In the middle of the night, she sent a message to Mark after a bout of hesitation: Are you busy? I’ve heard that something’s happened to your international companies.She chose to send that message in the middle of the night due the time difference in a foreign country. Both parties had to work together for a relationship to grow. It didn’t make sense if she didn’t show him any concern.After more than five minutes, his reply finally arrived: I don’t need your concern. Just take care of yourself.She reread the message on the phone screen a few times, growing increasingly depressed each time she read it. She was being nice by asking him a question and yet, he still treated her that way. She shouldn’t have asked in the first place! The next day, news of Mark’s international company continued to spread. There was even a video interview of him, officially announcing his company’s closure. The overseas subsidiary branches of his company weren’t the only ones affected. The offices in t
Arianne could not help wanting to share the joy. It felt magical. The first person she thought of was Mark but she didn't text him, afraid that he was busy. Instead, she could only tell Tiffany.After chatting with Tiffany for a while, she felt her eyelids growing heavy, falling asleep unknowingly.Arianne had no idea how long it had been when she vaguely heard someone opening the door. She had not yet gotten used to the fact that she had just returned to the Tremont Estate and sleepily thought that she was still in her apartment. She was exceptionally cautious when she stayed alone, worried about thugs barging in, so she woke up with a startle at once. “Who is it?!”The room’s light was turned on suddenly as Mark looked at her in fatigue. He stood on the spot, carefully not to step forward. “It’s me. Go back to sleep, I’m going to take a shower.”Breathing in relief, Arianne adjusted herself and lay down, closing her eyes again.It was only then that Mark made his way to the bathroom.
Looking at the watch, Arianne’s breath halted for a moment as she paled instantly. She was familiar with that watch, it was the one that Mark wore usually. She did not pay attention if anything was missing on his wrist when he came home last night… It also meant that he was with Aery before he came back to the Tremont Estate.Taking in her change of expression, Aery placed the watch in front of her in contempt. “Don’t blame Mark, darling. He’s under a lot of pressure recently and you’re pregnant. It’s not convenient… Even if it’s not me, he’ll have other women too. You’ll be upset either way. I’m doing your duty for you, you don’t have to thank me though.”Arianne picked up the watch and got up. “I'm going back to work if there’s nothing else.”Fulfilling her goal, there was no need for Aery to stay longer. “Sure, tell Eric that his new company looks decent. Wish him a bright future for me.”Returning to her desk, Arianne’s thoughts were complicated as she looked at the watch. After a
It was not bad indeed. Arianne picked up Rice Ball with a smile. “I’m late anyway, I won’t be going to the office this morning. I’ll go after lunch.”Heavy footsteps were suddenly heard behind her. Arianne put down Rice Ball subconsciously, knowing that it was Mark who came. He was going to chastise her for carrying Rice Ball for sure, to the extent that it was scarring her.“Stop touching that dumb cat. I’m going to the office. Have Henry send you if you’re going out.” Mark was leaving in a hurry, his pace slightly hasty. He did not even button his sleeves. When the golden sun showered on him, there was a sense of divinity that kept one’s eyes on him.Arianne pursed her lips and went to the kitchen to ask food from Mary. She was starving.In the Kinsey’s villa, Aery had unprecedentedly busied herself in the kitchen for the entire morning. It was solely because Helen was coming over for lunch.Jean was gloomy sitting on the couch. Since their divorce, he felt incapable of managing the
Helen took her purse and left immediately after that. She had not been planning to eat anyway. Her leaving of the Kinseys was not that recent. Jean and Aery had barely looked for her. Now that they suddenly invited her back, it probably wasn’t just an innocent lunch. She had expected as much.Aery slapped the table in rage. “Arianne Wynn! I won’t let you get away with this!”Jean was shocked. Was this still his daughter who only knew how to act cute and nice? Why was her gaze so menacing…?…In the West Mansion, Summer sat by Jackson’s bed to help him peel an apple while grumbling, “Look at you, what should we do if you’re incapacitated the next time you’re beaten up? The West needs an heir. You can’t keep me yearning like this. When are you getting married?”Jackson felt a huge headache. “Mom… Can you not? My life goal is to build the West up. Before I’m happy with it, I won’t get married.”Summer mocked him, “The Wests aren’t like the Tremonts but it’s not bad. In fact, it’s one of t
He had driven himself today, as Brian had some matters to attend to and took the day off. This meant that he had to face everything on his own.When his car reached a more remote part of the highway, the black sedan behind him began speeding up. He hit the accelerator, and the black sedan did not fall behind. Both cars enacted a chase scene, straight out from a movie.Suddenly, the only silver sedan in front of him turned on its indicator and suddenly slowed down. Mark’s car was moving too fast. In a fit of panic, he hit the brakes and turned the steering wheel. Only then had he realized that someone had tampered with his brakes! He knew very well that his brakes were completely normal when he first arrived. The only opportunity anyone had to tamper with the brakes, was during the tender. His car spun into a median strip in the middle of the road. The car flipped into the air, then crashed onto the ground!Blood trickled down his forehead and into his eyes. The world seemed tinted
