The usually composed Evan lost his composure.Meanwhile, Ivan had yet to regain his senses after learning the shocking news.“What? Seriously, who the hell is she?! What the actual f*ck?!” Ivan swore profusely. He was on the verge of uttering a string of expletives.He never would have thought that Ivanka, who had just walked past him, was Violet Cress!“What’s going on? How did you guys find out she’s Violet Cress?!”Xander explained truthfully, “She’s the one who discovered Rosie’s illness. She admitted she was Violet Cress to treat Rosie.”Ivan nodded. “I see.”But after that, he scratched his head in confusion again. “I just can’t believe it! Is she even human? She’s Iris, Wisteria, Black-eyed Susan, and Violet Cress! How could she possibly have so many different identities? How can she know so much? Is she a witch? How can anyone learn so much in just a couple of decades? Even gods wouldn’t dare claim to be this capable!”Everyone present agreed with him. Evan could not he
Ivanka’s lips twitched, but she said nothing. She walked back to her seat and continued to scroll through Twitter on her phone.Time went by.Since Ivanka had returned, Xander did not continue to discuss the matter further. Occasionally, Ivan could not help but call Ivanka a freak, but then he fell silent.Soon, an hour passed. Everyone busied themselves with another check-up.They discovered that the data was even better than before. Ivanka finally breathed a sigh of relief. She looked at Xander and asked, “So... Can I leave Grandma to you tomorrow?”Xander naturally understood what she meant and nodded instantly, “Yes, sure.”“I’m heading back now,” Ivanka said without further explanation. She was really tired. She decided not to return Michael’s car keys.However, it was getting late. Michael said, “Give me the keys.”Ivanka looked at him in confusion but thought that he might want to drive. Without saying anything, she handed him the keys. She could always call for a
Michael remained silent and ignored Ivanka.Ivanka frowned. She realized he wanted to send her home because it would not be safe for her to return alone late at night. If something happened to her, it would affect Rosie.She pursed her lips and stopped asking questions.Neither of them spoke during the drive. The silence lasted until they reached Ivanka’s house. The car finally stopped at the destination.Ivanka looked at him and opened the passenger door silently.Before she closed the door, Michael said, “Open the gate.”Ivanka froze. She looked at him, puzzled. For a moment, she had no idea what he meant.When Michael noticed Ivanka not responding, he turned and looked at her with a cold gaze before repeating, “Open the gate.”Ivanka frowned. “Are you planning on staying?”“Didn’t you say you didn’t want me to tire myself out?” Ivanka stared at him in silence. Her frown deepened, and she was annoyed.She had said she did not want him to tire himself out driving her home,
Ivanka frowned deeply. She had been busy with the experiment and had not eaten anything. Hence, she was famished. She hesitated for a moment before heading to the kitchen. She saw Michael sitting on the sofa and had no intention to return to his room. She thought for a moment before taking some ingredients out of the fridge. After Ivanka washed the ingredients, she prepared pasta. It did not take long before she finished preparing two plates of pasta. Ivanka served the food on the table. Michael smelled the aroma of the food. He naturally went to the washroom and washed his hands before heading to the dining table. Ivanka passed him the cutlery. Michael said nothing and took it from her. They sat opposite each other. Both had no intention to talk to one another. Ivanka tucked a strand of hair on the side of her face behind her ear. She then used the fork to lift the pasta and blew at it before putting it into her mouth. Michael was not in a hurry to eat the pasta. Ins
After a busy day, Ivanka was exhausted. She quickly took a shower, then blew her hair dry. She returned to her room and laid down on the bed. The moment she remembered Michael was diagnosed with cancer too, a whole slew of complicated emotions burst in her heart. She had already closed her eyes. The next second, she slowly opened her eyes. She wondered how he felt when he learned of his diagnosis. She wondered how he went through the hardship. Despite this, Rosie kept a positive mindset every day. Ivanka guessed that Michael had learned about the diagnosis when Xander did him a body check-up, and Michael decided to hide this from everyone else. If not, Rosie definitely could not accept it. Ivanka wondered if Michael’s parents knew that their son was terminally-ill. She frowned deeply and thought for a moment. In the end, she decided to put aside all the thoughts and shut her eyes. ... The next morning, Ivanka woke up early. Rosie would receive her treatment today. Eve
Xander was stunned. He cast a glance at Michael. Xander touched the tip of his nose and thought. “Even though he refused to admit it, his actions say it all. He must have insisted on staying around her house.” If Ivan was around, he would certainly give Michael a thumbs up behind his back. Rosie looked extremely surprised. “Oh! Did you two…” Rosie dared not continue the following sentence. Her eyes were filled with endless shock and anticipation. She stared at Ivanka and seemed to wait for her to finish the sentence. Rosie wondered if Ivanka and Michael had gotten back together. Rosie could not hide her smile. She waited for Ivanka to say something. Ivanka’s eyes flickered with some emotions. She smiled. “Grandma…” After saying the word, she looked like she was at a loss for words. Rosie became even more puzzled. “Have you two gotten back together?” Rosie knew Xander was Michael’s best friend, so she asked Ivanka that question without hesitation. Ivanka slightly shif
