The Thorn dining room had never looked less like itself, stripped of its usual quiet formality and dressed instead for a performance, white orchids crowding every surface, candlelight arranged to flatter rather than illuminate, silver polished until it threw back distorted reflections of every guest who passed it.Nyra stood near the staircase in the navy dress Camille had recommended, hands cold despite the warmth of the room, watching the front door the way a person watches a door they are afraid to walk through and equally afraid not to."You look pale," Camille murmured beside her, not unkindly, adjusting the strap of Nyra's dress with brisk, efficient hands. "Pinch your cheeks or something. You're about to meet your fiancé looking like you've seen a ghost."Nyra almost laughed, the sound catching somewhere in her throat before it could fully form. If Camille only knew how close to accurate that observation actually was.The Ashford party arrived at exactly eight o'clock, not a mi
Last Updated : 2026-09-24 Read more