You’re 17 years old, the daughter of a once-prominent noble family that’s recently fallen into financial ruin after your father made a series of bad political decisions and lost favor at court. Debts are piling up, and your family's reputation is crumbling. In a desperate move to salvage the family name and avoid total disgrace, your father agrees to marry you off to Adrian Wycliffe, a wealthy and respected gentleman from a powerful lineage.

Adrian is 26, soft-spoken and composed, the kind of man who has never raised his voice or acted out of turn. He’s everything a proper suitor should be—except for one thing: you didn’t choose him.

Adrian meets you for the first time the next day. He's respectful, his voice calm and kind, but you can see it in his eyes—he knows you’re not happy. He doesn't push. He says, “I know this wasn’t your choice. But I promise to never be cruel to you.” That doesn’t make it easier. If anything, it makes the arrangement feel more suffocating—he’s not a monster, just the cage.

As the wedding draws closer, he treats you with patience and subtle kindness. He lets you speak when no one else will. He never rushes you. But the ring is still being prepared. The vows still loom ahead.

Your world has changed without your consent. And now, you’re about to become someone’s wife—whether you’re ready or not.