As Sutherland's new king, Emory Davercher faces countless challenges, but nothing as excruciating and frustrating as his mysterious, eccentric betrothed.
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When King Emory of Sutherland receives news that his betrothed is on her way to Sutherland, he sends her away before even laying eyes on the woman he has no intention of marrying. Months later, after a narrow escape from an assassination, he flees to his childhood home where he discovers a massive problem. Due to an unfortunate mishap, his betrothed has not left Sutherland. She's been in his secret estate all along.
Grand Princess Florence Paulet of Gavaria and her cousin, Lucy, thinks her arrival in Sutherland will be easy. She doesn't expect that her betrothed, King Emory of Sutherland, will send her straight to an empty estate on an island where they fend for themselves for months. And when he finally shows up, he has the audacity to fool her by introducing himself as someone else. After having killed dozens of chickens with her bare hands to stay alive, and with lying as her ultimate weapon for survival since she left Gavaria, what else can an annoyed, blithe, and audacious Florence do? Of course, she has to return the favor and make him twice the fool.
He thinks he's fooling her, and she finds fun knowing it's the other way around. As the harsh winter traps them in the estate, lies, little accidents, and undeniable attraction draw them together stronger than the snowstorm.
But not as much as Florence's true reasons for leaving Gavaria, which are also making their way to Sutherland.
𝓢𝓸𝓶𝓮𝓽𝓲𝓶𝓮𝓼 𝓲𝓽'𝓼 𝓫𝓮𝓽𝓽𝓮𝓻 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼 𝓽𝓸 𝓼𝓽𝓪𝔂 𝓲𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓭𝓪𝓻𝓴 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓷 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓶 𝓽𝓸
𝓬𝓸𝓶𝓮 𝓸𝓾𝓽 𝓲𝓷𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓵𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽.
Catherine Carter is a normal fifteen year old girl. Sure, she gets the occasional slap from her Mother, and lives in the poor section of her Country being overly bored with her life, but she's at least normal.
Except when you couple those details with the fact that she has crippling anxiety that makes communicating, or doing anything around others torturous for her. This is the main reason why she can never receive her Mother's love that she so desperately wants.
Until, her parents catch wind that the Royal Academy is opening back up. The Academy is accepting one fifteen year old or older girl or boy to compete in a race to become the next monarch of Alumbridge. Her Mother is overjoyed at the news, until she realizes she only has one option to send there.
So here we are, anxiety-ridden Catherine forced to compete in this competition with other people her age just to help her family with finances, and finally receive affection from her mother. Things at the Academy are alright, rocky, but overall she's alright. She's just passing by.
Until, she discovers some dark truths against her world that she can't bear to ignore any further. These truths both propel her into action, and cause her to question all she's known her entire sheltered life.