The crystal chandeliers dripped light across the Sterling estate ballroom, casting prisms over three hundred guests who had gathered to celebrate Elsa's future.
She moved through the crowd in ivory silk, her engagement ring catching the light — a three-carat promise from Mark Sterling, the man she had loved since university.
She couldn't find him. The speeches were done, the champagne poured, and her fiancé had vanished.
Elsa checked the terrace, the gardens, the private wing where the family kept their offices. Nothing.
Then she heard it. The unmistakable moan sound from the library. Elsa's hand froze on the brass handle.
She should walk away, should pretend she hadn't heard, maintain the illusion, protect her heart. She pushed the door open.
Mark had her best friend against the
