at felt raw, and she knew-without

many times to not re

tablet and scribbled

stretching lazily,

glancing at the list

u don't believe me, as

a quick bow. 'Yes, Lady O

a rang for the other maids

at her side, holding up an array of dresses.

ia pa

brother were

, she'd be stuck at ho

she needed

o

*

hat Ophelia truly cared about,

e played quite like Lucian Dre

formances at The Marquess Club-a members-only music salon for nobility-or The Lyrien Conservatory'

ant polished perfect

mething raw.

s her father would c

was one

d with the avant-garde, where genre-bending performa

lace Sergei would hate-and e

was the crown j

eckless, a rogue with a reputation for seducing n

from, though whispers claimed he w

oving like sin across the keys, playing l

if he knew how many times Oph

ian had been im

he pianist had been spending more time performing at Viktor's Keep-a palat

meant Lucian had all bu

Viktor had rece

King Alaric had sentenced him to a two-week hous

t no priva

ay-Lucian would

over the selection. 'Perhaps something lively? Seraphina mentioned that Lady Anastas

aid, wouldn't have said that u

and brother would be ho

t chance to get out before s

tailored midnight-blue dress. Then, flicking her wrist i

ere

ight

Ophelia liked the idea of a nig

b in her fingers slipped from her grasp, cla

es. 'Tell my mother, an

omb with a perfectly composed exp

rt

ia si

de Volkov had a massive staff, but there were very few peo

ed and ready, she took on

ce, dark eyes smudged with defiance, her

ersized Tom Ford sungl

s wouldn't hel

ances of getting recognised-or wo

of Château de Volkov's side entrances

al maid, Elise, joined her-though c

omplice, always ready to escape

ement when she learned they were head

t a little. 'What if La

confident.

Ophelia fea

n with obscene amounts of talent

Lucian first, she would have invited

tch to move faster, he

was w

*

tur

d 19th-century theatre, once home to grand operas, now reborn as an un

titles came with perks, and the younger

oyals, virtuosos, avant-garde artists, and the occas

tation, but then, s