Inside the villa.
Lily Lowell knelt on the floor, kowtowing repeatedly.
"Master Winston is preparing a surprise for Miss Evans on the Royal Princess Cruise tonight. I want to redeem myself."
Having served Chloe Evans before, she knew the woman's preferences best.
Liam Winston checked his watch. The cruise party would begin in three hours.
"Last chance."
His voice was icy.
"Fail again and you're out of the Winston family. Expect a court summons."
After frantic assurances, Lily retreated from the room.
As Liam turned, his gaze caught the lavish spread on the dining table.
Suddenly he remembered Sophia Sullivan slapping someone.
Those perpetually docile eyes had burned with unexpected ferocity.
The thought vanished as quickly as it came.
A spineless homemaker like her was nothing without him.
Outside the villa.
A black Lamborghini screeched to a halt.
Isabella Robinson rushed out and pulled Sophia into a crushing hug.
"Sweetheart! You can stay at my place as long as you want!"
As the heiress to Radiant Beauty Group, spare properties were the least of her concerns.
"You smell like cooking oil." Isabella wrinkled her nose. "Did you cook for that scumbag again?"
The warm embrace made Sophia's eyes sting.
"Let's talk in the car."
Seated in the passenger seat, Sophia recounted the events calmly.
Isabella slammed the steering wheel.
"Liam endured being jilted at the altar, and now he dares divorce you for his mistress?"
"His parents are worse. Three years of servitude for this?"
After the outburst, she gently squeezed Sophia's hand.
"If his amnesia erased the past, you've done more than enough these three years."
Sophia stared out the window.
"We're even now."
For three years she'd tied up her hair, worn modest dresses.
Tried mimicking Chloe's style.
Still couldn't compete with the real unattainable love.
"They don't deserve you."
Isabella's voice cracked.
Sophia smiled softly. "Okay."
Raised in an orphanage.
Isabella had always been her only true family.
The car stopped before a private styling studio.
Isabella called out, "Marry! We need a transformation!"
Sophia massaged her temples. "Too tired for this today."
"What, you'll keep this frumpy look for that jerk?"
"...Fine."
"Then enjoy the royal treatment!"
Isabella pushed her into the stylist's chair.
Thirty minutes later.
The mirror reflected a woman who silenced the room.
Sophia's delicate features became breathtaking with subtle enhancements.
The teardrop mole near her eye added a rebellious edge.
Isabella gasped. "Now this is the real Sophia Sullivan!"
She summoned an attendant with a wave.
"Pick any haute couture. Eight male models await us on that cruise!"
Sophia shook her head. "Not interested."
"Three years of celibacy and you're still holding out?"
Sophia stayed silent.
Liam had remained chaste for Chloe, never touching her.
Natural desires existed.
But couldn't be forced.
Isabella lowered her voice. "The CEO of Breeze Perfumes will be there tonight."
Sophia's eyes flickered.
At the International Perfumery Competition, that fragrance had reminded her of her birth mother.
Both women shared the same elusive mystery.
"Let's go."
She finally agreed.
Not just to glimpse the enigmatic CEO.
But because instinct whispered this person might know her mother's whereabouts.