He could be gentle, he could be cruel but he never brought up divorce. Nina wanted to pull away, but he tightened his grip even more. "Nina, don't be silly."Nina felt even worse. "How is it silly for me to want some clarity? If you and your mother share the same mindset, then I can return the two million to you.""Nina, do you even have two million?" Nash did not believe her. At that moment, the car was moving slowly. The central locking system was engaged, and the doors could not be opened. Nina said hoarsely, "No, I don't, but I can earn it."Nash chuckled lightly. "And how do you plan to do that? If you leave the York family, who do you think will hire you? How much do you plan to pay me back each month?" Before Nina could respond, Nash continued to laugh, "How long do you plan to take to repay this two million?"Nina fell silent. She had not considered all this yet. But now that Nash brought it up, she could take on part-time jobs, borrow some money from Yvonne, work as a
Nina asked quietly, "If I must ensure your happiness, appease your mom, and prevent your aunt from feeling disappointed, then what about me?"Nash responded somewhat resentfully, "Nina, don't forget, it was you who told Grandpa that you wanted to marry me."Nina recalled the promise of two million and the shares. Her head throbbed, and it felt like an invisible hand was squeezing her heart fiercely. For a moment, she struggled to breathe. She did not want to discuss these matters with Nash anymore. Leaning against the car window, she closed her eyes.Nash remained silent, assuming she was tired. Before long, the driver parked the car at the entrance of Riverview Estate.Initially, Nash had not planned to wake her up, thinking she could rest a while longer. Surprisingly, Nina pushed open the car door. Observing her steady steps, Nash suddenly realized she was not tired; she just did not want to face him.He pursed his lips, following her. "You head in first. If everything's fine, w
Although Zoe was of a certain age, she liked being addressed as "Miss York" just like the younger folks.Watching his aunt lead Nina away, Nash opted to adhere to the rules and donned a silver-white metallic mask.By the time he entered, Zoe had already taken Nina to the second floor of the lobby. From this vantage point, one could overlook the entire scene of the ground floor, although outsiders could not see inside.There were many people at the dance, all dressed in their finery, with the youngsters showcasing their enviable figures.Nina did not understand the purpose of Zoe hosting such a dance."Have some juice. Tonight, I can help you test that stinky kid, Nash," Zoe pushed a glass of juice toward Nina, her smile sly.Although Nash claimed that he married Nina for the shares their grandfather promised, Zoe did not believe that there was no affection between them after three years of marriage.Nina hastily grabbed Zoe's hand. "Zoe, please don't try. I've been swamped with
Nash and Nina were both drawn to this voice. They saw a girl in a long pink dress. She was tall with fair skin, hair elegantly pinned up, and adorned with jewels. She was running towards Nash while holding up her skirt. She wore a silver-white mask similar to the one on Nash's face.Most notably, there was a significant height difference between them when the girl reached Nash. Recognizing him even with his mask on indicated a strong familiarity."Who are you?" Nash frowned. He was certain this girl was not Nina. He had no idea what tricks his aunt was up to, and he was unaware that Nina was watching everything.The girl smiled, lifting the corners of her mouth. "Nash, never mind who I am. Can I invite you to dance now? Since my aunt hosted tonight's event, I should make good use of this opportunity, shouldn't I?"The girl's reference to "aunt" piqued the curiosity of Nash and Nina. Who exactly was this girl?Nash coldly declined her offer, "I don't accept invitations from strange
Nina was dumbfounded, unsure why he had such a sudden strong reaction. "Does this feel better for you?" Nina asked him again.Nash looked into Nina's eyes and realized she did not mean it that way. He slightly pursed his lips, closed his eyes, and replied softly, "Mmm, much better." He knew she was changing the subject, so he did not press further.Nina continued to massage him, feeling her hands getting sore. Hearing Nash's steady breathing, she paused and fetched a thin blanket for him. As she stepped out of the office, she ran into Serene."Nina," Serene instinctively greeted her upon seeing her.Nina entered Nash's office and stayed there for over an hour. Last night at the banquet, Nash smashing a wine bottle over Sean's head made it obvious even to the discerning eye that the relationship between Nash and Nina was far from shallow.Nina nodded and returned to her desk. Yvonne sent her a message: [Have you considered my proposal? Do you want to accept?]Nina replied: [I’ve b
"No, today's meeting is with an important client. Just focus on your job at the company." Nash was the kind of person who remained indifferent to everyone. If he truly disliked someone, in a situation where there were no interests involved, he would not allow that person to appear before him. Seeing Serene's silence, Nina added, "Your focus should be on your job, making sure you excel in your responsibilities, rather than worrying about whether he likes you or not."If he doesn't like you, does that mean you'll lose motivation for your job?" Nina's words were sharp and direct.Serene pondered for a moment. "You're right, I see now. I shouldn't be so anxious."Nina calmly said, "Just focus on your tasks." With that, Serene returned to her workstation. Nash went to meet with the person in charge of Jasper Corporation, so she could freely leave work and visit her parents. However, she did not expect to find Sue and Lily there. This time, the mother and daughter did not display th
