Estranged love
Chapter 1: The Gilded Cage
Emily Sinclair stared out of the penthouse window, her hazel eyes tracing the twinkling lights of New York City below. The city that never slept, they called it. But for Emily, it had become a place where her dreams had fallen into a restless slumber.
She sighed, the weight of her elaborate wedding gown pressing against her shoulders. The dress was exquisite, a masterpiece of lace and silk, designed to make her appear every bit the picture-perfect bride. It was a costume, she thought bitterly, a facade to hide the truth beneath.
Turning away from the glittering cityscape, Emily's gaze fell on the opulent room around her. Crystal chandeliers hung from the high ceilings, casting shimmering patterns on the marble floors. The walls were adorned with portraits of her ancestors, all of them stern-faced, judgmental, and bound by tradition.
In just a few hours, she was supposed to walk down the aisle and say "I do" to Daniel Hawthorne, a man she barely knew. Their marriage was a calculated merger of two influential families, a contract of convenience, and nothing more. Her parents had orchestrated it all, eager to solidify a business alliance that would further enhance their wealth and status.
But Emily longed for something more. She yearned for love, for passion, for a life of her choosing. She wanted to be more than a pawn in her family's ambitions.
A soft knock on the door broke her reverie, and Emily's heart skipped a beat. She knew it was her mother, coming to ensure she was ready for the impending ceremony. The time had come to don the mask of the dutiful daughter and obedient bride.
With one last, longing look out of the window, Emily took a deep breath and turned to face her destiny.
As the door opened, her mother entered, her expression a mix of expectation and duty.
"Emily, it's time," she said with a forced smile.
And with that, Emily stepped further into the gilded cage of her life, wondering if there would ever be a way to escape the contractual lov
e that awaited her.