Sofia March has spent her life trying to save March Hall, the crumbling family estate that raised her, shaped her, and trapped her. But when her grandmother’s will reveals a cruel condition, Sofia is left with six weeks to marry or lose everything. Wren Abbott, the blunt and beautiful owner of the village bookshop, has no patience for aristocrats or their problems. But her beloved shop is in danger, and Sofia’s impossible proposal may be the only way to save it. One year of marriage. Separate rooms. No feelings. At first, their arrangement is all rules, sharp words, and careful distance. But as Sofia moves into the crooked flat above the bookshop, she begins to discover a warmer, messier life than the one she was born into. And Wren begins to understand that Sofia’s polished manners hide a lonely woman who has spent her life being useful, but never truly chosen. When their bargain turns into something real, Sofia must decide whether to keep living for the legacy she inherited, or fight for the love she chose.