“Alright. Then, I wish you success in advance.” The person sounded quite laid back and casual.Tanya did not respond and hung up. Her expression became grimmer than before.She held her forehead with one hand and gently rubbed a temple with the other before increasing its intensity.She really had a real headache.After taking a deep breath, she finally took out her phone and sent a WhatsApp message to Michael.On WhatsApp, she had an extremely good proposal. She wanted to show it to Michael. If Michael was willing to work with her, she might be one step nearer to success.She had been asking her staff to come up with very good proposals to present to her for some time. She had picked this out from hundreds of proposals. If Michael was still not satisfied with this, she had no idea what else she could do… After sending it over, she then typed another message to Michael.Tanya: Mr. Barkworth, please have a look at this proposal. If you’re interested, you can contact me. I can
The next day, Ivanka went to work as usual. However, she suddenly received a call from Samuel. Ivanka dropped everything at the company immediately. She then informed Thomas and hurriedly rushed over.Samuel looked at Ivanka when she reached the Barkworth family’s mansion. “You’re finally here! Go check up on Rosie!” Samuel’s gaze when he looked at Ivanka was no longer filled with disgust like before. Instead, he looked at Ivanka as if she was the pillar that was keeping him going.“What happened?” Ivanka’s brow furrowed. She just visited Rosie yesterday, and there was nothing wrong with her. How could Rosie suddenly faint? Samuel immediately brought Ivanka into their bedroom. There were only three of them inside the house. Rosie was still unconscious. Samuel said, “She wasn’t really lively today. When she talked to me, she suddenly remembered how I’ve been cruel to you in the past. So, she started criticizing me for the things I did. I didn’t even dare to talk back, but she fa
Ivanka was not the only one feeling awful. Even Samuel really regretted his action. He did not admit it earlier, but he was fully aware of his mistakes. At that moment, he mentally berated himself. He questioned himself why he had shown such a bad attitude when he was well aware of his wife’s condition. Ivanka was not at fault. She had even gone out of her way to help. Why had he been so stubborn about acknowledging that? It was as if he was driven by some form of obstinacy. At that moment, Samuel felt like slapping himself, but he could not do that in front of Ivanka. It would be too undignified. Samuel sighed internally and restrained his emotions. He was so caught up in blaming himself that he did not notice the mixed emotions in Ivanka’s eyes. After a moment, Ivanka said softly, “Grandma’s collapse this time is a first. I hope that you can be more considerate of her emotions from now on. Honestly, Jay and Michael can handle the company matters well. Although Grandma often qua
Just as Ivanka had predicted, Rosie woke up 45 minutes later.Samuel, who had been waiting anxiously by her side, finally felt relieved and asked in pleasant surprise, “You’re awake?”Rosie looked confused as she glanced around the room. Realizing it was her bedroom, she felt even more bewildered. “What time is it now?”She could not tell the time. She was unsure if she had just taken a nap or if it was early morning.For a moment, she could not tell if it was morning or afternoon.Samuel immediately said, “It’s a little past one. It’s still early. If you’re tired, you can go back to sleep for a while.”Rosie was even more confused.She thought. “1 p.m.? Did I really take a nap?”Something did not seem right to her.Had she eaten lunch?How come she had no memory of it?Seeing Rosie’s confused expression, Samuel feigned ignorance and asked, “What’s with that look? Did you have a dream?”Rosie looked at him in puzzlement. “Did we have lunch?”Samuel snorted. “Lunch? You wer
Rosie’s emotions softened a little as she looked at him with a hint of suspicion in her eyes.Samuel continued. “But over this period, I’ve come to realize that Ivanka isn’t the person I once thought she was. Even with my attitude toward her, she’s always been good to you and hasn’t let my behavior affect her respect for me. That has changed my impression of her.”Rosie blinked. She was still silent as she kept feeling that something was not quite right. However, she was genuinely happy that Samuel had changed his mind.Then, she heard Samuel’s calm voice again.“Honestly, we got married because we loved each other. Remember how my family was against our relationship? But I chose you over them, even if it meant cutting ties. Despite everything, we’ve been happy together all these years, and I understand what love feels like. Now, I can see that that brat has feelings for Ivanka. So, if he really loves her, I shouldn’t stand in their way anymore. Finding someone you love to spend yo
Samuel was never one to go back on his word.Rosie completely trusted his words.Seeing Rosie’s happy expression, Samuel felt his worries melt away. He looked at her with a sense of relief. “Shall we go eat?”“Yes! My stomach was growling a few times just now. Let’s go, I’m really hungry.” With that, Rosie held onto Samuel’s hand and got out of bed. Samuel watched her closely the entire time and was ready to catch her if she stumbled. They went to the washroom together, washed their hands, and then sat down at the dining table.They looked incredibly loving and affectionate.Rosie was in a genuinely great mood....After learning that Rosie had woken up, Ivanka left without meeting her. If she saw Rosie, they would end up chatting for a long time. Ivanka had more urgent matters to attend to. She was already headed straight to Barkworth’s Group in a car.While on her way, she called Michael, who answered promptly.Before he could speak, Ivanka said, “Are you at the office? I’m
Worse still, the patient might not survive three months. Everything was full of uncertainty.“So, what do we do?” Michael asked.Ivanka walked over to the couch and sat down with a frown.Michael suddenly got up and went over to sit opposite her. It was as if he could see her more easily that way.Ivanka frowned, but she eventually said grimly, “We might need to… pick up the pace. The second injection will happen tonight. I’ll let you decide what to tell her.”With that, Ivanka fell silent, but her expression was particularly somber.She could have told Michael about this over the phone, but she preferred to tell him face-to-face and show him how important this was.As they discussed, Michael’s phone suddenly dinged. He looked over with a frown and read the message from Evan.Evan: Mr. Barkworth, Miss Cullen has arrived. She is downstairs.Michael frowned and replied right away.Michael: Reschedule.That was all that he wrote. His message was concise and curt.When Evan s
However, it was all wishful thinking. This would never happen.Evan shook his head. “Sorry. Mr. Barkworth is fully occupied today… Why don’t you both reschedule your meeting?”Normally, this was his job, but Tanya was unlike other business associates. Besides, she and Michael often collaborated some time ago, so they would keep the discussion between themselves for most things. What happened presently was unexpected. When Evan saw Ivanka coming over, he knew that Tanya would not be able to meet with Michael.Tanya was speechless. The disappointment in her heart grew. After a moment of hesitation, she said with confusion, “Did something serious happen? Is there anything I can help with?”Tanya’s question was brilliantly crafted.First of all, she was an outstanding businesswoman. Cullen’s Group was powerful and it had a lot of sway in this country.Secondly, she had asked this question out of concern. She did not seem curious about trade secrets. Both Cullen’s Group and Barkwort
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