Shayne merely smiled. "Then what about Mason?"Luna was at a loss. She stood there blankly. She pondered about it for a long time but couldn't come up with a solution. Mason was her son, and Shayne was her ATM. She couldn't choose between the two.She pursed her lips, conflicted.She didn't speak, and Shayne wasn't in a hurry. He just sat nearby, patiently waiting for her to come up with a suitable answer.In the end, Luna made up her mind. "Let's do it your way."She had thought it through. After all, whether it was deliberate or not, Shayne had been keeping his distance from her. In this situation, the best approach was to go along with him. She could use this opportunity to move out of Shayne's home.Perhaps he would come to appreciate her again if they weren't together every day.Having thought it through, she smiled and said to him, "I won't be by your side, so remember to take good care of yourself.""You too," Shayne replied with a knowing smile.To ensure Mason could s
I randomly pointed at letters for her. She answered quickly and accurately as she kept her hands behind her back. It wasn't until I finished pointing at everything I had taught her today that I realized she had managed to learn and memorize all the phonetics. Willow snuggled into my embrace. It was as if she was begging for praise. "What's wrong, Mommy? Was there a mistake?""Not at all!" I sincerely praised her. "You got everything right!"Willow blinked her eyes, surprised. "Am I that great?' I cupped her face with my hands and gently caressed her. "Of course."Willow smiled bashfully. She then picked up the textbook and sat on my lap. "Then let me check if I can sound them out."I sat beside her and watched her earnestly. "Alright."Willow leaned over the table, her chubby fingers pointing at the phonetics as she said them out haltingly. Once she was done, she strung them into a complete word and read it out loud.She was afraid that she read it wrongly, so she turned ba
The more Zach cried, the more upset he got. "I miss Mommy."Charlotte hugged him and suggested, "Why don't we call her and ask her to come and see you?"Zach sobbed as he replied, "She doesn't want me anymore."Charlotte was very unsatisfied. "You're her biological son no matter what people say. How could she be so heartless?"It was because he did something to hurt Aralyn. At first, he was still young and didn't know the consequences that would result from his actions. But recently, he felt hurt after seeing how Aralyn treated Willow so kindly while her attitude toward him was indifferent.He couldn't help but think of how upset Aralyn was when he hurt her that way.Charlotte was so angry that she started cussing Aralyn out.Zach tugged on the hem of her shirt and said, "Grandma, don't blame Mommy."Charlotte poked Zach on the forehead with her finger. "It has come to this, yet you are still protecting her?""I'm not." Zach knew that Charlotte wouldn't believe his words, so h
I wasn't tired yet, so I went upstairs to retrieve my laptop. I then started working seriously on the designs Julian's company needed.Upon seeing this, Julian went to his study to retrieve his laptop and began working on the documents he needed to handle.Since I already had an idea, completing the initial sketch only took me half an hour. However, I didn't think it was adequate. As such, I created three alternative drafts. Once everything was done, I let out a sigh of relief and looked at Julian who sat across from me."Once I'm done with the drafts, who should I send it to for review?" I asked.Julian got up and walked behind me. He leaned down and held my mouse, while the other hand rested on my keyboard. It felt as if he was wrapping me in his embrace.He said calmly, "First, log in to this website, upload your drafts, and then submit them."He used the mouse to complete the entire process. Then, he asked apologetically, "Was I overstepping?"He sounded so natural. If I sai
I reluctantly accepted the explanation. "Alright then."Julian chuckled softly.…Shayne opened his eyes. He didn't see Luna, who lay by his side over the past few days. His mood brightened instantly.He got up and went to Zach's room and knocked on the door. "It's time to wake up! I'm sending you to kindergarten today."There was no response.He opened the door and found the bedroom empty. Only then did he recall that Zach slept over at Charlotte's place.Shayne walked to the living room and sat down.It seemed that the house had changed ever since he'd divorced Aralyn. It was no longer warm. Instead, it was cold.…Today, the little girl arrived at kindergarten earlier than usual. We saw her standing at the gate when we dropped Willow off. She quickly waved at Willow.Willow didn't even say goodbye to us. She ran straight to the little girl's side.The little girl held her hand and talked to Willow as they walked. Willow, same as she did over the past few days, listened p
"Aralyn's promotional strategy has been finalized," reported Mark.He placed the folder before Julian. "Please take a look. Does anything need to be changed, Mr. Hughes."Having worked closely with Julian for years, Mark understood that anything involving Aralyn was of utmost importance to him. He thus needed to review it. Besides matters regarding Aralyn, nothing else was important.Mark always knew how to prioritize things.Julian took the folder. He had already reviewed the draft previously, and now, after the revisions, he couldn't find a single issue. "No," he replied, unexpectedly satisfied.Mark smiled and said, "Alright. Should I have them start promoting today?"Julian nodded. "Yeah."Upon receiving his approval, Mark left with the folder. He didn't stop and went straight to the game company. He shared with them the great news. "Our strategy has been approved!"Everyone unanimously cheered. "That's great!"Mark then said, "Everyone can start promoting according to t
