Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 540

Chapter 540

Gwen’s POV

I woke up early, before the sun had fully risen. I couldn’t stay in bed anymore. I needed to do something. I

needed answers.

I grabbed the car keys I’d seen yesterday while going through my suitcase. A discreet leather keychain with the logo of a brand I didn’t recognize. I went downstairs quietly and stepped out into the icy morning parking lot.

I pressed the button on the key fob, and the lights of a car that looked expensive blinked in response. I got in, adjusted the seat and mirrors like I’d done it a thousand times before, and started the engine. It purred to life instantly.

Driving was easy.

It wasn’t like I’d forgotten the basics. Press the clutch: Shift gears. Check the mirrors. My body knew exactly what to do, even when my mind couldn’t remember learning how.

The road to town was covered in a thin layer of ice that demanded extra care. I drove slowly, cautiously, focusing on every curve and descent.

The center of Montelira was small but charming, with narrow stone streets and medieval buildings that looked like they’d been pulled straight from a postcard. Even early on a Saturday morning, a few shops were already opening, owners sweeping sidewalks and arranging their windows.

I parked near the main square and stepped out, pulling my coat tighter against the biting cold. I walked until I found what I was looking for. A modern café that doubled as a workspace.

The sign read “Cafe & Co-working” in elegant lettering.

Perfect.

I went inside, and warmth wrapped around me along with the rich smell of fresh coffee and something sweet baking. The interior was cozy. Exposed brick walls. Rustic wooden tables. Comfortable couches. And most importantly, a clearly designated work area with laptops available for customers.

I approached the counter, where a young woman with short hair and a friendly smile greeted me.

“Good morning! What can I get you?”

I opened my mouth to order a regular coffee, but what came out instead was, “A cappuccino with cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg, please. Oat milk, if you have it.”

The words came out so naturally, so automatically, that it took me a second to realize what I’d just said.

The girl wrote it down without blinking.

“Of course. Anything else?”

1/5

“No, thank you.”

I paid and sat at one of the work tables while I waited. I grabbed one of the available laptops and opened it, watching it boot up.

That order… cinnamon and nutmeg cappuccino, oat milk. That wasn’t random. That wasn’t something you ordered by accident.

Maybe it was my usual.

I started noticing a pattern. Sometimes, when I acted on instinct, when I didn’t overthink, things just… happened. Like driving and tcoffee order.

But the moment I actively tried to access specific information. My daughter’s name. Where I lived. Anything important. There was nothing. Just emptiness.

The girl brought my coffee. Perfectly made, with a little leaf design in the foam. I thanked her and turned my full attention to the laptop.

I opened the browser and went straight to Google.

I took a deep breath and typed: Gwen Parker.

I hit enter and waited for the results to load.

Almost nothing.

There were a few mentions of other Gwen Parkers. A teacher in Rome. An artist in Milan. A dentist in Naples. No photos that looked like me. No articles. No social media profiles. Nothing.

Frustration began to simmer in my chest. How could someone just… not exist online nowadays? Everyone had a digital footprint. Everyone.

Unless…

Kensington.

The name whispered into my mind. The name that had sent a chill down my spine when I’d seen it on my documents. The name that came with an automatic instinct to hide. To keep it secret.

But why?

Why did that name feel so wrong? Why couldn’t anyone know it?

But… I could know it, couldn’t I? It was about me. About who I really was.

With slightly trembling fingers, I deleted Parker from the search bar and typed: Gwen Kensington.

I pressed enter.

And this time, the screen filled with links, images, and articles.

2/5

My heart slammed against my ribs.

I latched onto something about a reality show. Something involving relationships and wine. There was a small photo in the preview, but it was hard to see clearly.

I moved the cursor to click the link. To open the page. To finally find out something, anything, about who I really was.

“Gwen?”

The voice came from behind me, making me jump in my chair.

I snapped the laptop shut so fast I nearly slammed it, then turned around.

Paula was standing there, holding a tray with two plates, each with a large, tempting muffin. She was wearing jeans and a thick wool sweater, her hair loose in soft waves around her face.

“Paula,” I said, trying not to sound as startled as I felt. “Hi.”

“Working?” she asked, gesturing at the closed laptop with a tilt of her chin.

“No,” I replied quickly. “Just… checking the news.”

She didn’t look fully convinced, but she didn’t push. Instead, she pulled out the chair beside me and sat down, sliding one of the plates with a muffin toward me while keeping the other for herself.

“This is an apology,” she said, “in case I was kind of an idiot yesterday.”

I looked at her, confused. An idiot? She’d been sharp, maybe provocative, but not exactly an idiot.

She must have read my expression, because she continued.

“Nick and I really are basically siblings. It’s not just something we say.” She took a bite of the muffin, chewing thoughtfully. “I was practically raised by Martina and Caesar.”

“Caesar?”

“Nick’s dad. He died five years ago.” Paula paused. “My parents worked on the estate. They’d been Valemont employees for decades. But… they died in a car accident when I was ten.”

“I’m sorry,” I said softly.

She waved it off like it was ancient history, but the pain was still there in her eyes.

“Martina and Caesar took me in,” she went on. “They raised me alongside Nick. We’re close in age, so we really grew up like brother and sister. And I’ve always been very protective of him. Even jealous,

sometimes.”

She smiled, but there was no malice in it. Just raw honesty.

“Not in a romantic way,” she added quickly. “It’s different. It’s… family.”

3/5

I nodded, understanding.

“When Renee came into his life,” Paula practically spat the name, “I knew it wouldn’t end well.”

Renee.

The name echoed in my mind. So that was Nick’s ex, Bella’s mother.

“Not with that arrogant attitude,” Paula continued, her voice sharpening. “Like she was better than everyone else. Like she was born to be rich, even though she didn’t have a dime to her name.”

I tightened my grip on my coffee, absorbing every word.

“But they got married. Bella came along. Nick was happy…” Paula shrugged. “Until he wasn’t.”

She smiled again, but this time it was sad. Heavy with painful memories.

“And you know how the rest turned out.”

I didn’t. Not really. Or maybe I did and just couldn’t remember. Either way, I didn’t feel right asking about it behind Nick’s back.

“I just try to protect him and Bella as much as I can,” Paula said, looking me straight in the eyes. “They’re my family.”

“They’re mine too,” I replied, because it was true. Or it was supposed to be. I was going to marry Nick. Bella would be my stepdaughter. Martina, my mother-in-law. And Paula… well, Paula would be like a sister -in-law, in a way.

But Paula smiled, and this time there was something sharp in it.

“No. They’re not.”

I froze.

She leaned forward slightly, her dark eyes studying me with intensity.

“You really don’t remember anything?” she asked, her voice low, almost a whisper. “Or are you pretending you don’t?”

I looked at her, serious now. Thinking. What was she implying? That I was lying about my memory loss? Why? For what reason?

“What are you talking about?” I asked, my voice coming out colder than I intended.

Now it was Paula’s turn to study me. Her eyes moved over my face like she was looking straight into my soul, searching for lies. For cracks. For anything that would give me away.

Then she leaned back, that smile returning. But it was different now. More cautious. More calculated.

“Nothing,” she said with a shrug. “Nothing at all.”

4/5

“Friends.”

D

+2

曲

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