Sam gently smiled as he came to the faucet next to Colene to wash his hands. "Colene, we meet again. Happy Easter."Colene asked unkindly, "Why are you here?""I'm here for some work. What about you?" He pulled a couple of paper towels from a dispenser on the wall to dry his hands. His posture remained graceful the whole time. "Just hanging out." She grudgingly uttered some words and shook the water off her hands before leaving. Sam grabbed her arm. "Is there a chance for us to have a meal together?""No." Colene shook off his hand and strode out of the restroom. After she returned to the dining table, Gabriella noticed her unusual demeanor and asked, "What's wrong?"Colene snorted coldly, "I just ran into a piece of trash. It ruined my mood."Gabriella immediately understood who she was referring to. "He's staying here too?""Uh-huh." Colene took a few more bites before putting down her fork.She added, "I'm done eating. I'll head back to my room. Are we going
Felise called, "Uncle Henry!" Her childish voice was the first to break the silence. She was the first to react and ran up to Henry happily. "Why are you here?"Henry said, "I've something to do here. Just happened to be here and see you all." He was speaking to Felise, but his gaze was on Gabriella. His tone was a bit worried and reproachful."You're so stubborn. The injury on your head hasn't healed yet and your ankle has just recovered yesterday. The doctor advised you to rest more. But here you are, going on a photography trip. You don't take your well-being seriously." Gabriella's sixth sense told her that Henry was not here for other matters. He came here for her. However, she did not expose it and said calmly, "I'm fine. Go ahead and deal with your business. We're heading out for a photography trip."She shifted her gaze to Frank. "Let's go. The guide is probably here."Seeing her indifferent attitude toward Henry, Frank smiled faintly. "Sure."Before leaving,
Not far away, Gabriella showed Frank her camera. The photos displayed great angles and color tones. Frank praised her skills but also shared his opinions. Despite several attempts to adjust the angles, Gabriella could not capture the effect she desired. Hence, Frank stood behind her and guided her hands to find the best angle. From Henry's perspective, it looked as though Frank was embracing Gabriella, and their posture was intimate. He squinted and pressed his lips tightly together as a vein throbbing on his forehead. Then, he strode over with Felise in tow. As they were almost there, Frank released his hands and stepped aside to view the camera screen. "How's that?"Gabriella scrutinized the photo in the camera and glanced at him smilingly. She praised, "Wow, the same scene from this angle feels completely different from the previous shot. You're truly a world-renowned photographer!"They stood close together. Frank could see her fair, smooth skin. Her big, round eyes w
Gabriella was spot on about Colene's thoughts. When Sam handed her phone to her, she really didn't want to take it. But since so many eyes were on them, she took it and wiped the screen clean. "Thank you.""You're welcome," Sam replied with a smile. The golden frame of his glasses shone.Colene asked coldly, "Why are you here?""I heard the scenery here's pretty good, so I came here to let off some steam. I didn't expect to see you here."Colene looked at him with suspicion.Sam glanced back at the thief and dialed 911 on his phone. After the call, he said, "The cops are coming soon. Wait here." Gabriella rushed over to her and asked, "Collie, are you alright?"Colene replied, "I'm alright. You can go on ahead. I'll catch up with you after the police take my statement." "Why is he here?" Gabriella asked while looking at Sam.Colene rolled her eyes and squinted at Henry. "He said he was here to let off some steam. Who knows?"Henry remained expressionless under Col
Sensing that Colene didn't seem jealous at all, Sam pursed his lips and took a sip out of his cup."Everyone has always said that Eliyah has an eye for good men.""Oh, she has an eye for trash."Sam was speechless.The waiter started to serve up their food. One of them was a bottle of expensive white wine.Colene popped the bottle open. She poured herself and Sam a glass. Sam didn't drink any, but Colene downed two glasses in just a few minutes. He noticed that Colene was about to pour herself more wine. Sam reminded her, "Don't drink too much wine.""What does it have to do with you?" Colene shot back and poured herself another glassful.Just as she was about to drink it, Sam teased arrogantly, "Are you jealous after hearing about me having a girlfriend?"Colene was stunned. She replied as if she'd heard a great joke, "Jealous? Me? Why would I be jealous? You must be joking. You're delusional!" "Then, why are you drinking so much all of a sudden?""I just thought of s
Meanwhile, Gabriella was going to report to Hannah's studio the next day. So she wanted to leave Felise with Henry.Diana wanted to bring Felise back to Laneville after their trip. But she wondered if Henry would insist on keeping Felise, or if he would let her go.Gabriella glanced at the rearview mirror. Henry's car was following hers from a distance. She grabbed her phone and messaged Henry. Then, she said to Quinn, "Quinnie, stop your car over there. I'll get out of the car with Lise.""Do I need to wait for you?""No. I need to talk to Henry.""Alright," Quinn replied. Quinn parked her car at the side of the road once she found an opening.Gabriella and Felise alighted from the car. Quinn drove away, while Henry parked his car in front of them.Gabriella opened the door to the backseat and entered with Felise.Henry's hand was on the steering wheel. There was an expensive watch on his wrist. He took off his earbuds with his other hand.He looked in the rearview mirror a
