“Ave, look over there!” Selena’s voice called out suddenly.Aveline turned her head and spotted Zachary walking toward them, his pace steady and calm. Surprised, she stood up and made her way over.“Zachary, you’re here too.”He smiled warmly. “Yeah, Lucas sent me an invite. Said it’s been a while since we’ve seen each other, and that you’ve been through a lot lately. Figured you might miss me, so here I am.”Aveline glanced over at Lucas, who was chatting with Aaron, and felt a wave of warmth. She turned back to Zachary with a smile. “I did miss you. It’s been too long. How’ve you been?”Zachary nodded. “Pretty good. The redevelopment project in Arthur Town is moving along smoothly. The orphanage is part of the plan, and we’ve already got two volunteer teachers there. The kids are doing much better now.”Aveline pictured the scene and felt a sense of contentment. She nodded. “That’s wonderful to hear. Come, let’s sit over there.”“Sure,” Zachary agreed.Everyone gathered near the riv
Lucas had already made his way back to Aveline's side, taking her hand with a playful smile. "Ave, do you feel like you need my company? Do you want me by your side all the time?"Aveline, who had witnessed the whole exchange, simply stared at him, speechless. Could this man be any more shameless?Aaron approached with a look of disdain. "Lucas, have you no shame? You'll say anything to avoid grilling. Aren’t you afraid your son will grow up and laugh at you?"Without missing a beat, Lucas replied, "My daughter wouldn’t laugh at me."Aaron was momentarily stunned. Daughter?He hadn’t even confirmed the baby’s gender, and yet Lucas was already claiming it was a girl."Your daughter, huh? You sure about that?" Aaron scoffed. "Do you even deserve one?"Lucas remained unfazed. "Of course I do. I make all this money just for my daughter to spend, so it has to be a girl."At that moment, Aveline chimed in, her voice soft but teasing, "Well, I think your daughter would love to taste the bar
No one knew men better than other men, and Aaron could see right through Gavin’s intentions in an instant. He shifted his gaze away, looking at Selena, who was happily munching on her chicken wing, blissfully unaware of Gavin’s feelings. But that was fine—Selena was already his, and he had no intention of giving anyone the chance to take her away.“Taste good?” Aaron asked.Selena nodded eagerly. “Delicious! Did you grill this?”Aaron raised an eyebrow. “I’ve been working the grill for ages, and you didn’t even notice? Seems like your attention wasn’t on me at all.”Selena laughed cheekily. “What can I say? Too many handsome guys around—I can’t keep track.”Seeing Aaron’s face darken, she quickly added with a grin, “I want some grilled fish, honey.”That one word, "honey," instantly lit up Aaron’s mood. With a smile, he turned to start grilling some fish for her.Aveline watched the entire exchange, a quiet smile tugging at her lips.After the meal, everyone started to relax and hav
Nearby, Gernard glanced at Gavin and quietly asked, "What's going on? Is Dad still not here?"Gavin, watching Aveline walk toward Lucas, responded in a calm tone, "Dad said he didn’t want to witness this. His daughter just came back, and now she’s already getting married again—it frustrates him."Gernard clicked his tongue, a faint smirk playing on his lips, but said nothing more.On the other side, Maria held up her phone, watching as more viewers flooded into her live stream. She smiled slyly and whispered, "Everyone, you're witnessing a live proposal! Don’t forget to send your blessings!"Beside her, Sidney looked on, his gaze complicated as he watched Aveline. Memories of everything that had happened since meeting her flashed through his mind. He was grateful to her—there had been a time when he even felt something deeper—but by then, it was already too late. When he finally realized how much he cared, Aveline had already fallen for Lucas, her heart completely devoted to him.A d
At the Cooper family residence, Wilfried stared at the live stream, watching the proposal unfold. He lifted his gaze to a framed photo of a smiling, graceful woman. "Suzy, did you see that? Our daughter... she's getting married. We just found her, and now she’s already getting married... I’m so sorry, I’ve let you down..." He choked up, his voice breaking into sobs.Not far away, the butler sighed heavily, rubbing his temples in exasperation. “He's acting like Miss Aveline is never coming back.”...As the day wound down, everyone started heading home.Selena clung to Aveline, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "Ave, how could you agree so easily? Doesn’t that make it too easy for him?"Aveline looked at her, puzzled. "So, what should I have done?"Selena huffed. "If you ask me, you should’ve set up 81 impossible challenges for him. Only if he passed them all should you have said yes! And if he failed even once, forget about him!"Aveline couldn’t help but laugh, shaking her head.
The proposal was over, and that same night, Maria and Sidney returned to Cloudflare City.Maria lived in a cozy and beautifully decorated one-bedroom apartment in the Waterfront District. As they arrived at the door, she turned to look at Sidney, her pretty eyes holding a teasing emotion."It's so late. Do you want to come in and rest?"Sidney’s handsome face showed signs of fatigue, and he directly refused, "I'm tired. I want to go home and get some proper rest."Maria chuckled softly, reaching out and slowly sliding her finger down his chest. Under her touch, she could feel his muscles tensing slightly."Do you think I’m inviting you in for something else? You’re overthinking it. I just want you to rest here."As her words fell, she stepped closer to Sidney, slightly tilting her head up, her crimson lips curving into a seductive smile."Of course, if you're up for something more exciting, I wouldn’t mind either."Sidney immediately grabbed her wrist, stopping her from moving further.
