The ballroom glittered beneath enormous crystal chandeliers that reflected thousands of tiny lights across polished marble floors. A string quartet played softly near the center while waiters drifted through the crowd carrying silver trays filled with champagne flutes and delicate hors d'oeuvres.
Nearly everyone who mattered in Meridon was there. The old money, the political dynasties, the industrial families whose names had shaped the country's history for generations, and faces Catherine recognized from the Winthorp Legacy Dinner turned toward the entrance one after another.
Some smiled politely. Others whispered. Many simply observed. She felt every gaze settle on her before she had taken more than three steps inside.