Alice squinted as she considered Julian. Her expression was wary.She had planned not to think about those serious topics and wanted to go relax with Aralyn. However, Julian stopped them.Julian lifted his finger and gently tapped on the table in front of him. He calmly thought of how he should answer this question.Aralyn and Alice were now on good terms. As such, Aralyn would definitely be willing to eat with Alice. He also didn't have a suitable reason to object.The best outcome he could get was joining them.When he thought of that, he smiled faintly and said, "The both of you don't know which restaurants are good. Besides, you're both tight on money, so let me treat you both."Alice didn't hide her disdain, but after thinking it over, she realized Julian made a fair point. "Fine, then."Julian packed up his things and led the way.He stood in the elevator and looked at Alice.He honestly felt like Alice was interfering with his time alone with Aralyn. Alice noticed Julia
Alice grinned widely, revealing her pearly white teeth. She then helped add more food to my plate.Upon seeing this, Julian didn't want to be outdone. Soon, the dishes on the table grew noticeably emptier while the food on my plate increased. It soon became a small tower.Seeing that the two of them seemed to be competing, I sighed helplessly and asked, "Do you two have to build a tower on my plate?"Only then did Julian stop. However, Alice was still unsatisfied. She added two more pieces of meat to my plate.I laughed, baffled. "How am I supposed to finish all this?"Alice cheered me on. "I believe in you. You can do it!"I mercilessly shattered her dreams. "Even if you believe in me, I won't magically turn into a bottomless pit!"Julian said calmly, "You can refuse to eat what she has given you. It's fine if you only finish what I've given you."I couldn't believe that Julian, a mature man, had such a childish side. "I can't do that."After I clearly expressed my displeasur
Alice nodded. "Yes! Actually, you can talk to me about what she's done for you. Maybe from some small details, I can read her deep love for you."Confused, Joseph began telling Alice about everything that had happened between him and Avery.Each time Alice heard something, she would nod and say, "See? If she didn't love you, she wouldn't be willing to do those things for you!"The confusion on Joseph's face gradually turned into certainty.Seeing this, Alice smiled.Despite the complications along the way, her plan was about to succeed!Even though Avery might indeed have some special feelings for Joseph, Alice knew that Joseph's family had very high standards for a daughter-in-law.A woman like Avery—with no background—would definitely be bullied if she married into the family.At that point, it would be like the Wilson family was avenging Alice.The more Alice thought about it, the happier she got. However, she was also worried Joseph might reveal everything right away. "But
"Why?" Joseph asked in confusion.Alice suddenly felt exhausted. When she communicated with smart people, it was always just to the point. But when talking to Joseph, she had to explain every word."Because she knows your current situation! No one can help you, and you can only come to me. And my salary is so low. I wouldn't want to spend money on you. But she's different. She doesn't earn that much, but she's very generous when it comes to spending money on you.""That's true." Joseph's eyes instantly lit up. Then, he frowned."But I don't think she's ever spent money on me."Alice crossed her arms. "That's because you haven't mentioned it. Otherwise, she would definitely spend money on you."Though Alice didn't have much interaction with Avery, she was sure Avery would spend some money as long as it made life difficult for Alice.Alice suddenly felt smart for being able to use Avery's personality traits to set a trap for her.She signaled for Joseph to call Avery. "If you don
Joseph wasn't dumb, so of course, he understood the hint in Alice's words. "They would have to live through tough times with me?"Alice nodded. "Yes."Joseph couldn't say a word. It was only then that he realized that he seemed to have been living as a giant baby under his father's protection.When he was at home, with his father being kind and loving, everyone was willing to pamper him.Now that things had soured, no one wanted to have anything to do with him anymore.Joseph suddenly felt a bit incredulous."Although most of your fair-weather friends can't be relied on, one thing's for sure—someone will always be sincere with you," Alice continued.Joseph seemed to understand something as he looked at Alice. "You called me out here just to hint that you're the one who's sincere with me?"Alice almost laughed out loud from anger. She had called Joseph out to set Avery up!If she involved herself, she would be losing big time.Alice took a deep breath. It was stupid of her to
