Millie didn't think Pierce was kidding. He would put his money where his mouth was. After all, he used to be a public servant. He held himself to higher moral and legal standards than most people. One would expect him to be pure and righteous, but he wasn't. In fact, he even harbored a slight malevolence within him.He had an evil nature!He never dabbled in illegal business, but if it was technically legal, he would do as he pleased. For example, he took advantage of them being legally married to kiss and hug her as he wished.People like this were far more dangerous than she could imagine."I'll take you to the hospital. Your wound is still bleeding.""I'm not going to drop dead.""Go to the hospital," Millie said firmly. Then, she dragged him into the car and drove to the hospital.The reopened wound was gushing blood, staining his white shirt a terrifying shade of red. He needed new stitches and medication.Because she blamed herself, Millie took care of him by her bedsid
If it wasn't for Stefan, the other players in the fashion industry would have flown off the handle already.At some point, Wanda was going to reap what she sowed.Julian didn't even look at the contract before signing it. Before his pen touched the paper, Millie said, "Julian, you asked me before if I was single. I'm not anymore."The tip of Julian's pen shook, ripping a hole in the paper."T-That's so sudden. Weren't you single just two days ago? Did you find a suitable partner so soon?""Actually, I lied to you previously. I just didn't want to make it known, so… I'm sorry for lying to you, Julian."Julian smiled. "What's there to apologize for? Do you like him?"This question stumped her. She didn't dare to talk about romance anymore, especially since Pierce was such a dangerous person. He was even more difficult to handle than Stefan. There was no way she could like him.However, she admired him, was thankful to him, and feared him…If she said she didn't like him, then it
"Millie said that she'd lied to me before because she didn't want to make it known that she was dating someone. She also said that she was crazy about this guy. There's no chance for me at all.""She said that she was crazy over that guy?""Yes." Julian bowed his head in defeat."You'll meet someone better. She's not a match for you.""Pierce, I will never meet a girl I like this much again. You've never seen her when she looks dazzling and full of life. She is filled with raw talent. If you met a woman like her, you would fall for her too."There was no reply for a long time, so Julian changed the subject. After all, Pierce was a married man now. On top of that, his grandfather had set him up. He most likely wouldn't be able to relate."I'll buy you a few drinks next time."Julian hung up after that. When he went to talk to Millie about the order, he happened to find her browsing the web.She was on an auction site, focused on a piece of embroidery.It was one of Elara Voss'
Millie gripped her paddle tightly, unwilling to accept her fate."41 million dollars," she called."50 million dollars," Stefan said calmly. Soon, the figure flashed on the display screen.The people at the back broke out in whispers.As expected, only the wealthy could be this bold, casually increasing the bid price by ten million dollars at a time."51 million dollars," Millie said, stubbornly increasing her bid."60 million dollars," Stefan said, giving her a derisive glance.Millie knew that so long as they were here, she wasn't going to get the embroidery.Her face turned red from anger, and she dug her fingernails into her palms.She didn't want to accept her defeat, but she didn't have a choice.Just as the auctioneer was about to smack his gavel, another string of numbers appeared on the display again."What?""100 million dollars? The bidder in the Celestial Room has just put out a bid for 100 million dollars? What, was this artwork embroidered with gold?""Even i
If Stefan had continued to up the bid and bought the artwork for Wanda, then he would have become the hero who was willing to spend a hefty sum just to see his woman smile.However, he'd failed to buy it, and it ended up falling into his ex-girlfriend's hands. How infuriating.Stefan stormed back to his private room angrily and ordered his secretary to find out who the bidder in the next room was."Mr. Leach, I didn't manage to find anything."Stefan narrowed his gaze. In Arbelton, someone of this caliber had to be of nearly equal status to the Leach family. There were only a handful of families that could compare. It was definitely possible to find out if they spent some time digging deeper."You have three days. If you can't find out who it was, you can get lost," Stefan said darkly."Did you say that Ms. Jordan was going to the room to thank the bidder? Think about it, how would a woman who just accepted something worth 200 million dollars show her gratitude? Do you think… M
As Wanda got into the ambulance, she gave Millie a fierce glare. "If something happens to Stefan, I will kill you!"Millie was taken to an interrogation room where she explained the entire incident.Soon, the hospital was done with the full work-up. Stefan hadn't lost the ability to have children, but he was still severely injured. He would have to spend a few months recovering before the doctors could tell if there were any lasting effects.Right now, he was still unconscious. Wanda refused to drop the matter. She insisted that Millie had to go to jail."You can ask for a defense lawyer."Millie could still contact someone on the outside. She picked up her phone, and Pierce's face immediately appeared in her mind.She seemed to have brought him trouble. He must be regretting marrying her right now.She typed his number, but for some reason, she couldn't find the courage to press call.After some time passed, a female police officer came to talk to her. "Millie, you have been r
