The Starlight Heir

Laleh wrenches the scroll from me and sighs. “Be leery all you want, but most Oryndhrian women would kill for this chance, including me. And I know you. Even if you don’t want to marry, you’d sell your obsessed little soul to get inside that palace, admit it!”

I can’t hold back my smile. Laleh does know me, much too well. With a fond look at my mother’s painting, I try to flatten the waves of apprehension and anticipation threatening to sweep me up in their chaotic wake and focus on the positive. “What do you think it’s like inside?”

“That’s more like it!”

Laleh laughs and hugs me, brown eyes lighting up with excitement. “Gold floors inlaid with precious stones. Furs on every surface. Rich carpets so thick that your feet sink into them like luxurious padded slippers. Beautiful fabrics and tapestries hanging from the walls. And servants everywhere!”