Breakfast was as familiar as it was dreadful.

Grapefruit. No toast. No juice. Green tea.

I schooled my expression as I swallowed down every bitter bite. Melissa chattered about all the changes she’d made in the main living areas, tactfully avoiding the reason for them.

My father didn’t add to the conversation, eyes glued to his phone, but neither of us doubted he paid attention to every word crossing our lips, much like he did our food.

Once the maid cleared our plates, Melissa stood up and asked with a cheerful lilt to her voice, “Paige, are you ready?”

Patrick looked up from his phone. “For what?”

“Don’t you remember, honey? Paige and I are going to walk around the grounds.”

“What for?”

Melissa touched his arm. “Oh, you know. Just girl talk. I missed her and since we don’t talk like we used to…”

I internally flinched. Of course, that was going to end up being my fault. I couldn’t catch a break, could I?

Patrick’s flat gaze settled on me. “Paige won’t make that mistake again.”

Show time.

“No, I won’t. I’m so sorry, Melissa. From now on, I’ll make sure to call you as much as you’d want me to.”

Melissa waved her hand. “You’re busy with work, Paige. You’ve got so much to do.”

“No, she doesn’t. She can call you every day if you want her to.”

I know I shouldn’t let it bother me. It’s the same thing he says always.

Knowing something and feeling something were two different things.

I smiled and nodded like an idiot.

Sudden thoughts of Gavin made the pain of submission less galling. I thought of how I teased him a couple nights before when he got irritable.

“Would the Lord and Master like me to destroy the offending laptop?”

“What?”

Standing in the doorway of his home office, I gestured to it. “The laptop offends you with its news, Sire, and must be destroyed for showing impudence.”

A begrudging grin tugged the beautiful corners of his mouth. “The only impudence I see here is coming from your saucy self.” He settled back in his chair and patted his knee. “Come here, wench, and appease your Lord properly.”

Needless to say, Gavin’s mood improved greatly after giving me three light swats to my backside before bending me over his desk and showing me just how saucy I could be.

That kind of playful submission was wonderful. It didn’t demean me like being here in Patrick and Melissa’s home did.

I wish I was there with him instead of being here.

Guilt at my growing deception assaulted me. If Gavin had any clue I was in Hawaii…God, he’d never speak to me again.

I had to do whatever I needed to get the fuck out of here and back to Gavin. Submit so I could escape.

Melissa turned to her husband and hugged him. “You’re so good to me, honey.”

He squeezed her to him and leaned down to kiss her square on the lips. I looked away as it went on and on. Clearly, their passion wasn’t just limited to screaming matches.

Gross.

Patrick finally pulled back and said in a gentle voice, “Go have your girl talk. Make sure you put sunscreen on and don’t forget your hat.”

“I already brought them down.”

He patted her back and watched as she put on the items as ordered before leaving us both. And of course, my father didn’t show a shred of concern for me.

Melissa was and always would be his first, second, and only priority.

“Here, Paige. You should put some on too.”

I took the sunscreen with a murmur of thanks even though I already applied mine before coming downstairs.

Wearing a pink wide-brim hat, designer shades, and a white maxi-dress, Melissa looked as slender and graceful as she did twenty years before. I long ago stopped envying her sophisticated and elegant figure and made peace with my vulgar curvaceous body.

Still, if anything, I wished I was taller.

She linked arms with me, bright smile on display as we walked out the glass doors spanning the back of the house and into the bright morning sun. The infinity pool looked out onto the wide expanse of green grass and a picture-perfect blue ocean.

I recognized it was beautiful here on this slice of paradise. A dream come true for most landlocked citizens. But all I remembered was staring at the walled drop-off day after day and seeing no escape from my life.

I suffered each hour, trapped and cognizant of it by the age of five.

No wonder I focused my dreams on Gavin. He was someone who didn’t have to live here. He was free to be whoever he wanted.

Successful. Admired. Loved.

God, it was so pitiful it bordered on pathetic.

“Why are you working for Gavin?”

I startled, panic pounding its way through my veins until I could barely hear anything over the sound of my racing heart. Did I say his name out loud?

It didn’t occur to me to try to lie. There was no point when I was neatly caught.

“Does…does my—”

“No. Patrick doesn’t know. Yet. It’ll only be a matter of time.”

Silly me. I thought Melissa really did miss me. Of course, she had a motive for calling me down.

Suddenly, I was glad all I had for breakfast was grapefruit. Anything heavier and I’d be puking my guts out.

“How did you know without him finding out?”

Melissa cut me a look. Unlike my father, she didn’t try to pretend their relationship was healthy or normal. That bonded us in a way he’d never see or understand.

