Without giving Julianne a chance to respond, I said, "Also, once you get home, make sure to tally up everything Irvin has ever given you. I'll be sending people to collect them very soon."I added, "If you don't return them, I'll sue you and request a court order to force you to comply."In the past, Irvin would always give her valuable gifts while I only received freebies. Seeing this, my past self would cry.So now, I decided to reclaim all of her gifts.The money that Irvin gave to her to spend was mine. Plus, the money she had spent in the past was from my and Irvin's joint account. Thus, it was also mine.My husband had cheated on me. He also bought expensive gifts for his mistress with my money. Since this was the case, I—the wife—had the right to reclaim these items as they belonged to me.Julianne's eyes widened in shock.She hadn't recovered from the shock of Irvin transferring all his assets to me. And now, I told her I was going to reclaim everything she had been give
Irvin called me before I even made it home."Is this really necessary, Emi?" he asked.He might not have been direct, but I knew what he was referring to. Julianne had surely run as fast as she could and complained to him about what I had said.He was calling me because he wanted to back up his dearest "sister" and stepmother.I huffed disdainfully. "Why wouldn't it be?"Irvin sighed wearily. "Regardless, Emi, she—""Don't tell me that she's still my sister. You may consider her as such, but I don't!"I absolutely hated hearing people tell me Julianne was my sister, no matter what. It was as though I couldn't hold her accountable for anything she did just because of that."You know the drugging incident fiasco happened because of a misunderstanding, Emi. Can't you please let it go?""No, I don't believe that. In fact, I think it was all a scheme to set me up! I'm going to keep digging into it, and you can't stop me! If you can accept this, great. But if you can't, feel free to
"However, from now on, I will no longer recognize Henry Quill as my father," I said. "Apart from offering support that he needs when he gets older, I will no longer have any contact with him. I also ask that he never reach out to me ever again."I continued, "Simply put, our father-daughter relationship ends here!"He had given me life, and now I was going to help him get his life and freedom back. So we're considered even.Mom and Jeremy were stunned by my words. They were in a daze as they never expected me to say something like this.After all, I had always longed for a family and desired love.There once was a time when I would've sacrificed my life for them if they showed me even the slightest bit of kindness. But now, I was severing ties with them.Snapping back to reality, Mom began chastising me. "Are you out of your mind, Millicent?"She and Julianne truly were like mother and daughter, despite Julianne being adopted. Mom had said the same thing she did.I chuckled hum
Irvin would usually catch Julianne and embrace her fully.It looked as though he was going to catch her as usual, but then he seemed to reconsider it. Instead, he quickly side-stepped her and simply reached out, grabbing her arm to steady her.Julianne was already in a bad mood. When she saw how unwilling Irvin was to embrace her, her expression became thunderous.I couldn't help smirking at the sight of Irvin avoiding her.See, as a married man, he knew he shouldn't behave intimately with any woman other than his wife. He knew that doing so was wrong.Yet in the past, he would casually hug Julianne and even allow her to cling to his arm. They would behave so intimately with each other.When I had called him out on it, he had the nerve to say I was reading too much into it because I had already made up my mind about their relationship.After reading the contents of my journal, I was glad I had lost all memory of him. If I hadn't, I would still be living in a constant state of se
Irvin had always supported Julianne financially all these years. It didn't matter if he was struggling to make ends meet. He would always find a way to give her the money she needed.When he eventually became rich, he continued to do so. He would also give her anything she wanted.Hence, Julianne truly never expected Irvin to say what he had said. Not only did he not reprimand me, but he even sided with me. She definitely never thought he would do so, especially when I was upsetting her. It angered her so much that her vision blurred, and she nearly fainted. And this time, she wasn't pretending.In the past, Irvin would be frantic from worry whenever she was in any discomfort. But now, he wasn't even the least bit concerned about her.Julianne was so upset by this that she began crying genuine tears."Irvin." She looked at him and sobbed. "You promised to treat me well for as long as you lived…"She was swaying on her feet. She looked as though she was about to collapse.I h
Irvin managed to save her right at the critical moment. He had used his body and blocked her from hitting the wall. In that instant, he looked immensely relieved. He was probably thanking all the gods in existence for helping him to save her.I believed Irvin when he claimed he didn't love Julianne romantically. I also believed that he truly thought he didn't and that I was the one he loved. Otherwise, he wouldn't have transferred his entire fortune to me.That being said, I also felt he wasn't fully aware of his own feelings. He hadn't yet realized that the person he truly loved was Julianne. Otherwise, he wouldn't have behaved the way he just did.Irvin was about to exhale in relief when he saw that Julianne was fine. But then, he met my contemptuous gaze.His heart seemed to shrivel, and his immediate reaction was to push Julianne away. However, Julianne closed her eyes and fainted in his arms.I thought he was going to pick her up in a panic and rush her to the hospital. It
