A False Heiress's Guide to Love and Power

They didn’t stay long. As the sun dipped below the horizon, they chose not to drive but instead wandered along the lakeside path.

Hand in hand, they walked in easy silence. Even without words, there was nothing awkward between them.

Suddenly, Alessia stopped. Leaning against the rail by the water, the two gazed out over the lake, where the sunlight danced in shimmering patterns across the surface.

“Cole,” Alessia said softly, her eyes clouded with uncertainty, “what do you think the meaning of life is?”

She was barely in her twenties, yet she’d already seen more than her share of goodbyes, of close calls where life and death brushed past her. She herself had once walked the thin line between this world and the

next.

Life felt too fragile. For the first time, she truly understood those who feared death–not for herself, but for the thought of losing the people she loved. She liked to believe she was free–spirited, unbound by anything, but deep down she knew she was just as tied to the rules of nature as anyone else.

Sometimes she wondered, if she had no attachments, would she still be afraid of anything at all?

But whenever she found herself surrounded by love, she realized that was when she felt truly unbreakable.

was the meaning of life,

to

at him. Their eyes met,

“I’ve thought

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that, wherever you soar, I’m the one by your side. That’s why I work so hard–to become someone worthy of you, so no one else even dares to

to fly like an eagle, I can’t be content to stay a sparrow. I know you want to reach for more, so I choose to

when you were lying in that hospital bed, I couldn’t help but regret not holding onto you sooner. Maybe then, when

I hadn’t pulled through,”

before she could finish, meeting

unwavering conviction.

across Alessia’s face as she playfully

she finished, he wrapped her in

incredible proposal you’ve ever seen,” he whispered.

she wanted. With him, Alessia

answer was clear, without