Chapter 2 — The Name Behind the Badge
Every eye in the ballroom followed her hand.
Slowly...
Deliberately...
Miss Bennett unclipped the small brass name badge from her uniform.
She turned it over.
The engraved side faced the guests.
Evelyn Bennett
Founder & Sole Owner — Bennett Hospitality Group
A sharp gasp swept through the room.
Someone dropped a champagne glass.
It shattered across the marble floor.
The blonde woman frowned, refusing to believe what she was seeing.
"...That's impossible."
She laughed nervously.
"No. Someone's playing a joke."
The man still kneeling finally spoke.
"Miss Bennett, I'm deeply sorry."
His voice shook.
"I was delayed by a traffic accident. I never imagined the event coordinator would mistake you for temporary staff."
The room erupted into whispers.
"Temporary staff?"
"Owner?"
"Wait... Bennett Hospitality?"
People began checking their phones.
Within seconds, the truth appeared on hundreds of screens.
Photographs.
Magazine covers.
Business journals.
The woman standing before them wasn't merely wealthy.
She owned seventeen luxury hotels across the country.
She had quietly purchased this historic hotel three years earlier after rescuing it from bankruptcy.
The gala itself...
...was being hosted inside her building.
The blonde woman's face drained of color.
"I'm... I'm sure there's been some misunderstanding."
Evelyn looked at her calmly.
"No."
"There hasn't."
She gently removed the wine-soaked serving jacket, revealing a perfectly tailored ivory pantsuit underneath.
Several executives instantly recognized it.
It was custom-made by one of Europe's most exclusive designers.
She hadn't been disguised.
No one had bothered to look closely enough.
"I attended tonight anonymously," Evelyn said.
"I wanted to observe how every employee in my company was treated when they appeared powerless."
She slowly turned toward the guests.
"Unfortunately..."
"...many of you revealed far more about yourselves than my staff ever could."
Silence settled over the ballroom once again.
May you like
No one wanted to meet her eyes.
Especially the people who had laughed.
