Yvonne savagely brought her foot down on Xavier's, making him double over immediately, yelling in pain as his hand instinctively released the elevator door. Under his infuriated glare, Yvonne merrily pressed the button to close the doors. "Since you know that I belong to Stephen, you should also know that I'm not someone you should mess with.""You!" Xavier leaned against the wall and tested the mobility of his big toe. Thankfully, she hadn't broken it. This woman was a savage! There wasn't anyone in Northerna City who would dare try to hurt him. Xavier gripped the bag tighter. He wanted to step forward but was disgruntled. Instead, he decided to pass the bag to Yvonne's assistant to pass it along to her.After 30 minutes, the assistant entered Yvonne's office with the bag. Yvonne immediately recognized it and frowned. "Give it back to him.""But Mr. Robinson said that it was merely a gesture of goodwill and that you had to accept it, Miss." The assistant placed the bag on the table aw
"That's enough." Thomas was annoyed. If Joseph really were to approach Yvonne, things would become even more complicated. "Besides this, Xavier went to pester Yvonne at the office again today."He'd seen the two of them chatting earlier after emerging from the meeting room but hadn't greeted Xavier since he'd still been seething at the time. Monica was astonished. "Why?" This was Xavier's second visit to Yvonne!Thomas shook his head. "I'm not sure what he's up to either, but I don't think he's interested in Yvonne as a woman."Monica wasn't surprised. "Obviously not. Only a blind man would accept a face like hers. I'm sure Mr. Robinson has better taste. Only our Kayla is good enough for him."Thomas hesitated when he saw how excited Monica was. Monica's fervent wish for Kayla to marry into a wealthy family had never sat well with him. He believed that one should acquire their own power and status, regardless of gender. But since his wife and daughter refused to listen to him, he deci
Noticing where her focus was, he pulled the lapels of his robe tighter around him and frowned. "Is there something you need?""Yes." Yvonne shot her eyes toward his face and smiled sweetly. "My best friend wants to meet you. Do you have time?""She wants to meet me?""Mm-hmm. She overheard our call last time, so I had no choice but to lie and say that you're my boyfriend." Yvonne was nervous. Would someone like Stephen agree to act along? "If you find it troublesome, I can always talk to her—""I'll meet her." Stephen surprisingly agreed.Yvonne was stunned. "Huh?""Where did you two decide to meet up? Send me the location and time." Unless something unexpected were to happen, their current relationship would probably last for quite some time. Meeting her friends was unavoidable then, so he didn't bother turning her down. "Anything else?" asked Stephen. "N–no." Seeing how cooperative the man was, Yvonne instantly felt like all her worries had been for nothing. "Well, goodnight. I'll l
Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to the new face, and they demanded that Yvonne introduce herself. Just when Rachel managed to calm things enough for Yvonne to talk, the lady spoke out again. "We're all friends here, so why are you wearing a mask? Are you trying to keep a secret?"Rachel was upset. "What's it got to do with you, Beatrice?"Beatrice Lipsey grunted. "Did I say something wrong? Since we're here to enjoy ourselves, she should relax too. Right, guys?" Everyone else agreed with her.Just then, someone walked into the room, breaking the ice. Beatrice's eyes lit up. She rushed over with a beam. "What took you so long? I've been waiting for you for ages!"James explained. "An important friend is coming over tonight, so Stanley and I were busy getting things ready." He then waved to everyone in the room. "Tonight's on me. Have fun, everyone!"There was a burst of cheers. "Thanks, James!""As expected of Beatrice's boyfriend. How generous!"Beatrice nestled into James'
"Didn't you just say he'd already arrived?"Rachel was still confused when Yvonne pulled her back. "I want to pee. Where's the bathroom?"After five minutes in the bathroom, the two ladies returned to the lounge, which was now silent, the air seeming colder than before. The crowd had separated into two groups on the couch.Stephen sat by himself on one side, isolated from the others by an imperceptible wall. Yvonne was starting to get tired of this. It was difficult enough to have to avoid him, but now James had even brought him over.Rachel had never met Stephen before, but she was instantly drawn to his looks. She'd been working in the entertainment industry for years and had met countless Greek gods, but never had she seen anyone this handsome! "Hey, handsome. Did you walk into the wrong room?" Rachel greeted him flirtily. Yvonne's heart skipped a beat nervously, screaming internally. "Don't fuck anyone just because they're handsome!"Under the dim lighting, Stephen made out Yvonne
Stephen stood by the door. Despite his hazy vision, he could vaguely make out their silhouette. He forced his anger down and put on a blank face. "You should have approached me directly instead of harassing my people, Xavier."Xavier didn't disengage himself from Yvonne; instead, he studied Stephen's eyes. "Are you still unable to see?""Isn't it what you hoped for?" Stephen's grip on his cane tightened before he continued lazily. "I see that you've made quite a fortune during the years I've been gone." As far as Stephen knew, the Robinson family's business had expanded tremendously, even impeding some of the Andersons' business.Lacking modesty, Xavier laughed. "Nonsense! There's nothing I want more than for you to return. Otherwise," the man's eyes glinted eagerly, "it'll be quite miserable not to have an opponent. Things get boring."Ever since Xavier took over his family business when he was 20 years old, he'd only recognized Stephen as his opponent. Xavier respected Stephen but, a
Stephen and Yvonne didn't stay for long, but everyone in the room was still stupefied after they left.James and Stanley walked the couple to the door and watched the Panamera drive out of sight. Stanley stared in disbelief as the car drove away. Even though Tabitha had told him that Stephen was recovering rapidly, he'd never expected his friend to fall in love!"Do you know Ms. Miller?" Stanley asked."This is my first time meeting her," James replied dejectedly. "My girlfriend offended her. Oh, never mind. She's my ex now."Stanley came back to his senses and asked James, puzzled, "When did the two of you break up?" Hadn't they been hugging and singing moments ago?"I wouldn't dare keep in touch with her after she offended Stephen. That's suicidal. Besides, there are plenty of other women!" Stanley was used to hearing things like this from the philanderer and gave his friend a withering look. James threw one arm over Stanley's shoulders. "This is Stephen's second relationship, right?
