My family was seated next to me on the raised platform where the Royal Family also sat. Maya sat on my right next to her father and Ryder sat on my left with Nova next to him and Milo next to her. Abby sat on the other side of the long table next to Nicu.“A toast to the engagement between Duke Grey and Princess Maya!” Cheers rang from the room as every Marquess, Earl, Viscount and Baron were in attendance with their families. Generals and Ministers were sent an invite as well.I was currently the only Duke in the banquet hall since you had to be a part of the Royal Family to be a Duke. The Earls and so on had gotten their titles because of their loyalty to the crown which made me wonder what dirty deeds they were guilty of.After the feast, the dance floor was opened by the King and Queen followed by Nicu and Abigail and then me and Maya. Ryder and Nova joined us shortly and after that everyone else could dance. Milo had been quiet throughout the banquet but I’d go up to the roof wit

The agreement with the King was that we’d spend weekends with them at the Palace and during the week I’d start taking over the duties at Mintia and run my territory. The castle had been renovated a year earlier and the day I proposed to Maya, new furniture and staff were sent there.“This is some place.” Milo’s voice held just a hint of awe as I parked the SUV in front of the castle.Staff lined the entryway that led to the front door and I woke Maya with a nudge to her shoulder. The moment I climbed out of the car all heads bowed and I felt a little uncomfortable at the display.“Welcome home Duke Grey.”“Thank you.”“I’m Gerard, the butler for the castle and I will see to all your needs.” He was about forty, average in height and slim of build.“My brother will need a suite close to mine.”“Of course Sire. We have prepared a light dinner for your arrival and your luggage will be stowed and unpacked in your chambers.”We followed Gerard up the few steps and into the castle. Milo and

Maya was seated on the sofa in the sitting room adjacent to our chambers. She looked past me and smiled when she saw that I was alone. I sat down on the sofa opposite her and leaned back into the cushions. It had been a long day and I wasn’t exactly done with work yet.“You wanted to talk.”“What did the Elders want?”“Nothing much, it was a good meeting.” For some reason I didn’t trust her smile and the fact that she was Florin’s daughter only made me more wary of her intentions.“I’m sure your personal secretary mentioned that I would be staying in my own chambers for the duration of the pregnancy.”“He did.”“About last night …” Her voice trailed off and I looked intently at her.“What about last night?”“I didn’t like it and it will never happen again.” She looked up at me with determination in her eyes.“You didn’t seem to mind last night, in fact, I could tell that you really enjoyed it.”“I felt humiliated that you would let your brother touch me. I nodded my head because it wa

Breakfast was awkward as hell as Milo kept staring at Luciana and she blushed so much that I thought the red in her cheeks might stay there forever. She finally had enough of him and looked him squarely in the eye.“What Milo?” I grinned as I leaned back in my seat and watched the exchange between them.“I can’t believe you just kept going.” Milo continued to eat and he probably should’ve known she’d have a smart-assed reply.“Jealous you weren’t in on the action?”Milo choked as I laughed and Luciana lowered her head again and started on her own breakfast. Milo raised his eyes towards mine and nodded proudly.“She’ll fit right in.”Eleven or so weeks sped by in a blur with Luciana sleeping in my bed every single night. She told me about her childhood and I told her about mine. It felt like I could tell her anything and she spent a lot of time with us in the office.She surprised the hell out of us all when she took the file Ivan was busy with and grabbed a pen. We all studied her for

On one side of the bed lay Nicu, his throat torn to shreds. I had killed the crown prince and I swallowed down the bile that rose in my throat as Echo licked his lips trying to come out to eat his liver. In front of the bed lay Dorin, blood pooling from his nose with his neck angled to one side. It was him I had stumbled over.“What the hell happened here?” It had taken Milo seconds to get here and he looked around the room, his eyes filled with disbelief.“Nicu found Dorin in my room. He overheard our conversation. Dorin was telling me that he couldn’t fight the bond anymore, that he’d sneak me out of the palace to safety so we could be together. He didn’t even see Nicu coming. He broke his neck and then his nose as he slumped to the floor.”“Shit Abby.”“Nicu slapped me and pushed me down on the bed. He told me that he was done playing nice and that I’d give him his dues tonight. That’s when Wynter came in and killed Nicu.”Milo had Abby in his arms and he stroked her back as his on