Susie heaved a long sigh and said, sounding frustrated, "Everyone thinks that Alwyn controlling me is for my own good. No one really cares about how I feel or what I think."Abigail said, "If you don't want him bossing you around, maybe you could try talking to him. I think the most important thing in a relationship is communication. If there's a problem, you should talk about it quickly, or someone might get their feelings hurt."Susie shook her head. "It's no use. I've talked to him countless times, asking him not to boss me around. I want to handle things myself, but he just laughs it off, thinking I'm just being a little kid."Abigail thought for a moment. "Maybe you could talk to your parents, and they could talk to Mr. Hill," she suggested. "It might be different coming from them."Susie shook her head again, even harder this time. "My parents are the ones to blame for Alwyn controlling me like this."Abigail was really interested in this. "How so?"Susie went on, "Our fami
Susie continued, "I was waiting patiently for the barbecue stand owner to cook for me. After I paid and had just taken a bite, Alwyn showed up. Without saying a word, he grabbed the skewers from my hand and threw them into a trash can nearby. He yelled at me for eating unhealthy food, telling me I knew it could upset my stomach, but I ate it anyway. I know that street food might make me sick, but I just wanted to try it. There are lots of things I can't eat, and it takes away the fun in life." Remembering this, Susie added, her voice filled with anger, "I should've told him off to teach him a lesson, so he wouldn't dare to bully me again."Stella suddenly chimed in, teasing, "Does Alwyn want to be a dad or something?"Susie asked, confused, "What? Why?"Stella explained, "He treats you like a child. Maybe you should have a baby, and then he'll be too busy taking care of the baby to boss you around."Susie's eyes sparkled, and she exclaimed, "That's such a great idea! I'll have a da
Stella said, "Don't ask me; I really don't know. My fans and supporters, many of them seem to be pretty rich. I hear most of them who spend freely are rich kids or wealthy housewives."Susie replied, "There was a time when I was crazy about chasing celebrities too. I spent a lot of money on gifts and endorsements. Just when I was really getting into it, Alwyn found out. He thought I was spending money on a boy toy. He got so mad that he stopped my credit card. It was so unfair, and I had no one to complain to."Abigail asked, "How much money did you spend on that male celeb?"Stella guessed, "A few million, right?"Susie replied, "Twenty million dollars! I was planning to invest in a movie for him to be the leading man, but it didn't happen."Abigail was speechless. 'What a waste! That money could be used for so many things.' She felt really sad and upset.Stella asked, "Which male celeb? I wonder if I know him."Susie answered, "Let's not talk about it. He's doing fine now, and
Abigail asked, "Are you feeling okay? Do you want me to call a doctor?"Stella shook her head and said, "I just don't want to be with that man."Abigail asked, "What happened between you and Mr. White?"Stella said, "What could've happened between us? Our marriage was just a deal from the beginning. He never really acted like my husband. To him, I'm like a toy he can play with or put away whenever he wants."Abigail replied, "Stella, you shouldn't think like that. You two are married, and that means you're equals."Stella giggled. "Equals? Abigail, isn't it a bit naive to talk about being equal with Lucas and those guys?" She thought to herself, 'Abigail has been with Xander so much she doesn't know how mean people can be outside. Talking about being fair with these men is a waste of time unless they want to listen.'Abigail said, "He's your husband, so why can't you have respect and rights with him? If you can't...""If I can't, then divorce, right?" Stella looked at Abigail, s
"No bet?" Ron seemed surprised that Xander would refuse him so directly. He lit a cigarette. "When did you, the boss of Zane Corporation, become so timid?"Xander looked up at Ron. "I said no bet, and I meant it. Trying to trick me won't work. Stop it."Ron put out his cigarette after only a couple of puffs. "You have a few more days to give Emma back to me. If you don't, you'll see what I'll do."Xander swirled his glass, wanting to take a sip, but remembering Abigail's warning, he set it back down. "I'm ready for whatever comes."Lucas said, "Why are you two fighting over this? Is it worth losing your friendship over just a woman?""Just a woman?" Ron became angry. Now he was not just annoyed with Xander but Lucas too. "If he took your wife away, would you still say she's 'just a woman'?"Lucas replied, "My wife, Stella, would never leave me."Ron looked at Alwyn. "What about you, Alwyn?"Alwyn said, "If someone took Susie away, I would fight them. I knew I would marry Susie
Hearing the noise, Abigail rushed over, putting her tiny body in front of Xander. "Ron, what are you doing?" she cried.Xander looked at Abigail. She bravely stood in front of him to keep him safe. He felt warm inside, and his voice softened. "Abigail...""Don't be scared," Abigail said, "I'll protect you."Xander chuckled and said, "Silly girl." He knew that Ron could never hurt him, even if he dared to try."Get out of my way!" Ron yelled. "Don't make me hurt a lady!"Lucas and Alwyn saw that things were getting heated and quickly tried to make peace. "Xander, Ron, can't you two talk nicely? If you keep fighting like this, you won't be friends anymore."The four of them had been friends since college, liking the same things and working together in business. They were all very close, and no one wanted to see their friendship fall apart.Lucas spoke again, "Xander, Ron knows he messed up. He knows how important Emma is to him. Why not give him another chance?""It's not up to M
"Scared of Xander?" Lucas repeated Stella's words, suddenly laughing. "Darling, do you really think your husband is that weak? Huh?"Stella knew very well whether Lucas was weak or not, but she wanted to challenge him a bit. "Is it so hard to admit you're scared of Mr. Zane?" Xander could be quite terrifying, a real sly man who could be ruthless."Xander usually seems so calm and well-mannered, especially with those silver-rimmed glasses. He looks like a really smart man, with no hint of being mean or scary. But in truth, he's extreme and even more frightening than Lunatic Hagrid. When Xander was not even eighteen, he managed to send his own father to prison. Think about it, would I really be scared of him?" Lucas freely admitted his fear of Xander; it was nothing to be ashamed of. "I just never thought that Xander, who always stayed away from women, would one day care so much about a woman. We all saw tonight how much he likes Abigail. The way he spoils her with no limits could caus
Lucas quickly took some food for Stella. "Sweetheart, eat more to replenish some energy. Don't always fall asleep before having enough fun."Lucas always embarrassed her by speaking about their intimate matters wherever they were.Initially, it really bothered Stella. She would always remind him not to do that. But Lucas never listened to her. So, as the occurrences increased, she became numb to it as if the person he was talking about was not her.Nevertheless, Stella subconsciously looked at the person she cared about at the dining table. Coincidentally, Abigail was looking at her too.Abigail opened her mouth and wanted to say something. But Stella smiled at her as if telling her it was fine.Abigail did not want Stella to feel embarrassed. So, she looked away and continued taking food for Xander. She attentively cared for Xander just like when she was his assistant.Lucas put some food into Stella's bowl again. "Honey, did you see that? Even in front of us, Abigail is still t