"Don't you trust me at all?" Pierce countered, his gaze intense.Millie bit her lip, realizing that her question was unnecessary. "Why are you so good to me?""Because you taught me to be."Overcome with emotion, Millie gave Pierce a deep kiss. For the first time, she took the lead. She pushed Pierce down and fervently kissed him. Her hands clumsily roamed over him, pulling off his shirt to reveal his perfectly toned upper body.The situation was heated at first, but as time passed, Millie began to lose steam. Her fervor and energy waned significantly. She still couldn't do it, after all.Pierce, however, became immensely aroused. His readiness to procreate was almost intimidating."Um… I'm hungry…" Millie meekly muttered.Pierce saw through her excuse but didn't call her out on it. "Alright, let's eat. You go in first. I'll join you in a bit."He needed a moment to compose himself.Millie fled in embarrassment. In her haste, she ran straight into a tree trunk. The impac
"Are you asking this of me because you think I'm a pushover who'll easily give in? Do you think this family can stay intact as long as I bow my head and apologize? Mateo, this family has always been yours, not mine. "Even if they come to Arbelton, I won't see them. Tell them to leave. I have nothing to say to any of you," Millie said and hung up the phone.Over the past three years, Mateo was the only one who had stayed in touch with her. He occasionally asked if she and Stefan were doing well, but Millie rarely responded. Over time, Mateo stopped reaching out and their communication was reduced to him sending token holiday messages.Mateo sometimes acknowledged that their parents were unfair and admitted it wasn't right. But he only ever voiced these thoughts and never truly resisted them because he was the one benefiting from their favoritism.For example, if there was only one piece of cake left at home, Emily would ask Millie to give it all to Mateo."Give it to your brothe
Mateo continued to complain via text, "It was you who ignored me, and now you don't want anyone else to assist me? Stefan has spoiled you too much that you've developed such a bad temper. You used to be so gentle!"He proceeded to send several messages in a row, each one testing Millie's patience even more than the last. Millie was so furious that she was almost ready to storm into the restaurant and flip their table over.Nevertheless, she held back. After all, there was no point arguing with a fool.If reasoning with Mateo didn't work, she wouldn't bother trying anymore. It was better to just let them do whatever they wanted.Millie blocked Mateo's number as well. She even considered publishing a public announcement that she was cutting ties with the Jordan family should it be necessary. After all, she had already changed her registered address to her studio in Arbelton three years ago.Meanwhile, Mateo and Stefan were still having their meal at the restaurant."Stefan, I gue
"Mills, I'm going on a business trip tomorrow. Do you want to come with me?" Pierce suggested going on a short trip.Millie knew that he'd made that suggestion so that she could avoid facing her family for a while. After all, if they couldn't find her, they wouldn't be able to pressure her.However, Millie understood that steering clear of them would only provide temporary relief. She'd still need to face them sooner or later."There's no need. It's high time I meet with them," Millie firmly said, exhaling a deep breath as she looked at him with determination. "This is my family matter. I should handle it myself.""Alright. No matter what happens, I'll be by your side." Pierce tightly gripped her hand, and the warmth from his fingertips slowly melted the ice in her heart.Millie then called Agnes, hoping that she could ask Stefan to stop interfering in her family's affairs.Agnes felt ashamed that Stefan stuck his nose where he shouldn't have. "Don't worry. I'll give him a proper
"Grandma... You can't do this to me, Grandma..!" Stefan cried out.To his dismay, Agnes left without looking back.…The next day, Mateo tried to contact Stefan but couldn't reach him. When he called Millie, he found out that she had blocked him. Left with no other choice, he went to the airport alone to pick Frederick and Emily up. It had been three years since they'd left Arbelton, and so much had changed. When Frederick set foot in the city again, he was overwhelmed with complicated emotions. He couldn't help but sigh—he hated this city. The last time he left, he had left in disgrace.If it weren't for Millie doing as she wished, he wouldn't have had to return to this place that held so many bitter memories."Where's your sister?" he demanded."She blocked my number. I can't reach her," Mateo helplessly replied.Upon hearing this, Frederick's anger surged. "How dare she! She's gone overboard!"Mateo was still a college student with little life experience. He scrambled
"Alright, Mateo and I will handle this." Emily conceded.She took Frederick back to the hotel before returning with Mateo to request a meeting with Pierce.The receptionist continued to refuse their requests, so they waited in the lobby.Finally, Millie and Pierce appeared. The two of them looked like a perfect match when they stood next to each other."Millie!" Both Emily and Mateo emotionally called out.Millie knew that they were there and had specifically come to meet them."Come on up," she said, her tone indifferent.The elevator was spacious and could easily accommodate over a dozen people. Yet, with just the four of them inside, it felt oppressively small at that moment.Pierce's imposing presence was almost palpable, and his cold expression offered no trace of warmth or courtesy. There wasn't even any perfunctory pleasantry. With one strong arm wrapped around Millie's slender waist, he didn't so much as glance at the other two. This caused Emily's face to burn with
Millie let out a deep breath. She then straightened her back and looked up. Without flinching the slightest, she met Emily's and Mateo's gazes. "Considering that you raised me, I'll take this slap and let it slide. But if you try to hit me again from now on, I won't just let it be," she warned."Who do you think you're talking to? I'm your mother! Is this how you speak to me?" Emily questioned in a livid tone. "Why can't I hit you? I gave birth to you. I could beat you to death if I wanted to!" Emily was infuriated at being talked back to by her own daughter. She thought that such a scenario was insulting, and her anger boiled over. So, she raised her hand to slap Millie again.But this time, Millie didn't stand still and take it. Instead, she grabbed Emily's wrist and held on tight. She firmly stated, "I told you that you can't hit me again. I've already repaid not just Stefan's so-called kindness but also your debt for raising me. Three years ago, I paid it all back in full!
