Julian's finger was placed on Nancy's left collarbone. Her skin was soft and fair, without a trace of love bites. He let go of her after confirming that she had spoken the truth.Immediately, Nancy slapped him.Slap! The bedroom grew dead quiet.Nancy was so furious that she could not control herself. She always knew Julian was a bad-tempered man, but she did not think him rude. Intruding her room was one thing, but she could not tolerate him lowering her neckline and touching her without permission.She only had a nightgown on. Julian could have revealed her body had he pulled the neckline any lower.At that moment, Julian was stunned because he did not think any woman would dare slap him — or maybe he had just never been slapped before.Nancy took the opportunity to jump out of bed and go straight into the toilet.There, she recalled that this was not Julian's first time being slapped. His first experience had been at a bar, and it had been Nancy, again, who had done it.Wh
None of the employees dared look up. All of them pretended nothing had happened.Nancy pushed Julian away and quickly got up. She glanced to where Yaacob had been standing to see that he had already walked away. She wondered if he had seen what had happened.When everyone else left the room, Julian said, "That was required if you wished to know if he still has feelings left for you.""But do you have to act so indecently when there are so many people in the room? What are they going to say?" Nancy was still angry."I didn't know you were afraid of rumors," Julian said."What's wrong with that? Are you denying my right to dignity?" Nancy gave him a hard stare before walking out with the tray of glasses.Nancy spent the rest of the day studying under Jeff. She had a small notebook with which she took down points. She noticed everyone was treating her differently after her day off.They stopped giving her such heavy workloads and started treating her like a human being. She was del
Nancy was shocked. She tried to push Yaacob away but failed. His strength was on a different level. If Yaacob set his mind on kissing someone, that was what he would do. He had only preferred to be a gentleman in the past, not wanting to force Nancy.Nancy was overwhelmed. "You do know how to make me angry," Yaacob said after letting her go.Nancy took the chance to take deep breaths, trapped between his arms and his chest. She looked up and saw Yaacob looking at her with an angry and injured expression."How many times have I told you I don't want to see you and Julian being so close?" Yaacob asked.'Is he jealous because of what happened this morning?' Nancy thought.Although Julian was a mean and awful person, most of the time, he did have his points. Like how he had said they would only see Yaacob's true emotions by provoking him.Surprisingly, Nancy was glad to see Yaacob feeling jealous. She kept looking at him, but her words hid her true feelings. "We're divorced. Why sh
Yaacob only sent Nancy home after her foot had been treated at a hospital.The doctor put her on bed rest and told her to limit her activities for at least two days. Thus, she said nothing when Yaacob carried her to her room and placed her on the couch."Thank you for looking after me today. You can go now," she said."What kind of gratitude is that? Do you realize I carried you all the way here? And you don't even offer me a glass of water?" Yaacob asked."Fine." She pointed to a jug of water and said, "Go pour yourself a glass of water, then."Truthfully, Yaacob really was thirsty. Before he drank the water, he heard Nancy telling him, "You can leave after having a glass of water."Shaking his head helplessly, he said, "You heartless little girl!""Hey, it's indecent for a woman to have a man in her room at night. I'm defenseless and hurt!" Nancy retorted.She was a little upset by Yaacob's remark. His tone suggested he had had difficulty carrying her because she was heavy. N
Julian deliberately glanced at the time after Nancy arrived at the company. "It took you almost an hour to get here. Do you take my words as..."He was about to hold Nancy accountable, but he paused when he looked up and saw that Nancy had one foot wrapped in thick gauze. Moreover, she only managed to keep herself upright by holding on to the wall."So you weren't lying when you said you were hurt?""Of course not! I love myself too much ever to do something like stabbing my foot with glass just to skip work. My foot hurts so much that I didn't really get much sleep last night. Not to mention, it's very hard for me to get around with only one foot. So it's not too much to ask for a day off, right?" complained Nancy.Julian rolled his eyes at her and said, "A simple yes or no to the question would have sufficed. Okay, you can go back now that I know you weren't lying."Nancy was speechless. 'Did he really just tell me to go home when he was the one who insisted I come here?'As mu
'Oh my god! Julian went to a hotel with another woman? I should just pretend I didn't see it!' thought Nancy.Nancy pulled Harvey away so they could quickly leave before Julian noticed them. That was certainly one embarrassment she wanted to avoid.Unfortunately, she was not fast enough. Julian managed to overtake her from behind before she could even take a few steps forward. He even deliberately threw something at her when he was walking past her.Nancy was so shocked that she froze on the spot. She looked down and found a beautifully packaged lunch box. However, the delicate packaging was shattered by the fall, and everything inside ended up spilling all over the ground."Are you okay?" asked Harvey."Yeah. Good thing it didn't manage to hit me…" said Nancy.Even though there was a trash can next to Nancy, she could not help but feel Julian purposely threw the lunch box in front of Nancy instead of the trash can.She looked up to see that Julian had already walked away. It se
