I'm Not Gonna Sugarcoat It

Lyric took a deep breath, feeling the weight of her secret pressing down on her. She needed to tell Tiberius the truth, but she had to be careful about how much she revealed. Sitting down beside him, she looked into his eyes, her expression serious yet tinged with a hint of warmth.

Tiberius, she began softly, there are some things I need to tell you, things that I've only shared with uh certain people. It's important you understand where I'm coming from. She paused, gathering her thoughts. I've had a number of lovers over the years, people I've cared about deeply. But I've never married. I never felt like I was really the marrying sort. It's nothing personal against you or anyone else. It's just who I am. No she was the poly unmarried sort, but that was a conversation for another day.

She took another deep breath, feeling the tension in the air. But there's more to it. My parents... they're blackmailing me into marrying you. They think this match will save them from ruin, and as such are willing to do anything to see it happen, including blackmailing me and threatening people I care about. So, no, I won't run away. Besides, I've become quite fond of you, Tiberius. More than I expected.

She reached out and took his hand, squeezing it gently. I understand if you're upset or if this changes things between us. But I wanted you to know the truth. I didn't want to keep this from you any longer, and I’m right, that I can trust you. OK, so she wasn’t entirely trusting him with all the information, exactly who was in danger, but as she wasn’t a hundred percent certain she could trust him yet, she figured this was a good test, to see how he reacted to this part of the news, without revealing exactly who was in danger.

Lyric watched his face, searching for a reaction, hoping he would understand. I'm not married to anyone else, she added, trying to lighten the mood slightly. But you’re a good man Tiberius, and I’d understand if you didn’t want to deal with all this drama. He’d helped her save the dog after all, and agreed to take it in, could a person willing to save animals be so bad?

@Tiberius Umbra