The Billionaire who forgot me

1

Jennifer’s POV

Present Day

“Jennifer, the guest in the presidential suite is arriving in two hours.”

I looked up from my computer as Maya hurried into my office.

“Okay. Is everything ready?”

“Yes, but there’s something you need to see.”

She placed a reservation file on my desk.

I picked it up without much interest.

Then I saw the name.

Grayson Sutton.

My heart stopped.

For a moment, I couldn’t breathe.

“Jennifer?”

I stared at the name, hoping I had somehow read it incorrectly.

But there it was.

Grayson Sutton.

The same man who had promised to marry me four years ago.

The same man who disappeared the morning after our engagement.

The man I had spent years trying to forget.

“Are you okay?” Maya asked.

I forced myself to look up.

“Yes. I’m fine.”

“You don’t look fine.”

“Just a headache.”

Maya frowned.

“You should probably take something for it. Mr. Sutton is apparently very particular about everything.”

I almost laughed.

Particular?

That was one way to describe him.

Four years ago, Grayson had complained about almost everything when he first arrived at my parents’ inn.

The coffee was too bitter.

The pillows were too soft.

The internet was too slow.

But eventually, he had stopped complaining.

He started helping my mother in the kitchen, carrying luggage for elderly guests, and making me laugh whenever I was upset.

I had fallen in love with that man.

Not the billionaire.

Not the businessman.

Just Grayson.

And now he was coming here.

“Jennifer?”

I blinked.

“Sorry. What were you saying?”

Maya gave me a strange look.

“I said his car will arrive around eleven.”

“Right.”

“Should I handle his check-in?”

I almost said yes.

Every part of me wanted to hide inside my office until he left.

But I was the hotel manager.

I had worked too hard to get this position.

I wasn’t going to let Grayson Sutton ruin my career the same way he ruined my heart.

“No,” I said. “I’ll welcome him myself.”

⸻

By ten-thirty, everything was ready.

The presidential suite had been inspected twice.

Fresh flowers decorated the sitting room.

The minibar was stocked according to his preferences.

Housekeeping had replaced the pillows with the expensive orthopedic ones his assistant requested.

I personally checked the suite before returning to the lobby.

My hands were trembling.

I hated that.

Four years had passed.

I had raised a daughter, survived sleepless nights, worked double shifts, and built a life without him.

Yet the thought of seeing him again made me feel like the frightened twenty-something-year-old girl who waited beside her phone for a call that never came.

“His car just arrived,” Maya whispered.

I straightened my blazer.

“Thank you.”

The glass entrance doors opened.

Two men in dark suits entered first.

Then Grayson walked in.

My breath caught.

He was even more handsome than I remembered.

Tall.

Broad shoulders.

Dark hair neatly styled.

His expensive charcoal suit fitted him perfectly.

But something was different.

The Grayson I remembered had a habit of smiling whenever our eyes met.

This man wasn’t smiling.

His expression was hard.

Cold.

He walked through the lobby while speaking into his phone.

“I don’t care what the board thinks. Tell them the meeting is happening on Thursday.”

He listened briefly.

“Then they can find another company to invest in.”

He ended the call without saying goodbye.

One of his assistants hurried beside him.

“Sir, your schedule—”

“Later.”

His voice was sharp.

I swallowed.

Then I stepped forward.

“Good morning, Mr. Sutton. Welcome to Coastal Regency Hotel.”

He turned toward me.

And our eyes met.

For one beautiful, terrible second, I thought he would recognize me.

I waited for his expression to change.

For him to say my name.

For him to look shocked.

Anything.

Instead, his eyes moved over my face without the slightest reaction.

“Are you the manager?”

My heart sank.

“Yes,” I answered quietly. “Jennifer Monroe.”

I deliberately said my full name.

Surely that would remind him.

Jennifer Monroe.

The woman he had asked to marry him.

The woman he had once called his entire world.

But Grayson simply nodded.

“Good. I have a few requirements.”

I stared at him.

Requirements?

He didn’t even remember me?

“My assistant should have sent everything ahead,” he continued. “I need complete privacy, reliable internet, and no unnecessary interruptions.”

“Of course, sir.”

“I also don’t want hotel staff entering my suite without permission.”

“Understood.”

“And make sure nobody approaches me for photographs or autographs.”

I almost laughed.

Autographs?

Did he think I cared about his celebrity status?