I couldn't shake Irvin off at all, not even when I arrived at Mr. Holland's house.The smile on his face faded when he saw Irvin following me."What's going on? Why has Irvin followed you here?" he asked. "Don't tell me you've gone back to being a lovesick fool again?"I had been completely head over heels in love in the past. Thus, it didn't matter how emotionally detached or anti-love I acted now. He was still worried I would be bitten by the lovesick bug again.I flashed Mr. Holland a small smile. "No, I haven't. Don't worry, I'll be severing all ties with him soon."I wasn't sure if Irvin's change in behavior was out of guilt or love. But it seemed he had made up his mind to stop treating Julianne the way he used to. He might be intent on this, but I knew what Julianne was capable of.She wouldn't allow him to stick to his decision for long, nor would she allow him to create distance between them—especially with me antagonizing her like this. She would undoubtedly retaliate s
Irvin had just tucked in a sleeping Julianne. He was preparing to leave when I arrived.He came face to face with me when he turned around. Different emotions flashed so quickly across his face that I couldn't describe them. I smiled patronizingly at him. "Let's talk elsewhere. We shouldn't disturb your beloved Julianne's sleep."With that, I turned and walked away.Irvin's expression was so ugly when he heard what I said. But I didn't care.He wanted me to stop bringing up his relationship with Julianne. But at the same time, he was also afraid I would. This was because if I no longer cared about their relationship, it also meant I no longer cared about him.Irvin looked at me once we were outside. He then took the lead and spoke first."I really had urgent work matters to attend to. That's why I didn't wait outside Mr. Holland's house for you," he began explaining. "I only came to see Lianne once I had handled it."Then, he tried to justify his actions. "And the reason I cam
"How could you take advantage of your position to seduce my husband! How could you knowingly become the other woman!" Grace accused.The photo she showed me on her phone was from when Irvin hugged me tightly after standing up from his wheelchair.When I first saw it, I was stunned. But then, it hit me—we had been watched this whole time!Based on the direction the photo was taken from, it could have only been taken from outside my work studio's window. And given that my studio was on the 10th floor, there was no way a random passerby snapped the photo by chance.Plus, the camera angle of the photo indicated it wasn't a coincidental shot. Someone had clearly been watching us from a floor above in the adjacent building.I also realized I had never closed the curtains in my studio. So, if someone had been watching us the entire time, they definitely knew Irvin had long since regained full use of his legs—which meant the Hardwells no longer needed my services.Thus, here came the poi
The young man's ability to stand again had filled his family with overwhelming joy. Coincidentally, it was also his 17th birthday, so they threw a grand birthday party and invited me to attend.I couldn't refuse. I was genuinely happy for him, so I went.Since his family was acquainted with William, they were undoubtedly influential figures in Lestoria. Therefore, the Hardwells were also invited.When I saw Grace pushing Irvin's wheelchair into the venue, attending the party as a married couple, I felt a sharp pain in my heart.I must really be a hopeless romantic.I had planned to use the time spent treating Irvin's legs to treat my withdrawal symptoms from him. I wanted my final decision to be cutting him out of my life completely.But instead of letting go—as I had hoped—the time we spent together only reminded me how good he once was to me.Even though I knew he had no choice, my heart still ached to see him with another woman.I truly…I really hated how I was. It made me
Because of Agatha's favoritism and stubbornness, Magnus had been growing increasingly impatient with her. "I think I've made myself very clear," he said, leaving no room for further discussion."Magnus, you can't do this! You can't just forget about Tim so soon! How could you treat him this way? Let me tell you—"Before she could finish, Magnus cut her off with a stern shout. "Enough! This is not up for discussion. I don't want to hear another word about it. Just leave!"Magnus' authority was absolute in the Hardwell family. Once he made a decision, Agatha had no power to change it no matter what.Though unwilling and displeased, she had no choice but to leave.As soon as Grace returned home, she was informed about the argument between Magnus and Agatha. She immediately rushed to find Agatha.The moment Agatha saw Grace, tears streamed down her face.Upon hearing that the argument had been about Irvin's hypnosis, Grace finally told her the truth, that Irvin had been faking it.
