Isla Fox

Three years ago, Hazel Vance made a choice that changed everything. One night of passion with a mysterious stranger at a masquerade ball left her with more than just memories—it left her with a son whose rare violet-blue eyes are a constant reminder of the father she'll never find.

Now a struggling single mother, Hazel desperately needs the executive assistant position at Sterling Group. The salary could finally give her two-year-old Leo the life he deserves. But her new boss, CEO Liam Sterling, is nothing like she expected.

Demanding, brilliant, and devastatingly handsome, Liam has a reputation for being impossible to work for. Most assistants don't last a week. When Hazel refuses to be intimidated by his cold demeanor and sharp tongue, something shifts between them. The attraction is immediate and electric, crackling through every professional interaction.

But it's his eyes that stop her cold. The same striking violet-blue shade that stares back at her every morning when she looks at her son.

As the tension between them builds and the lines between professional and personal begin to blur, Hazel finds herself caught between her desperate need for this job and her growing attraction to the one man who could destroy everything she's worked for.

She doesn't know that Liam has been searching for the mysterious woman from the masquerade ball ever since that night changed him forever. And he has no idea that the composed, fiery assistant who challenges him at every turn is the same woman who haunts his dreams.

When the truth finally comes to light, will it bring them together or tear apart the fragile new life Hazel has built for herself and her son?

The CEO’s Masked Secret Wife

Chapter 17 - Office Games and Dangerous Territory


I clutched my coffee mug with trembling hands, settling into my desk chair as my legs continued to shake from this morning's encounter. Minutes later, an email from Liam appeared in my inbox with detailed instructions for tomorrow's board meeting preparation. I dove into the work immediately, and by the time other employees began filtering into the office, I had organized every document and agenda item perfectly.


Evelyn breezed through the entrance with a man's arm linked through hers, her eyebrows shooting up when she spotted me.


"Hazel, what happened to you? You look like you wrestled with your alarm clock and lost. Good morning, honey."


"Morning, Evelyn. Liam requested I arrive early to set up for tomorrow's meeting."


"That demanding boss of yours better not make this your new normal."
