After settling Luna, my newly adopted daughter, into her room in the Imperial Palace, I was ready to dive back into work. But Cecilia had other plans. She'd handled all the paperwork to formalize my guardianship of Luna, a process we both wanted, though the matter of Luna's mother was a tangle we'd unravel later. For now, Cecilia's focus was elsewhere—on me.
"Finally," Cecilia murmured as Luna drifted off to sleep. Her golden hair shimmered in the soft palace light, and her crimson eyes glinted with intent. She slipped her arm around mine, her silk nightgown brushing against my skin as she guided me toward her bedroom. The air between us crackled with unspoken desire, her restraint earlier in front of Luna now giving way to something bolder.
