Michael glanced at her coldly. “Shouldn’t you know where we are heading?”Ivanka was speechless.She gave him a look of defeat and could not help but snap at him, “How did Evan put up with you all these years?”The look in Michael’s eyes became fierce and icy, but Ivanka was done talking. She started the car.She had been to this place before and was rather familiar with it.Ivanka thought about some places and decided on one. She did not discuss it with Michael and simply drove there.As usual, no words were exchanged. The car was filled with dead silence. They did not even play music on the radio.The two of them were comfortable with the silence. It was how they interacted with each other.Ivanka, for one, certainly did not want to waste her breath talking to this man.They arrived at their destination after over an hour of driving.Ivanka stopped the car in the parking lot and looked over at Michael.“This bridal house is quite well-known. They also have a wide selection
Michael halted in his tracks and so did Ivanka. She turned toward the store manager and said with a perplexed look on her face. “Who told you we’d be here?”Michael immediately shot a cold glare at the store manager. He was silent, but she was already a little frightened. After all, he was no ordinary man.If his chilly glare could kill, she would have been maimed and dead by now. She willed herself not to pass out under his gaze.The store manager took a deep breath and delivered the speech that she had prepared earlier on.“So, our company has been looking for a business partner. We happened to find out that Barkworth’s Group and Lane’s Group are working together. I heard that you have planned to conduct a survey, and I predicted that you’ll visit in recent days. Besides, it’s hard to overlook someone with your demeanor. I have seen you on TV before, so I recognized you immediately. I work here every day. It’s my honor to meet you.”Hearing what the store manager said, Holly, th
The store manager went slightly pale. She immediately got in their way before they headed for the door. Her voice carried a note of panic. “Mr. Barkworth, Ms. Lane, you haven’t seen all the designs. Our current designers are quite talented as well. The situation is not as bad as you imagine, or else a big brand like us would’ve been done for.”Ivanka did not get up. She only stared at the store manager. “Then show me what you think is good. We don’t have time to go through the designs one by one.”The store manager quickly walked over. She picked some wedding gown designs and displayed them on the screen.Ivanka browsed through them. The disappointment in her eyes only grew.The store manager was so anxious that she almost broke out in a cold sweat. She quickly said, “We have also received some new designs today. Mr. Barkworth, Ms. Lane, please have another look at them!”Both Barkworth’s Group and Lane’s Group were big clients. If she missed the chance to work with them, her supe
Ivanka did not expect Michael to be such a jerk!After all, Michael could easily ostracize her and force her out of Lane’s Group if he wanted to.But she could not let this guy find and take advantage of her weakness!Michael looked mockingly. “You got me in trouble multiple times, but I let it slide for grandma’s sake. If you keep testing my patience, I’ll give you a taste of your own medicine!”Ivanka was at a loss for words.She gritted her teeth. “Fine, I’ll do it! But you’ll be the one reaching out to them, right?”Michael said nothing.But Ivanka knew that he had agreed, so she wordlessly drove to the hotel.Now, the most important thing was to track down those designers.If she could win them over, she would not have to work with another bridal house.However, Michael seemed to be messing with her. The moment she arrived at the hotel and parked the car, he had already forwarded her the phone numbers of those designers.“Talk to them yourself.”With that, Michael got
Ivanka vowed to get back at Michael for this one day!But she had not figured out Michael’s weakness.She could not bring herself to hurt his family, because she, too, cared about some of them.Otherwise, much to her immense frustration, he seemed invulnerable!Ivanka inhaled and thought about her relationship with Michael. They had been hanging out together way too often.After a pause, Ivanka said, “Give me a moment. I’m going to call him again.”Evan felt a migraine setting in. Why would Mr. Barkworth let him handle things like this? Must he act as a messenger between this couple—no, divorced couple?“Ms. Lane, please don’t bother. Mr. Barkworth was very insistent, and he is busy right now. He told me that he won’t answer any calls.”Ivanka was speechless.Michael had basically meant that he would not answer Ivanka’s call.Unable to suppress her frustration, Ivanka took a deep breath. But Evan continued, “Ms. Lane, you must attend this banquet. Besides, there is a potentia
Before she took her first step, Michael gripped her arm. By the time she realized what happened, her arm was already firmly hooked around his.Worse still, everything seemed to happen so smoothly, and there was nothing out of the ordinary.Everyone thought that they were still a close, perfect match. They would have assumed that Ivanka had put her arm around Michael’s.Ivanka wanted to retract her arm, but Michael tightened his clutch. She did not even have a chance to struggle and wrench herself free.She turned to look at him with a smile on her lips. However, Michael heard her low, angry voice through her clenched teeth, “Michael Barkworth, what are you up to?”Michael’s lips curved slightly into a seemingly mocking smile.But he also appeared to be in a good mood.He turned his gaze on Ivanka and answered patiently, which was uncharacteristic of him, “I’m attending the banquet.”Ivanka was speechless.What a jerk!She inhaled deeply and tried her best to remain calm.It
