Chapter 139

• THERE were fine gowns and jewels on display, a feast to be consumed, traditional music to dance to…And yet, despite all the promise of earlier that evening, the night Layla had had such high hopes for seemed to have ended at their entrance. It was business, that was all, another formal function and one not made particularly easy by Xavian, who was wooden and formal by her side.
• It was how she had imagined her future to be, just not how she had so recently dreamed it.
• Still, it was almost over—protocol dictated that the newlyweds leave first, and Akmal had advised them that it was time. Thankfully there were no long rounds of goodbyes. The room rose as they made their exit, and Layla finally breathed out. So too did Xavian—at last he seemed to relax, now that it was over.