Shayne knelt down and looked at Zach who stood before him. He smiled and explained, "Mama Luna said the baby in her belly was making her feel unwell the past few days, so she was in a bad mood and neglected you. But today, she realized her mistake after reflecting on it. Zach, can you forgive her?"Zach raised his head to look at Luna.Luna gave him a gentle smile. "Zach, give me another chance, okay?"Zach lowered his head. He wanted to refuse. But he also understood that since his dad had taken the initiative to make excuses for her, it meant that he really looked forward to them reconciling. If he refused, his dad would definitely scold him for being immature and then force him to agree.Although he was young, he wasn't stupid. He nodded and replied, "Okay."Luna took his hand. "What do you want? I'll take you to buy it."Her tone was light and cheerful. It was as if she had never mistreated Zach before.Zach didn't know how to respond.Luna tried guessing."Do you want a
However, Luna still wanted to buy him a game console. She definitely hoped he'd get addicted to it and turn bad. That way, his dad wouldn't like him anymore.Zach was about to speak, but when he saw the hopeful look in Shayne's eyes, he ultimately stayed quiet and nodded. "She's great.""Really?" Shayne rubbed Zach's cheek. "Since you like Luna as well, then let's live happily as a family of four from now on."Right now, Luna could still pretend to be kind to Zach in front of Shayne. But what about the future? Zach was very worried that Luna would mistreat him again in the future. As such, he didn't respond to Shayne's comment.…When Willow got home, she put down her little backpack and excitedly ran up to me.She gestured enthusiastically as she spoke. "Today, Zach apologized to me in front of the whole class!"I pretended to be surprised and asked, "Really?"Willow nodded enthusiastically. "That's right! I'm so happy."After she finished speaking, she burrowed into my embra
Many parents seemed to like having their daughters learn how to play the piano or dance. That way, their children would appear more elegant and refined.Was Julian like that too? Did he think that learning martial arts was too rough?Willow's good mood suddenly turned into sadness."How could I?" Julian quickly denied it. "I'm very happy."Willow stared at him blankly.Julian explained, "If you learn martial arts, you'll still be able to protect yourself even if I'm not by your side. This is exactly what I've been wishing for."Willow was so excited, she cupped his face and planted several kisses on his cheeks. "Daddy, you're the best!""Well, now the question is—do you want a private trainer to come to our home or would you like to register for a class?" asked Julian.Willow didn't know how to choose, so she turned her head to look at me.I was rather conflicted as well. "If we register her for a class, there will be many kids her age there. Perhaps the interaction would ma
Since that was Julian's mother, that meant she was here for Julian, and it was a matter between mother and son. It wasn't my place to get involved."I don't like her," Willow said softly after her grandmother had gone inside. "She doesn't want Daddy to raise me. She wants to dump me at my maternal grandparents' place. I love them, but their health is poor."Although Willow was very young, she knew a lot. She didn't have a chance to say so in the past, so they stayed bottled up inside her. It left her very unhappy.She was better now, and her grandmother's appearance gave her a chance to vent everything that was on her mind.I felt heartbroken as I listened to her complaints. She was only five years old, yet she had experienced so much. That was no easy feat.I held her tightly. "It's okay, Willow. You have me from now on.""Okay."…Amber strode up the stairs and pushed open the door to Julian's study. "Julian!"Julian set his work down when he heard her familiar voice. He r
The housekeeper had interacted with Amber before and knew of her knack for finding faults, so she didn't bother explaining herself. Instead, she calmly turned off the TV. She then stood up and said, "She's already asleep."Amber turned and headed toward Willow's bedroom....Willow was a very well-behaved child. She went to bed every night at nine.Tonight was no different. Once she was tucked in, she stared at me with wide eyes and said, "Mommy, I don't want to hear any more princess stories."I was a little surprised. "Why not?"She used to love hearing stories about pretty little princesses."Because the princesses in fairy tales always need someone else to save them," answered Willow.Today, she had begun to realize that waiting for help from others meant that she had to suffer more grievances. She also had to wait for someone else to notice her unhappiness.However, it would be different once she learned martial arts. She could live freely and happily. She could protect
Julian's voice was low. It had a mesmerizing quality to it on this quiet night. I nodded and replied, "Okay."…I went back into the bedroom. When Willow saw me, she mumbled softly, "She's always like that. She insists on coming to talk to me when I'm already asleep. I can't speak, so she scolds me and calls me a little mute…"The more she spoke, the sadder she got. "She even says I'm a burden, that if it weren't for me, Daddy would be willing to find a wife."Tears rolled down her cheeks in large drops.I gently wiped them away. "Your Dad doesn't want to get married simply because he doesn't want to."Willow looked at me, stunned. "Really?""Of course," I replied with a smile as I comforted her. "Once he meets someone he likes, he'll be more eager than anyone else to get married. So, don't blame yourself, okay?"Willow nodded.I picked up a storybook and resumed reading to her.Perhaps the story was too nice to listen to or the weight had been lifted off her chest, but W
I didn't avoid his gaze. Instead, I met it confidently.Julian smiled. "Thank you.""You're welcome," I replied. "I'm doing what I should do."…Once the toys were brought home, Zach sat in the living room. He didn't have the chance to open them yet.Mason hid behind Luna, staring intently at the toys in Zach's arms.Zach could tell that Mason wanted them too, but he had no intention of giving them to him.Mason whispered to Luna, "Mom, I want those toys too."Luna told him patiently, "We bought these for your brother..."Mason fell silent.Luna could sense his unhappiness, so she quickly reassured him, "I'll buy you some tomorrow when the store opens, okay?"Mason reluctantly nodded. "Okay."Seeing that Luna had treated Zach well, Shayne naturally had to treat Mason well in return. As such, he bent down and looked at Zach. "Why don't we play with your brother together?" All three of them looked at Zach.Zach could sense their expectations. They expected him to give in.
