Novels by Zanny

Mira woke to find Daniel already gone. The bed was made on his side, no evidence he'd been there except the slight indent in the pillow.Her phone showed two missed calls from an unknown number and a text from Daniel's assistant Julia."Mrs. Chen, please call me when you wake. We need to discuss your schedule."Her schedule. As if she was important enough to have one.Mira called back, and Julia answered immediately."Mrs. Chen, thank you for getting back to me. Mr. Chen has several events this week that require your attendance.""Events?""Yes. Tonight is a charity gala benefiting children's literacy. Tomorrow evening is a business dinner with potential investors. Friday is the Chen Technologies quarterly meeting where you'll be introduced to the board."Mira's stomach dropped. "I don't know if I'm ready for all that.""Mr. Chen thought you might say that. He's arranged for Victoria Maxwell to meet with you this afternoon. She'll help with wardrobe and etiquette coaching.""Etiquette

Mira woke to shouting.It took her a moment to orient herself in the unfamiliar darkness. Then she heard Daniel's voice, loud and angry, coming from somewhere below.She checked her phone. Three in the morning.Wrapping herself in a robe, she crept to the top of the stairs. Light spilled from Daniel's study. His voice carried clearly."I don't care what time it is there. You don't get to call after ten years of silence and expect me to drop everything."A pause."No, she can't speak to my wife. Neither of you can."Mira's breath caught. His parents."Because you lost that right when you sent an eight-year-old child away so you could pursue your careers." Daniel's voice was controlled fury. "I'm not doing this with you. Don't call again."Something crashed. The sound of glass breaking.Mira should go back to bed. This wasn't her business. But her feet carried her down the stairs anyway.The study door was ajar. Through it, she could see Daniel standing amid broken glass, his hand bleed

Mira avoided Daniel for the rest of the day. It wasn't difficult. He stayed in his study, and she stayed in the guest suite, unpacking and trying to adjust to her new reality.By evening, hunger forced her out. She found Mrs. Kim in the kitchen preparing dinner."Mr. Chen is still working," Mrs. Kim said. "But I've made enough for both of you. Will you eat together?""I don't think so.""Mira." Mrs. Kim's tone was gentle but firm. "You're married now. That means sitting down for meals together, even when things are difficult.""This isn't a real marriage.""Isn't it?" Mrs. Kim raised an eyebrow. "You're living in his home. You visit his dying grandmother. Your name is legally his. Seems real enough to me."Mira wanted to argue but couldn't find the words."Go tell him dinner is ready," Mrs. Kim said. "I'll set the dining room."Mira walked to the study and knocked. No answer. She knocked again, harder."I'm busy," Daniel called."Dinner's ready.""I'll eat later."Mira opened the door

Daniel didn't speak during the drive home. His hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, his jaw set. Mira had learned enough about him in the past day to know when to stay quiet.They were almost to the estate when his phone rang. He glanced at the screen and his expression darkened further."What?" he answered, his tone sharp.Mira couldn't hear the other side of the conversation, but she watched Daniel's face carefully."Tell them no comment," he said. "I don't care what they're offering. The answer is no."A pause."She's not giving interviews. Not now, not ever. Make that clear."He ended the call and immediately another came through. This time he sent it to voicemail."What's happening?" Mira asked."Media outlets want exclusive interviews. They're offering money.""How much money?""Enough that most people would say yes." He pulled through the estate gates. "But you're not most people. You're my wife. That means you don't talk to reporters.""I wasn't planning to.""Good." He p

The clothes Mrs. Kim had selected were beautiful and clearly expensive. Mira chose a simple navy dress that looked professional without being too formal. It fit perfectly, which meant someone had guessed her size correctly.She didn't want to think about how they'd managed that.When she emerged, Daniel was waiting by the door, typing on his phone. He looked up and something crossed his face, too quick for her to read."You look nice," he said."Mrs. Kim has good taste.""She does." He pocketed his phone. "I should warn you. My grandmother will have seen all the news coverage. She'll want to know why we didn't tell her sooner about our relationship.""What do we say?""The truth. We wanted to wait until we were certain. When her health declined, we decided not to wait any longer."Mira nodded, practicing the words in her head. She'd always been a terrible liar. Her mother used to say her face gave away every secret.The drive to the hospital was quiet. Daniel seemed lost in thought, h

When Daniel returned to the bedroom three hours later, he found Mira asleep on the couch by the windows, still fully dressed. She'd kicked off her shoes, and her hair had come partially loose from its bun. In sleep, her face had relaxed, and he could see past the stress and uncertainty to the woman underneath.She was beautiful, he realized. Not in the polished, perfect way of the women who usually orbited his world, but in a way that seemed more real somehow.He should wake her, but found himself reluctant to disturb her rest. Instead, he retrieved a blanket from the closet and draped it over her carefully. She stirred slightly but didn't wake.His phone buzzed with an email from Julia. She'd drafted the press statement and already started fielding calls from media outlets. The story would break online within hours. By morning, Mira's face would be everywhere, her life dissected by strangers.Daniel felt a flash of guilt. He'd warned her, but he wasn't sure she fully understood what