Black Baccara

"You don't have to be formal, Blythe," Lincoln whispered in my ear. "You're the empress of this country now. Nobody can disrespect you, threaten you, or ever put you in a position that you feel anything but comfortable in."

His hand lingered about an inch away from my back. Just enough so it wouldn't look suspicious to other people but also because he didn't want to touch me without my explicit permission.

"Lincoln.." I mumbled his name.

He glanced over at me, his expression seemingly emotionless to other people. But I knew. I could feel the warmth radiating from his fingers and the patience in his gaze.

"Thank you," I breathed. "For everything."

A faint smile appeared on his face causing my eyes to widen slightly. He looked more ethereal than I thought possible. He gave me a small nod in acknowledgement and then turned his gaze back to the crowd.

-----------------------------------------

Blythe Allard lived a fun and carefree life in her small hometown on the outskirts of the kingdom of Lykaios. However, her life is flipped upside down when she and her brother are kidnapped a week before her eighteenth birthday.

When she finds out that her father is the crown prince who went missing right before she was born and her grandfather, the king, wants to force her younger brother into being the next king, Blythe strikes a deal with him.

If she marries the soon-to-be-crowned emperor--a man both baffling yet beautiful earning him the title of the Black Baccara--of the Nox Empire, thus creating the connection her grandfather has long wished for between their nations, then he won't force her younger brother into a life he is not interested in.

Now, Blythe has to navigate the life of an empress in a foreign land all while trying to keep her emotions in check as she finds her heart being swayed by her emperor.