If they had met before Ivanka divorced Michael, this man would have called her Mrs. Barkworth. However, now…He dared not do that. These two were already divorcees. He had no idea how to address her.But he really wanted to get on Ivanka’s good side. That was why he blurted out that name.Iris.Michael immediately frowned.This name frustrated and angered him, but it mostly made him feel remorse.Ivanka nodded with a smile. “Hello, Mr. Lloyd.”The look on Mr. Lloyd’s face was tense and awkward. He had called her by the wrong name. He should have just addressed her by her maiden name.However…He only remembered that Ivanka was called Iris at that moment. He had, in fact, failed to recall her maiden name.Seeing Michael’s expression, Mr. Lloyd panicked a little. He quickly turned to Michael and chuckled. “Mr. Barkworth, why have you decided to attend the banquet today? Since you’ve visited Springvale, I ought to play my part and host you. Are you free tomorrow? I’ll treat you
Ivanka had enough!However, Michael looked at her mockingly. “You don’t have the right to rest just yet. We haven’t finalized our cooperation.”“You talk to everyone who approaches you! We can barely talk about our f*cking collaboration!” She gritted her teeth.“Ivanka! Who told you to curse like that?” Michael’s expression darkened.She was speechless. She suddenly realized the difficulty of communicating with someone whose opinions completely differed from hers.She was trying to tell him to speed up the discussion and wrap it up quickly.But he, on the other hand, was fixated on her cursing.He must be nuts! She continued cursing him in her heart.She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She needed to control herself!Michael seemed determined to be at odds with her. He continued to chat with everyone around him. He appeared particularly talkative today.With others present, she saw an opportunity rise.Looking at them, she said with a smile, “Sorry to interrupt.”
Michael pursed his lips and took the initiative to apologize to Ivanka.Ever since they got back from Mirvania, Michael’s attitude toward her had toned down considerably compared to the past. Michael had indeed changed a lot.However, even though he changed, they could not live a honeymoon life like other couples and spouses.Ivanka corrected him. “Micheal, we can’t put it that way. No one expected this change. We came here on Grandma’s behalf with all our blessings. But we did not expect this wedding to go south. I’ll admit that my emotions were somewhat affected when I saw something like this.” “But, what’s the main issue? I think that I’m tired. I wish you wouldn’t pursue me so tightly. Let’s part while we are on good terms. I know that you know what that phrase means.”As she said that, Ivanka saw the flight attendant walk over.She waved toward the flight attendant, who then gently bent down and smiled at her nicely. “Hello ma’am, what can I do for you?” “Hello, can you c
Naturally, Ivanka and Michael could not get involved to clear the mess after that. It was almost time for them to return as well.“You’re leaving before I can thank you.” Candice took Ivanka’s hand. She was grateful from the bottom of her heart.“I originally came to attend the wedding, but I didn’t expect to witness it take such a turn. I’ll have to go back and explain to Grandma about it.” Ivanka said with a smile.Candice hurriedly nodded and smiled. She looked at Ivanka and said, “Ivanka, send my regards to Grandma. After things are settled over here, I will definitely go visit her.”Ivanka smiled. “Then it’s a deal.”“It’s a deal.”… On the airplane, Ivanka’s mood was down the entire time.Michael spoke to her several times and did not get any response. He frowned slightly when he saw that Ivanka was about to sleep. He directly pulled her hand.Ivanka immediately tried to pull her hand back but she was not as strong as him. She opened her eyes and looked at him unhappily
Just as he was about to say something else, a clear voice suddenly spoke.“I told them to play it. Is there a problem?”The crowd looked for the voice and saw Candice in a white dress. She looked serene and cool. It was a different kind of beauty.But this was not a wedding. It was obviously a funeral.Everyone looked at the heroine who was supposed to appear today. Shock crossed their eyes. It looked like the bride found out about their despicable deed. Immediately after, the bride said in a mocking voice once again, “Leonardo, how does it feel to lose your reputation? You experienced it before me. Do you like the wedding gift I gave you?”Candice looked at him. Her brow was calm and void of emotion.Leonardo was already extremely cranky. In a way, he was at the end of his rope. He looked at her incredulously. “What do you mean by that?!” Candice sneered. “I didn’t mean anything by that. Just letting everyone present witness and see clearly for themselves what mangy dogs d
