Eliana beams at me when I turn to face her, my twin sister and double. I could not help myself; I threw my arms around her and inhaled her familiar Dior scent. “Eliana!” I gush, not being able to control my emotions upon seeing my sister. She was a little puffy on the face and her belly was showing, but she still had the same air of poise around her.“I haven’t seen you in almost three months and you turn into a beautiful lady.” She jokes as she takes in my appearance and nods in appreciation. I give her a light slap on her arm, “You know as well as I do that this isn’t exactly how I expected my last few months in England to be.” I shot back a retort but then noticed her smile drop.“Ah, I’m sorry, Eliana-”“No, I deserved that and so much more,” she starts and takes my hands in hers. “Elena, I forced you into this life, and for that, I will be eternally in your debt. I did not e

A lady appears from my left side and smiles, “Mrs Dumont, welcome to your new home. I am Ilse and am in charge of the help here in the villa. Please follow me.” She says and motions to the stairs. Ilse looked to be in her mid-50s, she was short and stocky and had her salt and pepper hair tied back in a bun. She wore half-moon spectacles and had a warm, motherly air about her.“Thank you, Ilse,” I tell her as we walk up the stairs. She looks back at me with warm eyes and nods, “You are welcome, ma’am.” She says and we continue to walk in silence until we reach what I assume would be my room. Ilse opens the door to yet another beautiful room. There was a queen sized oak Jacobean four-poster bed in the middle, with silk hanging from the canopy.Wow, wasn’t even a word to describe this room.“This will be your room, Mrs Dumont. We hope you will be happy in your new home.” Ilse says and folds her hands in fr

Sebastian and I have been married for close to 3 months already and yet we live past one another. The last time I saw him was when he had to rush out for an emergency at 4 am. I never asked what the emergency was because I couldn’t be bothered. There is nothing lonelier than an arranged marriage, no matter what anyone says. The attraction that Sebastian and I shared before is all but gone, replaced by a simmering dislike. Will I ever get used to feeling this way? Did I want to feel anything other than a dislike for Sebastian? I must be honest, it would be easier to not live with this heaviness in my chest 24/7. I had been trying to reach out to Charlotte and Esme Langford, my two best friends from high school, but they had been out of England for the last few months or so. They had not been following England’s social news and did not know I was married now. We had a brunch date today, and I was on my way out to meet them. It was in the middle of Autumn and qu

I take off my heels as soon as I enter the villa and breath a sigh of relief. My heart still felt heavy, but I could not allow it to hold me down any longer. As much as I hated it, I was essentially a married woman now and needed to act as such even if my husband did not.“Ah, Mrs Dumont, you are home. Are you hungry?” Ilse asks me as I enter the kitchen area, but I shake my head. “I just came from brunch with a few friends, Ilse. I’ll be fine for a while. Do we have headache tablets? I am not feeling too well and would like to go have a lay down for a little while.” I say and I could see the worried frown that creased her brows.I absolutely adored Ilse, she was like a mother to me in a strange home. She showed me the love and affection I had never received from my own mother. The warmth that matched the villa.“Oh, dearie. I will get you something that’s non-drowsy. Go to your room and I will have it brought right up to

I rushed out of Sebastian’s room after putting the mask back where I found it. The man I had shared a connection with at the masked ball was Sebastian, who was also coincidentally the man I despised above all else.Did I still despise him, though?I sit down on my bed in a daze. Could Sebastian have felt the same way about me at the time? It would explain why he came to see me the following weekend, but he asked for Eliana Wiltshire, not me. Was he mistaken as to who I was?My mind was working overtime at what I had discovered and suddenly 5 years seemed even further away than before. Maybe this whole thing was an enormous coincidence.Sebastian and I were always in the midst of banter whenever we met in the past. He displayed an open dislike towards me and vice versa. He couldn’t possibly be that sweet gentleman from so long ago.I saunter towards my bathroom to have a soak and to forget that I found that damned mask.Two hours la