Hesper suddenly felt that the setting sun was too dazzling to her taste. She did not like it anymore.Rickard was still standing upright, but his finely-defined face gave off a slight hint of helplessness. "I’m not belittling you...""I know, you’re just stating the facts."It had been so long, Hesper had certainly made peace with this fact, but she was not doing too bad herself now. "Mr. Duval, why come to see me personally? Since you can’t fulfill my wish, is there anything else that I should know?"Rickard frowned. "Pennleigh Pasino."‘Sure enough.’Rickard’s gaze had seldom left her and Pennleigh throughout the whole luncheon, so Hesper was not surprised that Rickard would ask her about him. After all, she had already experienced the possessiveness of men.‘He was already extremely sensitive and suspicious when he had no feelings for me, let alone now when he’s slightly into me.’"Pennleigh is now my boyfriend. Haven’t you already seen it?""Impossible." Hesper shrugged as
Hesper did not go light with the stomp, so Rickard let go of her and frowned, while Hesper immediately ran to the side and started taking in gasps of fresh air.Although Hesper and Rickard had had a child together, Hesper’s recollection of what happened that night was still rather vague, and nothing intimate had happened between the two of them after marriage. Theoretically speaking, this was the closest she had ever gotten to him as far as she could remember.Hesper could hear that her heartbeat was chaotic and took a few deep breaths before glaring at Rickard, who looked as calm as a toad in the sun."Have you lost your mind? Are you even Rickard Duval?"Her hair was a little messed up.Rickard was in a daze thinking that the distance between the two of them was actually not that far away, but it was still a lot farther compared to the distance between them when they were about to kiss a while before.Hesper saw that Rickard was staring at her without saying anything, almost to
——Seeing Pennleigh and Hesper coming back together, Isobella smiled, walked over, and hold Hesper’s hand."Hesper, Penn is really a clingy kid, huh? As soon as you left, he immediately wanted to go find you. I stopped him, but he actually snuck out."Pennleigh cleared his throat. "Mom, can you not embarrass me?"As he said so, Pennleigh winked at Hesper twice. She knew that it was probably because Rickard went after her, so Pennleigh chased out because he was worried, so she grinned knowingly.From Isobella’s perspective, it could be regarded as affection."Okay, alright, you youngsters should know what’s best for you." Isobella held Hesper’s arm. "Did Penn tell you about dessert making just now? What kind of dessert do you like? I’ll get the kitchen crew to make some for you. And let’s stay here for the night. We live quite far from the city, so it’s not safe for a young girl like you to go back at night."Living there was of course equivalent to living with Pennleigh. When He
Pennleigh was already a little annoyed, so Aelinor’s appearance at this time was obviously only adding fuel to fire. He did not give off a friendly expression."Aren’t there servants who can help you with that? Why would I know where you’re staying tonight? There are a lot of guests today." Pennleigh took a deep breath. He did not lose his head after all, but his tone still sounded very cold. "I’m going to look for Hesper."Aelinor bit her lower lip, stared at Pennleigh with her devastated gaze, and exclaimed instantly, "Do you know that Hesper was having an affair with our honored guest today? I saw everything at the garden just now. The two of them even..."Pennleigh’s gaze turned even colder. "Don’t talk nonsense.""But I saw it all—!" Aelinor’s voice became louder, so Pennleigh covered her mouth. Fortunately, there was no one around, and no one was paying attention to her from the distance.Pennleigh breathed a sigh of relief. "Alie, shut up."Although Pennleigh’s voice had s
Hesper cleared her throat as it seemed a little hard to resist Aelinor’s enthusiasm.‘It’s not difficult to see that she’s an arrogant princess that’s been doted on and spoiled all her life. She’s different from Dianthe; although Dianthe is rather arrogant too, at least it’s easier for someone to reason with her when compared to Aelinor. After all, Aelinor may still be a little too young. Every single emotion that she feels could be seen through her expression.’‘So...’‘With the sudden change in Aelinor’s attitude towards me, Pennleigh’s mother should also be able to sense it.’Hesper could not help but feel slightly stressed. "You can add me as a friend on social media when you get back. I’ll give you a list through the platform, but it’s better for us to keep our distance now. Otherwise, Aunt Isobella will notice."Hearing this, Aelinor nodded and looked a little confused. "I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have gotten so close to you. I promise I’ll continue to tease you like I did just
Hesper lowered her head and avoided exchanging gazes with Rickard, but fortunately, Petruchio and Isobella did not dig deeper regarding this matter. They only exchanged a few words, and dinner was almost over.When Hesper agreed to stay, she never thought that Rickard would be staying here too, so she frowned and went to see Pennleigh. "Why is Rickard staying in your house? Why have I never heard that your families know each other very well?"Pennleigh felt a little miserable too; he did not want Rickard to stay, but this whole thing was decided between Petruchio and Rickard, and he only knew about this not long before Hesper got informed."Okay... Anyway, it’s only one night. I’ll head back first thing in the morning tomorrow.""Yeah, that’s the only way to go now."Pennleigh led Hesper to the guest room. It could be seen that someone had specially rearranged this room a few days in advance. It seemed very suitable for ladies to stay in, and a work area had been set aside for Hes
