How many hours had passed since Ryan finally managed to fall asleep was a question he had neither the energy nor the desire to answer at that moment.
His mind had been operating at its limit for days, enduring the pressure of ruling.
But now, floating in that peaceful limbo between deep sleep and wakefulness, he felt that his physical and mental exhaustion had completely vanished.
The intense, unrestricted sex he'd had with Mirian hours earlier had drained his last drop of stress, leaving him in a state of absolute lethargy.
However, despite having his eyes open and feeling the familiar brush of his own bed's thick sheets against his bare skin, he couldn't see anything around him. The spacious castle bedroom, usually illuminated by the faint moonlight filtering through the tall windows, had disappeared.
His bed seemed to be surrounded by a deep, thick, and almost palpable darkness that blocked out any source of light, enclosing him in an absolute void.
