The initial mutual partnership had spiraled out of control, leaving Tally puzzled about the turn of events. She had always regarded Kathryn as an honest person, making the manipulation she observed all the more despicable. Tally felt the need to confront Markus and uncover the truth.Markus had been locked in meetings since his arrival at the Skyline Group that morning. When he came out of the office, Tally was waiting for him."Yes?" Markus massaged his temples. He was clearly exhausted."I want to ask you about Kathryn," Tally hesitantly said.Markus remained silent, clearly worn out from the morning's events. Tally was inquiring about an Albert Group employee when she worked for the Skyline Group.Markus gave her a sharp side-eye and questioned, "Do you think this is appropriate?""I couldn't care less at this point!" Tally responded anxiously. Having already broached the subject, she felt compelled to dig deeper.A sharp glint appeared in Markus' eyes as he looked at Tally
Tally had no idea how she left Markus' office.She reassured Kathryn over the phone, "Let's face the reality now. You've been fooled."Kathryn kept silent."Don't cry, okay? We're no match for people like them. We should just give up."Tally sighed. "I don't have the nerve to help you anymore now. I shouldn't have brought you into this company in the first place. "Mr. Albert likely chose you as his assistant, fully aware of your limited capabilities, precisely because you lack strong connections. He must've thought you would be an easy target for him. He probably set you a trap at that time."Tally was persuading Kathryn earnestly. She was trying to make it clear to Kathryn that she had no other option besides giving up right now."Is Mr. Hunt claiming he doesn't remember it again?""He told me that he wasn't aware that there was an agreement this time."Tally believed that Markus was behaving outrageously. His actions were even more absurd than before, making it hard for her
Chris initially felt resigned at how slow Kathryn was in relationships, but now he was irritated by it."I don't have much time left to tease her either. I should enjoy teasing her while I still can," Chris sneered.Markus thought that Chris had got a point. After all, Kathyrn's stomach was getting prominent soon, and their wedding ceremony had to be held quickly.Yet, Markus was puzzled. "I didn't know you're fond of teasing people."He couldn't understand Chris' intentions because Chris used to be cold and straightforward. It was why Chris laid off several company staff members recently. He had a cold personality and would always stand by his word.However, Markus thought Chris had been teasing Kathryn for too long. Upon noticing Chris' silence, he added, "I got to remind you that she's someone who can't take being frightened. You should tone it down, or you'll scare her away.""She can't go anywhere.""Finding her won't be easy if you really scared her away."Chris didn't th
Naturally, Markus wouldn't divulge anything to Tally if Chris chose to keep it under wraps for the time being."Really?" Tally asked.She was aware that Chris had been staying with Kathryn every day recently. While Kathryn's physical appearance hadn't changed significantly, Tally couldn't help but think that it should still be fairly easy to discern whether or not someone was pregnant. She couldn't help but doubt that Chris hadn't noticed.If Chris didn't know that Kathyn was pregnant, Tally couldn't fathom his intentions and the reason behind his inconsistent stance changes. Tally was really on the verge of losing it. She was baffled about what was going on."Do you know why the Johnsons have ended up in such a situation?" Markus asked."Huh? Why?""Because you're a nosy parker."Tally was too stunned to speak. She was surprised that Markus had called her a nosy parker. She didn't know she was that nosy. She couldn't believe that she had left such an impression on him."
Randall was well aware of Tally's penchant for getting into trouble since her childhood. He had encouraged her to work at Albert Group, believing that she would learn to be more cautious, understanding just how formidable Chris could be.Randall wondered if she had offended Chris as he recollected that she wanted to resign back then. His uneasiness grew as he remembered how Tally insisted on leaving Albert Group. His heart was beating fast.His tone grew sterner after noticing Tally's lack of response. "Hurry up and tell me what have you done.""Will you protect me if I tell you I've offended Chris?""You offended him? How could …"Randall looked hopeless. He couldn't bear thinking about the consequences.Tally looked at Randall, whose face had gone pale. Randall met the distress in her eyes and did a facepalm. "I'll arrange for you to go overseas immediately.""You're afraid of him?""Of course! I'll sell the company immediately. We'll be leaving together."A slight twitc
"Confess to Mr. Albert," Randall said."C-Confess?" Tally was frightened. She couldn't help but wonder if Randall was being serious and whether there would be repercussions if she admitted the truth now."What else can you do? Are you going to wait until Kathryn's belly becomes completely noticeable?" Randall glared at her.He had thought that Tally was a quick-witted girl back then, but he was starting to doubt whether letting her take over his company was wise. She got into such a big mess in only a few months."I-I can't!" Tally replied with uncertainty in her voice. "What are you still trying to do?" Randall asked."Kathryn said she'll run away with her child." Tally's voice grew softer as she spoke.That was the only option available when she discussed it with Kathryn earlier. However, Tally started to wonder whether it was a suitable solution as she discussed it with Randall.Randall was a wise man, after all. He hit the nail on the head. "Running away as Chris' wife? Ar
