Husband With Benefits
Chapter 760: Confide

Chapter 760: Confide

"So, is that why you turned into a playboy?" Dora asked Kael, her eyebrows raised as she listened to his full story about how he and Rafe had both been deceived by the same woman. Yet, it was Kael who had taken all the blame—shouldering the weight of it in front of their parents and everyone else. After all, the crown prince’s reputation had to stay spotless.

"Kind of," Kael admitted, his voice carrying a hint of resignation. "The truth is, to protect his identity, I had to be the one to take the hit. Someone had to, and it couldn’t be him."

Dora frowned, her frustration bubbling up. It always seemed like Kael had been forced to clean up Rafe’s messes. "So, you just let them pin every mistake on you? Even when it wasn’t your fault?"

"That was the pact," Kael said, his tone turning cold. "The crown prince had to remain unblemished. Whether it was academics or anything else, if Rafe messed up, he’d use my name. Slowly, he got comfortable with it. He’d drink and party, and people would assume it was me. If he wanted to play around with women, well, it couldn’t be the crown prince seen as a playboy—it had to be the youngest prince. There were even rumors I’d been with three women in one night."

Kael paused, his lips twisting into a bitter smile. "Let me assure you... it wasn’t me. Or at least... it wasn’t only me."

Dora looked into his eyes, reading the pain that lingered beneath the surface. The unfairness of it all made her angry. But Kael had lived through it. He had taken on the burden alone for the sake of the royal family, for the crown prince. And it made her ache for him. She understood that certain things had to be kept under wraps, especially given Petrovia’s political unrest in recent years. But it didn’t sit right with her that Kael had paid the heaviest price.

As a crown prince, this should have been Rafe’s burden—or at the very least, a shared burden. But it had been Kael’s to shoulder alone.

Trying to lighten his mood, Dora cupped his face, offering him a teasing smile. "Are you trying to tell me you were never a playboy?"

Kael smiled faintly and kissed her palm. "Don’t worry, I’m not trying to claim complete innocence. Just that it wasn’t always as bad as people think, okay?"

"Okay..." Dora nodded and rested her head against his chest. "Then? What happened?"

Kael went silent for a moment, and Dora’s thoughts drifted back to her encounters with Rafe. He had never come across as someone so irresponsible. But something must have happened to change him. Something significant.

Then Kael spoke, his voice dropping into a darker tone. "Then someone died."

Dora stilled, her breath catching. "Someone died?" Her voice was barely a whisper. "Your master’s daughter?"

"Yes. The only other person who knew about Rafe using my identity was Master Rupert. He was the one who had planned it all from the start."

Dora’s heart clenched as Kael continued. "She was in love with me. Or at least she believed she was. But somehow, she ended up getting involved with Rafe. He pretended to be me, raising her hopes, leading her on. She was young, innocent. She didn’t know what kind of games he was playing."

Kael’s eyes darkened as he spoke. "One night, she came to me... and tried to seduce me. I rejected her. But it wasn’t just a simple rejection. I was still hurting from the twin betrayals, and I was raw. When she showed up in my room, I was harsh. I told her I had never flirted with her and that she had the wrong person. I had guessed it was Rafe, but I didn’t say that. I just told her she was mistaken, and that she needed to leave."

His voice broke slightly, and he took a shuddering breath. "I didn’t know. I didn’t realise just how vulnerable she’d been. Just how much of herself she’d exposed to that person she was chatting with on the phone. She’d sent... pictures. When she realized that it wasn’t me, she could not comprehend it. She left my hotel room and...died."

"She died..." Dora whispered, her mind racing to piece together the gravity of it. "What... what happened to her?"

Kael ran a hand through his hair, his face shadowed with guilt. "She was found the next morning. She’d thrown herself into the river near the estate. When they pulled her out, it was too late. The entire thing was ruled as an accident, but I knew the truth. Rafe knew the truth."

Dora felt a chill run down her spine. "And your parents believed you were responsible?"

Kael nodded grimly. "I didn’t give them a reason not to. I told them she’d come to my room and that she was upset when she left. I didn’t lie about that. But I also didn’t tell them about Rafe’s involvement. I couldn’t... He was broken over it too. It was the first time I saw him truly crushed. He didn’t mean for any of it to happen. He thought it was just another game in the beginning and then later, when he’d realized that he was truly in love with her, she was already dead."

"No one knew. But the two of us. It was the breaking point for both of us. After that, Rafe couldn’t stomach pretending to be me anymore. And I refused to let him. But it was too late by then. The damage had already been done."

"Rafe... he’s changed since then. He’s tried to make amends in his own way, but he’s never outright admitted what he did to anyone but me. I think he’s ashamed. I think he regrets it. But it’s not enough for me to trust him. It is why, when I see your name with him, I can’t help but be angry..."

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