Grace wanted to refuse. But Benjamin's words were too tempting. He must have found out something for him to come here out of the blue. Grace didn't give him an immediate answer. Instead, she looked at Xander. After some thought, she said, "I'll send you my location." "Okay."After ending the call, Grace wanted to explain, but Xander had already read her mind. "Gracie, do what you think is right." Grace was surprised for a moment and then nodded gently.… In just an hour, Benjamin arrived. When he saw Grace, his eyes lit up with surprise. Larry, who had followed him, was the first to greet her, "Ms. Lewis!" "Larry, it's been a while." Grace's tone remained the same, which surprised Larry. Even though her position was higher than his now, she didn't treat him any differently. That warmed Larry's heart. Grace politely offered, "Mr. Hawkins, please have a seat." She felt the distance between them had grown. Benjamin furrowed his brows in displeasure. However, Gr
Benjamin clearly felt the atmosphere change when he asked that question. Grace's thoughts drifted far away, and she returned to her senses after some time. "It's been too long. I don't remember." A hint of disappointment flashed in Benjamin's eyes. "Do you not remember, or are you choosing not to?" Grace smirked and looked at him. "Mr. Hawkins, can you tell me the truth? What's your relationship with Jessica?""Would you believe me if I said it's nothing?" Benjamin asked self-mockingly. He had never humbled himself to this point. "Grace, if you insist on continuing the investigation, you must be prepared. I'm warning you. I don't want you to get hurt." "Benjamin, you sound ridiculous. You're acting irrationally under the guise of protecting me? Or do you think your actions are truly for my benefit?" "It's not—" Benjamin started, but there was nothing more he could say. He couldn't find an excuse.He begged earnestly, "Grace, just listen to me just this once, okay?" Ju
Xander left with Grace without waiting for Benjamin to answer. All of a sudden, Benjamin was the only person left in the enormous lobby.He was like a lone boat bobbing on the vast ocean, and he still couldn't find the right direction.After some time, Larry walked over to him. "Are you alright, Mr. Hawkins?"Benjamin's eyes focused again, and he slowly opened his mouth. "Larry, tell me. What was I like before?"Larry pressed his lips together. "Mr. Hawkins, are you thinking about Ms. Lewis?"He had been Benjamin's secretary for many years, and he had personally seen how Grace and Benjamin had interacted over the past three years.Although he hadn't known who Grace was at the beginning, from their daily lives, he could see that Benjamin treated Grace differently from others.It just seemed that Benjamin had never realized it himself."Mr. Hawkins, you have always treated Ms. Lewis differently. However, even now, you still don't understand why you treat her differently."Larry'
Grace inclined her head slightly and walked over. "Excuse me, you're Adeline Wentworth, right?"Adeline was rather surprised.She immediately looked guarded as she looked at Grace, then at Xander beside her. Finally, she asked, "Do you know me?""Ms. Wentworth, we've only heard Jessica mention you. We were just passing by and came to see you."Upon the mention of Jessica's name, Adeline was slightly startled. A flash of uneasiness crossed her features, and then she asked uncertainly, "Jessica? You know Jessica?"Grace assented. Adeline laughed, and her tone became unfriendly. "Are you joking? I grew up with Jessica, and in all those years, I've never heard her mention you."Tell me who you really are! Were you sent here by that asshole, Enzo Burke, to persuade me? I'm telling you, I gave birth to my son, and he has no relation to that asshole, Enzo! "If you think you can take my child from me, then you're dreaming! And you're posing as Jessica's friends on top of that! How
Adeline seemed to lose focus momentarily. Then, she said, "Why do you want to know about this? Isn't it normal for friends to lose contact?""But you grew up together, and you must have a deeper relationship than most people. Something in particular must have happened to make you suddenly break off contact with each other, right?"Adeline smiled slightly. "You're overthinking this. It wasn't anything in particular. It was just that our paths in life diverged. "She's now an internationally renowned designer who's in high demand. I'm just a single mother who was cheated on by a scumbag. I'm just scraping by with this bookstore. "The two of us live in two completely different worlds. There's no need to bring up the past, is there?""Is that true?""Why should I lie to you?" Adeline looked perfectly calm.She asked instead, "Why did you come to me? What's your purpose? I doubt it's that simple, is it?"Grace voiced out her doubts. "Ms. Wentworth, I won't hide things from you. I s
Grace frowned slightly. Were they just going to give up? She wouldn't accept that! At that moment, a tiny figure caught Grace's attention. Not far from them, a little boy squatted in a corner, holding a Rubik's cube in his hands. He was playing with it intently, and his fingers were a blur as he moved the squares on the cube. In less than half a minute, he had solved it. Grace rose and walked over to the little boy. "Ms. Wentworth, is this your son?"Adeline thought that Grace was planning something and hurried over to stop her. "What are you doing? Don't touch my son! I'll fight to the death with anyone who touches my son!"Grace was frightened by her ferocity. She hurriedly explained, "You misunderstood me. I just noticed that he's very good at solving the Rubik's cube. Most children of his age aren't that mentally developed, and he looks like he's very good at it. "The fact that he's able to solve a Rubik's cube in less than a minute shows that he must have very high i
Adeline was shocked when she saw this. Was this really her son, Reggie?Was this the Reggie who didn't want to interact with other people and who was always lost in his own world?Adeline couldn't believe this!Then, she looked at Grace gratefully.Grace held Reggie's hand. "Good boy, Reggie! You're the best!"Reggie nodded obediently.Adeline was extremely emotional. Reggie had never interacted with a stranger like this in his entire life, but Grace had managed to do it.This made her feel extremely grateful to Grace."Thank you! Thank you!"Grace shook her head slightly. "You're welcome. There's nothing wrong with Reggie, so let's not treat him as a problematic child."Adeline nodded vigorously. "I know. I know about it all …"Even though Xander and Grace hadn't managed to find out about Jessica from Adeline, they still felt that it had been worth the trip."Ms. Wentworth, if there isn't anything else, we'll take our leave. Thank you for your time today."Grace and Xande
Adeline was startled, but she shook her head.She looked at the photograph on the tombstone. "I don't know."Grace was obviously disappointed by her answer.Adeline continued, "But I can prove that she's fake."Grace's eyes lit up with hope. Adeline didn't try to hide anything. She squatted down and slowly moved the right brick in front of the tombstone. A small gap appeared, and then she pulled out a stack of documents from inside."These are the documents related to the car accident and Jessica's death certificate. And … the design drafts that Jessica once treasured the most."Grace and Xander exchanged looks, then reached out to take them.Grace took a deep breath before opening them."Jessica was burned very badly in the accident, and her parents' deaths were a huge blow to her. At some point, she lost the courage to continue living.""Even though the doctors tried their best to save her, she didn't make it."There was silence. Grace looked at the hospital documents a