Nancy kept wondering who the culprit could be while walking out of the security room. 'She must be someone from the company. But what makes her hate me so much? It's one thing to put glass shards in my shoes, but another to try to take my life with the vase!'While deep in thought, Nancy was about to get into the elevator when someone called out to her, "Excuse me, Miss. But you can't take that elevator.""What?""That elevator is out of order. You have to use the other one," reminded the cleaning lady. With a broom in one hand, she then picked up a safety sign with her other to put in front of the out-of-order elevator. "We've already contacted the mechanic to come fix it.""Alright. Thanks for letting me know," said Nancy. After that, she got into the other elevator, and who happened to be there but Taya!"What are you doing here?" Nancy asked Taya. She thought it was weird to bump into her there because Taya and Yaacob did not work in that building."Mr. Getson has a meeting h
The government had dispatched three of their personnel to meet with Yaacob, which was more than his other competitors. In fact, the other competitors had to submit their proposals to compete for the bid.The reason Getson Corporation received preferential treatment was because the government was interested in reaching a deal with Asia's largest enterprise. The government wanted to set aside a piece of land to build a new commercial and cultural center, and they had set their sights on working with Getson Corporation for the project.Thus, they were understandably upset that Yaacob kept them waiting for thirty minutes in the conference room. When the three government personnel walked out of the elevator, they could not help but complain."Well, that certainly was a waste of our time!" said one of them."I heard Yaacob just came back from studying abroad. He has great foresight and skills in doing business, but it seems he's just full of hot air! He doesn't even have basic manners!"
Yaacob stayed in Nancy and Celica's house in Rhea City for a month without leaving.After sending Celica to kindergarten, Yaacob sent Nancy to the company.Nancy always asked him to stop the car two streets away from the company, but that day, Yaacob went a bit further, and she started to get anxious. "Stop the car, quick. Stop going forward. It's the peak hour right now. I can't let anyone see me."Yaacob stopped the car, but he did not unlock the door.He lowered the top of the convertible and asked her, "Is being with me that embarrassing to you?""I'm not with you. This is just a transaction!" Nancy insisted.She could not open the door and noticed that Yaacob had locked it. When she went to unlock it, her hand was pushed down by the man."Don't I make you happy? Is Celica unhappy? Don't you enjoy every night that we're together? You clearly have me in your heart, but why do you keep denying it? Nancy, what happened to your boldness and carefree spirit? Who do you want to im
Nancy had just stopped at Athenapolis to pick up some things she had left with Benson's friends when they had stayed there.She had also wanted to congratulate Rowena and Randall on their marriage and to apologize for not being able to attend their wedding.However, the next day, she could not get up at all.Fearing another intense night like the one before, she decided to book a flight to Rhea City that afternoon.The moment she sat on the plane, Nancy almost collapsed in her seat. Her lower back was aching.When she shut her eyes, her head was inexplicably flooded with certain images.It was like she was under a spell!"Ms., the flight is about to take off. Please switch off your phones," the flight attendant told Nancy.Nancy remembered that she had already turned off her phone.However, she turned around to see Celica looking at her phone unhappily."Sorry."Nancy switched off Celica's phone, but she did not seem happy about it. "Mommy… will Uncle Yaacob call me?""Even
After half a year, Nancy finally returned from America with Celica.Celica held Nancy's hand in one hand and a cat plushie that was almost half her size in another.As soon as they walked out of the VIP channel, Celica's sharp eyes immediately spotted the man who had come to pick them up. She abandoned her plushie as she rushed to him, hands outstretched and waiting to be carried."Uncle Yaacob! Uncle Yaacob!""Celica, don't run so fast!"Nancy could not stop her and could only follow behind, picking up the plushie along with some candy that had dropped from her pocket as she ran.Yaacob hurried forward and immediately scooped Celica up. He smelled the sweet scent of candy."Uncle Yaacob…"Celica hugged Yaacob, nuzzling her head against his. The fine and soft hair that was unique to a child warmed Yaacob's heart.It had been two years, but she had not forgotten him!It seemed like her memory was better than expected. She had probably gotten it from him.Of course, it was als
