Leona Carpenter glanced over at Vance Martinez, a flicker of surprise crossing her face.

"You gonna go say hi to her?" Vance asked, his eyes warm and open as he gave Leona a soft, encouraging smile.

Leona’s gaze automatically drifted to the elderly woman waiting nearby, who looked practically bouncing off the walls to meet her. After a beat of hesitation, she nodded.

The old woman had spotted Leona and Vance walking toward her, and her grin just kept growing, impossible to hide. She waved warmly, "Honey, I’m sorry I called you over out of the blue. I hope you don’t mind."

This was the first time she’d ever seen her grandson with a girl, and she couldn’t keep the excitement off her face.

"Hi, Grandma," Leona greeted politely.

The old woman’s smile stretched even wider, nearly ear to ear. She curled her hand around Leona’s, patting it gently. "Wonderful, just wonderful. You’re such a sweet girl. The more I look at you, the more I like you."

This sudden, over-the-top familiarity left Leona a little uneasy, but she kept a polite—if awkward—smile plastered on her face.

Vance caught Leona’s discomfort right away. He adjusted his blanket a little to put himself between them, subtly putting more space between Leona and the old woman. "Sun’s bright out today, but there’s still a chill in the air. Don’t wanna catch a cold."

The old woman lifted her brows slightly, caught off guard. This thoughtful, attentive guy? Nothing like her usual cold, distant grandson.

A lifetime of living had made her sharp, and it didn’t take her long to piece together what her grandson was doing. A knowing little smile tugged at her lips.

This boy was worried he’d scare the girl off. Maybe he wasn’t as hopeless with women as she’d thought.

When she turned her attention back to Leona, her gaze was warm and soft. "Sweetheart, how long have you two known each other?"

At first, Leona was thrown off by how enthusiastic the old woman was, but when she caught that kind, fond glint in her eye, it clicked. "Grandma, there’s a little misunderstanding here. We’re just acquaintances."

Acquaintances…

The old woman flicked a quick, knowing glance at Vance out of the corner of her eye. Someone definitely didn’t see it that way.

"Honey, I just took an instant liking to you. If you’ve got the time, would you sit and chat with me for a bit?" She looked up at Leona, then quickly dropped her gaze, playing the part of a lonely old widow perfectly. "That good-for-nothing boy’s always so busy. I barely ever see him. Poor me, just a widow with no one to talk to."

"I…" Leona knew the old woman had the wrong idea, and her first instinct was to say no.

But looking at that silver-haired woman reminded her of her own grandpa, and her heart softened. After a second of thinking it over, she nodded. "Alright."

The old woman’s fake loneliness melted away instantly, replaced by a bright, giddy cheer as she looked at Leona. "Then I’ll be waiting! Vance will drive you over."

"This…" Leona felt a little flustered and turned to look at Vance. "That seems like such a hassle, though."

"It’s no trouble at all!" The old woman snuck a quick look at Vance, pride glowing in her eyes.

A little while later, after they’d finished talking, Leona got a call from Kendra Gray and had to head out.

Vance watched her slim figure fade down the path, his sharp, focused gaze burning into her back like a hunter locked on his prey.

"Vance," the old woman spoke up suddenly, her voice sharp with a edge of cold that made it clear she was not pleased.

Vance Martinez glanced over at his grandmother, and caught that playful, knowing glint in her eye. He smiled warm and said, "Grandma, I’ll never forget how good you’ve been to me today."

"Oh, cut the sweet talk!" She shot him a playful glare, her eyebrows lifting with quiet pride. "I didn’t do this for you. I just wanna meet my great-grandkids already, sooner rather than later."

Vance dropped his gaze, hiding the hard edge of seriousness in his eyes. "So it’s settled then. Leona’s gonna be your granddaughter-in-law, and no matter what happens, there’s no taking it back."

"The one thing I’ve never doubted my whole life is my own gut," the old lady stated firmly, full of confidence. "Now you gotta figure out how to win her over for good. That girl doesn’t look like she’s got even a little crush on you, far as I can tell."

That hit the nail right on the head—this was exactly Vance’s problem. Women swarmed him like bees to honey, drawn to every bit of his charm, but Leona Carpenter? She couldn’t have cared less. It left him fumbling in uncharted territory, eaten up with self-doubt he’d never felt before.

"Grandma, you got any advice for me?" Vance asked, looking at her with hopeful eyes.

"If you wanna chase her, you gotta show her you’re dead sincere," his grandmother said seriously. "Be humble, be upfront, be thoughtful. And most important of all? Stay real. If you ever hurt her even a little, I’ll give you hell before anyone else gets the chance."

Vance couldn’t help but laugh. "I haven’t even brought her home yet, and you’re already taking her side?"

"The more I see of that girl, the more I like her." Her fondness for Leona shone clear as day when she thought of Leona’s soft, kind manner. Glancing over at Vance, who already looked antsy to leave, she asked quickly, "Where you running off to?"

