로그인Genevieve's POV I knew we were running out of time the moment Eddie told me that Dad was expected to return home soon.For the past few weeks, my mother's room had become our unofficial crime scene, although none of us had dared to call it that. We had searched through the obvious things, looked through old photographs and opened drawers whenever we thought we might find something connected to her death, but we had always stopped before going too far.That was about to change.Once Dad returned to the house, searching through my mother's belongings would become almost impossible without raising questions.So tonight, we were taking everything.Zane stood near the wardrobe while Eddie carefully opened another drawer."Be careful with those," I said when I saw him pulling out several old notebooks."I am being careful," Eddie replied. "I'm treating these like ancient treasure."Zane glanced at him."Considering how much you talk, I'm surprised you're capable of being careful."Eddie pl
ZANE'S POVI had barely managed to pull Janelle closer when she kissed me again.We were supposed to be discussing the gala.At least, that was how the conversation had started.Somehow, the sketches scattered across her desk had been pushed aside, the documents had been forgotten, and my hands were resting around her waist while she stood between me and the edge of her desk.I smiled against her lips.“You're distracting me.”She laughed softly. “You started it.”“I did not.”“You absolutely did.”I leaned down and kissed her again, slower this time. Her fingers curled around the front of my shirt as she pulled me closer, and for a few seconds, nothing else existed.Then the office door suddenly swung open.“Oh my God!”Janelle jumped away from me so quickly that I nearly laughed.Eddie stood frozen in the doorway.His eyes moved from Janelle to me, then to the papers scattered across the desk before returning to us.He slowly placed a hand over his chest.“I am so sorry.”I raised
Richard's POV I had been trying to enjoy my vacation, but Sterling House had made that increasingly difficult.I was supposed to be spending my days beside the pool, drinking expensive whiskey and pretending the company could survive without me for a few more days.Instead, I was sitting on the balcony of my villa with my laptop open, staring at another email from Sterling House.Another decision had been made without me.Another instruction had come from the anonymous CEO.I shut the laptop with a frustrated sigh.Whoever this person was, they were becoming a problem.My phone rang.I picked it up."Any news?"The man I had hired to keep an eye on Sterling House employees spoke quietly. "Not much, sir. We've been monitoring several people, but nobody has given us anything useful.""Who looks suspicious?"There was a pause."Eddie."I frowned."Eddie?""Yes."I almost laughed."That boy?""He seems to be around several people involved with the recent changes.""Of course he is. He's
Janelle's POVI stared at myself in the mirror for several seconds before turning sideways, then slowly facing the mirror again.Something was different.I couldn't quite explain when it had happened, but the woman staring back at me no longer looked like the woman who had stood in this same bathroom weeks ago, tugging at her clothes and avoiding photographs whenever possible.My face had become slimmer, my jawline was more defined, and the fullness around my cheeks had reduced enough for my features to look sharper. Even my waist seemed smaller, and some of the clothes I had once struggled to wear were now hanging differently on my body.I pulled down the hem of my dress and smiled at my reflection.I actually liked what I saw.That realization still surprised me.For years, I had trained myself to avoid mirrors unless absolutely necessary. I knew exactly which angles made me look bigger, which outfits hid my stomach and which photographs I needed to delete before anyone saw them. I
RICHARD'S POVI was stretched out on a poolside chair with a glass of champagne beside me when Brenda's name appeared on my phone for the third time in less than ten minutes.I ignored the first two calls because I knew my daughter well enough to recognize when she was calling with one of her endless complaints. The third call, however, made me sigh as I reached for the phone."Brenda, I'm on vacation.""Dad, I don't care where you are right now. I need you to listen to me."I sat up when I heard the anger in her voice."What happened?""They fired me."I frowned."Who fired you?""Sterling House."For a moment, I thought I had misheard her."What do you mean, Sterling House fired you?""They removed me from the modeling roster. They sent me an official notice saying I'm no longer one of their models, and they're demanding that I return money they claim I received without doing enough work."I slowly lowered my glass."Who authorized it?""That's the problem. Nobody will tell me."I l
BRENDA'S POVI was sitting on the couch with my legs tucked beneath me, munching on cookies while scrolling through my phone when it pinged with a notification.I barely glanced at it at first.Then I saw the sender.Sterling House.My hand stopped halfway to my mouth.I frowned and opened the email.The first few lines looked harmless enough. Corporate language. Formal greetings. The kind of polished nonsense companies used when they wanted to deliver bad news without actually sounding cruel.I kept reading.By the time I reached the middle of the email, the cookie in my hand had gone completely forgotten.My official modeling relationship with Sterling House had been terminated.My upcoming campaigns were being cancelled or reviewed.I would no longer be listed among the company's official models.I stared at the screen."What?"I read it again.Then a third time."No."I sat up straight.There had to be a mistake.Something like this couldn't happen without Dad knowing about it.St