Stefan slammed his fist against the head of the bed. His fist immediately flushed red, but the pain didn't seem to bother him in the slightest."She really got together with Pierce. How is this possible…""Perhaps Ms. Jordan was so heartbroken that she chose Mr. Atkinson just to get back at you.""Really?" Stefan asked doubtfully, frowning.Mark replied, "Of course. Ms. Jordan still loves you, and that's why she did that. She just wanted to see how you would react, Mr. Leach. If you let it get to you, then you'll have played right into her hands."When Stefan heard that, the anger slowly dissipated from his face. He snorted. "She is really willing to go to any lengths. Does she think I'll go back to her like this? How ridiculous."As long as I don't pay it any mind, then Millie won't be able to get to me. However, Pierce…"If Pierce agreed to get with her, it meant that he was most likely trying to get back at him too.Back then, his mother had been opposed to him being with Wa
"What's the matter?" Pierce asked."My zip is stuck. Can you call the salesperson over to help?" Millie said."Allow me.""I-Is this appropriate?""Millie, we're legally married. You keep making me feel like we're having an illicit affair."Millie's face flushed. It was just a zipper after all.Pierce walked into the dressing room. The room was actually quite big, but because of his overwhelming presence, the room felt cramped.The dressing room was so quiet that they would be able to hear a pin drop. The sound of the zip was the only thing they could hear.His fingertips unintentionally brushed against her back.Her skin was as smooth as porcelain. It was completely flawless.It looked like it should be used as a canvas for a beautiful painting.Using the sweat on her body, he wanted to mix colors on her skin to paint a beautiful picture of a flower.At the thought of this, his eyes darkened."Are you done yet?"Millie felt very uneasy, as though a predator had set its s
Agnes glared at Stefan, feeling exasperated that he never seemed to get the point. "Wanda isn't as simple as she seems on the surface. Aren't you worried that you may be speaking up for the wrong person?"Stefan's face turned a shade paler, but he firmly insisted, "Even if I'm backing the wrong person, I'll continue to stand up for her! Wanda isn't as bad as you think. Why are you so prejudiced against her, Grandma? "The first time we slept together, I was drunk and forced myself on her. If anyone is to blame, it's me. Isn't it because you're biased toward me that you push all the blame onto Wanda?""You're incorrigible and completely hopeless!" Agnes' voice trembled in anger as she spoke.Millie hadn't intended to intervene. After all, this was their family matter. However, she couldn't stand by and watch Stefan agitate Agnes to the point of making her collapse either. So, she pushed the door open and stepped out. When Stefan saw her, his expression shifted, and he immediately
Bill just told the woman to jump off his rival's company building instead of his own so that her suicide wouldn't affect his property values and stock prices."The woman was so mad that she jumped right away! Luckily, someone rescued her in time, or it would have been a tragedy," Agnes narrated."Grandpa was terrible back then. How did you end up with him?" Millie asked.Agnes replied, "I didn't know any of his bad deeds back then, and the internet wasn't as developed. I came to Arbelton to study and met him at the university's social event. Then, he started to pursue me."Bill was really handsome back then, so I fell for him. We became a couple shortly after. Later on, I started hearing all the rumors about him, and it made me furious."She continued, "But women in love are foolish. We all hope that we're the ones who make the playboy settle down. He indeed dated me for six months, and we were very compatible. I thought I was different and that he would settle down for me."I wa
Millie parted her lips. She wanted to say something, but at that moment, she didn't know what to say.She knew that if Pierce hadn't shown up in time, she would have been assaulted. However, if it had been the kidnapper who'd assaulted her, she could have hated him for her whole life, and at least then, she'd even have good reason to murder him if she could. But it was Pierce. She couldn't bring herself to hate him. If it hadn't been him, it would have been someone else. Still, Millie felt like she didn't even have the right to resent the criminal who had tried to force himself on her. She couldn't let go of the pain, and it felt like she was being deadly stubborn.She couldn't persuade Pierce, and he couldn't persuade himself either. They were stuck in this stalemate and had no idea when it would end.Perhaps time would provide an answer.Millie walked forward with her head down. She drove to the mall, bought a few things, and headed to the Lytles' family residence.She had t
