CHAPTER 18

I sat in the living room, my fingers lightly gripping the edges of a novel, but the words blurred together. My mind refused to focus. Anxiety simmered inside me, a relentless tension that refused to fade.

There were less than two weeks left before the wedding, and I still had no idea where the venue was. No amount of prying, coaxing, or even strategic bargaining had worked on Heinrich. Even on the rare days when he was in a good mood, he refused to give me an inch of control over our wedding plans.

It was infuriating.

My fingers itched to grab a pillow and scream into it. Sometimes, I wished I could strangle him until he coughed up the truth.

Just then, my phone rang. I glanced at the screen. Heinrich’s mother.

I took a deep breath and cleared my throat before answering. “Hello, Mrs… Mom.” The word still felt foreign on my tongue, unfamiliar and strange.

“Hello, dear. Are you free this afternoon?” she asked, her voice warm but firm.

“Yes, I’m free,” I replied.