Stefan’s POV
My name is Stefan Dorne, and turning twenty-one should have felt like a celebration—my final semester of college wrapping up, parties about to start, and the world seemed like it was opening up for me. Instead, I received the most unexpected news: Dad was getting married again. Mom had only passed away a year ago, her grave still fresh, the flowers wilting too quickly. And now here was Dad, Cassius Dorne, with terrible timing, ready to marry a woman he barely knew.
I lost it. I told him plainly that I wouldn’t be attending the wedding. “Busy with school,” I fibbed. There was no chance I was going to put on a happy face while he walked down the aisle with someone new. He didn’t argue with me, just sighed as if I were the one being unreasonable. That was fine with me. Weeks la
