“Go away!” Michael bellowed. His eyes were bloodshot and icy.The drug was taking effect. His rationality was slipping away.However, on the edge of losing control, Tanya’s actions were like a cold splash of water that shocked him back to reality.Ivanka would never be so forward, nor would she ever engage in such a seductive display.Tanya had never been yelled at like that. At that moment, she had set aside all her pride and dignity. Ignoring how uneasy this would make her feel, she reached out and tore away the last of her clothing.“Michael, it’s me, Ivanka. I’ve thought it through. We can get back together. I realize I still can’t get over you. I love you!“After the divorce, I realized none of those men can compare to you. None of them are as good as you.”Michael’s anger did not deter Tanya. She continued to approach him. Her bare feet padded seductively on the floor with each step.Michael’s vision blurred, but Ivanka’s face remained sharply in focus and more vivid th
The drug coursing through Michael was no ordinary one.It was a powerful, fast-acting substance.Without having intercourse with a woman, the chaotic flow of his energy and blood could overwhelm his body and potentially lead to a fatal outcome.That woman…Michael gripped Ivanka’s shoulder. His other hand was already tugging at her clothes. In his current state, his rationality had vanished!Without hesitation, Ivanka reached into the small pouch she always carried with her and opened it. She took a pill out and fed Michael.Within moments, Michael became a little clear-headed.“Iv?”He had seen two versions of her earlier and knew one was an imposter, so he called her name because he wanted to distinguish the real Ivanka by her voice.“Don’t speak. Save your strength. I’m calling Evan now.” As Ivanka said that, she pulled out her phone with an intensely serious expression.The powerful drug coursing through Michael’s system would be agonizing to counteract with medication al
Ivanka’s expression instantly ran cold.Who would show up in such a barbaric manner at a time like this?“Michael, I’m going to feed you a few more pills to hold off the drug effect. You’re going to feel even worse for a while, but you have to hold on. I’ll go see who’s out there.”As Ivanka spoke, she quickly fed him the pills to help him stay clear-headed.With that, she got up and left the bathroom.Unbeknownst to her, Michael’s gaze, which lingered on her, was filled with a mixture of confusion and something else.Ivanka soon stepped into the main room.She saw Jackie leading a group of men, each one more intimidating than the last.This was especially so for the man standing right in front of Jackie, Bert!She knew Bert had held a grudge against her since the earlier gambling session. He was clearly looking for trouble at this moment. His current expression was anything but friendly.“What do you want?” Ivanka asked coldly.“You’ve got the nerve to ask us that? You and
“Creak.”The door to the private room was pushed open from the outside. Evan walked in.Evan looked anxious. He was followed by three or four men carrying a large bathtub.Seeing Jackie and Bert, Evan immediately understood their intentions, but Jackie and Bert were puzzled by what was happening.“What are you doing?”Bert stepped forward.Ivanka’s lips curled into a sneer.Bert really was a dutiful lapdog for Jackie.“We have something to take care of. Bring me hot water, but don’t worry, we’ll also pay you the venue fee later.”After saying that, Ivanka turned and left.Bert was about to say something more, but Jackie stopped him with a raised hand.Evan gave his men a quick signal.They carried the bathtub into the restroom.“Let’s go. I’ll settle the ten trillion and the venue fee with you,” Evan said coldly. He understood their concern given the large amount of money involved.However, the problem was that when things were taken too far, it easily provoked resentme
“Back to the hotel,” Tanya ordered the chauffeur sharply. Her expression was dark with anger.“What about the man we took out of the casino?” The chauffeur glanced back at Tanya and asked for instructions.Tanya suddenly remembered Blake.Her eyes narrowed dangerously. “Bring him back with us.”Not only did he not help her at the auction, he even had the nerve to take her virginity. She had to make him pay the price!...As Ivanka was preparing the third round of the medicinal bath for Michael, Evan returned.In his hands was the Ganoderma nebula they had bid for ten trillion dollars. At the same time, he brought news for Michael and Ivanka.“Mr. Barkworth, Ms. Lane, Kingzillion Casino would like to thank everyone for their participation and celebrate the success of the auction. They’re hosting a gala three nights from now at 10 p.m. Here’s the invitation.”With that, Evan placed a black, gold-embossed invitation in front of Ivanka and Michael.Ivanka frowned as she looked at
More than anything, she was upset.No matter who she was involved with, he had no right to look at her like that. It was as if he was silently questioning her. “What’s going on between you and that man?”She did not know who the man was.He had not revealed his identity. At that moment, she was too worried about their situation to confront him or ask any questions.“I’m just curious.”The moment the words slipped out, even Michael was surprised. Was he explaining himself?“I’m curious too. Evan, look into it. From the moment Michael and I started gambling, a masked couple was hanging around us. I suspect the man in room 4098 today might be one of them. See if you can find out who they are!”People would not hide their faces without any reason, especially when they suddenly appeared like that.Ivanka did not believe it was all just a coincidence. It had to be premeditated.“Got it, I’ll get on it right away.”Evan nodded.He was also smart enough to know that he should leav
