Chapter 1: The Woman Who Refused to Lower Her Head
“Are we clear? Well?””
Lorna's fingers tightened around my wrist.
Twenty people stood around the private dining room, holding champagne glasses and pretending they hadn't heard her.
The morning sunlight poured through the tall windows of the hotel restaurant. White roses decorated the tables. A three-tier wedding cake stood untouched near the entrance.
It was supposed to be our first family brunch as husband and wife.
Instead, my mother-in-law was publicly teaching me my place.
I looked down at her fingers, then slowly raised my eyes.
“Would you mind letting go of me, Lorna?””
Her eyebrows lifted.
“Excuse me?””
“You're hurting my wrist.””
She released me, but only to straighten the diamond bracelet on her own arm.
“Goodness. You're sensitive. I was simply explaining how things work in this family.””
Grayson stood beside her, wearing the same expensive suit he'd worn at our wedding the previous evening.
He didn't look angry.
He didn't look embarrassed.
He looked entertained.
“Come on, sweetheart,” he said, taking a sip of coffee.
“Don't turn this into a scene.””
I stared at him.
Sweetheart.
The same man whose voice I'd heard through a phone speaker the night before, casually discussing how he would take my apartment from me.
I remembered the cigarette smoke drifting beneath the bed.
I remembered his laughter.
And I remembered every word.
I smiled.
“All right, Grayson.””
He relaxed immediately.
“See? That's better.””
Lorna pulled out her chair and sat down.
“Now, let's discuss the arrangements. Grayson and I have already decided that you'll be moving your things into his mother's house temporarily.””
I blinked.
“His mother's house?””
“Our family home,” she corrected.
“The apartment on the coast is unnecessary for newlyweds. Maintaining two properties is foolish.””
Grayson nodded.
“Mum has a beautiful guest room. It'll give us time to settle into married life properly.””
I looked between them.
“Didn't you say the coastal apartment was our home?””
Grayson gave me a patient smile.
“Of course. Eventually. But there's no rush.””
Lorna reached for the butter.
“Besides, I don't think you're ready to manage a property like that. It's a considerable responsibility.””
A woman sitting across from us shifted uncomfortably.
It was Grayson's aunt, Margaret.
“Lorna, darling, I thought the apartment was specifically purchased as their wedding gift.””
Lorna didn't even look at her.
“Margaret, adults are talking.””
I lowered my eyes to my plate.
For two years, I'd tolerated comments like that.
At Christmas, Lorna had called my grandmother's apartment a glorified storage unit.
At my engagement dinner, she'd asked whether my family would be contributing anything meaningful to the wedding.
And when my father arrived wearing his old navy jacket, she'd mistaken his quiet manner for a lack of education.
Grayson had always told me to ignore her.
“She was raised differently,” he'd whisper.
“She's just protective.””
“Don't make things difficult.””
Now I understood.
He hadn't been protecting our marriage.
He'd been preparing me to accept mistreatment.
“Actually,” I said, putting down my fork, “I'd prefer to stay in the apartment.””
Lorna stopped chewing.
“What?””
“The apartment is in my name. I like it there.””
Her expression hardened.
“Your name?””
Grayson placed his coffee cup on the table.
“Claire, we discussed this.””
“No, we didn't.””
His smile disappeared.
“Don't be difficult.””
I looked directly at him.
“I'm not being difficult. I'm answering your mother's question.””
Lorna leaned back.
“Grayson, I warned you about this. Some women become completely different once they have a ring on their finger.””
I almost laughed.
If only she knew how different I was about to become.
A waiter approached with a silver tray.
“Excuse me, Mr. Whitmore. There's a delivery for Mrs. Whitmore.””
He placed a cream-colored envelope beside my plate.
My name was written across it.
Not Grayson's.
Mine.
I opened it carefully.
Inside was a document from the property management company confirming that the apartment's ownership registration had been completed.
But something else was attached.
A second page.
A formal notice concerning an attempted inquiry into the property's ownership records.
The inquiry had been submitted three days earlier.
By Grayson Whitmore.
I felt my heartbeat slow.
He had already started.
Three days before the wedding, while I was choosing flowers and discussing table arrangements, my future husband had been checking whether he could gain access to the apartment's ownership information.
“What's that?”” Grayson asked.
I folded the papers.
“Nothing important.””
He reached across the table.
“Let me see.””
I moved the envelope toward my handbag.
His expression changed.
“Claire.””
“Yes?””
“Give me the papers.””
For the first time that morning, Lorna looked genuinely interested.
“What papers?””
I stood.
“I need to make a phone call.””
Grayson caught my elbow.
“Sit down. We're not finished.””
I looked at his hand.
Then at his face.
“Take your hand off me.””
His fingers loosened.
I picked up my handbag and walked toward the restaurant entrance.
Behind me, I heard Lorna whisper loudly enough for everyone to hear.
“See? I told you. She has no idea how to behave.””
I didn't turn around.
Instead, I stepped into the hotel corridor and opened my phone.
There was one number I had been avoiding calling since the previous night.
My father's.
He answered on the second ring.
“Morning, sweetheart. How's married life?””
I closed my eyes.
“Dad, I need you to listen carefully.””
His voice changed immediately.
“What happened?””
“I think Grayson married me for the coastal apartment.””
Silence.
Then he asked something I hadn't expected.
“Did he tell you what his mother said about the family business?””
I frowned.
“What business?””
“Claire, I need you to come home. There's something about Grayson's family I should have told you before the wedding.””
And then my father said a name.
A name that made the blood drain from my face.
“Whitmore Aerospace.””
May you like
Because my father knew the Whitmores.
And apparently, he had known them long before I ever met Grayson.
