Chapter 23 A Crowded Banquet

• By the time we arrived, the banquet hall was already buzzing with energy—laughter, champagne, and the hum of gossip bouncing off crystal chandeliers and polished marble floors.
• I stepped in wearing the ivory embroidered gown. Simple. Classic. Safe.
• Almost instantly, I felt it—eyes tracking my entrance. Some lingered too long, some looked away too quickly. Admiration, curiosity, judgment; it all swirled in the air around me. But I didn’t flinch. Years of being married to Darius had taught me to walk through a room like I belonged, even when I didn’t feel it.