Adrian pushed through the guests, heart pounding—until he saw who Leo was reaching for.
A young woman stood near the service hallway, frozen in place.
She wore a maid’s uniform—blue dress, white apron. Yellow cleaning gloves still covered her hands. Her dark hair was tied back neatly, but her face had gone pale.
And her eyes… were full of tears.
Leo sobbed harder when he saw her.
“Mama! Mama come!”
Every conversation in the room died.
Adrian felt the blood drain from his face.
“That’s not funny,” Charlotte hissed. “Why is my fiancé’s son calling a maid his mother?”
“I don’t know,” Adrian whispered—but something inside him was already unraveling.
The maid’s name tag read Isabel Cruz.
She looked at Leo with an expression Adrian recognized instantly.
Not confusion.
Not surprise.
Love.
Raw. Painful. Unmistakable.
Adrian reached for his son. “Leo, sweetheart, that’s not—”
“No!” Leo screamed, fighting with shocking strength. “Mama! Want Mama!”
The head housekeeper rushed over. “Mr. Whitmore, I’ll remove her immediately. She just started today—”
“Wait,” Adrian said sharply.
The room leaned in.
He turned to the maid. “Why is my son calling you that?”