Chapter 1

Willow

Present Day

"Katrina, did Fletcher ever call back?" I call to my assistant as I shuffle through the papers on my desk, searching for a Post-it note she may have left me, but I know the bright pink paper would be sticking out if there were one among the sea of white.

"No," Katrina says as she strides through the door of my office, landing right on the other side of my desk. But I don't look up at her as I pick up the other stack of papers to my right, eager to review the latest marketing campaign submitted for approval from one of my teams.

Marshall Advertising is my pride and joy, the company I started from the ground up when I left the University of Nevada and traveled back to Washington, D.C. in hopes of making a name for myself in our nation's capital.

And I have.

Just three years ago, my company hit the multimillion-dollar mark.

As owner and CEO, I make it my mission to be involved in every aspect of the business while keeping it very separate from my personal life. Separating emotions from my work means I can make tough decisions and still sleep at night. And taking ownership of what I've created means I'm in control, the way I like to be—the way I need to be.

"Um, Willow…" Katrina quietly starts, pulling my eyes up to her. She's chewing on her bottom lip as she clutches her iPad to her chest.

"What's wrong?"

"There was…a situation this morning during one of the meetings with our remote team." Her eyes widen as she speaks.

We have several employees that work remotely since they live in other parts of the country, but very rarely are there any issues. In fact, hiring remote staff has allowed us to double the number of accounts we can represent. It was a smart business decision, but the look on her face has me questioning if that's still true.

"What kind of situation?" I ask hesitantly as I drop the pen and papers from my hands to give her my full attention.

"Well, I think I'd rather just let you watch the video." With a shaky hand, she hands me the iPad and then steps away from my desk, as if the video in question might reach through the screen and grab her.

With a pinch in my brow and a slightly accelerated heart rate, I press play on the recording from the Zoom call and watch, waiting for something to catch me off guard.

And boy, does it ever.

"Is that…"

"Yes." She pauses. "That's a penis, Willow."

On one of the small screens in the video, a man stands up, showcasing his rather proud and rock-hard erection with semen leaking from the tip as if he just finished making himself "happy" during the meeting. And if I'm being honest, it doesn't look like his dick was camera-ready.

But then, as the rest of the employees notice the inappropriate display of his manhood, the supervisor, Francis, freaks out and begins yelling, clicking around frantically in an attempt to minimize the offender's window, but ends up pinning his screen, so the entire view of the call is of his dick.

"Oh. My. God," I say, channeling my inner Janice from Friends.

Katrina's lips fold in as I look up at her. "Yeah."

"Holy hell." I shake my head, unable to look away from the chaos going on in the Zoom call. "I don't even know what to say."

"Francis has already handled it and terminated the employee, but I figured you'd prefer to be in the loop."

I shut the iPad off and set it on my desk, heaving out a sigh. "I appreciate that, although, I'm pretty sure I would have been happier never having seen that in the first place."

Katrina stifles her laugh. "Agreed."

"Anything else? Maybe a surprise nip slip on a client call? Did someone shit their pants during a pitch?" My words drip with sarcasm. How can I not be a little on edge after an unsolicited, face-to-face encounter with an employee's penis at nine in the morning?

"Nothing as bad as that. Your meeting at eleven got pushed until one. Fletcher hasn't returned your call yet, but I plan on sending a follow-up email when I get back to my desk. And this came for you." She pulls an envelope from under her arm, swapping it with the iPad that's now sitting on my desk.

I glance at the address written on the envelope.

From the law offices of Timothy McDonald, Carrington Cove, North Carolina.

"Looks like junk mail. I don't recognize this name or place." I try to hand it back to Katrina, but she doesn't move to take it.

"The courier said you might say that, but he assured me it is meant for you, Willow Marshall. He even confirmed your age before leaving it."

My age? What the heck?

My eyes scan over the writing once more as I run my thumb over the crisp, white envelope. "Well, okay then."

"I'll be at my desk if you need anything." Katrina leaves my office as my mind begins to spin with questions.

With absolutely no idea who this could be from, I run my finger under the seal, breaking it open to extract the paper folded up inside. I momentarily debate if I should be more cautious, especially given my public status. But my gut tells me if someone wanted to sabotage me, they wouldn't do it with a hand-addressed envelope.

As I take in the words on the paper, utter shock slams into me as my heart rate climbs. My eyes race across each line and it suddenly feels hard to breathe, my mind spinning as flashes of memories infiltrate my mind.

I never imagined a piece of my past would come hurtling into my present.

But it has.

And it's calling me to Carrington Cove.

***

"I'm sorry. You're headed where?" Shauna, my best friend, asks for clarification as I continue to cruise down the highway, well more than halfway into my drive. When I called the law office to clarify the intent of the letter, the attorney explained that all matters were best discussed in person, so here I am, driving to this town I've never heard of.

"North Carolina."

"And you said it's for some inheritance?"

