The Selection

one day you will fall asleep in my arms every night. And you’ll wake up to my kisses every morning.

Back in my room, I pulled my tiny jar of pennies out from its hiding spot and listened to the happy sound of the newest one hitting its neighbors.

I felt special, priceless, irreplaceable. No queen on any throne could possibly feel more important than I did.

Someone you think you love now, you might start to hate when he couldn’t provide for you. And if you couldn’t take care of your children, it’d be even worse. Love doesn’t always survive under those types of circumstances.”

That is an unfair statement. You are all dear to me. It is simply a matter of discovering who shall be the dearest.

shaking, tearful, and petrified with worry.

For a while, there was no wicked Celeste, no Aspen lurking in the palace, no rebels trying to invade. There wasn’t anything but one perfect note stringing itself to the next in such a way they seemed afraid they might get lost in time without one another. But they did hold together, and as they floated on, this gift that was meant to be something for Kriss became something for me.

he has absolutely no shot with me

Even though he wasn’t speaking loudly, his voice seemed thunderous in the still of the elegant hallway.

I shut the thought down. I couldn’t let that hope build in me.