Summary
Countess Cassia Ruberno endured a decade of a loveless, penniless marriage to Zester Greze, a commoner war hero forced upon her by imperial decree. Her life was a desolate battlefield of duty and neglect, culminating in Zester’s tragic death. But fate, it seems, had other plans. Instead of an afterlife, Cassia is thrust back in time to the very day she first met her husband, ten years prior.
Armed with the bitter memories of her past, Cassia refuses to repeat history. She declares a ‘strike’ against her predetermined destiny, determined to forge her own path, free from the shackles of a miserable union. Yet, this time, Zester is different. The aloof, distant man she knew is replaced by someone unexpectedly persistent, relentlessly trying to breach the walls around her heart. Can Cassia, a woman hardened by war and disappointment, allow herself to hope for a different future, or will her past scars prevent her from seeing the man Zester has become? Read chapter 1 to see Cassia’s strike unfold!