Henry pursed his lips. He stared at Gabriella's reflection in the rearview mirror. He gritted his teeth and repeated, "It's none of my business?"He already gave her a chance to confess the truth. But she would rather risk her life than tell him anything.Henry wondered if he was that unworthy of her trust, and if her life was that unimportant to her.Gabriella looked up. She didn't understand why Henry looked so angry. "My affairs have nothing to do with you. By the way, how did you know I'm looking into that kidnapping case? "Did you investigate me again? I haven't even settled the score with you for following me to Niden!"Gabriella's self-righteous reply infuriated Henry. His grip on the steering wheel tightened. The veins on the back of his hand bulged. "I investigated you because you were threatened. I followed you to Niden because I was worried about you as you were injured the night before. I'm only trying to help you!"Gabriella snickered and replied, "Henry, your
Gabriella asked for the schedule from the staff while Hannah was filming. Hannah had to film two scenes today. The first scene was what they were filming now, while the second scene was scheduled for the evening. The first scene took over an hour to film before the director was satisfied.Before Hannah spoke, Gabriella draped the puffer jacket over her shoulders.Hannah raised an eyebrow at her and walked outside. "My water bottle is in the tent. It's the pink one. I'll be in the car, so fetch me some warm water.""Okay," Gabriella replied and grabbed the water bottle from the tent. She filled the water bottle with some warm water. She made sure not to fill it up completely so that Gabriella wouldn't accidentally pour some warm water on herself when she opened the bottle.Hannah took the bottle from Gabriella and opened it without a thought. She glanced at Gabriella. "I'll rest in the car for a while. Stand guard outside for me and call me if anything happens," she said and
Carmila, dressed in a gorgeous wedding gown, entered with Zain.After exchanging rings, Shawn and Carmila headed toward their parents in the front row.Layla's seat was on the opposite side, and the gorgeous flowers on stage hid her view, so she could only hear what was happening.The newlyweds appeared on stage with the four elders for a group shot.She narrowed her eyes and noticed that Shawn's mother resembled her landlord.Chris also had the same realization and whispered to her, "Layla, do you think that person looks like our landlord?""They do look quite similar."The ceremony was over. The newlyweds left, and the waiters began serving dishes.Carmila was pregnant and didn't need to toast. Only Shawn came forward to drink with the Sanderson elders.After toasting, he placed the wine glass on the tray, followed the elders' instructions, and turned to the next table.When he noticed a familiar figure at the table, he stopped and narrowed his eyes. He looked at Layla, the
Shawn and Carmila's wedding was rescheduled once Henry had been safely released from the detention center.However, Carmila's pregnancy was already showing, so the wedding was kept simple.Firstly, everyone thought she would appear unsightly if she married while being visibly pregnant. The second reason was that they feared the complex wedding would exhaust her and the child in her womb.Carmila was displeased, but she had no say in the matter. Furthermore, insisting on a bigger ceremony would make it appear that she didn't care about the child.The wedding car left Florin around 5:00 am and picked her up at 8:00 am.Shawn was in a suit, and Carmila was in a wedding gown. They stood together and carried out the ceremony amidst their elders' blessings.Then, he helped her into the bridal chamber.Meanwhile, Gabriella, along with Megan and several close relatives, entertained the guests who were seeing off the bride.Everyone left for the hotel around 10:00 a.m.Although the wed
Naturally, Elaine wouldn't tell the truth. "I've told you about Moabia before. They're the ones who took the watch. "I ran into Fay's friend at the mall two days ago. She recognized and mocked me! I was outraged and tried to scare them today. But they smashed my car, pinned me to the ground, and beat me!"Unexpectedly, Sam scowled. "Nothing would happen if you didn't scare them."As soon as he heard about Moabia, he knew that Gabriella's friend, whom Elaine mentioned, was Colene.Although he hadn't returned to Chatan at that time, he had been following Colene's Twitter account and checking it frequently. He knew she had accompanied Gabriella to Moabia.She wouldn't let herself suffer, and she wouldn't mock others without reason. There must be a reason for everything.Furthermore, Elaine's words lacked credibility.Everyone would choose to portray themselves favorably, including her. Just like when she broke a person's leg and said it was just a minor injury. Elaine couldn't b
