Mark listened to Julian and immediately pinpointed the issue. "Could she be giving up on Shayne and trying to pursue you instead?"Julian frowned. "What?""You're better looking than Shayne, wealthier, and most importantly, you're a better person. She's about to be abandoned. Thinking about finding a better man isn't unreasonable, right?"Julian raised a finger and lightly tapped the table.Mark continued, "Otherwise, why else would she put on an act in front of Aralyn?"As Julian realized this, his expression turned colder. He immediately called Shayne.When Shayne picked up the call, he instinctively thought it was about work. "Mr. Hughes, are you calling to discuss our collaboration?""No. I just wanted you to tell Luna that I'm not interested in her."…Shayne stared at his phone. There could only be one reason why Julian was suddenly calling him about Luna—Luna had gone to Hughes Group to find Julian.And perhaps, she had even hinted at being interested in Julian.Other
I had just finished my morning tasks and was planning to take a short break when a group of people burst into the office.They walked up to me and turned to Julian, asking, "Mr. Hughes, is it her?"Julian nodded. "Yes.""What are they here for?" I asked in confusion."Didn't you agree to accompany me to a banquet this afternoon? They're here to style you," Julian explained, walking over to me.As soon as he finished speaking, a young woman stood in front of me. "Close your eyes," she said.Then, they began applying makeup to my face, brushing over my skin with soft brushes. Someone was also working on my hair behind me.Bored, I sat there quietly and made a mental note to avoid attending banquets in the future. Otherwise, I'd waste so much time every day like this.It was such a hindrance to making money.When the makeup was done, someone said gently, "Wake up."I opened my eyes.Before I knew it, someone handed me a dress and urged, "Hurry up and change."In a daze, I walk
Julian chuckled. "Reminds me of when Alice used to pester me every day."As his words fell, Alice said, "What are you two saying about me?"Her father had been invited to the banquet today. To broaden her horizons, he decided to bring her along.Alice had initially thought the event would be boring, but as soon as she arrived, she spotted Aralyn.She ran over and heard Julian mention her name before she could even greet them.Alice's intuition told her that Julian wasn't saying anything good about her.Though caught in the act, Julian didn't seem embarrassed. "Just using you as an example."Alice glared at Julian in dissatisfaction.Julian slowed his pace.When Alice eventually went off to find her father, he continued nonchalantly, "Back then, I felt the same way you do now. But I also understood one thing—if you don't find a way to resolve this issue, Shayne will keep bothering you."I really didn't want to deal with Shayne more than necessary. "Do you have any solution?"
"She's my woman, Aralyn Jaffe." Julian introduced me to everyone.Someone immediately handed me a glass of wine. "Oh! My apologies. Let me toast to you."I accepted the glass and watched as he tilted his head back and drank the entire glass. Taking a deep breath, I was just about to take a sip when Julian took the glass from my hand. "She doesn't drink. Anyone who tries to make her drink is going against me," he stated emotionlessly.The people who had been eager to persuade me to drink immediately gave up. In their eyes, I was someone they couldn't provoke, as Julian was protecting me.They began to flatter me. "Ms. Jaffe, you're so lucky to have won over Mr. Hughes."Since Julian and I were only pretending to be in a relationship, I didn't know how to respond to their compliments, so I just smiled politely.Once the crowd around us dispersed, I quietly asked, "Is it really okay not to drink?""Of course," Julian said, his typically cold tone now tinged with a hint of amuseme
"But the more you do that, the more I'll talk about it. Luna, from now on, every time I see something about you two, I'll bring it up."I didn't want to waste more time on Luna. "If you keep staying in front of me and ruining my mood, I'll grab a microphone and tell everyone here exactly what you've done."Luna's expression twisted as she quickly looked around. After ensuring no one was paying attention to her, she finally left.Not long after she left, Alice came over to me. She was holding a plate of delicious food and sat down next to me, immediately complaining, "My dad just dragged me around to greet everyone."I laughed at her frustrated expression. "That must have been annoying, huh?"Alice grabbed my hand. "Yeah! They look at me and make small talk, saying things like, 'I held you when you were a baby.' How could I possibly remember something from back then? I would seem rude if I didn't respond, so I just nodded." She aggressively picked up a piece of meat with her uten
Alice puffed out her chest, proudly declaring, "I'm Aralyn's friend. Her business is my business! If you make her unhappy, I'm stepping in!"…When Julian saw me, he quickened his pace and stopped in front of me.Taking my hand, he looked at me in concern as if I were truly his lover. His voice was full of care. "What's wrong?""First, Luna came to find me, and then Shayne came. He said the two of us aren't really in a relationship," I complained.Once Julian confirmed it wasn't a serious issue, he let out a sigh of relief. "It's fine. They'll come to believe it over time."As he spoke, he pulled me into his arms.I tilted my head in surprise, looking at him.Julian lowered his voice and explained, "Let your ex-husband see just how great we are together."Hearing this, I hugged Julian back and buried my face in his chest, stifling a laugh."What are you laughing about?""I just think it's amusing that we're acting so seriously when we're only pretending to be in a relationsh
