The look on Sean’s face changed. “Don’t you worry about me. I’ll find a way to solve the problems.”“How? You’re just fooling yourself.” Matthew did not buy any of that. “You’re the most excellent heir of the Young family. The elders of your household have great expectations of you and they would never allow you to do anything reckless.”He suddenly changed the topic of the conversation. “But unlike you, I’ve been a good-for-nothing since young and everyone sees me as the useless second-generation rich kid. I can do anything I want without a care in the world!”“I can fight them till the end.” The light went out of Sean’s eyes.“But a woman’s youth is limited. Christina hasn’t got the time to fight alongside you.” Matthew let out a devilish smile. “Whereas in my case, if I say the child belongs to me, the old man will undoubtedly believe me and joyfully accept Christina into the family.”“Shameless prick!” Sean gave him a deathly glare. “Matthew, I’ll never let you off the hook if
The door to the president’s office opened just as her voice trailed off. Matthew stomped out of the room and glared at Christina. “You’re a terrible assistant. How could you lead just anyone into my office?”She almost laughed out loud upon seeing the man’s wrinkled shirt and the bright red lipstick marks on his face and neck.It took less than five minutes since Yara entered for Matthew to leave the office. Could it be possible that this man was troubled by some problems in the bedroom?He had no idea what was going on in the woman’s mind. He ordered her to tidy up his office before dragging Sean into another office room.Christina waited until there was no movement in the office before she walked in. Not much in the office needed to be tidied up as everything else was in place apart from the messy couch, where Yara was sitting half-naked and looking annoyed.Christina acted as if she was here for the mug and left the office. Yara was bored being there alone, so she packed up her
Yara hung up on the phone in disappointment. Sean was in stitches while Matthew was so furious that his cheeks were flushed red like ripened tomatoes.The latter was displeased about Sean’s surprise visit back home. He had looked into it and discovered that there were no urgent matters waiting for him in the Young family. Hence only one explanation left — he must be back because of Christina.Michael was equally upset. No one knew the past between Christina and Sean better than him. She would not have broken up with Sean if Old Madam Young had not threatened it with her death.This had always troubled him greatly. Christina did not choose him because of love; she only did so to help Sean succeed.Although their relationship had improved tremendously after the marriage, Michael knew deep down that Sean remained a painful past in Christina’s heart.He had always protected this relationship carefully but it required more to maintain it. Christina’s heart was never with him.His eyeb
Initially, Michael did not suspect anything regarding the old town redevelopment project. Yet he now reckoned that something else was going on for John to take the time to explain things to him personally.He wondered what Matthew did to get John on his side.All of a sudden, he remembered the meeting between John and Christina in the café last time. Could she be involved in this? On second thoughts, it seemed impossible that she could successfully convince John.When the two of them were talking, Sophia asked for John for a short while. Bored sitting in the study alone, Michael looked around the room and picked up a photo frame on the table by random.However, seeing the unexpected face in the photo sent an electrifying sensation throughout his entire body as if he had been struck by a bolt of lightning. He could not believe his eyes.The woman in the photo looked exactly like Christina. He shook his head before taking a second look. He was even more certain that this woman was C
Christina was an attractive woman and John had a fondness for her beauty. Lured by the benefits, Matthew naturally seized this opportunity to use her as a bait to seduce John.What a prick Matthew was! Indeed, he did not truly love her but used her like a pawn. Michael knew all along that this playboy was up to no good!With that, he drove all the way to the old town to warn Christina.It was late, and Christina and Francis had been playing with Travis for the entire day. The boy had just gone to bed after taking a shower. Noticing that the milk in the fridge was running out, she decided to go get some.She stepped into the alley in her sleeping gown and slippers. Feeling as if she was being watched, she looked over her shoulder all of sudden only to find a car parked on the empty land.The window was up but she got a clear look of the person’s silhouette from the dim light in the car. Suddenly, a shudder passed through her.Christina could feel Michael’s dark gaze even from a di
“An urgent matter came up at work,” Michael simply replied. He was about to go upstairs when Heather called out to him. “Come over here, I have something to tell you.”He glanced at her before walking over to sit on the couch opposite her. “What’s the matter?”There was no emotion on his face and his voice reeked of impatience. Her son’s unusual mood today caught her by surprise. “What did John Garcia say when you went over for dinner today?”“Nothing really,” he replied.“I thought you were going to discuss the engagement.”“The engagement?” He laughed sarcastically. “I thought you wanted to do everything by yourself?”“What do you mean?” she said, annoyed. “You’re the one getting married after all. You should at least have a proper chat about it with them and be more thoughtful about Serena.”“I don’t mind. Just do everything according to your wish.” The indifference was evident in his voice.“Are you deliberately trying to upset me, child?”“Did I say anything wrong?” He sm
