Whispers of Destiny: His Belated Love

Rosemary heard the word "separation", her heart feeling like it was squeezed hard, a bit painful.

After they got hitched, she could count the times Maxwell returned to Meadowlark Retreat each year on her fingers - pretty much the same as living apart.-

"Anyway, there are only three months left; I don't see the point in living together."

Maxwell gazed at her for a few seconds, and then scoffed with a mocking sneer, "Whether it's necessary or not, I call the shots. Today, I had Christ cut you some slack for two hours to move your stuff back."

Rosemary's attempt to refuse was cut short by a knock on the door, with Christ reminding from outside, "Mr. Templeton, the meeting is about to start."

Maxwell did up his cufflinks again, "Get out."

Rosemary stood her ground, firm, "Maxwell, I'm not going back."

Maxwell was unfazed, "When have you not said that before?"

It wasn't their first rodeo, nor was it the first time Rosemary had moved out, but each time it didn't take long before she hauled herself back.

Right now, Rosemary knew he didn't believe her, and she couldn't be bothered to argue anymore - time would show him that this time she was really not coming back.

After leaving the office, Rosemary hit the restroom to touch up her makeup - sure enough, the spot on her chin where she'd been pinched was turning blue.

Makeup fixed, she was about to grab her resignation letter and head to HR when she heard someone call out, "Rosemary, the printer's run out of ink; hop to it, we're waiting!"

Commands like this, she heard them by the dozen every day. As Maxwell's personal assistant, she was supposed to take care of his day-to-day needs, but since he wasn't fond of her, he had Christ do everything, so gradually Rosemary became the go-to gopher.

"Rosemary, I said change the ink." Called Diana, who usually couldn't stand her sight. It was her who had just mocked Rosemary for splitting with her rich boyfriend, "Even if you're quitting, you gotta have some professional integrity, right? You haven't officially left your post!"

"My job is to follow Mr. Templeton's orders and handle his meals. What’s up? You're giving orders on behalf of Mr. Templeton now?"

Didn't be fooled by her unglamorous assistant gig; it was actually quite the hot ticket. And this one in front of her would love nothing more than to shove her aside and step into the ring herself.

But Diana looked at her like she'd seen a ghost, "Rosemary, did your brain get slammed in a door today? In charge of Mr. Templeton's meals? That takeout you order, when have you seen Mr. Templeton eat it?"

Thinking about those meals chucked in the trash, Rosemary felt a sting in her heart. The next second, a sharp pain hit her chest as Diana slapped the documents into her arms, strutting, "I need twenty copies printed by two; Assistant Chambers, you should know your place."

Rosemary frowned; hearing movement behind her, she turned to see Maxwell and Christ walking out of the office, his gaze meeting hers. Property © of NôvelDrama.Org.

The man smirked sarcastically, his eyes and brows screaming one message: if she couldn't even handle menial tasks, what made she think she had the guts to talk about divorce?

Rosemary couldn't help but laugh in anger, right in front of Maxwell, she tossed the documents back at Diana, who was still stunned when she heard the papers scattering on the floor. Rosemary walked away, her voice came from the distance.

"Diana, not only should people know their place, they should also have ears to listen. I'm not changing the ink, nor am I printing the documents; go ahead and tattle to Maxwell if you dare, and he likes girls busty and brainless; you've certainly got the brainless down, but you're lacking in the other part."

She was quitting anyway, so she wasn't afraid of burning bridges, and getting a dig in before leaving felt like a real win!

Maxwell's face turned stormy in an instant, his lips pressed in a displeased curve.

Later, Rosemary went to HR and handed in her resignation. The HR manager glanced at it, "Assistant Chambers, you can take this resignation back for now. You're Mr. Templeton's personal assistant; we need his signature to process it."

Rosemary didn't take it back, blunt as ever, "I won't be here tomorrow; count it as a no-show or a day off, whatever."

The HR manager was taken aback, "You're breaching the contract; even if you're resigning you need to give a two-week notice."

A job dealing with that man's eating and drinking, was there even anything to hand over? What, hand over what he didn't eat? Maxwell would probably starve to death because she had ordered everything under the sun.

Rosemary couldn't care less, "Let Maxwell sue me then."

Stepping out of the Templeton Group, she got a call from her BFF Yolanda Abbott inviting her for drinks, who probably saw the news from yesterday and was worried she'd be down.

Feeling weary, Rosemary turned it down, and after getting back to her hotel, she went to sleep without even dinner.

Woken up by a knock on the door in a daze, she checked the time, 7:50. Rosemary got up to open the door, and the person outside was the hotel manager, who said with an apologetic smile, "Hello Ms. Chambers, there's an issue with this room that needs fixing."

Rosemary didn't make it hard for him, "Then swap me to another room."

As she was about to head back to pack her bags, the manager added, "Sorry, we’re fully booked. Your refund has already been processed to your card, and as it's our fault, we've also transferred the penalty fee to you."

Rosemary paused mid-stride, Maxwell wanted her back at the villa by 8, and here the manager was booting her out at 7:50 - if she didn't get the hint now, she'd be a real dummy.

"Is it that douchebag Maxwell's doing? I refuse to leave!" She lost her temper for a moment, letting loose a curse.

The manager didn't beat around the bush, "Ms. Chambers, we're just running a small business; please don't make this hard for us."

A small business worth over 1.4 million?

Even if Rosemary didn't agree to leave, there was nothing she could do - the hotel was adamant and willing to pay the penalty fee, and the repairmen were already at the door, claiming there was an electrical issue that could cause a fire if not fixed promptly.

Rosemary finally strutted out of the hotel, suitcase in tow, while the Templeton family wheels were at the already curbside waiting for her. Jason spotted her making an exit and hopped out of the car, eager to lend a hand with her luggage, "Mrs. Templeton, Mr. Templeton sent me to pick you up."

Rosemary sidestepped his offer, "Tell Maxwell I'm not coming back," with that, she spun on her heel and made a beeline for another hotel nearby.

Jason didn't try to stop her, and pretty soon Rosemary got the picture why he didn't. The receptionist at a neighboring hotel handed her card back, "Sorry, looks like your card just got cut off. Got another one?"