“Is it finally quiet enough for you, Mr. Aldridge?”

Celeste leaned against the mahogany headboard of the massive bed in the master suite—a room that had once felt like a gilded cage, but tonight felt like a sanctuary. The heavy silk drapes were pulled back, allowing the silver glow of a full moon to spill across the cream-colored rug. The usual army of security and staff had been dismissed to the outer wings; for the first time in the history of the mansion, the air didn’t hum with the tension of a thousand secrets.

Lucian, lying beside her with his head resting in her lap, let out a long, shuddering...