“What happened?” After a long pause, she finally steadied her emotions and found her voice again.“I’m not sure either. Your mother came to my house at around two in the afternoon yesterday, and gave me a piece of information. It was about Mark’s company issues. I went to Mark’s office to wait for him, because he was completing some work outside. He got into an accident on the way back. I don’t know what happened during this period of time. I’ve found a witness, but they said that Mark himself went past the speed limit, then suddenly lost control and crashed into the median strip,” Jackson explained in a grim voice.Past the speed limit? Arianne knew Mark very well. He was always calm and steady in everything he did. How could he possibly have gone past the speed limit?She instinctively pushed the blame onto Helen. “What useful information could she possibly have? She’s left the Kinseys. She’s nothing now. How could she possibly help Mark? Why, of all times, did she have to do it a
Tiffany let out a sigh of relief once the call had ended. “That’s a good idea, let her come to us. Saves us the trouble of running around. It doesn’t feel appropriate to make wild accusations in someone else’s territory. Remember what I’ve told you. Don’t be rash.”Arianne nodded in agreement. The car drove across the road and stopped in an empty space in front of Violet Café. Helen didn’t make them wait for too long. She arrived at the coffee shop door in less than twenty minutes.She had rushed all the way over, and did not bring an umbrella. By the time she had finished parking her car and had entered the coffee shop, her white business attire was soaked from the rain. Her neatened hair was in slight disarray. She may look slightly wretched, but when she saw Arianne, she smiled happily. “I never thought that you’d take the initiative to call me.”The trio sat across from each other. Arianne stared at Helen with a deadpan expression on her face. She was trying to detect anything
Arianne had not heard that name for so long, she had to reel back in bemusement for a few seconds before finally remembering her face.Shelly-Ann Leigh… She must have spent all those years in the mental institution, right? God knows if the woman’s hair was now grey and white all over.When someone was near death, one could stand to forgive all of the history between them—even the dark ones, even if the ledger was brimming—for good. So, Arianne replied, “I’ll go with you. No matter what happened, she’s still your mother.”Mark did not expect that answer from her at all. In his surprise, he bent down and left a kiss on her lips. “I knew I picked the right woman as my wife. I thought you wouldn’t agree to let me accompany her for the last of her days…”Arianne replied nothing. She was not so obtuse that she would try to win over a woman whose days were numbered. No matter how much of an a**hole Shelly was, Arianne was still the one who came out on top. That victory was all she needed.
Arianne sneered. “You confused, little thing. I wouldn’t be daft enough to anger the mother of the man I like if I were you, girl. I would especially not say anything as low IQ as that, too. Let me be completely frank with you: no one who bears the surname of Leigh will ever get the better of me—the last one failed. Hard. I can guarantee that you’ll leave us in the span of three days. If I lose, you can stay here forever. Wanna bet? I dare you.”She left her threat hanging at that and turned her wheelchair away, leaving the scorned young woman behind.Rage came out of Raven as waves of quakes all over her body. She was lurching close to hyperventilation, but right before it became impossible to stop, she came around and battled herself to calm down. She had a feeling that even if she fainted right there and then, no one would discover her, would they?Now that Arianne and Mark had returned, the Tremont Estate had recovered its vivacity and life. It had become merry.And Raven Leigh
Melissa was the type who always pushed things to go as festive as logically possible. She leaped to her feet and raised her cup, “Yo, everyone! Let’s toast to Cindy becoming my cousin-in-law!”The crowd answered enthusiastically with their cups in the air and a roar—except Raven, who remained seated. “I have a sickly constitution. I can’t drink. I’m sorry.”Her smile was so mechanical, her face too ashen. Something flickered in Arianne’s eyes before she replied, “Sure.”After the revelry faded, Arianne steered her wheelchair to the courtyard. The outward appearance of the Tremont Estate seemed to have frozen in time, which was why being here made her feel so… safe.Of course, that was despite Henry and Mary’s passing. In the end, time passed and things changed, characters and objects came and went, and all these missing years left lingering regrets in their wake.Arianne espied the silhouette standing alone at a distance and approached her, sighing, “Nothing beats being home.”Ra
