Ben wanted nothing more than to wring Jamie's neck after hearing her cold, cutting words. “I don’t need your lectures,” he growled. Human nature? Didn’t she think he knew enough about it already? He had seen it in every case he handled, and he had learned it the hardest way through her betrayal. When he fell for Jamie, it had been with the intent to marry her, to share a future. But she had stabbed him in the back without hesitation. And yet, when he tried to hate her, tried to wish for her downfall, he couldn’t bring himself to follow through. “Stay here and reflect on your actions, Jamie.” Ben knew her well enough. If she cried, begged for forgiveness, he would soften. But she didn’t. Instead, all she cared about was that child, the child he refused to acknowledge. “Fine,” he thought grimly. “Let’s see how long that bastard can survive.”*Meanwhile, Ben’s mother, Mrs. Lucas, had failed to convince him to cut ties with Jamie. This left her in a tough spot, especial
Unfortunately, Ben couldn’t see through any of this. Summer, however, wasn’t the least bit intimidated. Shaking her head confidently, she said, “I’ve never done anything to upset him. I don’t believe that just exchanging a few words with him would make him kick me out.”Mrs. Lucas opened her mouth, about to say something, but seeing Summer’s confident demeanor, she hesitated. Maybe, just maybe, Ben might actually feel too awkward to reject her outright. And if a little covert manipulation were added into the mix…Suddenly, Mrs. Lucas had an idea. Hearing it, Summer’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Mrs. Lucas, that’s an excellent plan! We should act quickly before he does anything else irrational.” “Alright.” Though the plan was solid, the two of them decided to put it into action three days later. Meanwhile, Ben hadn’t been to the office lately, but he was still keeping track of all the firm’s cases. He was also trying to reach Winnie, but while her phone would ring,
Ben gripped Jamie's chin tightly, his voice firm and unyielding. When Jamie had disappeared from his life, he had exhausted every possible means, called in countless favors, and poured his energy into finding her. But he had failed. Just when he was on the verge of giving up, he had met Winnie. It felt like fate had stepped in, intertwining their paths once more, as if destined for a lifetime of entangled love and hate. If that was his reality, then he would play along with it.“Instead of plotting ways to escape from me, why don’t you focus on apologizing? Show me some sincerity, and maybe I’ll make your life a little easier,” Ben said.Jamie’s lips curved into a bitter smile. She knew what he wanted.He wanted an apology and an attitude of remorse. But she also knew she had no leverage to stay by his side.Even if she played along now, making him happy temporarily, there was no future for them. Mrs. Lucas’s disdain for her was an insurmountable mountain, and she couldn’t see
On the day of the engagement banquet, Ben’s phone appearing near Jamie should have been a warning sign, but she missed it. Later, she had warmly welcomed Jamie into her home, showering her with care. She had even worried that Ben might dislike Jamie and tried to help them get along. And what happened in the end? While she had been tirelessly caring for them, the two of them ended up in bed together. Now, they were living under the same roof, while she and her child were left with nothing. How could Winnie not harbor resentment? Especially when she looked at Charlie, a chilling thought crept into her mind: If her own child’s life was ruined because of Jamie, then shouldn’t she retaliate by ruining Jamie’s child? An eye for an eye. But she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Every time Charlie called her "Aunt Winnie" with such innocence, it reminded her of the bond between them. How could she be so heartless? “I’m in Ben’s villa. He won’t let me leave,” Jamie
“Don’t beg me. If begging worked, I’d have begged Ben not to leave a long time ago,” Winnie said as she wiped away the tears at the corner of her eyes. “Here’s the deal. I called to make one thing clear. Everything you owe me, I’m going to take back, bit by bit, through Charlie. He’s your son, and they say the sins of the mother fall on the child.” With that biting remark, Winnie hung up without hesitation.Clutching her phone, her chest ached with a deep, lingering pain. The masked man approached, standing by her side. “Winnie, what’s the point of all this? You’re clearly full of hate for Jamie, but instead of taking it out on her, you’re here looking after her kid. I don’t get you sometimes.“If it were me,” he continued, “I’d grab this opportunity and make her suffer. Why are you holding back?”Winnie shook her head. “Charlie calls me his aunt, and besides, it’s not right to blame a child for the mistakes of adults.”She might despise Jamie, but Winnie couldn’t bring herself
The woman had deliberately spoken in a vague and ambiguous way. She had been sent by Summer, with Mrs. Lucas's covert assistance. Together, they had schemed to place a helper in the villa with a simple enough task with their combined influence. But to Jamie, the words carried a different implication. This was Lucas’s territory, which meant this woman had likely been instructed by Ben. If Jamie didn’t drink the soup, she was certain Ben wouldn’t let it slide. A wave of bitterness washed over her. “Fine, just leave it over there. I’ll drink it later when I’m thirsty.” “Miss Lewis, I need to personally see you finish the soup before I can leave. If you’re not ready to drink it now, that’s no problem. I’ll just wait here.” The woman placed the tray on the table, pulled a chair over, and sat directly in front of Jamie. Her stare was unrelenting, her attitude clear. She wasn’t leaving until the job was done. If it had been anyone else in Jamie’s place, the woman wouldn’t da
