The Tudor mansion on a quiet residential street was certainly impressive. I glanced around nervously, sure I’d stick out within moments of entering the house as a person who didn’t belong. Every house in the neighborhood was huge, speaking to the wealth of the residents in this area.

“Is everyone here in politics?” I asked. “I didn’t realize politicians made quite this much money.”

Damian shook his head. “Nah, most of the people around here are lawyers and doctors. There are a couple actors, actually, just up the street. It’s a mixed bag.”

“It seems so expensive though. Does a government job really pay this good?”

“Ah, I see your confusion.” He took my hand, threading his fingers through mine and giving a reassuring squeeze. “My family comes from old money. My great-grandfather had money when he immigrated here from Spain, then got involved in oil. Good investments and further business success only grew the family funds. We’re pretty fortunate.”

Understanding dawned on me. Of course, politicians were paid well, but I hadn’t thought it was private jet and mansion in the suburbs well. Seemed Damian’s source of wealth wasn’t from work. He’d expressed confusion at his need to rebel earlier while telling me about his childhood. Perhaps it was boredom. Obviously, he’d always been given whatever he wanted.

Unlike my family, Damian’s family never worried or wondered if they could pay the electricity bill for the month or put enough food on the table to satisfy hungry children. My awe for my parents grew even deeper. Some people lived like the Grogans, never a care in the world. My folks scrimped, saved, and worked two and sometimes three jobs each. I really needed to check in with them. Perhaps Damian and I could pay them a visit soon, considering we’d live so close to them now.

“Are you ready?” Damian asked, squeezing my hand again.

“Sure. Bring it on. Hope I’m not too awkward though. I was just realizing how different your family must be from mine.”

Damian leaned in, giving me a quick kiss. “Don’t worry. They’ll love you. Dad can be a challenge, but nothing he says will change my mind. You’re the lady I want by my side. You’re my wife, and nothing they say will change that.”

I know Damian had planned to reassure me with that little speech, but it only made my anxiety grow. Exactly how judgmental and difficult would the elder Grogans be? Considering they had been involved in politics for a long time, I was sure they’d be good at hiding their true feelings and pretending to like me if they so choose, but I had no idea what to expect.

“Let’s go,” I said, taking a deep breath and consciously relaxing my shoulders as I released the air.

Damian knocked on the door instead of heading straight inside, and it surprised me when a man in a butler uniform answered the door. People still had butlers? I had no clue... I supposed only the super-rich, the ones who owned oil fields, could afford one.

“Ah, Young Master Grogan.” A smile lit the man’s face. “So good to see you, sir.”

“It hasn’t been that long, Connor.” Damian chuckled. “But it’s always nice to see you.”

Connor gave a small bow and then turned his attention to me. “This must be the new Madam Grogan?”

I stuck out my hand. “Just call me Bella. Nice to meet you.”

The man stared at my hand as though he had no idea what he should do with it. “Madam Bella,” he finally said, “touching you is not appropriate. Please save your handshake for the Master and Madam.”

Dropping my hand in confusion, I snuck a glance at Damian. Was he upset at my actions? It seemed I’d already made a social faux pas, and we hadn’t even met his parents.

Damian reassuringly squeezed my other hand, the one he’d claimed for himself and hadn’t let go. “Bella’s new to all this, Connor. Go easy on her.”

“Of course, sir.” Connor bowed to me. “I am sorry if I made you uncomfortable, Madam Bella, but it would be unseemly if the neighbors spotted us shaking hands. They would think you were a new maid, not the young master’s bride.”

I shrugged, forcing myself to grin in the face of his stuffy attitude. It seemed I had to get used to this sort of thing. The life of the rich and famous apparently had many rules. No matter how suffocating it seemed, I’d signed up for this. “Don’t trouble yourself, Connor. It was my mistake. I’m not uncomfortable. In fact, I appreciate you correcting me so I’ll know in the future.”

“Very good,” he replied. “Then, if you’ll follow me. Master and Madam are waiting in the parlor.”

As we followed him into the palatial entryway, Damian gave me a grin. “You did well. Nice recovery. I think you have the makings of a socialite yet.”

Not bothering to hide my grimace of distaste, I shook my head. “Did I really say I wished to be a celebrity earlier? That was obviously some crazy person talking. I don’t know how well I’ll do with these arbitrary rules.”

He chuckled, seeming happy with my response.

“That’s funny?” I asked. “I figured you’d be mad.”

“No, no. You’re perfect. People are going to love you!”

