Part 2Silent Echoes: Leaving the Playboy for the Billionaire

"You can't!"

The secretary who had just been trash-talking me blocked the hallway doors.

"Mrs. Cross, without Mr. Cross's explicit permission, I cannot let you in."

A fleeting look of mockery flashed in her eyes.

I smiled, glanced at her name tag, and said firmly:

"I am going in."

Normally, if a secretary said that, I would just turn around and leave.

But today was different.

Just as I was leaving the house with the lunchbox, I received a package from Blair Kensington.

An envelope containing an ultrasound report that pushed me straight into the abyss.

The secretary had no intention of moving.

"I'll say it one more time. I am going in."

She bit her lip and looked down, refusing to budge.

I laughed.

It seemed that because Declan no longer loved me, even a secretary felt she could walk all over me.

"You're fired."

Hearing that, she finally panicked. Her eyes went wide, and she stuttered:

"Y-You! I work for Mr. Cross! What gives you the right to fire me?!"

I didn't waste my breath. I called the HR Director.

The very first time Declan brought me to the company, he stood in front of all the senior executives and said:

"My wife's word is my word."

I just never used that privilege. Until now.

The HR Director acted fast, coming up personally to escort her out.

Before she left, the secretary glared at me furiously: "You can't even keep your own husband in check, and you're throwing your weight around with me?!"

"Just wait until Miss Kensington becomes the new Mrs. Cross! I'll be back!"

The HR Director looked at my face awkwardly. "Mrs. Cross, please don't be angry..."

I wasn't angry. I just felt pathetic.

"Mrs. Cross" was just a title, and Declan had made it clear it was no longer exclusive to me.

Since when had I become so worthless in the eyes of a secretary?

I looked her dead in the eye:

"She's right. So, while I still have a little power left, get the hell out."

That was the first time I ever lost my temper in front of the staff.

No one dared to breathe. No one dared to stop me.

Declan’s office was massive. As I walked down the corridor, a wave of melancholy washed over me.

I had designed and decorated this place with him.

Declan had insisted on installing a hidden, private rest suite with a shower in the back.

He had rested his chin on my shoulder, biting my earlobe:

"Harper, I want to leave traces of our love in every single corner of this room..."

He spoke shamelessly, and he delivered.

To the point where every time I visited the office, he would drag me into that hidden room.

Now, I stood in front of that very door, listening to the murmurs inside.

"Ah~ Declan..."

The girl's voice was coquettish.

"Declan, isn't it bad if I eat all the food your wife made for you?"

His familiar voice was low and hoarse: "It doesn't matter. It's just a meal."

Just a meal.

I didn't have many talents, but my one skill was cooking.

Declan loved my food. He begged me to make him lunches.

He knew I always dreamed of opening my own high-end restaurant.

But he always told me to wait a little longer.

My heart felt like it had been beaten with a baseball bat. My icy hand pressed the door handle.

The door opened.

Blair Kensington was straddling his lap.

Hearing the sound, she shrieked and buried her face in Declan's chest.

A guilty, unnatural flush spread across Declan's face.

"Who told you to come in?!"

The moment he saw it was me, the frown on his face froze. His eyes went wide.