"Mia, you've been like this since yesterday." His patience cracked, and beneath it was the cold authority of a man who ran the Jade Quarter, a man unaccustomed to being challenged in his own house. "Since you can't do much, the least I expect from you is to take care of the household, cook, and look presentable for me. Stop behaving as though any of this was a big deal."
"Yes." I pressed my knuckles against my mouth to muffle the sound of my breathing. "It was unimportant."
Yes, he had bought me a gift. One that had first adorned the neck of his childhood flame, worn against her skin, warmed by her pulse. And only when it went missing from his pocket would he have thought to offer it to me. A hand-me-down dressed up as devotion. Charity wrapped in a velvet box.
"I can never make you happy, no matter how hard I try." The tears fell freely now, but my voice held. "Also, Xavier. My favorite gemstones have been sapphires since I was a child. Never once in my life have I worn diamonds."
I ended the call and set the phone face-down on the conference table. The screen went dark. The room was silent.
And I sat there, alone, in the empire that was never mine.