It had felt deeply unfair. Why couldn’t I choose my own partner?
If the goal was to advance the family’s status, I could have found someone suitable on my own terms, not under pressure.
At 18, I decided to leave. I wanted to prove I could live independently without their help.
For a while, it seemed like my parents respected my decision, especially since I was living with Tobias. Their concern for me seemed to fade.
But then, at 20, the pressure had returned with full force.
My parents had become more insistent, and Tobias, who once stayed neutral, had begun dropping hints about the man they wanted me to marry.
From what I knew, he was Tobias’ business partner and about his age. Still, the thought of marrying a stranger was unbearable, so I tried to avoid it at all costs.
I thought marrying Lewis would be my way out, my happy ending. But instead, it had brought me more pain than I ever imagined.
The pain was far worse than marrying someone I did not love.
I laid on my bed, tears streaming down my face, when I heard a gentle knock on the door.
“Can I come in, sweetheart?” my mother’s soft voice called.