Grace had always wanted to stand at the pinnacle of power.The man beside her raised an eyebrow and suggested, "Then don't let her die. Force her into a dead-end and offer a hand, so she can be used by us."Grace chuckled but said nothing.Now that she had the picture she wanted, there was no need to continue watching. She withdrew her gaze and returned to the couch in the room.After taking a bottle of collagen, she finally looked at the man sitting across from her. "At the rate Irvin is recovering, he'll be fully healed in at most two to three weeks. Have you made all the preparations I asked for?" she asked."Of course! When have I ever failed to complete a task you gave me?" he replied confidently.Grace's lips curled into a smile. "Great."Seeing how she smiled so casually, completely without any hesitation or pain, the man couldn't help but comment. "Ms. Keller, you're ruthless indeed."Grace lowered her gaze and gently stroked her belly. She didn't respond.That night
Since Irvin had lost his memories, his behavior had regressed to that of his younger self.Although he had difficulty moving and had to avoid the Hardwells, he still prepared small surprises for me every time he came for treatment. Just like how he did when he was pursuing me.Just like when we were newlyweds.No matter how busy or exhausted he was, he always put in the effort to prepare something for me, whether it was a bouquet of flowers, a ticket to a movie I wanted to watch, or a dessert I loved.We were poor back then, and the things he gave me weren't worth much, but I was moved to tears every single time. After all, he was always thoughtful and affectionate. The eyes that were once cold and indifferent now burned with compassion and sincerity. Those naturally affectionate eyes gazed at me with so much love, as if I were his entire world.His one and only.That kind of love was irresistible, drawing me in.And I couldn't help but wonder, if none of it had happened, if
"I'm sorry, babe. Do you not like sunflowers? I… I saw online that…" Irvin stammered.He had searched for information about me online and discovered that I loved sunflowers, so he secretly hid one to give me. But I ended up crying instead of taking it with joy. Snapping out of it, I forced a smile and accepted the flower. "I do love it. Thank you."He stared at me, unsure if I was truly happy or just pretending."But don't call me 'babe' anymore. We're divorced." I couldn't bear to hear him say it in the same affectionate tone as before. That genuine, affectionate tone would only make me feel bad for him.And I didn't want to feel that way.Irvin, who was already anxious, panicked at my words. He grabbed my hands and said, "Babe, I couldn't find anything about what happened between us, but I know that it must have been my fault if we got divorced. "I'll make sure to be good from now on and listen to everything you say. Please, just give me another chance."Irvin had always
Adolescence was already a time when emotions are most unstable, making it easy to act impulsively and engage in risky behaviors. Being treated that way by my own family, I walked into the ocean, one step at a time.I wanted to die.I wanted them to regret, to suffer, to have everyone condemn them for killing their own daughter over an adopted one.I was so foolish back then, thinking I could punish them with my death. I completely forgot that they needed to actually care about me to feel remorse and pain for losing me. If they didn't care, it wouldn't matter if I died a thousand times.Using my own death to punish others is the most foolish thing in the world. I came to that realization when I was on the brink of death. I struggled, trying to make my way back to shore, desperate to survive. But then, a huge wave dragged me under, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stand up. I didn't know how to swim back then.Just when I thought I was going to die, a tall young man do
I comforted Mr. Holland for a long time before he finally felt better and ate some oatmeal.When I got home that night, I pulled out Irvin's medical records and the reports of his treatment with various devices. I analyzed his responses to the treatment to plan the next steps. I wasn't sure how I felt about Irvin, so I chose to ignore it completely and focus solely on treating his legs.If his legs could recover and function properly again, we would be even. No matter what happened in the future, I would take it one step at a time.Things would work out eventually.By the time I finished comparing all the data and finalized the device frequency settings for Irvin's treatment the next day, it was already past 1:00 am.I collapsed onto my bed and fell asleep immediately.Ever since my injuries from falling off the cliff, I needed sleeping pills to fall asleep every night. When I lost my memory, I thought my insomnia was due to the pain. But after my memories returned, I realized
William recalled that at the time of his accident, Cordelia and I had also been vacationing on the island.Although he didn't think it was possible, he instinctively asked anyway.I had assumed that William's intimidating presence on the way here was because he was angry at me for not answering his question.I never expected him to suddenly ask such a thing.Although I didn't know why, my first instinct was to admit that I had saved someone while I was on the island.But before I could say anything, his phone rang. It seemed like an urgent call. After answering it, he hurriedly told me he would send someone else to pick me up before leaving in his car.Feeling bad for troubling him when he was so busy, I sent him a message. I told him that he didn't need to send anyone and that I would call my own driver instead.William didn't reply to my text.Instead, Noah called. "Emi, there's an emergency at home. I have to leave for a while. Wait for me, I'll be right back." he said.W