"The next morning, everyone in the Castle was so busy with the preparations for the New Year Festival, Aria and her Prince were woken up early by all the outside ruckus. The young concubine, still tired, rolled over to his side, her head on his shoulder.

Despite his closed eyes, she knew Darren was awake from his fingers gently stroking her hair. The previous night, Shareen had left early after grabbing Valeria and taking her to her apartments. Aria trusted her to get as much ...