The morning of the wedding ceremony didn't feel like a celebration. To Cassian Blackwood, it felt like the final stage of a long business deal. The air in his private suite at the Blackwood estate was cool and smelled like expensive wood and clean laundry.
Cassian stood in front of a tall mirror, his face looking like it was carved from ice. He adjusted his charcoal-gray tie with steady hands. He was silent, his mind already thinking about the business meetings he had scheduled for Monday.
"You look like you're going to a courtroom, not a party," Julian said. He was leaning against the small bar in the room, holding a glass of water. "Could you at least pretend to be happy? You’re marrying the woman everyone in New York is talking about."
"I am marrying a strategic partner, Julian," Cas
