So Annabelle thought to herself—was Mr. Gregory being a little too proactive?Kendrick asked lightly, “So, do you want to go swimming with him alone?”He deliberately emphasized the word “alone,” as if suggesting she had ulterior motives. Annabelle could only respond, “...I never said that!”“Then that’s that,” Kendrick said calmly, taking her hand and leading her into the house.After a short rest, the three of them began preparing lunch.Gauge was every bit the privileged young master—clearly someone who’d never cooked at home before. He practically didn’t know how to do anything.He was too rough when washing vegetables, to the point of mangling the leaves.Then they had him try chopping vegetables—but the young master, with his obsessive need for precision, insisted on cutting everything perfectly uniform, each slice as neat as the next. At the rate he was going, they’d probably be eating tomorrow’s lunch.Kendrick and Annabelle didn’t even bother expecting him to cook anything. T
Kendrick’s face darkened. “It’s better to date someone older. Look at Mr. Murphy—he’s too young, can’t even cook. How’s he supposed to take care of a girlfriend?”Annabelle raised her eyebrows and gave the sly old fox a glance. Flicking the water off her hands, she smiled and said, “But younger guys are energetic—and no generation gap!”Kendrick let out a sharp “hmph.” “You think there’s a generation gap between us?”“I didn’t say us,” Annabelle teased, eyes twinkling. “Why are you jumping to conclusions? Having a midlife crisis already, Uncle?”The little bunny was obviously up to no good with that mischievous grin.Kendrick glanced at the loquat tree in the courtyard, then squinted at the sunlight filtering through its leaves, trying hard to stay calm.After all, he was turning 31 after the New Year. Couldn’t let a little girl get under his skin, right?But midlife crisis? Really?He was in his prime. A young man!So this young Mr. Gregory looked into the reflection on the glass. He
Annabelle hadn’t slept so soundly in a long time.When she lazily opened her eyes and looked out the window, she realized it was already dark.Ever since arriving at her grandma’s house and staying in this quiet little fishing village—far away from her usual life—it felt like she had escaped to another world. Her entire being relaxed, with nothing left to worry about.Kendrick didn’t have to stress over the corporation anymore either.Their biggest daily dilemma had become: what should we eat for the next meal?If only life could always be this carefree...Annabelle slowly sat up. After sleeping for so long, her whole body felt soft and mushy. She got out of bed and wandered into the courtyard, where she saw Kendrick sitting at the small table, smoking.When he heard her, he turned around.“Awake?”Kendrick stubbed out his cigarette and patted his thigh.Annabelle walked over without hesitation or shyness and naturally sat on his lap, arms around his neck, resting softly against his s
Annabelle smiled softly, her eyes twinkling with a mix of amusement and affection. "Why do you always have to compare everything?" she asked, her voice gentle and teasing."I just want to know," he replied, his voice low and earnest. He reached out and tucked a strand of Anna's hair behind her ear, his touch light but intimate. "What it feels like for you to be with me."Annabelle fell into deep thought, her gaze drifting away as she considered his question. The room was quiet, filled only with the soft sounds of their breathing and the occasional rustle of the sheets beneath them. After a while, she still hadn't answered. Kendrick sighed, a hint of frustration in his voice. "Is it really that hard to answer?""Hmm... it’s hard to describe," Annabelle murmured thoughtfully, her fingers playing with the edge of the blanket. "Before, when I was with you, just seeing you would throw my heart into chaos. My pulse would race, and I could hardly catch my breath. But now…” She trailed off, h
While Kendrick was cutting the watermelon, Annabelle couldn’t take her eyes off him.How strange—why did everything this man did seem so charming to her? Even slicing a watermelon looked handsome.It was as if her brain had automatically applied a beauty filter to him.Annabelle placed a hand over her chest, trying to calm her racing heart. But the more she tried, the faster it beat. The sweet words he had just whispered, every little expression and gesture of his, were now playing back in her mind like a movie…Kendrick held out the watermelon to her with a grin. “Little fangirl, stop staring. This handsome guy is your husband—100% confirmed.”Annabelle glared at him with a flushed face. “Narcissist!”Then she lowered her head, scooping out a bite of watermelon, determined to focus on eating.Just as she was about to take a bite, she noticed Kendrick had sat down.The other half of the watermelon was still sitting on the small stone platform by the well.“Aren’t you going to eat?”“Y
At first, Annabelle didn’t understand what he was up to. It wasn’t until they were back inside the house that she realized—Kendrick thought she looked a little too sexy wearing his oversized T-shirt, especially since it made it seem like she wasn’t wearing anything on the bottom. It sparked a lot of imaginative thoughts.Annabelle was both amused and exasperated. She lifted the hem of the T-shirt to show him: “I am wearing shorts! They’re just... a little short. But still totally decent!”But Mr. Gregory was persistent. In the end, Annabelle gave in and changed into her own clothes.Once they were both dressed, they returned to the courtyard.Annabelle noticed Gauge hadn’t touched the watermelon and asked why—after all, it was set aside just for him.Gauge pulled a ten-hole blues harmonica from his pocket and said, “If I eat now, I won’t be able to play.”She knew harmonica players had to keep their mouth clean before playing.Then, Gauge handed her his guitar. “Since we’re just hang