Tally's heart was pounding fast in the car. She kept dialing Kathryn's number, but she didn't respond at all.Kathryn still hadn't answered her calls even when they had almost arrived at Sunshine Bay.Randall glared at her. "Stop calling her.""Why? She needs to know about this first. She's involved in this."Tally was in a state of absolute panic. She felt a surge of frustration that Kathryn wasn't answering her call at such a critical moment.Tally couldn't defy Randall's decision. She had understood from the beginning that once he learned the truth, Randall wouldn't be lenient. She had initially believed that keeping it a secret from him was the best course of action.Now, she felt as though she had been out of her mind. She had even considered convincing Randall to devise a better solution for their predicament. The current situation left her utterly hopeless, especially after Randall asked her to confess.…Meanwhile, Sunshine Bay was in a state of chaos.Chris sat on
Chris stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray and looked up coldly. "What brings you here today, Mr. Johnson?"His tone was frigid, laced with an undeniable sense of danger that demanded attention.Randall had anticipated Kathryn's presence here, believing he could assist them by elucidating the entire situation to Chris as an elder figure. Now, with Kathryn's abrupt escape, he felt exasperated about how to approach explaining the situation. Regardless, they had to address the matter since they were already here.Randall glared at Tally fiercely. "Tally, get down on your knees!"The room descended into an eerie silence, with both Tally and Chris too taken aback to utter a word. Tally, in particular, gazed at Randall in disbelief after a moment of astonishment. In a hushed tone, she inquired, "Dad, what are you doing?"She couldn't believe that Randall had asked her to get down on her knees. She thought he was exaggerating.Getting down on her knees in front of Chris would be t
After leaving the Hunt residence, Tally made her way directly to Victor's company.Worried she might lose her way, Drew had been waiting downstairs in anticipation of her arrival.When Tally saw Victor, her face lit up with joy."You should've seen Mr. Hunt Senior's expression earlier. He looked like he wanted to eat me alive." Tally couldn't help but laugh.Victor reached for her hand as they sat down on the couch together. "Were you scared?" he asked.As Tally sat down, she casually looked back and noticed a framed photograph on Victor's desk.Out of curiosity, she picked it up and examined it. But with just one glance, she froze in surprise."When... when was this taken?" she asked. Her shock was evident as she turned to Victor.The picture was taken back when they were at Beverly Peak, during his hospital stay after being bitten by a wolf.She remembered looking after him until she herself fell asleep.In the picture, her eyes were closed, her expression peaceful.Victor
What made it even more absurd was that Elijah bought into it, too.Tally couldn't believe Elijah couldn't see through Markus' façade. He actually bought into Markus' excuse that his behavior was all because of her.And now he was acting like he'd rather die than leave her."Fucking hell," Tally muttered inwardly. She wondered who came up with this messed-up plan for Markus.Clearly, Tally couldn't quite grasp how Markus' mental state could deteriorate like this. However, given his history of going insane, this outrageous plan didn't seem entirely implausible.He was perfectly fine when he was with Albert Group, so how did he end up like this back at Skyline Group?Tally just couldn't figure it out.Elijah shot her a sharp look, gritting his teeth as he said, "You, leave!"Zane hesitated, saying, "Sir, but…""Just let her leave!" Elijah insisted.Elijah's words were punctuated by short, hurried breaths.Tally nodded, saying, "Mr. Hunt Senior, you're indeed the more rational o
Elijah and Zane glanced at each other. Then, their stares turned sharper as they both fixed their eyes on Tally.Tally swallowed nervously. "Why are you looking at me like that? Did I do something wrong?""You're not even married to Victor, so why are you calling yourself a married woman?" Elijah snapped, his anger evident.Tally remained silent.Observing Elijah's furious expression, she nonchalantly rummaged through her bag, retrieving the marriage certificate and wedding invitation.Then, she handed them over to Zane.Zane took the documents and swiftly flipped them open. His eyes widened in disbelief as he read through them.He promptly handed both documents over to Elijah.As Elijah took them and examined them, his expression darkened significantly upon seeing Tally and Victor's marriage certificate.He was shocked when he saw that their wedding date was today, along with the printed timestamp.In that instant, Elijah's breathing grew heavier.He glared at Tally with an
