"Fire! There's a fire!"Jace and Kane looked at each other with their facial expressions changed, and they ran in opposite directions as the crowd.Henry called the police and organized for everyone to leave the premises."Guys, there's a fire in there. Get out of here as soon as possible!" Henry rushed into the chaotic crowd and grabbed both of them.Jace pushed his arm away and looked at him coldly. "My wife is still in there!" They couldn't be bothered with their safety.Kane was anxious as well. Both of them squeezed through the narrowed crowd.The alarm was heard ringing from the spring for couples. Many couples were seen running out of that place. The women were seen running with a towel wrapped around their bodies with wet hair with no shoes on. The men? They were almost nowhere to be seen. This was the time their true colors were exposed… Some of the men ran away immediately, leaving their wives behind, and some of them hurriedly carried their wives away from danger, fo
No wonder they were unreachable. Both Sage and Laura kept their phones in the locker. Henry made a wild guess, "Did they leave upon knowing your arrivals as they didn't want to see both of you?" Jace and Kane said simultaneously, "Impossible!"Henry was dumbfounded.Jace held Sage's phone in one hand and her clothes in the other. His face looked darkened with his brows furrowed hard.Even if they did not want to see them, they would not just leave their belongings behind. They might be easily angered, but they were not reckless and would not act so irresponsible. Jace and Kane stared at the surveillance monitors and tried to track them down, and they were last seen walking in the hallway laughing at each other, wearing cute cartoon pajamas.Sage had a white lounge set on with yellow ducks, and Laura wore a pink pajama set with bears on it. They dressed just like a couple of elementary school girls.If it were any other time, both Kane and Jace would spend a great deal of time
Would history repeat itself?Her kidnappers were murdered by her father and brothers long ago. Even if they were not dead, they were exiled from the nation. Could there be anyone they missed out on? And who was the bearded man?Sage felt the man looked strange yet familiar. And how was Sienna with all these people? Sage had so many questions in her mind.Laura opened her mouth hazily, “Hey, you guys, we were just on our way to the spring waters, and we weren’t peeking on purpose. Why are you making such a big deal out of this?”“Shut the hell up!” One of the men yelled, “Did we permit you to speak? I’ll cut your tongue off if you say anything more!” “Fine, I’ll keep my mouth shut then.” Laura leaned over to Sage’s side and said, “My waist, it hurts…”Laura stuffed a small stick into Sage's palm.Sage thought of something but remained calm, “Lean on me.”“Sit upright! Did I ask you to move? Are you trying to get yourselves killed?” He scowled at them and dragged Laura to sit up
Sage finally woke up after a long time. She felt a bitter taste in her mouth. It was the aftertaste of medicine pills. Fuzzily, Sage thought she was back in Mostal.“She’s awake! She’s awake!” Sage heard screaming from the side. Opening her eyes, she saw a bunch of people by her side, and Jace’s face was right in front of her eyes.Laura, Kane, Ross, Luther, Yoel, Melody, and Henry were all present. Sage frowned and asked with a hoarse voice, “Why are you all here?”Jace looked worried and asked, “Sage, how are you feeling?”“Bitter.” Sage licked her lips and said one word, “Water.”“Water, water! Quickly, get Sage some water!” Melody poured a cup, and it passed a few people and finally landed in Jace’s hands. Being held up, Sage took the cup from Jace and finished half of it. She looked up and saw the room was crowded with people she knew. Freya and the entire Yuriel family were there.“Pfft—” Sage choked on the water and coughed violently. They all looked at Jace frowning
“What were you thinking? Why didn’t you carry any of the important belongings, and why didn’t you scream for help when in danger?” Kane reprimanded Sage immediately while taking a glance at Laura.Laura sat on the couch and bit her nails, thinking Kane sounded just like her father.Luther acted like a big brother and said to Sage, “You have to always be extra careful when you’re out. Look what you’ve gotten yourself into, you scared us to death!” Luther’s eyes were getting red.While they all rushed to the scene and saw the explosion and the burnt car, the brothers were terrified to death. As they already lost their mother, they could not afford to lose their precious sister as well.Ross looked at Sage’s pale and lightly wounded face, announcing, “You are to stay here for two weeks. You’re grounded and not allowed to go anywhere else!”Initially, Sage lowered her head obediently and listened to the scolding without refuting, but when she heard that, she raised her head abruptly.
