The CEO’s Masked Secret Wife

Hazel's POV

My friends stared at me like I had completely lost my mind when I confessed that I had slipped out of Liam's bed before dawn, leaving nothing but a handwritten goodbye note on his pillow.

"So now that I've written that final goodbye, he'll probably move on and forget I ever existed. Meanwhile, I'm drowning in misery worse than before," I finished, feeling my chest tighten with the weight of my own words.

"Matthew Emmanuel, Hazel! Listen, what went down between you two was brutal, but honey, you don't just stumble across a man who flips your entire universe like that every day," Stella shot back, her voice sharp with frustration.

"Anyone with functioning eyeballs can see what you two have is lightning in a bottle! The way that man devours you with his eyes, sweetheart, he's head over heels in love with you!" Scarlett jumped in, gesturing wildly with her wine glass.

"So you're really planning to hold this grudge forever?" Thea pressed, leaning forward with concern etched across her face.

"I honestly don't know if I'm capable of letting it go," I admitted, the words tasting bitter on my tongue.

"Shit, Hazel! I'm pissed that I have to say this, but Noah might actually be onto something," Chloe muttered, rolling her eyes.

"What the hell are you talking about?" we all demanded simultaneously.

Chloe launched into the story about her dinner with Liam and Damian, describing how Noah had been pushing her to see that Liam could be the great love of my life, the only man capable of making me truly happy. She had already filled me in on the details, explaining how she had pretended to go along with Noah's scheme just to watch him squirm and beg for her help. She was also irritated that Noah was clearly playing middleman between himself and Liam, feeding information back and forth.

"Maybe Noah hit the nail on the head, considering how completely wrecked you are after dropping that goodbye bomb, facing the cold reality that it's actually finished now," Chloe continued. "Maybe you should give him another shot, but only after you make him crawl through glass for it."

"Hazel, men are walking disasters! They screw up spectacularly. But I think you two can rebuild this thing. You just need to make him grovel until his knees bleed," Stella declared with wicked satisfaction.

"Look, Liam is hotheaded and under crushing pressure, what he did was reckless and stupid. But I know him inside and out, he never repeats the same mistake. And it's plastered across his face in permanent ink that he's crazy about you," Thea said firmly, squeezing my hand. "I seriously doubt he's going to wave the white flag because of one goodbye note. Liam fights tooth and nail for what matters to him."

"Think about it, you could try seeing his perspective. In that moment, every single piece of evidence pointed to you being guilty. Flip the script. What would you have done if someone told you he was cheating and all the proof was stacked against him?" Scarlett challenged, forcing me to really consider the situation.

"You're absolutely right, Vi. I would have thrown punches first and asked questions later," I said, allowing myself to consider for the first time that maybe, just maybe, I could find it in my heart to forgive Liam.

"Honey, I know you better than anyone, you're incredible and your heart is enormous. You're going to forgive him. Actually, you've already started forgiving him, or you never would have shown up at his house," Chloe concluded with knowing certainty. My friend could read me like an open book. "Plus, he and Leo have this incredible connection, and you have to admit that counts for something major."

I nodded, unable to argue with that truth.

"Do you genuinely love him, Hazel? Is this love worth fighting for?" Stella asked, locking eyes with me and searching for the real answer.

"Yes, I love him more than I ever imagined I could love another human being. He's incredible with me, incredible with my son. Damn it all to hell! I want him back!" I finally confessed, accepting that I was ready to forgive Liam.

"Well, ladies, let's drink to that revelation!" Thea raised her glass high. "But now, we need to plan the absolute torture he'll have to endure to earn you back and learn never to hurt you again."

I found myself grinning at her words. We clinked our glasses together and made our toast. We spent the next two hours scheming, cackling with laughter, and by the end we had constructed the perfect revenge plan.

"So there it is, girls! Liam is going to learn his lesson the hard way. And his little band of brothers will pay the price too, especially Noah. I'm positive they're all conspiring together to help Liam," Chloe said with absolute conviction.

"We can't trust a single one of them. We'll pump them for information while making them suffer," Thea concluded with satisfaction.

"Oh, it's a cakewalk for you two, you already have your men wrapped around your little fingers. But for us three, it's going to be brutal. Even worse for me since I haven't even gotten to first base with my hottie yet," Scarlett complained, sending us all into fits of laughter.

"Girl, you're supposed to make the hottie suffer, not run away from kissing him. Think of it like house training a dog, good behavior earns treats, bad behavior gets punishment," Thea was practically crying with laughter.

"Exactly the point, ladies. We're going to drive these men absolutely insane, have them begging for scraps," Chloe's eyes were gleaming with mischief. "And once Hazel forgives that fool, we'll all have them exactly where we want them."