Chapter 1

In the third year of my secret marriage to Julian Hayes, I accepted a department head position at his company without telling him.

I wanted to surprise him—and finally end our three years of living apart.

I walked up to reception and gave my name.

“Hi, I’m Sophia Bennett, the new head of Strategic Development. I’m also your CEO’s wife.”

The receptionist glanced at me, then shoved my paperwork back across the counter, her voice suddenly rising.

“Sorry, but our CEO’s wife is Anna Parker.”

Before I could process what she’d said, she pulled out her phone and held it up.

Her voice dripped with sarcasm.

“Mr. Hayes recently named our new commercial center after his wife to celebrate their third anniversary.

“This is the promotional photo from our company intranet. See for yourself.”

In the photo, my husband, Julian Hayes, had his arm wrapped intimately around a woman I’d never seen before. He was beaming.

She wore a pale lavender shirt with a delicate hummingbird embroidered on the collar.

I’d given that shirt to Julian for his birthday last year. I’d designed it myself. It was the only one in the world.

Stunned, I took out my phone to call him.

But the receptionist seemed to read my mind.

“Don’t bother, Ms. Bennett. At last week’s celebration, Mr. Hayes announced in front of the press that Anna Parker was the only woman he would ever love.”

“He also said he wouldn’t show any mercy to women who tried to use their past relationships with him to get ahead.”

My fingers stiffened around the paperwork.

If Anna Parker was the love he acknowledged publicly, his Mrs. Hayes…

Then what did that make me, Sophia Bennett—the woman whose name was on his marriage certificate?

The receptionist’s shrill voice echoed in my ears.

“Our CEO’s wife is Anna Parker, not Sophia Bennett.”

“Miss, pretending to be related to the boss’s wife to get special treatment is an old trick! Mr. Hayes despises women who’ll do anything to get ahead!”

His wife?

Anna Parker?

I froze.

Julian and I hadn’t made our marriage public, but our families, close friends, and a few senior executives at the company knew.

“I think there’s been a misunderstanding.”

I pushed down the unease rising in my chest and tried to remain civil. “I’m here to complete my onboarding.”

“Oh, still playing pretend?”

She sneered and picked up the desk phone. “Security? There’s a woman causing trouble at reception. She’s claiming to be Mr. Hayes’s wife…”

Before she could finish, a soft, almost playful voice drifted over.

“What’s going on? So much excitement this early in the morning.”

I turned toward the voice. A woman in the latest Chanel suit was approaching, her arm looped through the HR director’s.

Her makeup was flawless. There was a sharpness to her features that reminded me a little of Julian, giving her a commanding presence.

The employees around us hurried to greet her. “Good morning, Ms. Parker!”

So this was the woman they called the boss’s wife. Anna Parker.

The HR director frowned the moment he saw me. “Miss, if you’re here for an interview, please follow the proper procedure. If you’re looking for someone, I’m afraid we don’t allow unauthorized visitors.”

Anna released his arm and walked over, looking me up and down with interest.

I frowned. I had no idea who this woman was.

I’d never imagined someone like her would have anything to do with Julian.

I didn’t recognize her, but Anna seemed to know me.

The flash of jealousy in her eyes didn’t escape me.

“Oh. So this is her.”

She gave a little laugh and turned to the others. Her voice wasn’t loud, but it carried across the lobby. “Everyone, relax. I suppose Ms. Bennett here thinks my husband, Julian, is so wonderful that she’s gotten ideas she shouldn’t have.”

She paused. Her eyes turned cold, though her voice remained sweet.

Snickers broke out around us.

“But if you’re hoping to replace me and take my place as Mrs. Hayes, I’m afraid you’re not even close.”

Every eye in the lobby settled on me, full of curiosity, mockery, and contempt.

As if I weren’t the company’s second-largest shareholder, holding a fifteen-percent stake, but some shameless mistress who’d come to force the wife out.

I trembled with anger, tightening my grip on my appointment letter.

My gaze hardened, but my voice stayed calm.

“Anna Parker, is it? I don’t care who you are or how you’ve fooled the employees here. Hayes Group is not your personal playground.”

“Have HR process my onboarding. Now.”

Anna looked as though I’d told the funniest joke in the world. She leaned affectionately against the HR director. “Did you hear that, Mark? She wants you to onboard her. Since when do we let some random woman walk in and take over Strategic Development?”

Mark Collins immediately nodded like an obedient lapdog. “Exactly, Ms. Parker. We answer to you and Mr. Hayes. As for that appointment letter… with Photoshop these days, who knows if it’s real?”

The moment he finished, the large screen behind Anna lit up.

Photo after photo began scrolling across it, all intimate shots of Anna and Julian.

Romantic candlelit dinners. Business galas they’d attended together. Moments when he fastened a necklace around her neck or kissed her forehead…

In those pictures, Julian looked tender in a way I’d never seen before.

One photo hurt more than the rest. They were standing in the company’s rooftop garden, the glittering city skyline behind them.

Anna wore a pale lavender shirt with a delicate hummingbird embroidered on the collar.

It was the shirt I’d given Julian for his birthday last year. The only one in the world. My own design.

And now another woman was wearing it.

My husband had his arm around her, smiling as though he’d never been happier.

“Do you see now, Ms. Bennett?”

Anna’s voice rang with triumph. “Everyone at Hayes Group knows how much Julian loves me. To celebrate our third anniversary, he even named the company’s newest commercial development after me—Anna Center.”

“Are you still going to insist you’re his wife?”

The whispers around me rose like a tide.

“Oh my God. The mistress actually showed up here? She’s got some nerve!”

“She’s pretty enough, but she’s got nothing on Ms. Parker. She just looks cheap.”

“And she wants to run a department? She must be desperate for money. Who does she think she is? Mr. Hayes would never want her.”

The room seemed to spin. Every shred of composure I had shattered.

With trembling hands, I pulled out my phone and dialed the number I knew by heart.

“The person you are calling is currently unavailable…”

Once. Twice. The same cold automated voice.

Furious, I sent him a message. “Julian Hayes, you’d better have an explanation!”

A bright red exclamation point appeared beside it.

He’d blocked me.