"Hello, Mr. Lance," Niall politely greeted.Since both Benjamin and Lance were present, Niall referred to Benjamin as Mr. Benjamin and Lance as Mr. Lance to distinguish them.Lance smiled and sent Barbara a look. Barbara bit her lip and sat beside Niall while Lance sat beside her.He looked at Benjamin, who was sitting across from him. "What a coincidence, Benjamin."Benjamin's expression hardened. "Not at all. I know you came here specifically to find us."Lance's smile stiffened, not expecting Benjamin to confront him directly. He cursed to himself but maintained a bigger smile on his face."I heard that the fish dish on the cruise ship is excellent. I was thinking of inviting Mr. and Mrs. Stark over to try it. I didn't expect you to beat me to it. However, it's not a problem as long as Mr. and Mrs. Stark enjoy it."Niall was talking to his wife, seemingly not hearing Lance's words.Benjamin's expression remained indifferent. "Let's order."A waiter entered and handed them t
Right now, except for the private room they were in, the other rooms on the ship were empty.Barbara gazed softly at Niall. She was wearing a low-cut dress today, and she was sitting on the floor with her body slightly leaning forward. From Niall's perspective, he could clearly see Barbara's smooth curves.Her demeanor was charming and alluring. If it were any other men, they might have fallen for her charms.However, Niall stood up slowly and turned away under Barbara's confused gaze. He approached the staff and said, "Hello, please come and take care of this young lady. She has injured her foot. Please take her to the hospital if necessary.""Of course." The staff immediately came up and helped Barbara stand."Miss, are you okay?" the staff asked with concern.Barbara looked at Niall in surprise, but he had already turned and walked back to the private room, not even sparing her another glance."I ... I just have a little pain in my foot." Barbara had to carry on with the act.
Lance was fuming when he returned to the manor. He saw Barbara, who looked anxious and frightened, standing in the living room with her hands clasped. When she saw Lance return, she turned pale and instinctively stumbled back.Lance became even more irritated. He walked up to her and coldly demanded, "What happened?"Barbara explained the twisted ankle incident, and Lance's expression turned ugly as he listened.He tugged on his tie and sneered. "This guy is probably afraid his wife will notice, which was why he didn't dare to make his move."Barbara cautiously looked at him. "But I saw Mr. Stark being very nice to his wife ...""You don't understand," Lance scoffed. "Men are the best at putting on an act. Once his wife isn't around, he'll reveal his true colors."Barbara chewed her lip.Lance sneered. "Don't feel wronged. Didn't you see that Benjamin brought Margot over? Margot is indeed a rare beauty, and she is quite similar to Mrs. Stark. Benjamin went all out to secure this
Both of them were breathing heavily after the kiss. Margot had grabbed his shirt during the kiss, leaving a few creases, and her lips were bruised and puffier than before. She looked at him in confusion. Margot asked, "Why did you suddenly kiss me?"Benjamin fell silent. His charming eyes seemed to be hiding waves of emotions underneath them.He wanted more. It wasn't enough.Margot was left feeling a little hot under his gaze, and she let go of his shirt to pick up her milk."I'll get you some fruit juice," Benjamin said as he took the milk glass away from her before standing up and leaving briskly.Margot blinked in confusion. Why did he want to replace the milk with fruit juice?As the night grew, the estate became quieter. Occasional bird songs echoed before fading away.Margot was deeply engrossed in a video game when she heard a knocking on her door."Come in," she replied without lifting her head.A maid opened the door. "Ms. Zimmerman, Ms. Winters is looking for you.
Margot sat quietly to the side, listening intently. The maids had gone back to their room, leaving just the two of them in the living room.Whenever Barbara needed a break from talking, she would take a sip of water before continuing. She spoke openly as if Margot was her closest friend, not holding back anything.Margot felt conflicted, but she didn't show it on her face. She just watched quietly.After a while, Barbara finally stopped talking. She looked at Margot and hesitated. "Do you believe me?"Before Margot could respond, Barbara forced a self-deprecating smile. "I understand if you don't. After all, I'm his fiancée, and he and Benjamin are competitors."Her lonely expression made her look like an abandoned stray, tugging at people's hearts.Margot sighed. "No girl would joke about her own reputation. It must be true if you're willing to say it."Hope appeared in Barbara's eyes as she looked at Margot. "Do you really believe me?"Margot nodded. "I believe you."Barbara
The next day, Margot woke up early because she was going shopping with Olivia today. When she came downstairs, she saw Barbara sitting on the couch."Good morning, Ms. Winters," Margot greeted her with a smile.Barbara stood up, looking a bit reserved and embarrassed. "I'm sorry for disturbing your rest last night.""It's okay. I wasn't sleeping at that time." Margot smiled faintly. "Have you had breakfast?"Barbara shook her head.Margot said, "Do have breakfast before you leave.""Sure." Barbara nodded.Soon, Benjamin also came downstairs. Barbara glanced at him and leaned over to Margot. She asked in surprise, "Ms. Zimmerman, aren't you living together with Benjamin?"She saw that Benjamin had come out from another room. Was that how it was? Weren't they a couple? They were almost married before. What was going on now?Margot smiled. "Yes, he thinks I'm still young, so there's no rush."Barbara looked at her enviously. "Benjamin is really good to you!"Margot smiled and r
The group stepped out of the villa and saw Lance and Barbara standing outside the door, looking at them. Margot quirked an eyebrow.Barbara stepped forward immediately, offering a gentle smile. "Mrs. Stark, Ms. Zimmerman, are you going out? I've been in Rastone for a while and haven't been around yet. How about we go together?"Olivia nodded. "Sure."Barbara looked at Margot. "Ms. Zimmerman, are you familiar with Rastone? It's my first time here, and I don't know my way around."Margot responded, "I'm not very familiar either, but I did some research before coming here."Barbara looked at her in surprise. "Wow! I didn't know I needed to do research."Margot smiled but remained silent. She couldn't help thinking how long Barbara would keep up with that clueless act.Lance approached them. "Barbara has done some research on theater. I heard that Mrs. Stark enjoys Rastone theater, so we decided to come here."Olivia looked at Barbara in surprise. "You know about theaters?"Barb
Margot couldn't help but smile at the text from Benjamin. But she didn't reply to him. After all, she was here for the show. It was rude to focus on her phone instead. It was noon when the show finished. After they exited the theater, Olivia received a phone call, which she answered with a joyful expression.After hanging up the call, she turned to the others. "My husband and the others are nearby. Let's go meet them."Barbara nodded. "Sure."Margot added, "It's time for lunch too."She couldn't help but wonder if Benjamin came to her rescue, thinking she was bored. The thought only made her feel even more delighted.They arrived at a nearby restaurant and saw Benjamin standing at the entrance."Why are you here?" Margot looked at him in surprise.Benjamin approached her and held her hand with a smile. "I was afraid you might not find the way, so I came to meet you."Margot sighed. "Even if we were to get lost, the driver would have helped."Olivia commented with a smile, "M