Rickard knew that things were not as simple as Renfrew thought, but from a certain point of view, Hesper had done nothing wrong, she was just very unlucky."Now that Mommy has been found, can we bring her home?"Rickard shook his head.Seeing that, Renfrew frowned and then heard Rickard say, "But I won’t leave easily this time around. Don’t worry, the investigation about Daybreak has finally made some progress. With that, I can probably obtain some information about the doctor who can heal Mommy’s legs too.""I’ll definitely heal Mommy’s leg first.""You’re the one who says so!" Renfrew’s brows relaxed a little, but he still looked rather serious. "Mommy doesn’t like you very much in the first place. If you were to do something wrong again, Mommy will surely abandon you for real this time around!"Rickard felt a little helpless. Usually, the father should be the one educating the son, but he had never seen a son teach his father a lesson.Just as he was about to say something, t
Hesper was a little speechless, but she was directly picked up by Rickard in the next second.Hesper was so astonished that she almost exclaimed, but if she and Rickard were to be seen in this posture, nothing she said would be able to clear her name, so she could only glare at Rickard with wide eyes."The injury on your legs has recurred. I forecast that it’ll rain tomorrow."Rickard hugged Hesper in his arms as if she was a child, strode into her room, and gently placed her on the bed. "Did you bring your painkiller with you? And be honest with me, did you ram into something just now?"Hesper blinked a few times in a row.‘Has this man been possessed by some spirits? Why does he sound so absurd? No matter what, such words shouldn’t come out of his mouth.’"Why are you looking at me?""How can you be so shameless?" Hesper turned her head away, and said awkwardly, "The injuries on my leg are thanks to you, so why put on a show in front of me and try to sympathize with me now?"
He had never anticipated that he would end up loving her so deeply.It could be said that amidst all the misunderstandings and complexities, their journey together had taken many winding paths."I wouldn't risk getting into trouble just to set off fireworks for someone I didn't even like," Rickard said, his voice gentle. "You dummy."His words were soft, but as Hesper listened to his explanation, she cleared her throat, and her eyes turned bloodshot. She had never imagined that the person she had loved so intensely in her youth had, at some point in their lives, secretly admired her.Hesper attempted to smile but ended up with teary eyes. Seeing this, Rickard reached out and affectionately ruffled her hair. "If it's going to make you cry, I won't say anything more."Hesper pursed her lips. "If you don't want to talk about it, then don't."Rickard, despite understanding her reluctance, couldn't help but reflect on the past and openly admitted to the emotions he had felt in his you
They were flooded with memories, and Hesper couldn't help but admit that she had been through so much with Rickard. Her eyes welled up with emotion.The livestream ended, as they couldn't maintain constant surveillance of their lives. Even though they hadn't gone home yet, the crew had left.In the past two days, people had gotten to know them quite well, so the crew decided to give them some alone time.Hesper sat in the passenger seat and stole a glance at Rickard. She couldn't help but say, "I never expected that the only time you were seen as making a mistake in Grandpa's eyes was because of me.""There are many things you don't know," he replied. Hesper raised an eyebrow and asked, "Like what? Tell me."Suddenly, Hesper recalled the countless times Rickard had looked at her. Yet, during those moments, Rickard had always had feelings for Juniper. She knew that was the reality, so she never expected that Rickard might have had the same strong feelings for her as she had for h
Hesper glanced at Rickard, who remained emotionless, but she still reached out to hold his hand.[This is tough to see. Both of Rickard's parents are no longer here… Sigh.][Hesper immediately checked on Rickard. If I were Rickard, I'd love her so much.]Ernest shook his head and remained silent as he flipped to the next page. Most of the pictures were of Hesper after that. She hadn't realized she had so many childhood photos. Julian appeared in some of them, too.Before everything went sour.Rickard didn't have many pictures. As he grew older, he became quieter.Most of them showed Hesper standing next to Julian, but there was something off about them.[Did you notice... In many of those pictures, Hesper was looking at Rickard, and in others, Rickard was looking at her.][Oh my god, is this puppy love? I had no idea!][I remember Rickard had another lover.]Hesper had noticed, too, but there was no need to remind people that Rickard used to hate her, so she dismissed it as a
