Rosalina
WITH STAGGERING STEPS, I enter the library and my heart takes flight. I spin in a circle, wanting
to absorb everything. “It’s magnificent,” I breathe.
The castle’s library is filled with autumnal wonder. Trees grow inside, ablaze in reds and oranges
and yellows, the leaves falling in gentle cascades to the ground. Some trunks merge into high shelves,
filled with row upon row of books.
It’s the biggest library I’ve ever seen in my entire life. There are more books than my boss Richard
could fucking imagine.
I let out a squeal and rush forward to stand beneath one of the stacks. There’s a ladder—a ladder!
—needed to get to the very top. And it’s even got wheels. I am so going to be using that.
“Do you like it?” Farron asks sheepishly.
“I love it.” It’s not just the mere size of the library, but it’s opulence. The leaves rustle in the breeze
as light gleams through stained-glass windows, and I can imagine how cozy it would be during a
storm, hearing the rain pound against the glass. Murals decorate the walls, depicting each of the four
seasons: a flower-strewn meadow filled with does and fawns, a raging ocean hitting a sandy coast, an
autumn floor covered in red leaves, and a frozen lake lit by moonlight. Couches and armchairs
surround a huge fireplace, and there are tables and chairs throughout.
And the books themselves... The spines are beautifully colored, from the lightest pastels to the
richest royals. The lettering is exquisite, some in gold leaf, others in silver that shimmer like starlight.
Rosalina
enter the library and my heart takes flight. I spin in a circle, wanting
The castle’s library is filled with autumnal wonder. Trees grow inside, ablaze in reds and oranges
and yellows, the leaves falling in gentle cascades to the ground. Some trunks merge into high shelves,
It’s the biggest library I’ve ever seen in my entire life. There are more books than my boss Richard
I let out a squeal and rush forward to stand beneath one of the stacks. There’s a ladder—a ladder!
“I love it.” It’s not just the mere size of the library, but it’s opulence. The leaves rustle in the breeze
as light gleams through stained-glass windows, and I can imagine how cozy it would be during a
storm, hearing the rain pound against the glass. Murals decorate the walls, depicting each of the four
seasons: a flower-strewn meadow filled with does and fawns, a raging ocean hitting a sandy coast, an
autumn floor covered in red leaves, and a frozen lake lit by moonlight. Couches and armchairs
And the books themselves... The spines are beautifully colored, from the lightest pastels to the
richest royals. The lettering is exquisite, some in gold leaf, others in silver that shimmer like starlight.
The only distraction from the library’s beauty are the bundles of purple thorn bushes snaking up the
stacks, creeping along the barriers, wrapping around the fall trees, and bursting through the
bookshelves.
Farron stands in the middle of it all, a sweet smile upon his handsome face.
I can’t make sense of it. The few times I saw him with the other princes, he seemed cowed by their
presence. Even now, there’s something a bit awkward about him. In an endearing way. How do I
reconcile this man with the monster from the other night? And even if I can’t... He’s still a fae prince.
He’s still imprisoning me.
But I’m going to need his help if I have any chance of breaking the curse.
“You do much reading where you’re from?” he asks.
“I basically live in books.” My finger trails down a gold-lettered spine. “I work in a bookstore, but
it’s like a fraction of the size of this place.” Turning to him, a mischievous grin appears on my face.
“Hey, are there any romance books here?”
He laughs and tugs on my hand. My face heats as his warm fingers lace with mine. The floor is
covered in a blanket of leaves that crunch beneath our feet as we walk. He pulls me around one of the
book stacks then reaches up to grab something above us. His shirt lifts as he does so, revealing a
toned stomach and a trickle of warm brown hair dipping below his pant line. A jolt of electricity runs
through me.
He pulls the book down, revealing a gorgeous light blue tome. “The fae love legends of romance,”
he says, and his voice is breathy. “This one is about a princess from the Spring Realm who was
betrothed to a prince of Autumn.” He leans down, shoulder-to-shoulder with me so I can see the
pages as he flips through. Rich notes of aged paper and ink, and a hint of orange and cinnamon linger
in the air, along with the faint musk of the old book. The art is breathtaking, like an otherworldly
Mucha piece. “But right before her wedding, she left the castle to ride her horse by the riverbank and
came upon a carpenter who lived deep in the woods. In that moment, her mate bond awoke in her
chest.”
“Her mate bond?” I repeat breathlessly.
“I don’t believe they occur in the human realm,” he says, looking at me through his dark lashes. I
shake my head no. His brow creases and he looks upward, as if trying to figure out how to describe
how to breathe. “A mate bond is very rare and sacred. It’s said to be the calling out of your soul for
another; the melding of hearts; the quintessence of life itself.”
The only distraction from the library’s beauty are the bundles of purple thorn bushes snaking up the
stacks, creeping along the barriers, wrapping around the fall trees, and bursting through the
I can’t make sense of it. The few times I saw him with the other princes, he seemed cowed by their
presence. Even now, there’s something a bit awkward about him. In an endearing way. How do I
reconcile this man with the monster from the other night? And even if I can’t... He’s still a fae prince.
