Chapter 1

My husband, William Hayes, was cheating on me with Hilary Ryan.

Just as I planned to confront her, she showed up at my place, uninvited.

She looked at me like I was her long-lost niece, then started smothering me with fake kindness. "You must be Sophie. Wow, you look just like your dad. So pretty."

I played along and let her keep putting on her little act—taking me to fancy places, buying me expensive gifts, even jumping in front of me during a car crash without a second thought, and ended up with a broken leg herself. All just to win me over.

But then, things took a turn.

She brought me along to William's birthday party.

Seeing the stunned look on her face, I just flashed a grin and said, "Hon, is this the secretary you sent to put on a show?"

*****

The private investigator I'd shelled out for finally sent me his report.

I thought I was braced for it, but seeing those intimate photos of William with his side chick felt like a stab in the chest.

I was just about to press the PI for more details when the housekeeper brought a woman inside, and the second the woman spotted me, she made a beeline straight for me.

She grabbed my hand way too eagerly. "You must be Sophie, right? Just like your dad—so pretty."

Sophie? I blinked, thrown off for a second.

Wait, that was my daughter's name. Why was she calling me that? I couldn't make sense of it at all.

And why did she look so familiar?

I glanced down at the photos on my phone again, and my jaw almost hit the floor. It was her. She looked exactly like the woman in the PI's pictures.

She was Hilary.

Hilary was totally oblivious to how shocked I was, still gushing and laying it on thick with her introduction. "I heard from your dad yesterday that you'd be coming by today. I'm Hilary Ryan, his secretary," she said, trying to sound super important.

So she got the info from William. But did he send her over, or did she just show up on her own?

I shot a look at the housekeeper, who was about to correct her, and gave her a subtle shake of my head. Then I turned back to Hilary with a sweet smile. "Yeah, I'm Sophie Summers. And you are?"

When I confirmed my identity, Hilary got even more excited. Her eyes lit up like she'd just hit the jackpot.

She grabbed my hand, bubbling with enthusiasm. "I'm Hilary Ryan, your dad's secretary." Her face went all shy the instant she mentioned William. "I'm pretty much his go-to assistant. Since he flaked on your plans today, he sent me over to keep you company."

The moment she said that, I knew for sure she'd come because William had ditched Sophie. He had the morals of a rock. If he bailed on Sophie, he'd never bother sending someone in his place. He'd just mumble a weak apology and show up later with some pricey gift.

At this point, things were getting downright weird. The side chick thought I was our daughter Sophie, and now she was bent on winning me over after learning from Wiliam that he'd ditched Sophie today.

I stood up, my grin growing wider. "Sure thing, Ms. Ryan. Let's go out and have a good time together."

The second I called her "Ms. Ryan," she stiffened. "Ms. Ryan? That sounds a little formal."

I gave her my best innocent puppy eyes. "Mom said I should respect elder people. Um... Ms. Ryan, you look older than me, so I'm trying to be polite."

Hilary's smile tightened, and she was barely hiding her embarrassment. "Heh, okay then. Just call me that."

And with that, we headed out together.