Naturally, Shawn didn’t bring this up for no reason—he was overcome by the urge to mention it. After all, it wasn’t like Zoey was important to Laurence, right?Still, saying it didn’t make Shawn feel any better. He was the first to find out about Zoey’s crush on Laurence; it was easy to see how she felt about him. Whenever Laurence was on cleaning duty in high school, Zoey would stay back longer after class, taking her time to pack her bag. Young girls were prone to doing dumb things in the name of love. She would always hang around after school, waiting to run into him in the corridor. They would meet for only a few minutes at most. Most times, however, he would only pass by her for a few seconds.Laurence paid no attention to her in high school, and he never knew how much Zoey had tried to get his attention back then.Shawn immediately shut up. He was irritated, his heart caught in a constant sense of hollowness, a resounding emptiness.Laurence lifted his head and leveled a look
When Laurence received that phone call from George, he hadn’t sat on his hands and did nothing. Instead, he looked up Zoey’s movements for that day. Getting his hands on the necessary camera footage wasn't difficult, and finding the taxi she had gotten into had also been easy. She had been kidnapped while on her way to Shawn’s house, and there were cameras along that road.It wasn’t like Laurence had never noticed Shawn’s animosity toward Zoey, with how disgusted he was to even so much as look at her. Leaving her alone even when she begged for help was definitely something Shawn would do. Laurence had never brought this up with Shawn before. After all, Shawn and Zoey had nothing in common then. They weren’t friends, and they certainly weren’t married either. They were enemies who observed each other from opposing sides. It wasn’t all that strange, and there was nothing to berate them about. It wasn’t Laurence’s responsibility, after all. However, when did Shawn start having feelings
When Zoey smelled the smoke on Laurence, she mentally beat herself up for forgetting to change the passcode of her front door. She yawned. “Whatever you want to say, say it.”She felt slightly more tolerant of him now, probably because he had already agreed to the divorce.Laurence was quiet. Right now, there was no point asking her those questions. So, she liked him in the past. And? Everything had already ended.Seeing Laurence remain silent, Zoey piped up, “Don’t tell me that you’ve… finally agreed to let me pay in installments?”Laurence’s eye twitched. Now that was a quick reaction. He smirked, “No. Don’t get your hopes up.”Zoey nodded, unbothered. “If you want two million dollars from me, then sure, you’re getting it. I’ll pay you.”Once her mother was out of the hospital, Zoey’s expenses would lessen. She could manage it.Laurence pursed his lips, seemingly having no response for her. He couldn’t possibly tell her that he was having second thoughts. That he wanted twenty
Laurence’s words did not leave any room for doubt. He had made himself clear. It happened so quickly that Zoey didn’t have time to react. She stood still, watching him quietly. She was shocked by what he had said. “Psychiatric assessment report? What does he mean by that? Is it a document issued by the hospital to prove that I am mentally ill?” she thought. Zoey had only seen such things happen in soap operas. She did not expect Laurence to be so cruel. “Psychiatric assessment report?” she repeated in a daze. Laurence stared at Zoey’s pale face, which contrasted with her red lips. Her eyes looked red and watery, but he was unsure if she was tearing up or if the lighting made them appear that way. However, it did not matter. Her pitiful appearance would no longer fool him. It was easy for a man like him to be ruthless. Laurence raised her chin and sneered, “Don’t look at me with teary eyes. Did you look at them like this too?” Zoey had mixed feelings. It was hard for her to erase he
“I’m sorry for disappointing you. I’m a cold-blooded and ruthless person, and I don’t know how to empathize with others,” Laurence announced with an aloof tone before Zoey could reply. Zoey could only cry in her heart. Her eyes were no longer watery when she asked, “Would you still treat me like this if I was the one who saved you back then?” She used the word “if”. It was a supposition.Laurence hated two kinds of situations. Firstly, he hated regretting his decisions and actions. Secondly, he hated talking about “what-ifs”. In his opinion, talking about things that had never happened was useless. Laurence was standing against the light in the living room. His expression was hard to read as his exquisite features were shrouded in the shadows. “I don’t like talking about what-ifs,” he said. Looking at Zoey’s pale face, Laurence seemed to recall a scene that was similar to the current situation they were in. He stayed silent momentarily before insisting coldly, “What are you getting a
The court summons were sent to Laurence’s company. Matthew was utterly shocked when he saw it. Even though he had years of experience as a personal assistant, he couldn’t help feeling stressed about having to be the one to inform Laurence about the court summons. He gritted his teeth as he knocked on the door to the CEO’s office.“Come in,” Laurence said. He still looked as cold and expressionless as before, as if nothing special had happened over the past few days. In reality, he had kicked a stubborn and uncooperative director out of the company a few days before. However, it did not seem to make him happy. He asked Matthew calmly, “What’s the matter?” Despite the pressure growing inside him, Matthew walked forward and placed the court summons on the desk. “We just received this from the court,” he explained. Laurence shot a quick glance at it and replied, “I got it.” Matthew let out a sigh of relief.Laurence had expected Zoey to insist on divorcing him. He knew how determined s
Zoey no longer wanted Laurence to love her. She knew that it was unrealistic. She didn’t even know what he meant when he talked about loving her. He had said that he liked her, but he treated her like he would anyone else. Just the little affection he had for her had almost ruined her life. She could not bear to be loved by him. Love was a precious thing, after all.Laurence froze when he heard Zoey’s words. He swallowed with difficulty and insisted hoarsely, “Then, get ready to move back in. Do you need me to explain things to your mother?” Zoey’s fingers were pale from gripping her phone hard. “No,” she replied curtly. There was no need for any courtesies between them anymore.Laurence had gotten what he wanted, but he felt terrible. “Let me know once you’ve packed your things. I’ll ask the driver to pick you up.” “Okay, Mr. Scott,” Zoey responded. “Since he wants things to be the same as before, I’ll give him that. I’ll treat him as a client and nothing more,” she thought. Laure
Laurence stayed silent for a while, pursing his lips. He found it difficult to breathe, as if something was choking him. He felt his heart sink. Of course, he had not forgotten about this. He had brought her to a doctor, but nothing could be done about her situation. It was not treatable. No matter how much he regretted it, it had already happened. He could not turn back time.Zoey adjusted her hearing aid. It felt rather uncomfortable. She wasn’t used to the feeling of having something in her ear.“I need to adjust it a bit. I hope you don’t mind,” she apologized politely. “Why would I mind? What kind of person does she think I am?” Laurence thought. “I don’t mind,” he replied. Zoey tucked her hair behind her ear and adjusted the position of the hearing aid once more. This time, it was finally in a suitable place. “Okay, done.” She looked up and realized Laurence’s face was as pale as a sheet. It contrasted with his blue eyes, which were the color of the ocean.“Does it hurt to wea