The next morning, Yvonne woke up in her room alone. The only proof of the passionate night before was the messy carpet. She looked at the note and medication on the desk and snickered. Stephen sure was a heartless man, leaving as though nothing had happened after sleeping with her.She got out of bed and nearly tripped when her unsteady feet reached the floor. She cursed Stephen silently before heading to the shower. Afterward, she began to read Rachel's messages, which were all as she'd expected. Besides yelling at Yvonne for neglecting her after falling in love, Rachel also fawned over Stephen's looks but lamented his lack of vision.Yvonne only bothered to reply to one of the messages: "My brother's recovering well and wants to meet you. What do you say?"Yvonne didn't hesitate, sticking firmly to her principle of never meeting clients privately. "No need for that. Just tell him to rest well." Just like that, she pushed the matter to the back of her mind.All of a sudden, Yvonne's a
A light breeze blew by in the courtyard. Agatha slowly recounted the past.Back then, Daniel and his wife, Katherine, had just had Mark. The entire Carrington family had been celebrating.They had doted on Mark and taken him wherever they went.That day, they had headed out. Before they'd known it, Mark had been taken away.Just when Daniel and Katherine had been on the brink of losing it, they had received a call from the kidnapper to bring the ransom to a specific spot.They had gotten the money and driven there without any hesitation. No one had thought that they would ever return after that. Even Mark had disappeared.When Agatha finished recounting this, her cup of tea had already cooled.She wiped her tears away. She said through a catch in her throat, "Katherine was hugging the bag of money tightly until the moment she passed away, as though she were hugging you."Mark furrowed his brows. Now that he'd heard the truth about Daniel and Katherine, he should have felt pain
As Yvonne left the room, she could tell that Stephen's mood was much better.She looked at him. "Are you thinking of something nice?""No." Stephen looked at Yvonne with a rare twinkle in his eyes."Let me take you to breakfast." Before Yvonne could respond, he took her hand and led her to the elevator.Thinking about how he'd stood outside her room the entire night, Yvonne decided to let him hold her hand.Then, her thoughts drifted to Otto. Somehow, she had a bad feeling.…At the same time, Mark was in the courtyard of Carrington Mansion. He sat next to Agatha and poured some tea for her.He handed her a cup of hot tea. "Great-Grandma, try this."When he noticed that Agatha had no reaction, he called out to her once more. "Great-Grandma?""Huh?" Agatha came to her senses. She looked at Mark in confusion. "What is it?""You've been distracted since yesterday. Are you thinking of something?" Mark asked.Agatha shook her head. "Nothing." Then, she picked up her teacup and
Yvonne stood by the door of the bedroom and looked at Otto, who was looking out of the window in a daze on the bed.The sun shone on his face. He looked quite hungover and had a sickly pale face.Yvonne hesitated for a while before saying gently, "Mrs. Jenner called me last night. She's worried about you."Otto didn't respond.Yvonne went in closer and added, "She said that you called her and asked about your father. She found it strange."Mr. Carrington, why did you suddenly think about your father? Did Mrs. Carrington Senior bring him up yesterday?"All Yvonne got was silence.Luckily, she was patient. She sat on the couch and followed Otto's line of sight. Tiny dust particles were floating among the sunbeams. Yvonne also fell into a daze as she watched them float about.Suddenly, Otto asked, "Have you ever felt like your world was falling apart?""Hmm?" Yvonne was confused. "For example?""I mean, like the person that you trust turns out to be different from what you'd t
The next morning, Yvonne opened her door to see Stephen standing outside. She was caught off guard."What is wrong with you this morning? Why didn't you knock…"While talking, Yvonne noticed that Stephen was still wearing the same clothes as the night before. She furrowed her brows and asked, "Don't tell me you didn't leave last night? Have you been standing outside this door all this while?""Hmm." Stephen looked at Yvonne intently. "I thought you would've figured it out quickly."Yvonne was speechless, but she thought to herself that she'd slept like a baby the night before.She smiled at him. "Figure what out?" She noticed Stephen frowning as though he were on the brink of losing his temper.She quickly added, "I-I mean, you have to give me a hint, right? I've thought about it the entire night, but I still don't understand. My brain isn't functioning well."Stephen asked suspiciously, "You've been thinking about it the entire night?""Yes, which is why I didn't look for yo
