Grace Bennett never imagined that the new boss her company parachuted in would turn out to be the father of her daughter.

If she'd known Alexander Hawthorne would be here, Grace swore she’d never have stepped foot into this company.

A few days ago, the department was buzzing with talks about some young, accomplished leader coming in. Rumor had it he was the golden boy of the group president’s family, born with a silver spoon in his mouth.

Every single achievement listed on his résumé felt like something unreachable for regular folks like them.

The man standing at the head of the conference room had one hand casually tucked into his pocket. His custom-made suit accentuated an air of sophistication and elegance. His once-youthful features had sharpened over time into something more commanding. He looked young, sure, but carried an undeniable authority.

In his other hand was a remote, which he used to explain the content on the PowerPoint with confidence and ease. His deep, clear voice echoed through the room.

Everyone held their breaths, terrified of making a wrong move and blowing their first impression with this intimidating superior.

Grace, on the other hand, wished she could just vanish.

Too bad the polished floor of the meeting room was spotless—not a single crack or crevice she could crawl into to escape. Worse, the shiny surface practically reflected her awkward, flustered expression for all to see.

She’d known the group’s last name was “Hawthorne,” but it hadn’t clicked that *this* Hawthorne was *him.*

Her toes curled in embarrassment, and beads of cold sweat started to form on her back.

It felt suffocating, like the air itself had grown heavy. Three years.

They hadn’t seen each other in three years. Split up for three years too.

“Who’s in charge of this project?”

A low, detached voice came from the stage. The man’s gaze swept across the silent room, making everyone freeze like deer in headlights. No one dared to answer.

Alexander Hawthorne frowned, his voice sharper now.

“Have you all conveniently forgotten the projects you’re handling?”

Grace Bennett’s colleague next to her stood up shakily, fear written all over their face. “Mr. Hawthorne, I’m the one responsible.”

For a moment, she didn’t know if she imagined it, but when she glanced up, her eyes seemed to meet Alexander’s.

The air between them froze solid. Grace forgot how to breathe.

But Alexander quickly looked away, his tone cutting. “This needs serious improvement. Submitting something like this—aren’t you embarrassed?”

Grace let out a quiet sigh of relief.

Maybe he hadn’t seen her after all.

She wasn’t the same Grace Bennett from three years ago anyway.

Lowering her head, she tried her best to stay invisible. Staring at the floor, she suddenly noticed a pair of impeccably polished leather shoes stop right in front of her.

It was like falling into the depths of the ocean, salty water swallowing up all her breath. Her limbs went numb in an instant.

Alexander Hawthorne was standing next to her. Colleague defended, "Mr. Hawthorne, we’ve already got positive feedback from the client..."

The remote in Alexander Hawthorne’s hand was tossed onto the table. He lifted his eyes, the sharp, pitch-black gaze slicing coldly through the air as it locked onto the colleague beside Grace Bennett. His voice was biting, deliberate: "An immature plan is still an immature plan. Using client feedback as your safety net—is that your standard?"

"Or maybe you think your job is just some childish game?"

That overly critical stare wasn’t focused on Grace’s colleague but rather... on her.

Everyone immediately shifted their attention to their shoes, as if hoping to avoid being swept up in Mr. Hawthorne’s fury.

Grace Bennett drew in a deep breath, trying her best to steady her nerves.

Alexander carried on, "Make the necessary revisions, and resubmit later."

"Understood, Mr. Hawthorne."

Just as the tension in the room softened, his gaze landed squarely on Grace.

Her face was as breathtaking as ever, though she had visibly lost weight. Now dressed in a tailored office dress, with her hair neatly tucked behind her ears, her pale skin still seemed to glow unnaturally. But she couldn’t hide the exhaustion—the dark circles under her eyes betrayed her weariness.

She avoided looking his way.

Alexander faintly smirked, the curve of his lips icy as he added, "Bring something like this again, and you won’t want to know the consequences."

His long fingers casually rapped against Grace's desk—a slow, erratic rhythm that somehow felt dripping with calculated disdain.Grace Bennett knew exactly what that meant—he was in a terrible mood.

Those dark eyes of his hid emotions that were impossible to decipher, and just one glance was enough to make her palms sweat.

Thankfully, he didn’t say much more and shifted his focus to the progress of other projects instead.

Grace’s calves trembled faintly.

After the meeting.

Grace went back to her desk along with her colleagues. She gulped down half a glass of water to calm herself down.

Even though Alexander Hawthorne had nitpicked other projects, their group wasn’t spared either.

Now, basically, the whole department was going to have to work overtime.

One of her colleagues complained, “New boss and his so-called establishment fires—looks like he’s making an example out of us. Grace, did you notice why Mr. Hawthorne just stood next to us the whole time? It scared the hell out of me!”

Grace paused for a moment.

Alexander had been standing nearby, probably to catch their team’s responses more clearly.

But even when the other teams answered, he didn’t leave.

He stayed right beside her the whole time.

Grace didn’t dare lift her head and had hurried out of the meeting room without so much as another glance at him.

Judging by his behavior, it seemed likely he’d already moved on from their messy, fleeting past.

