The Years Between Signing and Seeing novel Chapter 292

That evening, at the upscale Marquis Residences.

Suzie pulled into the underground garage and turned off the engine. Once again, she put on her disguise: a baseball cap, a face mask, and sunglasses.

As Hayden unbuckled his seatbelt, he remarked, “Suzie, you always bundle yourself up so tightly whenever we go out. I get that you’re worried about your identity being exposed because of the kids, and you want to maintain your freedom. But I remember the first day I met you, you were wearing a mask then too, showing only those expressive eyes of yours…”

Hayden had always been puzzled by this behavior. He wanted to ask for an explanation but suddenly recalled asking once before, and Suzie had seemed reluctant to talk about it. He swallowed the rest of his question.

For years, whenever she was on a location shoot or even just stepping out of the house, she always dressed strangely. She would make herself look as plain and unlike herself as possible, or she would simply rely on her ever-present trio of hat, mask, and sunglasses.

What was even more surprising was that in his large studio, very few people had ever seen her true face. She kept to herself, never joining team-building activities or attending meetings. In fact, avoiding all group functions had been one of her conditions for employment. She would only take off her “gear” once she was inside her own office, which only he and a girl named Mia were allowed to enter freely. Anyone else needed her permission, and even then, she would put on sunglasses before they came in. By now, everyone at the studio was used to her eccentricities.

He remembered one time when Suzie was taking a break on set and had briefly removed her mask to wipe away some sweat. Most of the crew were at lunch, but a man passing by snapped a picture of her. The click of the camera shutter startled her, and she immediately pulled her mask back on, shot up, and marched over to the man, demanding he delete the photo. The man refused, shamelessly complimenting her beauty and saying she was just too stunning not to look at. After another stern warning from Suzie went unheeded, she snatched his phone and deleted the picture herself. As the man left, fuming, he shot back, “What’s wrong with you? So beautiful, yet so afraid of being photographed. Did you do something shady in your past?”

“Hmm?” Hayden pulled his hand back and responded gently.

“Hayden, I don’t want to just keep saying thank you. I already see you as my own brother… The way I live… it’s not by choice, and it’s not some weird habit. I’m… I’m hiding from someone.”

Suzie’s voice was faint as she spoke. For the past few years, this had been her life. Even her phone plan, bank cards, apartment lease—anything that required personal information—had been arranged by Oliver through a trusted cousin of his.