Sharon was at a loss for words.She had been a victim of bullying herself, and she still remembered the ugly faces of those who had bullied her. Sometimes, she would wake up in the middle of the night feeling terrified from trying to heal the scars from her childhood.The initial reason that drove Sharon to become a journalist was because she wanted to expose the violence that took place on school grounds to the world.She could never forgive a bully. To her, anyone who preyed on the weak deserved punishment."I wouldn't be with him. I would break up with him immediately," Sharon stated."But what if you really liked him?" Millie asked.Without hesitation, Sharon replied, "If I stayed with him and dismissed his mistakes out of love, I'd start to think bullying isn't wrong. I might even become a bully myself one day." Empathizing with a bully could lead one to become the next perpetrator.Millie responded, "That's exactly how I feel now. Pierce did something wrong. And if I forgi
"Ahem…" Bill coughed to cover the awkwardness and said, "Pay Mrs. Leach Senior a visit with generous gifts tomorrow, okay? Establish a close rapport with the Lytles as a respective young man."Pierce immediately understood what he meant. Bill was trying to back Agnes up by having him bear generous gifts and show some regard to her younger relatives during the visit.There would definitely be members of the Lytle family who would be there to visit Agnes tomorrow. He had to show them that any member of the Lytles, including Wanda, should not be subject to mockery."I can tell you really care for Mrs. Leach Senior, Grandpa," Pierce remarked."Millie's going to be there too. I'm just creating an opportunity for you. It's for your own good," Bill replied."Oh, really?" Pierce responded indifferently, explicitly calling Bill out for his made-up excuse.Upon reading between the lines, Bill merely shot him a glare before turning over and going to sleep with his blanket tightly wrapped ar
"Grandpa, Pierce and I have divorced. I can be anyone's partner now," Millie said."I can't have that. I need to talk to Pierce to have him remarry you. You didn't even have a proper wedding ceremony back then after you registered your marriage. Just do it one more time, so that I can plan your wedding for you and make it as grand as possible. That's what you deserve!" Bill said. Millie didn't respond.After some small chat with Bill, she left the room.Upon stepping out, she noticed Pierce speaking in a foreign accent with Charlotte on the phone outside.Millie was far away from him, so she couldn't hear what they were talking about. But judging from the smile on his face, they were probably having a nice conversation.Millie wanted to inform him that she was leaving. However, after waiting for a few minutes, he was still on the phone. So, she spoke to the nurse before leaving. She told the nurse, "When he's done with his call, tell him that I've left. Also, let him know that
Millie only breathed a sigh of relief after getting into the car. However, right when she was about to buckle up, Pierce held her head and pulled her close.Startled, Millie instinctively tried to break free. Then, Pierce whispered in her ear, "Don't move. Stefan followed us out here. He's staring at us from the outside.""He is?" Millie asked, wanting to turn to look. But Pierce stopped her and said, "The more you spare him glances, the more he'll think you're not over him, so don't."Millie felt that he made sense. Stefan was an overthinker and might indeed mistake her mere glance for something else.To put it bluntly, Stefan was just resentful because if she had not gotten together with Pierce and forgotten about him, she would still have some feelings for him.Once upon a time, Millie had looked at Stefan with pitiful eyes full of despair, but he'd never cared. He was only acting so out of character now because he had lost control over her."What about now? Is he gone?" M
Using miscarriage to her advantage, Wanda almost put Millie in jail.However, Millie didn't want to break the promise that she had made to Agnes.It had been a long day for Agnes, and she needed some rest. So, Millie said, "Mrs. Leach Senior, the doctor said that you need more rest. Don't worry about us. I'll pay you a visit in two days."Agnes nodded."Sleep tight. I'll be here until you fall asleep," Millie added.Since Agnes was tired, she soon fell asleep.Once Millie saw Agnes fall into a deep sleep, she quietly left the room.However, she didn't expect that the man she hated the most, Stefan, was standing outside the door.She thought that he had just arrived and said, "Your grandma's asleep. I think you should come later after she wakes up on her own. Don't disturb her with any noise."Stefan kept quiet. All he did was look at Millie with a complicated look in his eyes.He had thought that she would have more to say to him. He didn't expect her to just leave after such
Stefan and Wanda bared their hearts to each other, revealing everything honestly.Wanda had cried uncontrollably by the sea side, and each tear that fell from her face felt like a hit to Stefan's heart."I didn't betray you. It was your parents who told me to marry him. They said that it was the only way to make you completely give up. I shouldn't have tried to look for you… Just leave me," Wanda said.Stefan was furious when he heard that, but what he felt even more was heartache for her.He held Wanda incredibly tight, completely unwilling to let her go.Stefan had been with many women before, but the first was always the most unforgettable.Wanda was his first.Wanda hadn't gotten a divorce, and he was still with Millie. So, the two of them couldn't be together openly.But Stefan's trips abroad became more frequent. His parents had passed away, and Agnes was in poor health. Millie was completely unaware as well.Nothing could stop him from pursuing his love.Later on, Agne