Ivanka frowned. She stared at him in confusion. “Why can’t Evan come over to help? I’m not your full-time caretaker. I have my own things to do and my personal life.”Michael’s expression turned serious. His voice was firm. “Evan’s a man.”She stared at him, incredulous. Was he serious?She glared at him. “Aren’t you a man too?”Michael, however, made a clear distinction. “It’s different with me and Evan.”The moment he said it, Ivanka instantly understood what he meant.Michael was referring to the fact that he was her ex-husband and once lived under the same roof. However, during those three years of marriage, the number of times they saw each other could be counted on one hand.Since they were divorced, there was supposed to be a clear line between them.Michael’s logic was absurd. Not wanting to argue further, Ivanka said, “If you don’t want Evan, then call Xander, or hire a female caregiver. That works too.”Michael rejected the idea. “Xander’s tied up with academic lec
Anna had heard enough and decided not to be the third wheel anymore. “Since you have something to attend to, I shall take my leave first, Sandy.”“Hey, wait…”Sandy wanted to grab Anna, but Anna turned around and left quickly.Ivan was the only person who remained in front of her.Sandy crossed her arms. “Why do you assume that we both will back down together? Also, what are we? Why would I go on a trip with you?”Puzzled, Ivan asked her instead, “Aren’t we friends? Besides, if we’re no longer in charge of this case, why can’t we go on a trip together?”The case they were dealing with was a divorce lawsuit. Although the man was not as rich as Michael, he owned some assets. The woman was a homemaker. Her ex-husband had cheated on her.The man had asked his ex-wife to leave without paying him a penny while also getting child custody. Before the woman was married, she had worked as a secretary. Sandy represented her while Ivan represented her ex-husband.The woman held many pieces
“Looks like you really enjoy arguing with me.”Ivan sighed with resignation.Meanwhile, he stepped forward and approached Sandy while still maintaining distance. Sandy frowned. “What do you mean by that? When I took the case, I didn’t know you were hired by my client’s ex. Besides, what’s the point of talking about all this? Do you have anything important to discuss? If not, I’m leaving now.”She and Anna were shopping. Ivan had interrupted them.Sandy detested him!Seeing that she was about to leave, Ivan chased after her. “Why are you leaving? Anna is gone, but I can shop with you.”Sandy stared at Ivan, who caught up to her, with a grim expression. “Aren’t you broke? If you shop with me, can you afford to pay for my things?”Hearing that, Ivan had to address this issue, since he was the one suggesting that they shopped together. “I can’t afford them right now, but I can carry your stuff.“This is why I asked you to drop the case. I’m penniless and need money, but I don’t wan
After Michael hung up the phone, Ivanka started tidying up his room.She initially planned to let him stay in a spacious room so that he would not run into furniture when he moved around. Moreover, she was worried that since he grew up with a silver spoon, he might not get used to staying in a small room.The larger room was quite a distance away. It was not really a big deal to Ivanka. On the contrary, she thought that it was a good thing. It was better for them to leave each other alone and coexist in peace. But Michael did not like this arrangement.He said that if they were too far apart, Ivanka would not be able to learn about Michael’s condition should anything happen.Ivanka was quite bewildered. What was the worst that could happen?“Given your condition, I don’t need to keep monitoring you. There won’t be any issues.” She crossed her arms and looked at Michael casually. She wanted to see what other excuses he could come up with.Michael did not plan to make any excuses
Michael stared at Ivanka greedily and hungrily. She knelt before the coffee table with slightly disheveled hair. There was an air of sensibility, restraint, and passion in her beauty. Michael’s eyes traced her eyes to the round tip of her nose. He swallowed reflexively.She was even more beautiful when she focused on doing something. Perhaps he was seeing her through rose-tinted glasses? She was more stunning than ever.Unaware of his thoughts, Ivanka put down the pen and handed the shopping list to Michael. He reflexively looked away and refused to meet her eyes, which puzzled her.Michael turned away and inhaled deeply. After he was certain he had regained composure, he looked back at her and took the list.He looked through the list and picked up the pen to add a few items. It did not take long. Ivanka had gotten almost everything covered.Michael returned the list.Ivanka wondered why he became so considerate all of a sudden. Perhaps there was a catch. When she got the list b
Ivanka’s intention was clear. She wanted him to deal with the young women without getting her involved.But Michael would not let her get away with it.He smiled at her. It sent a chill down her spine. She had a bad feeling about what was going to happen next.Ivanka’s fear came true when Michael said to her gently and pleadingly, “Let’s go, my dear wife. Aren’t we going to shop for my underwear?”Stunned, the two young women gawked at each other. For a moment, they were too shocked to excuse themselves and leave.Awkwardness spread among them.He had called her his wife and even mentioned underwear. Anyone would get the wrong idea about their relationship.But the only people feeling awkward were the young women who asked for Michael’s number. Ivanka’s eyes widened with disbelief. She gave an angry bark of laughter.Meanwhile, there was a sly, smug smirk on Michael’s face.“What the heck? She’s his wife but she said nothing when we approached him. She just wants to embarrass
