Sylvaris lay on the bed with Aureve in his arms, her breath still trembling against his chest. Some might say the bond between stepmother and stepson had taken a sinful turn tonight, but who the hell were they to judge? Life hadn't been kind to either of them, and this moment... it just happened.
She was now the fourth woman in his harem. And unlike the others, this one came with baggage filled with pain. A history of misery, years spent suffocating under her husband's rule, her heart beaten into silence by a man who never truly saw her until Sylvaris came along. He had become her savior and her forbidden prince. It took her over two decades of a cold, loveless marriage to find someone who made her feel alive.
But now, Sylvaris had to bear the weight of what he'd done. He carried the sin of bedding his father's woman, which caused a ripple in the balance.
