Semua Bab Torn Between Vows: Bab 1 - Bab 10

The bride was going to be twenty minutes late.Catherine Hayes stood in the ceremony staging area of the Plaza Hotel's Grand Ballroom, her tablet clutched against her chest, watching her latest client—a hedge fund heiress with excellent taste and terrible time management—argue with her hairstylist about the precise angle of her cathedral veil."It needs to float," the bride insisted, her voice climbing toward hysteria. "Like I'm walking on clouds. Like I'm an actual angel descending from heaven."Catherine stepped forward with her professional smile firmly in place, the one that had salvaged seventeen near-disasters this month alone. "Lauren, you look absolutely breathtaking. But the string quartet has been playing for forty minutes, and your guests are getting restless. What if we do one final adjustment while walking toward the doors? That way your entrance will be perfectly timed with the music swell."It was a complete fabrication—the quartet could play for hours—but it gave Laure

Robert Cho arrived at the Meridian Hotel forty-five minutes later with a leather briefcase and the unflappable demeanor of someone accustomed to drafting unusual contracts at unusual hours. He was in his late fifties, Korean-American, with silver-threaded hair and sharp eyes that assessed Catherine with obvious curiosity."This is highly irregular," Robert said, setting up his laptop on the conference room table. "Even for you, Harry.""Irregular situations require creative solutions." Harry had removed his tuxedo jacket and rolled up his shirtsleeves, looking more human and somehow more dangerous in the partial undress. "Ms. Hayes needs a standard contract for temporary services rendered. Six months. Specific terms regarding public appearances and compensation."Robert's expression suggested he knew exactly what kind of "services" they were discussing, but he was too professional to comment directly. Instead, he turned to Catherine. "Ms. Hayes, I need to ask if you've consulted with

The gossip sites had a field day.Catherine discovered this Monday morning when she arrived at Ever After Events to find her assistant receptionist, Melissa, staring at a computer screen with wide eyes."You're trending," Melissa announced without preamble. "Like, actually trending. #BlackwellMystery has 47,000 tweets."Catherine set down her coffee and peered at the screen. Sure enough, Twitter was exploding with speculation about her relationship with Harry. Some tweets were positive ("She looks sweet! Maybe she'll soften him!"), others skeptical ("Gold digger alert—she owns a WEDDING PLANNING business, this is too convenient"), and several downright invasive ("Found her apartment address! Someone should investigate if she's legit or a con artist!")."That last one is terrifying," Catherine said."I reported it. But Catherine—" Melissa turned, her expression caught between excitement and concern. "People are calling the office. Constantly. Reporters want interviews. Three different

The board dinner was held in a private room at the top of the Blackwell Industries tower, forty floors above Manhattan with a view that made the city look like a circuit board lit from beneath. Catherine had spent an hour getting ready, choosing a black cocktail dress that Harry's assistant had somehow arranged to have delivered to the penthouse that afternoon, tags still attached, exactly her size."You didn't have to buy me a dress," Catherine said when Harry saw her in the living room."I didn't buy it. Consider it a costume for the role." He straightened his cufflinks, not quite meeting her eyes. "You look good in it, though."It was the closest thing to a compliment he'd given her outside of Victoria's presence, and Catherine hated how much it warmed her.She'd started noticing these small moments more often lately, the way Harry's eyes lingered a beat too long, the way his hand found the small of her back before either of them consciously decided it should. Six weeks ago she wou

Catherine didn't sleep.She lay awake turning the text message over in her mind, half convinced it was Margot herself, half convinced it was something worse, someone with actual knowledge instead of manufactured doubt. Ask him about the wire transfer. What wire transfer? What version of events wasn't the whole story?She thought about calling Nina, about talking it through the way she normally would, but some instinct told her this needed to go to Harry first, before anyone else, before she let outside opinions shape how she approached him. This wasn't gossip to be dissected over coffee. This was a decision about trust, and she wanted to make it clear eyed, not colored by someone else's suspicion.By six in the morning she'd made a decision. She wasn't going to sit on it and let suspicion fester like poison. Whatever this was, whatever game someone was playing, the only way through it was straight ahead. She'd learned that lesson the hard way in her own bedroom six weeks ago, watching