King Valentin blinked, certain he'd misheard. Maybe his hearing had taken a sudden turn for the worse, or perhaps Emperor Kaan had spoken so quickly that the words hadn't quite registered.
"Pardon?" the king asked, still dazed by what he thought he'd heard.
Emperor Kaan's smile remained fixed in place, like some smug trophy for successfully catching the king off guard. But when he repeated the words, they were, unfortunately, the same.
"I'm proposing marriage to your niece. As her parents are no longer in the picture, and you're her legal guardian, that's why I've come," the emperor clarified smoothly.
King Valentin's mind raced. Why on earth would the emperor want to marry Riona?
His first thought was the unification scheme. Perhaps Emperor Kaan had sniffed out King Valentin's impending rejection.