“I basically live in books.” My finger trails down a gold-lettered spine. “I work in a bookstore, but
it’s like a fraction of the size of this place.” Turning to him, a mischievous grin appears on my face.
He laughs and tugs on my hand. My face heats as his warm fingers lace with mine. The floor is
covered in a blanket of leaves that crunch beneath our feet as we walk. He pulls me around one of the
book stacks then reaches up to grab something above us. His shirt lifts as he does so, revealing a
toned stomach and a trickle of warm brown hair dipping below his pant line. A jolt of electricity runs
He pulls the book down, revealing a gorgeous light blue tome. “The fae love legends of romance,”
he says, and his voice is breathy. “This one is about a princess from the Spring Realm who was
betrothed to a prince of Autumn.” He leans down, shoulder-to-shoulder with me so I can see the
pages as he flips through. Rich notes of aged paper and ink, and a hint of orange and cinnamon linger
in the air, along with the faint musk of the old book. The art is breathtaking, like an otherworldly
Mucha piece. “But right before her wedding, she left the castle to ride her horse by the riverbank and
came upon a carpenter who lived deep in the woods. In that moment, her mate bond awoke in her
“I don’t believe they occur in the human realm,” he says, looking at me through his dark lashes. I
shake my head no. His brow creases and he looks upward, as if trying to figure out how to describe
how to breathe. “A mate bond is very rare and sacred. It’s said to be the calling out of your soul for
Farron stares at me intensely and raises a hand to my mouth. His fingers tremble over my bottom
lip, down my chin, and along the curve of my throat. He lays a hand flat on my chest, cresting over the
mounds of my breasts, pushed up from the tightly laced dress. I wonder if he can feel the pounding of
my heart.
“It’s said you feel the mate bond here,” he murmurs, his voice husky. “Like a second heart.”
“So she lived happily ever after with her carpenter?” I whisper, if only to distract myself from
Farron’s hand upon me, his warm palm rising and falling with my rapid breaths.
“Hmm?” Farron quickly pulls back and clears his throat.
“The fae princess?”
“Oh, yes. No. She didn’t live happily ever after.” He slams the book shut. “When her betrothed
discovered she’d been mate-bound, he killed the carpenter in a fit of jealousy. The princess then
killed her betrothed and took his throne for herself.”
“Not exactly your classic fairytale ending,” I say. Goosebumps bloom on my body where his hand
had been.
He gives a sheepish smile. “No, certainly not.”
“So, Prince Farron, where do we start?”
“Just Farron, please.” He pulls me back into the main foyer of the library. “I’m not much of a
prince these days. Hard to rule your realm when you turn into a slobbering beast each night.”
“You’re from the Autumn Realm, right? Isn’t there an Autumn King or Queen or someone to rule?”
He grabs a book off a shelf and hands it to me, then leaps up the ladder and throws me down two
more. “It’s not like that. All four realms—Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter—are part of the
Enchanted Vale. And the Enchanted Vale was ruled by a queen who lived in this very castle. She
anointed four High Rulers for each of her realms. The queen disappeared five hundred years ago,
though.”
I struggle to keep up with the heavy load of books Farron keeps piling into my arms. “So you’ve
been ruling the Autumn Realm for five hundred years?”
He laughs. “No. There’s been many different rulers throughout the years. My mother was High
Princess, but she’d had enough. She passed the title—and the magic that comes with it—down to me
as her eldest child.”
Ezryn had also said he’d inherited the blessing of Spring from his mother. Did that mean Dayton
and Keldarion received blessings from one of their parents, as well?
Farron stares at me intensely and raises a hand to my mouth. His fingers tremble over my bottom
lip, down my chin, and along the curve of my throat. He lays a hand flat on my chest, cresting over the
mounds of my breasts, pushed up from the tightly laced dress. I wonder if he can feel the pounding of
“So she lived happily ever after with her carpenter?” I whisper, if only to distract myself from
“Oh, yes. No. She didn’t live happily ever after.” He slams the book shut. “When her betrothed
discovered she’d been mate-bound, he killed the carpenter in a fit of jealousy. The princess then
“Not exactly your classic fairytale ending,” I say. Goosebumps bloom on my body where his hand
“Just Farron, please.” He pulls me back into the main foyer of the library. “I’m not much of a
He grabs a book off a shelf and hands it to me, then leaps up the ladder and throws me down two
more. “It’s not like that. All four realms—Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter—are part of the
Enchanted Vale. And the Enchanted Vale was ruled by a queen who lived in this very castle. She
anointed four High Rulers for each of her realms. The queen disappeared five hundred years ago,
I struggle to keep up with the heavy load of books Farron keeps piling into my arms. “So you’ve
He laughs. “No. There’s been many different rulers throughout the years. My mother was High
Princess, but she’d had enough. She passed the title—and the magic that comes with it—down to me
Ezryn had also said he’d inherited the blessing of Spring from his mother. Did that mean Dayton
With a sigh of relief, I heave the books onto an oak table and collapse in a chair. “Okay, faerie
politics are crazy. I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that there’s like this whole alternate
dimension literally sitting in the forest outside of my home.”