Hesper and Rickard entered the room and awkwardly informed Ernest that everything had been live-streamed just now. Ernest was shocked, but upon hearing that it was something people do, he nodded."It's fine. There's nothing that others can't hear."Hesper pursed her lips and glanced at Rickard before saying, "We didn't expect the Summers to come and see you. You should move in with us so these people will leave you alone."If Ernest lived with them, no one would dare intrude because they represented power and influence.Who would dare challenge them?"I don't want to get involved in your life. Renfew and Renarie would keep you occupied enough."Hesper understood that he had already made up his mind not to live with them, so she didn't press the matter further.She could understand his concerns, as many things might become inconvenient. Besides, Ernest didn't want to disrupt their lives either."We'll be heading to Fredonia soon, so even though we have filming to do, we wanted t
So what if the cameras were still recording?"Was my son's life not as valuable as your son's?"If he had grasped this earlier, recent events might not have unfolded. Jade had a point.The live chat fell silent. Though they lacked the full backstory, they could deduce what had transpired in the past.[I heard Rickard lost his parents when he was a child. I feel sorry for him.][His parents died because of that incident. It's no surprise if he harbors resentment.][Truthfully, this old man has no shame. If my child were responsible for another child's death, I'd beg for forgiveness.]Everything unfolding before their eyes was purely coincidental, and no one had control over the situation. They could only watch and terminate the livestream immediately if anything escalated.Fortunately, Jade received a stern talking-to and refrained from discussing the matter further, but Mrs. Summers did not fare as well. Hesper and the others bore witness to her irrational behavior.[This is e
"We've known each other for years, Ernest. I saved your life once, and now your descendants want to take my son's life!"As they approached, Jade Summers was angrily berating Ernest before him. Hesper's countenance immediately turned frosty as she walked over to Ernest."You should conduct yourself more appropriately, Mr. Summers Sr."Jade was taken aback to see Hesper, but he composed himself, took a deep breath, and fixed her with a hatred-filled gaze."If it weren't for you, none of this would have happened. You're just a woman. Since when do you get a say in the Duval family matters?"In the 21st century, people were all for equality. Besides, Hesper was no ordinary or unintelligent woman. Naturally, she had a voice in these matters.The viewers were inundated with comments when they heard Jade's words, and the live chat exploded.[Who is this guy? He looks old but lacks respect.][What's the argument about?][I sense some drama.]Rickard walked over. Jade had thought he
[Didn't Hesper mention that Mr. Duval Sr. took care of her? Maybe she did grow up well.][I'm certain she did. Hesper doesn't strike me as someone who would tolerate mistreatment.]Hesper and Rickard were under constant surveillance throughout the journey, and they hadn't allowed Benji to accompany them. Rickard was behind the wheel, with Hesper in the passenger seat.During the drive, they remained silent, but to observers, it appeared as though they were in harmony.Upon arriving at the ancestral mansion, Hesper noticed other cars parked around and cast a curious glance at Rickard. Visitors to Ernest's home were a rarity."Sir, Ma'am, you're back," a young housekeeper greeted them. It was the same person who had assisted Wendy earlier, but they couldn't recall her name. Nevertheless, Hesper had faith in her.Noticing the housekeeper's troubled demeanor, Hesper deduced that the guest inside was likely unwelcome. However, she couldn't fathom who would disrupt Ernest's life. Given
Rickard noticed something in Hesper's expression, prompting him to ask, "Is there something else you haven't told me?"Being intimately familiar with each other wasn't always without its challenges. Hesper could never conceal anything from him.She sighed and replied, "It's nothing. Just that Pennleigh will also be on the list."Rickard fell silent.Hesper was aware that sometimes Rickard might not appear bothered, but Pennleigh's presence did bother him.Observing Hesper's awkward expression, Rickard lowered his gaze and suddenly took on a pitiful appearance, like a big dog caught in the rain.Yet, she knew he was merely putting on an act. Still, every time she saw him like that, she couldn't help but miss the Rickard who didn't engage in such playful antics. His character had undergone a change.Hesper found it amusing but didn't quite know how to express it. She sighed and added, "It's a fantastic opportunity. I know you'll let me go, right?"Rickard had no intention of inte
"Sullivan lied to her. He had her parents quietly killed. She found out after she turned her back on you."Benji lowered his gaze. "She was already dead when you came back. It was suicide."The conclusion lacked the weight necessary for such a betrayal. Hesper shut her eyes. The person she had trusted most was Renee. They had shared countless years together.Hesper acknowledged that their bond might not have been a genuine friendship. Renee had abandoned her when given the choice.However, Hesper had faced such situations before.Thankfully, there had been someone who had placed her first in their heart, reassuring her that she wasn't always relegated to being an option. Hesper stood in silence for a while before simply nodding.There was nothing she could do to aid Renee now. Renee had entered and departed alone, leaving no trace behind with Hesper.When the topic was broached, it weighed heavily on her heart. Hesper understood the situation but found herself at a loss for word