Chapter 1

The Thompson-Cole wedding was the event of the season.

Ava Thompson, from New England' s political royalty, married Ethan Cole, Chief of Staff to a Senator, his family a D.C. institution.

Everyone said Ava was lucky.

They saw the pictures, the smiles, the union of two powerful families.

They didn' t see inside the grand Washington house Ava now called home.

They didn' t see the silence.

Ava sat in the enormous living room, her fingers tracing the rim of a cold teacup.

The house was always quiet when Ethan wasn' t there.

And Ethan was rarely there for her.

He was always with Chloe.

His adopted sister.

Ava had tried to understand their bond.

She really had.

But it felt like a wall she couldn' t climb, a door she couldn' t open.

Tonight was a fundraiser at Senator Harrison' s estate, a sprawling place outside the city.

Ava wore a blue dress Ethan had picked out. Or rather, Chloe had picked out, and Ethan had approved.

She felt like a doll, dressed and positioned.

She mingled, smiled, said the right things to the right people.

Her father, a retired governor, beamed with pride. Her brother, Senator Daniel Thompson, gave her a supportive nod.

They thought this marriage was good for her, good for the family.

Ava wished she could believe them.

Later, needing a moment, Ava slipped away from the crowded ballroom.

She wandered down a quiet hallway, lined with portraits of stern-faced men.

A door to a study was slightly ajar.

She heard voices.

Ethan' s voice, low and urgent.

And Chloe' s, soft, almost a whimper.

Ava froze. She shouldn' t listen. It was wrong.

But her feet wouldn' t move.

"Ethan, I can't do this anymore," Chloe said, her voice trembling. "Being here, seeing her... it' s too much."

"Chloe, look at me." Ethan' s voice was different than Ava had ever heard it with her. It was raw, intense. "Nothing changes between us. Nothing. She means nothing."

Ava' s breath caught in her throat. She. That was her.

"But she' s your wife," Chloe whispered. "Everyone expects..."

"I don' t care what anyone expects," Ethan cut in, his voice fierce. "You are my priority. Always. This marriage... it' s a means to an end. For us. For our future. You know that."

"But what if she finds out? What if she realizes you don't love her?"

"She won't. She's too... trusting. Too naive. And even if she did, what does it matter? You are the only one I care about, Chloe. You saved me. I owe you everything. My life. My soul."

Ava pressed her hand to her mouth, stifling a gasp.

Saved him? What did that mean?

The words hit her like physical blows.

She means nothing.

A means to an end.

Her heart shattered. The beautiful facade of her life crumbled around her.

The man she loved, the man she had married with such hope, saw her as a tool.

A pawn in a game she didn' t even know she was playing.

Tears welled in Ava' s eyes, blurring the opulent hallway.

She stumbled back, away from the door, away from the devastating truth.

Her chest ached, a deep, physical pain.

This wasn't just loneliness. This was betrayal.

Profound. Absolute.

The world tilted, colors swam.

She had to get out.

She had to breathe.

She remembered the early days, before the engagement, before the families had decided their future.

She' d met Ethan at a political conference. He was brilliant, driven, with a charisma that filled any room.

Ava, accomplished in her own right as a musician, had been drawn to his intensity, his ambition.

She' d pursued him, subtly at first, then with more courage.

She' d written him notes, found reasons to be where he was, hoping he' d see her, really see her.

He' d always been polite, a little distant, but she' d mistaken his reserve for seriousness, for depth.

She thought she could break through, that her love could warm him.

What a fool she had been.

A naive, hopeful fool.

She thought of Chloe.

Always delicate, always needing Ethan' s protection.

Chloe could cling to Ethan' s arm, laugh too loudly at his jokes, demand his attention with a pout, and he would indulge her, his eyes softening in a way they never did for Ava.

Ava had always been careful, measured, afraid of overstepping, of appearing too needy.

Now she understood.

Chloe wasn't just his sister.

Chloe was his everything.

And Ava Thompson, daughter of a prominent family, accomplished musician, envied wife, was just... in the way.

The realization was a cold, hard stone in her stomach.

Her marriage wasn't just empty.

It was a lie. A cruel, calculated lie.