However, these things are only the bare minimum for a club to have. What really set this club apart was its famous auction.The auction here was far different from the normal auctions outside. Rumor had it the things bought in the auction here could not be brought out of the club. However, due to the club being too exclusive Vicky had only heard about the auction; she never saw it personally. Therefore, she had no way to verify the truth of it all.Moreover, the club's membership card was limited to only 1000 pieces. It was so exclusive that it would take more than being rich to get into the club."Tonight, Dark Night Club will be celebrating its anniversary, and they've invited a lot of powerful and influential business tycoons to the city. Tyler will be there, too," said the man. He looked at her meaningfully before he added, "Lately, Tyler seems to have attended a lot of events, so I'm sure he's no stranger to the club."The gold card was cold to the touch. Vicky looked at the m
Vicky nodded lightly, and it was only then Jennifer dared to say, "Yes, that would be fine, sir."After the man swiped his card, Jennifer asked, "Sir, can you please leave your contact number?"The man was silent for a few seconds before he recited a string of numbers.Vicky's eyes flashed. She did not recognize the phone number, so the man could not have been the mysterious person who helped her. However, she did not know which number he used to contact her before since it always came up as 'Unknown Number' in the caller ID. Therefore, even until this moment, she could not be sure whether the man sitting in front was the mysterious person or not.The man bade them farewell after they closed the deal, and he had drunk some coffee. Before he left, he said, "My old phone number has been traced, so just call this number if you need to contact me for anything in the future."…Soon, Vicky got off work. She knew Tyler would not be home on this night since he had not come home for a fe
"If there's nothing else, I'm going to hang up now," said Vicky."Alright," replied Noah.After the call ended, Noah stared worriedly at his phone."Noah, you've been looking glum recently. Did something happen?" asked Ava.Noah stared into the distance, shook his head, and sighed. "I'm never going to believe in love again.""What's wrong?""It's just as I said.""But what you said is very common in today's society." Ava did not know what the fuss was all about. "I heard so many of the same things happening around me.""That's where you're wrong. He's different from the people around you.""But if he's different, why did he do the same thing?" retorted Ava.Noah became stunned and speechless.After a while, he finally said, "What you said seems to make sense…"Ava became a little smug and started to philosophize, "Some people might look different from the others on the surface, but deep down, they're all the same. Some people, like you said, are truly unique, but time can c
To be precise, it was not that the buyer could not take the items with them but more like the buyer would not be able to own them forever. After all, the auction was not selling products but services instead.Vicky's eyelids twitched when she saw all the handsome men and beautiful women on the stage while the auctioneer excitedly introduced each of them to potential buyers, "This beauty's name is Seyna, and she's from Torpis. Her unique massage techniques are one of the best you can find in this club… And now, let's start the bid with a price of fifteen thousand dollars for a month of massage services!""This handsome guy is from Hatchland. He was one part of a well-known boy band, so I can guarantee you that his singing, rapping, and dancing skills are top-notch. Guests who love entertainment music can purchase one month of his time to sing and dance for you!""This beauty is from Zendonia. Not only is she beautiful, but she can also drink anyone under the table! Guests who want to
"Who do the voices belong to?""One of the voices belongs to Tyler Hart. Do you truly think he's so poor that he needs to make money off the casino? This auction is nothing but a game of who's the most audacious for the rich.""Wow, so Tyler Hart is here, too? What about the other person? I wonder where he got the courage to bid against Tyler.""The other person… Well, I heard that he's been bidding against Tyler for a few nights in a row. However, it's a pity 'cause he can't win against Tyler; not when he's in Tyler's territory."The auction lot closed while everyone discussed the sky-high price. Just like that, 'the-woman-who-can-win-in-any-card-game' was sold off at 1.5 million dollars.A series of awed gasps went around the room; even Vicky thought it was ridiculous that her husband paid so much for a woman who could 'win in any card game'.'Even if that woman is made out of gold, she still won't be worth a million five hundred thousand dollars,' thought Vicky. However, she d
Tyler scoffed and said, "Why should I answer you that?""Tyler, do you know all the things you've done recently have crossed the line?""All the things I've done recently?" Something flashed across Tyler's eyes. "What did I do?""Just how many women have you been with during this period?""How can I be in the wrong when those women willingly throw themselves at me?" asked Tyler coldly. "Harvey, you must know what that's like since I'm sure many women willingly throw themselves at you, too."Harvey scoffed and said, "Don't tell me you did nothing more than that with the women who did that to you. From what I've heard, those powerful people who wanted to curry favors from you also sent you some women which you didn't refuse."Tyler raised an eyebrow. "What? Don't tell me you've never accepted those kinds of women before."It was a given that turning down a woman from 'friends' in business was as good as giving them a snub. All that mattered in a man's world were money, power, and
"Now can we talk?" Vicky asked."What do you want to know?"Vicky found his question so ridiculous that she suddenly burst out laughing. "Do you seriously need to ask me that, Tyler?""Well, how will I ever know what answers you're looking for if you don't ask the questions?""Don't tell me you think you're the innocent party in this matter.""If you're referring to all the women in here, well, all I can say is this is just a necessary part of doing business. I haven't done anything with those women.""Just a necessary part of doing business?" Vicky scoffed, and her gaze turned cold. "Is throwing around a million fifty thousand dollars a necessary part of doing business as well? Don't you think that's going a little bit overboard?"Tyler leaned against the sofa and crossed his legs elegantly and casually. "Do you know who owns this club?"Vicky was a little taken aback, but she immediately understood what he meant."Tell me… Why are you doing this, then?""Well for one, it's
'The past…' Vicky zoned out for a moment.Vicky and Tyler had a tumultuous marriage in the past. He rarely came home at night, and this gave rise to the countless scandals he had with other women.At the beginning of the marriage, he would either come home drunk or smelling of other women's perfume. Vicky even questioned him about the scandals he had with other women, but he shot her down by saying, "You chose this life, so you have no right to question me, Vicky Shaw."What he said was true. She was the one who broke up with him, and she was also the one who forced him to marry her.She spent the first year of her marriage being heartbroken and sad every day. Later, she gradually became numb. She stopped caring about all scandals, and she also stopped looking into whether Tyler cheated on her with the women he was reportedly involved with.Instead, she turned all of her attention to her job. The best thing for her to do was to treat each other like roommates, she thought. However
[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