Nina's breath caught for a moment. She decided to keep it to herself. "I'm not pregnant, just had too much of the same, wanted to change things up a bit."Her mother cautioned her, "It's best if you're not pregnant. After all, you've made a decision. Being pregnant at this juncture could complicate things."There was more that her mother wanted to say, but Nina's father gave her a meaningful look, urging her, "Nina, eat a little more. When it comes to having a child, you young folks should figure it out on your own.""Okay," Nina nodded. Now that she was pregnant, her appetite had changed, and she felt tired easily. After eating, she soon felt drowsy and was about to go back to her room when Quincy called."Nina, Mr. York got drunk.""Where is he?" Nina could not ignore it."I'm with Serene, sending him to the Riverview Estate."Hearing Serene's name, Nina paused. Nash had gone to meet the person in charge of the Jasper Corporation but he only took Quincy."Okay, I'll be right
As soon as Serene left, Nash’s deep, dark eyes settled intensely on Nina. “Where did you get all these things?”Since it was in a transparent bag, only some packed food items were visible.Nina replied, “I went to my parents’ place.”“Did not run into Scott?” Nash asked somberly.At this moment, there was not a hint of drunkenness about him. It seemed that Serene's learning and execution abilities were truly strong.Nina calmly said, “He has his own matters, we're both not that idle.”With that, Nina carrying two large bags, walked towards the kitchen. Since she was going to stay at Riverside Estate for a while, she did not say much else.After she put away the items and came out, Nash nodded at her, “Come here.”Nina did not want to confront him, so she quickly walked over to him.Nash extended his hand, and the next second, she was pulled into his embrace. A strong smell of alcohol instantly enveloped the surroundings. The scent was extremely unpleasant to Nina.She frowned
Caleb’s first words were, “Don’t make things hard for her.”They all knew exactly who he was talking about.The excitement drained from Luna in an instant, replaced by a chilling cold that seeped from her head to her toes. Just thinking about it made her shudder.She forced herself to steady her voice. “Caleb, after all this time without a word from you, the first thing you say when you finally reach out is… about her?”“You’ve been pushing things too far lately,” Caleb replied. “I’m not Simon. I can’t handle your feelings, so you should focus on him instead.”“Simon has a kid now. He doesn’t have feelings for me.”Caleb didn’t hesitate. “Neither do I.”Luna had never imagined that words from someone’s mouth could cut so deep.Maybe because she didn’t respond, Caleb spoke again. “You never accepted me. There was never anything between us to begin or end. But whatever’s going on, don’t drag other people into it.”Luna almost laughed. Instead, she asked, “In your heart, Vera is
Vera felt a flicker of guilt, like a child being scolded by an elder. “It’s nothing.” Caleb studied her for a long moment, then sighed. “You really think you can hide things from me?” Vera hesitated, unsure how to respond. Caleb didn’t press her. Instead, he changed the subject and gestured for her to sit down and eat. She hadn’t had a chance to grab lunch before rushing out of the office. Not just today—she had been so caught up dealing with the board members that she often only ate one or two meals a day. No wonder Mr. Mason had noticed how worn out she looked. Caleb had picked up takeout from the hospital cafeteria. It wasn’t anything fancy—certainly no match for restaurant food—but it was balanced and nutritious. He had ordered two portions, like he had already planned to eat with her. As she quietly ate, Vera felt an unexpected sense of relaxation. She was so at ease that when Caleb spoke, she almost didn’t catch it. “Rough week?” “A littl
That man was definitely important to Luna. Vera made up her mind—she would keep an eye on it when she got back.“Our Mason Corporation has reviewed your company’s requirements for the HN Tower project, and we have two concerns. First, the compensation doesn’t match the workload. You’re demanding top-tier materials, yet only offering a profit margin of less than ten percent. “Second, we have our own team. As the client, your company shouldn’t have a say in our staffing decisions.” That was why Vera had come today. She was usually easygoing—if a client’s requests weren’t unreasonable, she was more than willing to listen. But this time, Luna was pushing it. Since when did a client get to dictate who the partner company could or couldn’t hire? And less than ten percent profit? What happened to the so-called “win-win” they had promised in the contract? Sounded more like a scam. Luna wasn’t the least bit surprised. “Too much? I don’t think so.” She shrugged. “E
