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  Eve longed to ask, "How am I supposed to straddle between two worlds?" Instead she asked her original question, the one that had plagued her since the first night she watched the High One labor at the boards. "Is there no other who could perform this duty? One who understood the importance and took the proper care?"

  "There is. I could ask you to do it." The High One chuckled wryly. "It has been done, but the High One who forgets to respect Cargon is destined to soon fall." Eve knew this to be the case, reading several histories about the most drastic changes resulting from the outcome of a single match. "This is the most...manual of my responsibilities. I find I enjoy it." Her lips curled in a small smile. Eve found herself smiling as well and quickly dropped her eyes again. "Well, child, I have finished for another night. Continue to make the most of what you have been given."

  Was that an answer to the question that plagued her today and every day Prince Louis pressed himself on her? Was Eve to take a great leap that would vault her from one world to the other? As one of the elite, the differences in their positions would narrow, allowing her to tell him exactly how little she sought his attention.

  Eve dropped her knees and held herself low when the High One had left the hall. Alone, she turned to the boards, her jaw set.

  Make the most of what she had been given. She wanted to take her first step on a road to a new life, a new place. But she had been ordered to never touch the pieces. Her mind warred with her instincts. As proven in the past, her mind was stronger.

  Eve took a marble piece in her hand and held it tightly. She could feel every edge, every plane. The corners seemed to bite into her skin. Small, it had little weight and yet felt exceedingly heavy, as though she held the world in her hand instead of a tiny piece. Eve placed it on the board in a new position. The movement was monumental. It wasn't simply the start of a game; it was the start of everything. She had put her world into motion. Turning her back on the three-tiered board, she returned to her dorm. From the corner, she noticed someone else in the shadows, not near the kitchen, the direction she headed, but the grand entrance, where the High One had left. Despite being one of the elite, he didn't address Eve, and she continued on her way.

  ADAM WAITED FOR HIS mother just outside the hall. She tended the boards, her nightly chore. One day it would be his charge. He'd played only two games of Cargon. Relatively new to his position as Second and heir, those two decisive victories had prevented more challenges.

  The doors opened as his mother stepped out. Past her, he saw a servant kneeling by the Cargon board.

  "Adam, you didn't have to wait for me."

  "I – Would you excuse me a moment?" he asked, slipping around her and through the still open door to the hall. The servant had just picked up one of the pieces and held it in her hand. His breath caught. Would she put it back? If she did, he would never mention this – except to her. She must know how dangerous it was for her play with those pieces; she would become the lowest of servants, or worse, exiled if she played and lost. Surely, someone had told her. She didn't put it back in the starting position, but made a legal move, demonstrating her knowledge of the game. Glancing his way, she paused before turning and walking away.

  Adam stepped back from the doors. "I'm sorry, Mother. There was a servant there. I was just wondering what she was doing in the hall so late."

  "Ah, yes. She is bright, that one. I have my eye on her." She slipped her arm through Adam's and led him to their shared suite.

  Adam waited for his mother to close the door to her bedroom before leaving again for the hall. Once there, he picked up another piece. He didn't know who the girl was; he didn't know how she knew how to play, but he did not want her challenged by another. He wanted to be the one to win her, the one to challenge her. He admired her bravery but would admire her intelligence even more if she proved a worthy opponent. The game had begun.

  About Gina Kincade

  USA TODAY BESTSELLING Author Gina Kincade has been penning romance since she was seventeen years old. She writes to a diverse range of genres where vampires and were-creatures will rip out a villainous heart without thinking twice, or bodyguards and heroic cowboys will obliterate miscreants, and then finally celebrate winning by engaging in steamy romances forged in fictional worlds readers yearn to crawl into.

  Gina writes under a total of three pseudonyms to-date in other genres, including YA and children's.

  A busy mom to three children, she lives in her wild household of two rambunctious dogs, a devoted, loving cat who believes herself to be royalty, and twelve crazy little chickens. She loves healthy home cooking, gardening, warm beaches, fast cars, and horseback riding.

  Gina is also the C.E.O of Naughty Nights Press LLC, a quality publisher of contemporary romance, paranormal fiction, and sensual erotica.

  Ms. Kincade's life is full, time is never on her side, and she wouldn't change a moment of it!

  Where to Find More of Gina Kincade

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  Other Titles by Gina Kincade

  A Shot At Love: A Gay Male Shifter Paranormal Romance

  Someone Different (Paranormal Dating Agency: Kindle Worlds Novella)

  Cowboy Boots & Handcuffs (Majors Creek Ranch Book One)

  On Santa's Naughty List: A Contemporary Women's Holiday Romance

  What Lies Within Us (Second Edition)

  Modern Day Witch Hunt

  When the Snow Flies: Shifter Paranormal Romance

  About Kimberly Gould

  USA TODAY BESTSELLING Author Kimberly Gould hates being called Kimmy, but her mother called her Kimmydonn and that was okay. She lives in Edmonton, Alberta with her husband and daughter.

  When she isn’t writing about the post-apocalyptic world, she is doing her best to prevent an apocalypse as an environmental consultant. She is the author of the Cargon series as well as Never Say Die.

  Where to Find More from Kimberly Gould

  CONNECT WITH ON KIMBERLY on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CargonBooks/

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  http://www.kimmydonn.com/

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