I had been his devoted secretary for seven years. I handled negotiations with outsiders and provided warmth in bed.

I even managed his numerous mistresses with ease.

Everyone had mocked me for dreaming of transforming from a sparrow into a phoenix,

for trying to cling to him with my warm face against his cold one and overestimating my own abilities.

Harris had also thought that I couldn’t live without him. Until her lover had returned from abroad.

I had prepared a confession ring and a candlelit dinner for them.

Finally, I could submit my resignation. "Mr. Johnson, I had repaid the Johnson Family's kindness, so I would no longer disturb your lifelong happiness."

***

During the hospital consultation, the phone rang one call after another.

“Miss Sharlon, Mr. Johnson needs to see the contract from Emerald Bay.”

“Miss Sharlon, where is Mr. Johnson's lake-blue tie?”

“Miss Sharlon…”

I looked at the doctor in front of me, smiled apologetically and then proceeded to handle the situation methodically.

“Check the documents in the second drawer of the filing cabinet and Mr. Johnson's tie is in the third compartment of the locker in the changing room.”

The person on the other end sighed in relief and then pleaded, “Lucy, you’ve been on leave for seven days. I really can’t hold on any longer.”

After hanging up the phone, the elderly doctor on the other end looked serious and said, “No matter how busy work is, your health is more important. You’re in poor health; after a miscarriage, you need to rest and recover for at least a month.”

I forced a smile and nodded. The experience at the hospital felt like a long, surreal dream.

It wasn’t until I walked out of the hospital that I felt my body start to warm up.

When I got home and was about to rest, Harris’s call came through. His voice was always icy.

“Miss Sharlon, don’t you want to come to work?”

I tightened my grip on the phone.

“Mr. Johnson, there are ten days of annual leave.”

“We’re at a critical stage of the project right now. I hope you can show a bit more responsibility.”

“Alright.”

I returned to Vanguard Group, where the company atmosphere was tense. My colleagues looked at me, hesitant to speak.

Dragging my weary steps, I hadn't even reached the CEO’s office when I saw the door was tightly shut. Douglas appeared from somewhere, gave me a shushing gesture and whispered, “Miss Brown is here.”

I understood immediately. Harris was never short of people around him. Cindy Brown was a popular young actress and bore some resemblance to someone else. Therefore, she had been following Harris closely and was quite favored.

I figured their meeting wouldn’t be brief, so I might have time to grab a quick breakfast. I stayed where I was.

The door suddenly opened.

Cindy’s face was pale. Upon seeing me, she raised her hand without hesitation. A sharp slap landed on my face before I could react, leaving me with a stinging pain.

Cindy’s eyes were filled with resentment and hatred. “I’ve been terminated. Are you so pleased about it?”

I took a deep breath and said, “Miss Brown, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Cindy straightened up. "Don’t think I don’t know about your relationship with him, shameless mistress. Lucy, even if you’ve been with him for a long time, so what? In his eyes, you’re just a secretary. And even though I’ve been broken up with, at least I can get good resources."

She walked away arrogantly in her high heels.

Douglas cautiously comforted me, "Are you alright? She’s just a mistress herself. You’re Mr. Johnson’s right-hand person; she dares to speak like that… She must be jealous of your importance to Mr. Johnson."

I looked serious and said, "Don’t say such things in the future."

After Douglas lowered his head, I walked into the office.

“Close the door,” a cold voice said.

I closed the door and looked up.

The man in the gray suit walked towards me calmly. His strong features carried a hint of coldness. When he reached me, he gently touched the red marks on my face, but his words were icy.

"Don’t argue with her."

He came closer and kissed me. I instinctively tried to escape, but with the door behind me, I could only passively accept it.

Breath mingled and the temperature became ambiguously warm. The term "mistress" seemed to linger in my ears.

I pushed the man in front of me away and took a deep breath to speak.

“Mr. Johnson, I’m just a secretary. I can’t…”

The man’s indifferent teasing reached my ears.

“It seems you’ve become more reserved after a few days. Just rejecting me, you don’t want to be like her, do you?”

The irresistible heat came over me once again. The scorching breath felt as if it would melt me. For some reason, a wave of nausea surged up.

I abruptly pushed the man away and ran to the restroom to vomit.

Even though I had been pregnant, I hadn’t felt anything like this before.

After a while, I emerged from the restroom. Harris sat quietly on the chair, looking displeased.

“You haven't recovered after a few days of rest? Or…” I noticed the additional hint of doubt in his eyes.

I quickly interrupted, "It’s not that."

His expression darkened slightly. "I don’t like people around me hiding things."

I looked up and said, "I’m not pregnant. I won’t cause trouble for you, Mr. Johnson."

There was no sense of relief as I had imagined. His expression grew even more somber. "That’s for the best."

I proceeded with my usual tasks, arranging work schedules and handling other duties.

While resting and pouring coffee in the break room, I couldn’t help but touch my stomach. I hadn’t expected to have a child with Harris, especially since I had taken medication.

Until I exhausted myself and had a miscarriage, perhaps this child was never meant to be.

Footsteps approached. Several colleagues entered and quickly exchanged a few pleasantries with me.

“Miss Sharlon, how’s your health? You need to take good care of yourself.”

“You’re Mr. Johnson’s favored person. With you away these days, we’ve had much more pressure.”

