MasukHe leans forward, his voice dropping into a conspiratorial, deeply unsettling whisper as he stares directly into my green contact lenses. "In fact... you don't have to be a maid at all, Candy. I can make all of this manual labor disappear with a single phone call. If you can just agree to be my pri
"Look, Naomi, if Dennise catches you in here, she’s going to—" The distinct, heavy sound of the deadbolt locking echoes through the quiet kitchen. My entire body goes completely rigid. My instincts scream at me, a cold shock of adrenaline instantly shooting straight to my fingertips. That isn't th
I smooth down the front of my oversized, scratchy maid uniform, my fingers tracing the small bruise on my chest from where Caroline's finger violently ripped my dress open at the cemetery yesterday. My skin still feels raw from the humiliation, my eyes are burning from crying all night over Owen, a
The striking, facial structure. Sydney is an absolute, undeniable replica of the woman in the vintage photograph—Tobias’s mother. The almost psychotic protectiveness Tobias has shown toward Sydney from the very first moment he met her. The massive financial safety nets he threw under her, the fact
Before I can even open my mouth to apologize for breaking into his house, Tobias speaks. His voice is incredibly quiet, completely devoid of its usual sharp authority, yet it carries a heavy, haunting weight that pins me right to the carpet. "For years..." he murmurs, his finger continuing its slow
I stand frozen on the gravel path, the engine of Sydney’s departing car roaring in my ears. I watch the taillights of her vehicle bounce over the cemetery threshold, disappearing completely from sight, and with every inch of distance she puts between us, my heart shatters into a million jagged, irre
"Cute." The word hangs in the air, filled with a dry aristocratic amusement that makes my face heat up instantly. Owen is standing in the middle of my living room, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his tailored trousers. In this small, compact space, he looks like a giant—or a predator th
A wave of pure relief washes over me, so strong I feel dizzy. "Thank you. Oh, thank you—" "But," he interrupts, holding up a hand. "There will be clauses. I do not work for free, and as you’ve already admitted, even if you worked for the next three years, you couldn't afford my standard hourly rate
"That was stupid," Owen interrupts, his voice flat. I pause, the bluntness of his critique catching me off guard. I look at him, seeing the lack of pity in his gaze. He’s right. It was probably the most stupid thing I've ever done. I nod, agreeing with the man who is currently my only hope. "It wa
The air conditioning in Owen’s suite is hummed at a perfectly cool temperature, but I can feel a single, traitorous drop of sweat gliding slowly down the curve of my spine. My skin feels hyper-sensitive, prickling under the weight of his gaze. I try to speak, to lay out everything I thought I woul







