es gleamed under the fluorescent lighting. She had always loved the stillness of this time of day-the calm before the chaos of evening events, where the air felt pregnant with po

f her ability to take the unpredictable and mold it into something beautiful and flawless. As a high-profile event planner, her clients

he was a woman of few indulgences, and emotions were rarely one of them. Yet, as her phone buzzed on

e email was simple: Ju

fame, known for his enigmatic persona and his haunting novels. His books weren't the kind to be devoured quickly-they lingered, leaving an uncom

were rare, how the man himself was as much a mystery as the characters he wrote about. The women he'd dated were as legenda

was he aski

unadorned with pleasa

Elena

y upcoming book, and I believe you may be the person to do it. If you are available for an initial c

reg

an H

flattery, more words, more... anything, really. She wasn't used to receiving requests from someone so high-p

s. A book launch, especially one with a novelist like Julian Hayes, was bound to come with its own set of complications-chaotic interviews, pushy pub

r part of her began to question why she was so quick to dismiss it. Something about

th his unpredictability and shadows, was something else entirely. He was an unknown. An ano

efore she tapped out a response, her fin

Mr. H

to meet with you to discuss the details. I am available tomorrow at 2 p.m., b

reg

na

ached. She pressed *send* before

emands of her other clients. But through it all, Julian Hayes lingered in the back of her mind. She hadn't realized how

hen there was the rumor of his broken engagement to a famous actress, which had ended so quietly no one could figure out what had really happened. Elena c

herself it was just another project. She was the planner. Th

ing of her apartment, the quiet hum of the city outside her window the only sound in the

d up in the lives of her clients. But Julian Hayes was different, wasn't he? Something in the way he

if he had even consid

dered if he had known e

ghts. She could almost hear his voice in her head-low, measure

on her bedside table, trying to drown

f man was J

trouble was he