Three years ago, Hazel Vance made a choice that changed everything. One night of passion with a mysterious stranger at a masquerade ball left her with more than just memories—it left her with a son whose rare violet-blue eyes are a constant reminder of the father she'll never find.

Now a struggling single mother, Hazel desperately needs the executive assistant position at Sterling Group. The salary could finally give her two-year-old Leo the life he deserves. But her new boss, CEO Liam Sterling, is nothing like she expected.

Demanding, brilliant, and devastatingly handsome, Liam has a reputation for being impossible to work for. Most assistants don't last a week. When Hazel refuses to be intimidated by his cold demeanor and sharp tongue, something shifts between them. The attraction is immediate and electric, crackling through every professional interaction.

But it's his eyes that stop her cold. The same striking violet-blue shade that stares back at her every morning when she looks at her son.

As the tension between them builds and the lines between professional and personal begin to blur, Hazel finds herself caught between her desperate need for this job and her growing attraction to the one man who could destroy everything she's worked for.

She doesn't know that Liam has been searching for the mysterious woman from the masquerade ball ever since that night changed him forever. And he has no idea that the composed, fiery assistant who challenges him at every turn is the same woman who haunts his dreams.

When the truth finally comes to light, will it bring them together or tear apart the fragile new life Hazel has built for herself and her son?

The morning light filtering through the office windows felt like a personal attack on my exhausted eyes. I'd barely slept after my conversation with Liam last night. My mind had replayed his heartbreak over and over—the defeat in his violet-blue eyes as he accepted a fate neither of us wanted.


I placed my purse under my desk and noticed two flower arrangements waiting. The first bouquet was a gorgeous collection of red roses. My heart skipped as I reached for the card.


"For the woman who owns my heart, no matter what happens. — L"


Despite everything, a small smile tugged at my lips. Then I spotted the second arrangement—funeral lilies wrapped in black ribbon. My stomach knotted as I hesitantly picked up the typed note attached to it.


"Congratulations on being the office whore. Liam Sterling will be marrying Isabella Clairemont in thirty days. She's carrying his child, and he's only using you until the wedding. Enjoy being his last fling."


Chapter 115 - A Cruel Message and a Forced Vow