LOGINEloise Gutierrez has been under the scholarship of Scarlett and Darius Aldama from high school until she graduated from college. She is close to the Aldama family because her father, Greg, serves as Darius Aldama's right-hand man. Eloise also grew up in the Aldama mansion, where she spent most of her childhood. Ever since she was young, she had a huge crush on Tanner, Scarlett and Darius's son. Tanner is eight years older than Eloise, but to her, that is the perfect age gap. The longer she lived in the mansion, the deeper her feelings for Tanner grew. However, he only sees her as a younger sister whom he often loves to tease. Tanner has no idea how she truly feels about him, so Eloise has decided to love him from afar.
Meanwhile, Tanner has everything a woman could look for in a man. He is intelligent, wealthy, handsome, and a successful businessman. His only flaw is his womanizing ways. He changes girlfriends every week and even brings women into his office. His habit eventually puts his life in danger when he sleeps with the wife of a well-known underground boss. Fortunately, Tanner survives the incident, although he spends nearly a week in the hospital recovering from his injuries.
Terrified for her son's safety after the threats from his enemy, Scarlett Aldama insists that Tanner marry Eloise to protect him. Eloise agrees for Tanner's safety, as well as for the chance to be closer to the man she has secretly loved for years. Although Tanner reluctantly agrees to the arrangement, he asks that they keep their marriage a secret.
How will their relationship unfold, especially now that Eloise is about to start working at Tanner's company as his new secretary? Is love still possible under these circumstances?
Eloise couldn't speak right away after hearing Tanner's words. Even though she knew it was all part of their arrangement, she couldn't stop herself from reading something more into what he'd said."I want my bride to be the most beautiful woman..."She didn't know why, but something in her chest suddenly ached."Don't worry. We'll make sure she stands out," the designer said enthusiastically, continuing to assess her from head to toe. "She has a beautiful figure. She'll be easy to dress."Scarlett smiled. "That's exactly what I want."Eloise remained silent as she stood there. She didn't join in the conversation because, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get Tanner's words out of her head.She shouldn't be thinking about them this way. She shouldn't be expecting them to mean something more. But why did it feel as though he'd meant every word?A few minutes later, the designer left with Scarlett, leaving Eloise alone in the room with Tanner.Silence suddenly settled over them.
Eloise leaned against the wall across from Tanner's room, crossing her arms over her chest as she tried to shake off her irritation. Unfortunately, she could still hear the nurse's giggly laughter coming from inside."Eloise?"She turned toward the voice and was slightly surprised to see a familiar face."Ranier," she greeted him.He smiled and immediately walked over to her. "Is this why you couldn't make it to our plans? Who's sick? A family member?"Eloise glanced at Tanner's closed bedroom door and pointed toward it with her chin."What are you doing here?" she asked, deliberately shifting the conversation away from Tanner's room.Ranier smiled and lifted the paper bag he was carrying. "My sister is doing her internship here. I just brought her lunch."Eloise nodded. She remembered Ranier mentioning before that almost everyone in his family worked in the medical field.The door to Tanner's room opened, and the nurse who had been happily chatting with him moments earlier stepped ou
Eloise slammed the plate of peeled grapes onto the bedside table for Tanner to eat."You're finishing all of those," she warned, glaring at him before returning to the sofa where she'd been sitting earlier.Tanner tried to reach for the plate, but his injured leg made it difficult for him to move properly. "I can't reach it," he complained, stretching his arm toward the grapes.Annoyed, Eloise got to her feet again. She picked up the plate and placed it directly on Tanner's thigh. In her irritation, she set it down a little too forcefully, causing Tanner to groan in pain."Ouch, fuck!" he grunted, his face contorting.Eloise's eyes widened, and she hurriedly snatched the plate off his thigh, suddenly panicking. "S-Sorry! I didn't... I didn't mean to!""Can't you be gentle with me, Eloise?" Tanner snapped irritably. The pain was unmistakable in his eyes as he glared at her."I already apologized, didn't I? It was an accident." Eloise bit her lip, suddenly overcome with guilt. "I'll fee
Eloise had been staring at the ceiling for a while now, twirling the ends of her hair around her fingers. She wore a goofy smile, unable to shake the overwhelming excitement bubbling inside her."I'm getting married to Tanner? I'm really getting married!" she kept whispering to the air, as if trying to convince herself that it wasn't a dream.She rolled around on her bed, kicking her feet in sheer delight. "Mrs. Aldama... Mrs. Eloise Aldama... Shit, that sounds so damn good!"Her imagination began to run wild. She could already picture Tanner standing at the altar, looking as handsome and serious as ever while she walked toward him in a magnificent white wedding gown.She knew she would end up getting hurt when their two-year arrangement came to an end and they had to go their separate ways. But that was still a long way off. For now, she wanted to make the most of every second she got to spend with him. She would worry about the heartbreak when the time came. What mattered was that,
Tanner and his mother, Scarlett, turned toward the doorway at the same time, where Eloise sat sprawled on the floor. Tanner's brows briefly furrowed in confusion, while Eloise forced an awkward smile, embarrassed by her clumsy entrance."Eloise," Scarlett called, immediately walking over to help her up. "What are you doing down there? I was going to ask Greg to call you, but since you're already here, it's better that you know.""Mom," Tanner interjected, clearly hoping to stop her from continuing, but Scarlett refused to back down."I've always treated you as my own daughter. I love you just as much as I love Lavender," Scarlett began, gently holding Eloise by the arms.Eloise glanced at Tanner, who was currently rubbing the bridge of his nose, before quickly turning her attention back to Scarlett."I know that," she replied softly."Eloise, sweetheart. This is the first time I'm asking you for a favor. Tanner is in danger. There are people who want him dead. Please help him. Marry h
Greg entered Tanner's room, followed by Mendoza. Scarlett and Darius were there, sitting close together with their heads resting against each other, a blanket draped over their shoulders.Seeing her son in this condition shattered Scarlett's heart into a million pieces. Tanner had been a handful ever since he was a little boy, and she'd lost count of how many times she'd scolded him for his mischief. But no matter how much trouble he caused, she had never wanted to see her son lying in a hospital bed like this."Boss..." Mendoza called softly, holding a brown folder in his hands.Scarlett and Darius immediately straightened in their seats, exhaustion and tension evident on their faces."Have you found anything?" Darius asked seriously.Mendoza nodded and quickly handed him the folder. The moment Darius opened it, several candid photographs of Tanner fell into view. In the pictures, the young man was clearly drunk, his arm wrapped around the waist of a woman who appeared to be several