Vera had no idea what kind of game Luna was playing. But she had no choice—she had to go. After a brief moment of hesitation, she made up her mind. Fine. It was not like she was walking into fire. Luna’s company was massive—one of the country’s top 100 firms. A company of that caliber naturally had a professional and well-trained front desk. “Miss Mason, Miss Gibson is expecting you upstairs,” the receptionist said with a polite smile, gesturing toward the elevator. “Right this way.” Vera took the elevator up to the third floor, where Luna’s office was located. She assumed Luna would be there waiting. But instead, her secretary greeted her with, “Miss Gibson is currently in a meeting. Please wait a moment.” How familiar. Vera couldn’t help but wonder if Luna was deliberately messing with her. She didn’t want to be petty, but… First, she refused to take her calls. Now that she was here in person, Luna was ‘too busy.’ Wasn’t this just a way to waste
“If you had been any later, she might’ve had a kid by now!” Luna had done her homework before coming, so she knew all about Vera’s situation. Her emotions were running high, but at the core of it, she looked down on the women who had been rescued from that mountain village. Some of them had even given birth. Who knew if Vera had been touched during her time there? The thought hit Vera like a blow to the head. A rush of emotions surged through her, and she instinctively wanted to sit up. But just as she moved her fingers, she remembered—she was supposed to be asleep. Opening her eyes too suddenly would make things worse. She had no choice but to stay put. Every second stretched unbearably long. Finally, she heard his voice. “Whether or not that happened doesn’t change how I feel about her.” Caleb’s tone was calm, unwavering. His words landed in Vera’s heart like a stone hitting water, sending ripples through her. Luna’s face paled. “Caleb, are y
Caleb was startled at first, quickly arranging for Vera to be taken to the hospital for a check-up. When he realized she had simply pushed herself to exhaustion, he sighed, caught between frustration and tenderness. “How could you let yourself get like this?” he muttered at her bedside. But Vera couldn’t hear him. She was still deep in sleep. The hospital had hooked her up to an IV drip, and she wouldn’t wake up until her body had fully recovered. Caleb wasn’t in a rush. She was safe now, and that was all that mattered. He had all the time in the world to sit there and watch over her. *“Caleb!” The hospital room door swung open, and Luna burst in. But the scene in front of her made her freeze. Caleb was sitting beside Vera’s bed, clearly exhausted from a sleepless night, but he refused to leave even for a moment. Even now, when he looked at her, his expression was unreadable. “What are you doing here?” he asked, his tone indifferent. There
Vera didn’t want to leave Caleb behind to face this alone. But there were people in the car depending on her. She took one last deep look at Caleb. Through the rearview mirror, she could see his tall figure shrinking into the distance as the car sped forward. Even as his silhouette blurred, his stance remained firm. Vera blinked back the heat in her eyes and slammed her foot on the gas. The car shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow. The next second, a mob of villagers—armed with hoes and shovels—swarmed around Caleb. *At the local police station, a distress call came in. The officers were stunned when the caller arrived, bringing four rescued women with her. After verifying their identities, it was clear that their bodies bore the marks of prolonged captivity and abuse. “There’s still someone back there! You have to save him!” Vera’s voice was urgent, almost pleading. She had driven all night without stopping.No food. No rest.Only a few
Caleb let them in. After hearing about what these women had endured in the village, his anger was palpable. Vera looked him in the eye. “I want to get them out of here.“They were forced to stay. Outside this mountain, their families are still waiting for them.“They shouldn’t be trapped here, forced to have children against their will.” At the mention of that, the room fell silent. Even Sera hesitated. Some of these women already had children. Leaving meant abandoning them. As mothers, the thought was unbearable. But what choice did they have? Stay and continue to suffer? Vera could see Caleb was thinking it over, so she pushed forward. “We have to move quickly. It won’t take long before the villagers realize they’re gone.“Once they start searching, it’s only a matter of time before they come here.“We won’t cause trouble for you. We just need a car.” There was a road leading out of the village. Otherwise, Caleb wouldn’t have been able to get in.
Vera watched as Leonard stumbled out of his house in nothing but a pair of pants, rushing toward the fire. Disgust churned in her stomach, but more than that, she worried about Sera’s safety. The darkness of the night concealed the emotions on her face, and no one noticed anything unusual. Women in this village were nothing more than tools for childbirth—no one paid them much attention. Especially now, with the fire raging, no one was thinking about her. The village chief had come by to ask how the fire started, but she had convinced him with a quick excuse. With all the men busy putting out the flames, Vera quietly slipped away toward Leonard’s house. Inside, Sera had been startled by the commotion outside. But the moment she saw Vera rush in, she understood immediately. “Was this you?” Sera’s eyes widened. “You set the fire?” Vera grabbed her hand. “There’s no time to talk about that!“We have to go—now. Do you know where the other women are being held?