At night, Sidney sent out numerous résumés. His abilities were exceptional, and his designs were innovative. During his time at Maria's studio, he had only collaborated with Aveline on one project; after that, he worked independently.He was confident he could find a good company.However, three days passed, and there wasn't a single response.On the seventh day, he finally received a reply and was invited for an afternoon interview. But when he arrived, he was informed that the position had already been filled.Sidney stood at the bus stop, wearing a white shirt and black trousers, his entire appearance clean and handsome. He stared at the cold message on his phone, his eyes reflected in the screen with a hint of chill.He had a pretty good idea of what was happening.Recalling Maria’s ambiguous smile, he took a deep breath.Forget it.He’d find something else and try again later.…In the blink of an eye, half a month passed.Maria had been waiting for Sidney to come back to her, but
"You think I'm being unreasonable?" Maria asked, her expression full of mock surprise. "Do you really think I would falsely accuse you?"The manager, seeing Sidney’s lack of an apology and his confrontational attitude, quickly intervened. "You better apologize to the customer right now, then take her to the hospital for a check-up. If anything happens to the guest, you'll be held responsible!"Sidney’s gaze turned cold as he looked at Maria, noticing the faint smile of amusement in her eyes.Of course.She wanted to see him crushed, to have control over him, and eventually forced to bow to her will. This was all just a game to her.If, in the beginning, Maria had approached Sidney to complete Lucas' task, now, she was simply driven by the desire to see him broken."Fine, then call the police. There are security cameras from the kitchen to the dining area. I didn’t do it, and I stand by that." Sidney’s tone grew calm and cold. He pulled out his phone and was about to dial the authoriti
Aaron held her hand and led her directly out of the room upstairs.Meanwhile, inside the room, Nathalie had someone forcibly separate the two entangled people. Ernest looked utterly disheveled, still trying to grab onto Lila and continue.Lila, now slightly regaining her senses, realized the situation. She let out a piercing scream, wrapped herself in the blanket, and cried out in distress."How could this happen? Why did it turn out like this? Why am I here? Mom, wasn't that bitch Selena supposed to be in this room? Why is it me? Why me!"The sensation in her body was undeniable, and seeing Ernest in his dazed state, she could already imagine how wild things had been between them. Worse yet, many people had witnessed it!This scene was supposed to fall on Selena!What went wrong?Nathalie hugged her, trying to calm her down, "Don’t get worked up, Lila. You can’t afford to get upset right now. It’s okay, mom’s here with you. I’ll take care of this."But Lila was inconsolable, sobbing u
The servant stood frozen in shock, unable to comprehend what had just unfolded. How... how could this have happened? How did Lila end up in the room instead of Selena?She distinctly remembered helping Selena into that very room and watching as the family doctor applied the patch to her ankle. The patch, once applied for more than a minute, should have released the drug into Selena's system, gradually taking effect. But now everything had gone terribly wrong.Pale and trembling, the servant knew that her role in this failed scheme had been exposed. There would be no good outcome for her. She began to retreat, hoping to slip away unnoticed."Leaving so soon?"A lazy, magnetic voice suddenly spoke from behind her.Startled, she spun around to see Aaron standing in the doorway. His tall, imposing figure blocked the exit, preventing anyone from leaving easily."I... I..." The servant stammered, unable to form a coherent sentence, trapped in her fear.Aaron’s expression remained neutral, b
"Such a big issue has to be cleared up, don’t you think, Aaron? What if someone is deliberately trying to smear your wife’s name?" "Exactly! We’ve all met your wife—she’s beautiful and sharp. There’s no way she’d do anything to betray you.""We need to open the door and clear up any misunderstandings before things get out of hand."The crowd voiced their concerns, their words filled with feigned sympathy, but their eyes gleamed with anticipation.Kendrick arrived just behind Aaron, and upon hearing the whispers, his expression darkened."Who said this?" The servant timidly raised her hand. "I... I did."His voice hardened. "Are you sure of what you saw?"Though visibly frightened, the servant nodded firmly. "I’m sure.""I don’t think she’s lying.”"Maybe it’s true. If it is, then she really couldn’t keep herself in check, especially at Lila’s birthday party. How shameless.""Unbelievable! With a husband like Aaron, she’s still not satisfied? I can’t understand women like that."A few
"What’s going on?" Nathalie’s brow furrowed as she took in the situation. She immediately called over the servant who had been with Selena earlier. "Is Selena in that room?"The servant nodded nervously. "Yes, I helped Mrs. Fletcher into the room."Nathalie’s expression hardened. "Then why won’t the door open?"The servant’s face turned pale, her eyes darting around anxiously. She stammered, "Madam, maybe it’s best not to disturb Mrs. Fletcher. She just needs to rest, and I’m sure she’ll come out soon.""Why are you acting so suspicious?" someone nearby asked. "And why weren’t you inside taking care of her?"Nathalie narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing the servant. Suddenly, her tone sharpened. "Why are you hiding something? Tell me what’s really going on!"The servant flinched under Nathalie’s gaze, her face paling even more. Trembling, she said, "Madam, I-I don’t know for sure. I was with Mrs. Fletcher, but then she asked me to leave… I didn’t go far, I was keeping an eye on things in
