Howard was dead serious as he addressed Lana, his expression devoid of any hint of humor."No, mere suspicions won't cut it. Since the incident with Nadia and me being abducted, I've had this nagging feeling that something isn't right about Emilia."Howard struggled to put into words his unique intuition."What precisely seems amiss?" Lana questioned.Howard deliberated on his choice of words. "Well, it's like her shadow, maybe? There's this constant, mysterious feeling surrounding Emilia. It's elusive, veiled—hard to pin down."Lana, trying to make sense of Howard's cryptic description, furrowed her brows and pressed for clarification. "Elusive?"Howard paused, attempting to find an alternative way to articulate his thoughts. "Imagine her silhouette," he suggested."The impression Emilia leaves on me consistently brings to mind the figure of someone.""Her silhouette?" Lana found the description increasingly perplexing. "Are you suggesting there are two Emilias?"Lana's words
"Mr. Liam, are you seriously rejecting these generous terms?" Cynthia persisted.Yet, Liam remained resolute. "I won't change my mind. To me, marriage isn't a mere transaction. I won't trivialize its significance."Undeterred, Cynthia was prepared to challenge him further."You speak of not taking marriage lightly, but wasn't your previous union with Ms. Lana essentially a transaction?"Frankly speaking, the marriage between Liam and Lana was indeed transactional. Lana entered the Kane family to fulfill a debt of gratitude, and the marriage with Liam primarily served as a means to reassure Violet.The underlying motive was clear—once Carol returned to the country, they would part ways amicably.Liam couldn't stand hearing Lana's name from other women. Regardless of the nature of his relationship with Lana, there was always a reserved and sacred space for her in Liam's heart.While Liam had appeared amiable just moments earlier, a sudden seriousness overcame his expression as h
Lincoln found himself disheartened as, in the past, there had been no investigation beyond his reach.Yet, when it came to the Cooper family, days of relentless searching yielded no progress. Despite this setback, Lincoln felt the responsibility to honestly report his findings to Liam.Liam, however, offered reassurance rather than the expected pessimism. "It's not your fault," he told Lincoln. "If the Coopers are determined to conceal something, given their methods, they would undoubtedly execute it seamlessly."Lincoln couldn't help but nod in agreement upon hearing these words.The Cooper family's flawless orchestration of Emilia's integration into the Watson family, even to the extent of eliminating Nadia, raised one question. Was there any feat beyond their capabilities?"Nevertheless, sir, my journey to the Cooper family's hometown wasn't entirely in vain," Lincoln informed Liam as he handed him an old photograph.Accepting the photo, Liam observed three young women captu
Upon catching sight of the person, Lana was so astounded that words eluded her, and her face paled.The person facing her regarded Lana with a touch of hurt and remarked, "Is it so distressing to see me?""Addy, that's not what I meant."Adrian, wearing a pained expression, countered, "Not what you meant? I've been back for quite some time, and you haven't spared a moment to meet me."Lana offered an awkward smile. "I've been really busy, you know?""Too busy that even Marcel couldn't get you to visit him?"In the days since his return, Adrian had enlisted Marcel's help to reconnect with Lana.However, Lana continued to elude Marcel's attempts, maintaining her avoidance.Had Adrian not overheard Marcel and Nicholas's conversation today, revealing the area of Lana's workplace, he would have remained uncertain about when he could meet her.Fortunately, luck favored him. Adrian had just entered the area when he noticed Lana, taken aback by the sudden downpour."What's with your
The rain had ceased, revealing a glimmer of twilight on the horizon. The golden hues cast a dazzling light, illuminating each face as if transporting everyone back to the days in the mountains.After Adrian had settled down, Nicholas approached him, pulling him aside. "She's obviously a girl, so what's there to be so happy about?" Nicholas asked.Adrian's face suddenly reddened, and after glancing at Lana, he replied, "Well, I came out to my family."Nicholas was suddenly rendered speechless.Why does that sound so peculiar?"What does coming out have to do with Lana?"Adrian stammered, "I … I told my family that I'm into a guy."Nicholas suddenly realized, "So, you like her?"Adrian blushed and coyly stomped his foot, yelling at Nicholas, "Mind your own business! I haven't even confessed yet. Why'd you have to go and blurt it out?"After the outburst, Adrian shyly ran off.Lana found herself at a loss this time. She had never imagined a casual lie from years ago would cause
Nicholas, Marcel, and Jessica all expressed their intention to attend, but Lana was the only one who declined."You guys go, I'll pass."Adrian's face immediately fell. "Why not? They're all going, why can't you?"Lana shamelessly lied, "I'm busy!"Nicholas suddenly covered his mouth and chuckled. "I think Lana's just shy. After all, she might be meeting her future in-laws."Nicholas knew about Lana's breakup with Liam, but Lana was still so young. She had to find someone to spend the latter half of her life with. So, in Nicholas's opinion, Adrian was the best candidate.He had watched Adrian grow up and knew him inside out. According to Adrian, his family seemed well-off. Entrusting Lana to him, Nicholas would feel at ease.Lana punched Nicholas. "If you can't say something useful, you might as well be mute. No one will pay attention to you."Nicholas, sporting dark circles under his eyes, teared up. "If you don't want to hear me, I won't say anything. Why resort to violence?"
