chapter 001

NORA POV

The only thing keeping me here was my son. If Liam weren’t burning up with a fever back at the hospital, I would have torn off this ridiculous, tight black uniform vest and walked out the door the second I arrived.

But instead, I stood at the edge of the room, holding a silver tray of champagne flutes with hands that wouldn't stop shaking. My friend Sarah had practically begged me on her knees to cover this shift for her. I had been so desperate to make extra cash that I hadn't even asked details about the event. All I knew was that it was a wedding.

“It pays double for last-minute covers, Nora." She had said. "And the elite crowd always tips like crazy.”

They didn't tip, though. They just stared through me like I was a part of the architecture. I kept my chin up, keeping my eyes and the tray steady, counting down the minutes until I could collect my cash and run to the hospital.

This was not the time to be weak or emotional. I had to save my son.

“Has anyone seen Mr. Valerius?” a voice called out nearby. “The groom’s family is waiting for the toast.”

My body stiffened immediately and I fought the urge to turn around. Valerius?! That name rang a bell. Why was I hearing it here, of all places?

It wasn't a common name. In fact, I only knew one family with that name. My heart started to beat heavily, and my hands began to shake so much that it made the crystal glasses on my tray clink together. If any Valerius was in this party, it meant there was a chance I could run into... him.

Five years ago was the last time I had seen him. I'd been preparing to tell him about my pregnancy, when his mother had threatened to ruin my life and my baby's if I didn't leave. I could never forget that day, even if I tried. I had been forced to walk away from him forever, and now, I could see him again.

No... I shook my head. New Orleans was a massive city. There were other people who bore the last name Valerius.

But as I stepped closer to a large circle of guests to balance the tray against a column, my eyes scanned the crowd. And then I saw the second last person I wanted to see: Jennifer Winston.

She was standing in the center of a group of women, laughing at something one of them said. Her blonde hair was styled in perfect waves, and she was wearing an expensive looking coral-pink designer gown.

Panic flooded my veins immediately. If Jennifer was here, then for sure, Eric was too. And he was the very last person I wanted to run into.

I turned on my heel, desperate to blend into the shadows of the catering kitchen. I just needed to hide for the rest of the night. If I could stay in the back, washing glasses or prepping trays, I could get my money and leave without anyone noticing me.

“Nora?”

Oh, no. She had seen me!

I froze in my tracks. Closing my eyes for a fraction of a second, I forced my expression into something blank before turning around.

Jennifer walked toward me, her heels clicking loudly against the marble. The group of women followed her like a pack of loyal wolves.

“My God, it really is you!" Jennifer exclaimed, her eyes dragging down my uniform, from the cheap white collar to the apron tied around my waist. A cruel smile spread across her lips. “I heard your family hit a bit of a rough patch after you ran away, but I never imagined you’d sink this low.”

"Hello, Jennifer,” I replied in what I hoped was a calm voice. “Good to see you haven’t changed at all.”

“Oh, look at you, still trying to act like you’re above everyone,” she laughed, turning to her friends. “You guys remember Nora, right? Nora Bellick? The gold-digger who broke Eric’s heart five years ago because she found someone with a bigger bank account? Looks like your rich benefactor threw you out with the trash.”

The women chuckled, whispering behind their hands.

The sting of her words burned, but I refused to let her see me bleed. I wasn't that vulnerable girl from five years ago anymore. I had a son to fight for.

“At least I’m working for my money, Jennifer,” I retorted. “Which is more than can be said for someone who spent the last five years waiting like a dog under Eric’s table, hoping for a scrap of his attention. Did you finally manage to beg your way into his life?"

Jennifer’s face contorted with instant rage. Her eyes darted to the full champagne glass in her hand, and before I could move away, she jerked her wrist forward.

The cold, sticky alcohol splashed directly over my chest, soaking through my white shirt and dripping down my vest. Several people gasped and turned to look at me.

“Oh, oops,” Jennifer gasped, though her eyes flashed with venom. “My hand slipped. But to be honest, it’s an improvement. You should thank me. It’s the closest you’ll ever get to luxury again, especially tonight. Eric is here, did you know?"

"Eric?" I repeated. I knew I had left him. I knew I had no right to feel this agonizing rip in my chest, but hearing his name again, knowing that Jennifer had finally won him, felt like a physical blow.

“Is there a problem here?” A deep and familiar voice cut through the chatter of the ballroom. It was as though the air had been sucked out of my lungs in that moment.

My breath caught the moment I saw him. Five years had changed Eric in all the ways that mattered. Gone was the carefree boy who used to hold my hand beneath the rain. In his place stood a powerful, impossibly handsome man in a tailored black tuxedo, his presence commanding the entire room without effort.

Conversations quieted as guests instinctively stepped aside for him. My heart pounded against my ribs as his dark gaze swept across the crowd and stopped on me. For one terrible moment, the world seemed to disappear, leaving only Eric and the memories I had spent five years trying to bury. I saw the flash of recognition in his dark gaze, followed immediately by a look of horror.

“Eric, darling,” Jennifer immediately whined, stepping into his space and wrapping her hand around his arm. She pointed a red-nailed finger at me. “This waitress was being rude to me. She insulted our families, and then she tried to knock my drink out of my hand!"

Eric didn't even give Jennifer a glance. His eyes remained on mine, and even I couldn't look away.

Seeing him after five years made my throat ache with an overwhelming wave of heartbreak. This was the boy who used to hold my hand in the rain. This was the man who had promised me the world. Now, he was looking at me as if I was dirt under his expensive shoes. Eric seized Jennifer’s wrist and forced her hand off his arm, his gaze never leaving mine..

He took a step closer to me, his gaze dropping to the wet, translucent fabric of my shirt, then back up to my face.

“Five years, you've been gone. And this is how you choose to reintroduce yourself? You certainly know how to make an entrance.”

The words stung me. He wasn't going to defend me. He believed Jennifer's lies.

“I was just leaving,” I replied with as much dignity as I could muster. I set the silver tray down on a nearby table, my chest tight with unshed tears. I couldn't stay here. I didn't care about the money anymore, I just needed to escape Eric.

I turned to walk away, but a firm grip wrapped around my wrist.

"I haven't asked you to leave," he insisted.

"What do you want from me? Hasn't your girlfriend done enough to embarrass me? Let go!" I roared.

But instead, Eric just held on even tighter. I tried to pull back, but his hold was iron-clad. Suddenly, my phone in my apron pocket buzzed against my thigh.

With my free hand, I quickly yanked the phone out to silence it before it could disrupt anyone else. But right across the center of the display, the contact name was written in bold letters: MY BABY. Someone was calling me through Liam's phone.

Eric glanced down at the screen, reading the words. When he looked back up at me, the coldness in his eyes had turned into a dark, swirling storm of shock and fury.

“You have a child?”