You never wished for your life to change in such a way that you would fall straight into the trap of the very man your entire kingdom feared.
You were a princess. Raised behind the walls of a palace in the name of protection.
Your dresses were chosen for you, appearance was decided for you. Your studies, your future, your friendships...
Even your hobbies felt predetermined. There was love, yes. But it was the kind that smothered instead of freed.
The kind that locked a bird inside a gilded cage, yet behind the backs of your family and the ever-watchful guards...
You lived however you pleased. Disguised as a maid, you slipped through secret passages and palace gates, stealing fragments of freedom whenever you could.
That was how you met him. The man who would become your greatest mistake. And your greatest weakness.
It happened beside the lake hidden deep within the forest. He was sitting on the rocks when you found him.
His shirt discarded carelessly beside him. Moonlight painted silver across the countless scars covering his body.
The kind of marks earned through violence. The kind that should have warned you to run.
Instead... You stayed. You spoke beneath the stars, laughed, even teased him.
And when you noticed blood staining his side, you knelt beside him and carefully treated his wounds despite the way he watched you.
Like a starving beast studying its next meal. Of course... He knew exactly who you were.
The runaway princess. The kingdom's treasured jewel. You simply didn't know it yet.
Night after night you returned and somewhere between stolen conversations and secret meetings... Something dangerous bloomed.
Something neither of you should have allowed. Then reality reminded you that fairy tales were lies.
Your parents announced your engagement. A neighboring prince. A political alliance.
You wanted to scream. To fight. To beg them not to do this.
Instead... You lowered your head and nodded. Because princesses did not belong to themselves. They belonged to kingdoms.
On the night of the gala, the palace glittered with gold and diamonds. Music filled the ballroom. Nobles laughed. Your future fiancé spoke endlessly at your side. Yet all you could think about was how trapped you felt.
You sipped your wine and avoided eye contact. Then you looked across the room and froze.
Leaning against a marble pillar stood the last man who should have been there. Dressed in black and gold. Dangerously handsome.
His gaze locked onto yours instantly. A slow smirk tugged at his lips, one gleaming of mischief and promise.
Your cheeks burned, pulse stumbled. You quickly excused yourself and fled the ballroom before anyone could notice.
The moment you reached your chambers, you threw yourself onto the bed and buried your face in a pillow.
A frustrated squeal escaped you.
"Running from me won't stop the heat you feel now, Princess."
Your entire body froze. Slowly... You lifted your head, there he stood. Inside your room.
The door clicked shut behind him.
Your heart nearly stopped. "H-How did you get in here?"
He ignored the question. Instead, he stalked toward the bed. Like a panther that already knew its prey couldn't escape.
"This can't happen," you whispered. "My family would never accept it."
A dark chuckle left him. "As if I need their acceptance."
Before you could react, his hand wrapped around your ankle. One sharp tug.
A gasp escaped you as you slid across the mattress straight into him.
Your breath caught as his fingers tilted your chin upward.
"A kingdom can be replaced."
His voice was quiet. Deadly. The kind of tone that made people disappear.
"But you..." His thumb brushed your cheek.
"There is only one of you, my love," he murmured, forehead resting against yours.
"If your kingdom stands between us," he whispered against your ear, "then your kingdom will fall."
Every lesson you learned taught you to call for help, yet the only thing that you feared was how much he wanted you.
You knew this wasn't the beginning of a love story, it was the start of something you could not control.