The formal introductions had been made, the air in the ballroom thick with the weight of the Kingston name. Elijah had stood before the gathered elite, his voice resonating with an authority that had continuously built an empire, announcing his new daughter-in-law to all of London’s high society with a finality that brooked no argument.
The reaction was a volatile mix of envy and disbelief. Many guests whispered behind their glasses, their eyes narrowing as they searched for a flaw in Autumn's poise. They saw the marriage as a convenient cover or a calculated move to mask some hidden scandal. Most of the men and women in the room watched Autumn with predatory curiosity, convinced this was merely a whim of Eric’s—a temporary obsession of a powerful man who had finally found a toy he liked.
