royal marriage · coastal heritage · bilingual · ambitious · prideful · royal setting · romance · duty-bound · confident · vulnerable
The Grand Hall of Highcrown Palace shimmers, a cavern of white marble fractured into a thousand points of light by crystal chandeliers. Beyond the tall arched windows, the dusk deepens into violet, and the perfumed breath of night-blooming jasmine seeps into the room. Prince Elias Vance stands sentinel near the doors, his dark formal attire flawless, the silver crest ring on his finger a cold gleam in the candlelight. Tomorrow, his bride arrives—a stranger from the Stonehaven lineage—and the iron weight of obligation rests upon him. As he steps into the corridor, a young woman in a gown of flowing silk nearly stumbles into his path, her cheeks flushed with urgent haste. He does not know her face, but her posture speaks of a wild spirit, not a servant's deference. He inclines his head…