Mona froze, but the woman on the other end of the phone seemed more anxious than her. Without waiting for Mona to answer, the woman asked her another question. “Hi, I saw the caller ID on Thaddeus' phone and have a question for you. Is your name Mona Ortega?” Mona pursed her lips and answered casually, “Yes, that’s me.” The woman let out a confused cry when she heard Mona’s response. “Eh, that’s strange. What a coincidence. We both have the same name—-Mona Ortega.” “So, you’re Mona?” Feeling surprised, Mona suddenly felt insignificant and wanted to retreat. She felt as though she was a ghost that only existed at night, a puppet that would never be brought to light, or a substitute that was left as an alternative. Now that the real Mona Ortega appeared, her existence seemed to have become redundant and cumbersome. “Thaddeus said my name is Mona Ortega, so that’s who I am. I believe whatever he says—whatever he says.” The woman, on the other hand, spoke without a beginnin
Thaddeus shook his head helplessly and asked the woman, “Mona, don’t you remember? What exactly have you encountered all these years?” “Didn’t we come to France together? With my brother, my daddy, and my mommy? What do you mean by all these years?” After finishing, the woman looked Thaddeus in the eye. “Didn’t we just get off the plane yesterday? You wanted me to wait for you at 743 Rose Avenue while you go and pick up my brother, my daddy, and my mommy…?” Thaddeus frowned. When he heard her talking about that, he immediately pursued the matter. “Yes. What happened after? Tell me what happened after you went to Rose Avenue.” The woman was puzzled. “Then I slept all night, and you’re here to pick me up today.”“That’s strange.” She suddenly recalled something and asked, “By the way, which room is my brother in now? He still has my suitcase.” The woman let go and was about to leave the room when she was pulled back by Thaddeus. “Mona, listen to me. We’re not on vacation, an
If Mona wanted to leave, Aunt May and the butler could not stop her. She took the car keys and carried a long tube that contained the artwork. With her head held high and her chest stuck out, Mona strutted to the Bentley. Looking back, she saw Aunt May standing at the door waving at her. “Mrs. Fontaine, drive slowly and come home early.” Mona put her hand on the side of her forehead and raised it outward. She was playful yet cool at the same time. “I got it. I’ll leave it to the driver to pick up my children. I’ll be busy with work and might have to work overtime.” Aunt May, unable to do anything about it, could only stomp her feet anxiously. Not only was Mona going out, but she was also going to be home late. She could not be controlled at all. Mona drove to the studio. The opening ceremony was just around the corner, so she only wanted to focus on working. As for where Thaddeus was and who he was with at the moment, she could not be bothered to think about it. Nothing was m
Instead, Tim was like a violent bow, fully drawn and ready to attack. He was prepared to shoot in Ben’s direction at any time. “What does this have to do with you? Ben, listen, if you come across something you love but don’t dare fight for it, that’s cowardice.” Ben was startled. He was surprised to find that the familiar man in front of him had unknowingly become emotional and extreme. It seemed Tim was not as simple and pure as he once thought and had become incomprehensible. Did he change for a beloved woman? Tim was simply a fool stupidly in love. “I hope you can think and see things clearly.” Ben smiled, feeling that he had probably cared too much. He mocked himself, saying, “I don’t have a good family background like yours, but I know there are many things you can’t fight for or force just because you try. For instance, the fate between people. If you force it when you don’t have that kind of chemistry with someone, you won’t end up well.” After finishing, Ben let go
That night, Mona treated everyone to hotpot. She initially thought that Tim would not join them. After all, the noble and cool son from a rich family despised the hustle and bustle of the city. Who knew that after work, Tim still followed everyone else into the hotpot restaurant while joking and laughing with them. Mona and Tim sat across each other with hot steam between them. Mona put meatballs and vegetables into the hotpot while putting lamb and beef slices into Tim’s bowl. “I’m a woman of my word. Since you did me a great favor, I’ll treat you to a nice meal. Consider the hotpot today an appetizer. I know you might not be used to this kind of food and probably prefer steaks and wines from high-end restaurants, so I’ll treat you properly next time.” Tim held his bowl and enjoyed the food. He hurriedly shook his head in denial. “How can I not be used to this? While I was studying, I often got meals from food trucks with Ben and others.” “That’s good.” Mona smiled and l
“No idea. Who’s Mona’s husband?” The model asked Julie. “How can you not know? It’s Thaddeus Fontaine.” “What?!” The lady was shocked. “Do you mean the extremely handsome Thaddeus Fontaine?” “The CEO of Timez Entertainment and the master of Fontaine Group. Which other Thaddeus Fontaine can you think of? Is there another Thaddeus Fontaine in Worchester City?” “Oh my god. I didn’t expect Mona to be Thaddeus' wife. Is Thaddeus married? I didn’t see it on the news.” “What do you think? I heard they even have two kids.” The model was even more surprised. She opened her mouth slightly and looked at Mona, who was eating quietly. “They have kids too? I wouldn’t have known if you hadn’t told me. I would’ve thought she was together with the young man across from her.” “Right? I would’ve thought the same if I didn’t know. Look at how close they are. He saved her from getting hit by the advertisement board and is even secretly looking at her with affection. I’ve been watching them
“Just what are you doing?” Marianne was quick to notice the model’s action. She put down her chopsticks and walked over to the model to snatch her phone away. “What are you secretly recording with your phone?” Marianne was the leader of the modeling team. She usually disliked how lazy Julie and her friend were. They normally argued a lot, so it just so happened to be time for her to vent her dissatisfaction. “Hey, why are you so rude? That’s my phone. Who are you to take my phone away?” “I suspect that you were secretly filming others.” Marianne looked down and glanced at the phone. Sure enough, there was a video of Mona and Tim talking and laughing while eating. She looked at the model and questioned coldly, “Is this not it? Why did you record this?” “That’s not true. I was only taking a short video to post on my social media.” “Then why did you only record the two of them? Do you think it’s fun? You’re violating their privacy.” “Nonsense. We’re in public. What privacy
Marianne became more furious when she saw how unconcerned Mona was. She said indignantly, “Honestly, now I feel aggrieved for Thaddeus. He likes you so much. How could you betray him?” Marianne was acting in a fit of pique. She had truly loved Thaddeus, so she could not bear seeing him being wronged and could not stand others bullying him. Mona wanted to laugh when she saw Marianne’s angry face. Nonetheless, she was moved by Marianne’s persistent love for Thaddeus. Marianne still could not forget him even after being dumped by him for so long. Mona had not wanted to waste her time at first, but seeing how persistent Marianne was, she had some things to say. “There are many things that are more than what they seem on the surface. Everyone has their choice and reason. You just can’t see the reason behind it, so don’t speculate on others with your subjective opinion. In plain words, you have to learn to see things clearly, and don’t bother with everything.” After that, Mona