Amari Wilson hesitated at the mention of the Diaz family, then shot an uneasy glance at the resolute man in front of him. “If you don’t want to attend, I can turn them down on your behalf and tell them you’re swamped.”

He stopped mid-step, the room holding its breath around him. Frowning in thought, he pulled out his phone—it had been buzzing nonstop.

An unknown number had been blowing up his phone from the start of the meeting to the end.

“Hello.”

His voice came through the phone low and detached, straight into Makenzie Bell’s ear.

She was sitting on a busy city street, the noise around her making her soft voice sound hesitant. “Hello? Mr. Mason? It’s Makenzie Bell. I wanted to ask if what you mentioned before still stands?”

She’d called four times between ten and two, and slowly, a memory surfaced. Theo Mason remembered her eyes—how strikingly they resembled Lila Roberts’s.

His lips pressed into a thin line. When he finally spoke, his voice was cool and indifferent. “Send me the address. Someone will come get you.”

When the call ended, Amari Wilson—still trailing behind him—held his breath and waited for instructions.

Theo turned slightly, his sharp jaw tight. “No need to cancel the schedule. Just send someone to pick up Makenzie Bell.”

A second later, an address popped up on Amari’s tablet. He arched a brow. “Makenzie Bell? The Bell family’s supposed daughter?”

The notorious imposter daughter who kept landing in headlines for all the wrong reasons? Amari remembered how Theo had personally bailed her out of the police station after the Bells cut her off—a rare move for him.

The reason was obvious: she looked strikingly like Lila Roberts, even though Lila had married another man. Theo’s intentions were clear.

Amari nodded. “Where should we take her?”

Theo paused for a beat. “Sunrise Court.”

“Got it.”

Makenzie was sitting on the sidewalk, savoring spicy mac and cheese, when a notification from System 66 popped up—a deposit and a progress update.

“Deposit: ten thousand dollars. Theo Mason’s favorability increased by one percent.”

The spice made her cough, tears stinging her eyes, while curious bystanders discreetly filmed her on their phones.

Sniffling, Makenzie checked her phone and saw several thousand dollars had landed in her bank account. Her voice wavered. “Is this ten thousand in my original world’s currency? Why’d it just show up?”

System 66 replied, “Your call with Theo Mason advanced the plot. You earned a bonus.”

Makenzie paused for a second, then happily dug back into her mac and cheese.

Finally, a real opportunity had shown up.

A sleek Mercedes executive car eased to a stop in front of her. The driver scanned the street until his gaze landed on the woman eating mac and cheese at the bus stop. He hesitated for a moment, then spoke into his phone. “I found Miss Bell, but there’s a slight delay.”

Amari asked automatically, “What’s the holdup?”

“It’s not hesitation. She’s just finishing her mac and cheese. She looks starved.”

Inside the car, tension crackled. Amari’s surprised expression was impossible to miss. He glanced at Theo, who was reviewing documents in the backseat. After a beat, Theo said calmly, “Send a chef over.”

Even Theo hadn’t expected the Bell family to be so harsh—leaving their adopted daughter to eat mac and cheese in public and forcing her to come to him for help.

Oblivious to her sudden fame, Makenzie was just relieved to finally eat. When she noticed the car waiting, she got up and tossed her mac and cheese cup. The driver stepped forward. “Miss Bell? Mr. Mason sent me to pick you up.”

So it really was for her. With a bashful smile, she climbed in.

To help her get better acquainted with Theo Mason, System 66 spent the drive filling her in on his background.

At twenty-eight, Theo Mason was CEO of Mason Financial Group, overseeing investments across finance, securities, pharmaceuticals, and entertainment—a formidable presence in the financial district and a powerhouse across the region.

But his current success hadn’t always been guaranteed.

At twenty-six, Theo was merely the heir to a fledgling venture capital firm. His potential marriage to Lila Roberts seemed like a smart match—until his father’s business collapsed, throwing the company into immediate financial chaos and ending the engagement.

Lila loved Theo, but she had no control over the situation. She ended up marrying Kelvin Diaz, the Diaz family’s eldest son. No one expected Theo to resurrect the company within two years and emerge as a force to be reckoned with.

Even when he collaborated with the Diaz family on projects, Theo’s motives seemed tangled up with his lingering feelings for Lila. To Makenzie, his discreet aid to the Diaz family looked like misplaced devotion.

The situation was further complicated by Kelvin’s deteriorating health. At twenty-eight, he wasn’t expected to survive past thirty. That meant Makenzie only had to convincingly stand in for Lila for two years, earn Theo’s favor, and make her exit once Lila became a widow.

