pte

oke to s

ht. There should be darkness, cold, the crushing weight o

to her throat. Dry. Her clothes-dry. Her hair,

ha

Somehow she was in her bed

wasn't

o the mirror. Her reflection stared back,

r eyes-from smiling at people who didn't smile back, from crying into pillows at 3 AM-were gone. Her hair was longer, f

as imp

iar voice of Marie, her lady's maid. "Miss Winters, you ne

ver's stomach dro

rse. A pause. "It's your wedding day, ma'am. Are

she kept her planner-kept, used to keep, would keep?-and

er 15t

eris Ashford in a ceremony that had cost more than most

Wint

t, her voice steadier than s

retreat and sank into the

et do-overs. Death was final. The river had been real-she could still feel the gh

'd

ossibly, she'd w

ment party three months ago. She looked radiant in the photo, glowing with hope and naive faith in happ

st not comfortable with cameras. He's private. He sho

on the small of Vivienne Laurent's back-one of the "mistresses" the tabloids had gleefully documented. T

ulting services." Thirty thousand to "Gabrielle Chen" marked as "personal gift." Amounts that m

e. Alwa

o ask why Kate was his plus-one to the tech summit instead of his actual wife. "You unders

was "not personal."

d been not personal. Wel

a ghost. She'd worn this dress. Walked down an aisle scattered with white roses. Said vows she

already. And the five

were the same as love. Five years of watching her husband build a life that had no room for h

. Not quite angry-anger was too hot, too wild. Thi

eris-there wouldn't be. He was probably still asleep, or already at the

re messages

lk down the aisle, sweetheart

rl, all grown up.

DAAAAY! You better not be having c

wasn't poor, but they weren't Ashford-level wealthy either. Marrying into one

o tell them. Too proud to admit that saving Seris Ashford's life and

zzed with a

ou at the venue. R

his own

she'd made excuses for it the first time. *H

None of it had

olled to Seris's name. Her thum

babbling about last-minute details. He'd been distracted, given her half-ans

knew bet

breath and dialed

father's warm voice came on the line. "Sw

best efforts. "Dad, I need to talk to

flooding in. "What's wrong? Are you ok

ver closed her eyes, steadying h

normal to be nervous. Your mother nearly

ght now, clearly and with full certainty: I don't want to marry Seris Ashfor

n: "Does he know

e never has. This marriage is an obligation to him, nothing more

rs. There are three hundred guests, a cath

a wedding that had been more performance than partnership. "And I'll deal

he spoke again, his voice was thick with

more sure of anyt

ause. The

ka

akes you miserable, no matter who's waiting at that altar or how much money we've spen

he young woman who'd been so desperate for love she

this

d. "But Dad? Thank yo

sweethear

opened a new message to Seris. Her fingers trembled from the sheer relief of finally

like that, Silver Win