Ophelia pushed open the front door of the Delgado mansion, the familiar scent of polished wood greeting her like an old, uninvited memory.
She had spent the day walking the halls of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas—laughing, learning, and for the first time in years, tasting freedom. The hours she'd spent in class had felt like a fragile bubble of normalcy, a glimpse of the life she'd once dreamed of. She had taken furious notes, argued passionately in discussion, and even shared a hurried coffee break with Chris Hughes—the charming stranger who made her laugh without trying.
For a few precious hours, she wasn't someone's asset. She was just… Ophelia.
But the moment she stepped through that door, the world she'd borrowed crumbled to dust.
Darren Cruz Delgado was waiting.