I scoffed. "This has nothing to do with gender, Shayne. My life principle has always been to hold onto the right person when I meet them."Julian looked down at me, his eyes exceptionally tender.Shayne was silent for a moment. "You weren't like this before.""Yeah, I used to always listen to you, and what did that get me?"Shayne stayed silent."If being sensible doesn't lead to the results I want, then of course I'm going to make an effort to change."Finding something to counter with, Shayne asked, "But Aralyn, before you did this, did you think about our child? Can he accept him as his new father?""When you cheated during our marriage, involved our child with your mistress, and even encouraged him to call her 'Mom,' did you think about him then? And now, you have the audacity to lecture me?"I gave him a disdainful look. "Don't you forget one thing—whether it's him or you, I've already given up on both of you. So, don't bother bringing him up to guilt-trip me."With that,
Hearing this, I couldn't help but laugh. "Using love as an excuse makes it okay to hurt others?""It's not an excuse. He really loves you!" Luna exclaimed.Only then did I understand—Luna wanted to tie Shayne to me somehow. "Even though I've repeatedly made it clear that I don't want to see him, he still comes to bother me. Is this what you call love? It feels more like harassment to me."Luna looked as though she had just heard the most absurd thing. Her eyes widened in disbelief. "Is this how worthless someone who loves you is to you? If others who like you found out how heartless you are, how upset do you think they'd be?"As she spoke, she glanced at Julian.Her words nearly made me laugh out of anger. "If Shayne knew how eager you are to get rid of him, do you think he'll still be willing to spend money on you?"Luna froze.At that moment, Julian spoke up in disdain. "You're saying all of this in front of me to try and sow discord between Aralyn and me, aren't you? "I've
Luna was just that attractive to men.She couldn't stop smiling at the thought."Then what kind of men do you think would like me?" Yasmin asked.Luna was momentarily stumped as she looked Yasmin up and down. Even though Yasmin was the same age as Aralyn, she lacked Aralyn's composure and calmness.Instead, she seemed a bit foolish.Luna found Yasmin somewhat annoying, but she didn't show it.She just smiled faintly and said, "Probably more mature and experienced men."Yasmin pressed her lips together. Those kinds of men were usually older, and she wasn't interested in them.Of course, Luna knew what Yasmin was thinking about but didn't show it. "I think most men aren't worthy of you, of course. Someone like Julian is just right.""That's right!" Yasmin agreed instantly.Luna nodded. "Yeah."Frowning, Yasmin muttered, "But the men who are worthy of me don't like me.""With diligence and persistence, anything is possible," Luna answered patiently.After finishing work, teas
Shayne had no other way to relieve his feelings now.Although drinking could make him forget Aralyn, he would feel like his heart had been hollowed out the very next day. It was unbearably miserable.Hence, he wanted to meet Zach. Zach was one of the few family members he had in this world.Once Shayne made the decision, he drove to Zach's place.…Luna never knew that pregnancy could be so exhausting. The animation project had just ended, but she had to design drafts for trendy toys now. She was dead tired.And now, someone was knocking on the door in the middle of the night.Luna opened the door.The person standing at the door was Yasmin, someone she had seen on TV.Recently, Luna had also learned a bit about Yasmin. Although she was rather fierce and seemed immature, she was about the same age as Aralyn."What are you here for?" Luna asked in surprise."To chat with you."Without even waiting for Luna to invite her in, Yasmin walked straight into the living room and s
Julian walked out, having just finished his shower. When he heard my conversation with Willow, he explained, "Your mommy is even more amazing than you think. Tens of millions is actually just a safe guess."Willow's mouth dropped open in surprise. "Wow, she can make even more?"Julian remained composed. "Yeah, these designer toys are selling really well, and they've also boosted sales of related merchandise and some comic books."Willow looked at me with even more admiration.Smiling, I uttered, "It's all thanks to your daddy."However, Julian was humble. "It's clearly because of your own hard work."I didn't deny it.Julian then asked, "The toys you designed yourself are also making a lot of money, right?""I heard from Mark that their sales are catching up to the designer toys. They've also made a huge profit. When the hype starts dying down, I'll release a new set of dolls. Based on my current inventory, I think I can keep the momentum going for at least another year," I s