Early the next morning, Frederick went straight to Atkinson Group. He didn't approach the reception desk but went straight to the waiting area. With his hands folded atop his walking cane, he exuded an air of authority. Meanwhile, Mateo and Emily sat nervously behind him, their eyes fixed on the entrance.At their feet was a sign with bold red letters that read, "Ungrateful daughter disowns her family—Millie Jordan is an ingrate and an imbecile!"As employees arrived for work, many of them curiously glanced at the trio and whispered amongst themselves.The receptionist called Pierce and explained the situation."If they want to sit there, let them sit," Millie coolly said. After all, she had nothing more to say to her family."But the sign…" the receptionist hesitantly spoke up."Ask them to come up," Pierce interjected."There's no need to bother with them. This is just their way of threatening me," Millie began, but Pierce cut her off."Mills, I won't allow anyone to tarnis
The call was quickly answered."Where are you?" Millie asked."I'm still on a business trip," Pierce replied."Then turn on the video. I want to see your face."There was a brief silence on the other end of the call. Millie knew Pierce was lying. "Are you still not willing to tell me the truth? Jason came to the house, asking to take back your gun. What's going on? What happened in the days you were away?""I'll tell you when I get back home." Pierce's voice was a bit muffled.He then hung up the call and removed the bandage from the corner of his eye.The wound was right beside his eyebrow. Since he had dark eyebrows, the scar shouldn't be that noticeable. He could only cling on to this wishful thinking.With that, Pierce returned to the villa.Millie hadn't seen him for days. She felt that he had lost a lot of weight and looked even more exhausted after the trip."How did you get injured again?" she asked.Pierce initially thought it would take her a long time to notic
Jacob eventually calmed down and said, "Do you still insist on doing this when you know it doesn't exactly benefit us?"Pierce replied, "I wouldn't dare to deceive you, neither do I dare to contact you in private. But this doesn't affect our operations, which was why I dared to do so. I want to find someone, but I can't no matter how hard I've tried, so I had no choice but to ask for their favor.""You… Are you still doing it even though we won't get anything good out of this?" Jacob asked.Pierce fell silent and clenched his fists. "Yes. I will resolve whatever problems I've caused. After that, I'll kill them in my own way."Jacob threw his cup at Pierce upon hearing this.With Pierce's skill, he could have dodged it. However, he chose to stand straight.The cup hit him right at the corner of his eye, causing him to bleed."You…" Jacob angrily stood up. "W-Why didn't you dodge?" he asked in a shaky voice."I did something wrong. It's right for you to punish me," Pierce simply
Gideon really admired Pierce's calm and composed demeanor."What's the matter?" he asked."I need you to help me find a lady who went missing. I have to know if she's still alive or not," Pierce answered. "I need her, dead or alive. I can't do this on my own, but with your help, it'll be much easier."He had used every legal method he could think of. But desperate times called for desperate measures, and there was only one option left—to enter the underworld."You're making such a big scene just to look for this one person? What? Is she like your lover or something?" Gideon asked."She's an enemy, the kind that I want dead more than anything."The way Pierce paused after each word made him sound eerily intimidating."Is she also like us, from the underworld?""No, she's just a nobody."Gideon felt chills running down his spine. Having dealt with Pierce for this long, he thought he knew his true nature well enough—a righteous police officer who always played by the book. But ri
Pierce felt like he was drowning, but if someone were to pull him out of the water right now, he would survive.Sometimes, Millie couldn't imagine what would happen if she left Pierce one day because of her disappointment in him. Would he still be able to move on?Pierce survived by clinging onto his sheer will. At first, it was the fixation on avenging his sister's death. But now, it was all because of Millie."What are you going to do now?" she asked."I can't tell you just yet, but I promise it won't take longer than three months."Since Pierce wasn't planning to elaborate, Millie didn't bother to keep on asking either.For the past few days, Millie had been carefully taking care of the wound on Pierce's neck. Even though a small patch of new pink flesh had grown over his wound, it still looked pretty hideous. Fortunately, Pierce always wore suits with collars that were high enough to cover his neck. Millie would always start tearing up whenever she saw his scar.She said,
