Calla was momentarily lost in thought upon hearing those words.Seeing her reaction, Alicia quickly waved her hand and blurted out, "Forget I asked!""What are you talking about? I hope I never see him again in my life!" Calla knew Alicia probably thought she had occasionally seen Mercer after the divorce.But she was being honest now; she didn't want to see him again because she wanted to start a new life. She feared she wouldn't be able to control herself if she saw him again."An exceptional man like that isn't someone people like us can have forever. You're already incredibly lucky to have had him once!" Alicia nudged Calla."Can you stop talking about the scrooge?" Calla rolled her eyes at Alicia."Just one more thing!" Alicia held up one finger. "Just one!""Go on, then." Calla could only agree.Alicia immediately said, "These past few days, the executives at Atlas have been quiet as a mouse. I heard that the scrooge has been nitpicking to an extreme at work. "Even the
"Next up, the 8th candidate, Calla Sherman!"Just as she took a few steps, someone called out her name from behind.Calla glanced down at the slip of paper she had received, which, without a doubt, read the number eight. Her eyebrows furrowed. Realizing there was no good reason for her to refuse, she decided to go through with the interview as a formality.Calla approached the staff member calling out numbers and informed her, "I'm the 8th candidate, Calla Sherman.""Please come in." The staff member gestured toward an office.In her black high heels, Calla stepped into a spacious office, where three executives were seated behind a row of desks.There were two men and one woman among the interviewers. The woman, who appeared to be in her 40s, sat in the middle and seemed to be the main interviewer. To her left was a middle-aged man in his 50s, and to her right sat a younger man around 30.Having been through interviews before, Calla was not nervous. Today, she wore a professiona
"I resigned and had to give birth during that time," Calla answered frankly.Hearing this, the young male interviewer nodded and then exchanged a glance with the female lead interviewer.The female interviewer then said to Calla solemnly, "Ms. Sherman, the interview is over. Please wait for further notice.""Alright." Calla knew she wouldn't be hired, so she nodded and politely left the office.Alicia came back exhausted in the evening. Seeing Calla lying on the bed with a face mask, she couldn't help but sigh enviously. "Oh, comparing myself to you is just depressing. I'm exhausted from overtime, and yet, you're leisurely taking a nap here.""You think I don't want to work overtime? If I can't find a job soon, I'll be starving," Calla complained, extremely frustrated."By the way, how did your interview go today?" Alicia asked while changing her clothes."One word." Calla held up one finger."What?""Hopeless!" Calla replied dejectedly."Could you stop being so dispirited?
As per usual practice, an employee of Calla's level was expected to meet with the boss on the first day of work.Calla went straight to the office of Pierre Garland, the boss and chief attorney of Brightway Law Firm."Ms. Calla Sherman?“ A female employee in a pink shirt stood up from her desk."Yes, that's me." Calla deduced she had to be Pierre‘s secretary.Sure enough, the young woman immediately said, "Hello, I am Shania Jorg, Mr. Garland's secretary.""Hello, Ms. Jorg. I look forward to working with you," Calla quickly replied with a smile.The boss' secretary could either be the boss' favorite or a spy, who might even have some secret relationship with the boss. Calla knew that this was the kind of person whose bad side she should never get on.These were all lessons Calla had learned from her years in the workplace."I look forward to working with you. Mr. Garland asked that you see him immediately upon your arrival." Shania smiled."Alright." Calla nodded, then stepped
Pierre seemed to value Calla. He even personally led her to the office prepared for her.The finance manager's private office was quite nice. Although not very large, it offered a view of a corner of Riverford. Two small green plants also sat atop the desk, giving the room a fresh and elegant touch.In the following days, Calla worked extra hard, and everything went smoothly—except for one assistant who always failed to follow her instructions, which was a minor flaw in an otherwise perfect situation.Including her, the finance department had only three people—Natasha Small, who joined the company along with Calla, and Faith Solomon, the longtime employee who was now being uncooperative.Over time, Calla learned that Faith Solomon had always coveted the finance manager position. When the company hired someone new instead of promoting her, the resentful Faith tried to undermine Calla at every given chance.Calla, having experienced office politics, dealt with Faith's challenges tac
A quarter of an hour later, the dining table was filled with dishes prepared by Carol. Carol had even opened a bottle of red wine, which was a rare thing for her to do."Can we start eating now?" Calla, who hadn’t tasted her mother’s cooking in a long time, was eager to dig in.Carol didn’t answer but looked thoughtfully at the wall clock.Calla turned to Zoey in confusion. Zoey shrugged in response. "Mom just called Rudy to invite him for lunch."Hearing this, Calla frowned but didn’t react as strongly as she would have in the past. She and her mother had just reconciled, so she didn’t want to start a conflict over a scumbag like Rudy."I'm going to make a call," Carol announced, taking her phone and stepping away from the table."Does he still come by often?" Calla asked Zoey.Zoey pursed her lips and replied, "He’s come over twice since you moved out. He's been asking Mom if you and your ex-husband might get back together every time. He barely stays long enough to warm a
