Amelia POV

The massive chandelier in the dining room sparkled with cold light, its brilliance casting stark shadows across the long table where I sat, alone, poking at the untouched food on my plate. The grandeur of the Cole estate, with its towering walls and cold, gleaming floors, felt more like a gilded cage than a home. It had only been a week since I was thrust into this life as Mrs. Amelia Cole, and already I knew I’d traded one nightmare for another.

The sharp clatter of heels against ...