“Grandpa, I — I think there is no —”What reasonable excuse would she give her grandfather?Before she could think of a suitable idea, Edward suddenly spoke up.“Grandpa George, I appreciate your kindness but I don’t want to be Grace’ assistant.”“For now, I’ll help her whenever I can, though.”Grandpa George also felt that his demand was too forceful.Forcibly insisting might not yield sweet results, and could easily trigger resistance from both sides.“Alright, as you both wish, then.”Finally, he gave up insisting and tilted his head, “Please help her if you have the time.”“Of course! You can count on me.” Edward nodded.All he had to do was make a phone call and the Carter family would be selected.Grace wouldn’t even need to become a candidate first in order to become a member.Easy peasy!Grandpa George smiled. “That is great.”Meanwhile, Grace was dumbfounded.Did Edward really save her from embarrassment?What a surprise!Maybe he wasn’t as useless as she believed.And even i
Grandpa George thanked Edward and retired to his room.Meanwhile, Grace overheard their conversation.She couldn’t help but frown at Edward’s shameless boasting.How could he undermine the value of the Ironclad membership?No big deal?Seriously?What effort had he made to assist her?Did he obtain the invitation to the banquet for her? No!Did he have any connections in the city? No!Her blood boiled with anger.The bumpkin could never stop boasting of his imaginary abilities.But he would not lift a finger to help her.Even if he wanted to, how could he?What would a man from the forest know?He would only assist in bringing shame to her family.Argh!She walked up to him in anger.“I can see you have improved your deceptive acts. It is indeed your talent.”Edward narrowed his eyes at her, “What do you mean?”“You lied to Grandpa that you will help me.” She scoffed. “What can you possibly do?”“Will you obtain the Ironclad membership by boasting of your great skills?”“Or are you s
Grace’s parents appeared immediately after she left.It seemed they had been waiting to give Edward a piece of their mind.Such a way to give him A CHANCE.They glared at Edward in a condescending manner.“Don’t stare at the back of my daughter like a toad lusting after a swan.”Mrs. Carter scrunched up her nose in disgust. ”“She is a woman you’ll never have!”“Oh really? But she is already mine, isn’t she?”Edward’s lips curled slightly into a half smile.“So what? Don’t get too cocky! My daughter will divorce you sooner or later!” She spat. “She is clearly out of your league.”“Only young talents like Dominic deserve my daughter.”“That’s true. Unlike you, Dominic is capable and renowned. Whereas you’re a petty beggar dreaming of a throne,” Mr. Carter added coldly.“No one welcomes you here in this family.”“And if you have enough dignity, leave before you become a stain of shit.”Edward scoffed coldly. “Be thankful you’re my in-laws and I have respect for your family.”“As for
SMACK!“Who are you?! What did you do to me?” A woman screamed.The next moment, Edward Anderson felt a hand hit his naked back hard, and he opened his eyes. There behind him, a woman looked at him with a mixture of disgust and hatred. The woman was exquisitely beautiful. Her delicate and smooth skin was akin to the most fragrant milk, sending out a luring odour.“What have you done?” She cried again, hiding her body with the sheets. “You kidnapped me?! Who are you?”Edward stared at her expressionlessly. “I did not kidnap you. You ran into me. Don’t you remember?”Feeling her naked self beneath the sheets, Grace’s heart sank deeper and deeper. How could she, so noble and accomplished, stoop to have a casual affair with a wild man? She couldn’t bear it!“Liar! Do you have no shame?” She spat. “What did you do to me?”“We did everything last night.” Edward said calmly, “And you really enjoyed it!” “Liar! You rapist! I’m a responsible woman and—”Grace wanted to defend her honour,
Edward chuckled. “Many powerful men want favours from me. They even beg me to marry their daughters. You won’t regret marrying me. I promise.”Grace frowned even deeper. ‘What kind of shameless man is this?’ She thought to herself. How could he make such claims while looking like a beggar? “Get over it! I know you want to marry me because of my family’s wealth, but I’ll never marry you,” she said. Edward frowned because he did not even know who she was or her family. “Let’s pretend nothing happened and go our separate ways. My family is very powerful, so if you don’t keep your mouth shut, I will make sure you lose your tongue.” Grace warned. Edward shrugged and nodded. “If that is what you want, you have my word.” Since the woman had such a low opinion of him, he saw no reason to keep persuading her, making it seem like he was desperately eager to get married. “Now leave!” Grace told him coldly. Edward dressed up and left quickly without saying another word. He felt a bit
Edward knew he needed Albert’s help to find the girl who saved his life and learn more about his origin. “What is her name?”“Eclipse. That’s all I can remember.”“Eclipse,” Albert repeated, rubbing his jaw, and promised. “I will do my best to locate this girl!”“Thank you.” “Your wish is my command, Master.” Albert smiled humbly. “By the way, Master, I’ll be hosting a welcome banquet for you. I have invited top celebrities and businessmen who would like to be at your service.”Edward tried to hide his frown but couldn’t. “That will bring unnecessary attention and trouble.”“But young master—”“Cancel the banquet.” Albert nodded obediently. “Yes, Sir.”Edward asked him to stop the driver at a restaurant so he could get breakfast. “Thank you for the ride. In the future, consult me before hosting such a public banquet.”“I understand. Thank you for accepting to treat my daughter.” Albert bowed deeply again before he drove away. He understood why Edward needed to keep a low profile
“There you are!” Grace’s grandfather, George Carter, exclaimed, smiling widely at Edward. “I’ve been waiting for you all day. Come on in!”“Grandpa Carter!” Edward smiled and greeted him politely. “It’s been a long time.”Grace watched her grandfather’s interaction with Edward with anger and disgust. She couldn’t believe her grandfather thought Edward was good enough to marry her. She was the CEO of Carter Ventures, for God’s sake! How could she be with such a man? She was suddenly overwhelmed with rage that she had given her virginity to such a lousy man and would now marry him.“I see you have met my granddaughter,” George said, noticing the awkward look between Edward and Grace. “Yes. She is beautiful.” Edward praised, and Grace rolled her eyes.“Perfect!” George clapped his hands in delight. “Then both of you should obtain your marriage certificate today. Come in.”He led Edward into their mansion, feeling quite happy that he was finally there to marry his granddaughter.
Edward didn’t know why Grace despised him so much, but he was willing to impress her. “Why don’t—” He started to talk, but Grace pulled out her phone and turned her back to him. “Yes, I’m right in front of the marriage agency.” She said to the person on the other end of the phone. “Yes, I’ll be waiting.”Just seconds after her phone call, a BMW 7 series pulled up to the marriage agency and stopped before them. A beautiful young woman exited the car casually. She was adorned in a pretty dress and jewellery and walked in high fashion. “Grace, how are you doing?” She hugged Grace and didn’t even spare a glance at Edward. “I’m fine,” Grace answered. “Great! I came as soon as I could.”Grace turned toward Edward reluctantly. “Rebecca, this is Edward.” She said. “Edward, this is my best friend.”Rebecca eyed Edward from head to toe and shook her head. Clean yet overly cheap shirt and pants.A pair of shoes scrubbed clean but clearly roadside goods.Not a single item of value fr