All The Things We Didn't Say

King Leon of Mireth has spent twenty years clawing his kingdom back from the brink of collapse. He rules with an iron grip, believing strength and fear are the only things keeping rebellion at bay. To his enemies, he is a beast-cold, calculating, and unyielding. To his people, he is a dictator. And to Jay Gaston, his closest ally, Leon is a puzzle: a man who demands loyalty but never gives anyone his trust, not even Jay, who has stood beside him through every battle and betrayal.
But Leon sees more than he lets on. He notices Jay's teasing smiles, the way his laughter fills the spaces between duty and despair. He notices the loyalty in Jay's eyes-and hates himself for wanting more. Leon has built his life on burying feelings that might make him weak, but Jay makes him wonder if silence is strength or cowardice.
When the king of Lunara arrives with a peace proposal-and a marriage truce-Leon scoffs at the idea. He refuses to trade his freedom for peace, even as rebellions rise and his kingdom teeters on the edge of ruin. But when Jay unexpectedly offers himself as the one to marry the Lunaran princess, Leon is blindsided. Jay's decision feels like a betrayal, but beneath his anger lies fear: the fear of losing the only person who truly knows him.
As war looms and alliances shift, Leon must confront the truth he's long ignored. His kingdom is falling apart, and so is he. The more he fights his feelings for Jay, the closer he comes to losing him forever.
In the end, the only question that matters is whether Leon will find the courage to say the words he's buried for so long-or if silence will destroy them both.