Vance’s lips tugged up into a sly smile. "To be a little more proactive, duh."

When Leona headed for her hospital room, she ran straight into Michael Hansen’s sister, Remy, totally out of the blue.

It looked like Remy had been waiting for her—she planted herself right in Leona’s path, blocking her from getting back to the room.

Remy dragged her gaze up and down Leona, disdain practically rolling off her, a sneer tugging at her mouth. "Leona, I overestimated you. I thought you’d finally face reality and scram. But here you are, hanging around like a bad shadow. You really think a few pity parties are gonna make my brother take you back? Lose that stupid fantasy! My brother doesn’t want some doormat like you!"

"Say that again." Leona’s face went ice-cold, a sharp, dangerous glint flashing in her eyes.

Remy, who’d only ever seen Leona roll over and take it, flinched back without meaning to. But she recovered quick, snapping, "What? Did I lie? You break up with my brother one minute, then go run off to hook up with the first guy who looks your way. It’s pathetic!"

Leona said nothing. That just made Remy bolder, and she kept going, "Don’t act like I don’t know why you disappeared all that time ago. My brother told me everything!"

Leona’s face drained of all color at those words, leaving nothing but a tight mask of agony. Her eyes shook, raw and unsteady.

Her hands clenched tight at her sides, nails digging hard into her palms—she didn’t even feel the sting. Her whole frail frame shook uncontrollably, like she was caught in a silent storm no one else could see.

That night was the most humiliating of her entire life. A scar that would never fade, not completely. Only she and Michael knew what happened. He’d sworn no one else would ever find out…

But now he’d given her secret to Remy. When did promises turn into nothing but garbage?

It felt like a dull knife had just carved straight through her chest, wave after wave of blinding pain making her head spin. Even breathing hurt, like pulling glass into her lungs.

Seeing how pale Leona had gone, Remy knew she’d won, and her confidence came roaring back. "Let me tell you one more thing, Leona. If you hadn’t latched onto my brother right after he broke up with Aila? He never would’ve looked twice at you. You really need to go look in a mirror and see what you actually are…"

A sharp crack echoed through the room—right across Remy’s cheek. She never saw it coming. That smug little smirk on her face melted away instantly. Shock burned into rage, and she stared at me like she couldn’t believe what just happened. "How dare you slap me?!"

"Why the hell wouldn’t I? Who do you think you are, anyway?!" I shot back.

Before she could blink, I locked my hand around her throat and shoved her head hard toward the open window. Her upper body dangled out over the ledge, feet kicking uselessly in the air. We were fifteen floors up. Dizziness spun her, her pupils blowing wide as she shrieked, voice shrill with raw panic: "Help! Murder!"

"Remy, I let your little games slide before, but you really thought you could just keep pushing me?" My voice stayed steady, ice-calm. "Since you can’t keep your mouth shut, I don’t mind silencing you—for good." My grip tightened as I spoke.

She was fully hanging out the window now, fear tearing a scream from her throat. She started begging immediately, gasping: "I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I swear I’ll never do it again…"

The whole spectacle already drew a crowd downstairs. A bunch of onlookers even pulled out their phones, already gearing up to film the chaos.

I glanced down at them, remembering I was supposed to head back to the family’s country estate soon to take over the business. The last thing I needed right now was extra drama.

"This is your final warning!" I hissed, yanking Remy back inside over the ledge.

The second her feet hit solid ground, she blew out a shaking breath and scrambled away from me. Over her shoulder as she backed toward the door, she spat: "Leona, you’re gonna regret this! The Hansen family won’t let you get away with this!"

I lifted an eyebrow and smirked, my lips tugging into a cold, unapologetic smile. "Let them try."

The Hansens didn’t scare me anymore. I had nothing left to lose. If they really wanted a fight, I’d give them one.

Once I was alone in my room, Remy’s words looped through my head: *Don’t think I don’t know why you disappeared suddenly. My brother told me everything!*

I never knew promises could be so flimsy. I never imagined the man I loved never actually believed me.

Had Michael forgotten why I was abducted in the first place? How could he live with what he did, no remorse, even dig up all my old pain with his own two hands?

Memories of that dark alley flickered through my mind, and my whole body started shaking uncontrollably. It felt like someone had ripped my chest open, and a freezing wind had poured straight into the hollow, chilling me right down to the bone.

A knock at the door snapped me back to the present. I turned, and there was Vance, standing in the doorway. The panic I’d been feeling evaporated, replaced by sharp surprise. I hadn’t expected to see him again this soon, not when I was already this unraveled.

"Do you… need something?" I asked.

Vance, immaculate in his tailored suit, strode toward me with that easy, confident stride of his. The golden afternoon light wrapped around him like a halo. He looked every bit the untouchable, elegant gentleman he was.

His dark, deep eyes locked onto mine, and he caught the tear tracks at the corner of my eyes. His brow furrowed just barely, soft with unspoken concern.