CHAPTER 3

HAZEL COLLINS POV

Five years can change everything. It can turn a broken, naive secretary who cried over a man into someone completely unrecognizable.

"Mommy, Leo took my drawing tablet again!" Luna’s high-pitched pout echoed through the spacious luxury penthouse suite in London. She crossed her tiny arms, her silver-gray eyes—a striking feature she inherited from a man I promised to forget—glaring at her brother.

"I didn't take it," Leo replied calmly, not even looking up from his own miniature laptop where he was adjusting some basic coding blocks. "I borrowed it to fix your interface lag. You're welcome."

I couldn't help but smile, stepping out of the dressing room while fastening a pair of diamond studs to my ears. Five years ago, I landed in Europe with nothing but two broken suitcases and a shattered heart. I thought I was going to struggle in a tiny bakery forever. But life had a massive plot twist waiting for me. It turned out my late maternal grandfather wasn't just a regular businessman; he was the reclusive founder of the Montgomery-Collins Luxury Hotel Group, a multi-billion dollar hospitality empire spanning across Europe.

Because my mother had cut ties with the family decades ago, I never knew. When my grandfather’s lawyers finally tracked me down through my passport registry, everything changed. I went from being a discarded distraction to a powerful, hidden heiress. I spent the last four years training under the radar, learning the ropes of the corporate world while fiercely protecting my twins from the media.

"Both of you, pack your tablets," I said, walking over to kiss their foreheads. "Our flight to New York leaves in two hours."

Leo looked up, his dark eyebrows knitting together in a way that always gave me a ghost of a chill. He was only five, but he already had that intimidating, intense focus. "Are we going to meet the people from Anderson Airlines, Mommy?"

My heart did a slight, familiar thud at the mention of the name, but I kept my face entirely smooth. "Yes. It's just a business merger, Leo. Nothing for you to worry about."

"Julian said their company has been struggling with international logistics lately," Leo added, closing his laptop. "He says they need our capital injection badly."

I chuckled softly. Julian Montgomery—my cousin, loyal business partner, and the only person who knew the truth about my past—had clearly been talking too much business around the kids. But Leo was right. Anderson Airlines had hit a rough patch over the last three years due to bad management decisions from Arthur Anderson and a failed partnership with the Harringtons. They needed this merger with my hotel group to survive the global market.

"Mommy, will we get to see the big planes?" Luna asked, her eyes lighting up with genuine excitement. Unlike her serious brother, Luna was a ball of pure energy.

"Yes, sweetie. We're flying VIP all the way," I said, checking my reflection in the full-length mirror.

The woman looking back at me wasn't the girl who wore cheap pencil skirts and blended into the background. I was wearing a tailored cream blazer, a matching silk top, and tailored trousers. My long dark hair fell in perfect, elegant waves, and my gaze was cool, sharp, and confident. I had built a fortress around my heart, and no one from my past was ever going to break through it again.

Julian walked into the suite right on cue, checking his luxury watch. "Car is downstairs, Hazel. The private boarding gate is cleared. Are you ready to head back to the city that broke you?"

I grabbed my designer handbag and looked at my beautiful, brilliant twins. They were my strength. They were the only good thing that came out of that toxic relationship.

"I'm not the girl they broke anymore, Julian," I said, my voice steady and completely devoid of fear. "Let's go sign some papers."