Chapter 1656

The next morning, Charlie kept staring at Jamie, making her feel a little self-conscious. Thinking he might have noticed something unusual, she asked, “Why are you staring at Mommy? Eat your breakfast, or you’ll be late.” Charlie, nibbling on a bun, blinked innocently and mumbled with his mouth full, “I heard from my friends at preschool that when Mommy and Daddy love each other, a new baby brother or sister comes soon. Mommy, am I going to have a sister?” Jamie nearly choked on her coffee. She pounded her chest a few times before regaining her breath and glared at Charlie, whose face was full of curiosity. “What nonsense are you talking about? Eat your breakfast.” “Oh,” Charlie said, pouting. He decided Mommy was just shy.
Jamie had no idea what was running through his little head. If she did, she definitely wouldn’t let it go so easily.
*
After dropping Charlie off at preschool, Jamie drove to work like usual.
When she walked into the office, the stares she received almost stopped her in her tracks.
“Miss Lewis, why are you here?” asked Jane Young from the planning department, pointing at Jamie with wide eyes, as though she wasn’t supposed to be there.
Jamie blinked, confused. “This is the office. Where else would I go if not here?”
Jane hesitated, rubbing her forehead awkwardly. “But… aren’t you and Mr. Lucas, well… you know…”
Her logic was simple. Most people worked because they needed the money, but if someone like Jamie had essentially “made it,” why would she still bother coming in early every day? It didn’t make sense.
Jamie quickly picked up on her train of thought and sighed helplessly. “Even if my status is a little different now, as long as I haven’t quit, I’m still the same Miss Lewis you’re all used to.”
She hoped everyone wouldn’t treat her differently just because of her new title.
Jane nodded apologetically, realizing she had jumped to conclusions. Jamie smiled reassuringly, making it clear she wasn’t bothered by something so trivial.
Her reaction set everyone at ease. They had been unsure how to treat her, but hearing from Jane that Jamie hadn’t changed gave them relief.
“She’s still the same Miss Lewis we know!” someone said, smiling.
“Thank goodness. I was worried it’d be awkward working with her now.”
*
Later, Jamie entered the office, and the chatter immediately stopped. Her colleagues greeted her with smiles, and she returned each greeting warmly.
Her relationship with Ben at work hadn’t changed much. If anything, he was still as strict as ever. If she made a mistake, he didn’t hesitate to give her a cold look. But there was a clear difference. He treated her much better than he did anyone else.
Naturally, this led to a new strategy for dealing with Ben’s infamous temper: bringing Jamie along to meetings. Whenever she was in the room Ben’s anger seemed to vanish, no matter how bad the situation.
After narrowly avoiding a scolding one day, an assistant couldn’t help but remark, “Miss Lewis is better than a lightning rod.”
Jamie chuckled but said nothing.
Just then, Ben called her into his office. The assistant shot her a helpless look and gave her an encouraging thumbs-up, silently expressing, “Good luck! You’re on your own now.” Jamie rolled her eyes but went in anyway.
Ben raised an eyebrow when he noticed her hanging her head like someone awaiting punishment.” only wanted to ask you to pick a place for lunch. What’s with that look on your face?”