In the city of Mordova, poverty reigns. Malek Nadar has no use for the poor beyond the palace walls, and the lords of the city only care for food, wine, and women. Saif works a fruit stand in the lower city; his reward a budding friendship with the beautiful Ranya. He finds himself falling for her, but a secret bars his way, a deception that could destroy the relationship they're only beginning to form. Ranya has accepted her lot as a lower citizen of Mordova. Trying her best to hold her family together, she finds solace in visiting Saif each day. He has something few people in Ranya's life have-her trust. But Saif isn't the only one with secrets between them; Ranya has some of her own. When family is threatened, Ranya is forced to choose if she will trust Saif with her heart. Can their newfound love survive the pressure of deceit and differences of social status? Or will the world wedge its way between their hearts?

In the land of Taletha, the Wife Market is the prime place for young lords to find a spouse. But it’s not the place for love, something Inara knows all too well. After six years of rejection, she has no hope of being chosen for anything other than a plaything. But when Dhamar, the future ruler of Taletha, arrives at the Market, Inara lets down her guard and is chosen. More shocking still, it seems as if Dhamar is exactly what he appears to be: kind, gentle, and wanting to build a relationship of mutual respect and trust. Yet Dhamar has his own demons to fight. With a tyrannical father pushing war with the Šerians in the south, a scheming council that only cares about their own gain, and the burden to protect those he loves, Dhamar is stretched thin. He wants to be a good husband to Inara, but how? Thrown together by chance, Inara and Dhamar must decide whether or not breaking down their walls will reveal something beautiful, or if it will only leave shattered pieces behind.