Pierce was aghast. Mills! His poor Mills!Everyone around Pierce had accused him of committing a crime, but he didn't do it. He had been trying so hard to find out the truth, but in the end, he still got nothing.Did he really betray Millie? Did he really taint himself by sleeping with Sarah?Even if he truly believed that Piercy didn't do anything, he still couldn't find any evidence to prove it.Sarah and Piercy were nowhere to be found either.How was he supposed to prove his innocence? He felt like a trapped beast that couldn't find its way out.Just then, Millie made a subtle twitch. It startled Pierce, and he immediately withdrew his arm around her and pretended to remain unconscious.Millie didn't sleep well at all. The first thing she did after waking up was to check on Pierce. The monitor showed that Pierce's heart was racing.She then brought out a warm towel and gently wiped his face.She began, "Your hair has grown so much longer, but you didn't even properly
Millie rushed forward and saw the disconcerting look in Pierce's eyes.Pierce hadn't rested for two days, so his nerves were stretched to their absolute limit. His eyes were completely bloodshot too.The moment he saw Millie, he grabbed her like he was a drowning man who finally got his hands on a life buoy. His large hands clamped down on her arm with such force that it felt like he was going to crush her bones.Pierce howled, "Tell him to come out, please! He listens to you. Ask him to come out, Millie. I don't care if he takes over this body. I just need him to tell me the truth! Did I betray you? Did I mess around with another woman? I'm begging you…""Pierce, calm down please." Millie tried to soothe him."How can I calm down? I want to be with you, but if I really did betray you, then at least let me die knowing the truth! What am I supposed to do now? How long does he plan to torture me?"Pierce shoved Millie aside, frantically searching around the room. He even lunged at
Samantha looked at Stefan in disbelief. "You still have feelings for Millie… Is that what you're saying?""What else? Do you expect me to have feelings for you? As long as you stay in your place, I won't make things too difficult for you. But don't overestimate yourself," Stefan sternly warned."You… You weren't like this before! I'll abort this child and make you regret it for the rest of your life! I'll really do it—try me!" Samantha cried.Stefan didn't bother mincing his words. "Do you think you can threaten me? There are plenty of women who want to have my child. Who do you think you are? If you don't give birth, Wanda will probably be thrilled. "The Atkinson family doesn't want you anymore. So, you're no longer some rich heiress. You're just Betty Miller now. If you leave me, who else can you rely on?"Ever since Samantha got pregnant, Stefan's goal had already been achieved. He didn't even care about his own child. He was happy to let Samantha and Wanda fight to the death,
For the next two days, Millie still didn't see Pierce.During that time, she continued visiting the hospital every other day to check on Stefan's condition. There were signs of improvement, but because of the sulfuric acid burns and the severity of the wounds, recovery would not be a quick process.Since they didn't have much to talk about, Millie simply read to him to help pass the time."I'll come back the day after tomorrow," she softly said, setting the book down.Stefan nodded, unsure whether he should keep holding on or let her go for good.Just as Millie reached the door, he couldn't help but call out to her again, "Do you regret it?""Regret what?" Millie turned back to look at him."Regret… being with me."Millie replied, "I do. But people don't have the ability to see the future. So, some mistakes are worth experiencing because at the very least, they teach us lessons. "I've learned to approach love with more clarity now. I will love myself first before loving any
Stefan said, "I'll take good care of myself…" Then, he suddenly started coughing. At this point, he couldn't tell whether the pain in his body was worse or if his heart hurt more.Millie panicked. If Stefan's condition worsened, how would she explain things to Agnes? So, she quickly got Stefan a glass of water and helped him take a sip. Only then did he finally manage to catch his breath.Millie felt completely useless sitting there. No matter what they talked about, it felt inappropriate. Her presence might even be making things harder for him."How about I turn on the TV for you? It'll help pass the time." Millie suggested."You don't need to do anything. Just stay here with me quietly," Stefan said."Alright then." So, Millie picked up a book and began reading to him.Her voice was as sweet as a songbird's. However, Stefan couldn't focus on anything she was reading—the only thing he saw was her delicate face.Time ticked by slowly.Meanwhile, Pierce stood outside the