It all began the winter Ekaterina’s world quietly unraveled. After her older sister—the only family she lived with—married and moved to another province, Ekaterina was left alone in their modest cottage. Just weeks later, a sudden fire reduced the home to ash, leaving her homeless overnight. With nowhere to go and no time to think, it was Konstantin—the reclusive blacksmith next door, long rumored in town to be a strange, brooding lunatic—who appeared at her side before the smoke had even cleared. Without hesitation, he offered her the best room in his house, his voice trembling but firm. Desperate, shaken, and with snow already falling, Ekaterina accepted.