Michael tossed and turned on the bed the entire night, unable to sleep in peace. He dreamed of a scene that happened many years ago when he met Christina in school. She was smiling radiantly like a beautiful flower as she dashed toward him, shouting his name. He was lured uncontrollably toward her soothing voice. “Christina!”Michael extended his arms to catch her but in a blink of an eye, she was pulled into another man’s embrace. That man’s tender smile was so warm, it was as if he was a bright sun. He lifted her off the ground and twirled around. Then, the two of them walked away together holding each other’s hand.“Sean!” He felt a sharp pain in his heart as he jolted awake. It was yet another stupid dream!It was already late at night. Travis had fallen asleep and he even began to snore. Meanwhile, having trouble sleeping, Christina stared at the ceiling in the dark.She tried hard from prohibiting herself to reminisce about the horrible past. However, like stubborn sprouts
Michael’s persistence left Heather with no other choice but to agree for the young couple to be together although she was still dissatisfied with Christina.Christina never had a peaceful day after their marriage as Heather mocked and ridiculed her daily. It only got worse when she still had not conceived a baby. Heather even openly brought Serena back home to make things awkward for her.Apart from that, in order to improve her fertility, Heather also forced her to drink all sorts of traditional remedies such as a special alcoholic concoction made by preserving scorpions and red ants.She started throwing up at the sight of those wriggly worms. One day, she finally had enough and refused to drink the concoction.Infuriated, Heather scolded her incessantly and asked her to pack up her belongings to leave if she refused to drink up.The continuous mental and physical torture finally pushed Christina to her limits. She could not endure this anymore.She began to stand up for hersel
In fact, Matthew was the one who planned this entire thing. He had been keeping a close eye on Rachel since she returned.He could let bygones be bygones if she was willing to settle down. However, the woman did not learn from past mistakes and once again partnered up with Serena to plot against Christina.Matthew went along with their plan. He even found someone to set this up to lure them into the trap.Christina’s due date was approaching after Rachel and Serena were taken care of. Michael began making preparations for Travis’ transplant operation.He hired the best hematologist and gynecologist before arranging for both Christina and Travis’ operation to take place in the same hospital.The delivery went smoothly. Christina gave birth to a baby girl, and Heather was over the moon.Everything had gone well, and it was about time to start on Travis’ operation. Christina was accompanied by Matthew and Rachel whereas Heather stayed close by the baby’s side. Michael comforted Chri
Besides, even if the plan failed, intentionally causing a pregnant woman to miscarry was not considered homicide by the country’s criminal law. The punishment was less serious as the behavior would be categorized as an assault occasioning bodily harm.Assault and criminal homicide were two completely different crimes.Rachel agreed to the suggestion. Scarface was indeed a ruthless man. He came up with this vicious revenge that would put Christina in pain forever.Upon agreeing on the details of the plan, Scarface and his friends from the streets proceeded to kidnap Christina. Rachel and Serena were told to sit tight and wait for the good news.Scarface had a well-thought-out plan and got his hands on Christina before long. Her head was covered with a black cloth as they forcefully pushed her into the van.Serena and Rachel were already at the agreed-upon location when Scarface instructed Christina to step out of the vehicle. The latter’s belly was round, and both of her hands were
Serena lost everything. She had no choice but to work as a bargirl to survive.Scarface was the person in charge of the bar she worked at. The ruthless man had pretty much slept with every woman who worked at his place. Naturally, Serena could not escape from that fate either.Serena was different from other bargirls. She came from a prestigious family and was highly educated. Even in dire straits, she still maintained a certain grace that made her stand out from the crowd.Scarface spotted her on her first day at the bar. He ordered his men to drag her into the private room and tortured her the entire night.She resisted in the beginning. However, without anyone to depend on, she had no choice but to give into Scarface’s tyrannical abuse.Several times later, he found himself attracted to her. Every night, he would ask for her instead of other women.Serena, who could not escape from him, gave in eventually. She even ended up becoming his lover.By doing so, she found someone t
