excitedly.

"Please do not call me that," I frown.

"You're in a bad mood," Joshua points out.

I shake my head. "No, it's nothing. What is it you want?"

"Lady Katelyn's address," Glenn answers. "We have some business with her."

"Claude can give it to you."

Joshua shook his head. "What happened?"

"Katelyn is blind." I blurt it out, not really sure how to feel.

The princes gasp. "There's no way," they say.

"She's been using Sasha as a guide, and when I escorted her at the dinner, she held my arm. She kept her eyes lowered when speaking to us, so we never suspected a thing."

"Damn..." Roberto shook his head. "That's impressive."

"So that's what she meant by saying she felt cheated," Joshua added. "I had no idea."

"I just can't believe I fell in love with..." I trailed off; half shocked I would openly admit my feelings for her.

"Are you planning on letting her go?" Robert asks.

I shrug. "I don't know. Could we even have a future?"

"That's actually why I'm here," Glenn says, holding up a letter. "Lord Michael found something for Katelyn."

My knees feel weak when Glenn tells me exactly what Lord Michael had found. Dear God, this changes everything...

To Be Continued...

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