Laurence did not mind lending Jared a hand. It did not matter, even if Jared's parents had accepted the fact. Laurence would make Jared give up on his own. Reality was no utopia, and danger lurked everywhere in society, eroding all unrealistic fantasies. …Southgrove received two short rainstorms.The end of the torrential rainy season welcomed spring. Zoey moved her plants from the living room to the yard for a bask of sunshine. She had nothing much to do lately, and there was no emergency to sort out at work either. Beautiful weather always lifted spirits. On the spur of the moment, Zoey went upstairs to sort the room out. She had not been inside her previous bedroom, and dust had gathered on the desk. Her boxes of stuff were still underneath the bed where she had left them. The boxes contained diaries, used books, and test papers from her high school. Zoey was not in the position to bend over, especially with her growing belly. She was going to get someone to hel
Laurence replied quizzically to Zoey, "Is it really that boring?" "Yes, it's incredibly lame," responded Zoey. Laurence countered, "I don't think so. I'm serious about it." "Haven't I made it clear enough to you? I'm carrying someone else's baby. Aren't you the most practical person in the world? Don't be unrealistic," Zoey said her piece, but Laurence had always proved himself more stubborn than her. The rumors about Laurence's stubbornness and ruthlessness were true. Fighting back her temper, Zoey uttered, "If you're feeling guilty about the hurt you have caused for getting the wrong idea about me, I can let you know now that I forgive you. I don't care about it, and I've moved past it. I don't hate you either. That should be enough for you. It simply did not sit well with you that you wronged a person because of your past arrogance. Don't feel sorry. It's not important to me anymore. It's all in the past. I got the beating and the insults. I'm the victim, and it doesn't m
The old lady was advanced in age, so her information was not as up-to-date as the younger people. She thought that the man Zoey had brought back before was her husband since the couple looked good together. Not a lot of people believed Zoey when she said she was divorced. It was inconceivable to many. Zoey's husband was young, drove an expensive car, and wore expensive clothes. It was clear that he was made of money. The man was a wealthy person with poise too. He had the grace of a gentleman, unlike nouveau riche. Zoey grabbed her breakfast, not insisting on explaining that he was not her husband. She asked, "When did he come over?" The older lady gave it some thought. "Last night. Only he can discipline those unruly brats." Zoey absent-mindedly bit on the straw, nearly biting her tongue. Probably sensing something, Zoey looked back and saw the man standing not too far away from her. His figure stood tall. Laurence approached Zoey and furrowed his brows at the not
The sunshine appeared more vibrant after the rain. The sun's rays penetrated through the glass window, giving light to the living room. Zoey's back would ache if she was on her feet for too long. With her arm propping against her back, Zoey took her time to sit on the sofa with a frown. "Laurence, you're trespassing on my property." Laurence shamelessly denied, "I came into the house with you." Zoey pursed her lips. "I didn't say you could." Laurence cheekily retorted, "Oh, I thought you were okay with it." Random things for children could be found around the living room. There were some early years toys, unopened packages of beautiful clothes, and a rocking horse on the balcony. Zoey seemed to have put a lot of thought into raising the child before the kid was even born. She was not the type to shop around, and the range of products could hardly tempt Zoey to pull out her credit card. Nevertheless, Zoey couldn't resist getting the necessities for her unborn child no
What was wrong with earning eight thousand dollars a month? It was not like that was all Jared was worth forever. Laurence was such a snob. Still, Jared was resilient to take the insult. He developed a thick skin through the banters with his friends. "We're living in the modern era. Men now stay at home while women go out to work. Do you have a problem with it?" He threw a biting remark, "I'll be a house husband and look after the child. I guess it's not a privilege you will enjoy, Mr. Scott." Laurence retorted, "I'm impressed with your blown-up ego." Jared was way ahead of himself to think about becoming a full-time house husband. Sparks were flying as the two men locked horns. Laurence gave Jared a look and pointed out, "I'd advise against making promises for things you cannot deliver. It's disheartening to give false hope." Jared got the message. Laurence was mocking him for building castles in the air. Not wanting the argument to continue, Zoey took a deep brea
Jasmine was disappointed with her daughter as the latter was not taking her seriously. "Can you show a bit more concern for your father's case?" Lifting her chin, Sarah looked at her mother. "Is there a point, Mom? The verdict is out." Personally, she felt a life sentence was better than a death sentence because he was her father, after all. Robert had always been nice to her throughout the years. Jasmine stared at Sarah in silence for a while. "Do you know how your father threatened me?" It never occurred to Jasmine that her daughter would still carry the hope that Robert was still family to her. Sarah should be like her, casting Robert away from their lives. For all they knew, Robert might get desperate and sell them out. Sarah gave a nod. "You told me the last time, but Dad won't indulge my deeds to Laurence. It serves him no purpose anyway." Jasmine balled her fists. She had pushed Robert into a situation that there was no turning back from. Robert was vindictive, a
Love was a need to possess. It was jealousy. Unrequited love tended to bring out the ugliness in people. Sure, Laurence was possessive of Zoey in the past, and his claim over her was based on nothing more than a fleeting urge. He could abandon her anytime because his possessiveness was not rooted in real feelings for her. Laurence struggled to accept the tenderness Zoey showed to her unborn child now. The child had stolen most of her attention and love before it was born, and the love would only run deeper after the birth. Laurence’s staring gave Zoey the creeps. Even without lifting her chin, she caught his burning gaze from the corner of her eye. She finally met his gaze, but Laurence showed no guilt for getting caught in the act. He asked nonchalantly, "What’s the matter?" Zoey looked away. "Nothing."A nurse entered the ward to redress her wound. The afternoon sun always seemed to cast a spell of fatigue. After taking her meds, Zoey’s eyelids felt heavy, courtesy of th
"Can you not touch my stuff without permission?" Zoey asked, exasperated.Her cutting remark silenced Laurence, and he pursed his lips. "I saw the books, so I wanted to ask." Zoey clutched the books to her chest and said stiffly, "I studied French a long time ago. I haven’t had time to hit the books since then.”While in college, she used to sit in on French classes in the foreign language school. It was not an easy language to learn. Laurence was skeptical. "I speak French. If you want to learn, I can teach you.”Zoey lowered her gaze before replying, "I have no interest now." French was a lot harder compared to English. The words Laurence had used were common ones she had picked up from sitting in on the French lessons. The lecturer taught the students in their first lesson—"Je t'aime." The sentence was neither complex nor challenging to learn. Zoey had her hands full in college, occupied with classes and her part-time job. Despite her packed schedule, she would make h