"That's right. At the time, the divorce happened so suddenly that even if I went back to my previous job, it would take a long time to start making money again. I had no resources to solve the immediate problem," I replied."Do you want to go back to your previous line of work?" Julian asked.Without even thinking, I shook my head. "Of course not. I have a job I enjoy more now, and it pays better. There's no reason to go back."Julian's smile widened.…When it was time for the lunch break, Joseph was already waiting in the café downstairs.Alice rushed over, and Joseph remarked sarcastically, "Look at you, all busy and important now. I waited for so long."Hearing that, Alice rolled her eyes at him. "Most companies have the same lunch hour. If you insist on coming this early, what do you expect me to do? Besides, I came straight here as soon as I got off work."Alice shot him a sideways glance. "That's already giving you enough respect. You'd better appreciate it."Joseph qui
"That's alright. I can treat you," Alice replied.As long as it meant making Avery suffer, spending a little money was no big deal.Even though Alice had started working and understood how hard it was to earn money, she could still afford something like this.Joseph swallowed and asked, "Can I order anything I want?"Alice recalled how Joseph used to spend money like water and worried that he'd order a massive amount of food, possibly exceeding her entire month's salary."As long as the total doesn't exceed 100 dollars, order whatever you want. If it's over that amount, I can't afford it. You'll have to pay for yourself."Alice figured it was better to be upfront to prevent Joseph from causing trouble later."You have a job now and even bonuses. Do you really have to be this stingy?" Joseph asked in annoyance.Without hesitation, Alice replied, "My salary isn't that high. You should be grateful I'm treating you at all. If you think I'm being too cheap, then forget it."100 dol
With that, she turned and walked out.Avery suddenly had a bad feeling about it. "What are you planning to do?"Alice turned back to look at Avery. "I don't need to tell you, do I? All you need to know is that since you came after me, I won't let you have it easy either."She straightened her back and walked away.Just as she reached the elevator, she saw Mark stepping out.She glanced up subtly.Mark gave a small nod. After silently reaching an agreement, Mark walked out of the elevator.Alice stepped in, taking the elevator to the top floor.Their project had just wrapped up, bringing in a huge profit. The other employees in the company, who had been idly coasting along, now saw how lucrative these projects could be. It far surpassed the company's usual earnings.One by one, they started to get tempted.Alice's direct supervisor had initially planned to take on another intense workload. But when they finally went to pick up a new project, they realized those same employees
Shayne lifted his head and stared at Maisy.Maisy felt that Shayne hitting Zach couldn't be brushed off so easily. Otherwise, people would think Zach was easy to bully and pile on him.Realizing this, she stepped forward and slapped Shayne hard. "That's payback for Zach. Now we're even."Shayne took a deep breath. "I've tolerated you again and again only because you're Aralyn's mother. Don't push your luck!"Maisy glared at Shayne coldly. "Hmph! She has nothing to do with you anymore, and neither do I. You don't need to consider anyone's feelings."With that, Maisy turned and walked away with ease.Shayne watched her departing figure, bitterness filling his heart.Maisy used to be fond of him.Every time he and Aralyn visited, Maisy would cook all his favorite dishes.Even Aralyn would get jealous and pout, saying, "Mom, you treat your son-in-law better than me now. I'm jealous!"Every time, Maisy would tap Aralyn's cheek gently and say, "You're a grown woman. Is this really
"If he makes a mistake, I will point it out. It's not your place to interfere. Do you understand?"Shayne was indeed in the wrong this time, and he felt a bit guilty. "I was afraid you were spoiling him too much."Maisy let out a cold laugh. "His father drives his mother away for the sake of a mistress, and in the end, even his father doesn't want him. He's so young, yet he's already gone through so much. It's justified that I spoil him."She only felt sorry for Zach. He had been through too much at such a young age. "Besides, being afraid that I'm spoiling him too much doesn't give you the right to lay your hand on him."Tell me, did you hit him because he did something wrong? If you can say what it was, and if he was truly in the wrong, I'd take your side no matter what."Shayne fell silent.Seeing his expression, Maisy immediately understood and became even more furious."He said he never contacted his mother," Shayne explained.Maisy was so speechless she almost laughed. "T
"Of course!" Zach answered without hesitation."All my classmates' parents are coming. Only mine are not. But since Noah and Ms. Harper are around the same age as Mom and Dad, the kids in my class might mistake them for my parents."That should make me feel a little better. And you're a family member, Granny. I won't be too different from the other kids."Maisy's heart ached at Zach's words. "Alright, don't worry. I'll be there."Getting Maisy's confirmation, Zach quickly jumped off his chair and took out his suit, handing it to Maisy. "This is the outfit I picked out earlier. I have to wear it! I look really good in it. Make sure to bring it in the afternoon, okay?"Maisy smiled at him lovingly. "Okay."Zach finally felt at ease. He slung his backpack over his shoulder and left.Maisy held onto the little suit and followed behind Zach.Zach looked at Maisy in confusion and asked, "Why are you coming too?"Maisy ruffled Zach's hair. "I'll send you to school and pick up some gr