Jamie was in a terrible state. Her injuries from shielding Ben during the stabbing incident hadn’t healed, and now, thanks to Summer’s scheming, she had developed a fever soaring to a dangerous 104 degrees Fahrenheit.Lying in bed, delirious and motionless, Jamie didn’t even realize how bad things had gotten. When the housekeeper came to deliver her meal and saw her lying there unresponsive, panic took over.“Mr. Lucas, Miss Lewis looks like she’s dead!” the housekeeper stammered, trembling with fear.“What did you just say?” Ben shot up from his chair, his piercing gaze locking onto the housekeeper. The housekeeper could barely meet his eyes, shrinking under the intensity of his glare. Ben had never looked so alarmed, his usual composure replaced by a pale, stricken expression.Without waiting for further explanation, Ben bolted out of his study, stumbling as he rushed down the hallway. When he finally reached Jamie’s room, he found her lying in bed, breathing heavily, her face
Caleb organized the medications and explained everything meticulously. "These are oral meds, three times a day after meals," he said.Caleb noticed that Ben’s eyes were fixed on Jamie. At that moment, his face was filled with worry and urgency."It's just a fever," Caleb reassured. "The shot's been given, the IV is running, and the meds are sorted. What else is there to worry about? I'll write out the steps for the IV change—"Before Caleb could finish his sentence, Ben shot him a sharp look that cut him off immediately.Fine, Caleb thought, throwing his hands up mentally. He would stay until the IV was done. Better that than risk being bombarded with Ben’s relentless calls later if anything went wrong. Caleb simply wasn’t up for that kind of torture.Although Jamie on the bed hadn’t woken up, Caleb didn’t want to stick around any longer. He had no interest in watching Ben fuss over her like some lovesick fool.Not long after Caleb left, Jamie stirred. Seeing Ben sitting by her b
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.“Haven’t I been just fine lately?“Or do you think my hand isn’t injured enough? If that’s the case, go ahead—do it yourself. “You already know I wouldn’t fight back no matter what.” Without warning, Yelena stretched out her injured hand, an act that instantly enraged Liam. “What the hell is wrong with you?” He snapped. “I was just making a casual remark. Is that really what you think of me? I already told you—I’m not going to lay a hand on you.“It wasn’t intentional before, and you know it. We both do. Stop acting like you’re above all this when we both know who sent you here.” Yelena felt a pang of sadness. They had spent so much time together, yet this was how he treated her—always choosing to hurt her. “I know—I wasn’t someone you chose, and none of this was intentional. But after all this time we've spent together...“I thought maybe I was a little different to you. But I guess I was wrong. Nothing has changed at all.
“Why do you even care about what happens to other people? Haven’t I made myself clear enough already?“Whose card is this—yours or mine?” His assistant immediately apologized upon hearing Caleb’s tone. “I hope you won’t hold this against me. I really wasn’t thinking clearly at the time—I should have considered this more carefully.” Caleb didn’t bother responding. After hanging up, he focused entirely on investigating Vera’s brother. *Meanwhile, Vera was deeply worried. If things had been somewhat under control before, now they were completely off track. The situation on both sides was far more complicated than she had anticipated. “Don’t worry. That’s exactly how it is. If you don’t want to go in person, I can go for you—but it won’t be cheap,” the private investigator said.Since Caleb had warned her about the private investigator, Vera started testing him, probing for inconsistencies. And sure enough, his story had too many holes. “Why are you so sure my b
As Caleb spoke, he looked at Vera with a hint of helplessness. After all, her hand had been injured because of Luna. “Don’t feel guilty about this. Honestly, it’s nothing to me.“And I’m not the type to carry burdens over things like this.“Besides, it’s been so long. If this had happened back then, I might have cared. But now? I just don’t think it matters anymore.” Vera’s voice was steady and sincere. But Caleb’s expression darkened. “Why would you say that? Why do you think it doesn’t matter? Do you really see me as just the same as everyone else?” For some reason, at this moment, Caleb took it personally. Vera couldn’t help but laugh. “Of course not. You’re different from the rest—so obviously, I wouldn’t see it the same way.“You’ve helped me so much. The least I can do is acknowledge that, instead of stubbornly nitpicking about what’s right or wrong, don’t you think?“Besides, whatever happened between you and Luna, that’s none of my business. It’s in
