Michael said in a deep voice, “Cause Jonah some trouble.” Michael did not want to see that man again. Evan paused mid-stride and nodded. Meanwhile, Xander grinned wordlessly. Both Xander and Evan left the ward. Michael was left alone with Ivanka. In the past, Ivanka would appear uncomfortable whenever Michael appeared before her. She would try to stay away from him. However, this time, Ivanka was in a coma. While sleeping on the bed, she looked gentler than usual. Luckily, her fair and exquisite face was unscathed. Michael raised a hand and put it on her cheek. He could not help but rest his hand on her delicate and fair skin. The next moment, he recovered his senses. His expression instantly changed, and he immediately removed his hand. He frowned while staring at Ivanka coldly. “You were my wife…” His frown deepened, and he fell silent. His heart was full of complicated and inexplicable emotions. He was immensely frustrated. ... Meanwhile, at the Lan
But who would have expected Ivanka to be so lucky? She could survive a truck sandwich attempt on the dangerous road. She was very fortunate. Lyla gripped her phone tightly. “This is an unexpected situation. We can’t possibly contact the two drivers. We could only leave the matter be. You need to keep yourself in check. Don’t do anything outrageous and raise their suspicion.” Chiara nodded seriously. “How annoying! Since Ivanka is in the hospital, we need to visit her.” Right after she finished speaking, she received a message. Chiara subconsciously tapped to open the message. Upon reading the message, her face twisted into absolute savagery. “F*ck!” Lyla frowned. “What is it?” She turned to look at Chiara’s phone and read the WhatsApp message displayed on the screen. Belle: Ms. Chiara, Mr. Barkworth is inside Ms. Ivanka’s ward. Chiara gritted her teeth. “Why is Michael doing this? Why is he so involved with Ivanka? He even visits her when she is hospitalized. Why? Do
Michael turned. He was stunned to see his father. Jay seemed slightly taken aback. “I’m surprised that you came.” Michael looked away and ignored him. Jay went over to Ivanka’s bed. He sighed when he saw her weak appearance. “She only broke a rib after falling from such a height. She’s truly lucky.” “Lucky?” Michael’s eyes glinted in mockery. Puzzled, Jay turned to him. “Why?” Michael remained silent. Michael was aware that it was not Ivanka’s luck that had saved her life. Her sharp mind and driving abilities were the reason she survived today. Few young ladies could do what Ivanka did. She had not only chosen the safest method to ease the situation but had also protected her friend. Michael’s gaze turned complicated. He had always thought Ivanka to be an extremely scheming, vain, and selfish woman. However, when the accident happened, she was able to protect Sandy. Michael thought. “Is she the same Ivanka that I know?” After they divorced, she completely changed.
Chiara bit her bottom lip. Her face—deliberately made pale with makeup—turned even paler. She could never have imagined Michael saying something like that.The whole nation was aware that she and Michael were set to get engaged. When people saw her, they would butter her up and congratulate her, but Michael suddenly said that he would not get engaged to her. Would she end up like Ivanka and become everyone’s laughing stock?!What was Michael doing?!She was tempted to push the door open and demand answers, but the door kept her rage in place. She lacked the courage to even walk into the room.She was afraid that after she entered, Michael would just say, “You’re here just in time, I’ll tell you now so I won’t have to go tell you again.”With gritted teeth, Chiara tightened her grip on her bag and waited for Michael’s response to Jay. “I-Is he really sure?!” Then, she heard this. “I’m sure.”The answer was firm and delivered in a steady, determined voice.It was a heavy b
He recalled the moment he learned of Ivanka’s accident while he was at the office.…As the two of them quickly got into the car, Evan updated him. “While Ms. Ivanka was driving home on an extremely dangerous road, she was attacked by two trucks and drove the car into a chasm.”Michael’s expression changed. His heart sank into his stomach.“Where is she right now?!”Michael felt weak back then. He did not know how he mustered the strength to say that. Evan shook his head awkwardly. “For now…we’re not sure about that.”Boom!It was like a bolt from the blue for him. Michael rushed out immediately.At that moment, he seemed to understand what panic felt like. “Mic?”The sudden voice brought him back from his reverie. Michael pressed his lips together tightly. He did not look at her and kept silent. Chiara’s expression shifted a little. Michael did not hear a single word she said. But Jay was kind enough to gently tell her, “This incident is so big that almost everyon
Chiara stiffened up. She quickly realized something and got to her feet. “I-I’ll wait outside for a bit.”The two men watched her walk out of the room. After Chiara shut the door, she suddenly realized—why would she need to leave the room?Since Chiara was Ivanka’s cousin, it was natural that she took care of her in her ward.They could talk outside the room if they needed to!Why did they have to talk about it in Ivanka’s ward?They could have left right away if they had business to attend to!She could only stand by the door with a sour expression.…At that same moment, Hanson lay in bed in a different ward with a faint smile on his lips.However, that smile did not reach his eyes.Anna’s heart ached when she looked at him, but she assumed that it was a normal thing. After a while, Hanson softly said, “I’m feeling much better than before. You don’t have to take care of me every day. I’ll be fine.”Now that Ivanka had accepted him, he should not be alone with another
Anna quickly nodded and said, “Alright, you should rest. Call me if anything comes up.”Hanson smiled. “Okay.”Anna was a little reluctant, but he had already closed his eyes. She sighed to herself and walked out while still turning back to glance at him at each step. …In Ivanka’s ward, the father and son were seated across from one another.Jay’s face was a little gloomy. He looked at Michael coldly and said, “You should handle this matter by yourself.”“Please make the trip for me,” Michael said firmly.Also, Michael seemed to imply that if Jay refused to go, then he would not stop caring.Jay paused. He gazed at Ivanka. He did not want to mention this again, so he looked at him and said, “Follow me. I have something to ask you.”Michael did not move at first, but he followed him out the room after some thought.Chiara was waiting close to the ward. She scurried over as soon as she saw them come out.Michael did not even look at her and headed somewhere else. Jay notic
Michael’s eyes flashed with uncertainty. He was clearly conflicted.Chiara believed her words had moved him. She said with a sigh of relief, “Mic, you have to believe me. When did you start having these doubts about me? Has anyone instigated this?”Chiara’s eyes were filled with desolation. Her voice trembled as she said the final sentence.It did not seem to move Michael much. He remained quite calm.Chiara started to panic when he did not react. “What to do…”“What should I do!” she thought. If she was not sure before, she was absolutely sure now!Michael must have heard that recording!If not, why would he be on guard against her?After a pause, Michael finally said in a softer tone, “You can go back first. I need to take care of some stuff. We can have lunch together tomorrow.”Chiara’s expression changed slightly. If Michael had invited her to lunch before this, she would have been overjoyed.But now, was he inviting her to a break-up meal?!Suddenly, she had no des
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