e crossed the parking lot. The midday sun hammered down, forcing her to narrow her e

cross the screen. Bored. Irritated. He heard the crunch of gravel and let out a loud,

s eyes locked on

nsive smartphone slipped from his hand and hit the asphalt with

nderneath was breathtaking-a cold, untouchable beauty that knotted his stomach with sudden, primal intimidation. The cheap pin

the shattered phone, then raised her eyes to meet

ard, nearly tripping over his own feet, and grabbed the chro

o the cool lea

," she

to the highway. His knuckles were bone-white on the steering wheel. Every few seconds, his eyes flicked

ung open in silence. The car glided up the long, winding driveway lined with ancient oak trees, their gnarled branches interlocking overhead l

n the wide marble steps leadin

y had all heard the whispered gossip about the illegitimate, uneducated

er slender frame. Her honey-blonde hair was swept into an immaculate updo. A small, patronizing smile playe

crambled out, and jogged around to the back. He grabbed the handl

of the dark interior. A cheap pi

from the car and tur

stantly. The muscles in her cheeks twitched. He

hispers died. The silence that settled over the courtyard was

harp features. She looked like a queen forced into peasant r

ive silk of her dress. A hot, acidic wave of jealousy scorched the back of her throat.

oak doors

rail, her frame birdlike, leaning heavily on the arm of a senior maid.

n the steps. Her eye

. The face staring up at her was a mirror image of her own youth-but

s eyes and spilled freel

ak, too broken, to shield her from the family's cruelty. A complicated knot tightened in G

d hot in her chest. She had to seize

a wide, radiant smile. She practically leap

home!" Coretta cried, her voice

around Ginny's neck, to pull her into a suff

y took a smooth half-step to the right and bent sligh

s snapped shu