MELISSA'S POV

I was still reeling from the email.

The glow of being nominated as a finalist for Miss England hadn’t worn off yet. It still didn’t feel real. I’d read the message over and over again, as if the words might vanish if I blinked too hard. Even with the chaos that had clouded my morning, that one email had felt like a hand reaching down and lifting me from the mess.

For the first time in days, I felt light.

Hopeful.

I had been smiling, hugging a pillow to my ...