There was a layer of rough calluses on his fingertips, yet they were cold like diamonds as well.Vicky opened her eyes at that moment and saw Tyler's handsome, perfect face.The strength he used to massage her temples was neither too soft nor too heavy. It was just right. Vicky was so comfortable that she closed her eyes again."I didn't know you knew how to massage someone." Her voice was not soft like usual. Instead, it sounded slightly smoky.The way he massaged was very smooth and trained. This was not his first time, surely."Yeah," he replied plainly.Vicky opened her eyes again. "You took…a massage course before?"Tyler suddenly paused for a while. "No."Vicky was not an expert in massage, but from the way he did it, the strength he used, and how comfortable it was, she could tell he was an expert in it. Suddenly, a thought flashed past her mind as another possibility surfaced."You used to…massage someone before?" she blurted.Tyler's pupils wavered a little, but he d
Tyler was still looking at Vicky sharply. Vicky did not know what he could see in the dark, but she did not open her eyes or move, acting as though she was asleep.She could not tell how long it had been. When she was finally falling asleep, Tyler finally left. At first, she thought Tyler might not come back.When she was deep in her sleep, she heard someone opening the door and walking. Shortly, the other side of the bed sunk a little. Later, she was pulled into a familiar pair of arms.The smell of the sanitizer floated in the air. The pungent smell was terrible and it disgusted her and even woke her from her sleep. Her instinct kicked in and she tried to struggle away from the hug.Tyler paused. Seconds later, his voice rang in the dimmed room, "You're awake?""Yeah." Vicky moved over to the other side of the bed and said softly, "The disinfectant smell on your body is too strong. I'm not very comfortable with it."After a moment of silence, he said, "I'll go take a shower."
Even when Tyler was called away during the middle of the night, he would still return home no matter how late it was.Vicky received no replies from Tyler, even many minutes later.The rain was pouring heavily, and the visibility was sparse. It was dangerous to be driving on the road in this weather.She thought of calling him, but she was worried it would distract him if he was driving, so she decided against it. Nonetheless, she could not possibly fall back to sleep in this state, so she picked up her book and started to read it.The words were in front of her, yet they barely registered in her mind. Even several minutes in, she did not turn the page.An hour later, she took her phone and opened up various apps without any meaning. And that still did not help to calm her mind.It was already two-something and Tyler was still not back yet. Although sometimes he had to leave in the middle of the night, it was very rare for him to stay out late. After some thinking, Vicky finally
"Sheila, have you talked to Mister Hart about that?"That voice sounded very familiar. Vicky quickly recognized this voice belonged to Sheila's manager, Maggie."What about?" Sheila asked, her soft and gentle voice.However, it did not sound as feeble as Vicky imagined."Sheila, don't you feel bad for Mister Hart?" Maggie sounded disappointed. "He has to go to the office and come here every day… Wait, scratch that. He has to go to three places every day. He has to go to work, come to see you, and go back home. I'm sure you see how tired he is. Last night, he had to stay in the hospital for the whole night until his phone ran out of battery. This morning, he went directly to his office. He didn't even have the time to rest…"If he keeps it up, no matter how strong he is, he'll eventually collapse! Didn't I tell you the last time? Why don't you ask him to send you back to his home and arrange a medical team in the house to protect you? In that case, it won't be so easy for those peo
Maggie sneered, "Vicky Shaw, what else can you do except play pity with Mister Hart?""I don't know what you're talking about," Vicky replied."You don't?" Amused by Vicky's naive facade, Maggie's gaze hardened like ice. "Aren't you going to tell Mister Hart Sheila is forcing you to want a divorce?"Vicky smiled. "Miss Perez, there's something you've misunderstood. First of all, I don't want to have a divorce with Tyler, and Sheila can't force me to do that. Secondly, you're the one who said Tyler and I are in debt to Miss Young, and we should pay our debt. Last of all, Miss Young wants to be Tyler's wife so badly, yet she refuses to be the bad person here… She certainly plays a good game for being the good person who gets what she wants without getting her hands dirty."She looked at Sheila, who was leaning on the headboard. Sheila's face did look pale, but overall, she was in good spirits. It looked like she had recovered a lot recently.Vicky smiled coldly. "Even if you push al
Sheila's eyes stilled, and so did the expression on her face.Maggie could not tolerate how proudly Vicky displayed herself and sneered. "Vicky Shaw, it's easy to despise something you can't easily get. Everyone knows how nice Mister Hart treated Sheila. We've seen many women who pretended not to be jealous when in fact, they were so jealous that they were going crazy. What did you say just now? Getting what she wants without getting her hands dirty, is it?"Vicky merely smiled, showing no signs of being irate. "Miss Young does have a charming personality. Not only do many men are willing to do anything for her, but it's also the same with the women. She had Sasha, who got sent to jail previously, and now you, the loyal Miss Perez. This charming personality is certainly beyond my reach."Maggie was not an idiot like Sasha who only knew how to fight back. She understood exactly what Vicky said. She said coldly, "Vicky, I suggest you save your time. This trick of yours is only good wi
