Robert had long wanted to gain connections with the Scott family. It was not an overstatement to say he would do anything for power. However, Zoey was very curious about how Sarah and Laurence would get married. Laurence had not planned on getting a divorce anytime soon when she raised the issue in the past.Robert had used all his might to slap her, leaving a numbing sensation on her face. When she was younger, she was used to enduring his violence, but now she no longer had to. He had never paid for the medical fees, so she no longer had to fear him.Zoey smirked.“Isn’t Laurence deeply in love with Sarah? If that’s the case, nothing I do will change a thing.”Robert’s face darkened at her words. He thought the same at first. He assumed Laurence and Sarah would have a smooth marriage after she recovered and returned home. However, so much time had passed, yet Laurence had not indicated that he intended to marry Sarah. He had never even visited the Jenner family more than twice.After
Zoey already knew this. But, it somehow felt and sounded different coming out of his mouth. “Sarah is special to me.”It was such a short statement, yet it held so much weight. Zoey felt that it was a warning. Laurence was warning her to stay in line and not test Sarah’s place in his heart. He held her tightly in his arms, and they were as close as can be. However, their hearts were universes apart.…Before she was discharged, Laurence took her for another allergy test and had the report rushed. As Zoey was waiting for him outside, she received a text message from the girl she helped with the design before. “Zoey, I’ve recommended you to my cousin. He has a villa that needs renovating, and the commission is quite high. Would you like to meet up?”She had no intention of returning to work. As long as Laurence doesn’t urge her to return, she would not go back.She replied, “Okay.” Just as she replied to the message, Laurence walked toward her and handed her the report. Zoey skimmed t
It was even more mentally exhausting to deal with his scandals.Zoey asked, "Mr. Scott, didn't you promise me three months of leave to rest at home?"Laurence remembered that he had indeed said so. He wouldn't go back on his word, but he also wasn't someone to mess with. He caressed her face absentmindedly and smiled mischievously, "I did allow it, but didn't you reject it?" Laurence had an excellent memory.He added, "I remember changing it to a month."Zoey could not refute him. Laurence pushed on and said, "It's been almost a month and a half. As an evil capitalist, I've been kind enough to you, right?"Zoey was never as eloquent as he was. Her face turned red, but she couldn't come up with anything clever to say."I still want to take a break."His expression immediately darkened, and his smile disappeared. He pinched her cheek with his thumb and retorted, "Are you going to hold your surgery over me for my entire life?"She was stunned. That was not her intention. Laurence thought
Next Monday was the due date that Laurence set for her. Zoey was unable to convince him to change his mind either. He may look easy-going on the outside, but that was all to it. Of course, he couldn't have succeeded today without any tactics. Zoey insisted, "Mr. Scott, I'm still going to resign."Laurence raised his eyebrows."Alright. Get the money ready, and you can leave anytime."Zoey gritted his teeth and stomped on his foot exasperatedly. However, Zoey was wearing slippers, so it did not hurt him. Laurence pinched her waist and inched his knee deeper."Are you looking for trouble?" Zoey finally felt appeased after stepping on him."Don't blame me if I do a bad job at work."Laurence lifted her chin with playful eyes."Of course, we all know how capable you are."It was getting late, so Laurence decided to stop while he was ahead. He felt pleased to see her hold back her anger, not daring to fight back. He couldn't resist the urge and planted a kiss on her face. "If you're tire
Laurence was in the midst of a meeting when he received the message. There was a ping on his phone, but he ignored it. Everyone else pretended not to have heard anything. Obviously, nobody would question the president about it, and they continued to present the proposal as if nothing had happened.No one dared to be at ease during the meeting. After the meeting ended, their backs were all wet from sweating out of nervousness. Their sweat-soaked shirts stuck to their backs making them sticky and uncomfortable. Nobody could tell if Laurence was satisfied with the proposal today. They peeked at him cautiously, but he remained calm and collected without even batting an eyelid. Laurence tapped his fingers rhythmically on the table.After a moment, he ordered, “Meeting dismissed.”Everyone let out a breath of relief. Seems like there was no need to work overtime today. Laurence finally had time, and he glanced at the unread message on his phone.Shawn’s text was clear as day, “I slept with Z