What Gauge wanted to discuss with Kendrick was a strategic collaboration between their two companies.Since stepping into the family business, Gauge had discovered a series of issues.Although Lin Jewelry appeared to be thriving, its narrow focus on a single line of business had left it vulnerable to serious challenges.Therefore, Gauge was planning to expand the jewelry and watch business within the next five years into leather goods, fashion products, and the perfume industry.He also proposed merging the group's original real estate construction division with a subsidiary of Gregory's Group. Murphy's Group would retain only a small share—essentially, a disguised sale to Gregory's.But the reason they couldn’t call it a sale outright was because Murphy's Group had started out in the construction industry. Gauge’s father, Simon, still held an emotional attachment to that legacy and couldn’t let go entirely.After the merger of the construction branches, Gauge hoped to acquire Gregory
When he heard the words “a piece of advice,” Gauge frowned slightly.“What is it?”“Expansion is fine, but don’t bite off more than you can chew,” Kendrick said calmly. “Business, like a meal, has to be taken one bite at a time.”Gauge frowned again. “I know my limits.”His father had already told him the same thing—almost word for word. That made Gauge quite annoyed, especially with Kendrick’s composed, experienced attitude. It made him look more mature, more seasoned.Even though Gauge knew that Kendrick was indeed far more capable than he was in the business world.In the past, he never cared much about that. But ever since he became vice president of the the Murphy Group and prepared to take over for his father, he had begun to compare himself to Kendrick in secret.He wanted to be more capable than Kendrick.At the same time, he also hoped that Kendrick would always remain strong—so he could better take care of Anna.Kendrick glanced at him and smirked. “You’re starting to sound
Seraphina understood exactly what Dereon meant—he was suggesting she sleep with the Young Master.But would sleeping with him really make him love her more?Seraphina knew very well: the reason the Young Master still had some affection for her was precisely because she knew her place and respected boundaries.She didn’t want to do anything that might make him hate her.Looking out the cabin window, Seraphina said calmly, “If the Young Master wanted me, of course I’d be willing… but I’m not going to take the initiative to do something so unnecessary.”“How is it unnecessary?!”Dereon slapped his thigh in frustration. Blood was still trickling down his forehead, running past his brow and onto his nose, making him look a little frightening. But his expression was that of a sleazy pimp, and Seraphina found it laughable.“You don’t have to convince me,” she said. “I have my own thoughts on this.”“Seraphina, you don’t understand men,” Dereon lowered his voice. “If you can hold on to the Yo
Ryan said, “That wasn’t the best opportunity just now.”“Why not?”Ryan rubbed his temples in exhaustion. “Can you use your brain before asking questions?”Seraphina quickly jumped in, “Dereon, didn’t you see that Gauge was also there?”“So what if Gauge was there?” Dereon retorted. “That kid clearly can’t fight.”Seraphina patiently explained.First, the Young Master didn’t hide his movements on this trip to South City. Running into Kendrick here was purely by chance.They weren’t prepared. Acting rashly could have led to failure.Even if they succeeded, since their movements weren’t concealed, it would be easy for the Gregory family to trace the incident back to them. And that old man from the Gregory family is no pushover.Second, Gauge was present. He’s friends with both Kendrick and Annabelle. There’s no way he’d stand by and do nothing.If Gauge got dragged into the mess, the Young Master would be making an enemy out of the Murphy family for no reason.The the Whitney Group is j
A private jet bound for Elfhedge took off smoothly from the South City airport.Inside the cabin, Annabelle was lying in a luxurious bedroom.Ryan stepped out of the room and said to Seraphina, who was standing outside the door, “She was poisoned by a type of floral toxin. It causes hallucinations and unconsciousness. She's fine now. Go get a clean set of clothes for her. I’ll help her change.”“It’s already prepared,” Seraphina’s gaze flickered slightly. She tightened her grip on the clothes in her hand and lowered her head. “Young Master, let me do it. This dress is a bit tricky to put on…”Ryan glanced at the dress in her hands, then looked deeply into her eyes. After a moment, he let out a bitter laugh. “Alright… if Anna knew I changed her clothes, she’d probably hate me even more.”Seraphina said nothing. Once Ryan stepped aside, she walked in with her head lowered.She carefully helped Annabelle out of her soiled clothes and put on the dress she had brought with her for the trip