Zach would never hear it again.…The lights were still on in the living room. Luna watched as Mason happily played with the toy. Her mood was pretty good. She glanced toward Zach's bedroom.Feigning concern, she asked, "I noticed Zach doesn't seem in a good mood. Shayne, shouldn't you check on him?"Without hesitation, Shayne replied, "There's no need to do so."Luna raised a brow. She then propped her chin on one hand as she studied Shayne.In the past, she had been openly unkind to Zach, often showing him her displeasure. It seemed that she was indeed wrong. Luna's smile deepened. Like today, the toy was meant for Zach, but once they got home, Mason had expressed interest in it. Zach then had to hand over the toy to Mason. If he didn't, Shayne would have to scold Zach in the name of maintaining family harmony."Dad," said Mason. He sounded sleepy, but he still stared longingly at the toy. "I want to sleep, but I still want to play with the toy..."Shayne replied patien
When we got home, Willow dragged the whole family along to exercise with her.After finishing, Willow took Pamela and her grandparents upstairs.Only Julian, Ximena, and I remained in the living room.Ximena glanced upstairs and said, "I thought Pamela would need to help her, but who would've guessed she'd recover on her own?""Yes," I agreed, sighing. "Children recover much faster than I ever imagined."Ximena couldn't help but chuckle. "Exactly. Look at Pamela. When she lived with her dad, she'd come home acting like a quail—so timid and cautious. But after just a few days with me, she's slowly returning to how she used to be."It was evident that Ximena loved Pamela. "If I had known that switching to a less stressful job would make life easier for my daughter, I definitely would've left my old company a long time ago."As a mother myself, I understood Ximena's guilt. Patting her shoulder reassuringly, I uttered, "It's not too late to change now."Ximena nodded. "Yeah."Juli
Hughes Group had excellent landscaping. The green plants on both sides were lush and flourishing.The tree shade blocked the harsh sunlight, creating a tranquil atmosphere.I turned to look at Julian. "Have you finished all your work?"As he did not like someone to lie, Julian replied honestly, "Not yet."He hadn't forgotten Gabriel and Lilia's advice—to appear vulnerable in front of Aralyn. "I just feel a bit tired.""It's a pity I can't help you much," I said regretfully. "But the account and selling peripheral products could bring me a lot of income."This was an answer I had thought about for a long time. "If your company runs into trouble and can't hold on, you can come to me for help. I can take care of you and Willow."Julian was very confident that his company wouldn't run into any problems, but he hadn't expected that Aralyn would already consider such a scenario.He even thought that if the company really did go bankrupt, wouldn't that also bring him closer to Araly
As soon as he finished speaking, the server brought over a large bowl of broth fondue and placed it on the table. "Enjoy your meal," he said with a smile."Thank you!" I picked up a piece of the beef. The crunchy and tender texture was simply irresistible.I ate several big bites in a row, only to notice that Julian still hadn't started eating. Curious, I asked, "Are you not going to eat?""Of course I am," Julian said, picking up his cutlery.…Shayne returned to his office, thinking about the things Aralyn had said. It dawned on him that he had indeed made far too many mistakes.Ever since he'd married Aralyn, he had taken her for granted because she was too sensible and understanding. He hadn't even noticed how much she had suffered.At this moment, Shayne was desperate to divorce Luna and make amends to Aralyn.Resolute, he called Luna."Yes? Miss me?" Luna's sweet voice came through the phone."I'm sorry." After saying those words, Shayne felt a sense of relief.Why was
"So, you think I should pay for every meal Julian and I have together?" I countered.The people around us started whispering, all saying that Amber was being shameless.Amber was so furious that she nearly lost her composure. "That's not the point! The point is my son refuses to support us because of you!"Standing up, Julian took out the bank transaction statements he had specifically asked Mark to print earlier. "Why don't you tell everyone how much you spend each month?"Amber had always gotten away with this kind of behavior before, so she never expected Julian to fight back this time.She froze on the spot.Julian unfolded the statements. To make sure everyone could see, he even handed out a few copies to the crowd.The onlookers opened the papers. The monthly expenses amounted to over five million. Then, they looked back at Amber, thinking she was being unreasonable.They thought she was being ungrateful by making a scene here when she received that much money; she hadn't
