HE CHOSE HER, I DIED IN THE SNOW

Cole is the most disfavored illegitimate child of a Texas oil family. His mother, who used to be a maid in the Sterling household, was framed by the family for theft and seducing the master of the house, and eventually committed suicide. Nine-year-old Cole witnessed his mother being taken away, and since then has become cold and paranoid, firmly convinced that only power can protect the people he loves. Everyone shunned the teenager Cole, and only Lily who lived next door would squeeze through the hole in the backyard fence every day to bring him food, medicine and the stories she had drawn herself. Lily was the only light in Cole's childhood. As an adult, Cole broke away from his family, founded a hedge fund, and became a new power player on Wall Street. He cleared Lily's father of the wrongful charges stemming from a construction accident, married Lily, and made a promise that: “You are the only family I’ll ever need.” But shortly after their marriage, Cole met Scarlett Winthrop, a socialite from the East Coast. Scarlett is the daughter of a senator, whose mother passed away when she was young, leaving her with a pale and fragile disposition. After she was publicly snubbed by her fiancé Evan Cross, Cole saw in her the image of his own mother, whom he had failed to save. He began to protect Scarlett again and again.