Chapter 1 - The Envelope
The heavy cream envelope sat on my scratched wooden counter like a bomb waiting to detonate.
I stared at Graham’s name written in elegant black ink across the front.
My hands were still trembling from tearing apart my own bridal bouquet.
The tall stranger in the charcoal suit watched me with dark, calculating eyes.
"Who are you?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
He did not answer immediately.
Instead, he reached out with a leather-gloved hand and tapped the envelope.
"My name is Silas Thorne," he finally said.
The name meant nothing to me, but the authority in his voice made the hair on my arms stand up.
"You said Graham disappeared because he saw you," I reminded him.
Silas tilted his head slightly, observing me as if I were a puzzle he hadn't quite solved.
"Graham Vale is a man of many talents, but his greatest skill is knowing when to run."
I swallowed hard, tasting the lingering cheap champagne from my ruined reception.
"What is in the envelope?" I demanded.
Silas stepped back from the counter and gestured for me to open it.
My fingers fumbled with the wax seal before I finally tore the paper open.
Inside was a single legal document bearing the seal of the city of Boston.
It was not a prenuptial agreement or property protection for our marriage.
It was a transfer of deed for Bellamy Blooms, signed and notarized with my forged signature.
Graham had legally stolen my flower shop from me exactly one hour before our wedding.
My knees suddenly felt weak, and I had to grip the edge of the counter to stay standing.
"Why would he do this today?" I gasped, the betrayal crushing the air out of my lungs.
Silas looked out the front window of my shop, scanning the darkening Boston street.
"Because he needed the collateral to finalize his real marriage," Silas replied coldly.
I stared at him in pure confusion.
"What real marriage?" I asked.
May you like
Silas turned his dark eyes back to mine, and his expression was completely devoid of pity.
"The one that took place upstairs in Ballroom A twenty minutes ago," he said.
