She looked completely different from the reserved woman he had seen before, as her blonde hair had slipped loose, and there was flour on her cheek while she laughed freely. She caught a falling pancake midair and joked playfully, making the boys burst into louder laughter.
“Careful, the pancake tower is about to fall apart,” she teased, steadying the stack.
The boys clung to her legs with total trust, laughing in a way Dominic had never witnessed before. Olivia leaned down and tickled them gently while smiling.
“The secret ingredient is extra love and a little bit of magic,” she said warmly.
Something inside Dominic’s chest tightened in a way that surprised him, because this woman with a modest salary had given his children something he had never managed to provide.
He stepped forward, and the sharp sound of his shoe against the marble floor cut through the moment instantly.
The laughter stopped.
Olivia’s face went pale as she quickly lifted the boys down, clearly expecting anger and consequences. She straightened herself and spoke quickly, her voice trembling.
“I am so sorry, Mr. Harper, I will clean everything immediately,” she said.
Dominic did not raise his voice or show anger, and instead he reached down, touched the flour lightly, then looked at his sons with a quiet question.
“Are they happy?” he asked calmly.
Minutes later, something unthinkable happened as Dominic Harper, wearing a suit worth thousands of dollars, sat on the kitchen floor eating a slightly undercooked pancake with his sons. It tasted imperfect, yet it felt better than any meal he had ever had in expensive restaurants.
For the first time in years, the house felt alive.
That fragile peace did not last long.
The front door slammed loudly, and the sharp sound of heels striking marble echoed through the house. Natalie entered the kitchen with controlled anger, her expression tightening as she took in the scene.
“What is this mess supposed to be?” she demanded sharply.
Dominic tried to explain that they were simply having fun, but Natalie twisted the situation effortlessly into something else. She called it irresponsible and inappropriate, criticizing Olivia harshly in front of the children while suggesting that boundaries had been crossed.
She was careful, however, because she understood that Dominic had seen something valuable in that moment, so she knew she needed a stronger reason to remove Olivia.