Isolde

The ceremony in the private chapel was short. I stood there in the heavy white dress, my heart thumping against my ribs so hard I thought the soft silk material would rip.

My father looked relieved to be rid of me, and my sisters watched with frowning faces, their eyes filled with hate as the priest spoke the words. Cedric’s hand was steady when he took mine, but I was trembling so much I could barely stand.

We left immediately. The carriage ride to his estate was silent, the only sound being the rain and the horses’ hooves. When we arrived, his home was nothing like my father’s. It...