After speaking, the servant promptly left the suite, standing guard outside.Selena smirked, her eyes hardening with a cold glint.She stayed in the room for a while, eventually deciding to get up and leave. But as she stood, a wave of dizziness hit her out of nowhere.Frowning, Selena called out, "Come here!"The servant appeared but kept her distance. "Mrs. Fletcher, what do you need?""I don’t feel right. Go get the family doctor."The servant’s eyes flickered with something unreadable before she replied, "Of course, I’ll fetch him right away."She turned and hurried off.Selena sat at the edge of the bed, focusing on regaining her composure. She slowly made her way to the balcony, opened the doors, and breathed in the fresh air. Instantly, she felt better.That patch definitely had something off about it!"Miss Selena," a hushed voice called out.Startled, Selena turned to see Braden standing at the windowsill of the adjacent room, blending into the shadows of the night.Surprised,
Selena’s eyes fell on the pain patch, and she nodded. "Alright, go ahead."The family doctor applied the patch and gave her a few instructions before leaving.Leaning back into the sofa, Selena said, "You can leave now. I’ll rest for a bit."The servant, however, remained standing nearby. "Mrs. Fletcher, I’ll stay here just in case you need anything."Selena raised an eyebrow slightly.What was this about? Was someone sent to keep an eye on her? To stop her from leaving, perhaps?She couldn’t quite figure out the motive yet, but there was no rush. She’d adapt to the situation as needed."Fine, stay there then. Don’t go anywhere," Selena replied, before heading to the bed and lying down. She pulled out her phone and messaged Aaron.“Where are you? You missed quite a show earlier. You’d have regretted not seeing it!”Aaron replied, “Sounds like I did. Will you fill me in?”“You finally replied! Where have you been?”Aaron texted, “Stuck in a meeting with my dad at the office. Heading ba
At that moment, Nathalie spoke up as well, "It's just a dance, Selena. Don't disrespect Mr. Brooks."Her words implied that Selena was deliberately avoiding the dance.Ernest's expression had already soured.Selena glanced from one person to the next, her eyes reddening as tears welled up and began to fall."You’ve misunderstood me," she said softly, her voice trembling. "I didn’t mean it that way. Mr. Brooks and the Fletcher family have business dealings, and of course, I respect our partners. But my foot really is injured. It’s no big deal, though. “Even though tonight is Lila’s birthday party, and she should be the one dancing the opening dance, since Ernest invited me, I would still dance even if my leg was broken."She paused, looking fragile and innocent, before continuing with a hint of apology. "Mr. Brooks, I’m afraid my injured foot won’t keep up with your steps. I’m truly sorry."Playing the innocent card like a delicate girl? Selena could do that just as well. After all, wi
"Wow, Lila, you look absolutely stunning tonight!""Lila, happy birthday!""Lila, may I have this dance?"...The Fletcher family had gone all out for Lila’s birthday celebration, inviting the elite of Cloudflare City's upper class. It was clear how much importance they placed on her, and everyone in attendance understood this, treating her with great kindness and respect.Lila, with her flawless makeup and sweet smile, gracefully declined the young man who had asked her to dance. Instead, she said with a grin, "You should invite my sister-in-law to the opening dance. She’s an amazing dancer."The young man’s gaze shifted toward Selena, and his eyes lit up with admiration.Selena was dressed in a sleek black gown, simple in design but perfectly tailored to accentuate her elegant figure. Her long, wavy hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her makeup, though subtle, highlighted her striking features. The result was a look that was less sultry and more innocent—a style that could make an
Aaron was speechless. He hadn’t expected this to be the reason behind her sudden change of heart.He gave her a teasing look and asked, "Don’t you hate Lucas? Why would you want to let our child marry his?"Selena lifted her chin defiantly. "Lucas is Lucas, and Ave is Ave. They’re not the same. I want to be even closer to Ave."Aaron smirked. "And what if both of you gave birth to children of the same genders?”Selena froze for a moment, realizing the flaw in her plan. "Oh, right… if that happens, there’s no way to arrange a marriage."Amused, Aaron looked at her. "There are plenty of ways to strengthen your bond. They could make us their child’s godparents, for one. But as for forcing an arranged marriage, let’s drop that idea. You never know what the kids will want, and they might resent us for making that decision. It’s not worth the trouble."Selena nodded, her expression thoughtful. "You’re right. Kids these days rebel against arranged marriages. It’s better to leave it to fate."