Burning Away for the Man She Loved

A childhood love is scorched by suspicion. Fiona Simmons and Xavier Stanley married, but a devastating fire left Xavier convinced she had refused to save him. Haunted by that belief, he nursed a cold grudge through their three-year marriage and turned resentment into cruelty. Xavier picked fights and filed for divorce a hundred times; each time Fiona swallowed pride and begged for forgiveness. On the hundred-and-first filing, a public humiliation—friends tripping her as they left the civil office—exposes his indifference. He watches her bleed, ignores her injured knee, and leaves for a welcome party for Jenny Simmons. Broken at last, Fiona decides to abandon their past and accepts a mysterious stranger’s offer, setting a dangerous new turn in motion.