Zoey was always entirely focused at work. She would not even bat an eyelid if something happened outside. Laurence slowly walked up behind her, but she didn’t even notice. It wasn’t until Laurence gently tapped on her drawing board that she got out of focus.She hurriedly looked up and rubbed her eyes, asking, “Why are you back so early?”Laurence did not reply. Instead, he looked at her computer calmly, taking in the complicated designs. “Are you busy?” He asked.Zoey knew Laurence did not like her working on designs. She acted calm as she turned off the computer. “It’s been a while since I last drew, so I’m a little rusty. I’m trying to get back on track.”Laurence knew she was lying, but he did not expose her. He was more curious about something else. “Did you meet Shawn today?”Zoey did not dare to admit it, but by the sounds of it, he must’ve found out something.Realizing it would not be a good idea to lie persistently, Zoey thought momentarily and answered, “Yes, I’ve met him
The tickets were for VIP seats. They were next to each other and offered the best view. It was also the work of Lupin, a renowned musical performer who rarely performed, so tickets were hard to come by. However, it wouldn’t be a problem for Laurence. All he needed was to say the word, and someone would send him tickets.Zoey stared at the date and location on the ticket. She really wanted to go, but getting tickets was hard; more importantly, she did not want to run into them at the hall's entrance. Zoey regained her calm composure, knocked on the door of Laurence’s office, and walked in. She put the tickets on his desk. “Mr. Scott, here are the tickets.”Laurence did not seem to care. He glanced at her and asked, “Is work tiring today?”Zoey shook her head and answered, “Not really.”She wasn’t exhausted. There was not much for her to do, not even some miscellaneous tasks. Laurence fell silent for a moment; then, he waved to her. “Come here.”Zoey was slightly hesitant. After all, t
Zoey had never been on a date even at her age so she felt nervous at the thought of it. Anne finally had some time after examining the contracts.She pulled a chair and sat beside Zoey, saying, “Miss Jenner, I really feel that Mr. Scott’s mood has greatly improved since you returned.”Zoey felt that she was exaggerating and being polite so she played dumb, and said, “Is that so? Maybe I’m a bit dull.” Anne nodded her head with assurance. “Yeah! This morning’s meeting was like a breath of fresh air.”Zoey was not present for the meeting so she did not know. However, she wasn’t interested in this.Instead, she looked at Anne and asked, “How old are you?”Anne replied, “22.”She had just recently graduated with a first-class from 985 University, beating hundreds of other applicants to get this job. Zoey was not much older than her.She grabbed her hand and asked, “Have you dated anyone before?”“Of course!”“So what do you and your boyfriend do on dates?”“We eat and go shopping.”“Oh.”
Ryan had a reason for barging into the room. He thought he had seen something he shouldn't have.He had witnessed Zoey's relationship with his brother over the past few years. He hadn't thought so many things would happen between them when they got married.In the end, Laurence fell for her.The high and mighty guy had willingly become the loser for that woman.Zoey could tell from Ryan's reaction that he had misunderstood. Without bothering to explain, she walked straight out of the office.Laurence ignored Ryan, too. He treated Ryan as if he didn't exist and strode out the door after Zoey. Ryan was left alone in the office, dumbfounded.Laurence's assistant greeted him politely. "Are you here for ..."Ryan was still in a daze. He snapped to his senses and said, "I'm here to see my brother!""Mr. Scott just left.""I saw that.""Then, is there anything else I can do for you?"Ryan turned around to leave but returned halfway. He put his arm around the assistant's shoulder as
Zoey could feel the gazes on her as she stepped into the office. There were hardly any familiar faces left in the office.She secretly sighed in relief. She would have felt awkward and at a loss if she had to face the inquisitive gazes of acquaintances.Laurence held Zoey's hand, and she had no choice but to let him do as he pleased. She couldn't resist him.They entered Laurence's office. His office looked cold and plain, just like he was.Zoey noticed he was still grabbing her wrist. She took a deep breath and asked, "Where should I sit?"Perhaps surprised by her sudden cooperative attitude, Laurence raised an eyebrow. After a pause, he kindly reminded her, "The door is locked."Without a key, the door couldn't be opened from the inside.Zoey tried to pull her wrist away. "Got it."Laurence watched her sit on the sofa, and he relaxed slightly. He asked politely, "Would you like something to drink?"Zoey was momentarily lost in thought. She replied, "Warm water will do"Laur
Zoey was composed. She didn't seem worried about Laurence investigating her past in Novarvia. But deep down, she wasn't confident.Laurence had long lost any moral boundaries. Despite knowing she was married, he showed no concern about interfering in her marriage. He would likely become even more audacious and unrestrained if he discovered that her marriage was fake.Just the thought of it gave Zoey a headache. She never thought getting rid of someone would be so difficult, even if they held a certain position of power. Shaking him off became increasingly challenging.Lost in her contemplation, Zoey failed to notice the driver had changed direction. When she finally realized, the car was parked at the entrance of the Scott Group.Zoey pondered briefly. She thought the driver was sending Laurence off. She waited patiently and remained seated in the car.The man beside her calmly looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you getting out?"Zoey furrowed her brows. "Why should I?"