"Emilia, this place is so upscale. There must be a lot of beautiful women and delicious food later."Listening to Maverick chattering in her ear, Emilia couldn't help but roll her eyes.No wonder she has always looked down on Maverick—this person is too uncouth.Emilia finally managed to secure an invitation to the Snyder family's ball. Upon learning this, Mitchell shamelessly forced her to bring Maverick along. Of course, it was to broaden his horizons.However, someone who talked about beautiful women and good food in a place like this must be someone with limited horizons."Emilia, look! Isn't that woman a celebrity? I remember seeing her on TV," Maverick excitedly pointed to a woman not far away and said, "Wait for me. I'll go get her autograph."Emilia was speechless.How embarrassing!Asking someone for an autograph in a place like this is lowering one's status, isn't it?In a city like Dawsbury, actors are the lowest class of residents, only for the entertainment of the
"Are you talking to me?" Lana suddenly asked.Thinking his chance had come, Maverick put on his usual bully demeanor and said, "Are you deaf? I've always been talking to you. Or are you blind? Can't you see me?"Lana smiled faintly and stood up abruptly. "Don't misunderstand. I'm not disabled. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't going to hit the wrong person.""What do you mean hit the wrong person?" Maverick was still contemplating Lana's words when suddenly, he let out a scream. The next moment, he found himself on the ground, experiencing intense pain in his elbow and shoulder. It hurt so much that he broke into a cold sweat.It was the first time he had taken a beating in his life.Maverick quickly got up, pointed at Lana, and cursed, "You bitch, you don't appreciate my generosity! You should be honored that I took notice of you. You better kneel and apologize to me now, or I'll have my sister throw you out.""Your sister?"Lana and Nicholas exchanged a glance. In this day
Would Lana forgive him and spend the rest of her life with him?Liam's heart was filled with a sense of anticipation.Since the reason for the incident had been clarified, everyone let out a sigh of relief at the same time and also went back to rest. Even Leonardo was taken away just to give the two people who had been apart for a long time some space to be alone.After everyone had left, Liam straightened out his clothes and approached Lana, then proceeded to slowly crouch down."Lana!"In the man's deep and sexy voice, there was an unusual tremor and a hint of choked emotion.Liam had no idea what kept him going during these years after losing Lana.Liam didn't dare to do anything too bold. Instead, he gently leaned his handsome face against Lana's hand, repeatedly calling her name.Three years had already passed since Lana left in a fit of anger, setting off a series of events afterward.If she still had any resentment, it would have vanished when she saw Liam's tall figu
Liam's outstretched hand awkwardly hung in the air, and eventually, he could only withdraw it."Speak up if you have something to say, or else, stay quiet. We're not in the mood to listen to you." Hector's attitude toward Liam was still unfavorable, to the extent that he didn't even want to see him.Lana suddenly said, "Something very serious actually happened today."Following that, she placed Leonardo down and showed everyone the wound on his neck.A ring of red marks surrounded Leonardo's delicate neck. In some places, the marks were so swollen that it looked like a tire had been wrapped around his neck. It was a shocking sight to behold.Hector, Violet, Mandy, and Romelius were immediately enraged."What happened to Leo?""What happened to his neck? It could have been fatal if it was any worse.""Who was responsible for watching Leo today? How could they be so negligent and let the child get injured so badly?""This doesn't look like any ordinary wound. It looks like it wa
"Stop looking at me like that. If you want to kill or torture me, go ahead." Cynthia knew what would happen to her after the truth came out, so she gave up struggling. "However, even after my death, I'll haunt you for the rest of your life!"As they listened to her absurd threat, Lana and the Traffic Light Trio burst into laughter."If ghosts were real, then Emilia would be the first to look for you."When her deceased sister was mentioned, Cynthia's smile remained unchanged. "That fool probably never knew it was me who betrayed her until her death."Considering the situation, Cynthia didn't believe she could leave the Garrison Villa tonight."What exactly do you gain by single-handedly destroying the Cooper family?"Lana was still very confused by Cynthia's actions.After all, Emilia and Cynthia were twins and had the same blood coursing through their veins. With all the Coopers gone, Cynthia had nothing to gain from it either!Cynthia sneered at Lana's question. "Lana, yo
