Another day began with cold windy weather, which was terribly combined with my mood. I, a young and independent woman, had just celebrated my twenty-fifth birthday, and it seemed to me that everything in life was just beginning. I dreamed of a career, freedom and the opportunity to make my own decisions.

But fate seemed unwilling to consider my plans. I was forcibly married off to a guy I knew too little about. He was the son of a businessman, and the only way to save our company from bankruptcy was to marry him. It all looked more like a dishonest deal than true love, and I felt like a pawn in someone else's game.

We were introduced to each other at the engagement ceremony, where everyone was talking animatedly and celebrating our future marital happiness. But in fact, I couldn't help thinking that it was just a performance, and I was the heroine in a novel that I hadn't written myself.