Chapter 1

The security camera feed on my office monitor usually showed the manicured front gates of the Vance estate, a silent, green sentry.

Today, it showed Ethan Vance Jr.

Three years.

Three years since he' d left me at the altar of our Malibu wedding, a spectacle for the press, a deep wound for me.

He looked almost the same, still handsome in that careless way, but a little rougher around the edges.

Beside him stood Chloe Monroe, her hand resting possessively on her visibly pregnant stomach.

My intercom buzzed. "Mrs. Vance, Mr. Ethan Vance Jr. is at the gate, he's demanding entry."

My heart gave a dull thud, not of pain anymore, but of something cold and hard.

"Let them in, David," I said, my voice even. "Escort them to the main living room, I'll be down shortly."

I smoothed down the silk of my dress, a dress Ethan Sr. had picked out for me.

He was in New York for the week, meetings about a new studio acquisition.

He wouldn't expect this.

I walked out of the study, the study that used to be Ethan Jr.'s playroom, then his teenage den, now my sanctuary where I reviewed scripts and managed household affairs, a far cry from my old life as a script supervisor.

Downstairs, Ethan Jr. was already pacing, his energy too big for the opulent room.

Chloe was perched on the edge of an antique chaise lounge, looking around with an air of someone assessing future property.

He stopped when he saw me.

A flicker of something unreadable crossed his face before his usual arrogance settled back in.

"Sarah," he said, his voice a little too loud. "Took you long enough."

Chloe offered a saccharine smile. "Hello, Sarah. It' s been a while."

I nodded, keeping my expression neutral. "Ethan. Chloe. What brings you here after all this time?"

Ethan Jr. gestured impatiently towards Chloe' s belly.

"Isn't it obvious? Chloe's having my first child, the heir to the Vance legacy."

He looked around the room, a smirk playing on his lips.

"I figured you' d still be here, Sarah. Dad always had a soft spot, probably let you stay on. Look, things got messy, I know."

He took a step closer, lowering his voice as if sharing a grand secret.

"Chloe and I, we're back to claim what's ours. You can be... around, if you behave. Make us some coffee, will you? It' s been a long drive."

The sheer audacity of it almost made me laugh.

He truly believed I was still the heartbroken, humiliated girl he'd abandoned.

He had no idea.