On the evening of the banquet, the Garrison Villa was bustling with distinguished guests.Initially, everyone's attention was on the precious great-grandson of the Garrison and Kane family. With his confident and lively demeanor, the chubby child was absolutely adorable. Everyone was naturally curious about who the child might have chosen as his stepmother.It should be noted that the Garrison and Kane family only had one great-grandson. His future was destined to be extraordinary. As long as one could control the child, it was much more worthwhile than dealing with those individuals from the two affluent families.After all, the elders from the two families were very attentive and doting toward this child. Surprisingly, Liam, who was said to have been away from home for a long time, had returned. During the reception of guests, he unexpectedly had a smile on his face.The ladies who had come tonight, vying for the position of Liam's wife, became even more excited.Liam typi
On the night before the banquet, Romelius and Mandy finally brought Leonardo back.Lana was overjoyed, and she immediately went to the bungalow where they were staying.At that time, Leonardo had just returned home and was playing with toys on the living room floor."Leo, you're back! Did you miss Mommy? Mommy missed you so much!"Lana ran toward Leonardo, talking to him while reaching out to hug him. In a flash, Leonardo suddenly ran toward Romelius while holding a toy car.After that, he kept hiding in his arms, refusing to come out. He would occasionally peek out from the gaps to glance at Lana.His actions clearly showed that he refused to accept Lana.Lana's enthusiasm was dampened, and her outstretched arms awkwardly remained in midair. She looked at Romelius and then at Mandy as if waiting for them to persuade Leonardo. However, these two remained silent and only greeted Lana in a casual manner."Oh, Lana, you've come?" Mandy said while presenting her with a basket o
Due to the fact that the Garrison family was going to hold a banquet to introduce the mother of their beloved great-grandson, Leonardo, the Garrisons once again became the talk of the town in Dawsbury.The last time Dawsbury was so lively was when Hector introduced the Garrison family's heir to everyone.As soon as the news was released, the Garrisons became noticeably busier in the following days. All of them were busy scurrying around and helping Hector deliver the invitations.In addition to people who had business dealings with the Garrison family, the invitations were naturally sent to people who were familiar with Lana in the past. Therefore, as soon as the Traffic Light Trio received the invitation, they didn't even go to work and immediately ran to Liam's office—intending to get an explanation from him.At that time, Liam had just finished a phone call from overseas and was deep in thought when the office door was suddenly kicked open.Lincoln stood at the door, looking
With that, Sawyer ignored the unpleasant expressions on Freya and Hector's faces. He immediately picked up his child and walked away.Hector was furious. He glared at Liam, his eyes burning with anger. It was clear that he thought Liam was the one responsible for Lana's predicament.Liam was once again innocently caught in the crossfire.Freya set aside her current tasks, offered some comforting words to Hector, and then got up and chased after them.She knew Sawyer well enough and was certain that he would never have treated someone like this unless there was a reason.As Freya's family of three left, Lana's face bore a sorrowful expression. "Since I'm not welcome here, I guess I'll just go."With that, Lana got up and walked toward the door.Hector and Violet had been waiting for Lana's return for a long time. Now that she was finally back, how could they possibly let her go?Naturally, the two of them chased after Lana and tried to talk her out of leaving. They eventually ma
Liam sensed a challenging undertone in Lana's stare. After all this time, had they truly become adversaries?Releasing Lana abruptly, Violet gently patted her arm, her eyes filled with profound hurt."You're here, alive and well. Why did you leave us in the shadows? Even if you chose not to contact anyone else, you should've considered reaching out to me. Do you have any idea how much I missed you?"Over the years, Violet had been grappling with a deep sense of loss.Though it remained an unspoken sentiment among them, Violet was aware of the underlying blame directed toward Liam for what was believed to be Lana's demise.Had Liam been more emotionally available, their relationship wouldn't have crumbled. It would've stopped Lana from seeking refuge overseas while carrying their child, an act that set the stage for her heartbreaking destiny.Witnessing Liam's anguish and believing Lana to be lost forever had taken a severe toll on Violet's health, aging her considerably."Gr
Liam guided Leo to Lana's room.As they entered, Lana was already awake, bathed in the serene morning light streaming through the window.Upon hearing their arrival, Lana, while brushing her hair, shifted her gaze toward them—a familiar scene echoing times gone by."Good morning, Liam and Leo!" she greeted them effortlessly.Without hesitation, Leonardo squirmed out of Liam's embrace and darted toward Lana, exclaiming, "Hi, Nana!"Lana paused, momentarily surprised by Leonardo's nickname. "Leo, you should be calling me 'Mommy'!" she gently corrected him.Leonardo hesitated momentarily before redirecting his attention to Liam.Even though Liam hadn't exchanged a single word with Lana, he spoke up when Leo glanced his way, firmly stating, "Feel free to do as you wish. There's no need to seek my approval. Alright?"Leonardo nodded obediently and turned his gaze back to Lana, continuing to address her as "Nana."While Lana appeared somewhat displeased by this unexpected turn of ev