Tally was completely baffled by what was happening."I've been straightforward about my feelings for him," Tally complained under her breath.From her perspective, if something were to happen to Markus now, she shouldn't be blamed solely for her decision to get married. Victor nodded, saying, "Yeah, I know."Victor had always been aware of this. By now, Markus had become such a puzzle that Victor couldn't quite figure him out.Considering how clear Tally had always been about her feelings toward Markus, it was puzzling how he got himself involved in this mess.This time, Victor didn't accompany Tally to the Hunt Residence. He believed she could handle the Hunt family on her own.The atmosphere at the Hunt residence was incredibly tense at the moment.The moment Tally stepped inside, she could practically feel the frost coming off Elijah. His gaze seemed to pierce right through her.Zane's tone was far from pleasant as he said, "Um, take a look at this."With that, he passed
Tally was pretty happy a moment ago. But now, she was all worked up talking about the Hunts.Earlier on the road, Tally filled Victor in on the phone call she received from the Hunt residence.Victor's lips twitched as he heard the news. "So Markus left a suicide note and vanished?""Exactly. Can you believe the trouble he's stirring up now?" Tally shook her head incredulously.Tally was utterly exasperated with Markus by now. It had been a while since this whole thing started.She had to admit, these days had been incredibly "fulfilling" for her. It was so fulfilling that it almost left her reeling.And it wasn't just Tally struggling to keep up. Even Victor had been taken aback by how things were unfolding.He shot Tally a look of disbelief. "So you're going to the Hunt residence now?""Yeah, I'm going. I want those Hunts to know that I'm officially yours. Let's see if they have more shameless tricks up their sleeves."When it came to describing the Hunts, Tally summed it up
Tally was beginning to see where Markus got his persistent nature from. It ran in the family. It was as the saying went—like father, like son.No sooner had she ended the call, the phone rang again.Tally took a deep breath, reminding herself that today was supposed to be a happy day, not one filled with annoyance.But dealing with these people…After giving it some thought, she hesitantly answered, "Zane!""Ms. Johnson, you might want to come over to the Hunt residence."Tally asked, "What's going on now?"She was almost out of patience with these people.Zane explained, "Mr. Markus left behind a suicide note."Tally's expression froze in disbelief.A suicide note? Tally couldn't comprehend what was happening. She wondered if Markus was pulling another one of his stunts.It had only been less than an hour since Elijah arranged his marriage, and now he went ahead and left a suicide note."Where is he?" Tally raised an eyebrow.With everything happening so quickly, it all f
Looking at her identification papers, Tally let out a sigh of relief.Fortunately, Tally had some knowledge of her father's habits. Otherwise, guessing the password for the safe, which belonged to her comatose father, would have been a daunting task.When Irina called, Tally answered, "Hey, Irina.""Guess what? Markus is engaged!""What?" Tally was shocked.Irina shared her surprise."This time, it seems Mr. Hunt Senior might genuinely have it out for you. We haven't even made a move, and suddenly they're announcing Markus and Sarah's engagement.""Sarah?" Tally was even more surprised.It was only today that they found out who had been secretly admiring Markus. Before they could even step in, Elijah had taken the initiative.It seemed like all these years, Elijah appeared unconcerned, but he actually knew everything.But if he was dead set on hating her, then so be it. Tally couldn't care less.On the other hand, if Elijah truly desired for her and Markus to be together all
Elijah said, "Very well, then."Thinking about his troublesome son, Elijah wondered how he hadn't noticed Markus' extremity in his romantic pursuits before.Elijah was so angry that he couldn't catch his breath.Giving Markus a fierce look, he tried to hold back. Despite that, he couldn't resist putting in one final word, "No matter how much you want to be with Tally, I won't allow it."This time, there was no room for negotiation.At Elijah's words, Markus' eyes turned cold. "I'm afraid you have no say in this.""You..." Elijah's breath hitched as he heard Markus' retort. In a fit of rage, he grabbed a teacup and hurled it toward him.At that moment, Elijah felt an overwhelming urge to lash out at Markus.Elijah insisted, "Regardless of your decision, you and Sarah are officially engaged starting today."His tone was unusually firm.At this point, Elijah wasn't asking for Markus' opinion. He was simply informing him.Regarding Tally becoming Elijah's daughter-in-law, Elijah
Kathryn was confused when Jessica suddenly shoved her into the car and promptly closed the door. With her hand still gripping the door handle, Kathryn looked up at Jessica and suggested, "Uh, how about dinner tonight?"Upon hearing Kathryn's dinner suggestion, Jessica paused before nodding and responding, "Let's talk about it later. I'll give you a call."Jessica seemed really busy, and Kathryn could tell from the way she talked that she was in a rush.Kathryn couldn't help but feel for Jessica as she watched her close the car door and hurried off toward the nearby office building, waving goodbye as she went.Kathryn found herself wondering who Jessica was in such a rush to meet.Kathryn couldn't resist stealing a glance back as the car pulled away. In that brief moment, Kathryn's heart skipped a beat as she saw Jessica walking alongside Lloyd. They were heading toward the glass doors of the building.Before Kathryn could double-check what she saw, the car had already turned.