At that moment, there was a crazy video rolling on the big screen. The video was unsightly. The man and woman on the bed were “wrestling” frantically with the woman’s coquettish voice calling out at the same time. Also, the facilities here were top notch and equipped with 3D surround sound. The guests had no idea what to do when they heard.Some of the sharp-eyed guests spotted the man and woman in the video in a single glance. “My goodness! Aren’t these two the groom, Leonardo, and the bride’s best friend Jennifer?!”The moment these words came out, it instantly set off an uproar!Jennifer was instantly dumbfounded when she saw the video! But the next moment she screamed in panic. “Turn it off! Turn it off! It’s not me at all!” It was just that, not only were her shouts futile, but she felt the contemptuous disdainful glances thrown at her from all sides!She could even feel like some of the men were undressing her with their eyes! She was screaming! “Turn it off! Turn
When she put on makeup, her features looked even more exquisite. She looked sharper. Michael’s gaze paused for a moment. Why had he not realized it in the past? Ivanka glanced at him and spoke directly. “I’m good to go. Let’s go there now?” “Yes.” Michael quickly collected his thoughts and rushed to the wedding venue with her. There were a lot of guests. Those who came were all the city’s upper-class people and everyone was open and relaxed. They were able to navigate their way in a situation like this and take the opportunity to meet more work partners.The groom also weaved in and out of the crowd. He was beaming and full of life.Jennifer was with him. The two of them were welcoming the guests together. Those who did not know any better might even think that the two of them were the new couple. Everyone arrived one after another. It was just that… Only the bride and Jarek were missing.The crowd could not help but be a little confused. Right among the murmuring
Of course, he was referring to Jarek, who was screaming on the ground. Ivanka and Michael’s eyes met across the distance. They exchanged a look with each other. In the end, they chose to stay out of it. What should have been done was done. No matter the outcome, it was Candice’s own choice. Michael took a step back and came to Ivanka’s side. “Thanks.” Candice stared at Ivanka and sincerely thanked her once again. She was not stupid, so naturally, she could see that her cousin greatly respected his wife’s opinion. On the other hand, Ivanka was highly self-sufficient.Not long after, the security guards came and took Jarek away. After Candice said goodbye to the two, she left in the opposite direction.Ivanka and Michael went back to their rooms together.On the way back, Ivanka’s brows remained furrowed, and Michael turned to look at her. “Still worried about her?”Ivanka’s eyes flashed, then she looked at Michael and said softly, “Do you think that she will be soft-h
Leonardo had always been a perfect boyfriend. He was so perfect and seemed to have been specially made for Candice. Candice used to find it suspicious. But she dared not probe further into her own suspicions. Since things had turned out like so, she had no choice but to confront it. Candice’s heart was filled with a slew of anxiousness and complications. Despite this, she held back her emotions. Without further hesitation, she lifted the blanket and got down from the bed. She walked to the room next door. Ivanka gave Michael a look so that he would bring Jarek along. Michael was amused. He believed Ivanka must have treated him as her bodyguard. She was the first woman who had dared to give him an order. Despite this, Michael did as he was told. After all, Ivanka was not supposed to get involved in all this in the first place. It was all about the Barkworth family’s business. When Michael confronted Jarek, Michael’s temper instantly turned foul. He glared at Jarek.
Bam! The room door was kicked open all of a sudden. Michael was the one who kicked the door open. The man in the formal suit had just taken off half of his pants when Michael entered the room. Michael exuded an air of standoffishness. The man looked dumbfounded. He did not know if he should put back on his pants or remove them. Ivanka was behind Michael. He did not let her enter the room. “On the count of three, put your pants on, or else—” Michael did not finish his sentence, but the man in the formal suit was so scared that his entire body trembled. The man knew that if he did not act as he was told, he would lose his d*ck. So the man quickly put his pants on comically. While Michael was entering the room, Ivanka followed him. She ignored the man in the formal suit and went to the bed where Candice was laying. They had made quite a commotion when they entered the room. Despite this, Candice laid motionlessly on the bed. Apparently, she had been drugged. It l
Jennifer took the man to Candice in the middle of the night. Things did not seem good. Ivanka knew something bad was going to befall Candice. She was about to follow them when someone behind her abruptly stopped her. Ivanka’s eyes flew wide open. Her scream got stuck in her throat. The man’s large hand had covered her mouth. At the same time, a familiar smell entered her nostrils, and she gave up trying to let go of herself from the man’s grasp. “Why are you giving up so easily?” As expected, Ivanka heard a familiar voice. She turned around and saw Michael’s playful smile. “I know it’s you, so there’s no need to keep trying to free myself,” answered Ivanka truthfully. “How did you know it’s me?” Her answer piqued his interest. Ivanka was about to explain when a thought struck her mind. After that, she kept quiet. “It’s a secret.” Before Michael could continue the topic, Ivanka decided to skip and end it by asking, “You saw everything. What do you think about it?”