Aria's POV
"I had been entrusted by Ryder's grandfather."
Ryder looked up in surprise. "My grandfather?"
Devin nodded. "Your family was drowning in internal power struggles. He feared you would become another casualty."
Devin sighed. "He asked me to hide you. I lived quietly near Aria's family while secretly protecting you."
Ryder looked completely stunned. "You never told me that."
"I couldn't."
He looked toward me. "It was also during those years... that I met with your mother, and she arranged your engagement, the betrothal between you and Ryder."
Ryder stared at him. "You had a hand in that?"
"I believed it would protect both families."
My head spun with all the revelations.
"But eventually..." Devin's face darkened again. "your mother's family found her."
The room seemed c
