one had flipped a switch, plunging the room into a heavy, expectant silence. Every

room's gold and cream palette. She stopped in front of Elise, a loo

ar. "I had no idea things were so... desperate." She turned to he

eyebrows raised, lips curled into knowing smirks. The girl from nowhere, the charity case, wa

t was Kylie Vaughan, her face a perfect mask of sweet, p

lse sympathy. "If you needed money, you should have just

ake the bill. She didn't say a word. She simply stood there, tray in hand, her expression as s

? Cat got your tongue?" she snapped. She reached out, her hand aiming to knock the silver tra

ecting resistance, swiped through empty air. The force of her own lunge sent her stumbling forward, her expensive he

d. Humiliated, she recovered, her rage boiling over. She drew her hand

ac

m the top of the grand staircase. The s

ent again. A path through th

but her back was ramrod straight, and her eyes, sharp and intelligent, missed nothing. Leani

e, analytical, but held none of the contempt Elise had seen on the other

blic? At an event for this family?" Eleanor's voice was quiet, but it carried the unmistakable w

anched. "I

cle of yourself," Eleanor

ale, and mumbled an apology bef

"For those of you who are unclear, this is Elise Knight. She is Holt's wife, and she is a membe

Kylie Vaughan's perfectly made-up face ti

ballroom swung open again, lett

uit, Leo Hayes, pushed a

the dark fabric, his features sharp and aristocratic. He coughed softly, a dry, rattling sound, and lifted

Holt

om. Despite his apparent weakness, his gaze held a str

bun, her impassive face. And then, the corner of his pale mouth curved into a fa

ind, trained to analyze and deconstruct, went into overdrive. Sh

his shoulders beneath the suit jacket. The le

all the humiliation, suddenly skipped a bea

sible. It ma

skeletal framework, the precise geometr

man in the elevator who