“I wouldn't have just stood by and watched as Chloe burned to death if I had been at the hospital."Joseph's voice remained steady, yet the paleness of his fingernails betrayed the intensity of his emotions. How could he have let her die if he had known? He longed to build a life with her, to create a haven where they could find solace.Emily's eyes were swollen from crying, and her hatred was unconcealed. "Then where were you?"Joseph hesitated for a moment, then let out a bitter laugh. "There's no use discussing that now."Chloe would never know the truth, forever.Emily was filled with disappointment as she believed that Joseph was just making excuses and could not provide a proper answer. She said sarcastically, "Now that Coco is gone, you can openly be with Xavia. Will you laugh yourself to sleep at night?""I don't have any feelings for Xavia."Emily remained unconvinced and smiled coldly as she strode away. As she exited the cemetery, she spotted a white Maybach parked ac
Joseph's gaze was drawn toward the wailing baby. Frowning, he asked, "What's wrong with him?""Maybe he's hungry. I'll take him next door to feed him," Xavia said as she patiently comforted the baby. She stepped out of the room, and Tyson ceased trying to persuade Joseph. Instead, he remarked, "Sometimes, a new life can bring us good luck.""Good luck?" Joseph scoffed, "My luck has been so rotten that it couldn't possibly get any worse."Tyson fell silent, unable to refute or find the right words to say. After a while, he left, but Xavia stayed by Joseph's side until evening. She sat by the bedside and rocked the baby in her arms. She did not say much to Joseph as he did not give her the chance to speak, so she spent most of her time taking care of the baby."Joe, I need to use the restroom. Can you watch the baby for me?" Xavia said, her smile looking somewhat stiff after maintaining it for an entire day. Joseph's eyes softened as he looked at the baby lying on the sofa. The b
Stunned, Lucas asked, "Why are we going to the Sullivan estate?"Joseph looked into the distance, his gaze deep and his face unreadable. "I'm going to confirm something."The evening sun bathed the Sullivan estate in a warm golden hue. Desmond sat in the courtyard, leisurely savoring his hot tea while relishing the serenity of the moment. Just then, a butler hurriedly approached him and said, "Sir, Mr. Joseph is here."Desmond's hands trembled as he recalled the disrespectful words his unruly grandson had said to Joseph. He was aware of Chloe's death, and since then, Noah had been holed up in his room. It was unlikely that he had any contact with Joseph recently.With these thoughts in mind, Desmond calmed himself and said, "Please let him in."Joseph followed the butler through the estate and finally took a seat beside Desmond. Before the latter could speak, Joseph stated, "Mr. Desmond, I've come to see Noah."Desmond was taken aback. It appeared that Joseph had discovered Noah'
Deeply stung by the word "hate," Joseph wrapped his hands around Noah’s neck and glared at him intently. "Where’s Chloe?"Noah's breath momentarily caught in his throat. His face flushed red, but he remained fearless. He retorted defiantly, "She's dead! And you're the one who killed her!""I did not! I was protecting her!"He was going to set her free once he had settled everything. But no one, not even him, could predict what fate had in store for them. Struggling to breathe, Noah said with difficulty, "Stop denying it. She didn't need your protection. To Coco, your love was like a prison. Do you honestly believe you loved her and that everything you did was for her sake? You were just torturing her. And who are you trying to impress now? Can she see this or hear about this now? You're just doing this to alleviate your guilty conscience!“One moment, you're in an ambiguous relationship with Xavia, and the next, you're entangling yourself with Coco. Even if the former is an act,
Joseph picked up his suit jacket from the floor and made his way toward the exit. Noah raised an eyebrow in perplexion as he was unsure of Joseph's intentions.As Joseph reached the doorway, he paused and turned to face Noah. "You're not so different from me.""What do you mean?" Noah asked."In the name of doing good for her, you're causing harm as well," Joseph replied.Noah furrowed his brows. He was about to test Joseph and see if he had learned anything, but Joseph left before he had the chance.Joseph sat in his car until the early hours of dawn. As the sun rose, the first ray of morning light pierced through the hazy clouds, brightening the world. He was not certain of Chloe's fate, but he held onto the hope that she was still alive.*Joseph's car remained parked outside the Sullivan estate, and the butler informed Noah about the situation. "Mr. Joseph just sat in his car all night and left after sunrise.""Sunrise?"Noah gazed toward the sky where the sun had reached
At the Sullivan estate, Desmond had been waiting for Chloe for a long time. Since learning that Chloe was his granddaughter three years ago, he had wanted to announce this joyful news to the world and transfer one-sixth of Exotic Star's shares to her. Chloe had declined the offer, stating that she wanted to wait until she returned to her home country.Apart from being Exotic Star’s ambassador, she was unfamiliar with the other aspects of the company’s business. Secondly, Noah had been the one managing Exotic Star all these years, and she did not want to reap the rewards without contributing to its success. She did not want Noah to feel like she was meddling in his interests. He had helped her too much, and she did not want to take advantage of him.As Chloe stepped out of the car, Desmond waved at her with a smile. "You must be tired from the flight. I did instruct our private plane to pick you up, but you said it was too troublesome." "Grandpa, I'm not delicate," Chloe said, chuck
Chloe raised an eyebrow, recognizing that the voice belonged to a child. She remained composed as she turned to look at him.When Jasper saw her face clearly, he was shocked. "It's you!"Chloe frowned and asked, "You know who I am?""Yes, I do," Jasper replied, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "Oh? How do you know me?" she asked curiously.‘Did Xavia bad-mouth me to her kid?'"You had a fling with my daddy, right?" Jasper asked in a serious voice."A fling... Your mom told you that?" Chloe's mouth twitched, realizing she had hit the nail on the head. Xavia indeed talked ill of Chloe to her kid. "But I don't believe it," Jasper said earnestly, "I think you’re a good person.""Huh? But why?""Because you came to see Greatpapi. Daddy says Greatpapi loves you very much, and you’re here to see him, so that proves you're a good person. You treat Greatpapi better than Xavia does."Chloe was stunned. "Why do you call her by her first name?"This kid had inherited his fath
Xavia put on a gentle smile and said, "Don't overthink it. No mother in the world would not love her child. I just want your daddy to pay more attention to me so that our relationship will improve. Don't you want your parents to have a better relationship?"Jasper tilted his head and replied coldly, "What your relationship is your business. If it's not working out, then get a divorce. Being with someone you don't love is like being trapped in hell."This was something his school teacher had said. Several students in his class had parents who were divorced, and the teacher had tried to console them with these words. He found it quite reasonable. He did not like Xavia anyway, so her relationship with his father was of little concern to him.Xavia froze for a moment, thinking that Jasper was implying that Joseph did not love her. Unable to control her emotions, she grabbed Jasper and threw him to the floor. "I went through so much pain giving birth to you and I've endured countless har