The air in the inn room still hung heavy with the traces of our bodies. The oil lamp in the corner flickered softly, its shadows trembling against the fragile wooden walls. The thin curtains swayed gently, revealing a sliver of the night sky outside, while the busy streets of the city gradually sank into silence. The mingled scent of cinnamon wood and sweat lingered in the air, as if the room itself knew the secrets we were hiding.

I lay on my side next to her, tilting my head to watch her serene face. Her black hair spilled over, partly sticking to the dew-kissed skin of her neck. My fingers moved slowly, tracing the lines of her arm down to her wrist. She twitched slightly, then unconsciously pressed closer to me. Our chests touched, and I felt the rhythm of her heartbeat merge with my own. My lips brushed briefly against her cheek, then along her jawline, and finally back to her neck—a gentle trace I could leave only here.

We had been to this inn far too often—a small retreat on the border of the city, where strangers came and went without many questions. A place that gave us room to breathe, far from the Aurelia palace that bound her, and far from the Valmorra palace that had never truly acknowledged my existence. In this cramped space, I held her close; my fingers stroking her back, one hand holding her waist to keep her near. I lowered the other, tracing her arm to her shoulder, pressing my body more firmly behind hers, letting every inch of us touch.

She was Crown Princess Aurelia, betrothed to a prince from an allied kingdom. I was merely the son of the King of Valmorra, born of a common woman, a name unworthy of the royal records. Two worlds that should never have met, yet they collided in the quiet of this night.

I held my breath for a moment, staring at her longer, until my chest felt tight with something I could no longer suppress. My jaw hardened, my lips pressed together, then parted slightly—enough for the faint words to slip out with a shallow exhale. My hand cupped her chin gently, keeping her eyes on mine, while my other fingers traced the curve of her back down to her hips, pressing her closer to my chest. I felt her body settle fully against mine, as if holding onto a distance that had never truly existed.

“I just don’t want to be a shadow in your life forever,” I whispered, my hoarse voice breaking across the almost-vanishing space between our lips. My fingers held her chin, keeping her gaze locked with mine, while my body pressed her hips and back with gentle insistence. “Allow me to have you completely, princess.”

My breath trembled. I leaned closer, my lips almost brushing her ear, while my fingers traced her neck and shoulders tenderly. Her body pressed back against mine, each movement an unspoken answer. “I want all of your life, princess, not just the leftovers.”