LUCIAN POINT OF VIEW

I watched her while she listened to me. The firelight danced in her hair, and every time she sensed I wasn’t telling her everything, her eyes sharpened.

Aria didn’t look like a woman waiting for fate to decide her life. She looked like someone who was meant to rule, even if she didn’t know it yet.

That made my chest tighten with want.

“You’re strong,” I told her, keeping my voice steady and calm. “Stronger than the stories people tell about you.” I ...