I never expected to find my fated mate on a crashed cruiser in the frigid desert of Qardho's icy continent. But the moment my eyes met Lady Tarsa's, an undeniable thread sparked inside my chest. I knew the Goddess had blessed me. The highborn lady was mine. Oh, she was a Boma-the very race my people have been feuding with for what felt like eons. But did I care? No. The Goddess knew what she was doing when she tethered Tarsa's soul to mine. Her lord father tried to tear us apart and even put a hit on me to avoid a scandal. Tarsa came to warn me, and I nearly lost her that night rotation... but it only made me more determined to bond with her and whisk her away to safety. Our escape into the frozen wilderness wasn't without danger. Between the Fleet on our tails, packs of vicious beasts hungry for a meal, and Father Dearest, we had our work cut out for us. My only hope was the ancient City of Menora, rumored to be hidden underneath Qardho's icy mountains. If my intel was true, in Menora, we could build a life free from prejudice and bigotry. Our forbidden mating was a gift from the Goddess herself-one I would defend with my life.