“I’ve had to be creative to keep tabs on my son.”

“I didn’t know.”

“Yes, I imagine you didn’t or you wouldn’t have done this.” Her frustration spilled over. “Paige, why are you there working at his company? Does he know who you are?”

“No. I used Aricela’s maiden name.”

Melissa stared straight ahead. “You still haven’t answered why.”

I couldn’t get the words out. My reasons belonged to me and I didn’t want to share them. I definitely didn’t want Melissa to know I was seeing Gavin outside of the office. I couldn’t trust her reaction and we both knew Patrick was upstairs watching her from his study.

A sickness he couldn’t help much like I couldn’t help doing what I did by reaching out for Gavin.

We weren’t that different from one another.

“Curiosity got the best of me. An opportunity came up and I took it.”

“Your curiosity will end up damning us all, Paige. Finish it now.”

Anger shot through me. I resented the surety in her voice that I would obey. But then I always did, didn’t I?

I controlled myself and merely said, “You don’t have to worry anymore. It was only a temp position. Friday is my last day.”

“Caroline is coming back on Monday then?”

Melissa’s tabs were indeed numerous to know the name of his assistant.

“Yes. She had a skiing accident and broke her leg. There was no chance of me staying there permanently.”

“You don’t sound happy about it.”

I shrugged. “I enjoyed my work.”

“And was that all you enjoyed?”

“Yes. Gavin is a great boss to work for. I’m sure I’ll get a great reference out of it.”

Melissa remained silent and then turned us to walk again.

 “How…how is he?”

I felt torn. I didn’t have to be a psychologist to see the damage Melissa’s abandonment had done on Gavin. In many ways, she didn’t have a right to know after choosing my pig of a father over her wonderful son.

But then again, I didn’t hold the moral high ground considering what I was doing with Gavin. We were both guilty of hurting this man we cared so deeply for.

“He’s good.” I paused and then warmed up to the subject. “He’s brilliant actually. I’ve never met anyone smarter than him and I’ve been surrounded by smart people my entire career. Gavin’s people really respect him.”

“I heard he can be difficult to work for.”

“It’s true but it’s not for the reason you imagine.”

“Oh? I heard he’s cold.”

I wished I hadn’t heard the thread of worry in Melissa’s voice.

“I can see why people would think that, but it only seems that way if you expect him to buddy around with you or act like a salesman. You know, fake friendly.” I looked back over to the ocean. “He says what he means and means what he says. He doesn’t play games. You know exactly where you stand. Gavin…he’s…he’s a good man. You’d be proud of him.”

Melissa squeezed my arm tightly. I felt the trembling in hers. Her voice, when it finally came, was husky.

“Thank you for telling me.”

I blinked back tears, drowning in the sadness of her pain and mine. We both wanted Gavin and neither of us deserved him.

Before I could say anything else, I saw Patrick striding towards us. We’d been lucky to have the ten minutes or so we had without him.

He simply couldn’t stand to be away from Melissa, to not be the center of her attention for long.

I’d be crushed if I didn’t learn and understand long ago that Melissa wasn’t my mother but my father’s wife.

I was on my own.

Melissa patted my hand and whispered her thanks before turning a bright smile towards her husband.

“Honey! I’m so glad you came out to see us.”

The tension eased out of his broad shoulders the closer he got to her. I stepped away before he reached us.

I knew my place and it wasn’t with them.

“I’ll leave you two alone. I’ll be in my room if you need me.”

Melissa smiled while my father dismissed me with another one of his grunts.

As I walked towards the house, I acknowledged the dysfunction of my life with them.

Any outsider would wonder “How could a man be so cold to his own daughter?”

I imagined it was guilt. I represented a terrible calculation of Patrick’s spite to the love of his life. Shunning me was the only way to show his undivided loyalty to Melissa.

It made sense in a backwards way and it was this backwards way that helped me not take it personal.

At least, not anymore.

Now that I understood the real reason why Melissa wanted me here, I was positive I’d be dismissed sooner versus later. I imagined I’d be gone before lunchtime.

I checked my phone as soon as I got to my room. There were several missed calls from Gavin but no texts. I wanted to call him back but I knew it wasn’t safe.

Not just yet.

My father didn’t acknowledge the existence of the word “privacy”. If he saw me with my phone he’d have no issue with snatching it away and checking through it, looking for anything to unleash his temper on me.

Resigned to playing by the rules of my prison, I shut my phone off again and slipped it into my bag. I wouldn’t be able to call Gavin until I was at the airport. I just hoped he was so busy he’d overlook the delay.

I glanced at my watch. Any time now…

The house phone rang. I smiled.