Michael found the worked-up side of Ivanka was adorable.Every time he saw her like that, he would wonder why he had never noticed this side of her before.But it was not too late. He had a chance to make it up to her.They shopped around the food aisles and the fruit section. Ivanka did the picking. Michael did not have anything that he particularly wanted to eat. Once in a while, he would take some items, but they were all Ivanka’s favorite food. No one could say for sure that it was on purpose or just a coincidence.After buying the groceries, Ivanka took Michael to the underwear store.Perhaps it was because of their exchange with the two young women earlier on, Ivanka stopped feeling awkward. She was rather at ease.The strange, romantic tension between them gradually faded.The sales assistant asked who Ivanka was shopping for. She pointed to Michael and let him tell the sales assistant what size he wore.Noticing that Ivanka was not in a good mood, Michael stopped stalli
They worked in the kitchen for a while and produced a table full of scrumptious dishes.Ivanka was a great cook. It surprised Michael a little.After all, when they were married, he had only seen her make a bunch of dishes and place them on the table. He never touched them.Seeing Michael’s expression, Ivanka gave a faint, bitter smile. “The cook didn’t always come over. I couldn’t starve myself to death when I was home alone, right?”Michael kept his head down and said nothing. He knew Ivanka was implying that he rarely came home when they were married.But he would not let it happen again.He would try his best to make it up to her.When they were eating, Ivanka switched to a news channel. She deliberately did it to avoid further interaction with Michael.Oddly enough, she could stand dining with Michael at the same table.But she could not bring herself to properly converse with him during mealtime or bedtime.It was too private of a pastime. She did not want Michael to ge
Ivanka did not pay him any mind and got into the car. If Michael dared to chase after her again, she would most definitely kick him out of the car! She would do what she said she would!Michael did not catch up, but he blocked her with his arms wide open. His stance was clear: You can leave. But over my dead body! Ivanka could not possibly drive over Michael. But it was not a problem for Michael to keep blocking her way. Plus, she had just politely rejected his parents. So, it was even more impossible for her to turn back. Ivanka ran out of patience. She held her forehead and frowned. Michael had already drained her last bit of patience. She never imagined that Michael would actually cling to her to such an extent! How would she put it? All her positivity had been drained clean! “Michael, your parents are still at home. Aren’t you afraid they’ll see and laugh at you? I know Grandpa and Grandma are standing by our side now. It’s not like you and I haven’t been in
Ivanka would neither accept the carrot nor the stick approach. Michael had no choice but to persuade her with reason and win her over with affection. Ivanka snorted. “Have you ever given me a chance to have a meal with you before this? As the saying goes, Rome wasn’t built in a day. It takes time for things to come to this state. Things might have passed for you but not for me!” Ivanka’s gaze was razor-sharp. Michael felt his heart clench up. At that moment, his throat was in so much pain that he did not know what else to say to her. Ivanka did not wait for his response. She pushed away his hand and headed out without hesitation. Michael did not stop her. Nonetheless, he went after her and followed behind her. Meanwhile, they heard the sound from the kitchen. Mindy prepared dinner in the kitchen, and Jay helped her out. They had heard their conversation. Out of courtesy, Ivanka went to the kitchen and greeted them. She said with a smile, “Uncle Jay, Aunt Mindy, I’m
Ivanka clenched her fists. Her gaze was filled with ferocity. She looked like she was really going to punch Michael. Michael noticed the anger in her eyes. But since the person was none other than Ivanka, he was willing to take the beating. He even took a step forward and held his head high. “Strike me if you want.” “You!” Ivanka glared at Michael. He truly annoyed her. She reminded herself to keep her composure. She sucked in a deep breath before saying, “Michael, I’ve treated you with respect. You’d better behave yourself.” Right after she finished the sentence, Ivanka left. Before she even took a step forward, Michael grabbed her. “My mom is preparing the dishes inside the kitchen. If you leave now, you’re not showing me any respect. Please stay around to have dinner. Even though we’re already divorced, and it’s impossible for us to get back together again, we’re still friends,” said Michael. Haha! He had been adamant. He was using the same approach to draw close
