Unwanted Son, Cherished Groom

The Preston family mansion was cold, even in summer, a stark reminder that despite being their long-lost son, I was an intruder.

My adoptive brother Liam, the golden child, introduced me to the opulent life with a sneer, constant humiliation, and a cruel challenge: a series of contests to prove my worth, threatening to send me back to the gutter if I lost.

My biological parents, more concerned with appearances, stood by, silently endorsing my torment as I faced certain defeat, their indifference a deeper cut than Liam' s malice.