Christina Williams felt her face flushed in embarrassment. She used to love laying on Michael Larson’s arm as she slept soundly in the clutches of his warm embrace. The two of them were in that exact position if only tangled up in a tight cuddle.What mattered most was the fact that both of them were naked.Their bodies wrapped tightly together, Christina began to feel the heat of his naked skin against hers as embarrassment crept up her face. Furious, she raised her hand and she gave a slap across his face.Expecting her to do this, Michael held her hand with his firm grip before the blow landed on his cheek. Unable to free herself from his grasp, all Christina could do was to glare madly at him. “Michael, you b*stard. What did you do to me? How can you be so shameless?”Grinning from ear to ear, Michael glanced back at her. “What do you think a naked man and woman would do if they share the same bed?”Christina’s heart sunk to the bottom of the abyss as tears filled her eyes.
##“I...” Christina William’s memories flashbacked to what had happened last night. She remembered escaping the house and running towards the end of the alley, only to be knocked out by a huge blow in the face.Was that guy… Bill Hunt?The thought of this shook Christina to her core. Why was Bill associated with those men?“Do you remember now? Your so-called lover is actually the middleman of an illegal association. He kidnaps women like you and later on forces them to have sex without their consent. He lied to you from the beginning, and I saved you from your fate.”Michael Larson knew something was fishy about Bill the moment he saw the man and Christina on a television program. The two had been participants in a game but Michael found it odd how Bill kept slipping. Although he did try his best to protect Christina from any danger, it seemed almost as if his actions were intentional.After all, people only look out for themselves when they are in danger. It was rare for someone
Who on earth wanted to hurt Christina Williams? Why did the perpetrator go through such vicious measures to ruin her life? What would happen to Travis Larson if she died? At two years old, he was not even old enough to be a toddler.Christina lay on the bed as her body trembled in shock. She had lost track of time when a knock rapped on the bedroom door. New clothes in hand, Michael Larson walked over and threw them on the bed. “Put them on.”Upon saying so, he made a turn as his back faced her.Christina took a glance at the clothes and mocked herself silently. It was Chanel.Michael had always loved this brand, so much so that back when they were a couple, it was practically the only brand she wore. Things have changed now. Instead of her, the woman dressed in Chanel from head to toe was now Serena Garcia.She resented having to wear this, yet she knew that she had no choice. It was obviously better than leaving the place dressed in absolutely nothing.She felt herself gettin
After what had happened, how could Christina act as if everything was okay? How could her expression remain so calm? Did she know what would have happened if he arrived at her aid a single second later?Michael pushed back the fury that was rising in his chest. “Why would you give me something you’ve already worn? Just throw it out.”Provoked by what he had said, Christina felt the blood rush to her face. Did he mean to say that she was filthy? How dare he say that to her face when she did not even detest the clothes he got for her in the first place?!As her fever burned even more, she felt her head spin more than before. Her body temperature changed drastically and she found herself freezing for one second, yet scorching hot the next. It was becoming unbearable. Holding back how unwell she felt, Christina walked to the door, swung it open, and walked out of the room.Mustering all of her energy, she told herself to keep it together as she struggled not to fall in front of him. Af
Michael and Ariel were glaring at one another when Christina opened her eyes. Ignoring Michael, Ariel immediately rushed over to the bedside. “Are you okay, Christina? Do you need the doctor?”“I’m so thirsty!” Christina felt like her throat was on fire.Just as Ariel turned around to pour her a glass of water, Michael had already done so as he passed the water over to Christina.Her throat began to feel better after she drank half of the water from the cup. Holding Christina’s hand, Ariel glared at Michael. “Which b*stard bullied you, Christina?”Knowing who Ariel meant, Christina shook her head and glanced at Michael. “Thank you for saving my life, President Larson. I’m fine, so don’t waste your time here. Please leave.”Michael stood there, frozen. He was staring into her eyes.Christina repeated herself, “I need to tell Ariel something, President Larson. Can you please give us a moment?”Michael hesitated. He did not want to leave her like this, especially when she was sick.
Christina nodded her head. “I know. I don’t want to have anything to do with him either!”Ariel did not believe that Bill Hunt would harm her friend without a reason, nor would Michael Larson.Michael sat on the plastic waiting chair by the hallway, furrowing his brows as he thought about Matthew Henderson. If the Henderson family had seen Matthew’s confession to Christina on television, would they have sent those men to destroy her life? Would they do it just to uphold their honor?Matthew was a man with a terrible reputation, yet this did not deter the old master’s adoration toward his son. With an intention to appoint Matthew as his successor, the old master had always thought highly of Matthew. It was a traditional family, so Michael knew that there was no way the Henderson family would allow a divorcee to be wed into their household.This was just Michael’s wild guess and he obviously had no proof of it. It was definitely not appropriate to talk about something like this witho
“No!” John Garcia gave a cold reply. The last time he saw Christina, he had tried to warn her about Bill Hunt’s intentions. Not only did his words fall on deaf ears, but she did not even give him the respect he deserved as her father. That only pissed him off.An uneasy feeling washed over him whenever he thought about this. “I was just doing that for her own good. Who knew that she’s such an ungrateful person? I guess she just doesn’t take me as her father anymore.”“Christina still hates us. You can’t blame her for acting that way. After all, we were having an affair behind her mother’s back, so it’s natural for her to be mad. Give her some time to accept this reality. I’m sure she’ll change her mind about you one day.” Sophia consoled her husband.“I know she’s mad, but that doesn’t mean that she can toy around her marriage like that! Look at Bill! What makes you think he’ll give her the life she deserves?” John’s blood gushed at the thought of it.Sophia put on a kind face.“She
“I didn’t see Christina.” John sighed, placing the thermos bottle on the table.As soon as he arrived at the hospital, he saw Michael’s assistant standing at the door of Christina’s room. He did not enter the room on the assumption that Michael was inside. John frowned while glancing at Sophia and Serena. He was not sure what to say. Deep down, Sophia was delighted at the sight of John’s anxious look. Seeing that Christina’s condition did not seem to get better, he wanted to speak about it, but the words were just stuck in his throat.Sophia tried to suppress her delight and asked, “What did the doctor say? Did you find out about Christina’s condition?”“I did.” John sat down.He did not explain the matter, which kept Sophia on the edge of her seat. However, she felt that she should not sound too eager to ask about Christina’s condition. “What did the doctor say?”“The doctor said that Christina’s having a fever as she got drenched in the rain. She’ll be fine after taking some
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