Ah, yes. This was all for the voting public. Everything I did would now affect Damian’s image. I guess I should count myself lucky that being myself pleased him.

“Besides,” he continued, “what matters is how I feel about you, right? We’re married now. I’m finding everything about you so delightful, I don’t even care if your lack of knowledge of social rules hurts my campaign chances.”

“What are you saying?” A loud voice boomed from behind us and I startled, jerking my head over my shoulder to see the newcomer.

A man barreled down on us. I barely had time to register his eyes were the same blue as Damian’s or that his gray-streaked hair must have once been as jet-black as my husband’s.

“What do you mean, you don’t care if she hurts your campaign?”

Damian spun us around, taking his hand from mine only to wrap his arm around my shoulder and cradle me to his side. “Hey, Dad.”

Dad? This man was Representative George Grogan? Great. I’d made a wonderful first impression.

“Hello, sir,” I said, my voice more timid than normal. “Please pay no attention to that conversation. Of course, I’ll do everything in my power to help Damian.”

George’s eyes narrowed. “You’d better. I investigated that place he found you. If you don’t follow the contract, we can have some rather drastic measures taken against you.”

“Dad!” Damian pushed me partially behind him, protecting me from his father’s disapproving glare. “You will not talk to my wife that way. I don’t care what you heard. Bella’s the perfect woman for me, and I’m not going to let anyone intimidate her—not even you. She’ll do just fine, but if you don’t want to support me in this, we can leave now.”

“Oh, boys,” a feminine voice called from the other direction. “I do wish you could stop arguing.”

A woman stepped past me, coming to rest between the dueling father and son. She was beautiful, perfect updo styled hair, dazzling evening gown dress, and makeup done to the nines. It was difficult to decide what was real about this woman and not complete artifice, but she was beautiful nonetheless.

“Hey, Mom,” Damian said. “It’s good you’re here. Dad’s being unreasonable, but I know you’ll be happy for me about the marriage.” He pulled me back to his side. “This is Bella. Bella, this is my mom, Dianna.”

A smile made Dianna seem as bright as her husband was gloomy. “Bella, it’s so nice to meet you. Sorry for this one.” She tilted her chin toward George. “He’s just jittery about retiring in a couple years, and so he’s taking that out on everyone. He thinks if Damian doesn’t win his seat, it’ll be the end of the world. Isn’t that right, dear?” She flashed him a brilliant smile before stepping to his side and threading her arm through his.

Her husband management skills were certainly impressive. She seemed long used to playing peacekeeper between husband and son. She probably also had to do a lot of damage control anytime George had to campaign for his Representative seat. I could see the man rubbing voters the wrong way. Dianna certainly had a full-time job on her hands with him.

“It’s nice to meet you, too,” I replied, giving my best smile, though I knew it was nowhere near as impressive as hers. “I’m sure Representative Grogan simply misunderstood the conversation he overheard between Damian and me. I’ll be the best wife I can be. We’ll do everything possible to win Damian that seat.”

“See, dear?” Dianna appealed to her husband, smiling at him cajolingly. “There’s nothing to worry about. Can we go eat now? The chef said it was ready.”

Chef? Holy crap! Yep, I definitely wasn’t in Morris Heights anymore. No one in the neighborhood I grew up in would have ever had a private chef. Heck, we could barely afford to go out to dinner a few times a year.

I followed beside Damian in a daze. The house was absolutely gorgeous. The rooms in the lower portion of the house all had arched entryways leading to the other rooms. Despite the rapid approach of twilight, the time of night I loathed, the house still had an open, airy feeling. From the expensive furnishings to the beautiful light fixtures, I could only imagine how beautiful each bedroom must be. Damian truly had grown up in a charmed existence. It was a bit sad that he had never realized it back then.

“Are you okay?” Damian murmured, favoring me with a slight grimace. “Is it too overwhelming?”

I forced a smile. “Just thinking how different our lives are. I grew up in a two-bedroom apartment. I had a small partitioned portion in the bedroom to give me privacy from my brothers in the supposed master bedroom. My parents shared the small bedroom, even though they worked so much that they were hardly home.”

“You shared with your brothers?” A distasteful grimace scrunched his face. “Shouldn’t boys and girls be separated?”

Rolling my eyes, I realized shock about the extreme differences in our lives went both ways. “Only people with money can afford to worry about that stuff. We had a system that worked. It wasn’t like we did anything indecent. Although, I’m sure it was easier on my brothers once I left for Aunt Tanya’s house.”

