The Billionaire's Widow

47

Hailey’s POV

After Karen explained everything—how she had threatened her daughter only because she thought it was the only way to protect her—I understood why she told her lawyer to drop the case. I didn’t agree with her actions, but I understood the pain behind them.

With a heavy heart, I returned to the office, ready to bury myself in work.

Paige’s desk had her phone and bag, but she wasn’t there. I walked into my office and found her by the shelf, placing a file back.

“Oh, good. Look who finally decided to show up,” she said coldly—colder than I’d ever heard her.

I frowned. “O-kay... someone definitely woke up on the wrong side of the bed today.”

“Woke up on the wrong side of the bed? Really? Is that all you have to say?” Her tone was sharp.

I blinked. “What else am I supposed to say? You obviously look upset, and it's still early, so I tried to keep things light.”

“You can’t even acknowledge how you bailed on your meeting with that arrogant bastard Blackwood? The one who humiliated me?”

I straightened up. “Wait—oh shit! Is he still here?”

She scoffed. “Probably not. I don’t know.”

“You don’t know? Wait a second… Did you just call Timothy Blackwood an arrogant bastard?” I raised an eyebrow. “What happened, babe? What do you mean he embarrassed you?”

She narrowed her eyes. “After everything I just said, that’s what you focus on? Whether he left or not?”

I stayed quiet, stunned.

“Wow,” she muttered, walking out and slamming my door behind her.

Did she just storm out on me? What the hell did I do?

Paige’s POV

I dropped into my chair, angry and hurt. I had never felt this dismissed by her before.

A moment later, Hailey’s door opened. “Paige, what’s going on? Did I do something wrong?”

“Really?” I muttered, still not looking at her.

“Please, just tell me what happened. I don’t understand why you’re so upset with me.”

“He said to tell you he’s not happy with you,” I finally said.

She looked at me, confused, waiting for more. “That’s it? You’re upset because of that?”

“What? No!”

“Then what?!” Her voice was rising now, which made something in me snap.

“I told you he embarrassed me—but you ignored that!” I stood up, voice trembling. “He called me your slut, Hailey! Your damn slut! And all you cared about was whether he’d still want to work with you!”

Her eyes widened, filling with tears. “Paige…”

“Am I wrong?” My voice cracked.

“How can you say that to me?” she whispered, her voice breaking. “You know that’s not true.”

She turned and disappeared into her office. I knew exactly where she was headed—and what she was about to do.

Shit.

Why did I say that?

I sighed and got up, making my way to her private space. I scanned my palm on the bedroom door, and the green light blinked before the lock clicked open.

“Babe?” I called softly as I entered.

She wasn’t on the bed. She was curled up on the floor, hugging her knees, tears silently falling down her cheeks.

My heart shattered at the sight.

I walked over, sat beside her, and gently pulled her into my arms. “Hailey… I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” I whispered. “I didn’t mean to treat you like that. I didn’t mean to hurt you. Please forgive me.”

She didn’t speak—just cried harder into my chest. I held her tighter.

“I hate myself right now,” I murmured, running my hand through her hair. “Please, don’t cry because of me.”

Later That Evening – Paige’s POV

“Hey,” I called, throwing my bag on the couch and collapsing beside it.

“Hey, sis,” Jason greeted me with a smile. “Rough day?”

I sighed. “Emotionally? Yeah. And the paparazzi downstairs made it worse.”

“Trust me, I know the feeling. I’m getting the same treatment at school.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Wait, they’re following you now?”

“No,” he laughed. “But everyone at school suddenly wants to be my best friend. People I barely know are acting like they’ve known me forever.”

I chuckled. “Sorry.”

He shrugged. “It’s okay. But… you’re trending everywhere. I even saw childhood photos of you—and some of our family. How did they get those?”

“I have no idea.” I sighed. “I’m just relieved they’re not harassing Mom and Dad too much. Dad told me he walked outside with his gun to scare them off. They haven’t come back since.”

Jason burst out laughing. “You’re kidding!”

“Nope.” I grinned. “We missed the show.”

But then, his smile faded.

“Paige… do you think they’ll dig into my past too? And expose it the way they did with you?”

I sat up straighter. “Jase—don’t even think about that.”

“But what if they do? You and I both know I haven’t exactly been a golden child.”

I sighed. “I wish I could protect you from that… but the only way would be to silence everyone who knows. And I don’t think that’s legal.”

He chuckled. “No, probably not.”

“Look,” I said seriously, “what matters is the people who love you already know the truth—and they’re still here. Whatever the world finds out, it can’t take that away.”

He nodded slowly. “Okay.”

I smiled, leaning into him. “We’ve got each other. We’ll be fine.”

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