“Anastasia, the client’s about to arrive. I heard she’s worked with us before, but apparently she’s super high-maintenance and really picky. Word is she’s some kind of professional dancer, but she pays top dollar. Just giving you a heads-up,” Sharlene said. Sharlene was the office gossip queen—she’d already gotten all the intel.

A dancer. For some weird reason, when Anastasia heard that, Sonia’s face immediately flashed in her mind. Wasn’t Sonia a ballerina or something? Had to be just a coincidence, though. Besides, this person wouldn’t know who she was anyway. She was just some nobody, after all. Plus, her marriage to Cassian was totally on the down low. She was definitely overthinking this.

“Got it, thanks. When they show up, could you bring them to the conference room? I’ll head over now,” Anastasia said. Roll with the punches, right? Anastasia wasn’t stressed about it—she’d designed pieces for European royalty and Manhattan’s elite before. They’d all been over the moon with her work. Plus, she’d always figured that if clients were nitpicky, it just meant her designs weren’t hitting the mark. If they weren’t being total assholes, Anastasia actually appreciated the feedback—it made her better. As long as they weren’t… She was pretty confident in her skills. Hopefully this client wasn’t just looking to start shit.

Seeing how chill and professional Anastasia seemed, Sharlene relaxed. She honestly really respected Anastasia. Even though they’d only known each other a few weeks, Sharlene was already a fan. Anastasia was stunning with incredible style, and she had this effortless confidence and class about her. It was the kind of natural elegance you couldn’t fake. She always got the vibe that Anastasia came from serious money and had grown up privileged. Even though she dressed down and didn’t show off designer stuff. And Anastasia was crazy talented. Sharlene had peeked at her design sketches—they were absolutely breathtaking, totally original and creative.

“You got it, Anastasia,” Sharlene nodded and rushed off to handle things. Anastasia grabbed her materials and headed to the conference room.

22:25

Dumped Today, Married Tomorrow: My Overnight Wedding to a Tycoon

She’d barely sat down when Sharlene popped back in to say the client was here. Anastasia stood up to welcome them. When she saw who walked through that door, she literally stopped breathing. Are you fucking serious right now? Talk about Murphy’s Law! It was actually Sonia! With her manager in tow. Anastasia had seen her on entertainment shows before—definitely unforgettable. But this had to be pure coincidence. There’s no way Sonia knew who she was.

Anastasia flashed her professional smile. “Ms. Vinci, welcome to Rhodes Corp. I’m Anastasia, and I’ll be working on your jewelry project.”

Sonia glided into the conference room with this perfect smile, her eyes doing a slow scan of Anastasia with this calculating look. Her manager, Jenny, trailed behind, acting casual but also sizing Anastasia up in this weird way.

“Ms. Kingsley, pleasure to meet you,” Sonia said in that silky voice with just a hint of something testing underneath.

“Please, make yourselves comfortable,” Anastasia said politely.

Sonia’s smile sharpened as she gracefully took a seat at the conference table, every movement perfectly poised. “Ms. Kingsley, I’ve heard some interesting things about your design aesthetic. Very distinctive, apparently. That’s why I specifically requested you for this commission. I do hope you won’t let me down.”

The way she said it was definitely loaded with subtext.