Landen Vacheron, heir to a fortune built on oil and ambition, has lived his life as a wealthy playboy, the world bowing to his every whim, thanks to the empire his billionaire father, Colton Vacheron, forged. But as his older brother Vance steps into the role of CEO, Landen begins to see that the true cost of power and privilege is far greater than he ever imagined. Avara Du Pont is a devoted daughter who set aside her own dreams to bolster her father’s political aspirations. Unaware of his dark secrets. When it comes to light, Colton Vacheron offers him a proposition he cannot refuse; a marriage alliance between Avara and Vance, as a way for him to garner more political influence. And Mayor Du Pont will receive a king’s ransom as payment to stave off the shadows spilling into his life. Avara agrees to the fake relationship in order to protect her family from her father's criminal ties.
Alden POV
The iron gates creak open slowly, their wrought arms pulling apart. At the apex, the elegant 'V' emblem splits in two as the gates yawn wide. The car glides forward, the tires crunching softly over the gravel as we pass beneath a canopy of trees, their branches arching above.
For a moment, the dense copse of trees obscures the view, shrouding the land in shadows. But as we push deeper, the forest falls away, peeling back to reveal the gentle, rolling hills of the vineyard. The sun dips low, casting golden light across the endless rows of grapevines, their neat lines stretching out like the ribs of the earth. Everything in sight that the eye permits is his.