Xander did not know if he should laugh or cry. Ivanka could not hold back her laughter too. “Grandma, why did you say that? Xander is very level-headed.” When she said the last sentence, Michael instantly turned to her. Ivanka was a bit confused when she noticed Michael’s gaze. She wondered why he gave her a razor-sharp glare all of a sudden and wondered if she had said something wrong. Rosie frowned and said unhappily, “You and Ivan have tricked me multiple times. Both of you always talked me into getting an injection. You say it’s not painful, but after getting the injection, it was as painful as pulling my own tooth!” Xander touched the tip of his nose and said nothing. Meanwhile, Michael said calmly, “You still need to take the necessary injections.” Xander nodded cooperatively. “He’s right. I’ll be very gentle this time. This has to be the gentlest of all time.” Ivanka could not help but say teasingly, “Grandma, you need to take your injection. It’s for your health
After Xander packed all the medical tools, he sat beside Michael. Apparently, he had no intention of leaving yet. It was early in the morning, and the trio did not go to work. Instead, they stayed around in the house. Rosie looked at them in puzzlement. “Don’t you need to go to work? Why are you all staying here with me?” It was clear that they should be working at that hour. Ivanka could not help but smile. “Grandma, have you forgotten that it’s the weekend?” “Oh, it’s the weekend!” Rosie snapped out of her daze. She looked at her phone. “You’re right. My head is in a muddle.” The next second, she looked a bit excited. “That’s why you all came here to keep me company, right?” Ivanka grinned. “Yes. Aren’t you happy?” “Of course I am!” Rosie grew even more excited. She almost slammed one of her hands on her thigh. She held Ivanka’s hand tightly, then turned to Xander and Michael with a look of puzzlement. “Why are you two so free too?” Michael and Xander usually had no
Ivanka frowned deeply. Michael was in a horrible state. He had been poisoned and suffered gunshots. He had a strong tolerance to medicine and pain. But it was his mental condition that caused him to fall into this state. Not being fully recovered also added to the burden. Ivanka gave him a white pill which she had formulated by herself. After that, she had the security guard carry Michael into her car. Then, she sent him to the hospital. They arrived at the emergency department. Xavier had finished attending to his patients. When he walked out of his office, he saw Michael being carried into the hospital. He then saw Ivanka beside Michael. Xavier frowned. His expression became tense, and he asked solemnly, “What’s happened to him?” “He’s weak and had previously been poisoned. Since you’re around, you can look after him.” Ivanka summarized Michael’s condition. After hearing Ivanka’s brief explanation, Xavier gave Michael a checklist and put him on a drip. After that,
Since Jonah had come to this and Ivanka was not an ungrateful person, she nodded and gave her word. “Jonah, I’ll give this my all. Don’t worry. As long as it’s within my ability, I’ll help you.” Jonah had to be bound to the wheelchair at the moment. Since Ivanka had shared a similar experience when she took over Lane’s Group back then, she naturally figured out how wolfish and greedy his adversaries would be. Jonah was injured because of her. She swore to give her all to save him from whatever crisis he was facing. Jonah took advantage of this and asked, “What time are you coming tomorrow? I’ll have my assistant get ready.” Ivanka thought for a moment. “Tomorrow afternoon.” She needed to manage her company affairs during the first half of the day. Jonah was content upon hearing her answer. “Good. I’ll wait for you tomorrow.” “Okay.” Ivanka nodded before hanging up. When she returned to her office, she did not expect to see Michael sitting on the couch. She nearly jum
There was only one possibility. Ivanka was calling somebody else. Michael wondered who could strike up such a long conversation with her. Sandy and Ivan had returned to the country. Ivanka’s besties were around her. Even if Ivanka deliberately approached Chiara, she could not possibly have so much to chat with Chiara. If Ivanka’s phone call was business related, there was no need to chat this long. Michael eliminated the possible reasons one by one. In the end, he thought of Jonah. Michael’s expression instantly turned as dark as thunderclouds. His gaze was dull and cold. Evan noticed it. He also saw the call record on Michael’s phone. Evan quickly persuaded Michael, “Mr. Barkworth, Ms. Lane could be tied up with her work, so she couldn’t answer your call. We could go to her workplace now.” Michael said nothing. He gave a cold glance at Evan. Evan got a shock. The next second, Michael turned around and left his office. Looking at Michael’s fading silhouette, Evan wi