Half a year passed by. It was already midsummer again in the blink of an eye.After more than half a year of hard work, Calla passed her probation period and gained Pierre's high regard.She was thriving at Brightway Law Firm.With her considerable salary, Calla rented a studio apartment near the company. It saved her a lot of time that would otherwise be wasted on commuting. As she hadn't given up on her original dream, she spent all her spare time studying for the Certified Public Accountant exam.Although the company and her new place were close to Atlas Tower, she hadn't had any unwanted encounters. Twice, she had seen that familiar black Bentley speeding by, and each time, she still felt her heart race. Occasionally, when passing by, she would look up at the once-familiar Atlas Tower, but she would quickly move on after a glance.She knew she should forget all those past events, but for now, she could only bury them deep in her heart. Completely forgetting them would take
After speaking, Calla started to leave the office.However, Mercer took two steps forward, and stood in front of her.His approach made her heart skip a beat.Calla instinctively took a step back. Perhaps she was too flustered, but her high heels became unsteady. As she lost her balance, she let out a low cry.In that critical moment, a strong arm reached out and wrapped around her waist, pulling her into a broad embrace."Ah!" Unable to stand on her feet, Calla instinctively grabbed the collar of his shirt.In her panic, she became even more flustered. She could smell his unique scent. The warmth of his large hand on her waist, too, felt unusual. She was instantly enveloped by his presence, and for a moment, she felt a little dizzy.It was a particularly hot summer. Although the air conditioning in the room was turned on, she still started sweating with the slightest movement.Calla was wearing a thin formal skirt suit made of silk and linen, and Mercer was only wearing a thin
Seeing Pierre's expression, Calla realized that a few words wouldn't dispel his suspicions. She reached into her bag, unzipped it, and pulled out the knife.Pierre's eyes widened as he noticed the gleaming knife Calla was pulling out of her bag. He furrowed his brows in concern. "What are you—"Calla explained, "Mercer told me that Casper is my son, that he wasn't stillborn as I was told. I didn't believe him at first, but I was afraid he might be telling the truth, so I went to his house to see him."But I was afraid he might have ulterior motives toward me. As a woman, I'm naturally no match for him. In a moment of desperation, I had to grab this knife from the kitchen for protection. If he dared to do anything to me, I wouldn't have hesitated to use it on him."Her expression was intense, reflecting her genuine fear and resolve.Pierre looked deeply at Calla, then gently touched her cheek. He took the knife from her hand and placed it on a nearby table.Calla then rushed into
Suddenly feeling Mercer's hand on her shoulder, Calla instinctively recoiled. She swatted away his hand and shouted, "Don't touch me, Mercer!"The harm he had caused her was too profound. Even though she now understood his desperate reasons, she still felt immense aversion toward him."Fine, I won't touch you." Mercer retracted his hands and left them suspended in the air."Don't think you can use Casper to threaten me, Mercer. I will never be manipulated by you!" Calla shouted at him.Mercer's expression turned pained at her words. He took a step back, and his eyes filled with profound anguish. "Do you really see me as someone who would use my own son as a bargaining chip?""Yes," Calla replied sternly.Mercer's body swayed slightly, then he turned away in dejection. "If that's the case, then you should leave."Seeing his forlorn figure, Calla felt a pang of sadness, but she couldn't bring herself to trust him again. She turned and walked out of the house.She stumbled out of
At this moment, Mercer clenched his fists. Even with his resolute nature, his eyes seemed misty."This is where I feel most sorry toward you and Clover. Clover is my daughter too. Of course, I wanted her to come into this world healthy. But I couldn't let Casper disappear from this world either."His condition worsened so severely at that time. I was afraid he wouldn't make it to your due date, so I had to take drastic measures..." Mercer struck his fist hard against the wall.Seeing the despondent and remorseful Mercer before her, Calla felt a twinge of compassion, but she still couldn't accept all his explanations.Glancing at the reports in front of her, Calla placed her hand on her cheek. She could feel her fingers trembling.Suddenly, she looked up and asked, "You kept searching for me in Greendale to get me pregnant so you could use the baby's umbilical cord blood to save Casper?"From the timeline Mercer had explained, Casper's condition must have been severe by then.Cal
Mercer smiled bitterly. "I knew that you wouldn't believe me, so I prepared a copy of Casper's medical reports. You can take a look." He pulled out several thick envelopes and set them on the coffee table. Calla frowned upon seeing those envelopes which were all an inch thick. She opened one of them and flipped through the documents inside, frowning as she read. The envelope held reports of Casper's hospitalization in both the city and state hospitals, spanning two years, starting from when Casper was a year old. They were records of Casper's illness and his recovery process.Calla couldn't help thinking about his adorable, chubby face, and she felt her heart clench. She wondered how Casper had managed to triumph over his illness after two years. She couldn't even fathom how painful and difficult the process must have been.Suddenly, Calla noticed something in Casper's surgery reports—a note about how a newborn baby's umbilical cord blood was miraculously compatible with Casper.