Otherwise, why would he stay near her and act completely nonchalant?

You only act indifferent when you don’t care anymore.

Alexander Hawthorne, once the unattainable star of the A University economics department, had been the campus heartthrob for four straight years. The love story between Grace Bennett, the Bennett family's daughter, and Alexander Hawthorne once caused quite a stir.

Back then, people said she bought him off, spent a bunch of money to make Alexander stay with her.

Grace herself believed it too.

After all, Alexander looked like a struggling college student at the time, but he never actually took any of her money.

Until his birthday came around and Grace logged into Alexander’s shopping app account, thinking she’d check out whatever fancy stuff he liked but hadn't bought yet—she wanted to pick something special for him.

Instead, she stumbled upon his private conversations with someone else on the app.

That person called him "Alex bro" in such a close, intimate tone.

They even said he didn’t seem like the kind of guy who would ever fancy someone like Grace.

It was as if someone had poured ice water over her, freezing her from head to toe.

Still, Alexander hadn't replied to that chat, so she went ahead and bought the gift anyway.

When Alexander got it at the birthday party, he didn’t show any surprise or happiness. He just gave a casual "thanks."

While he excused himself to use the restroom, Grace went to settle the bill without saying anything.

When she returned, she overheard mocking voices coming from inside the room.

"If Grace Bennett weren’t so shameless, begging to leech off Alex, there’s no way he'd put up with such a tacky woman."

"Exactly! She thinks having a pile of cash makes her better than everyone else." Alexander Hawthorne's voice was crisp and clear as he said, "I never really took Grace Bennett seriously."

Laughter from those around him drowned out the tail end of his remark.

"See? Told you Alex wouldn't go for some nouveau riche type!"

Grace could never forget how she felt at that moment—her heart shattered, the pain so deep she could barely breathe, her limbs tingling like they'd been shocked.

Right then, a crisis erupted at home, and her father sent her abroad.

Three years vanished in a blink.

Now, back at work, who could've guessed her new boss would be Alexander Hawthorne?

Not in a million years would Grace have imagined that the guy who once had to scrape by on side gigs and a scholarship was actually the heir to the Hawthorne Group.

From the way he acted earlier, it seemed like he wanted them to play strangers.

Well, fine. That suited her perfectly.

---

Inside the executive office, Alexander lounged on the plush leather couch. His long, elegant fingers clicked the mouse, pulling up the personnel database.

Grace Bennett.

Apparently, she'd joined the company a year ago. With an impressive resume and standout performance, she'd not only secured a permanent position within a year but had even become a project leader.

His expression darkened, and his fingers tapped the desk rhythmically, the sound sharp and methodical.

Ethan Reynolds stood off to the side, studying his boss's demeanor closely. "Mr. Hawthorne? Anything you'd like me to handle?" Alexander Hawthorne lifted the coffee cup beside him and took a sip with an elegant poise. Calmly, he said, “I’m new here, still trying to get familiar with the projects. Introduce the team leads to me.”

Ethan Reynolds quickly understood and introduced each person in turn. Finally, he mentioned Grace Bennett.

“Grace is young but talented. She just transferred to the headquarters a year ago. Before that, she worked in the overseas department and achieved excellent results.”

Excellent results?

Alexander’s lips curved into a faint, mocking smile. The Grace Bennett he remembered—the spoiled daughter of the Bennett family—actually humbling herself to work? Hard to believe those so-called ‘results’ weren’t just bought with Bennett money.

After all, she had always liked using money to prove her point—and even more so, vanishing into thin air whenever things got emotionally intense.

Ethan, noticing Alexander’s silence, continued, “This project she’s leading has drawn a lot of praise from the board.”

He let out a light sigh. Having mentored Grace during her internship, Ethan admired her methodical approach, her ability to stay low-key and avoid unnecessary drama, and her undeniable talent.

“I mean, if things don’t go well, feel free to call her out on it, but give her a chance to prove herself.”

Alexander raised his head, his eyes cold and distant. That chilling gaze carried an edge that seemed to pierce through the room.

Just one year here and she's already got people speaking up for her? Still the same—she’s never failed at winning people over.

Ethan was too focused on his own words to notice Alexander’s dark expression.Sighing, he continued, "Grace's family isn't doing well. Her father passed away, her mother’s seriously ill, and there’s a young daughter she has to take care of. The kid’s health isn’t great either. On top of all that, her husband is—"

Alexander cut him off sharply, his cold stare feeling like a knife.

"Ethan, does your paycheck cover gossip sessions?"

Ethan froze, a chill running down his spine. He quickly apologized repeatedly and, realizing Alexander wasn’t going to push further, bowed slightly and rushed out of the office. Best to tread carefully around this unpredictable boss from now on.

The office grew quiet again.

Alexander grabbed a tissue to wipe the spilled coffee from his desk, his movements steady yet distant. His finger scrolled down the computer screen, then clicked on Grace’s employee profile.

The photo showed her younger self during their university days—it was taken when she begged him to go get their pictures done together.

His gaze drifted downwards to the "Marital Status" section.

Married.