Redsand Canyon I wanna have control

She found herself relax more as he kissed her cheek, her eyes softening when he apologized. It wasn’t her fault? It felt like her fault… but then he started to get into it more. Her eyes widened when he revealed the ultimatum that was passed. She felt anger… for several reasons. She felt anger at the idea of being chaperoned… at the insult of not even waiting to deliver such an ultimatum to both of them but rather the man, the soldier… perhaps that was just her being sensitive given the last time she had been due to be wed she hadn’t even had a say in husband.
 
He search her face and she tried to push the anger out… and in that moment she was faced with a choice: choose him or choose principle. What an impossible situation for the Imperator to put her in. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath and exhaling. “Marriage is something I never wanted to jump into. It’s something I’ve always wanted a choice in… when, where, with whom…” For reasons she was certain everyone in Mereo could understand. He cared about her very much, but was that enough… she couldn’t help the question that fell next. “Do you love me? Do you think you could love me, even if we’re not there yet?” They hadn’t said those words, but she needed to know that there was a chance.
 
She had just gotten him. She didn’t want to lose him. She didn’t want people to force them apart solely because they had sticks so far up their asses that it was coming out of their mouths through petty ultimatums. She’d volunteered to put her body through hell, even if she had downplayed the experience to Kallik, solely so they could be together and it was cast aside for naught… in that moment, her trust in the Imperator and his guidance faltered… and she wasn’t sure how long it would take to recover it.