CHAPTER 5 — The Girl Under the Chandelier
Later that night, the party continued without its center.
Guests adapted quickly.
Rich environments always do.
But something had shifted.
Sophia sat in the kitchen again, coloring quietly while Maria worked.
But now no one laughed when they passed.
Because Daniel had made one thing very clear:
The kitchen was not below the party.
It was part of his house.
And Victoria stood near the ballroom entrance, watching Daniel kneel beside Sophia.
He had brought her a plate.
Not from catering.
From the private chef station.
“Do you like strawberries?” he asked.
Sophia nodded.
He placed the plate gently in front of her.
“Then this is yours.”
Sophia looked up at him.
“Are you the boss?”
Daniel thought about it.
Then smiled faintly.
“No,” he said. “Not of you.”
A pause.
Then Sophia asked:
“Are you Mommy’s boss?”
Maria stiffened slightly.
Daniel looked at her.
And said:
“No.”
That moment mattered more than anything else that night.
May you like
Because Maria had never heard an employer say that before.
Not in her life.