“Sounds doable—as long as I don’t go looking for trouble,” Makenzie muttered to herself.

“Does he have the usual CEO ailments?” she mused aloud. “You know—out of ten CEOs, five are limping, three have fake scars, two have ulcers, and one has night blindness. If he’s got that whole no-touch rule with the heroine, that’s tricky.”

System 66 chuckled. “You’re pretty observant. But since your first assignment is crucial, I promise I’ve picked very refined male leads for this chaotic world. Theo has a severe ulcer that flares up under stress. He manages it alone.”

Makenzie nodded and searched for photos of Theo online. Her memory of his face was blurry.

Seeing the disciplined lines of his body and the noticeable maturity in his features in the photos made her blink. Instinctively, she asked, “Can I sleep with him? Stand-in roles usually come with that, right?”

System 66 hesitated. “Technically, yes—but you can’t. Their physical scenes are reserved for the heroine, usually for the reconciliation finale.”

“Well, then.”

While she kept chatting with System 66, the luxury minivan pulled up to Sunrise Court.

It was the most opulent neighborhood around, full of standalone villas with million-dollar price tags. Theo used the place to house his treasured possessions in lavish comfort.

From what Makenzie remembered, the night Theo bailed her out of the precinct and handed her his business card, he’d left her with one parting remark.

The refined man had once told her, “If you can’t handle it, come to me.” His voice had been soft then—nothing like the detached tone he’d used on their last call. Of course, those words were meant for Lila Roberts, not Makenzie Bell.

As the driver was leaving, he said, “No one usually stays here, but Mr. Mason has arranged for a chef to come by. You can ask for whatever you want, Miss Bell.”

Makenzie took in the luxurious villa, though she stayed put in the living room. The decor was a minimalist mix of wood and gray tones—cold, empty, almost completely lifeless.

Until she got an official invitation, Makenzie held off on exploring further. She settled onto the sofa to wait.

With time to kill, she scrolled through the negative press about herself online. The top trending topic was Kristen Bell’s glamorous marriage into high society. Two related headlines followed: one accused Makenzie of pushing Kristen into the water—which Kristen had graciously chosen to overlook—and another painted Makenzie as desperately begging Jason not to end things.

Reading the nasty comments made her grimace.

“Makenzie Bell is the worst. We hope she gets kicked out of the Bell family so she can’t hurt our sweet Kristen anymore!”

“She’s just a gold digger clinging to Jason because he’s her last meal ticket. Greed is literally in her blood.”

“Poor Kristen—growing up away from her family, only to be tormented by a nobody.”

“Makenzie should just vanish. Like, literally disappear!”

Makenzie’s ruined reputation was tangled up with Kristen’s rise in the entertainment world. Theo had saved her from prison, but he hadn’t lifted a finger to manage her public image. Without her laptop, she couldn’t upload the recording yet, so there was nothing she could do right now.

Makenzie turned off her phone, yawned, and decided to nap on the couch.

By eight that evening, a sleek Maybach rolled up outside the villa. Amari Wilson glanced sideways. “We just got word that the chef was in a car accident on the way here. He’s in the hospital.”

“Should we find someone else?” he asked, unsure what Theo Mason was thinking. The man’s face was still hidden in shadow.

Theo looked out at the villa. No lights. He considered it for a few seconds, then said, “No need.”

He stepped onto the porch. The moment he opened the door, a warm light flickered on, spilling from the entryway into the living room and faintly lighting the woman curled up on the sofa.

Theo walked over. Makenzie was asleep, her neckline slightly open, exposing the slender pale line of her throat as she slept deeply.

He crouched down and studied her peaceful face. The words he’d once said so casually now felt like a promise he couldn’t take back. Up close, her features really were exactly his type.

Makenzie stirred in her sleep as something brushed lightly against her eyelids. Instinctively, she reached out and caught a cool fingertip, ready to swat it away—when System 66 blared in her mind, “It’s Theo Mason! He’s looking at you and thinking about someone else! Don’t push him away! According to the script, you should pretend to be all sleepy and disoriented—this is when you look most like the heroine.”

The promise of money was as tempting as ever. She loosened her grip, let out a soft murmur, and let her eyelids flutter half open.

Through the blur, she made out a handsome face and murmured sweetly, almost dreamily, “Mr. Mason? You’re back?”

Theo’s long lashes flickered. His elegant face went still for a moment.

In the dim light, her hazy eyes mirrored the ones in his memory—innocent and sweet, like a lost lamb looking for affection.

