_saintrose

Verona Falkenrath was raised for war, not marriage. But when her kingdom is forced into an uneasy alliance with its greatest rival, she is wed to Prince Lucian Velthorne, a man as cold and calculated as the crown he will one day inherit.

What begins as a union of duty soon becomes a tangled web of shifting loyalties, political games, and dangerous truths. With war on the horizon and enemies moving in the shadows, Verona must decide who to trust, who to fight, and what she's willing to sacrifice to protect the people she loves.

In a court ruled by power and blood, survival is not promised. But one thing is certain. The woman they tried to use as a pawn might just rewrite the game.

To Love a Crowned Enemy

Morning light spilled through the high-arched windows of Velthorne Keep, gilding the halls in deceptive warmth. The golden glow softened the edges of stone and steel, painting a picture of serenity that did not exist.

No amount of sunlight could thaw the ice creeping through my veins.

The revelation lingered in my mind, a slow-burning fuse. Lillian had risked everything to bring me this information, and now the weight of it pressed against my ribs. If the Queen had truly been orchestrating the whispers surrounding me, then I was more vulnerable than I had ever realized.

I needed to be careful. I needed to be smart.

Julian paced the length of my chamber, his usual smirk absent. He was rarely ever still, but this was different. He wasn't moving out of impatience. He was thinking, calculating.

"If my mother is involved in this," he muttered, "then we're all playing a much deadlier game than we thought."

Chapter 22