Mindy’s expression instantly darkened. “What’s with us being prejudiced against her? Had I ever targeted her when she married Michael from the beginning? “She knew how well Rosie had treated her. It’s her own fault for failing to bond with Mic. How could you blame us?” Mindy had always disliked Ivanka. She believed Samuel’s intervention had been the reason for their marriage. It was an arranged marriage. There was no need for the Barkworth’s family to have an arranged marriage. At the end of the day, it was all up to Samuel to choose the bride for Michael. Ever since Ivanka married Michael, aside from the deliberate arrangements, they had hardly shown up together as a couple in public. Mindy did not have any particularly hard feelings for Ivanka. She believed the two would live happily together after getting married. After they divorced, Mindy thought Michael could start all over again. But she did not expect to see their current relationship was no different from when they
It was Jay and Mindy. When Ivanka saw them, a thought came across her mind. She took out a syringe and inserted it into Michael’s arm to unmute him. Michael felt like he had been stung by a bee. It was as though he had been put in jail, only to be freed all of a sudden. Ivanka took away the syringe and gave him a glance with displeasure. “Get out of the car now. Your parents are here—” “Aren’t you entering the house?” Before Ivanka finished her sentence, Michael interrupted her. When he looked at her, his eyes were filled with sincerity and seriousness. But Ivanka rejected him coldly. “Quick! Get out of the car! I’m not joking with you. Get out now!” “Let’s go in together. After all, you’re already here. Are you worried about seeing them?” Michael was undaunted by her emotions and tone. Instead, he stretched out his hand to try to grab Ivanka. Nonetheless, she avoided him with ease. Meanwhile, Jay and Mindy saw them. They walked over to them. Mindy glanced at th
It was no wonder Jonah asked for so many details. All these were facts.Ivanka did not avoid answering his questions. She gave a light smile. “The longest will be half a year.”If the treatment was ineffective after half a year, she would go to Silvania with Vincent.After all, it was not just about her.Upon learning of Ivanka’s decision, Jonah smiled wryly. “Iv, I don’t think it’s an easy feat to treat my legs. How about you go and deal with your stuff first? You can always treat my legs afterward.”Ivanka initially planned to do it that way. But George, Florence, and Margaret had interrupted her plan.Since she had returned to Bostone, why was there a need to travel back and forth again?She might as well treat Jonah’s legs.Besides, Vincent had informed her that it would be highly uncertain whether they could still return to their home country after arriving at Silvania.Ivanka said, “No. I don’t want to make so many trips. I’ll treat your legs for half a year and see if i
It was not an overstatement to say Michael was crossing the line. Nonetheless, Ivanka could not just sit there and watch the two men get into a conflict. Hence, Ivanka pulled Michael to the side and glanced at him. “If you don’t want to be kicked out, you’d better wait here.” But Michael was undaunted by Jonah. Although Jonah had the power to rebuke him in his own territory, Michael refused to allow Jonah to get the upper hand. Ivanka saw the determination in Michael’s eyes. She was very worried that the two might get into a fight. She quickly pulled him back. “Stop making me worry about you. Just wait here! If you dare to come after me, I’ll…” Although she did not finish her sentence, her intention was clear enough. If Michael disobeyed her, she would make him a statue! Understanding this, Michael did not follow Ivanka. But when Jonah turned around and left, the provocation in his eyes was evident. Still, Michael listened to Ivanka. He did not want to offend her. He
Jonah narrowed his eyes while questioning Michael. Still, Michael did not respond to him. Ivanka pursed her lips. She looked displeased when she answered Jonah, “Jonah, there’s no need to speak so harshly. Do you still want me to treat your legs?” She had temporarily made Michael mute. She did that to stop Michael from talking endlessly about those things. Nonetheless, he had still insisted on coming along with her, only to end up being targeted by Jonah. Ivanka had no intention of making Michael mute in front of Jonah. Upon hearing Ivanka’s words, Jonah looked at where she currently stood. She stood in front of Michael. It looked like she was trying to protect him more. As the saying went, true love was portrayed in hard times. This saying was true indeed. It was true that Ivanka cared about Michael. Jonah said gently to Ivanka, “I want you to treat my legs, and I only speak harshly to specific people. I already showed him much respect when he barged into my terri
Michael remained resolute.Ivanka rolled her eyes. “Then stay stubborn. I’ll only fix it when you stop pushing me away.”After she was done speaking, she turned to leave.Michael followed.He even opened the passenger door and got in her car. He was determined to follow her.But Ivanka would not go easy on him.Once inside, she warned him coldly, “Not being able to speak is harder than you think. Follow if you want. Michael, are you sure about this?”Even after her warning, he kept staring straight ahead.She said nothing more and started the engine.Within half an hour, she arrived at Jonah’s mansion.Jonah came out to greet her personally. The moment Ivanka parked the car, Jonah immediately spotted Michael in the passenger seat.The sight of him stirred up bitterness in Jonah. Yet there was nothing he could do.Before Ivanka exited the car, she said to Michael, “Wait here.”Without glancing at him, she walked straight toward Jonah.Her attitude made Michael decide t