"My heart is already in pieces because of you. So what if I hit, cursed, or even stabbed you now? What's the point of doing all that? I beg this of you, Mercer, please let me live my life quietly and stop bothering me!"Stop making up all these ridiculous justifications too. I'm tired—exhausted! I don't want to deal with you anymore," Calla sobbed, tears running down her face.She knew that she shouldn't have cried in front of him. It wasn't just a sign of her weakness, it might also fuel his assumption that she still cared for him. However, she couldn't control it. Whenever she thought of the suffering she'd gone through in the past couple of years, tears ran uncontrollably down her face."I want nothing more than for you to let me tell you the truth in its entirety. I want you and Casper to not miss out on the chance to reconnect as mother and son. "I promise that I'll respect your choice once I'm done telling you everything, and I won't bother you again in the future!" Mercer l
Calla's eyes widened as she remembered everything that had happened in the past. She stumbled over her words as she said, "B-But we were going to get married after we were back on good terms with each other, and I'd already met Casper at that point. Why didn't you tell me about him back then?"Mercer looked at Calla meaningfully. "Do you remember when I told you, on the day we were about to get our marriage certificate, that I had a big surprise for you?"Calla thought about it, then nodded. He had indeed said that he'd prepared a big gift for her. Could the gift have been Casper?Facing Calla's doubtful look, Mercer nodded. "Yes. I wanted to tell you after we received our marriage certificates, but I didn't expect something else to happen on that day."Calla sneered. "'Something else' is a nice way of putting it. You didn't go to get the marriage certificates done with me, because you chose to hold a press conference with Sophie instead, announcing your marriage with her."When
Mercer's face fell. He sat on an armchair before asking Calla, "Do you dislike me that much? Are you not even willing to stay by my side for one minute?""I don't dislike you—I hate you. Also, one minute is too long—I can't even bear to stay by your side for one second!" Calla replied without hesitation.As memories—filled with love and resentment alike—flashed in Calla's mind, she felt an intense hatred for Mercer. If not for Casper, she would never have stepped inside this place again, much less take a seat across Mercer to have a conversation.Calla's words hurt Mercer. He sat there for a while with his head lowered before lighting up a cigarette and taking a long drag.Calla couldn't help coughing when the acrid smell of smoke entered her nose. Realizing that he'd made her cough, Mercer quickly stubbed the cigarette in his ashtray. Calla didn't want to waste any more time with him. She asked impatiently, "Why did you have me come here? Who is the woman you had Casper with?"
Calla finished getting ready, slung her bag over her shoulder, and walked over to Clover. She gave her a quick peck on the cheek and then turned to Fiona. "Fiona, I'm going out to meet a friend.""Okay," Fiona replied with a smile, then continued feeding Clover some water.Calla left the apartment and was about to press the elevator button when Pierre emerged from the opposite door."Hey, aren't you supposed to be off work today? Where are you going this early?" Pierre asked, noticing Calla was heading out."Oh, I'm meeting Alicia. She's going back to work tomorrow, so we're hanging out later," Calla replied hastily, avoiding eye contact with Pierre. She had never been good at lying."She's going to be your bridesmaid. It's only right to express our gratitude," Pierre said with a smile, walking into the elevator with Calla."Where are you meeting her? I can give you a ride," Pierre offered."We're meeting at the department store. It's not on your way, so you should get going. I'
Calla was initially certain that Mercer's goal was to use Casper to ruin her marriage with Pierre.But as the night wore on, Calla's doubts grew. She couldn't shake the feeling that maybe—just maybe—Mercer was telling the truth. Perhaps Casper was indeed her child, the one she had given birth to all those years ago.She couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope. What if her child had not died? What if he was still alive and well?As the first light of dawn crept into the room, Calla made a decision. She would go see Mercer, no matter what his motives were. She had to get to the bottom of it.Calla gazed at Clover, who was still fast asleep. She gently stroked her daughter's cheek. "Clover, don't you think it would be wonderful to have an older brother to share your toys and adventures with?Clover's chubby face didn't move. Calla's eyes lingered on her for a moment before she spoke again. "I have to get to the bottom of this no matter what the outcome is. I have to find out if Casp