Therefore, Maggie had been feeling smug lately and even got a little carried away. She even forgot Sasha was sent to jail because she had been causing trouble for Vicky.It was hard to say if Vicky was as important as Sheila at this moment. Regardless of that, it did not mean Vicky did not hold any position in Tyler's heart. This thought shocked Maggie tremendously and sobered her up.She said nothing, and so did Sheila. It was as though the argument between Maggie and Vicky had nothing to do with her.Sheila always had many people willing to be her shield.In the end, Vicky took a look at Sheila and was ready to leave."Miss Shaw," Sheila suddenly called out, "can you wait for a moment?"Vicky looked back.Sheila said to Maggie, "Maggie, I'd like to have a word with Miss Shaw alone. Can you leave the room?"Maggie's pupils flashed as she instinctively wanted to say something. The words were at the tip of her tongue, yet she could not say them. As an outsider, she should not in
Sheila smiled. "There's another person in Tyler's heart. Maybe I'm just a shadow of that person. To be honest, I don't know if he ever liked me, even as we speak."She then looked at Vicky. "He can be very good to me—so good that people think that I'm his first love, his true love, and regret because he couldn't have me. Only I know deep down in my heart, I know it's two different things between being good to me and loving me."Miss Shaw, maybe you think I'm trying to brag to you by telling you this, but he doesn't have a place for me in his heart, so why should I be pleased about it? What is there for me to brag about? I see no difference between when he's nice to you and when he is nice to me. At least, you're his wife and you can legally enjoy it. I'm nothing to him."'There is no difference between when he was nice to you and when he is nice to me…' Vicky repeated this sentence mentally.Vicky's eyes wavered. "What you're trying to tell me is that Tyler doesn't love me, right?"
[Alright.]Aurora sighed in relief. "Vicky, we've been out for quite a while. Shall we head back?"Vicky glanced at Aurora. "Can we finally go back now?""Yes, we can go back... Huh?" Aurora sensed something was amiss. "Vicky, do you...know something?"Vicky smiled. "Every time I go out with friends, Tyler always bombards me with questions about when I'll be back and insists on picking me up. Strangely, he didn't ask me anything today. Also... I remember that it's my birthday today."Aurora was left speechless as she realized Vicky saw right through her act....By the time they got home, it was starting to get dark outside. Inside the mansion, it was quiet and pitch-black. Suddenly, a warm, yellow candlelight gradually illuminated the darkness, revealing a handsome face."Happy birthday, Vicky," Tyler said.Vicky gazed at the flickering candles, feeling a bit dazed.It was then she remembered that during the early days of their relationship, he had prepared a birthday surpri
Tyler showed great disdain when his wish of getting a daughter was let down. What irritated him most was that this son looked remarkably like him.After recovering from childbirth, Vicky accompanied a newly pregnant Aurora on a shopping trip for baby supplies.Upon hearing Vicky's story, Aurora could not help but ask, "Men are usually happy when they have sons, so why does Tyler prefer daughters?"Vicky sighed. "Tyler says that a family is never really balanced and happy unless they have one son and one daughter."Aurora nodded thoughtfully. "Indeed. Now that you have a son, having a daughter would be perfect. Vicky, have you and Tyler considered responding to the national call and having a third child?"Vicky shook her head. "The last time I gave birth, Tyler wasn't around, so he doesn't know what it was like. This time, he was scared out of his wits and had no intention of having more children. A few days ago, he even underwent a vasectomy."Aurora chuckled. "Daughters may be s
However, everything spiraled out of control.Tyler knew his behavior was despicable, but he could not control his emotions.When he loved, every cell within him longed for her. Every time he came to see her, he told himself it would be the last time. However, he found himself appearing at her house more and more frequently.Tyler knew he was in trouble, and it would not be long before he returned to his former self.Vicky was like a drug to him. Even though he knew that contact with her was toxic, he could not bring himself to let go.He knew she was pregnant with his child, and his most primal desires began to surge, making it impossible for him to resist the urge to make her stay.Vicky listened quietly to his confession, and her heart ached.She could not fight off the urge to hold him; her touch was firm and comforting.He only mentioned a few words about the time he regained consciousness, but Vicky knew he had endured a lot of pain. The fact that he was alive was a miracl