"If I hadn't come to find you tonight, you probably wouldn't tell me anything about what happened tonight, would you?" Stephen asked in retort.It wasn't a big deal, as long as they returned safely. Yvonne wondered why she needed to report this to him.But she still smiled. "It's late. How could I disrupt your rest? It would've been the same if I told you about it tomorrow morning, right?"Stephen sniggered. "Yvonne, you still don't know where you've gone wrong."He suddenly went in closer to her. Yvonne instinctively retreated until her back was up against the wall. She glared at him."What on earth is wrong with you? I've already said that I would've told you tomorrow morning—"A punch went past Yvonne and landed brutally on the wall.Yvonne was a little stunned. She looked into Stephen's eyes and furrowed her brows. "Stephen, I don't want to quarrel with you for no reason. "Mrs. Carrington Senior went to look for Otto today. Calbert couldn't reach him the entire day, so he
Jane returned to the private room, distracted.She sat down next to Cory. She looked at him as he reached his hand out to her in confusion.Cory furrowed his brows and asked unhappily, "Where's the wine?""Wine… Yes! Wine!" Jane came to her senses. She was just about to get up when Cory pulled her back.He grabbed her by her chin and forced her to look at him. "What happened when you went out?""N-Nothing."Cory tightened his grip. Jane furrowed her brows in pain. "I-I… I saw Yvonne. She told me that she and Stephen got remarried.""What?" Cory relaxed his grip a little. "They got remarried?""Hmm.""So, what?" He had no intention of letting her go, and he looked at her sharply. "Does it bother you so much that Stephen got remarried?"Jane looked at Cory frantically. "Cory, what do you mean by that?""What do I mean? You know what I mean."Cory went in closer. His tone turned icy. "You used to pursue Stephen. Now that you know he's gotten married, you're in this shitty mood
Yvonne turned around to see Jane smiling at her ambiguously. She furrowed her brows. How were they always bumping into each other?Jane crossed her hands in front of her chest and leaned against the wall. She swept her gaze at Calbert and Otto. "Two guys and one woman. You sure know how to have fun!"Calbert instantly snapped, "What the hell are you talking about?""Why are you being so fierce? Did I hit the nail on the head?" Jane snickered. "Two guys and a woman came out of a private room in the middle of the night. Anyone would come to the same conclusion. We're all adults. There's no need to pretend to be innocent.""You—" Calbert was about to go up to Jane, but Yvonne stopped him."Since Ms. Ford is here, I'm guessing so is Cory?" Yvonne smiled, yet her smile didn't reach her eyes. "If you cause a scene here and this bar gets raided, guess who'll be the ones walking out here alive?"Jane's expression turned ugly. "Are you threatening me?""It's just a kind reminder." Yvon
Calbert and Yvonne managed to track Otto's car to a bar, thanks to the information they'd gotten from his staff. Otto's car was right outside the bar.Calbert looked at the neon sign and furrowed his brows. "Why is Otto here? Did what Mrs. Carrington Senior said really hit him so badly that he has to drown himself in alcohol?"Yvonne said nothing and headed directly inside the bar."Wait up for me!" Calbert went after her. He subconsciously protected her from all the drunk patrons.The lighting in the bar was dim. Many of the patrons were drunk and having fun.Yvonne and Calbert walked around the booth area, but Otto was nowhere to be found. They pulled a server over to ask if there was a patron by the name of Otto Carrington who had reserved a private room.Coincidentally, the server had just taken two bottles of wine to Otto's room. So, he led them to the private room.Calbert tipped the server before opening the door and entering. The entire room reeked of alcohol.He looked
After Agatha left, Otto stood in the same spot without moving.A long time later, Zac entered the office. He looked at Otto's back and asked quietly, "Mr. Carrington, will you still see the client?""No." Otto sounded heartbroken.Zac didn't dare ask further questions. He gently closed the door and reminded the secretary that no one was to disturb Otto.In the office, Otto was alone. He slowly walked over to the couch and slumped into it. His mind was in a mess."Alexander was the one who planned the kidnapping back then."Agatha's words rang in his mind for a long time.Alexander's young face appeared in Otto's mind, smiling at him affectionately."Otto! Amazing! Yes! Just like that!""You're amazing at badminton! You're going to make the country proud! I'm going to be so proud of you!""Otto, my son!"Memories of his interactions with Alexander flashed across his mind at that moment.Otto couldn't imagine that such a loving father would do such an absurd thing. Alexander