Chapter 1

The Interview

“Nicole is better than you, Eloise.”

“In more ways than one… if you know what I mean.”

The words were spoken softly, almost politely.

As if what he had done wasn’t a betrayal.

“She comes from a well-known family. She has status. Stability.”

“You…” He hesitated. “You did the best you could.”

Every word struck like a blow.

She was still wearing white.

Still holding her bouquet.

Still believing love would be enough.

It wasn’t.

The clock in the lobby read exactly 8:45 a.m. when Eloise Nogueira pushed open the glass doors of the Monteiro Group. Her heels clicked firmly against the white marble floor, polished enough to reflect her fitted burgundy dress—modest, yet flattering enough to accentuate her enviable curves.

Was she nervous? A little.

Determined? Absolutely.

Three months earlier, Eloise had learned that promises weren’t enough to make someone stay.

She had been abandoned at the altar by the man who claimed to love her—and betrayed by her own family in the same breath.

Nicole, the cousin who had always envied her.

Since then, trust had become a risk she was no longer willing to take.

But now, everything was different.

She needed this job.

And not just for the salary.

Her father was sick and retired, barely able to get out of bed on his worst days. His medication was expensive, and the bills never stopped coming. Eloise didn’t have the luxury of waiting for luck to knock on her door—she had decided to go after it herself.

“Good morning,” she said to the receptionist with a faint smile. “I have an interview for the position of Mr. Augusto Monteiro’s personal secretary.”

The woman looked her up and down, as though assessing whether a girl like her could handle a boss like him. She swallowed hard before answering.

“Top floor. Office fifteen. He’s expecting you.”

Him.

His name alone carried a certain tension: Augusto Monteiro. Cold, ruthless, and demanding. A man who ruled a billion-dollar empire as if he had been born to reign—and perhaps he had. People said his green eyes could pierce straight through a person’s soul and that no secretary lasted more than a month by his side.

And there she was… walking straight into the wolf’s den.

The elevator rose in silence. Eloise adjusted her long, dark hair, took a deep breath, and tried to calm her racing heart. She wasn’t easily intimidated, but something inside her already knew that this man was about to turn her life upside down.

The doors opened.

She knocked twice on the imposing dark wooden door.

“Come in,” a deep, commanding voice called from inside.

She entered with confident steps, even as she felt his gaze travel over every inch of her body.

Augusto Monteiro looked up from his laptop.

And for the first time in months… he froze.

Brunette. Striking curves. Defiant eyes.

She didn’t smile. She didn’t bow her head.

She stood there as though the world should bend to accommodate her—and not the other way around.

“Eloise Nogueira?” he asked in an almost bored tone, trying to conceal the effect she had on him.

“That’s me,” she replied with the hint of a smirk. “But you can call me Eloise. No one pronounces my last name with quite the right amount of arrogance.”

He raised an eyebrow.

Bold.

“Sit down,” he said, gesturing toward the chair across from his desk. “Let’s see if there’s more to you than a sharp tongue.”

“And let’s see if Mr. Monteiro has more to offer than money and a reputation,” she shot back without hesitation.

Silence.

Tension.

Their eyes locked.

And it was there, during their very first exchange of barbs, that Augusto knew:

This woman would become his own personal hell.

And perhaps…

the only heaven he could ever hope to reach.