"Ms. Sanders, Mr. Smith said you can pick whatever you want. All of these are the new arrivals of our store," said the sales assistant.Randall had forgotten Lola's birthday a few days before, so he bought out the entire jewelry store for a day as a way to make it up to her.Lola was admiring a six-carat pear-shaped diamond ring on her finger."Ms. Sanders, you have very good taste. This is one of the rarest jewelry in our shop. There are only two of these diamond rings in the whole country, and the most popular celebrity has the other one. The ring represents 'everlasting love', and it looks really good on you," said the sales assistant.Lola smiled at the compliment. Randall had always been generous to her ever since they got together. In fact, he had never said no to anything she asked for. Thus, she knew he would not even bat an eye if she told him she wanted that ring despite it being 700 hundred thousand dollars.However, Lola would have preferred if he had gone to the jewel
Lola was busying herself in the kitchen when Randall arrived home. She immediately smiled and said, "Randall, I want to personally cook something for you today. It's going to take some time, so why don't you do something else first?"Randall paused when he saw the eggplant she was slicing. "These vegetables…""Are all harvested from the vegetable garden out the back. Don't they look fresh and yummy? I really am impressed by your green thumb." Lola sliced the eggplant into pieces before glancing at him and asking, "What's the matter?""Nothing… Did you pick out your own present?""Yup. I'll show you later," said Lola with a wink. She then shyly chased him out of the kitchen, so he thought he would go to the second-floor balcony to read a book.Lola was a sweet-looking girl, and she knew how to use that to her advantage. She was completely different from Rowena, who was cold and unfeeling; she knew when to smile and when to act shy and weak to stir up a man's protective instinct. Ho
Lola looked up to meet Randall's eyes and found that she could not read his expression. Her face turned pale, and she could hardly hold onto the diamond necklace. She knew Randall knew what she did that afternoon!"Are you angry at me because of what I did to Ms. Peck? I swear I didn't know she works at the jewelry store! Plus, she didn't seem like she remembered me, so I thought there was no need to tell her who I was," explained Lola."So you took advantage of that by deliberately leaving an earring there so that you could lure her here?""I…"Lola had kept Randall's house running in tip-top condition ever since she moved in. She might be young, but she was competent. In fact, so many people had told Randall how lucky he was to have her. They also praised her sensibility and thoughtfulness and often compared her to the aloof and cold Rowena.However, Lola was simply too smart for her own good. Her act was up, so there was no point in her playing dumb. Randall knew she was not th
By eleven o'clock in the morning, the customers in the shop gradually lessened as it was at the tail end of the peak hour.The sales assistant touched Rowena's arm and reminded her, "Ms. Sanders is still here. Should we call her boyfriend to pick her up?""I don't know.""How can you not know? Didn't you say that she's here for you? Just what the hell is going on?"Rowena continued to shake her head resignedly. She then glanced at Lola, who was seated in the rest area. The latter still looked the same as she did earlier that morning. Truth be told, Rowena was quite impressed by her.'She was so radiant and beautiful when she came in yesterday… and yet she can remain unperturbed by all the strange looks people are throwing at her now. She's willing to endure all this to make me plead her case to Randall. She must really love him,' thought Rowena.At least for Rowena, even if a man abandoned her, she would not make herself so miserable just to get him back. After all, no one in thi
Pain shot across the back of Rowena's neck. Enduring the pain, she stooped down and punched the man right in the ribs. She did not know how much force she had used, but the man immediately fell to the floor and wailed in pain. He did not get up after that, so it was safe to assume that she had broken his ribs.However, there was no time to be surprised about her own power. She quickly pulled Lola back up."Let's get out of here. Randall has come to rescue you."Lola's expression was somewhat dazed, but her eyes focused a little when she heard Randall's name.Randall had taken down most of the men outside, so they did not run into any problems while heading out. However, Lola was in a bad condition."Randall… Lola… Lola's injured!" cried Rowena.Randall quickly walked up to her and picked up Lola from her back. Rowena quickly opened the car door for him, and he put Lola into the car."What are we going to do next?" she asked."Don't worry. Just get in the car. Someone will take
"Rowena, don't you recognize me?""Sorry, you are?""Anna Yale!""Sorry, I was terribly sick for quite some time, so I kind of lost some of my memories."To Anna's credit, she was not as immature as she was back then, so she simply smiled resignedly and said, "I see.""Although I don't remember you, I'm still the person that you can count on. If there's anything you need, I'm here to help," said Rowena."Thank you. By the way, that person out there really is my husband." Anna lowered her head and coaxed the babies in her arms. Her frown seemed like it was etched deep on her forehead.Rowena was worried about this miserable-looking young lady. "Is he bullying you? Did he beat you? Or is he having an affair?"Anna shook her head. "No, he killed my father, and forced me to be with him."Rowena fell silent. She did not expect Anna to be so honest with her, telling her such shocking yet personal matters.'Seems like we're quite close in the past. Too bad there's nothing I can do f
Three years had passed in the blink of an eye.Some people had left, whereas some stayed. Either way, it did not stop the huge changes in Athenapolis. Since the city welcomed its new president, a series of pro-business policies have been made, and the city has become busier than it used to be.That morning, President Harrison Keating announced that his daughter and her fiance would have their wedding soon. The wedding would be held at his house. Since Harrison and his future son-in-law, Yaacob, were both high-profile individuals, everyone expected nothing less than a wedding of the century.However, there were also some complaints about the possible roadblocks on the wedding day. After all, traffic congestion was bad news for businesses that relied on transportation efficiency.Randall had been making calls the whole morning to reassure several overseas branches that everything was under control. Based on his understanding, he was certain that the wedding would not be as grand as P
After leaving the restaurant, Randall bought ice cream for Ethan before asking the driver to bring them home. However, the little boy hugged Randall's leg and would not let go. He kept clamoring for Randall to take him to the amusement park."Randall, Ethan has been begging you to take him to the amusement park for years. Today is his fifth birthday, so how about fulfilling his wish?" argued Lola.Randall remained indifferent, which made Lola suspect he must have been thinking of Rowena when he saw her in the restaurant earlier.It was not a good look for her if Ethan continued throwing tantrums in public, so she simply picked him up and forcefully placed him back in the car."Daddy is busy with work, so don't cause trouble for him!" she lectured."But I want Daddy to play with me! I want Daddy…" Ethan started bawling his eyes out."Why are you crying? Stop crying or else Daddy won't want you anymore!"Frightened by her words, Ethan immediately stopped crying. However, being a s
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