Arianne grabbed the two beauties by the hands and smiled. “Thank you! Gosh, to me… it’s like you two have grown older in the blink of an eye! How gorgeous the two of you are! Cindy, where’s your brother? Plato hasn’t come home yet?”Mentioning the name of her dear brother made Cynthia pout. “He said he was coming home half a month ago—that’s what he said. Who knows what he’s actually doing, though? Anyway, who cares about that no-good. He’s always like this anyway. Oh, um, the weather is quite hot. We should probably get inside.”Arianne nodded and shot a brief, uneasy look at Aristotle. Not once did he look like he wanted to talk to her… Could the boy be counting his grievances in his mind? Mark and Arianne had stayed in Switzerland for so long; life must have been hard for him all alone.It took until she reached the living room to finally notice Raven. “Millie, is this your younger sister?”Melissa quickly sprung to correct her. “What? Noooo. This is Ares’ classmate or something
Aristotle’s entire being stilled.He had waited for this news for nineteen years. As time passed, the flames died little by little, the heart grew more numb, until the very thought of it was no different from a pipe dream. But today, news of it coming true reached him and plunged him into a torrent of feelings.A long while later, he finally muttered under his breath, “When… When will they be back?”Jackson closed the distance between them and gave the young man a light, comforting pat on the shoulders. “Not so soon, I bet; not when your mother has just woken up and is in need of some time to recover. She did sleep for nineteen years, you know. So maybe after she’s recuperated enough for a while…” he answered. “We’ve waited for nineteen years for this, right? What’s waiting for just a little bit more compared to that? The most important thing for you to do is to manage the company to the best of your abilities. That’s the way to not disappoint your father’s expectation.”Aristotle
Cynthia had never had a relationship before, so she did not know what love was. However, one thing was for certain. She loved the feeling of being with Aristotle and how he had protected her since they were kids. Even though Aristotle had become a little domineering and “naughty”, she was not taken aback by him. Instead, she even felt a little moved, which was amazing.It wasn’t known how they ended up in bed, with their breaths synchronized. Apart from the final step, they had done just about everything else that could be done.Just as they were about to hit the final step, Aristotle suddenly stopped and helped pull the covers over Cynthia. “Let’s sleep, good night.”Cynthia was still lost in a daze from before. She did not know why Aristotle had suddenly stopped, nor did she have the courage to ask him. She had struggled for so long before having persuaded herself to go with the flow…The next day, when Cynthia woke up, Aristotle had already long gone to his company.She took a
Cynthia heard what Aristotle said, but her hands did not stop doing what they were doing. Her head was in a complete mess. “There’s no… no need. I’ll be able to be done with these now. Go ahead and get some sleep first. By the way, where am I sleeping tonight? There are so many rooms here, I’ll ask Agnes to help me clear one up.”Aristotle walked up to her and squatted. He grabbed onto her arm with one hand while the other closed the luggage. “Just sleep with me here and stop tidying already.”Cynthia suspected that she might have misheard. She took a look at the big bed behind him in a daze and suddenly felt her palm, which was held by him, burning up. “Y… You’re kidding, aren’t you, Ares? Although we used to sleep with each other a lot when we were kids, we’re all grown ups now, so wouldn’t that be a little inappropriate?”Aristotle said with a straight face, “I wasn't joking.”Cynthia panicked a little and recalled Melissa’s words once again. ‘Would Ares, whom I’ve known for so
Melissa knew that Aristotle had kissed Cynthia, so she knew what was going on. Hence, she very naturally boasted, “Of course, they’ve been engaged to each other since they were born. Coincidentally, the both of them felt the same way about each other as they grew up, so wouldn’t this make it even better? From the way I see it, your illness isn’t going to recover for the rest of your life and the both of them are probably going to have to wait until Cindy graduates before they get married. So, you’d be better off moving back to France as early as possible. Don’t worry, you’ve saved Aristotle’s life before, so he wouldn’t be stingy with you financially.”Raven wanted to control the unhappiness she had in her heart very much, but her emotions refused to follow her will. Hence, she fiercely struggled to wring free from Melissa’s grasp. Melissa was startled for a moment. “Are you crazy?”After that, Raven regained her senses and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry… I was a little unwell just n
‘You’re not that worried?’ Melissa was so furious that she laughed. “Am I the only one who’s being worried for nothing? I thought you loved my brother, didn’t you? The man you’ve been dreaming of every day has returned from France but brought a woman with him, yet you’re actually not that worried? Let’s put aside your parents’ intentions for a moment. Do you dare to say that you don’t love him? I’m only helping you because you’re my best friend, so could you not be so relaxed, as if I’m helping you for no reason?”Cynthia shook her head and lowered her volume as she said, “He… might have confessed to me. We also… did that already. So, I think he doesn’t feel that way towards Raven. It’s purely because she saved his life once. I trust that Ares will be able to handle the situation properly.”Melissa’s eyes opened wide. “What? He’s only returned for a few days, yet the two of you have already had sex? That fast?! I never knew it, but you’ve really got it in you!”Cynthia’s face flushe