Carmen led Yvonne to a parlor. Upon sitting down, she asked, "Are you blaming me for tricking you into showing up at the Andersons' banquet?"Yvonne hummed in acknowledgment.Carmen laughed. "You're so straightforward! I like it!"Carmen had been in the business industry for a long time and had encountered too many hypocritical people. Seeing how honest and upfront Yvonne was, Carmen couldn't help but like her even more. "Actually, Mr. Anderson Senior isn't trying to take the kid away from you. He was just testing how you'd react to it." Carmen brewed a pot of coffee and said calmly, "You already know that Stephen is supposed to marry Ariel. Mr. Anderson Senior only acknowledges Ariel as his granddaughter-in-law. As for you, the child you have with Stephen can be considered the greatest threat to their marriage. "It's true that Mr. Anderson Senior likes that kid, but he'd also be willing to give up on him for Ariel's sake. I heard from Madam Hazel that he's strictly forbidden
A tattooed arm and a rosary—the only person Yvonne could think of was Mark.He'd made her live the darkest ten years of her life. Yvonne didn't feel that she'd done anything bad to Emerald Group, nor had she offended Mark. However, Mark didn't seem to have any intention of letting her go. Even if she'd left Emerald Group, she was still under his control.Everything that had happened to Hopeful Faith and the mining area had been all his doing. If Mark was the person Tara had been referring to in her sketchbook ...Yvonne's heart sank. If that was the case, then Yvonne's relationship with Mark wasn't as simple as just having a conflict of interest."Aunt Yvonne!" Britney called, pulling Yvonne back to reality in an instant. Before Yvonne could react, the little girl had pounced into her arms. "Aunt Yvonne, did El come with you? I want to play with him!" As she spoke, Britney raised the pumpkin pie in her hands. "This is delicious. I want to share it with El." Britney's bri
"Mr. Stephen, the banquet is about to start," a waiter informed him respectfully. Hearing that, Stephen temporarily set aside the idea of giving Linda a call. He put his phone away and entered the club. The banquet was set on the balcony, emanating a unique ambiance. Fine wines and delicate dishes had been prepared, complemented by the night breeze and beautiful view of the moon. As the Andersons settled into their seats, Charles and his wife arrived a little later, with Conan sitting in the wheelchair. Before, Conan had never been given a chance to eat at the dining table. As far as he could remember, he'd only had meals in his room. This was his first time attending the Andersons' family banquet, so he couldn't help but feel a little awkward and uneasy.It had been Camille's idea to bring him over tonight. Conan was no longer the same as before. No matter what, he was an Anderson. He couldn't possibly continue to hide from Stephen on occasions like this. Moreover, consider
As the banquet drew to a close, Britney got tired and fell asleep in Stephen's arms. Hence, Philip told them to go home first. Instead of taking Ariel to Oceania Villa, he sent her back home. As soon as Ariel got out of the car, she shivered from the chilly night breeze. "Wear more layers when you go out at night next time," Stephen said in a deep voice. Ariel spared a glance at the coat he was wearing and smiled bitterly. "Okay."If it had been Yvonne, he would have probably let her wear his coat instead of telling her something like that.Then, Ariel stood in the wind and watched the Maybach drive away. She hugged her arms, unsure what made her feel colder—the night wind or Stephen's iciness toward her. After returning home, Ariel took a hot shower. When she came out of the bathroom, she noticed her phone was vibrating. Seeing that it was a call from Katie, she answered it at once. "Katie, why are you only calling me now? Didn't you get the messages I'd sent you?"Ariel
When Yvonne finally put Elvin to sleep, it was late at night. She returned to her room and checked the time difference before switching her phone to private mode and calling Gwen. Soon, Gwen's voice came from the other end of the line. "So you finally remembered me?" She sounded a little angry. Yvonne smiled sheepishly. "I think about you every day, Gwen. I didn't call you often because I was afraid of disturbing you."Gwen snorted. "Unless the sky falls, you wouldn't even be bothered to look for me." "What are you talking about?" Sensing the displeasure in her tone, Yvonne immediately guessed that someone had ratted her out. "Did Curtis tell you about what happened at the border?" "Yes. If he hadn't told me, perhaps the next news I'd received would have been about your death."Yvonne choked for a moment. "You're still as sharp-tongued as before." "You were well aware Thomas had been sent there by Mark. Why did you still go and mess with him? Even if the mine makes less m
Caleb answered the call in front of Stephen with an obvious smile on his face. "Yvonne, what's the matter?"Stephen arched an eyebrow, fixing his eyes on Caleb's phone. Caleb walked out of the elevator and deliberately stopped in front of Stephen. "Sure. When have I ever rejected helping you?" he said."You don't have to thank me. Gratitude isn't needed between us."Okay. Once this is done, you'll have to treat me to a meal."On the other end, Yvonne listened to Caleb's replies, finding something amiss about them. His tone seemed to carry a hint of smugness. Nevertheless, she didn't think too much about it. After telling him what she needed, she ended the call and tightened her grip on her phone.Caleb was good at looking for information online. He should be able to help her investigate Mark's traces in Northerna City.After hanging up his phone, Caleb asked meaningfully, "Mr. Anderson, you aren't here to look for me, are you?""Why did Yvonne call you?" Stephen countered co
Years ago, Diane had sought Arthur's help before she had been treated like a madwoman and locked in the basement by Elizabeth. She'd begged him to save her and her child. However, wanting to avoid disgrace befalling the family, Arthur had chosen to send her back to Anderson Mansion. Not long after that, Diane had passed away due to difficult labor. Arthur might claim to have loved Diane deeply, but, in reality, his true priorities lay with his own interests and preserving the reputation of the Robinson family.Stephen had always been reluctant to reveal the painful events of the past to Linda. However, at this point, if he didn't explain the situation to her, his younger sister was probably going to end up as Arthur's pawn. After hearing what Stephen said, Linda sat on the couch in a daze for a long time.As Stephen gazed at her, his tone softened. "Now that he's getting older, he wants to have grandchildren around him. That's why he tried to get close to you, but his ultimate
Without waiting for Linda to say anything more, Yvonne called Hayden through the internal line to send Linda away. Linda was still in a daze when she left Miller Jewels. She stood in front of the entrance for a while. Since she'd already given the documents to Yvonne, she decided to just go back and wait for Yvonne's response.When Linda returned to her office, two of her colleagues approached her before she'd even sat down at her desk. "Did you really go to Miller Jewels and meet Ms. Miller? How did it go?" "I—"Just as Linda was about to say something, a sarcastic voice interrupted her. "Well, how would she have come back so early if it had gone well?"It was Suzy Bailey, a senior employee at Finspatial Securities. Linda's resume was outstanding. She'd been offered a position that was higher than Suzy's as soon as she'd joined the company, and the clients she received were also better than those Suzy got.Hence, Suzy held a grudge against Linda and had maintained an unfri