The hotel hosting Miles and Christy's engagement gala was the kind of place that pretended old money had built it. Marble floors veined like lightning stretched across the vast lobby, reflecting the glow of chandeliers dripping with crystal from impossibly high ceilings. Gold trim decorated every archway and molding, the detailing so elaborate it bordered on theatrical. Everything shone. Too bright. Too polished. The entire place felt like a stage set designed to convince people they were witnessing elegance rather than illusion.
It was the sort of beauty that depended on distance. The closer someone looked, the easier it became to see the effort holding it together.