“Oh, I...” Damian looked away, an uncharacteristic redness rising to his cheeks. “Sorry. I forgot what you said about how hard your parents had to work.”

“It’s fine. Our lives were just different to this point, that’s all.”

His parents led us outside onto a patio set for dinner. Dainty light strands were threaded above the table and throughout the trees. In addition, candles adorned the table. I could only shake my head. This was way too fancy for a simple dinner by my family’s standards.

“See?” I gave a nod toward the ornate table setting. “This is so different. My family would scarf down a frozen lasagna in front of the TV, the kids each vying for a spot on the couch while fighting about who had to sit on the floor. It’s like two different universes.”

As we took our places around the table, Dianna directed her attention to me. “Bella, I couldn’t help but overhear parts of your conversation. Where did you grow up?”

Not seeing a reason to lie, especially since the contract hadn’t said I needed to, I gave my best smile. “Morris Heights, ma’am. My parents worked hard to take care of my three younger brothers and me, but that meant fancy dinner parties or even real family dinners were never possible.”

“Morris Heights?”

I could see the shock in Dianna’s eyes, but I kept my smile firmly in place. “I hope you meet my parents one day. They’re wonderful people. I’m sure you both appreciate the hardworking citizens in this state, considering you work for them, right?”

There was no way my smile hadn’t slipped a bit and showed my frustration, but I didn’t care. The open distaste on George and Dianna’s faces pissed me off. I might be a mess of a person, a coward who couldn’t stand being in the darkness by myself, but I’d be damned if anyone judged my family as bad!

Damian’s hand slipped beneath the table, patting my leg. He turned a wide smile to his parents. “That’s why she’ll be perfect for me. Not only will her roots help me understand what people who grew up in a more normal family situation need, I think she can also help balance me. You both have complained about my tendency to get too cocky. Bella’s sure to knock me down a peg if I pull that crap.”

My mouth fell open in shock, and I turned to look at Damian. Is that truly what he felt, what he wanted? He’d said to treat this contract as a real marriage, not worrying about the fact that we weren’t married for love, but I had no clue that part of what he valued about me was my upbringing and how normal it was compared to his own. It made me feel pleasantly tingly to know that, despite what his parents thought, he didn’t harbor any ill will against me or my family due to our financial circumstances.

My shock finally morphed to something close to joy, and I grinned at him. “I’ll knock you down anytime you need it. Don’t worry about that.”

He laughed in response. “See, Dad? She’s perfect. I’m already so happy.”

The first course of dinner was served, and everyone went silent until the server left us alone again. Then, George cleared his throat.

“She might seem perfect for you in your own mind, but have you looked into her background? There’s a lot to question there. Not only did she flee New York after accusing someone of robbing money she carried to a bank from her job, she also later maced an innocent man in a parking lot. Does that sound like the perfect woman?”

I gulped, hands trembling against the fork that I’d selected while hopping it was correct for the given dinner course. “That’s—”

“Don’t make snap judgements,” Damian rumbled, drowning out whatever I’d tried to say to defend myself, even though I had no clue what that would have been. “Bella was robbed. Did you even read the entire reports that you must have dug up? Her throat was slit, and she nearly died. It’s not like she set up some plan and stole the money herself, even though I know that’s what you’re insinuating.”

Damian’s anger was a palpable force. While I was thrilled that he wanted to defend me, I couldn’t let him argue with his father again.

I laid a calming hand against his forearm. “It’s okay. He has the right to question my past. Your parents are simply worried about you.”

“No,” he snapped. “They aren’t worried about me. They’re worried about my election chances.” He stood up, pulling me beside him. “I’ve suddenly lost my appetite. This was a bad idea.”

“Damian, wait,” his mother cried out, standing and rushing around the table to stand in our path. “Let’s talk this through. You know Dad just wants a good future for you.”

He brushed his mother’s outstretched hand away, though more gently than I’d thought he’d be capable of with as angry as he was. “No, Mom. You know he’s worried about his legacy, not my future. I’m so sick of this. I can never please him.” He once again wrapped a protective arm around me. “Come on, Bella, let’s get out of here.”

I glanced at his mother, noting the real sorrow on the woman’s face. Maybe George was a demanding father, being the real reason Damian had rebelled and caused trouble as a child, but his mother was truly worried about him. She loved him just as deeply as a mother could.

“Wait,” I said, refusing to budge when Damian tried to pull me toward the house. “This is no way to leave things. You need to talk to your parents. Tell them the ideas you came up with to turn my bad past into positives. They have a right to be worried about you.”