In a bold political move, Ser Branford, in an attempt to spark a war, chooses a handmaiden as his bride instead of the expected princess. Poor Alexandra knows little about the rules of behavior as the wife of a future king, and knows absolutely nothing about the man who has suddenly become her husband. Alexandra knows that she is being used as a pawn, and must do everything in her power not to succumb to the intrigues of the noblewomen and a rejected princess, accept her place in life and overcome her fears of the man with whom she shares her bed. Ser Branford intends to have it all - the kingdom, the wife of his choice and retribution for the death of his father. He didn't expect the naive maid to become more important than he ever imagined.