Chapter 3

And now, sitting in his office on the top floor of Pinnacle, he had no idea that three floors below, his own VP's wife—and the woman he'd spent thirty years looking for—was on her knees scrubbing someone else's marble floor. Not yet.It started with a smile.Two weeks before the gala, Victoria was in the living room flipping through a stack of embossed invitations: gold lettering, cream-colored envelopes, each one addressed to someone who mattered.Lorraine was on her knees in the hallway, scrubbing the baseboard with a toothbrush. Her back ached. Her knees cracked every time she shifted. The smell of bleach stung her nostrils, but she didn't complain. She never did.Victoria glanced at her through the open doorway, watched her for a moment, and then something flickered across her face. Not kindness, not pity: amusement."Lorraine.""Yes, ma'am.""Come here for a second."Lorraine stood slowly, wiped her hands on her apron, and walked to the doorway. She could smell Victoria's perfume from six feet away—something French, something expensive.Victoria leaned back on the sofa and crossed her legs, her lips curled into a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "I'm hosting my annual gala next Saturday. 300 guests, black tie, the biggest names in music, business, media."Lorraine nodded politely. She'd cleaned up after enough of Victoria's parties to know exactly what they looked like: the champagne stains, the lipstick on the crystal glasses, the cigar burns on the terrace railing."I'd like you to come."Lorraine blinked. "I'm sorry?""As a guest. I think it would be fun."The word "fun" landed wrong. It sat in the air between them like something sharp wrapped in silk.

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