“Is that clear, Miss Monroe?”

Miss Monroe.

He used to call me Jenny.

Sometimes sweetheart.

Sometimes his favorite troublemaker.

Now I was Miss Monroe.

“Perfectly clear, Mr. Sutton.”

“Good.”

He turned away.

Just like that.

Four years of memories meant nothing to him.

I watched him walk toward the private elevator with his assistants.

He didn’t look back.

Not once.

⸻

“Jennifer, are you sure you’re okay?”

Maya was standing beside me.

I hadn’t realized I was still staring at the elevator.

“Yes.”

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Maybe I have.

“I just need some water.”

I returned to my office and closed the door.

Then I sat down.

My hands were shaking so badly that I couldn’t even open my water bottle.

How could he not remember me?

Had I meant so little to him?

We had spent six months together.

Six months of laughter, arguments, kisses, and promises.

He had asked me to marry him.

And now he looked at me like I was a complete stranger.

I pressed my palms against my eyes.

No.

I wasn’t going to cry.

Not because of him.

Not again.

My phone vibrated.

A photograph appeared on the screen.

Sophie.

She was sitting at the kitchen table with cereal all over her cheeks.

My mother had sent it.

Your little princess says good morning.

I smiled despite myself.

Sophie was the best thing that had ever happened to me.

She had Grayson’s gray eyes.

His stubbornness.

And sometimes, when she laughed, I could almost hear him.

I kissed the screen.

“Mommy loves you, baby.”

Then I put my phone down and returned to work.

⸻

At two in the afternoon, my office phone rang.

“Jennifer,” Maya said nervously, “Mr. Sutton wants to see you.”

I closed my eyes.

“Did he say why?”

“He’s unhappy with something in his suite.”

Of course he was.

“Tell him I’m coming.”

Five minutes later, I knocked on the presidential suite door.

“Come in.”

I entered.

Grayson was standing beside the large windows, holding a tablet.

He didn’t bother greeting me.

“The conference room arrangement is wrong.”

I blinked.

“I’m sorry?”

“I requested a private meeting room connected to this floor. Your staff assigned one downstairs.”

“Sir, the executive conference room is currently reserved for another event. We arranged an alternative with the same facilities.”

“I didn’t ask for an alternative.”

His tone irritated me.

“I understand. I’ll see what can be done.”

He finally looked at me.

“That’s what I expected you to do before I arrived.”

I clenched my jaw.

Four years ago, I would have thrown a pillow at him for speaking to me like that.

Now I had to smile politely.

“My apologies, Mr. Sutton.”

He studied me for a moment.

“You seem upset.”

I nearly choked.

“Not at all.”

“Good. I dislike emotional employees.”

Something inside me snapped.

I looked directly at him.

“Then you won’t have any problems with me, sir.”

His eyebrows rose slightly.

For the first time, he seemed surprised.

But only for a second.

“Make sure the conference room is ready by tomorrow.”

“Yes, Mr. Sutton.”

I turned and walked out before I said something that would cost me my job.

⸻

By the time I got home, I was exhausted.

“Mommy!”

Sophie came running toward me the moment I opened the door.

I dropped my handbag and caught her.

“My baby!”

She wrapped her little arms around my neck.

“You’re late.”

“I know, sweetheart. Mommy had a busy day.”

She pouted.

“Did your boss shout at you?”

I froze.

“Why would you ask that?”

“Grandma said you looked tired.”

I kissed her forehead.

“Don’t worry. Mommy is fine.”

Sophie touched my cheek.

“You’re sad.”

My throat tightened.

How did children always know?

I hugged her closer.

“No, baby. I’m happy because I’m home with you.”

She smiled.

“Can we watch cartoons?”

“Of course.”

That evening, after Sophie fell asleep beside me, I sat quietly on the edge of my bed.

Grayson Sutton was back.

But he wasn’t the man I remembered.

And I couldn’t allow him to hurt us again.

Whatever happened during the next seven days, I would keep my distance.

He would remain nothing more than a guest at my hotel.

That was all.

My phone suddenly vibrated.

A message from Maya appeared.

Jennifer, sorry for texting so late, but Mr. Sutton just called reception.

I frowned.

Another complaint?

Then the second message arrived.

He specifically requested that you come to his suite tomorrow morning at eight. He said he wants to discuss something with you privately.

I stared at the screen.

Why?

What could Grayson Sutton possibly want from me now?