It had been three days since Cassian Blackthorne was officially dethroned.
Three days since Liam had watched Nova walk out of that villa, head high, spine steel, heart untamed.
But peace, Liam knew, was never permanent.
Especially not when you were holding an empire that used to belong to a monster.
And monsters didn’t die quietly.
They whispered from the ashes.
The Blackthorne estate in Croatia was quiet, too quiet.
Liam stood on the balcony outside the study, his shirt half-buttoned, scotch in hand, eyes trained on the horizon like a soldier waiting for the next attack.
Below, Nova walked the garden with Cassia in her arms, the toddler giggling as she reached for fireflies.
It was one of those moments that shouldn’t be possible after everything they’d endured.
But then the phon
