Billionaire's Secret Vow

Cassidy Vale didn 't walk.. she stormed .

Her heels clacked like gunshots across the marble lobby floor of Thorne Dynamics , a sound that had heads turning and the security guard subtly reaching for his earpiece . She barely noticed . Her phone was pressed to her ear, her free hand fisted at her side, and her tone.. sharp enough to slice steel.. carried across the cavernous space.

"No, I don't care if the lighting company has a conflict. You confirm the contract or I' ll personally come down there and string up the chandeliers myself."

She didn 't wait for a reply. She hung up, stabbed the elevator button, and glared at her reflection in the mirrored doors. Perfect. She looked like a stressed -out PR nightmare in a too-tight blazer and coffee-stained blouse .

All this because her client decided to change venues for a million-dollar charity gala three days before the event.

Who even did that?

The elevator doors slid open, revealing polished steel walls and not a hint of music. Of course not. This was Thorne Dynamics.. sterile , soulless , and packed with enough money to fund a small country. Cassidy jabbed the top floor and took a deep breath.

She was here to negotiate. Not scream. Not panic.

Just fix the disaster and get back to salvaging her company's biggest event of the year.

The elevator dinged , and she stepped into a hallway that smelled like expensive leather and chilled ambition. She barely glanced at the receptionist before pushing open the tall glass doors marked "Executive Boardroom ."

And then she stopped.

Dead center in the room stood a man. Alone. Tall. Composed . Leaning against the conference table like he owned time itself.

He looked up from a sleek tablet , raising one perfect brow.

Cassidy blinked . "Where is everyone?"

"You' re early." His voice was low and smooth, like a threat whispered behind a closed door.

Cassidy checked her watch. "No, I'm five minutes late. I was told there would be a logistics team here to go over the venue change. I was told.. " Her words caught as she finally registered him fully. The tailored navy suit. The matte -black cufflinks . The air of money and control.

No nameplate . No assistant. Just one very expensive man giving her a look like she'd interrupted something far more important than her entire career.

Oh no.

"Wait," she said slowly. "Are you.. ?"

He held her gaze, unmoved . " Dominic Thorne ."

She swallowed the very loud curse that wanted to escape. Great. She'd just yelled at the Dominic Thorne . The billionaire . The corporate king. The man who could either destroy her event or double its budget with a phone call.

"Right." She cleared her throat and forced a smile. "I didn 't realize I'd be speaking directly with you."

"Apparently not."

The silence that followed was suffocating . Cassidy scrambled to gather her thoughts, but her brain was still somewhere between oh god I yelled at him and how does someone's jawline look that illegally sharp in real life?

"Well," she said finally, "since I'm here... I wanted to discuss the venue change. It's highly irregular to switch locations this close to the gala , especially without consulting the event coordinator.. me ."

"I wasn 't aware I needed your permission," Dominic replied coolly . He returned his attention to the tablet , tapping through something with calm detachment .

Cassidy bristled . "You may not need permission, but common courtesy would' ve been nice. The venue we spent three weeks designing around is now useless. Staff need to be reassigned . Lighting needs to be adjusted . Security.. "

"Will be handled." He didn 't look up. " Thorne Dynamics doesn 't throw mediocre parties , Ms. Vale . I assumed you were aware of that when you accepted the contract."

Cassidy stepped forward, eyes narrowing . "I'm not in the business of throwing mediocre anything, Mr. Thorne . But what I don't do is rework six weeks of planning with three days' notice because a billionaire got bored ."

That got his attention.

He looked up slowly, meeting her gaze with eyes that were almost too cold to be real.. gray , sharp, and wholly unimpressed .

"You think I did this out of boredom?"

"I think you' re used to people snapping their fingers when you blink , and I'm not that person."

Another beat of silence passed. Then.. unexpectedly.. he smiled. Just a flicker . Barely there. But it changed everything.

Not warm. Not kind.

Interested.

"You' re not," he agreed , sounding almost amused .

Cassidy 's skin prickled . She wasn 't sure if she wanted to punch him or kiss him. Maybe both. Probably in that order.

"I' ll send over a revised logistics brief this afternoon," she said stiffly . "If we' re really doing this at the Thorne Tower Grand Atrium , then I need full access to your staff and your schedule."

"You' ll have it."

She turned to leave, then hesitated . "And for the record, I don't care how many zeros are in your bank account. If this event crashes , it's your name and mine on the line. You want unforgettable ? I' ll give you unforgettable . But next time, try talking to the people who are making you look good."

Then she walked out, pulse racing.

It wasn 't until the elevator doors closed behind her that she realized she'd been holding her breath.

Back in the boardroom , Dominic Thorne stood still for a long moment. Then he tapped his earpiece .

"Tell PR to keep monitoring that woman," he said quietly. " Cassidy Vale ."

He glanced down at the photograph still open on his tablet.. an old image of two boys standing in front of a burned-out house.

He closed the file.

"This just got interesting.