To escape the wedding of her backstabbing cousin and ex-boyfriend, Hazel Vance seeks oblivion at a masquerade ball. A passionate, anonymous encounter leaves her with a son, the only clue to his father a pair of striking, violet-blue eyes. Three years later, she becomes the executive assistant to Liam Sterling, an influential and notoriously difficult CEO whose gaze feels hauntingly familiar. But Liam wants nothing to do with his new assistant; he is obsessed with finding a woman who vanished into the night, the one ghost he can’t forget.

Chapter 19 - Sweet Surrender and Strategic Retreat


Hazel accepted the bag from my hands, her expression a mixture of curiosity and wariness. I seized the moment to cut a generous piece of chocolate cake, holding the fork toward her lips. Before she could protest, I slipped it into her mouth, my grin widening as she automatically closed her lips around the silver.


I took my own bite while watching her chew slowly, her eyes never leaving mine. When she finally opened the bag and extracted the small box, placing it carefully on her lap, I could barely contain my amusement. The lid came off, revealing the delicate lace panties inside.


Her jaw went slack. The shock on her face was priceless.


I immediately offered her another forkful of cake, effectively silencing whatever sharp retort was forming on her tongue. Her eyes blazed with a combination of outrage and something else entirely, something that made my pulse quicken.


Chapter 19 - Chapter 19 - Sweet Surrender and Strategic Retreat