Olivia saw an unfamiliar face. The face was exquisite, but she didn't feel a sense of familiarity.So, she figured that the woman was a stranger. But the woman looked at Olivia like she knew her. "Do you know me?" Olivia asked. The woman regained her composure and said with a smile, "In a way."The woman stood up. Her posture was elegant and confident as she stuck her hand out. "Hi, I'm Jacqueline Fordham."This name … Olivia couldn't help but ask, "You're a Fordham?"Avery had just given her his card not long ago. She didn't expect to meet another Fordham so soon. "Yeah. Avery told us about you. We wouldn't have found my sister's remains without your help. I've been meaning to visit you, but I didn't expect to meet you here. You're more beautiful in person."Jacqueline smiled. A dimple appeared on her left cheek, which made her seem even more delightful and charming. Olivia had asked Ethan about her encounter with Avery. He casually glossed over it and told her about what happene
Olivia could sense that something was wrong, but she didn't try to ask any questions since she noticed Janice's aloof attitude. Olivia nodded at the woman politely and said, "Please make way."The woman took Olivia's hand affectionately and said, "You must be Olivia. I've seen the news. "You're a good match for Ethan. You two look like a match made in heaven when standing next to each other."The woman saw the confusion in Olivia's eyes and introduced herself, "Look at me. I forgot that we haven't met. I'm Ethan's stepmother. You can call me Ms. Potts." Olivia immediately understood who she was—Jessica Potts, the love of Kenneth's life. She was also the one that brought misfortune upon the Millers, and she was also a class-A bitch. Olivia didn't expect to meet Jessica in person. She finally understood why Janice was acting that way. Also, Jessica was probably trying to cozy up to her so she could ruin Janice's day. Jessica was obviously more skilled at putting up appearances than
Olivia was afraid that this meeting would cause Janice's condition to worsen. She observed all of their expressions anxiously.Kenneth finally noticed Janice's presence. His gaze fell on her momentarily before moving away. The emotions in his eyes were conflicted. Several emotions were swirling within.Janice didn't even look at him. She muttered, "Just my fucking luck."Her voice wasn't loud, but everyone could hear it. Janice waved at the salesperson and said, "Pack up all these I have tried on."The salesperson said uneasily, "About that … Mrs. Miller Senior had reserved them in advance. They are our last pair. I showed them to you to match them with the necklace." Mrs. Miller Senior. These three words were quite ironic.Jessica quickly said, "It's fine, Janice. We're a family, after all. If you like these earrings, you can have them. "Kenneth can pay for them. It'll be our gift to Olivia. "Right, Kenneth. This is Ethan's wife. I don't think you've met her before."What a consi
Ethan really did resemble Kenneth. Both of them were mostly expressionless. Kenneth's expression made it hard to discern his feelings at the moment. After they had walked away, Olivia asked, "Mom, are you okay?""Why wouldn't I be? She's just as underhanded as ever. She was just trying to make me angry."As if recalling something, Janice smiled. "Her tactics weren't that ingenious. She simply manipulated my feelings for Kenneth. "The more I cared about him, the easier I would lose control of my emotions. "Even if I knew she was setting me up, I could never stop myself from falling for it. And the misunderstandings piled up over time.""Since they were misunderstandings, have you ever tried to explain yourself?"Janice brought Olivia to a cafe on the top floor to relax. She stirred her coffee in the air-conditioned cafe and told Olivia about her past."If he loves you, he should believe you even if you didn't explain yourself. If he doesn't love you, anything you do would irritate
Olivia frowned. "But that's so unfair to you.""And what is fair? Love, some people work hard just to survive; some have to do the most degrading and tiring jobs. "Some people can only gaze at the towering buildings, yet others were the successors of such buildings when they were born. Life's never fair." Olivia fell silent. Janice said sincerely, "Olivia, you're still young. Many things aren't as simple as you think they are. Can you guess why I hadn't made a move against Jessica even though I knew the truth?""Is it because you're afraid of Mr. Miller Senior?""Afraid of him? You would only care about a man's feelings and what he thinks if you loved him. If the love is gone, he might as well be a stranger. I'm not doing anything because I know what Jessica is after." There wasn't a trace of love on Janice's face anymore. Her expression was completely indifferent. "She wants to be the rightful Mrs. Miller Senior?""Smart girl. Kenneth was head over heels for her back then, and Mr
Janice looked at Olivia and asked, "What's wrong? Where does it hurt?"Olivia pointed toward her stomach with a pained expression. "My stomach just started acting up. It's nothing much.""Since that's the case, you should stop drinking that iced coffee. I'll get the family doctor to give you a checkup."Olivia shook her head. "There's no need to go through all that trouble. I just got checked back in Arlandia not long ago." "You might not have gotten a proper examination of your stomach. Since your stomach is acting up, you should get an endoscopy," Janice suggested. Olivia said dismissively, "It's just some mild stomach aches. Maybe it's because the coffee is too cold. "I'll just take some medicine for it when I get home. For now, I need to plan Mr. Harold's birthday banquet. I'll go for an in-depth checkup after we're done with that.""That works."Janice beckoned for a bodyguard to come forward and asked him to buy some stomach medicine. She also asked someone to get Olivia a gla
Kenneth felt disrespected. He hadn't seen Janice in a long time. The woman who had been chasing after him was giving him attitude. Not only did he not leave, he sat down and said, "There's no need. We're acquaintances."The server looked at them awkwardly and didn't know what to do.Janice put down the knife in her hand elegantly. She took out some tissues and wiped her lips. She ignored Kenneth and Jessica. Then, she looked at Olivia tenderly and asked, "Why don't we go to another place for food?""Sure."Olivia had been waiting a long time for her food and was already starving. But she didn't feel like eating while looking at Kenneth and Jessica. She nodded politely at them and said, "We'll be leaving now."Kenneth was visibly upset as he watched Olivia and Janice leave hand in hand. "Stop right there!" Kenneth was fed up by Janice's attitude. So, he took it out on Olivia. "You're Ethan's wife, which means you're my daughter-in-law. Is this how you treat your elders?"Janice wa
By saying that, it meant that Ethan had forgiven Janice completely. She had been ill during that time and was in a lot of pain. Besides, Janice was his mother that gave him life. Ethan had thought he would just cut ties with her and live his life away from her. He never expected Janice to come out of her trauma and reflect on her past mistakes. After everything he went through with Olivia, he just wanted to cherish the family that he had.Janice got in the front passenger seat while Ethan and Olivia sat together at the back. Olivia looked at him with a smile and asked, "Why did you come here?""I came to bring you home. You didn't get to eat your fill just now, did you? I'll cook something up for you when we get home."Looking at the man who was completely devoted to him, Olivia smiled sweetly and replied, "Sure."She was starting to believe Janice's words. Ethan was different from Kenneth. A man like him would never hurt her, right?The bodyguard handed over some water and medici