Home / She Gets His Protection, I Get the Downpour / Chapter 1 - Chapter 8

All Chapters of She Gets His Protection, I Get the Downpour: Chapter 1 - Chapter 8

8 Chapters

Chapter 1

Lauren's POVIt was late when I finally got home. I was drenched to the bone after getting caught in torrential rain.Not a single light was left on for me in the living room.The study door was half open, and I could hear my boyfriend Harvey Moore's patient voice from inside. "If this project is too much, I'll have a manager walk you through it. Don't worry about it. Or if you'd like to switch to a different position, just let me know anytime.""That wouldn't be right—" Vivian Blake's flustered voice came through the speaker."It's fine," Harvey cut in, his tone gentle. "I'm here. No one will dare say a word."I stood frozen in the hallway, chilled to the core.In my five years at the company, I'd brought up promotions countless times.Every single time, he shot me down immediately. "We need to maintain professional boundaries at work. Are you seriously just trying to ride my coattails to the top?"I couldn't understand it. I was an experienced team lead, my performance ranke

Chapter 2

Sara didn't hesitate for a second before agreeing to process my resignation. "Entry-level resignations don't require the CEO's approval anyway. I'll get on it right away."When I opened Vivian's Instagram profile, I noticed she'd already updated her profile picture.It matched Harvey's.Her caption read, "Got cornered by a creepy blind date. Thank God someone stepped in to play my fake boyfriend and save the day. Guess some skills never fade when you've done the job before!"I remembered when we first started dating, I used to beg him to use matching profile pictures. He always shut me down with a barrage of excuses—it was too much work, too childish, too unprofessional, and so on.Who would have guessed that Harvey, a man who always insisted on a stern profile picture, would swap it out today for a cartoon character?The next morning, Harvey called me, his tone businesslike and rigid. "Come with me to the business dinner later. Be observant, and remember to help handle the drink

Chapter 3

The next day at the office, the breakroom buzzed with gossip."Vivian closed that deal yesterday, and Mr. Moore promoted her first thing this morning. Man, talk about different fates.""Don't compare yourself to her. Didn't you see they're using matching profile pictures? A dummy could figure out what's going on.""Oh, it gets juicier. I saw her post yesterday. Looks like they dated each other way back. They're totally getting back together!"I stood frozen in place, my fingernails digging deep into my palms.If this were three years ago, Harvey would have put a stop to these rumors instantly.Three years ago, I worried that drinking would upset his stomach, so I prepared a stomach-friendly lunch and brought it to his office.He had dumped the food straight into the trash in front of everyone and yelled, "Can't you hear people gossiping about us already? Stop doing these stupid, misleading things."He docked my bonus and barred me from ever stepping into his office again.Yet

Chapter 4

Harvey didn't reply to my message until the next day. "What kind of nonsense is this? You're acting more and more like an immature child. By the way, remember to bring the files from my study to the office later."So he only bothered to check my text because he needed me to run an errand for him.When I arrived at the office with the files, everyone gave me strange looks.Vivian was sitting in her chair, wiping away tears.Seeing me walk in, she clutched a contract to her chest and sobbed dramatically. "Lauren, everything went so smoothly with yesterday's deal. Why did you tamper with all the numbers in the contract? The client is threatening to pull out now!"I just worked hard for my promotion. You didn't have to do this to me…"No one doubted her for a second.After all, I had just fought with Harvey over her promotion yesterday, making me the obvious prime suspect.I looked at Harvey in doubt. "You think I did it, too?"He frowned, a flash of disgust crossing his eyes. "Yo

Chapter 5

The test read, "We're officially over."Harvey stared at the message on his screen, momentarily dazed.He couldn't fathom what had gotten into Lauren for her to mention breaking up again and again.She had even quit the job she spent five whole years building."When did this happen? How come I wasn't informed?" he asked.Sara looked at him, bewildered. "Lauren was just an entry-level employee. She wanted to leave, so I let her go. Didn't you say those resignations didn't need your approval?"A sharp sting flared up in Harvey's chest at those words.He picked up the resignation letter and checked the date. It was the exact night Lauren had come home drenched in the rain. She had been soaked to the bone, shivering uncontrollably.Yet Vivian had called right after, claiming she was being harassed by a blind date.Harvey balled the resignation letter in his fist.Was Lauren really throwing away her job over such a trivial matter?Before he could piece it together, Vivian came ov

Chapter 6

Harvey stood up abruptly and walked out of the restaurant right in front of everyone."What suddenly got into Mr. Moore?"Everyone was baffled, while Vivian clenched her fists tightly.When Harvey arrived home and pushed the door open, he froze on the spot. The home that had once been warm and cozy now felt utterly hollow and deserted."Why is it… so empty?"He stepped into the bedroom only to find every bottle and jar on the vanity had vanished.Inside the closet, all of Lauren's clothes had been wiped clean.Refusing to give up, he dialed her number once more. All that greeted him was the same icy automated voice."Lauren…"As he stared at the empty room, the realization of her absence hit him with overwhelming force.Over the next few days, Harvey anxiously waited for Lauren to reply. Yet she seemed to have vanished into thin air, leaving no trace behind.Even her position had already been filled by a new hire.It wasn't until he passed by the breakroom that he overheard

Chapter 7

Lauren's POVWhen my plane touched down in Leighton, my former boss, Michael Price, was waiting at the airport to pick me up.Sitting in the passenger seat, I gazed out at the unfamiliar scenery, feeling a strange sense of detachment.Years ago, I was supposed to stay here, comfortably settled into my role as department manager. Yet I had insisted on returning home, determined to help Harvey build his company block by block.Michael had tried to reason with me. "Relationships are the least guaranteed thing in life. Are you sure you want to toss away your career for a man?"I had tossed and turned over that question all night before packing my bags and boarding the flight back home anyway.I really believed Harvey would match my devotion, and that he would never let me down.Looking back now, I couldn't have been more wrong."Thank you, Mr. Price," I said from the bottom of my heart.After I started at the new company, everything began moving in the right direction.Suddenly,

Chapter 8

Harvey frowned as if my words had stung him physically. "What did you say?"He couldn't believe I no longer loved him, let alone that I could say it with such quiet certainty.Yet I held his gaze and repeated every syllable with deliberate clarity, "I said, I don't love you anymore. Did you catch that?"Without waiting for a response, I turned on my heel and walked away.…Over the next few days, Harvey hovered around my office building endlessly.A coworker noticed him and teased, "Is that your boyfriend? Man, he's gorgeous! He's so attached to you. You must be so happy!"I managed a bitter smile. "He hasn't been my boyfriend for a long time."The following morning, I received a call from Vivian.She exploded the second I answered, "Lauren Hart, did you have Harvey blacklist me across the entire industry? You think ruining my career is going to make me back down? Not a chance!"My voice remained level as I replied, "I have no idea what you're talking about. If he blacklisted

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