Adina ignored Ruby’s cries.She stared at Aaron. “Am I your daughter?”Aaron suppressed his anger and said, “I promised your mother that I would keep this secret until I die. But now, with all that has happened to Dew, I have no choice but to expose the truth. After your mother passed away, I could have sent you to an orphanage, but I didn’t. Instead, I raised you until you were eighteen. I’ve done my duty as a father, and I have a clear conscience toward you—”“Haha!”Halfway through his sentence, Adina scoffed.At this point, she truly believed that she was not a daughter of the Daugherty family because no father would say something like that to his daughter.But she would not let herself be manipulated by Aaron either.“Why didn’t you send me to the orphanage? Wasn’t it because I held the shares of Daugherty Corporation?” She sneered.Aaron’s expression instantly darkened. “But all of Daugherty Corporation’s shares have been purchased. The owner of Daugherty Corporation has
Adina’s heart sank.In other words, her mother married Aaron only after she had gotten pregnant with her.It was clear why Aaron would agree to marry her mother. It was because the Xavier family was extremely rich. If he married the Xavier family’s only daughter, would he still need to worry about his future?That was the truth. The following year after Aaron married her mother, Daugherty Corporation was established.During the two years that her mother was alive, Daugherty Corporation grew rapidly.Although her mother passed away, she had provided a sufficient amount of funding to Daugherty Corporation. That was enough to help Daugherty Corporation grow higher and further.Without her mother, Daugherty Corporation would not have existed.But without her, the marriage between the Xavier family and the Daugherty family would not have happened either.Adina pursed her lips and tried to ask, “Grandma, before my mother knew Aaron, was she in a relationship with other men?”“Of cou
Duke parked the car and stepped out. He had come five minutes earlier, hoping he could fetch the two children before Adina did. However, just as he went out of his car, he could feel a cold gaze fixated on him. He looked in that direction and from afar, he saw a slender person slowly approaching him. “Mr. Winters, why are you here?”Adina asked with a slight frown as she looked at him. Duke smiled. “Didn’t I tell you not to call me Mr. Winters?”Adina froze. ‘I used to call him Duke just to play along when I pretended to be his girlfriend. ‘But there’s no need for such pretenses anymore.’She said plainly, “I will pick Al and Mel up. You can go on with whatever it is you need to do.”“I’m their biological father. This is my duty,” Duke said in a low voice; it sounded as low as the tune of a cello. “You’ve worked hard for the past four years. From now on, I’ll help you out.”Adina’s heart skipped a beat. She could only suppress that strange emotion after she dug her n
Melody lowered her head, feeling embarrassed. It was as if she was aware of her teacher complimenting her. The two dimples on her cheek deepened as she smiled. “Come here, let Daddy hug you.”Duke knelt down and stretched out his arms. “Daddy!”Melody ran over to him quickly. Duke carried her and spun her around.Ava was stunned. ‘Didn’t Alden and Melody call another man “Father” two days ago? Why did their father change to another man again…?’“Miss Jones, he is Al’s and Mel’s biological father. You can hand over them whenever he comes and fetches them,” Adina said gently with a smile. Ava nodded, still feeling stunned. She only returned to her senses when the family left the preschool. ‘Alden’s father is so handsome and charismatic. It’s no wonder why the children could not stop looking at him. Even I couldn’t take my eyes off him…’Two cars were parked at the entrance of the preschool. Adina and Duke opened their car doors. Hers was on the left, and he was on th
“Mommy, don’t worry. I will never leave you,” said Alden, who was sitting at the back.Adina was holding onto the steering wheel as she relaxed and smiled, “Al, you don’t have to look at him like he’s your enemy. Duke is your biological father. You should get to know him a little better, and there’s nothing to lose.” “But you’ll be sad.” Al hid the emotion in his gaze as he clenched his fist. “Al, I won’t be. Where do you want to go?” Adina smiled helplessly. When they were at the traffic light, she turned and looked at her as she said gently, “Duke is your and Melody’s father. I’m really happy that he’s decided to protect and look after both of you with me. How can I be sad?” Alden lowered his gaze and did not say anything. ‘If Duke truly loves Mommy, I will accept him into our lives as well.‘But if he were to hurt her in any way, I will never let the Winters family off the hook!’They drove to the Winters family’s mansion. Harold had been waiting at the entrance for a l
Harold recognized the car at the front. Before it stopped, he ran over and opened the backseat door. “Melody, I’ve missed you so much!”He instantly went for a hug. His embrace tightened as the figure was soft and smelled really good. However, he quickly heard an angry voice say, “Harold Winters, let go!”Alden, who was embraced in Harold’s arms, was very upset. Harold instantly let go. “Eh, Alden. Why are you here? Where’s Melody?”At that moment, he heard cute giggles from behind him. He turned and saw Melody coming out of the second car. George had given her a toy rabbit, and she was overjoyed. Harold swiftly ran over and took out the toy cat that he had been carrying. He then said, as if he was giving her a treasure, “Melody, this cat is much cuter than the rabbit. Look, it even makes sounds…”The toy cat meowed when he gave it a little squeeze. Melody giggled even louder. Duke, who had just come out of the car, smiled. He had not heard cheerful laughter like this in
George shifted his cold gaze to Harold. His gaze was so cold that Harold, who had been fake-crying, became overwhelmed and instantly stopped. “Didn’t Melody give you a present before?”When he heard George’s words, Harold quickly replied, “Oh, yes! Melody gave me a present before. It was a drawing by her. I’m the only one who has ever received a present from her. Nobody else got anything from her! I’m the luckiest boy ever! Melody, I love you so much!”Harold was so happy that he gave Melody’s cheek a peck. Duke frowned and pulled Harold back by his collar. He then said coldly, “Don’t kiss Mel ever again.”Harold felt aggrieved as he pouted. “Why?”‘What is life if I can’t even kiss my sister?’Duke said, “You’re a boy, and Mel’s a girl. Boys shouldn’t simply kiss girls.”Harold became speechless. ‘The teacher at school said this before, too. Does that mean I can never kiss Mel from now on?’George did not utter a word. ‘I’ve never kissed her. Does that mean I wouldn’t
Adina unexpectedly bumped into Duke, who was washing the peas. The oil splashed on the back of her hand. She grimaced in pain. Duke hurriedly turned down the fire on the stove, looking extremely worried. “Where did the oil hit you? Are you hurt?” “It’s nothing. I’m fine.”Adina ran the tap water over her hand. After cooking for a long time, she was used to oil splashes. These little burns were nothing to her. However, all of a sudden, a huge, rough hand grabbed her fingertips. “I’ll put on some lotion for you.”She hurriedly pulled her hand back, but she could not break free from his grasp. She said helplessly, “I really don’t need it. Besides, can you even find where I got burnt?”There had been a small red spot when she was burnt. But after running it in the water, it was no longer visible. Duke looked down at the back of her hand. After looking at it carefully and not seeing any wounds, he let go of her hand. Adina was blushing just because he held her fingertips.