"Alice doesn't know much, but these manufacturers definitely do. If you contact them and ask for a list, do you think they'll help you?" I asked.Mark hesitated for a moment. If everyone took advantage of this trend and increased production, they could make more money.And the more people knew about it and discussed it, the longer the hype would last, and the more money everyone could earn.Of course, they would be willing to introduce their peers.Once Mark understood this, he excitedly said, "Got it! I'll contact them right away!""Okay." My tone finally relaxed.…Mark was dedicated to this job. He proactively reached out to the factory owners. After explaining the pros and cons to them, he asked them to introduce other factory owners to him.Each of them was enthusiastic. Within just a few dozen minutes, he had already gotten at least ten phone numbers.He called them one by one, explaining his needs.To ease their concerns, he mentioned his referrers and emphasized that
Aralyn had always been the one to soothe them, including Charlotte.Shayne had now come to realize that Charlotte wasn't as great as he had once imagined.It was just that, when Aralyn was by his side, she had been afraid of affecting his work. So, no matter how much trouble Charlotte caused, Aralyn always covered for her.Yet, he refused to cherish the woman who had cared so much for him.Shayne took a deep breath, suddenly feeling exhausted."What's there to think about?" Charlotte asked."In all the years Aralyn was with me, the money she spent didn't even add up to what you both spend in a month, or even a week. Wait, even a day," Shayne said coldly.Charlotte felt that Shayne had become stingy. "But you're supposed to spend the money you make.""My son and wife didn't get to spend it. It all went to you." Shayne's voice was filled with self-mockery.Charlotte was a little annoyed. What did he mean by that?She had worked so hard to raise Shayne. It was only right that he
"Other people don't know the truth, so I can understand if they blame me. But Shayne knows, yet he still blames me!" Charlotte said.Luna sighed. "Don't let others sow discord between you. As for Shayne, he's still dreaming about getting back together with Aralyn. He's probably still hoping to have more children with her."But Aralyn no longer had any interest in Shayne.Luna understood this very well. If she were married to a man like Julian—gentle, rich, handsome, and loving—she wouldn't even consider someone like Shayne.Sure, Shayne was somewhat good-looking, but he was also stingy and emotionally unavailable.The contrast was just too brutal.If Aralyn broke up with Julian and got back together with Shayne, Luna would seriously question whether Aralyn had a mental illness.Charlotte, of course, didn't think her son had done anything wrong. Hence, in her mind, Aralyn was the one at fault."Aralyn must have been secretly contacting Shayne! Otherwise, why would he still be th
"That's right," Julian said.It seemed Donald coming here wasn't entirely in vain. At the very least, he had helped Willow learn something.Julian was extremely pleased.When Donald heard that, his face grew darker, and he tried to explain, "I didn't…"Julian had no interest in listening. After years of navigating the business world, he could tell a person's intentions the moment they spoke.Not wanting to waste time on Donald's nonsense, Julian uttered, "It's late. My daughter needs to sleep. You should leave."Donald was forced to swallow all the words he wanted to say.He stared at Julian in a daze for a long time. But in the end, he could only leave.Once he disappeared from the living room, Julian asked, "Can you guess why he went through all this trouble?""What else could it be? He wants you to think I'm a terrible person and ruin our relationship."Julian's voice grew colder. "If he were only trying to sabotage our relationship, I might call him clever. But he even pu
Mom should have fought a fair and just lawsuit and demanded more money from them.Donald remained silent, unable to say a word."Besides, Mom had a job at the beginning. Even after you two got married, she rarely asked you for money."Honestly, I always felt that my personality was similar to Mom's.Both of us were highly independent."Even after you made Mom a housewife, you rarely gave her money. She spent almost entirely from her own savings. So, can you tell me the 'good things' you've done for me?"Donald hesitated for a long time before finally saying, "I admit, when I was with your mom, I really didn't treat her well. But you wouldn't even exist if it weren't for me. I'm your elder! Even if you ignore everything else, just the fact that I gave you life means you should respect me!"I laughed. "If Mom wasn't with you, she would have been with someone else. And I would still have been born just the same. You're not exactly irreplaceable."Donald stared at me for a long tim
Shayne showed no emotion, yet it struck Charlotte like a bolt of lightning.Charlotte's lips moved. After a long time, she finally said, "I never expected things to turn out this way.""Not expecting it means you can wash your hands of responsibility?" Shayne mocked coldly.Charlotte didn't know what to say."No, you can't. Zach won't forgive you, and neither will I. You should just focus on the baby in Luna's belly and live your life," Shayne added.Before he could hang up, Charlotte hurriedly said, "But didn't you already forgive us before?""The fact that you can still reach me by phone is proof that I don't hate you."Charlotte let out a sigh of relief upon hearing that."It's just that, for now, I can't forget that I will never be able to have another child for the rest of my life."Charlotte's mood grew heavier.…Donald rushed to Julian's house in the middle of the night.When Julian saw him come in, he was a little surprised.Just as he was about to ask what Donald