THIRTY
Ava paused to catch her breath after yet another blissful kiss from Yun. Somehow, they'd broken the curse.
Reality intruded on her euphoria. "The curse," she said urgently. "Your brothers...the Emperor...they're still under a spell. We must fetch their wives to break the curse." Even as the words left her lips, her heart sank. She'd seen the other princesses in the garden, and their frightened reactions when any man, let alone their own husbands, entered the garden. None of the other princes' wives held any feelings resembling love for their husbands. None of the princesses would be capable of breaking the curse. Perhaps a mistress or concubine...Ava's thoughts flashed to her mother, and she had an idea. The Empress. Surely the princes' mother held some love for her children. Perh
