I was devoted to Tom Collin, a man whose ambition I once admired. I gave up my career, my future, my entire identity for him. I was the perfect wife while he built his empire. But when he reached the top, I became invisible.
Then I found him with her—his college ex, the woman who’d abandoned him when he had nothing. When I confronted him, the man I married vanished, replaced by a monster whose hands left bruises on my skin.
I was finally ready to leave. But I never got the chance. He left our five-year-old daughter, Joy, alone for his mistress. And in his absence, my baby was murdered.
I buried my child, and with her, the weak woman I used to be. In a haze of grief, I let a handsome stranger hold me for one night in Italy—a single moment of oblivion.
Five years later, I live for one purpose: Revenge. Tom Collin will pay for what he did. He has no idea the woman now standing before him. But my new boss… he might. The magnetic CEO of our rival company is the stranger from that night. And he doesn’t know he’s the father of my secret daughter.


I watched Joy's yellow school bus disappear around the corner, its rumbling engine growing fainter until silence settled over the empty street. My chest tightened with each passing second, as if an invisible cord connecting us was being stretched beyond its limit.


This morning had brought another humbling moment when I called Joy's school principal. I had to explain that my daughter would now be riding the bus instead of arriving in the sleek black sedan she was accustomed to. The surprise in his voice cut deeper than I expected. After all, it wasn't typical for Tom Collin's daughter to suddenly abandon her privileged transportation.


The principal remained courteous, though he did mention that the bus fee would need to be included with her upcoming tuition payment. Another financial obligation to add to my growing list.


Chapter 24 - Chapter 24 Reality Bites Hard