Unfortunately, her sly cousin beat her to it.Defeated, Candice rubbed her nose awkwardly and sat down opposite Ivanka.Rosie saw what happened between them and could not stop smiling.When Rosie was young, she was stern and decisive. She implemented strict household rules and banned everyone from talking during mealtime. But as she got older, she seldom had a chance to meet up with her grandchildren.Therefore, she started chatting with them at the dining table.Rosie started off by asking how Candice was doing.Candice was modest. “I’m doing fine these days. Hopefully I have not caused trouble for Ms. Lane.”“I see,” Rosie said. She looked at Ivanka and said teasingly, “What about you, Ms. Lane?”That form of address startled Ivanka. She nearly choked on her soup. She turned away and started coughing. Rosie told Mrs. Ruth to bring her a glass of water.Before the water arrived, Michael reacted quickly and immediately put down his cutlery. He wiped his hands on the napkin
But given the state of Ivanka’s relationship with Michael, it was not appropriate for them to move back home together.Ivanka tucked her hair behind her ear. “I don’t think it’s a good idea. I don’t want to be a bother to Grandma.”Rosie disagreed with her. “You won’t be a bother. I’d be thrilled to have you both back. You’ll keep me company!” Ivanka smiled, but deep down, she was trying to come up with an excuse to persuade Rosie while not hurting her feelings.If she did not handle this matter properly, Rosie would bring this up again, even if she backed down this time.Candice could tell how conflicted Ivanka was, so she came to her rescue. She said to Rosie in a child-like manner, “Am I not enough to keep you company, Grandma? What have I done wrong?”As expected, Rosie shifted her attention to Candice. She tapped a finger between Candice’s eyebrows adoringly.“You brat. Are you getting jealous? Of course I adore you. I just want all of you in the house. No one is getting r
Ivanka later realized that Michael’s excuse had been a trap!But at the end of the day, she would never expose his lie and embarrass him in front of Rosie. With that in mind, Ivanka gave a cold snort.She would let him off the hook just this once. If he did that again, she would certainly teach him a lesson!Ivanka felt lethargic when she came to work the next day.Candice saw her when she came over to hand her a contract. She could barely hide the smile on her lips.Seeing Candice’s smile, Ivanka knew that she must have gotten the wrong idea.But at that point, Ivanka did not have the strength to explain herself, so she let Candice be.After signing the contract, Ivanka capped her pen and said, “Do you need me to go with you? This is not an ordinary assignment. The other party would come prepared. I’m worried that something might happen to you.”Candice picked up the contract on the table and said with a smile, “We live in a society with laws and regulations. What are they goi
Candice’s heart sank sharply, and her face instantly fell.She had considered different possibilities, but she never thought that he would be the boss of Victory Edge Corporation!“It has been a while, Candice.” The man wore a pair of sunglasses. There was a mocking smile on his lips. He opened his arms, as if to give her a hug.Candice stood still and stared at him fixedly.“Leonardo, how did you get out of jail?”It was her obnoxious, cheating ex-fiance!Leonardo took off his sunglasses. There was a regretful expression on his face.“It has been a long time since we last met. I thought you’d be thrilled to see me. But the first thing you did was ask me how I got out. You broke my heart.”Leonardo approached her as he said that.Candice watched him cautiously and stepped back out of reflex until she was backed into a wall and there was nowhere else to go.Thoughts raced in her head as she tried to figure out what happened.How did Leonardo get out? Was he the only one who m
Sensing the vibration from her phone, Candice was finally relieved.Her emergency contact was Ivanka. A while ago, Candice had gone shopping for a phone with her, and Ivanka had made Candice set her number as the emergency contact.Candice was immensely grateful for Ivanka’s foresight.As the distress message was sent, Leonardo was done dealing with the waitress.The waitress was fired on the spot.Candice was not in a mood to worry for the waitress. All she could think about was sending Ivanka another message without alerting Leonardo.Leonardo was still putting food on her plate. Seeing that Candice was unmoved by his gesture, his expression darkened. But he did not explode with anger, and the look on his face was inscrutable.He simply asked, “Why aren’t you eating? Is the food not to your liking?”Candice shook her head. “I’m not hungry at the moment.”Leonardo chuckled. “Impossible. You ate some stir-fried noodles at noon and haven’t had a single bite of food since you le
Before Ivanka said anything, Candice started rambling about a random request.Ivanka refrained from saying a word, because she sensed that something was off.Perhaps Candice had not mispressed the emergency button. Her distress message was real!Just then, Leonardo snatched Candice’s phone right out of her hand and put Ivanka on speaker.Ivanka’s voice rang out. She sounded calm and did not betray a hint of emotion.“Go on. What is it?”Candice knew that Ivanka must have realized that she was in a dangerous situation.She heaved a sigh of relief. Her plan worked to a certain extent.She said, “I realized that there are some mistakes in the contract Dan Geralds submitted. Please review it as we need to submit it soon.”On the other end of the line, Ivanka frowned. There was no one named Dan Geralds in the company.She instantly knew that Candice was in a very dangerous situation.Ivanka inhaled deeply and made sure that she sounded as calm as possible so that whoever was th
Ivanka knew she had been out of line, so she immediately apologized.“I didn’t mean to offend you. This is urgent. Candice went to a business meeting today, but something happened. I need your help to ask the police to track her phone.”About five minutes later, the conference room door opened again. Evan stepped in. He looked apologetic.He lowered his head and said to the board members, “I’m sorry, everyone. Mr. Barkworth has some urgent business.”Ivanka and Michael left the company and split up after that.One of them returned to the office to check where Candice might be and investigate Victory Edge Corporation’s background. The other went to the police to ask them to locate Candice’s phone.Fifteen minutes later, Michael sent a location.Twenty minutes after that, they were both heading to a mountain resort.Michael called her and asked, “Do you know who’s behind this?”His expression was grim.Ivanka looked troubled, too. Speaking through her Bluetooth earpiece, she re
Candice had a feeling that there was something in the wine.She looked at him and shook her head.“Thanks, but I don’t want to drink. I need to head back later.”“Head back?” Leonardo’s smile turned sinister. He seemed to find it incredibly amusing and burst out laughing.Candice flinched at his reaction. She quickly grabbed her pepper spray from her bag. She kept a close eye on him and was wary of his next move.Before she could think, Leonardo held the wine glass in one hand and grabbed her chin with the other.His grip was so harsh that it hurt her.Candice placed both hands in front of her chest and tried to create some distance between them. She immediately began struggling violently.Leonardo became even more ruthless. He pinned the back of her head and tried to force the wine into her mouth.Candice realized she could not break free. So, she reached out and knocked the wine glass to the floor.The glass hit the floor and shattered into pieces.Some of the shards even
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