_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

The council chamber was silent, save for the crackling of the hearth. My father, Aedric, and a few of Hull's most trusted warlords stood around the table, their faces grim as they processed the scout's warning.

Lucian and I stood at the far end of the room, side by side but separate in the eyes of the warlords. To them, he was still an outsider, a Praylor prince wrapped in the armor of their enemy. And I… I was a daughter of Hull, but no longer theirs.

"The banners he saw," my father began, his voice even but heavy, "did he recognize anything about them?"

"Nothing familiar. No house sigils. No kingdom markings." He exhaled sharply. "Whoever they are, they're either trying to hide their allegiance or they belong to something new entirely."

Something new. That unsettled me more than the idea of facing an enemy I already knew.

One of the warlords grunted. "And you trust the word of a half-dead scout?"

Chapter 40