Vanya Cardan always knew she would marry a lord. But her mother died when she was just a girl, and her father had no interest in raising her properly. She had been left to her own devices for so long that Vanya had never considered the fact that she might be used as a political bargaining tool. Romance and marriage were never in her plans--but when the Lord of Rigan summons her to Aired, his orders must be obeyed. As the eldest bastard...