Alicia looked over and saw Colene drag Elaine by the hair and push her to the ground. Colene even tied her hands with a rope as she struggled.Gabriella straddled Elaine, grabbed her chin, and slapped her twice.It was a rare opportunity to teach Elaine a lesson. She naturally wanted to settle the scores!Alicia was speechless. Sam's plane was about to land. She didn't want to face him with a bruised and swollen face."Ah! Just wait and see! I'll kill you bitches! Let go of me! My uncle will shoot you both! Ah! Fay, you bitch!"Elaine was crying and howling on the ground, her voice shrill. It was the first time in her life that she had suffered such humiliation! She swore to take revenge on them!She would make sure Blake had them jailed and executed!Elaine's cries attracted several passersby.Seeing that the destroyed car was a Maserati, they realized they couldn't intervene. So, they just watched from the side. No one dared to step forward.Someone was filming Gabriella, bu
They were her nemesis!Elaine fixed her gaze on Gabriella and Colene, filled with rage. "I must teach them a lesson!"Alicia, trying to discourage her, said, "Elaine, I don't think it's a good idea. We're in Chatan…""My uncle's here. What are you afraid of?" Elaine replied unconcernedly, "Follow me."Gabriella and Colene stepped into a clothing store while talking. The clothing in the store was stylish. Gabriella chose a one-shoulder dress and entered the changing room.Colene was outside and exclaimed with astonishment, "Damn! So the woman standing with Henry outside the women's restroom door that day was Elaine?"Gabriella frequently videocalled her while in Draken, telling her about her situation there.She then realized that Gabriella had met the self-righteous foolish Elaine, the young lady of the Draken's wealthy family, on the plane again."It's her," Gabriella responded as she changed clothes."She came to Florin?""Do you remember that we met a big shot at the pol
Then she turned slightly to see that Felise was still fast asleep. However, they were so close that they might wake her up.Gabriella didn't want Felise to catch them in the act.Henry didn't answer. He blew hot air onto Gabriella's neck, and goosebumps prickled her skin. He caught her earlobe and sucked it hard.A jolt of electricity seemed to shoot through her, and she shuddered. She curled her toes and shrank back.Suddenly, Gabriella became fully awake, and she tightened around Henry's hand. "What… what are you doing?"Henry's mouth was next to her ear, and his breath was hot on her earlobes. "I'm helping you relax.""No…""When you're relaxed, I'll sleep."Gabriella remained silent. Then, she bit her lip. "No, Henry… don't… uh, Lise is beside me… don't…"A light seemed to flash across her brain, and she stiffened suddenly, and her eyes went out of focus as she stared at the ceiling. Her breathing turned heavy.Henry kissed her cheek and got some wet towels to wipe her do
Felise hadn't seen Gabriella in two months, and she missed her dearly.After school, Felise got in line with the other children to leave the kindergarten. She looked around and heard her seatmate say, "Lise, your parents have come together to get you!"Felise followed the gaze of her seatmate, and she saw a man and a woman standing side by side, their eyes searching through the crowd of kindergarteners. The man wore a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing his lean forearms. He wore black pants and a leather belt, which showed off his long legs. He looked like a model.The woman wore a fitting white lace blouse, and there was a white-gold necklace around her creamy neck. Her arms were fair and slender, like snow, and she wore a short khaki-colored miniskirt. Her legs were slim and fair, and her skin was flawless. They were a very good-looking couple, and they attracted the attention of many of the parents. Even the children couldn't help looking over at
It was already noon. Henry told the driver to make a detour to a restaurant. The waiter led them to a private room on the second floor and politely handed them a menu.Henry had come here a few times before. Perhaps it was because he didn't like lamb, but he only just noticed that there were several signature lamb dishes on the menu. Gabriella looked through the menu and ordered a few at random.Henry heard her orders and told the waiter, "Add a braised lamb and lamb rack.""You have great taste, sir. These are our signature dishes." The waiter smiled and noted it down."Will it be too much?""It's okay. We can bring it back if we can't finish it." Henry gave the menu to the waiter. "That's all."While they waited for the food to be served, the two of them chatted casually.Henry told her in detail about all the affiliated companies under Toussaint Holdings and the new products the studios were about to launch. He asked Gabriella which of these she was interested in. As lo
Then Layla heard something that made her lose all hope."Layla, come to my office."She opened her mouth, then deflated and said, "Okay."The intern looked curiously at Shawn's retreating figure and said, "Why does Mr. Shawn want to see you?""I don't know. Whatever it is, I'll find out when I go. I'm leaving." Layla carried an expression of dignified resignation.She guessed that Shawn wanted to see her about the office romance issue. She wasn't dating Robin, but it was worse than dating. Shawn had just stepped into the office when Layla followed him in. Her head was lowered, and she looked uneasy. "Mr. Shawn, what do you want to see me about?" she asked, her voice hoarse. Shawn sat down behind the desk and arranged the documents on it. He asked casually, "Do you remember what I asked you during your interview?""Y-yes… you asked me what I think about office romances." Layla lowered her gaze and answered in a small voice. Her palms were sweating, and her heart was in her t