When one careless act sets off a chain of unexpected events, Margaret Hale is forced into a marriage with John Thornton, the very man whom she despises most of all. However, the brooding mill owner entertains some feelings of his own on the matter, and might not quite be the man she has taken him for.

Sequel to my story "From the Ashes". Over the course of their first year of marriage, John and Margaret gradually grow to know and understand each other better, as they come to terms with the past and build a future together. This fic is finished and going through editing. I will update regularly.

She is a young, independent woman with great ideals, who was torn from her beautiful home in the south, to relocate to a grimy, industrial town. He is a hardened mill master, who is haunted by a dark past. After their disastrous first encounter leaves her in shock and disgust, what will it take for them to overcome their differences and see each other for who they truly are?