"A man is made of iron, but his food is his steel," Derek said, his voice low and steady, though his eyes betrayed a flicker of mounting frustration. He held out the container of nutrient-rich broth, the steam curling into the sterile air of the hospital room. "You haven't eaten a real meal in days, Serena. You can't survive on the scraps and processed grains you’ve been forcing down. Your life force is flagging, and you can't help Lemon if you collapse."
He looked at her, truly looked at her, and felt a sharp, twisting pain in his chest. Serena Ashford, once the most radiant jewel of the Empire, the woman known as Riverbend’s most coveted woman, was now a shadow of her former self. Her skin, which once had the luster of fine porcelain, was now sallow and translucent. The dark circles ben