Farron smiles at me, his expression almost boyish. “Trust me, it’s better that our world is kept a
secret from yours. The magic in our realms...” He looks down and runs a tongue along his bottom lip.
“Let’s say it’s safer for humans that we keep our distance. As you well know.”
“Not that Keldarion cares about humans.” I blow a curl away from my face. “I have no idea what
he wants from me. Why he won’t let me go.”
Farron scoots a chair up right beside me and grabs my hands. I straighten, surprised by the intensity
on his face. “Listen, Rosalina. When we were first cursed twenty-five years ago, there was some
hope at the beginning that we could break it. That we could return to normal. But as the years past, the
other princes... They’ve lost hope. And none so much as Kel. But maybe, just maybe...” His eyes
sparkle. “A little human interference is the kick he needs in his stubborn ass.”
“Well, if it means being free of him, I’m all for it.” I walk over to a thatch of thorns creeping along
a windowsill. “These are part of the curse too, I imagine?”
“Actually, no.” Farron comes up behind me, his warm breath caressing my neck. “These are a gift
from Caspian. The Prince of Thorns.”
The Prince of Thorns. Ezryn had accused me of being his spy when we first met. “Everyone seems
so afraid of him.” Or in Marigold’s case... horny and afraid. “Who is this guy anyway?”
Farron shakes his head. “A villain from the Realm Below. The curse not only traps us in beast form
every night, it weakens our magic. Caspian has used it as an opportunity to spread his dark evil with
these thorns.” Farron gestures around the library. “They take over everything, sapping Castletree of
her magic. Our home is more special than you could possibly imagine. It’s her magic that gives
strength and vitality to the four realms. Caspian would see our lands become barren with briars and
covered in shadow.”
Wow. No wonder Ezryn was so upset when he thought I was a spy.
I turn away and march back to the book stack. “Okay, well, we can only deal with what we can
control. Once the curse is broken, you guys will have your full magic back and you can kick this
Prince of Thorns’ thorny ass.”
Farron gives a lopsided smirk. “I like your style.”
“Give me more details. What have you tried to break the curse?” I pull my hair back, ready to
focus.
With a sigh of relief, I heave the books onto an oak table and collapse in a chair. “Okay, faerie
politics are crazy. I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that there’s like this whole alternate
Farron smiles at me, his expression almost boyish. “Trust me, it’s better that our world is kept a
secret from yours. The magic in our realms...” He looks down and runs a tongue along his bottom lip.
“Not that Keldarion cares about humans.” I blow a curl away from my face. “I have no idea what
Farron scoots a chair up right beside me and grabs my hands. I straighten, surprised by the intensity
on his face. “Listen, Rosalina. When we were first cursed twenty-five years ago, there was some
hope at the beginning that we could break it. That we could return to normal. But as the years past, the
other princes... They’ve lost hope. And none so much as Kel. But maybe, just maybe...” His eyes
“Well, if it means being free of him, I’m all for it.” I walk over to a thatch of thorns creeping along
“Actually, no.” Farron comes up behind me, his warm breath caressing my neck. “These are a gift
The Prince of Thorns. Ezryn had accused me of being his spy when we first met. “Everyone seems
Farron shakes his head. “A villain from the Realm Below. The curse not only traps us in beast form
every night, it weakens our magic. Caspian has used it as an opportunity to spread his dark evil with
these thorns.” Farron gestures around the library. “They take over everything, sapping Castletree of
her magic. Our home is more special than you could possibly imagine. It’s her magic that gives
strength and vitality to the four realms. Caspian would see our lands become barren with briars and
I turn away and march back to the book stack. “Okay, well, we can only deal with what we can
control. Once the curse is broken, you guys will have your full magic back and you can kick this
“Give me more details. What have you tried to break the curse?” I pull my hair back, ready to
“What could we do? We are monsters.” Farron’s eyes stare distantly at the ceiling. “Especially in
the first years. Back then, even the others had no mastery of the beast. We stayed in the castle. Ran
free in the wilds of the Briar at night. At least then, the only beings we hurt were the goblins.”
“Surely you guys have tried to find your mates.”
“Dayton, Ez, and I did, in what ways we could. We each assigned our realms vassals to watch over
while we’re trapped here. No one knows about this curse except for those in the castle. Everyone else
thinks we’re here trying to stop the thorns.” Farron closes his eyes. “My parents are ruling the Autumn
Realm right now. As the blessing of Autumn has already passed to me, it’s a grueling job. It’s difficult
lying to them. But if they knew the truth...”
I reach out and grab his hand. “We’ll figure this out, Farron. I promise.”
He tucks a curl behind my ear. “I hope so. For all our sakes.”