Alquintes
At university, she's untouchable - the sharp-tongued, feared "queen bee" who bows to no one. But her world shifts the day a small boy runs into her arms, calling her mom.
She brushes him off. Easy.
His father is a different problem.
Caelan Hayes doesn't ask for things. He doesn't need to. But his son hasn't smiled in years and now refuses to let go of the girl who looks like everything he lost.
Aleena doesn't want this.
The boy.
The man.
The life.
But Jake's quiet eyes are harder to walk away from than she expected.
And Caelan's controlled silences say more than most people's words.
What starts as a lie.
Becomes the only truth that matters.