Francis picked up the bottle of wine and opened it in a skilled manner. He smelled the aroma of the wine. “French Louis that has been kept in a cellar. I didn’t think I’d have the chance to drink such great wine again.” This caught Matthew by surprise and he looked at the other man with curiosity. “Uncle, you speak French?” The packaging of the wine was covered in French. How did Francis know this was a bottle of Louis? Did he learn French? The majority of people these days could speak English but not too many knew French. How would a laid-off worker like Francis living in the lower class of society be fluent in French? Francis smiled. “Stop pulling my leg, President Henderson. Why would I speak French? I overheard when you were speaking into the phone earlier.” Matthew did not recall if he mentioned the name of the wine just now. This was the only type of red he had in the office thus he would not have to specifically mention its name. Unaware of Matthew’s confusion, Fred
Matthew thought he probably did overthink it. Francis must have gone through higher education in order to learn French. If that was the case, then he would not be living among the lower class of the society, jobless. Due to the mobility inconvenience, Christina stayed on the couch with a book after lunch to kill time. All of a sudden, she was reminded of the frenzied way Michael interrogated her last night. Therefore, she retrieved her cell phone and went on the online forum. She was shocked by the discovery. The majority of the posts were insults directed at her ex-husband and ex-mother-in-law. The people online claimed to have found out their identities so they could be punished accordingly. She was overwhelmed. Little did she expect things would get out of control so quick. What she yearned for right now was to live peacefully. It was never her intention to get revenge on Michael and Heather. This discussion was the last thing she would wish for. Immediately, she made a
The Larson family benefitted from the turn of events but that did not make Michael feel better. He showered insults at the assistant after seeing the news. “Who gave you the permission to call the broadcasting station?!” The assistant looked to the ground. “President Larson, I felt bad that the netizens are scolding you thus I called the station with the phone from your office. I’m sorry.” Rage was written all over Michael’s face. He would rather be scolded all his life than to see Christina getting matchmade with other men on the TV. Not to mention with over thousands of men at once. The assistant remained silent as he felt very aggrieved. However, he discovered the fact that President Larson was still in love with Christina. No man could handle watching the love of his life being paired up on the TV. The assistant deserved this reproach. Matthew was also infuriated by the news. “Nice one, Christina. Every man in the city is now waiting in line to be selected by you!”
Matthew felt truly embarrassed this time. Christina did not consider his feelings at all. He initially thought of probing her with a joke but ended up being consumed by rage. He leaned back into the chair. “I’m thirsty. Get me my tea now!” She grabbed the glass on the table and left the room. Something was being thrown to the ground behind her though she had no idea what. This young master had a poor attitude. They were just making jokes a minute ago and he suddenly hit the roof. This was no fun at all! Most importantly, she had no idea what she said that threw him off. His attitude toward her became poor after this incident. Not only did he pull a long face every time she entered his field of vision, he also tortured her by making her run all over the office to complete random tasks. Christina thought Matthew was definitely the pettiest man in existence. After this incident, she made a mental note that she should be more careful around him so as not to provoke the petty ma
Little did Christina expect Michael to give an official speech. She finally let go of the breath she had been holding.After the speech, he held her gaze meaningfully before returning to his seat. There had been some amendments to the rules of tonight’s matchmaking. Since Christina’s background had been made known to the public, only the male participants were required to introduce themselves and also express their views on matchmaking. Christina held the power to eliminate or choose who could enter the next session. After the first round of self-introduction, she eliminated twenty out of the fifty men. The audience was shocked. Besides, the candidates that she eliminated were the ones that possessed better qualities and came from more influential family backgrounds compared to the rest. She ignored the audience that was now in an uproar. Her traumatic failed marriage with Michael negatively affected her impression of powerful families. Men who came from influential famili
“Ariel!” Christina grabbed her friend by the arm immediately, in fear that the latter might invite trouble by offending Michael again. The corners of her lips twitched into a sardonic smile. “Thanks, President Larson, for the meal!” “You have plenty of opportunities to thank me in the future!” he replied calmly. This frustrated Ariel greatly and she almost lost herself again. Upon arriving at the said hotel, the two of them realized the place was fully crowded. Almost every table available at the hotel had been occupied. Only two chairs were empty in the entire scene. One of them was placed next to Michael and the other one was next to his assistant. Evidently, it had been planned beforehand that Christina should be seated next to Michael and his assistant was assigned to keep an eye on Ariel. The latter realized what was going on and decided intentionally not to play according to the man’s rules. She strutted over to the seat next to Michael. “I’ll not hold back since Pres
Ariel was unwilling to give in hence she went on a drinking spree with Michael’s assistant. The both of them drank one glass after another. Soon, the entire bottle was almost emptied. Flustered, Christina quickly stepped forward to stop her friend but Michael grabbed her by the arm, smiling. He was certain that Ariel could not drink more than his assistant. He was just waiting for her to collapse. Unexpectedly, Ariel gave her best today and drank almost as much as the assistant. Eventually, the two of them started to reach their limits. Christina could not hold it anymore. “Stop drinking, Ariel!” There was no chance the latter would listen, now that her rationality was consumed by alcohol. She continued pouring wine down her throat. Left with no alternative, Christina turned to Michael. “Please, make them stop.” Simultaneously, the door opened and the scent of Chanel fragrance filled the entire room. Several pretty young ladies walked toward their direction. The leader of
“It’s a show of respect. You must drink!” Ariel placed the glass in front of Michael. “If you don’t drink much, then President Larson will have to drink on your behalf!”This was a toast to Michael and Serena. The assistant, who knew better than to drink on their behalf, stood by the side as watched on with unease. Serena appeared pitiable, as if full of grievances. She could not drink much but she did not want Michael to drink more either. Smiling, Christina placed the spoon down and dabbed the corners of her mouth with the napkin. “Ariel is right. You can’t refuse a toast to happiness. Miss Garcia, get President Larson to drink on your behalf if you can’t finish it all!” A hint of despair flashed across Michael’s eyes. Just as he was about to say something, Serena grabbed the glass and emptied it. Her cheeks turned red instantly. “Nice one!” Christina rose to her feet, applauding. “I heard that President Larson and Miss Garcia are going to be engaged soon. It’s a coincidence
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