"How dare you walk into this gala as if you belong here?" Victoria Knight's voice sliced through the elegant hum of the ballroom like a knife.
I froze mid-step, my hand tightening around Gabriel’s arm. The weight of a hundred eyes turned toward us. Whispers fluttered through the crowd like restless birds.
"Victoria, don't do this," Gabriel warned, his voice low and menacing.
"Oh, I will do this," she snapped, her icy gaze fixed on me. "This woman has no place among us. She's a gold digger playing dress-up in borrowed silk."
Heat flooded my face, but I forced myself to stand tall. "I’m not here for your approval, Mrs. Knight."
The room fell into an uneasy silence. Even the orchestra seemed to falter, the violins fading into an awkward pause.
Victoria's lips curled into a vicious smile