His cool thumb brushed the corner of Makenzie’s eye, and his voice came out surprisingly warm. “Why didn’t you go upstairs to sleep?”

“I didn’t know which room was mine,” Makenzie mumbled, shrinking back and leaning away, her fingers still wrapped around his. “Stop—it’s ticklish.”

Theo hesitated, then pulled his hand back, subtly pressing his thumb and forefinger together.

Makenzie slowly sat up. Her hand accidentally hit the remote beside her, and bright light flooded the room, fully revealing the man’s face.

Now fully awake, she was stunned for a second. If Jason counted as charming, then Theo was the definition of mature male beauty—a total powerhouse of a man.

He looked like he’d just come from work, perfectly dressed in a custom dark suit that showed off broad shoulders and a narrow waist. His deep-set eyes and strong nose gave him a face that looked carved by the gods—flawless in every way.

Makenzie looked into his eyes, which still held an unguarded tenderness. She knew he was seeing someone else through her—and internally, she was cheering.

This was a win! Not only would she get paid, she’d also have this exceptional man for company. Paradise, indeed.

The sudden light shattered the illusion. Theo stood, his gaze cold again. “I’m rarely here. You can sleep in whatever room you want.”

“I understand.” Makenzie sat up, her face a little flushed. “About your earlier offer—does it still stand?”

“It does.”

Theo looked down at her, the light casting perfect shadows across his face. His tone was flat but firm. “I need a partner. Discreet. Unnamed. Would you agree, Miss Bell?”

“I wouldn’t have come if I had another option, Mr. Mason,” Makenzie said with a smile. “You’re the only one who offered me a lifeline when everyone else turned against me. Of course I agree—but I have two small conditions.”

Her conditions piqued his interest. Theo sat down and pulled a cigarette from its pack. “Speak.”

“A two-year term. I, Makenzie Bell, am willing to accept this arrangement, but during that time, I want a salary.”

Theo paused mid-motion, surprise flickering in his eyes.

Plenty of women would have done anything for a place in his bed, and here she was negotiating wages—like he was hiring an employee.

Makenzie kept her professional demeanor. “Even if this is an unconventional, high-paying job, we should have clear terms. You provide material support, and I offer companionship—ready to serve you at any time.”

Theo set the cigarette aside, his eyes fixed on her. “You’re in dire need?”

“Completely broke,” Makenzie said with an honest nod. “I don’t have a cent to my name. But I’ll only take payment for my efforts—ten thousand a month, not including benefits. I’ll handle those myself. Does that work for you?”

Theo watched her as if she were sitting in a job interview. He said nothing.

“All right.”

After a moment, he lit his cigarette. “We both get what we want.”

System 66 chimed in: “You’ve received $100,000. Theo Mason’s favorability increased by two percent. He seems to appreciate your pragmatism.”

System 66 chimed in, “Congrats, host—you’re officially Theo Mason’s close companion now. Keep up the good work.”

“Thank you, Mr. Mason,” Makenzie Bell replied. Her smile lit up her eyes in a way that made it impossible for him to look away. He stubbed out his cigarette, refocused, and stood. “There’s a birthday dinner at the Diaz family home tomorrow night. You’re coming with me.”

The invitation had Lila Roberts written all over it.

“All right. Here’s my banking info,” Makenzie said, handing over her bank card with a grin. “Please make a note of it, Mr. Mason.”

Half an hour later, Makenzie sat alone in the living room, pleased to see an advance covering almost two years land in her account. Smiling, she treated herself to an extravagant takeout dinner, then picked a room upstairs for some well-deserved rest.

Makenzie didn’t wake until noon. She stretched in her bathrobe, headed to the bathroom, then padded downstairs barefoot, her hair still tousled. She’d ordered groceries, planning to cook lunch herself.

Passing the study on the second floor, she glimpsed a figure at the desk and stopped dead in her tracks. Theo sat bathed in sunlight streaming through the windows, bent over paperwork. Gold-rimmed glasses lent a scholarly air to his otherwise commanding presence.

Theo hadn’t left for work that morning.

System 66 helpfully reminded her, “Lila Roberts always took the gentle approach.”

Makenzie adjusted her demeanor, knocked softly on the door, and said, “Mr. Mason?”

He looked up, a flicker of surprise in his eyes. With her shoulder-length hair and sleep-softened face, she exuded a tender warmth.

Seeing him quickly regain his composure, she asked gently, “Have you eaten?”

“No,” Theo said, setting down his pen, his eyes still on her.