“Just a little while ago.” Sean came closer. “Christina, we need to talk.”She nodded and followed him to the garden. He helped her to get comfortable on the bench. “Do you believe in fate?”She shook her head, unsure where this was leading. “I didn’t either as I’m a firm believer that hard work always pays off. But now I do.”He looked her in the eye. “I’ve been lost and struggled a lot since that incident, unsure how to face you. After considering this seriously for the past few days, I’ve finally mustered enough courage to meet you again.”A sigh escaped her lips. “Sorry, Sean. It’s all my fault.”“No! It has nothing to do with you, Christina. It’s my fault that my love is not strong enough. I discovered that Suzy is really great after spending the past few months with her. She’s just like you. She’s gentle, kind, pure, and adorable. I realized I’ve fallen in love with her.”This was not what he really thought.He loved Christina since the beginning of time and believed he
“That’s old history. We think Michael is actually pretty good.”“We? Who do you mean?” Christina teased.Ariel and Matthew had been spending a lot of time together lately. Christina went through that herself and understood the passion in her friend’s eyes. This silly girl was actually in love. She could not be happier for her.“Who else? Matthew, of course!” Ariel glared at Christina.“I say whatever’s on my mind, unlike you, who always keep everything to yourself and get stuck in dilemmas. Every good opportunity slips past you because of your indecisiveness!” “How can I not be? I promised to marry him but I’m now trying to convince him to marry someone else. Is this really the best thing for him? Will he be happy?”Ariel questioned after a brief silence, “Christina, let me ask you this. Who do you care for more? Michael or Sean?”Christina asked herself the same question too. She naturally cared more about Michael in the past, but she also started to develop a strong feeling f
The following morning, Serena hurried to the police station to file a report.The police treated this with high importance and warned her to be careful of Darren Cain as he was a vicious gang member who had served over a decade in prison.She became more frightened after hearing that. Immediately, she moved out of that house and rented a place somewhere quiet. As she was terrified, she stayed indoors for the next few days.Much of Christina’s stress was relieved without having to deal with Serena’s pestering.“Christina, John was at the last stage of cancer. It was lucky enough that he lasted until he did. This is his fate, so try not to get too upset.” Francis comforted the dispirited woman. It did not make any difference even though he was not the real Francis. He had long adapted to the identity after assuming it for so many years. Most importantly, Christina was still willing to treat him like a real uncle even after finding out the truth.“Don’t worry, Uncle, I’m fine.”
The harassment continued after the funeral. Serena went around spreading accusations and threatened Christina to give her money. Otherwise, she would report John to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission for private corruption.If reported, the antique art collection would be seized and no one could get it!Christina became more frustrated after hearing that.She never expected John’s leniency toward Serena would cause her such a big problem. Matthew was infuriated by Serena’s unreasonable behavior. He suggested they could shut the woman up by teaching her a lesson. Sean shook his head. “That’s not going to solve the problem. Serena must’ve come prepared if she dares to stir up trouble. This is a lawful society. We can’t do as we wish.”“Are we actually going to pay her off then?” Ariel asked, “I think giving her money isn’t going to put an end to this. She’s certainly going to keep threatening for more!”Michael scoffed. “Why should we give her money? She can go
“I will, Dad, don’t worry. I’ll listen to Sister,” Suzy replied.“Christina.” John grabbed Christina’s hand in his own. “My greatest regret in this life is failing to take good care of you and your mother. I’m going to meet your mother soon. I hope she’ll forgive me!”Tears rolled down Christina’s cheeks. Men would speak kindly in the presence of death. She was unsure if Molly would forgive him, but she had long forgiven her father.He strained to pull Suzy and Christina’s hands closer together as he looked at them with pleading eyes. “The both of you must live peacefully together. Suzy, listen to your sister, and Christina, you must take good care of her on my behalf.”Christina looked at Suzy before nodding quietly. Then, John shifted his glance to Michael.“I’ve done many wrongs in this life. I betrayed my wife and disappointed my daughter. I hope you’ll do better than me. I’ll hand over Christina to you now. I’ll come back to haunt you as a stubborn ghost if you dare to wr
Suzy felt guilt-ridden and knew she was not in the position to demand anything from Christina. However, her mother had gone mad. She did not wish to see Christina continuing the fight with her mother.At a loss for what to do, she cried her heart out while in Christina’s arms.Sean felt a heavy feeling in his chest. He knew Christina too well after all the years they spent together. She was a soft-hearted person behind her stubborn facade. Seeing others in sorrow was her greatest weakness.There was no doubt she would choose to forgive Suzy and accept her as her sister.If that was the case, then the marriage between them was destined to fail. Christina would reject him for the sake of the child in her sister’s belly.At this moment, he was thinking of how everything was falling apart at this moment even after he had consistently pursued her all these years. He stood there in a daze for a long time before finally heaving a sigh.Perhaps this was their destiny. Suzy cried for a