THE HOUSE KEEPER
You know those days when you're absolutely certain you hate someone's guts? Every little thing about them drives you crazy the way they scrunch their nose at your cooking, the critical tone when they point out dust on a shelf, the cold indifference in their eyes when they walk past you like you're invisible.
That's how I feel about him. Julian Blackwood. My boss. The billionaire who treats me like I'm beneath his notice unless I'm doing something wrong.
And then I found out someone wanted him dead.
I should have let it happen. I should have kept my mouth shut and watched the empire crumble around the man who made my life miserable.
But here's the thing about hate it's dangerously close to something else. Something I refuse to admit even to myself.
When I stumbled onto that security footage, when I heard the guard's plan to take everything from Julian and bury him six feet under, I had a choice to make. Walk away and let karma do its work, or warn the man who couldn't stand the sight of me.
I made the choice I never expected.
And now I'm trapped in his penthouse, under his protection, forced to spend every waking moment with the man who makes my blood boil and my heart race in equal measure.
I didn't save him because I wanted something.
But now he's looking at me differently, and I'm starting to wonder if the real danger wasn't the guard with the gun but the billionaire with the piercing eyes who's decided I'm worth keeping.
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Chapter: Chapter 75:A blanket And a Bad TextZoe's POVSomeone had wrapped Zoe in three blankets and a silver foil sheet, but she was still shaking.She sat on the edge of an ambulance bumper with her feet inside a plastic bucket of warm water. She held a cup of hot tea between both hands.Her hair was drying in stiff, salty strands.Her orange jumpsuit had been cut off and replaced with hospital scrubs that were at least three sizes too big.Her wrists were finally free, but red marks circled them where the cuffs had been."Drink," the paramedic said. "All of it.""It's really hot.""That's the idea."Zoe took a careful sip.It tasted like sugar, lemon, and something close to heaven.She closed her eyes for a moment.The pier was bright with lights now.Police cars surrounded the lot, their red and blue lights spinning across the wet ground. Yellow police tape moved in the cold wind.Kenny sat in the back of an open police car with a blanket around his shoulders. He was giving his statement to Kowalski.Boyle was lying on a str
Last Updated: 2026-10-05
Chapter: Chapter 74:Ice waterJulian's POVHe heard the shot from a quarter mile away.Julian was leaning out of the passenger window of Kowalski's unmarked car. A small black tracking screen glowed in his hand.Then the sound came.A sharp crack rolled across the empty industrial lots like thunder.Julian's stomach dropped."That was a gun," Kowalski said."Drive!""I'm driving!"The car raced down Gantry Street, its headlights bouncing over the wet road.Behind them, three police cruisers had joined the chase. Their red and blue lights reflected off the wet pavement, making it look like a river of moving colors.Julian stared at the tracking screen.The tiny dot was still blinking.The small beacon inside Renata's locket was working.The signal was coming from the end of a long, dark piece of land stretching into the East River."There," Julian said.He pointed ahead."The pier."Kowalski turned sharply.The car crashed through the broken gate, sending gravel flying.The headlights swept across the lot.Julian s
Last Updated: 2026-10-05
Chapter: Chapter 73:The Wrong RoadZoe's POVThe transfer van smelled like sweat, cigarette smoke, and old vomit.Zoe sat on a hard metal bench fixed to the floor. Her wrists were cuffed behind her back, and her shoulders were beginning to ache from being held in the same position for so long.The only light inside the van came through a narrow piece of wire-covered glass in the door. Through it, she could see pieces of the city rushing past.A steel mesh wall separated her from the front seat.Two men sat there with their backs to her.Zoe kept her eyes on the road.She counted every turn.Left at the corner.Right at the traffic light.Straight past the large bridge.She frowned.This was not the road to Rikers Island.She knew that road.Julian had explained it to her once, during a long argument about what would happen if either of them ever got arrested.The Queens bridge, he had said.Then the causeway.She had teased him for always planning for the worst.Now she was living through exactly that.The man in the p
Last Updated: 2026-10-05
Chapter: Chapter 72: Margaret Asks for a FavorJulian's POVAt eleven o'clock that night, Julian stood on a marble doorstep in Greenwich Village and watched his mother ring a doorbell for the first time in twenty-six years."Are you sure about this?" he asked."No," Margaret said.She wore a simple black coat and low heels. Her silver hair was neatly pinned up. Her hands were folded in front of her, perfectly still, but Julian could see that her knuckles were white."But I'm doing it anyway."The door opened.A small, gray-haired woman wearing a flannel bathrobe stood there. A pair of half-moon glasses rested on her nose.She looked at Margaret and squinted.Then she gasped."Margaret Blackwood," she said. "Good heavens.""Catherine." Margaret's voice was calm. "I know it's late.""It's eleven at night.""I know.""You haven't spoken to me since nineteen ninety-eight.""I know that too."Judge Catherine Ortiz of the Federal District Court looked at Margaret for a long moment.Then she looked at Julian.He stood behind his mother,
Last Updated: 2026-10-05
Chapter: Chapter 71:The Bread GirlZoe's POV"Turn around. Hands on the wall. Feet apart."Zoe did what she was told. The wall was cold and painted a dirty yellow. Her bandaged palms hurt as they touched the concrete. Behind her, a heavy woman in a gray uniform pulled on a pair of rubber gloves. The sound was sharp, almost like a slap."You know the drill," the woman said. Her badge read REYES. "Or maybe you don't. Fancy lady like you.""I'm not a fancy lady.""You're on the news, sweetheart. 'The Housekeeper and the Heir.'" Reyes searched her roughly, pressing hard against her ribs, hips, and ankles. "Big-shot billionaire's girl. Now you get to see how the rest of us live."Zoe kept quiet. She had learned a long time ago that some people were looking for a fight, and the best thing to do was give them nothing to use against her."Empty your pockets.""I don't have any.""Then take off your shoes."Zoe took them off. Her bare feet touched the freezing floor.They took her fingerprints, one thumb at a time, pressing eac
Last Updated: 2026-10-05
Chapter: Chapter 70:the WarrantJulian's POVJulian was already in the car when the second message arrived.Julian. He saw us. I've got everything on tape. Elena and I are running.Julian's heart jumped.He drove through Queens traffic as fast as he could, changing lanes whenever there was space.One hand stayed on the steering wheel.The other held his phone as he called Zoe again and again.She didn't answer.The phone kept ringing.Beside him, Kowalski spoke loudly into his radio."Queensbridge Self Storage! Repeat, we need units at Queensbridge Self Storage! Two civilians are in danger!""Come on," Julian whispered.He pressed the phone to his ear again."Come on, Zoe. Pick up. Please pick up."Finally, the call connected."Julian."Her voice was breathless."Julian, we're okay. We're okay."Julian let out a shaky breath."Where are you?""Elena is—"Zoe suddenly laughed."Elena, stop laughing!"Julian frowned."What happened?""Elena hit him with a fire extinguisher."Julian stared at the road."She what?""She
Last Updated: 2026-10-05
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