Mark didn't even think before replying, "Well, the company has a rule—if you complete three days' work in one day, the remaining two days are vacation."I found it a bit hard to believe. "Does such a great company really exist?"Mark teased with a smile, "Well, you've seen one now. The average price for these peripheral products is ten dollars, and your royalty margin is still 15%. The company just decided to spend a large sum of money to boost traffic."If all goes as planned, the sales of these peripheral products should break records day by day. We're worried that when the demand surges, production might not keep up."So, we're planning to stock up in advance to avoid running out of inventory when the comic goes viral. You just sit back and wait for the royalty money to roll in."When I heard that, I couldn't help but anticipate it. "Thank you.""You're welcome."With that, he left, not daring to glance at Julian.Julian followed him. "Help me print out the bank transfer rec
"If you had even a shred of sense and thought about everything you did to me, you couldn't possibly think I still have the slightest attachment to you."Shayne slammed the table and stood up. "Is this about me making you sleep with Rowan?"I leaned back on the couch and looked up at him. "Is that the only thing?"Shayne acted as if he couldn't hear me. "But I don't care about it anymore!""Heh." I realized I shouldn't have come to talk to him at all.Seeing me get up, Shayne hurriedly ran in front of me. "Aralyn…"I ignored him and walked straight past. Glancing back at his dejected figure, I calmly said, "I've always been thankful that I chose to leave you."…Back in the office, Julian, who had been focused on work, set his tasks aside and approached me. "Are you okay?"I nodded. "I'm fine. I just don't know what got into him. He suddenly said he regrets the divorce as if it would make any difference had he refused back then."I didn't bother to hide the disdain in my eyes.
"Strictly speaking, she's not an employee of Hughes Group," Mark said in a friendly manner.Shayne frowned. Seeing that this approach wasn't working, he simply stated his reason for coming, "I want to see her."Mark smiled politely. "You can call her and ask if she's willing to meet you."Mr. Pearce, I'm just an employee. Please don't make things difficult for me."Shayne stared at Mark. "She blocked me.""Then I'm sorry. I can't help you," Mark uttered in a professional tone.Shayne tried to bypass Mark to go find Aralyn, but Mark stepped forward to block him.Just then, the office door opened.…I stood at the door, looking at Shayne.Shayne looked at me. "Aralyn.""Don't say my name as if we're close," I said coldly, staring at him in disdain. "We're nothing more than strangers."For once, Shayne's expression showed sadness.But I didn't feel the slightest bit of sympathy. Instead, I found him pretentious and turned my gaze away.Mark stepped up to me and whispered, "D
Julian then noticed that, in addition to the commonly seen merchandise on the market, the applicants had also created some everyday products that hadn't been made into merchandise before. "Very professional," he commented, quite satisfied."Yes. Now that we've hired people for both the merchandise and comic departments, if all goes smoothly, we'll be able to produce the rest of the merchandise within the next couple of days. I think the comic's followers aren't growing fast enough."So, I'm suggesting the finance department allocate more funds to the promotions team. After all, early-stage promotion mainly relies on spending money," Mark voiced his opinions.Julian, who never lacked money, replied, "Approved."It was because of Aralyn that Mark learned just how many ways there were to make money in the comic industry.And the prospects looked so promising."There are very few applicants for the translation department, which handles international promotions, but I'll keep an eye
In the office, I started working seriously.…Julian walked out of the office and went to a secluded corner, dialing Amber's number."Yes? What's the matter?" Amber asked."Didn't I tell you not to contact Aralyn unless there was a reason? Looks like you still haven't learned your lesson. Do I really have to cut off all of the family's living expenses?"Each word from Julian was colder than the last."I'm your mother! I'm not happy with Aralyn as my daughter-in-law. Can't I say something about it?" Amber asked sharply, sounding as if she were perfectly justified.But Julian wasn't buying it at all. "No, you can't."Amber was almost choked speechless by Julian's words, but she knew Julian meant what he said."You don't even have the right to cut off our living expenses. Don't forget that we're the ones who handed the company to you. You're enjoying the results of our hard work, and yet you don't want to support us? How do you think that's fair?"Julian sneered, "Mom, I guess y