Chapter One — The Girl He Chose Before He Chose Power.
Astrid learned very early that love was not something the world gave freely.
She was seven when the orphanage caretaker told her she would never be adopted—too quiet, too thin, too invisible. She didn't cry. She simply nodded, folded her hands in her lap, and learned how to survive by being small.
By the time she met Asher Noah, she had already mastered the art of not asking for much.
He came into her life like a mistake fate refused to correct.
They met on a rainy afternoon outside a small café near the university. Astrid had been juggling three part-time jobs while finishing her degree, her shoes soaked through, her hair plastered to her cheeks.
Asher stepped in front of her just as she tripped.
Strong hands caught her before she fell.
"Careful," he said, voice warm, amused.
She looked up—and everything changed.
Asher Noah was nothing like the boys she knew. He wore his wealth carelessly, like it was something he didn't notice. Sharp suit. Calm eyes. Confidence carved into his bones.
"I'm fine," she said quickly, pulling away.
He smiled. "You don't look fine."
That was how it started.
Coffee turned into conversations. Conversations into evenings. Evenings into something she didn't dare name.
She learned who he was long after she fell in love.
The Noah family. One of the most influential business dynasties in the country. The kind of family whose last name opened doors without knocking.
Astrid tried to leave him that night.
"I'm not what your world needs," she whispered.
Asher pulled her into his arms and rested his forehead against hers.
"I don't care about the world," he said. "I care about you."
And for a while… that was true.
They married quietly. No press. No blessing. Only stubborn love.
Astrid thought she had won.
She didn't know that the Noah family never lost.