Sarah always seemed like she was thriving. Looking radiant, she hooked arms with the man beside her. She no longer looked as worn as she had a few months ago.Laurence was acquainted with the man beside her. His gaze was indifferent, showing neither surprise nor much emotion. Firmly grabbing Zoey's hands, Laurence wouldn't let her leave his side.Laurence had no intention of greeting Sarah or engaging with William. He held Zoey's hand, seemingly aware she didn't want to deal with them either. He turned his face to her and said, "Let's go."Zoey didn't refuse. They left quietly.This time, Sarah didn't stop Zoey. She usually tried provoking her.Once they were far away, Zoey immediately shook off Laurence's hand. He saw her furrowed brows and the undisguised disgust in her eyes. She must have hated Sarah a lot. She didn't even want to see her.Laurence explained, "I didn't know she would be here today."Zoey ignored him and walked ahead. The man behind her suddenly circled he
Zoey had no idea whether she was acting out of spite or being stubborn, but she arrived at the restaurant as promised. The restaurant had a private courtyard that offered great privacy. She didn't want to cause the person she was meeting any trouble. Neil's wife was once Zoey's client. Both parties were pleased with the business transaction. Zoey didn't like socializing, but she was out of alternatives. She forced herself to befriend Neil's wife. She had something to ask of Neil because her passport application had been dragging on without any progress. Zoey didn't want to lose control of her emotions again. She could still keep her cool if she stayed away from Laurence. To her surprise, Laurence had found out what she had been secretly up to. It was like he had installed a bug on her. She was horrified. "I've heard a lot of good things about you, Ms. Jenner." "You're too kind, Mr. Jackson." Neil was nicer than she expected. He didn't act superior or avoid the topic. Inst
Zoey ended the phone call. Without having to ask, Zoey knew what was going on when she saw Laurence. Needless to say, Laurence had taken the liberty to take the morning off for her. She couldn't be bothered to be angry. Instead, she felt numb as it had happened too many times before. Zoey looked down at her changed pajamas and turned to the man by the bed. She asked, "Where are my clothes?" Laurence met her gaze. He didn't feel embarrassed at all. "They were in the wash. They are in the dryer now." Zoey lifted the bed covers and stepped onto the carpet. She made a beeline for the walk-in closet, which was filled with many clothes she hadn't taken with her when she'd left years ago. She picked an outfit and put it on. Laurence was still in the bedroom when she walked out of the walk-in closet. He put on his tie and looked over at her. She glanced at him and said, "You should've woken me up last night." Laurence approached her. He was tall and looked sharp in his suit, with
Zoey was fast asleep. She thought she was dreaming when someone lifted her up. Her body clock over the last few days had been regular. She was going to bed early. Now, she couldn't keep her eyes open. Maybe she went back to sleep because she didn't sense any danger.Laurence hooked his arm behind Zoey's knees in a cradle and pulled her arm over his neck to secure her from falling. She mumbled in her sleep. He guessed that she was dreaming.Laurence couldn't hear what she was saying. He leaned in with his ear near her lips, but her mumbling stopped.The chauffeur, dedicated to his job, was on standby outside. Seeing his employer in the distance, he opened the door respectfully.Laurence carried Zoey into the car. The chauffeur closed the car door and glanced again at the woman in his employer's arms from the rear-view mirror. She looked familiar, but he didn't want to make any assumptions. "Where to, sir?" The chauffeur couldn't read his employer's mind, so he was careful not to
The bar wasn't too far from the restaurant. It was less than a ten-minute drive away. Laurence refused to let go of Zoey's wrist. He was bold to show off their closeness even though it was inappropriate. The others could hardly take their eyes off the couple. It was drama in the flesh. If they remembered correctly, Zoey had denied their relationship online two days before. She had even announced her marriage to someone else to set the record straight. What was going on? They had a hunch about the situation, judging by the resistance on Zoey's face. Maybe her ex-husband wouldn't leave her alone. The man seemed relentless in his pursuit. Nevertheless, it was not their business to get involved. At the end of the day, it was between Zoey and Laurence. Everybody quieted down and sobered up. The group caught a cab to the destination. Laurence shamelessly invited himself to join the group, and no one objected, not even politely. They weren't fools. They wouldn't offend the man for
Zoey felt a tingling sensation along her ear. It felt as if she had been electrocuted. Laurence's tone was half-joking, but there was seriousness behind it. He was ready to tell on her to her husband the moment she nodded. Zoey had lost her patience with him a long time ago. She couldn't help but snap back every time. She looked up. Her face was small. She was about to tell him to get lost when the man took the chance to deepen the kiss. He squeezed her chin, forcing her to part her lips to let him in. Zoey was pinned against the wall. His scorching breath took hers away. She was trapped like prey in a snare. The more she struggled, the tighter his grip became.Laurence didn't stop with a brief kiss. He didn't give Zoey room to breathe, and she could feel her limbs going weak. Her tongue was going numb. The woman opened her mouth, gasping for air. She hung onto his collar to stop herself from going limp. The man was always greedy. He could never get enough of her. Zoey had