With that in mind, Ivanka reached out and stopped Evan.She pursed her lips and said, “Get a staff uniform. If he refuses to put it on, stay here with him.”She did not want to spend the night in this strange casino!“Alright then.”Although Evan was reluctant, he relented when he saw how insistent she was.Soon enough, he found a staff uniform and handed it to Ivanka. “Ms. Ivanka, please bring it to Mr. Barkworth.”Evan was afraid of him.Ivanka gave him a look of contempt and walked into the washroom with the uniform.By then, the medicine had already cooled down.“I forgot to tell Evan to get you clean clothes. This is all we could find. If you don’t want it, then both of you will have to spend the night here.”Ivanka held out the clothes to Michael, but he did not take them.He frowned. “What about you?”“I’ll return to the hotel.”“I’ll go back with you.”Michael, too, knew that it was getting late.He did not mind inconveniencing Evan, but he could not afford to le
“Since they like following us around so much, Evan, look up where the nearest police station is.” Ivanka’s lips curved into a scheming smile.Evan immediately turned on his GPS.The nearest police station was just five minutes away. The hotel they stayed at was located downtown, so none of the roads around it were particularly secluded.Besides, there were surveillance cameras on all these roads. Whenever the stalkers wanted to make a move, their targets would make a turn or other cars would suddenly approach and ruin their plan.If there were gunshots in the urban area, police would be drawn over. Therefore, the stalkers could not take action anytime soon.They did not expect that as they awaited opportunities, Evan led them to the police station!“Heck! Boss, I didn’t expect this! Now that they’ve noticed us, we can’t do anything now. Even if we try to rob them, I don’t think the item is with them at the moment!”The driver quickly turned the steering wheel. The car veered a
Instead, she remained standing in front of Jimothy and studied the group of men with a smile.“He works at our company. Since I’ve run into him, I’m obligated to come over and check on him. Pray tell, what has happened between you and why do you feel the need to resolve it with violence?”Jimothy stared at Candice while she stood with her back facing him. The look in his eyes was conflicted.The men exchanged glances with each other and saw a hint of astonishment in one another’s eyes.The man at the front of the group, who was likely their leader, said, “We just get paid to do this, lady. You should stay out of it.”When Candice heard his advice which also sounded like a threat, she did not intend to back down at all. Instead, she asked him, “Oh? How much did you get for this? I’ll pay you double. I just told you that this guy works for us, so I have to intervene.”The leader started laughing, and so did the men behind him. They did not even bother to hide the mockery in their t
Candice ordered some food she liked, and the dishes arrived soon after.Sandy suggested that they all took a picture together.The others did not object.Sandy gave her phone to the waiter.Then the five of them moved their chairs to sit in a row.Michael and Ivan each took the outermost seats.Naturally, Ivanka was seated next to Michael while Sandy, who paid for the dinner, was right beside her.Next to Sandy was Candice, who sat awkwardly in her chair. Ivan was beside Candice.The second the waiter took the picture, Ivanka and Michael exchanged glances inadvertently. Meanwhile, Ivan stared past Candice, and his eyes fell on Sandy.Sandy and Candice were the only people who looked into the camera.But each and every one of them had a genuine smile on their face.Once they had taken a picture, they started eating together.It was a nice, relaxing dinner. They did not talk about work or how annoying Coco had been.They mostly chatted about the fun anecdotes they had he
The call was soon answered, but the person who picked up was not Rosie. It was Mrs. Ruth.“Ms. Lane, you finally called! Mdm. Barkworth will be over the moon when she wakes up!” Mrs. Ruth sounded quite excited as she spoke.Ivanka smiled and asked, “Is Grandma resting now?”“Yeah, she hasn’t had a good rest after learning that you’d be kidnapped. Once you were safe, she finally allowed herself to rest.”Ivanka nodded and told Mrs. Ruth to take good care of Rosie. She later said that she and Micheal would visit Rosie soon.With that, she hung up the phone.Meanwhile, she also reflected upon herself.Rosie had gotten old, yet Ivanka always made her worry. From that moment on, Ivanka would consider the consequences before making any decision. It was not only for the sake of herself, but the important people in her life, who also cared about her.As she contemplated this, Ivanka inevitably thought of the gathering. It would be quite fun.Before they were about to get off work, San
Coco practically ran out crying.Candice glanced at Ivanka worriedly and asked, “Will something bad happen to her?”Ivanka was not concerned at all. “What could possibly happen? She is an adult. Even if something bad happens, she has to bear the consequences of her own action.”Hearing that, Candice no longer fretted over the matter.She was not really worried about Coco. She was just afraid that something would happen to Coco, and Ivanka would be blamed for it.But Ivanka had made a good point. Candice did not want to trouble herself with Coco’s matters. It would only be an unnecessary emotional burden to her.Everyone in the office began discussing the progress of their project.Perhaps it was because Ivanka had made an example of Coco, the other employees became especially energized and diligent during their discussion.They were even more focused than before, since they were all afraid that Ivanka would treat them harshly as well.Hence, they were particularly efficient.