"That's what the letter said. I don't even know who this man is, Shauna, but he said he knew my parents. Am I crazy for driving down there? What if it's a scam?"

Given the magnitude of my company's success, I've grown wary of people wanting to get close to me for the wrong reasons. And a long-lost friend of my parents sounds like the perfect con to back me into a corner, especially since they died when I was two and there's hardly anyone left who knew them. I have no other family except for Mandy and Jason, my godparents who took custody of me per my parents' will.

But Mandy, who practically raised me on her own after she and Jason divorced, never mentioned the man behind this letter. I figured I would wait until I knew more before asking her about it. No sense in stirring up old memories for nothing. Besides, Shauna is the first sounding board I turn to when I need to talk, and I know she'll tell me what I need to hear.

We met at UNLV and bonded quickly over our love of sarcasm and shared disinterest in dating. My focus was on my degree to kickstart my business, while she navigated a breakup with her high school boyfriend. From then on, it was us against the world—well, until she ended her engagement last fall and returned to Newberry Springs to reconcile with her high school sweetheart, Forrest. Now, she"s happily expecting their son.

"You said you confirmed the law firm is legitimate, right? So the letter most likely is too, Willow. They wouldn't risk their reputation on a scam."

That right there. There's the logical perspective that I needed.

"That's true."

"And it could be some sort of mix-up, but if there's a connection to your parents, you owe it to yourself to find out."

Shauna is the only person I've ever been honest with about how losing my parents has affected me. I might not have been old enough to remember them, but that loss has haunted me and left a giant hole in my chest I've never quite filled. Add on a lack of a stable family unit and less than stellar luck in dating throughout my life, and it just became easier to shut off my feelings about my past than try to deal with them.

But with every mile I drive, it feels like someone is widening that hole, digging roughly into the hard surface I've built to cover old wounds as the anticipation of what awaits me intensifies.

"I know. I just…I don't have time for this. Business is so crazy. The holiday season is coming and there are so many accounts we have pitches and campaigns to get ready for. Oh! And you won't believe what happened the other day."

"Well, you have time and so do I waiting for this baby to come out, so spill all the details."

I spend the next several minutes recounting the morning wake-up call of a dick on screen three days ago.

"Do you think he was jacking off during the meeting, then?" she asks through her laugh.

"I mean, that's what it looked like. Perhaps the dog food campaign they were working on really got him fired up and horny?" Shauna cackles as I switch lanes. "But if stuff like that is happening, it just goes to show that the last thing I should be doing right now is following a wild-goose chase."

"First of all, you can't control when a man decides to whip out his dick, Willow. That's beyond the scope of running a company, and I think any other CEO would agree."

The corner of my mouth lifts. "Fair point."

"And secondly, you and I both know that you're a workaholic, and you take on so much more than you need to in your role."

"That's a matter of opinion."

"No, it's a fact. You could delegate way more than you do." Shauna lets out a big sigh as I consider her perspective, not liking how it makes me feel. "Look, I know you have all sorts of questions right now, but you won't have any answers until you meet with the attorney tomorrow. So, figure out the details and make decisions then. But please, Willow, at least enjoy the change of scenery. When's the last time you took a day off?"

I start thinking back, searching desperately for a date to give her.

"Your lack of a response is your answer. It's been too freaking long."

Sighing, I flip my blinker on and move into the lane on my right. "Fine. You're right. I just hate not having all the information."

"Oh, I'm aware. You're the biggest control freak I know. But believe me, sometimes when life throws you a curve ball, it can turn out to be for the best. Look at me and Forrest."

"I'm pretty sure you ran into Forrest again two weeks before you were about to marry another man, and then you ended up leaving that man at the altar. How is that not disastrous?"

She laughs, but replies, "You're right. It was disastrous at first. But then it led me back to the man I never stopped loving and in a few weeks, we're going to be parents. I'd say that's pretty serendipitous, wouldn't you?"

"Yeah, I guess," I murmur in agreement, knowing that I've never seen my best friend so happy. I'm just not feeling particularly agreeable at the moment.

"Always the optimist." She pauses and then says, "Just breathe, Willow."

I let out the breath I was holding. "How did you know I needed that reminder?"

"Because that's what you do when you're stressed. I'm sorry I can't be there with you, but it's going to be okay."

"And what if it's not?"

"Then you'll tackle whatever comes your way. Because you're Willow fucking Marshall and that's what you do. You're a survivor."

"Thank you," I mutter as I feel the sting of tears. But I fight them down and focus on the road.

Shauna lets out a yawn. "I'm always here. However, I am exhausted so I'm going to let you go so I can take a nap."

"Fine. I guess you can go and continue growing my nephew."

"Thanks for your permission. Text me when you get there safely."

"I will. I still have a while to go, though."

"Enjoy the ride, Willow. I have a feeling you're in for one hell of one."

Why is it that at this moment, I get that feeling in my gut too?