Anna shook her head and smiled. “Nothing really. Let me do the cleaning—you’re definitely not as meticulous as I am. You go wait outside.”“No need…”“Go on, I’ll take care of it.”Annabelle was firm and took the duster from Gauge’s hand.But Gauge didn’t leave. How could he let a girl do the work while he waited outside enjoying the breeze?So the two of them cleaned together.While cleaning the room, Annabelle felt oddly emotional. Her mind was flooded with thoughts.Who was the woman who had once lived here? What kind of story did she have? What kind of mood had she been in when she left the village to live in solitude by the sea?As she wiped the mirror on the vanity, she could almost picture a woman sitting there, grooming herself in days long past.She must have been someone melancholic, yet strong-willed.A sudden wave of sadness welled up from deep within Annabelle’s heart.She couldn’t help but laugh at herself. Am I too empathetic? Why else would she feel so much for a compl
“Let’s go,” Gauge called out to her.Annabelle snapped out of her thoughts and walked toward the small wooden cabin.Gauge pointed to a patch of land behind the cabin and said that it used to be a small garden. There had once been a large tree with a wide canopy, and his father had installed a swing on one of its sturdy horizontal branches.Back then, his father often sat alone inside the cabin, sipping a couple of drinks.Meanwhile, Gauge would sit outside on the swing, watching the sea and listening to music.Looking at the now overgrown garden, Gauge showed a hint of melancholy.“Unfortunately, the big tree was cut down later, and since no one took care of the garden, it fell into disrepair. When my dad came here last year, he said he regretted not being able to maintain it.”Annabelle listened quietly. It seemed Murphy's father had deeply cared about whoever used to live here.Gauge had said before that he wasn’t sure if the person was a man or a woman—he just guessed it was a wom
Annabelle transformed visibly from a sweet little bunny into a puffed-up pufferfish, cheeks bulging with frustration.She got up to leave, but Kendrick pulled her back into his arms. He poked her puffed cheeks and chuckled,"You're really that scared someone’s going to steal me away?""If you could be stolen that easily, then you’re not worth liking."Annabelle wasn’t insecure to the point where a single text message from Kendrick would make her suspicious.But it was late, and the sudden calls and texts clearly meant something was going on.Still… she had to admit, she was just a tiny bit jealous."You jealous of Jaime too? I was on the phone with him," Kendrick laughed as he handed over his phone so she could see the call log.Annabelle glanced at it—sure enough, the call happened while she was playing the guitar. The corners of her lips twitched upward, but she still insisted stubbornly,"I said I was just casually asking."Kendrick then pulled up their group chat—the one with Jaim
Kendrick’s kiss was too passionate—so passionate it was suffocating, instantly awakening every cell in Annabelle’s body.His kiss was also too forceful—so forceful that Annabelle forgot to resist, and didn't want to resist.Because when Kendrick desired her so intensely, she too was equally, fiercely craving him.It suddenly dawned on her—she truly, deeply liked this man above her. She liked his scent, liked his voice, even liked the beads of sweat trickling down his spine.When did she fall this hard?Maybe it started back when they were ambushed and narrowly escaped death… when they lived in the hospital together… when she risked falling just to climb over the balcony and see him.When she brought herself to his bed, faced her feelings for the first time, and accepted him both emotionally and physically—she had already fallen.As for her heart… it had been open to him long before that.Maybe it started with his first kiss. From that moment, her heart had already begun to waver—she j
After his cold shower, Kendrick returned to the room and climbed into bed, but he still felt a bit restless.He gazed at the little woman for a while. She looked exhausted.Not wanting to wake her, he gently pulled her nightdress down and tucked the blanket securely around her.Then he turned around, facing away from her, closed his eyes, and tried to sleep.But in the twenty-something-degree room, Annabelle, now wrapped like a little cocoon, soon got uncomfortable and kicked the blanket off again.Not only that—she rolled over and draped her arm around Kendrick’s waist, hugging him from behind.Maybe because Kendrick’s body was still slightly cool from the cold shower, Annabelle loved the chilly "big body pillow" and even pressed her warm little face against his back.While tightly hugging her “old fox,” she continued her dream, still playing chess with the god of dreams.Kendrick let out a long sigh and gently held the hand around his waist, playfully tickling her palm.She didn’t w
Kendrick chuckled helplessly. “She really doesn’t use her phone much, so there’s no need to worry about her finding out on her own.”He’d seen Anna’s phone interface before—it was mostly filled with practical apps like dictionaries and period trackers. The usual social media apps? She had tucked them all away in a folder labeled "Rarely Used."Thinking of his quirky little wife, Kendrick’s mood lightened significantly.Of course, he knew that in this internet era, Anna might eventually come across the gossip herself. That’s why he hoped, by the time she did, he would have already taken care of everything.Then, when she found out, she’d know exactly where the "arrow" came from—and see clearly what became of the person who fired it.That way, she wouldn’t feel too anxious or wronged. At most, she’d just complain about how shameless the rumor-spreader was.It was the best way Kendrick could think of to minimize the harm.“Alright. I promise,” Gauge said solemnly.“Then that’s all,” Kend