Chapter 175
“I should go too,” Carmen said, glancing at her watch. “My fiancé is waiting.”
“Fiancé?” Jocelyn asked.
“Quentin. We’ve been together two years.” Carmen held up her hand briefly — a modest diamond caught the light. “He gets worried if I’m late.”
Jocelyn nodded. The knot of suspicion in her stomach loosened. A lookalike with a fiancé. A logical explanation. The world was full of coincidences.
A black SUV pulled up to the curb. The tinted window descended.
Gaston stepped out in a long black trench coat and sunglasses, looking every inch the billionaire mogul — unhurried, deliberate, and slightly intimidating.
“Aaden,” he called.
Aaden immediately ducked behind Carmen’s leg.
Gaston approached. He registered Jocelyn first, his expression tightening almost imperceptibly. Then his gaze moved to the woman Aaden was clinging to.
Carmen turned. Their eyes met.
𝘙𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘴.𝘤𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴
Gaston paused, tilting his head a fraction. There was something familiar in her posture — something he could not quite name. But the face did not match the one blurry, long-lens photograph he had seen years ago. Justin had been obsessive about her privacy, scrubbing her digital footprint from existence after she left. This woman was a polished professional with a European résumé and no apparent history. A ghost wearing someone else’s credentials.
“Thank you for handling him,” Gaston said stiffly.
“He’s a sweet boy,” Carmen replied, gently detaching Aaden from her side. “He just misses his mom.”
“Come on, Aaden. Dad is calling,” Gaston said, extending his hand.
Aaden went to him reluctantly. “Bye, Carmen!” he called, waving over his shoulder.
“See you Monday, Ms. Wolfe,” Carmen said with a nod. She turned and walked toward a silver sedan where a man sat waiting.
Gaston watched her go. His frown deepened. Golden. The name meant nothing. He filed it away regardless, making a silent note to have Vance run a deeper background check — not just financials, but everything.
“Who is she?” he asked.
“Our new CFO. Carmen Golden,” Jocelyn said.
“Never heard of her,” Gaston replied, his tone dismissive. He pulled out his phone as they all settled into the car, the door closing with a soft, heavy click that sealed them inside the quiet luxury of the interior.
The atmosphere was glacial. The argument from the other night hung between them like something with physical weight.
“Did you buy the apology gift?” Gaston asked, eyes on his screen.
Jocelyn winced. “We got distracted.”
“Right,” Gaston said flatly, and said nothing more.
Aaden leaned over and whispered to Jocelyn. “She is my mommy. I know it.”
Jocelyn patted his head gently. “Sure, sweetie,” she murmured, certain it was nothing more than a child’s desperate fantasy.
But as the car pulled away from the curb, she glanced back through the window. Carmen was still standing by the silver sedan, watching them go.
And for just a moment, Jocelyn was not so sure.
.
.