“I’ll make something. Would you like to join me?” Makenzie offered. System 66 quickly cut in, “Lila Roberts didn’t know her way around a kitchen.”

“No worries. With these eyes doing the asking, he’ll eat.” Makenzie reassured him.

“All right.” Theo agreed with a slight nod, hiding any trace of his earlier surprise behind a composed expression. Despite his usual cool demeanor, he found warmth in her gaze.

Just then, the doorbell echoed downstairs. Makenzie smiled at him. “Do you have any dietary restrictions?”

“Make whatever you like.”

She nodded. “I’ll grab the groceries. I’ll call you when lunch is ready.”

The two kept it cordial, maintaining a respectful distance.

As a stand-in companion on her first day, Makenzie aimed to please her employer and make sure he felt his investment was worth it. Considering Theo’s sensitive stomach, she prepared two dishes and a soothing soup.

Before she could call him, Theo had already come downstairs.

“There’s something I forgot to mention last night,” he said, sitting at the table, his voice steady. “I don’t like my personal space being invaded. I’d appreciate it if you handled any outside entanglements—like young Mr. Jason—appropriately.”

“Actually, I forgot to mention something too.” Makenzie set the utensils before him and took a seat beside him. “I’ve cut ties with my family. With no support, I had no choice but to approach you. I’m completely unattached now. As for any bad press, I’ll handle it so it doesn’t trouble you.”

Theo gave her an assessing glance, nodded slightly, then picked up his fork.

His table manners were impeccable. Neither spoke throughout the meal. Then a phone call interrupted the quiet.

Makenzie went to the kitchen to answer it.

“Nora, your jewelry design has caught an international buyer’s eye. They want to sign a purchase agreement.”

System 66 quickly explained, “That’s your assistant, Luke. Your past as a jewelry designer fits your current identity.”

Despite past romantic distractions, her design talent was undeniable.

After hearing the assistant’s voice, she replied quickly, “Some family issues came up. I’ll email you the contract later.”

“Is it about young Mr. Jason again? Haven’t you sorted out the issue of him using your designs to make Kristen look more versatile?”

Makenzie raised an eyebrow. Another mess to sort out?

“Soon. I’ve got to go now.”

Back at the dining table, she found Theo’s place empty, but the dish she’d served was polished off.

At 2:30 PM, a team of stylists and makeup artists hired by Theo arrived, loaded with outfits and tools to prepare Makenzie for the evening event.

She emerged with elegantly styled, minimalist hair and a sleek white satin dress. The gown’s side slit revealed a hint of ivory skin, adding sophistication.

When not caught in drama, Makenzie’s beauty was incomparable.

Amid the stylists’ admiring comments, she turned to see Theo in a perfectly tailored dark green suit that emphasized his physique. Nearing thirty, Theo carried not an ounce of excess, embodying a composed, striking masculinity.

He approached her with appreciation clear in his eyes, though his admiration seemed to reach beyond Makenzie herself. “You look stunning, Miss Bell.”

As the stylists and makeup artists discreetly exited, Makenzie suggested lightly, “Maybe we should drop the formal titles? Considering our new arrangement and all.” Her smile stayed polite. “Of course, if that makes you uncomfortable, we can keep things as they are.”

Theo’s response was indirect. “You’re different from before.”

Before bringing her back, he’d done a thorough background check. Her past actions were morally questionable—yet somehow justifiable.

“Now I’m reliant on you, Mr. Mason,” Makenzie replied, her gaze innocent. “People tend to mind their manners when they’re living under someone else’s roof.” Her smile was pure and non-threatening.

Theo considered briefly. “Call me whatever you like.”

As his companion—albeit newly appointed—she had certain privileges.

“Theo.” Makenzie smiled, slipping her arm through his. She noticed his slight stiffening. “Is this okay?”

System 66 updated, “You’ve received $100,000. Theo Mason’s favorability increased by 3%.”

System 66 added, “You’re impressive! How did you know Lila Roberts used to cling affectionately to his arm?”

“Was that even a question?” Makenzie thought, rolling her eyes mentally. “Every romance novel plays out this way. You didn’t think I’ve read a thousand CEO romance novels for nothing, did you?”

Theo glanced down, an enigmatic smile gracing his lips. “Jason Carter will be at the Diaz family dinner. Will you still call me that in front of him?”

“To keep our relationship discreet, I’ll call you Mr. Mason in public. Trust me, I have no feelings for young Mr. Jason,” Makenzie asserted confidently, sincerity genuine in her eyes. “I don’t love him.”