Randall and Rowena went to the same motel they had the last time.The boss remembered them as the ones who had broken his window, but he did not give them a hard time, warmly welcoming them instead.After all, the money that Randall had given him for it had been enough to replace the windows of the whole building. This time, Randall flexed his financial might again. He pulled out a wad of cash from his wallet and put it on the counter. "Boss, we want an entire floor.""Sir, do you want one room or two?""The whole floor!"Hearing what Randall said, Rowena looked at him in amazement. "Why so many rooms?""Have you forgotten how bad the soundproofing is here?" Randall replied.Rowena was speechless.The hotel owner was a veteran of this. He immediately put the money into the counter drawer and said, "Okay, I'll give you a key to a room on the third floor. I'll go knock on every door to clear the floor out right now. I assure you that you'll have an enjoyable night!"Rowena fel
"How absurd!"Randall's words were not meant to demean her. He just felt that it was too dangerous for the child to be there.Rowena, however, felt like she was being blamed for no reason."Why are you in a restaurant with this girl in the middle of the night?" Rowena asked Randall.Randall did not answer. He walked forward to help secure Dorothy before he took the dangerous weapon off her hands."Rowena, you should bring Sandy back for now."Rowena did not move."It's too dangerous for the both of you to be here. Listen to me!" Randall told her.Rowena did not respond. Instead, it was Dorothy who spoke: "Mr. Smith, why do you think she can just come and go as she pleases? I already told my subordinates that not even a fly is allowed out."Even though Rowena had been captured, she knew that they would not be able to walk free if anything happened to her so the man would not touch her so easily."Mrs. Browning, you just wanted to talk with me."Dorothy really liked talking to
Dorothy and Randall found themselves in a standoff. Suddenly, a hushed report from her subordinate reached Dorothy's ears. "Someone's outside, claiming to have information on Mr. Randall.""Who? Could it be that Yaacob has returned earlier than expected?" Dorothy, determined to prevail over Randall that night, insisted, "Don't let him in; I can't believe he would just barge in!""It's not Mr. Randall. It's a woman, accompanied by a child." The subordinate hesitated before providing more details.Rowena, who had given birth just four months ago, had swiftly regained her pre-pregnancy figure. She wore a navy blue striped shirt knotted at the waist, paired with snug jeans, showing no signs of her previous pregnancy. From behind, she looked slender and youthful, resembling a young girl. Yet, in front, she cradled a baby.The infant, only three or four months old, sported a hat with a few wisps of hair peeking out and a pacifier. The child's intelligent eyes darted around, exploring the
Four months later, the impending presidential election heightened the tension in Athenapolis. Harrison, eyeing reelection, aspired to forge an alliance with the Browning family and assimilate the Getson Group.Simultaneously, at this critical juncture, Yaacob had already partnered with Tom. He opted to collaborate with Yaacob after his unsuccessful bid to become part of the Browning family. Both were cunning strategists with centuries of experience, making their alliance arguably the most formidable.Tom, with backing from overseas financial giants, had a complex and mysterious identity. However, his requirements from Yaacob were surprisingly straightforward. He sought to use Yaacob to advance his political standing.On the flip side, Yaacob needed Tom's support to solidify his position within the Getson family, ensuring it remained stable. The previous presidential transition in Athenapolis had resulted in bloodshed and political turmoil, claiming Xander's life.This time, Randall
Lola pondered her predicament, finding her situation undesirable. She was infertile and struggling to establish stability despite numerous relationships. Her benefactor stood idly by as the original wife attacked her, too hesitant to intervene. After that day, Athenapolis no longer offered a solid ground for Lola.Dorothy sternly cautioned Lola, vowing to teach her a lesson whenever they crossed paths. Leaving Mr. Randall did not lead to greener pastures for Lola. She remained destitute. Rowena, the source of her misfortune, was to blame.Life with Randall had been tolerable. He never mistreated her, though love was absent. However, everything changed when Rowena reappeared. Witnessing Rowena's pregnancy with Randall intensified Lola's resentment, fueling an intense hatred. She harbored a fervent wish for Rowena and the unborn child to die!Lola understood that only Rowena's demise could rekindle hope for her. Unfortunately, Lola was uncertain about the vast power imbalance be
Having finally brought Rowena home, Randall became an aspiring intern dad. Opting against hiring a nanny, he naturally assumed the responsibility of caring for his pregnant wife.He would juggle the demands of running the company and handling household matters. Randall appeared fatigued, yet those with keen observation could discern a tired but content expression on his face. Lately, a newfound joy, previously unseen, frequently illuminated his features—the anticipation of becoming a father.During a visit to the hospital, a woman seated beside Rowena observed her pregnant belly and initiated a conversation, "Your belly is quite prominent. When are you due?""In about a month," Rowena replied."That's wonderful! Congratulations! I saw you during one of my check-ups. Is the man accompanying you each time your husband?" Others looked on with envy, expressing, "My husband isn't as involved. No matter how many times I ask, he never joins me for the appointment."Rowena remained silent