Noble shook his head at her. "It's not just about us," he said. Maybe — maybe — she would have been able to support the shop and the two of them, but — this wasn't about Daffodil and Noble. This was about the Greengrass family, and Daff would have never been able to support two struggling debutantes and Noble's mother. Noble knew the math too well, knew the debts too well — there was no world where she could have her shop and him at the same time.

"I'm not going to ruin your life," he said. Hesitantly, he reached out and put both his hands on her upper arms. "Not even if you want to let me."

He loved her too much to let her into his life like that.

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