Whether concerned or teasing, I had to muster up the energy to respond even though I knew they were likely criticizing me behind my back, calling me shameless for clinging to Harris.

In the evening, as I watched the end of the workday approach and looked forward to a moment of relief, Harris’s commanding voice came through.

“You’ll accompany me at tonight’s dinner.”

In the past, it had always been his female companions who accompanied him, but with Cindy just having left, I was left to deal with this situation.

Feeling somewhat overwhelmed, I mustered up the energy to explain, "Mr. Johnson, I don’t have appropriate clothes."

His expression remained cold. "Miss Sharlon, you are meticulous in your work. Didn’t you prepare for yourself?"

I could only nod and force a smile. "I’ll prepare immediately."

However, there wasn’t enough time.

With some connections, I managed to borrow a gown from a high-end store.

There was no time to do much more than just put it on and I nervously accompanied Harris to the event.

At the business dinner, glasses clinked and conversations flowed.

My stomach had been problematic in recent years, but I still had to be prepared to handle drinks.

Harris, holding a wine glass, said in a flat tone, “Go get something to eat.”

Relieved not to have to stay by his side, I quickly found a spot, picked up some food and began to satisfy my hunger.

I hadn’t eaten more than a few bites when a shadow fell over me.

“Outdated dress, wasted makeup. Lucy, you’re really embarrassing Mr. Johnson by showing up like this.”

I looked up.

In front of me was Leonard’s face, filled with sarcasm. He was Harris’s childhood friend and since I had lived with the Johnson Family since I was seven, we had essentially grown up together. Unfortunately, he had disliked me from a young age.

“It’s just work.”

I suppressed my discomfort and tried not to cause trouble.

“You could be independent, but you insist on being Mr. Johnson’s secretary. It’s no wonder he dislikes you. He gives that little minx Cindy new gifts, but doesn’t give you anything.”

Leonard’s face was filled with disdain and then he suddenly had a glint in his eye.

“I heard you even got slapped? You deserved it. Do you think Mr. Johnson kicked out Cindy for you?”

I froze in my actions.

He spoke with a smug tone. “Karen is coming back. Mr. Johnson likes Karen so much; of course, he wants to distance himself from someone like you. You might even be kicked out of the Johnson Family then.”

A piece of cake fell from my fork onto the gown.

The ear-piercing laughter continued. “Haha, so pathetic. You and your cheap dress don’t match up to Mr. Johnson.”

“Leonard, what are you doing?”

A cold voice came from behind.

Leonard turned around, his smug smile freezing.

“Mr. Johnson? I… I’m not doing anything.”

I stood up to wipe the stained gown, feeling a deep sense of frustration. Now, I couldn't return the dress.

A figure pushed Leonard aside, took off his suit jacket and draped it over my shoulders. He gave Leonard a sharp glance.

Seeing this, Leonard weakly explained, “She spilled it herself. It’s not my fault.”

The suit jacket perfectly covered the stain on the gown.

I looked up and met Harris’s dark eyes.

“Mr. Johnson, perhaps I should leave. I can’t be of much help like this.”

Harris wrapped his arm around my waist. “Abandoning a female companion is not a gentlemanly behavior.”

He guided me out of the banquet hall, greeting several partners along the way.

Once we were in the car, I took off the suit jacket.

“Mr. Johnson, your jacket.”

He unfastened his shirt cuffs and rolled them up, revealing a hint of his muscular forearm.

“Go home.”

I hesitated a bit. In my third year of work, I had redeemed the small house my parents left me, so I rarely returned to the Johnson Family’s home.

“Just forget it…” I tried to refuse, but Harris stopped me with one sentence.

“Grandpa misses you.”

Thinking of Harold, my feelings were complicated.

I was grateful to him for raising me to adulthood. Yet, because of Harris's aversion, I had to maintain my distance.

The car soon arrived at the Johnson Family's old residence. When I walked in, Harold was playing chess with one of his caretakers. Upon seeing me, his face immediately brightened with a smile.

“Come, let’s play another game.”

The caretaker stepped aside. I took the chess pieces but was somewhat distracted. After a few moves, I was quickly at a disadvantage.

Harold smiled and said, “You’re preoccupied. It’s because of that rascal Harris, isn’t it?”

I snapped back to attention and quickly shook my head.

He sighed. “As an old man, I always want to see my descendants settle down. I’m satisfied with you. Harris, being stubborn and rebellious back then, deliberately distanced himself from you. But I can see that he still cares about you. It's my fault for delaying things between you.”

I quickly shook my head. “No, that’s not it. Harold, you don’t mind that I’m an orphan. You raised me and I am grateful to you and the Johnson Family. It’s just that my relationship with Harris is purely that of a boss and subordinate, with no other intentions.”

I lowered my gaze.

Harold smiled. “I’ve seen how much he cares about you recently.”

Thinking of Leonard’s words, I couldn’t help but feel a pang of discomfort.

I replied earnestly, “Harold, please don’t say that. There’s no fate between us.”

As the chess game neared its end, I lost a move. Harold sighed, “Young people’s matters shouldn’t be forced.”

After saying my goodbyes, I left the study and ran into Harris in the hallway. His face was dark and his eyes were like black obsidian.

I was slightly taken aback. Why was he here? Had he heard what I said to Harold?