Tyler's lips quivered as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he fell silent.What was there to say? It was not like he could apologize. The deed had been done, and his apology would not mean anything. Besides, he had no regrets whatsoever.Vicky stared at him. "You tampered with the surveillance, didn't you?""Yes.""And the servants and nannies. They're all under your control, right?"Tyler lowered his gaze. "Yes."Since all of this was real and not a dream, she must have been unconscious when Tyler returned. No matter how soundly she slept, she should have felt something. Since she had to take care of Lufian, she came home every day for meals, so she guessed that something was added to her food.For the past few days, she pretended to eat at home while secretly disposing of her meals. As it turned out, her suspicions were correct.Vicky repeated the question she asked before. "Why didn't you come to me?"Tyler remained silent once again."Did you come here just t
"Are you planning to leave just like that?"The man's body tensed.Click! The desk lamp was turned on, its warm, amber light illuminating the darkness."Why won't you look at me? Are you brave enough to do it but not to admit it?" echoed Vicky's gentle voice.Tyler snapped out of it and instinctively pulled his hand away from hers, ready to escape, only for Vicky's next words to pin him in place."If you leave now, I'll get rid of the baby in me tomorrow."He swiftly froze in place and turned back to her. "What did you just say?"Even though she prepared herself mentally, seeing the shock on his face made Vicky's eyes widen in shock. In an instant, her eyes welled up with tears. "You..."As Tyler met the shock in her eyes, he came to a sudden realization and turned his face away, looking anywhere but at her.When she learned about her pregnancy and knew she had not been dreaming, Vicky had a hunch about who it was that came and went freely into her home. The only one capable o
Vicky began to feel increasingly uneasy. She was pregnant without even knowing who the father was. That had to be one of the most absurd jokes in the world.Aurora, Noah, and the others were bewildered.They knew Vicky's character well, and she was not the type to casually sleep around. Besides, she still had feelings for Tyler, so she would never sleep with another man.Getting drunk was even more out of the question. After all, she was either working or taking care of her child. She had neither the time nor the inclination to go out drinking.Even Vicky herself was bewildered, and her thoughts were in disarray. "I... I don't know."The others exchanged glances, all noticing that Vicky's first instinct was not to terminate the pregnancy."Vicky, go home and think it over carefully. If you need anything, don't hesitate to call us," Aurora said gently.Vicky nodded absently.Back at home, Vicky reviewed the surveillance footage once more.She had watched it numerous times, but
Just then, a dish that Vicky usually enjoyed was brought to the table by the waiter.The aroma filled the air, but Vicky paled instantly. Before anyone could react, she retched and rushed to the bathroom.Everyone exchanged puzzled glances.Cece blinked. "What's wrong with Vicky?"Jennifer furrowed her brow. "Vicky doesn't look well. Is she ill?"The concerned Aurora chimed in, "Ever since Tyler's disappearance, Vicky hasn't been in the best mood. She even suffered from postpartum depression. Let's take her to the hospital after dinner. We can't afford for her to fall ill again."Everyone assumed that something was physically wrong with Vicky, but Noah, who remained silent, spoke up."I remember when Vicky was pregnant last time... She seemed to be very sensitive to certain smells."All eyes turned to Noah.Jennifer's eyes widened. "What are you trying to say, Noah?! You don't mean to suggest that...Vicky might be pregnant, do you?"Under the curious gazes of everyone, Noah c
As Anthony and Jennifer grew up in Lovian, and their families had deep roots there, they had to stay at Lovian as well. However, whenever they had free time, Jennifer often returned to Stoneford City to meet her friends for gatherings and meals.Vicky's birthday was approaching in a few days, and Jennifer came back early for the occasion.Lufian, on the other hand, became the darling of the group, and everyone loved him. Thus, one of the highlights of visiting Zendonia was to see Lufian.On this day, Vicky had some free time and decided to go to the airport to fetch Jennifer.Harvey held Lufian and walked out of Vicky's mansion.He had also come back early to celebrate Vicky's birthday. Like everyone else, he adored Lufian. His priority the moment he returned was to see Lufian, even though Lufian resembled Tyler most uncannily.Harvey carried Lufian and settled into the back seat, preparing to bond with him during the ride. Vicky sat in the driver's seat.Just as they were about
"Lufian is usually very well-behaved. He doesn't cause a fuss and is easy to handle.""Is his name Lufian?""That's right. Lufian Hart."Gloria's gaze flickered briefly but quickly returned to normal. "Have you given him a nickname?""Not yet," Vicky replied.Gloria did not say anything further.After playing with the child for a while, she carefully placed the necklace she had prepared around Lufian's neck.The baby played for a while and soon fell asleep.Gloria then gently returned Lufian to his stroller.Leaving the nursery, Vicky and Gloria engaged in casual conversation. They had no deep-seated grudges, and over time, their past love and hatred gradually faded away.Vicky smiled and remarked, "You seem to really like children. How about having one yourself? A kid would make a good companion for Lufian.""I'd like to, but I haven't found the right person," Gloria lamented.Gloria had been single for years. It was not because she could not forget Tyler or was waiting fo