“Why don’t we leave now so that you can deal with this matter, Ms. Ivanka?”The director of the project department, who was perceptive and shrewd, planned to leave right then. Ivanka shook her head and signaled everyone to sit down.They were all uneasy, and they kept giving Coco weird looks.Two people had dared speak to Ivanka like that in the past—Ferris and Mandy.But those two were no longer with the company.At the thought of those people, the project department staff began looking at Coco with pity.However, Coco could not care less. All she wanted was to make a fuss.She wanted to see how shameless Ivanka could be.Unruffled, Ivanka stared at her. She did not get angry and seemed rather affable as she asked, “Tell me what upset you. Have we falsely accused you of something you didn’t do?”Before Coco said anything, Ivanka added cruelly, “Oh, I forgot that you aren’t familiar with the protocol here, so you have no idea what you did wrong, right?”Coco paled. Undoubte
Candice was momentarily stunned by his answer. She was a little offended.“Then why did you come to my office for this conversation?” Jimothy’s grin was mischievous. “To prove your company’s HR is blind, and you just lost a great talent. That’s all.”With that, Jimothy stood up, dusted off his sleeves dramatically, and turned to leave.“Your resume!” Candice called after him.Jimothy waved dismissively without looking back. “Keep it. Enjoy reading it. And don’t let an incompetent HR handle your interviews again.”Candice stood there for a moment and processed the scene before an involuntary chuckle escaped her lips. This one had personality.Regardless, the incident served as a wake-up call for Candice.It became glaringly clear that Coco was not only incompetent but also prone to overestimating her abilities.Before the task was assigned, she had the chance to decline. Candice had given her the opportunity and explicitly asked if she could handle it. Yet, Coco confidentl
The college student finally believed her and walked toward Candice.On the other hand, Coco seemed guilty and was desperate to prevent it. “He has no respect for our company! Are you really going to hire someone like him who won’t follow orders?” Coco’s tone was sharp. Her finger trembled as she pointed at the young man.She scanned the room for backup in hopes that the people who had been flattering her earlier would speak up in her defense.Unfortunately, no one stepped forward.Those who flattered Coco only did so out of respect for Ivanka. Yet Candice had a close relationship with Ivanka and was the company’s vice president.The gap between a vice president versus an intern was as vast as night and day.Anyone with common sense knew where to align themselves.Coco felt a mix of despair and resentment.Candice ignored her entirely. Why Ivanka was so wary of someone as clueless as this was beyond her comprehension.Coco was simply dumb.Without wasting another thought o
However, reality proved she had worried for nothing.Candice had called her over merely to ask if she had the most basic professional knowledge and whether she could handle the afternoon’s interview.Coco let out a deep sigh of relief before patting her chest confidently and assuring Candice she was more than capable.Knowing Coco came from the mountains, Candice was naturally skeptical, so she asked again, “Are you sure?”Coco thought to herself that it was just an interview. All she needed to do was just ask the candidates some questions. They could just choose someone who wrote the resume well.Not wanting to embarrass herself in front of Michael’s cousin, Coco pretended to be confident and accepted the task.Candice was half-doubtful, yet she still gave her instructions and let her go.However, Coco’s firm assurance eventually led to trouble....“Your company must be a joke to hire someone like you for HR. You’re offended? You’re not even a real professional. What? You ca
Word quickly spread within the HR department. After learning about Coco’s connection to Ivanka, some colleagues were vying to curry favor with her.Although some observant individuals noticed that the relationship between Coco and Ivanka was not as harmonious as it seemed, it did not deter the opportunists. Relentless flattery and attention poured in.One moment, a male coworker would offer to grab her food while placing his own lunch order. Next, a female coworker would ask if she wanted to order some coffee too.At first, Coco was caught off guard and politely declined. However, as she realized their intentions were purely self-serving, she began to accept their gestures without hesitation.By midday, Coco had become the department’s little queen. Ironically, as an intern, she should have been the one fetching coffee, running errands and collecting mail. Instead, she had colleagues practically lining up to do those tasks for her.Coco quickly assembled her own little e