Gisele watched as Caden, oblivious, steered a visibly shaky Kasey toward the exit. Kasey hadn’t screamed. She hadn’t pointed. For now, fear was keeping her mouth shut. The knot in Gisele’s stomach loosened a fraction.
“Mom, was that her?” Leo’s voice was low. “Kasey? The one who stole our things?”
Gisele nodded, her eyes still on the couple moving away. “That’s her.” She knelt, adjusting the collars on both children’s jackets. “Remember the rules. While we’re here, my name is Thea. You don’t call me Mom in public. Got it?”
Both children nodded, solemn. They’d gone over this for months.
Up ahead, Caden and Kasey stopped for a wall of photographers. Flashbulbs popped, creating a strobing halo around them. Kasey, in an elegant cream dress, beamed—her earlier shock now buried under a celebrity mask. Caden stood beside her, his face unreadable, a king scanning his domain. They looked perfect.
The sudden, sharp flashing startled Gia. Her small hands, already unsteady, lost their grip on the crystal ball she always carried. The glass sphere slipped, hit the polished floor with a soft thud, and started rolling.
It rolled straight for Caden Sterling’s expensive shoes.
“No,” Gisele breathed, but it was too late.
Gia’s face crumpled. She scrambled after it, her movements clumsy, small legs struggling.
She was just a couple of feet from Kasey when her foot caught the edge of a tile. She stumbled, lurching forward, straight toward Kasey’s pristine dress.
Gisele caught it—a flicker of disgust in Kasey’s eyes, there and gone. And in that same split second, she saw Kasey’s stiletto shift, angling to trip the already-falling child.
Time stretched. Gisele moved. Not a mother rushing to her child—a predator blurring through the space. Before anyone registered what was happening, she was there.
One arm hooked around Gia’s small body, pulling her back from the fall. At the same time, Gisele’s foot shot out, hooking Kasey’s ankle with surgical precision.
Kasey yelped, her ankle twisting, balance gone. She flailed, staggering, a graceless surprise all over her. To anyone watching, it looked like she’d just lost her footing.
Gisele pulled Gia close, her pulse hammering against her ribs. She looked up, locking eyes with Kasey. Her voice came out cold. “Watch your step, miss. You wouldn’t want to scare the children.”
Caden’s attention shifted from the crystal ball by his feet to the woman who’d appeared out of nowhere. He took in the scene, his gaze landing on Gisele. He studied her face. Smooth skin, flawless—no trace of the scars etched into his memory. But her eyes… there was a cold fire there that stirred something uneasy in his chest.
“Caden, my ankle!” Kasey whimpered, switching instantly to her wounded-damsel voice. “It hurts so much. She did it on purpose.”
A dry smile touched Gisele’s lips. She ignored Kasey, setting Gia gently on her feet before bending to pick up the crystal ball.
But Caden was faster. He stooped, his big frame moving with surprising ease, and closed his fingers around the glass sphere. The sight of his hand—long, elegant fingers—sent an unwanted, sharp pull through Gisele’s memory.
He held the ball out to Gia. The little girl, shy and overwhelmed, hid behind Gisele’s leg. Gisele reached to take it for her.
As she took the ball, her fingertips brushed the back of his hand.
A faint current passed between them. Caden’s whole body tensed. For years, the lightest touch from a woman made his skin crawl—a deep, gut-level rejection he couldn’t control. But this stranger… nothing. No disgust. Just a strange, electric warmth.
Gisele felt the sudden stiffness in his muscles. She pulled her hand back like she’d been burned, putting more space between them.
Kasey saw it all. She saw Caden freeze, saw the confusion flicker across his face. Something venomous sparked in her eyes.
Without another word, Gisele took Leo’s hand, scooped Gia into her arms, and turned. She melted back into the river of travelers.
Caden stayed where he was, eyes fixed on her disappearing figure. A deep frown pulled at his brow. He turned to his assistant. “Find out who that woman is.”
“Caden, forget her,” Kasey whined, tugging his arm. “She’s just some rude nobody. My foot is killing me. Let’s go.”
He put an arm around her to steady her, but his gaze didn’t leave the spot where Gisele had vanished. Questions were piling up in his head, forming a heavy, unsettled cloud.
As the crowd swept them away, Leo glanced back over his shoulder. He looked at the powerful man his mother had told him to avoid, his young face caught between a kid’s curiosity and a wariness too old for him.
