"Leah, make sure to do whatever Mr. Taylor tells you." Her mother reminded her for the hundredth time as she went to the kitchen to get more clean, empty glasses for the champagne.

At the moment, Mr. Taylor had assigned her to refill the champagne glasses by the counter. However, she also occasionally served them when there was a high demand, especially when more guests arrived at the party.

Initially, she struggled to catch up with the other staff since this was her first time working on a party this size. But she was a quick learner; eventually, she got the hang of it.

"Don’t worry about me, Mom. I got this covered." She assured her mother, who couldn’t stop hovering over her like a mother hen. Her mother had been the rock of their family as long as she could remember, especially when her father got seriously ill and eventually died.

Maria raised her on her own, doing everything she could to provide for her. But it was not just enough. Now that she was going to college, she wanted to lessen her mother’s burden by earning her own income.

Actually, she already applied for a part-time job on campus once the semester started. It should at least cover some of her living allowances. For the rest of her needs, she would just have to figure it out.

"But what about you? Are you okay, Mom?" Truthfully, she was more concerned about her mother than she was with her situation.

In the last five years, she had seen how her mother’s health had deteriorated. Her mother was not getting younger. On the contrary, she noticed that her mother had been having all these body aches. But her mother tried hard to hide it from her, telling her that it was just signs of old age.

"Stop worrying about me." Her mother gazed at her with the same stern look that she would give her when she wanted her to drop the subject. "Now, go back to work before Mr. Taylor notices that you’re missing.

With one last look, she turned and left. But it didn’t stop her from worrying about her mother. After all, her mother was the only family she had left. Losing her would be the worst thing that could happen to her.

From what she learned of their history, her mother was not originally from this part of the world. She had illegally migrated when she was still a teenager, hoping to find a better future in this country.

"Okay... Fine." She finally gave up. But it would not stop her from thinking about her mother or worrying about her. "I’ll be back later to check on you." She shot her mother one last look with a sweet smile before she walked out of the kitchen with a fresh tray of glasses.

For years, Maria had struggled from one job to another and had been in and out of horrible relationships. Years later, her mother met his father. His father helped her get a job in the diner where he worked as a server.

Eventually, her father married her mother, giving her a legal status and a stable family. Another year later, they had her. They were a happy family until her father got sick.

When bills started piling up, between the house rent, daily expenses, and hospital fees, her mother resorted to borrowing from loan sharks. But with the interest alone, paying the loan had become impossible.

But for some kind of miracle, her mother stumbled upon Mrs. Morton, who had generously offered her a job at the mansion as a maid. Mrs. Dianne even paid her debt in exchange for her services.

Now, her mother was slowly fulfilling her obligations by working loyally and diligently for the Morton family.

"Where have you been?" An older server whispered to her once she placed the tray on the bar surface. Not mad, just in a hurry.

Quickly, she helped her refill the empty glasses of the bubbling golden liquid. Then, she refilled another set and started roaming the floor, offering a glass to whoever would give her the time of day.

For hours, she had been floating all over the mansion, like a ghost, silent and barely noticeable. Keeping her head down. Avoiding meeting anyone’s eyes.

"Leah, there you are?" Mr. Taylor saw her as she returned with another empty tray. With a gentle command, he asked her to bring a slice of blueberry cheesecake and a glass of fresh milk to the library.

Immediately, she already knew who the food was intended for. It was their young master’s favorite snack. Without another word, she worked her way toward the private area of the mansion, avoiding bumping into the crowd of guests.

Outside the large wooden doors, she could hear voices inside. Hesitantly, she knocked before carefully opening the door. Slowly, she peeked inside, finding several people standing at the center, others chattering by the window, and some were on the huge couch.

At the center, Caleb sprawled lazily, basking in everyone’s attention. Clearly, he was the star of the party. It made sense since this celebration was for him.

Without making a sound, she tiptoed her way to the young boy to serve his meal, careful not to bother anyone. The rule was to get in and out without anyone noticing that they were there.

But—

"Leah... There you are." The child shouted her name as soon as she came into his view. Then, he greeted her with such familiarity that it felt like she was his friend and not his maid.

Now, everyone’s eyes were on her as she approached the middle of the crowd.

Embarrassed by the attention. Afraid to get in trouble. She kept her head down.

She only bobbed her head and smiled when she looked at the young boy and greeted him. "Hello, young master. I hope you’re feeling better."

Of course, she heard about his operation. He had been away for a while. And everyone felt his absence in the entire mansion. The entire place had turned incredibly quiet while the young master was away.

"Oh, you’re Leah." The beautiful woman who sat beside Caleb offered her hand. "I’m Sophia, Caleb’s mother." For a second, she just stared at her, but reluctantly took her hand. "My son couldn’t stop talking about you. Are you Maria’s daughter?"

She knew who Ms. Sophia was, but it was the first time that she had met her.

Caleb’s stepmother.

From the maid’s whispers, she learned that she was the new wife of the Mafia Don. But unlike the socialites she had seen at the party, they said that the Don’s wife was not an heiress. Actually, she came from a regular family. An orphan, in fact.

Ms. Sophia had made a name for herself, not through her family background, connections, or money, but by working her ass off until she made it on top.

It was that fact that had caught her interest. People like Ms. Sophia gave her hope that someone like her could change her fate.

"Yes, Ms. Sophia." She answered, lowering her eyes again, mortified that Caleb had been talking about her. She was supposed to come in and out of this room without anyone noticing, but now, she had become the center of everyone’s attention.

However, in the corner of her eye, she saw someone amongst the crowd. By the window, staring directly at him. No wonder she felt like someone was boring holes in the back of her head.

It was him. Again.

"I’m sorry, but I need to get back to work." Hastily, she secured the tray underneath her arms, bowed, and stepped away before anyone else could stop her.

She was out of there as if her ass was on fire. The last thing she needed was to catch more unwanted attention.

Just when she thought she was home free, someone suddenly gripped her wrist tightly and pulled her from behind. A chill suddenly enveloped her entire body, causing her heart to race and her knees to tremble uncontrollably.

The next thing she knew, a door had slammed from behind her. Then, her back hit a solid wall.

For a brief moment, she froze. Her eyes focused on the dark, empty room as fear crept into every fiber of her being.

But as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she finally saw him. In front of her stood the dominating image of her tormentor. The man who had been openly stalking her.

"What are you doing?" She stared at him, stunned. In an instant, fear was replaced by anger. Automatically, she wiggled her body against his tight hold. "Have you gone insane?" She continued when he said nothing, but just glared at her with that unreadable expression.

Unfortunately, the more she fought him, the harder he pinned her hands on both sides of her body. No matter what she did, her strength was just no match against him.

"Please let me go." Eventually, she resorted to begging, appealing to a piece of his humanity, if he even had one.

Suddenly, she noticed a flicker in his eyes. But it was gone before she could read any to it. In its place was the smirk that curved on his lips. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"What’s wrong with you?" He asked. His eyes were accusatory, as if she had done something wrong against him. But checking her memory bank, she couldn’t think of anything.

If anything, it was he who had been stalking and harassing her. Not the other way around.

"What’s wrong with you?" She repeated the question, enunciating every word to emphasize that the problem was not with her, but with him. "You’re the one who attacked me from nowhere and took me against my will."

But he didn’t make a move to let her go. Instead, he looked confused. As if he couldn’t figure out what was wrong with her.

"Don’t you know that this is assault?"