arrington was already in a foul mood , and seeing the reason Xanthe dumped him only made it worse . Turning away from Vionnet , he stubbed out his cigarette and walked out of the hospital room . In the hallway , his assistant approached cautiously . " President Connolly , we managed to trace Ms. Wentworth to Chicago , but that's as far as we got . It seems like someone's deliberately blocking our investigation ," Shelly reported . " Chicago ? " Barrington's eyes narrowed slightly . For a businessman like him , it was well - known that the power dynamics in the largest city in Illinois were notoriously complicated . Worrying that Xanthe might've been lured into a trap , he said , " Don't we have a business deal with W Industries over there ? When's that contract scheduled to be signed ? " Shelly checked her phone . " Three days from now , sir . " " Book me a flight , " Barrington ordered without hesitation . But his assistant hesitated . " Sir , Ma'am Vionnet is pregnant - and to be honest , she's not happy with any of us here . And every time you're not around , things get tense . If you leave , I'm afraid things might get out of control ." Barrington's face suddenly darkened . " As long as she's not dying , " he replied dismissively , " she ' fine ." " And hey- " he added , his low voice commanding , " look into whether she's really pregnant . Use a different hospital this time . " Maybe it was something Xanthe had said before , but Barrington was no longer so sure he could trust his first love . That evening , Barrington returned home and went to the study to look for the flash drive . Last time , he meant to check the videos , but Vionnet interrupted him . Client and board meetings also filled his whole week , so he never got the chance to sit in his study again . Finally , with some peace and quiet that night , he was going to see what Xanthe had left behind . But when he opened the drive , he froze - the folder was empty , the two files it had now completely wiped . He tried everything he could think of to recover them , but nothing worked . In his frustration , he called the maids and asked if anyone had touched his computer . But no one admitted to it . And with no security cameras in the study , there was no way to find out who'd done it . Later that night , once everyone had gone to bed , a maid quietly stepped outside the villa and made a phone call . " Ma'am , I've deleted the video from the flash drive . Please send the rest of the payment now . " In her room in the hospital , Vionnet sat on her bed , watching the video one last time with a satisfied smile tugging at her lips . Chapter 11 12:41 pm A " I've already wired it to you . Find a chance to tell Barry you're resigning , " she instructed . " I don ' want to see you there once I come home . " Staring at the fifteen thousand deposit hit her bank account , the maid grinned with relief . " Don't worry , Ma'am . I'll pack up and be long gone before you're back . " Once the call ended , Vionnet stared at the videos for a moment until she hit delete . Xanthe was gone . And now the videos were , too . She laughed to herself . ' From now on , Barrington will be mine alone ! ' Just then , her attending physician walked in . " Hey , I heard Barrington wants to transfer you to another hospital . I think he's starting to suspec something . " Luca Rosenstein , her doctor , had been her upperclassman in college . To that day , Vionnet was still the only woman he wanted . Hearing the news , Vionnet wasn't surprised . She just casually replied , " Whatever . They can ru tests in every hospital in this state if they want . But none of that won't change the truth - I am pregnant . " What she didn't say was ... the baby wasn't Barrington's . She wished it was . But after that one time he slept with her , he hadn't touched her again . One night , after drinking too much at a bar , she hooked up with a random model . Just once . To her surprise , the guy had been good enough that once was all it took for her to get pregnant . When the test came back positive , her family had urged her to get an abortion . But she refused . This child had to stay . His father wasn't some cheap model . It was Barrington Connolly . That's the story she told herself . And that's what she was going to make everyone else believe . " Vionnet , Barrington no longer loves you , " Luca boldly said . " Why force something that was never real ? If you'd just give me a chance , I- " Before he could offer himself to her , Vionnet cut him off with a cold laugh . " Look , I don't love you either . It's been so many years . Get a life , weirdo - find someone who actually gives a damn about you and wants the same boring , stable life you do . " ' She uses people ,' Luca realized at that moment . ' And when she's done with them , she tosses them aside . That - that's the kind of woman she is ! His face tightened , and for the first time , he couldn't look at her . " I get it . I just hope you find happiness . " " But let me say one thing ." He met her bored gaze again . " Lies ... They don't last forever , Vionnet ." Vionnet's smile turned sharp . " And that's my problem , not yours ." She raised a brow and tilted her head toward the door . " It's late . I need to rest . You can see yourself out . " 12:41 pm A