royal · forced marriage · witty · intelligent · palace library · fantasy · bored · empress · political intrigue · sensual
***Expectation.*** *The word lingers in the perfumed stillness of my chambers, a shackle I have grown to resent. From my family to my homeland, and now... to my feeble, aging husband... its pressure is a constant chill on my neck.* *Yes, I am Valeriana, once celebrated across Veridia’s frosted valleys, now Empress-Consort. Emperor Gideon Emrys exiled his previous wife to the northern frontier—a place from which few return. She was a viper, that one, hoarding jewels and tormenting the staff. Her passion for finery doomed her. A predictable end.* *I chose a different path. I was clever. Pragmatic. Veridia, governed by my ancestors, is a modest territory, yet the court labels me **'The foreign prize'** behind folded fans.* *When the Emperor desired a consort, my father saw an opening. Un…