Everyone turned to look at Jace as they heard the name, Sienna.Jace was unfazed, he asked, “Was that man’s last name Jekyll?”Sage and Laura were shocked. “How did you know?” They had heard Sienna calling that bearded man “Mister Jekyll”. Jace compressed his lips and his face was cold.The club’s spring spa was sectioned up for the customer’s privacy, and it was made of imported acoustic panels. If they weren’t too loud, no one would go near or even notice them. Even if they did hear and saw, no one would bat an eye.Nowadays, people got increasingly indifferent. Who would be poking into others’ business?As they heard the complaint from the couple, Jace and Kane quickly went through the guest list and found one under the name “Sienna”. Someone registered a VIP membership under her name, and there was a couples’ event today. Sienna added her plus one’s name down as Jekyll.Henry happened to be at the club today, and he had a strong impression of Jekyll.“He brought in a b
Jace probably deserved it as well. After all, he did it to himself, and who was he to blame?Ross' focus was not on Sage but on Jekyll instead; he thought and asked, “Why would Jekyll kidnap you? Just because you saw him doing it, and he would kill you for that?”Laura frowned and said, “Yeah, we couldn’t figure that out, either. Sienna was terrified to death when she saw us. Maybe she was worried that we would tell Jace. She told Jekyll to catch us. Eventually, we fought hard against them.”She added, “We thought maybe it was just a simple fight, and suddenly, a gun was pointed at my head from behind.” Assaulting them in broad daylight with guns in his hands proved he wasn’t just an ordinary guy.Jekyll was extremely evil and violent.Ross looked at Kane and asked, “Don’t you know that there's such a person in the underworld?”Kane answered with a straight face, “Nope, I haven’t heard of anything about a bearded man. Maybe he just appeared out of nowhere?” Kane looked at Yoe
There was a bombing case in the suburbs of Nadeem City. Three people died in the car that was burned to the ground.The police investigated the crime scene. The clues led them to Sage and Laura, who were currently both in the hospital.Sage and Laura cooperated with the police's investigation and were told to share what had happened. Then, the police opened an official case for investigation.As a result, the club was shut down. Sage felt sorry for Henry.Hunter flew from Salem City to Nadeem City as soon as he heard about Sage's accident. He brought Leah without a doubt.Seeing Hunter and Leah show up together, Sage knew they must have made up. Sage even gave Hunter a good lecture in front of Leah for good measure.Hunter dared not argue and obediently listened to Sage. "Yes, it was my fault. I promise I won't do it again."Sage wanted to continue on, but Leah secretly pulled her sleeve and gave a cue to stop."You're being too nice. He might bully you more in the future if yo
Sage heard of the saying, 'Marriage is for happiness, and so does divorce.'Based on Wikipedia, the definition of marriage was, 'Marriage is a long-term contractual relationship between a man and a woman based on equal consent.'Someone once said, 'Marriage is like a siege. Those outside wanted to break in, while people inside wanted to break out of the siege.'Sage and Jace had been through marriage once. In their first marriage, they were both losers. This time, they were both determined to win. They wanted to live their lives well. Even if their passion were to fade in the future, they would never leave each other. There were eight couples in line ahead of them. Sage and Jace were the ninth.Jace was eager for their turn. He counted carefully and then said with a smile, "It's nine again. It's a good day for this number."Jace suddenly came up with a good idea, "Let's have a daughter and call her Little Nine, okay?"'Did he just come up with that? How brave,' Sage thought and
The ninth of September arrived quickly.Sage was worried that Jace would not be able to get up on time, but Sage turned out to be the one who overslept. Sage had not slept all night because of a certain someone. She was so sleepy, while Jace was full of energy.Jace carried Sage to the bathroom to wash up and brush her teeth. "Open your mouth. Ah…"Sage squinted as she saw the terrible dark circles under her eyes. She turned around in anger and bumped Jace's head.Jace was caught off guard and felt dizzy from the impact. He rubbed his head. "Dear, aren't you hurting yourself by doing this…""Look at my dark circles. They're so ugly. How am I supposed to take pictures? Sage complained in anger.Jace squinted and rubbed his eyes. "Let me see. What's ugly?"He held Sage's face and observed it. "What's ugly? It's not ugly. My wife is the prettiest in the world!"Jace did not care about the toothpaste foam all over Sage's mouth and kissed her anyway.Primrose opened the door and
Jace made Sage stay up all night. Sage was so sleepy that her eyes were closing."Sleep. I'll wake you up later."Jace leaned down and kissed her forehead. As he closed his eyes, he remembered something and sat up sharply."By the way, we have to wear white shirts for tomorrow's photo session. We haven't prepared the shirt…"Jace rolled over and jumped off the bed right after saying that. Sage could not stop him in time, so she turned on the lamp helplessly. She leaned over the bed and waited for Jace in silence.Shortly after, Jace came back with two shirts. His eyes were shining. "Dear, you've prepared for us?""Yeah." Sage nodded weakly. "I've got them ready. I've had Zamora iron them for me."Jace could finally put his mind at ease. "What about the documents and identifications…"Sage pulled open the drawer of the bedside table and took out the papers and documents she had prepared ahead. "It's all here."Sage looked at Jace. "Everything is ready. You've checked three time