It was why Ivanka still came for Jonah in spite of her unpleasant experience with Margaret in the hospital last time. Jonah had been injured because of Ivanka. She came for him only. The other people did not matter to her. Jonah’s heart sank upon hearing her words. His expression tensed up. He could imagine the indifferent look on Ivanka’s face right at that moment. She had that expression on her face simply because he was never really important to her. Jonah was upset precisely because of her indifference to him. He wanted to say something to her but did not know how to begin. He was also not in the position to say that. It did not take long before Ivanka’s gentle but rather indifferent voice rang in his ears, “Jonah, don’t worry. I’ll treat your legs until they recover. Don’t run into any conflicts with your mom because of me.” Her words pulled Jonah’s wandering mind back into the present moment. He felt a heavy weight on his heart. “Iv, I trust you. You don’t need to
Margaret became frustrated and grabbed Ivanka. She could not understand why Ivanka was fine while Jonah ended up in such a bad situation after the accident.Then, Jonah defended Ivanka. There was also all the talk about Ivanka’s treatment. Margaret was curious to see what kind of miracle medicine Ivanka could develop.In the end, Ivanka’s treatment did not work. Moreover, her relationship with Jonah, which had finally started to improve, was once again ruined because of Ivanka.Jonah scoffed. “Mom, I’m not an eight-year-old anymore. You’re saying all this because you want me to go along with your plans for an arranged date, right?”Margaret had not expected Jonah to guess her thoughts. She was about to insist on her point when Jonah spoke first. With a mocking smile, he said sarcastically, “Do you think anyone would date someone like me?”He had a point. But Laura might be one such person.However, Margaret did not like her. She would do anything to keep Laura from becoming her d
“That’s because you want him to fall in love with you!” Margaret snapped.Ivanka chuckled softly. Her tone was edged with sarcasm. “Love? Does it really matter that much?”Margaret felt humiliated and furious. She pointed a finger at Ivanka’s face with a hostile expression. “If it doesn’t matter, why are you doing all this? Stop pretending, Ivanka!”Ivanka let out a bitter laugh. “Pretending? What am I pretending for? Is being divorced a crime? Margaret, you’re a woman too. How would you feel if someone accused you like this?”She hoped Margaret would take a moment to reflect. After all, she was Jonah’s mother, and Ivanka did not want their conflict to escalate.But Margaret was unmoved. Her glare turned colder, sharper, and filled with hatred.“You think I’ll just let this go?” Margaret said sharply. “If it weren’t for you, Jonah wouldn’t be in this mess! I meant every word I said, and nothing will change that.”To her, Ivanka was nothing more than someone scheming to use Jonah
“Ivanka,” Margaret took a deep breath while trying to compose herself. When she looked at Ivanka again, her expression was calm. She said, “I don’t know how deep Jonah’s feelings for you run. What I fear most is that once he becomes fixated on you, that’s it. When he falls for someone, his heart won’t make room for anyone else. In that way, he’s just like his father.”Ivanka’s gaze wavered. She bit her lip and was unsure of what to say.“I beg you, don’t hurt Jonah anymore!” Margaret’s voice carried a note of desperation.Ivanka’s expression turned extremely complicated.There was a time when Jonah came to her only to use her. Back then, they were both using each other. It made things simple.But later, Jonah unexpectedly started talking about marriage. Perhaps it was to provoke Michael, or perhaps he simply wanted to keep her close because she was useful to him.At some point, though, it seemed Jonah had become serious about her. She could not pinpoint when it happened. Perhaps
Jonah frowned in clear disagreement, but he stayed silent. Ivanka’s confident smile reassured him and made him trust her.Eventually, he let go of her wrist.Ivanka noticed Margaret putting on her shoes. She quickly followed, stepping outside just as Margaret was about to get into her car“Margaret,” she called out.Margaret frowned slightly and stood still.Since Jonah had not come out with Ivanka, she decided she could spare a moment to speak with her.She turned and looked at Ivanka coldly.Ivanka softened her tone. “Let’s take a walk.”Margaret did not respond, but her silence was enough of an agreement.They walked slowly around the edge of the mansion. The surrounding area was all part of the Sadler family estate.Margaret suppressed her anger and glanced at Ivanka before speaking in a composed tone, “Alright. What do you want to say?”Ivanka met her gaze briefly before looking ahead and said, “Do you know what will happen if Jonah’s coughing continues?”Margaret’s he
Margaret glared at Ivanka and scoffed, “If there’s an issue, I’ll get another doctor to handle it. It’ll be anyone but you, Ivanka. Haven’t I made myself clear enough? I’ve told you this before.”She hated how Ivanka ignored her warnings and kept coming back to visit Jonah time and again. What if Jonah got too close to her and ended up ruining his reputation? If Jonah had not been here, Margaret would have been even harsher.Ivanka frowned as she met Margaret’s sharp gaze. “I’ve never tried to get close to Jonah like that. We’re just friends. I know I’m not good enough for him, so I’ve never even thought about it.”“You might not have, but he has!” Margaret snapped, raising her voice.“Mom!” Jonah’s expression darkened.Jonah was usually calm and polite. This was the first time Ivanka saw him looking so upset and was about to lose his temper.Ivanka’s eyes flickered with hesitation. She was unsure of what to say.Explaining Jonah’s coughing would do no good. Margaret would not