Val had barely made it to the middle of the grand staircase, the unsettling aftertaste of her mother’s call still clinging to her, when a new shift in the air announced his presence.

All sound from the dining room seemed to be sucked into a vacuum. The light, airy chatter of the influencers cut off so abruptly it was as if someone had hit a mute button. 

He stood at the top of the stairs, already dressed for the day in a dark, impeccably tailored suit that looked more ...