“I didn’t mean to just now. Besides, you’ve been acting all sneaky lately—so really, who else is to blame?” Seeing Yelena in tears, Liam, who had been furious just moments ago, felt a small pang of guilt. He was never good at expressing emotions. But watching her like this made him a little uncomfortable. “Go get your hand treated. Otherwise, people who don’t know any better might think I’ve been abusing you.” With that, he turned and walked away. Yelena watched his retreating figure, feeling a bit helpless. This wasn’t something she could decide on her own. Installing surveillance? It wasn’t as easy as it sounded. Liam was naturally suspicious. If he caught wind of it, the consequences would be disastrous. But she had no choice. She had a mission to complete, and there was more at stake than just this moment. Letting out a deep sigh, she finally decided to head to a clinic to get her hand treated. *“What happened to you? That’s a serious injury. You
And just like that, the conversation fell into a brief silence. Meanwhile, on the other side, Hunter received a call from Yelena. “What did you just say?” Yelena told him that her hand was broken, and on top of that, Liam seemed to be getting suspicious. She wasn’t sure what to do, so she called Hunter for advice. “I don’t really care what happens to you, but at the very least, take care of yourself.“Otherwise, if something else goes wrong later, I’ll have to step in and clean up the mess. Don’t you think so?” Hearing this, Yelena was a little taken aback. “It’s not just about my injury. The real problem is, I’m scared of what he might do now.” Sure, she had taken the two hundred thousand dollars, but she had to stay alive to spend it. At this rate, she wouldn’t even make it through in one piece. “I already told you—protect yourself. If you need anything else, I’ll try to provide it. But right now, I need you to do something for me.” Hunter had been look
“Yes, it’s in that mountain area. If you’re worried, you can go check it out yourself. But as for anything else, we don’t really have much more information.”Compared to everything else, this was the most baffling situation.“You make a good point. But given the current circumstances, I think it’ll be difficult to pull off.”Vera was speaking with the private investigator. Deep down, she was more worried than anything else.“Don’t worry,” the private investigator reassured her. “Aside from what we discussed earlier, nothing else seems too extreme. Plus, we’ve already looked into it pretty thoroughly.”By the time he finished speaking, his expression had grown more complicated.“Alright. I understand.”After hanging up, she anxiously looked straight ahead. If she had been mentally prepared before, now she was starting to feel uneasy. “What’s going on?” Caleb asked while driving, glancing at her. Vera hesitated, debating whether to tell him or not. But seeing the strange
“I only had one surgery today,” Caleb said as he drove, his voice calm but firm. “Now that it’s done, I want to know why this happened.” After that, he said nothing more. Vera sat in silence, her heart uneasy as the car pulled up in front of an upscale club. Even though her hand was already bandaged, she still felt a sting of pain every time Caleb showed concern. “So this is what it feels like to have someone care,” she thought to herself.Back when Vera had been stepped on, her only concern had been the contract—whether the deal would fall apart and if her suffering had been for nothing.If it had been anything else, she probably wouldn’t have cared as much.But Caleb’s concern made it impossible for her to brush aside.It kept lingering in her mind, refusing to let her feel indifferent.“Don’t overthink it,” Caleb said, his voice firm. “Whatever happened between Luna and me doesn’t change the fact that this concerns me too—and I owe it to you to make things right.”
“Oh? So this is the apology you wanted?” Vera’s forehead was covered in cold sweat from the pain, but the two women standing over her barely reacted. As if this was normal to them. As if humiliating her was just another game. “I asked you a question.” Vera remained half-crouched on the ground, her hand still pinned under Luna’s heel. Helena smirked. “Yeah, I’d say that’s good enough.” She hadn’t expected Vera to be this stubborn, but it didn’t matter. With an exaggerated sigh, she casually scribbled her signature onto the contract. The deal was officially secured. Vera didn’t waste another second. She cast one last glance at the two women. “I have no interest in getting involved in your personal drama. As for Caleb and me, that’s between us. We both made our choices.” Luna’s expression twisted slightly. “I won’t bother commenting on your relationship,” she said, voice dripping with disdain. “But don’t think for a second that this will ever earn
The moment Vera heard her assistant’s words, her expression darkened. Her previously calm tone turned firm. “If that’s the case, I understand. But I still have to go. This is my responsibility, and no one else can handle it.” If she didn’t take the lead, the other party would only grow bolder. However, the moment she glanced at the name on the negotiation list, she couldn’t help but frown. Because the person she was supposed to meet wasn’t just anyone. It was Helena Xander. Vera had encountered her before—back when her relationship with Caleb hadn’t yet escalated. Even then, Helena had openly mocked her, saying that since Caleb had been Luna’s devoted lapdog for years, he should know his place and never overstep. She had also thrown a few sharp words at Vera, telling her to recognize her own status—as if warning her that getting involved would only bring trouble. Back then, Vera hadn’t taken it seriously. She never thought she would cross paths with the