Chapter 1

The chandeliers cast a warm glow across the embassy ballroom, but a chill snaked up Sarah's spine.

Washington D.C.

She hadn't expected to feel this unsettled.

Ten years.

A lifetime ago.

King Alaric, her husband, squeezed her hand.

"Alright, my love?"

His voice, always a comfort.

"Fine," Sarah lied, forcing a smile.

He knew her too well.

Prince Liam, their five-year-old son, tugged at her gown, a simple but elegant Valorian silk, the color of the evening sky.

"Mama, can I have another tiny cake?"

"One more, little wolf, then it's nearly bedtime."

She was Queen Sarah of Valoria now.

A world away from Sarah Miller, the heartbroken fiancée of Ethan Hayes.

Her eyes scanned the room, a habit she couldn't break in crowded places.

Then she saw him.

Ethan.

Older, a little heavier, but with the same arrogant tilt to his head.

He was laughing, a woman clinging to his arm, her hand resting on a swollen belly.

Jessica Vance.

Of course.

The air left Sarah's lungs.

The ballroom, the music, Alaric's concerned gaze – it all faded.

She was twenty-three again, standing in their shared apartment, the tiny pills Ethan called "special vitamins for her stress" scattered on the floor.

"They're birth control, Sarah."

Ethan's voice had been flat, devoid of emotion.

"I couldn't have a child with you. Not when Jessica... she needed me."

Jessica Vance, the socialite with a reputation that would have torpedoed Ethan's budding State Department career.

His family despised her.

So, he'd kept Sarah, the "suitable" fiancée, a placeholder.

"I never loved you," he'd said, the words like shrapnel.

"It was always her. But she was... complicated. You were easy."

Then Jessica's latest scandal broke, something involving a married senator and leaked photos.

Ethan had been distraught, not for Sarah, but for Jessica's ruined prospects.

He'd staged a public breakdown at a charity gala, blaming Sarah, her quiet ambition, her lack of understanding for his "sensitive nature."

He made himself the victim, the man who sacrificed his true love for a stable, boring future he now dramatically rejected.

The engagement ended.

His career stalled, but only temporarily.

He was too connected to fail completely.

Sarah had picked up the pieces of her shattered life and left.

She never wanted to see him, or this city, again.

Yet, here she was.

Her identity as Queen Sarah was a closely guarded secret on this U.S. visit.

Alaric had insisted on a lower profile for this leg of the trip, for security, and for her peace of mind.

It seemed peace was not on the agenda tonight.