Sage spread out the notebook and looked at the blurred handwriting. She slowly read it out loud, "Step one, conquer her with sweet talking. Use sweeter and flirtatious words that would make people blush. Forget about modesty and shame in bed. It's best to whisper them into her ears…"Sage read the notes with a straight face, making Jace so embarrassed that he could hardly keep his feet on the ground.Jace strode forward with a stiff face and tried to snatch the notebook away. Sage was quick to dodge and continued reading with her head down."Step two, be aggressive at your offense. Focus and remember this, being rough yet gentle. You can use props such as blindfolds, ties, handcuffs, and so on…"Sage's face turned red while reading it. As the images popped into her mind, she had to stop reading.Jace was about to go crazy. He buried his face in his hands, unable to look up at Sage."Where did you learn all these?" Sage threw the notebook at Jace. "Rough yet gentle? Are you seriou
'Electric drill? Seriously?!' Jace thought and got a headache.Seeing that Sage was about to open her mouth again, he panicked and kissed her directly to shut her up.Dean was stunned by Jace's quick action. When he saw the couple kissing in the light, he suddenly raised his hand and hit his head.'I must be on the set… Who else would be so shameless as to kiss in public like that?' Dean thought.Sage finally calmed down after a long kiss. Jace breathed a sigh of relief and picked her up. He told Logan, "I'll leave the other guy to you!""Oh," Logan responded. Then he picked Dean up like a kid and walked out the door.Jace was tired and sweaty by the time he arrived at the hotel. Sage was already soundly asleep. Jace put her to bed and took off her shoes, socks, pants, and clothes. He stripped her clean.Sage drank a lot and was reeking of alcohol. Jace did not want to wake her up, so he did not carry her to the bathroom and bathe her. Instead, he wet the towel with hot water to
In the words of the commentators, the basketball game was very smooth. The national team played well! At last, the national team defeated the opponent team by a score of 106-73.The crowd was thrilled that the national team had won the game. The internet was buzzing with excitement too. There were several hot searches about the national team's victory. The topic #RisingStarJim made the headlines too.Sage had lost her usual composure. She was following the fans and shouting wildly, cheering for the victory.Perhaps this was the power of sports. It made the audience exhilarated and trembling with excitement. Jace looked calm on the outside, but he was actually quite excited on the inside.Sage was cheering in excitement. She jumped up and down like a child while hugging Jace. Jace followed and laughed with her too.They were planning to leave after the game, but Sage was really happy and stayed for the team's celebration party. Sage even asked Jim for his teammates' shoe sizes and
"Is that so?" A trace of interest flashed in Jace's eyes.Sage did not understand, so she asked, "What does a small forward do?"Jace explained, "The small forwards are typically the tallest and most athletic of all players. They are responsible for scoring points and defending. The main goal of strong shooters is to score and create opportunities for teammates. In other cases, they would operate as off-ball specialists. They would wait for teammates to pass the ball, catch the ball, and shoot to score."Seeing Sage's confused look, Jace added, "James and Durant, for example, are playing as small forwards.""Oh!" Sage immediately understood after hearing the name of these famous basketball stars. Her eyes lit up. "Isn't that amazing?"Jace saw the sparkle in her eyes and found her really adorable. He said, smiling, "It is. Basketball is all about teamwork. Small forward is probably the most versatile of the five main basketball positions and carries multiple functions in the game.
The next morning, Sage, Jace, and Dean went to the basketball arena for the World Championships after breakfast.It was the men's basketball world championship, where their country's basketball team was up against another country. By the time they got to the arena, many people were in the audience.The staff guided Sage and the group to their designated seat in the family section.As soon as Dean sat down, someone next to him called out his name. Dean seemed unsurprised by this. He even smiled and waved at them. After that, he gestured for them to be polite and silent. It was not Dean's first time watching his younger brother's basketball game live. Many of his fans knew that Dean's younger brother was playing on the national team. They especially came over to get closer to him. Some were Jim's fans too. They knew Dean was Jim's brother, so they would greet him.After listening to Dean's explanation, Sage's businessman side as the owner of Norah Entertainment appeared again."If
Jace muffled his laughs and relaxed in the night light. He said, "I have to work harder, or someone will call me old.""Hey." Sage knew he would get back at her.She rolled over and lay on top of Jace. She played with his chest and said in a muffled voice, "I have a new nickname for you."Jace responded, "Hm?"Sage looked up at him. "Vengeance."Jace was stunned and soon broke into a peal of laughter. Sage leaned on him and felt the rise and fall of his breathing. As his chest resonated with his laughter, Sage followed along with his laughter. Both of them were laughing like fools. Sage and Jace lay flat on the bed after laughing nonstop. They opened up and improved their intimacy so much. As a result, their whole body and mind were very relaxed tonight. "Hey..." The two spoke in unison, exchanged a glance, and smiled again.Sage said, "Go ahead."Jace looked at Sage and muttered, "I'll say something, but don't get mad at it.""Just say it." Sage looked at him.Jace though