“Sleep? Okay!” he answered with a smile. “I’ll sleep with you.”“Zephyr!” Cordelia huffed at him. “I mean actual sleep, not what you’re thinking…”“What am I thinking?”Cordelia stayed quiet. She got tricked by him again.Zephyr kept an arm around her slim waist.When a few guys walked past them, he raised his glass with a smile. The action blocked Cordelia just nicely.Robert continued to sigh as he deeply realized that it was a mistake staying around the two of them! He wondered if he could negotiate with his boss to add another employee benefit—“Girlfriend included”? ‘Sigh…’A rose-red figure walked over with a champagne flute from afar.Zephyr was going to leave, but Cordelia tugged him and gave him a look.It was just Nelly. It was not like she was some monster…Cordelia pursed her lips and entered battle mode instantly.“Ms. Tanner!” She greeted her with a radiant smile.“Oh, you’re here too, Ms. Jenner!” Nelly tipped her chin, maintaining surface courtesy.Zephyr
Nelly’s expression was stiff, and her gaze was resentful when she stared daggers at Cordelia. As Zephyr took Cordelia elsewhere, she kept her eyes on their backs and suddenly heard Mandy’s words in her ears—“You don’t have Tanner’s blood in you. You aren’t even worthy of Zephyr Hamerton.“I shouldn’t have taken you back from the orphanage and let you be a Tanner back then!”Nelly shook, rage almost breaking through her ribs. She took a few deep breaths to force herself to calm down.“Hah, being mocked again?” A familiar voice sounded.She turned back and saw Yale holding a glass of whisky as he stood leisurely with a smile. The one next to him was no longer Yelena but a young model who wore a low-cut dress.“What does it have to do with you!?” Nelly was annoyed seeing him.“With the woman next to Z, you don’t have to think about marrying into the Hamertons ever!” Yale gloated.Nelly rolled her eyes at him. She was going to leave when Yale drawled his voice. “There’s someone impo
Nelly looked toward that direction discreetly as well and discovered that he was actually staring at Cordelia!She was shocked but did not show it, merely asking, “Mr. Irwin, the auction’s starting. Which piece are you going to bid for?”Rowan’s brows were furrowed lightly. His mind had long gone to Cordelia.As he looked at her from afar and watched how a man kept her in his arms like a treasure and how she smiled that even her dimples oozed happiness… he suddenly felt a pinch on his nose. A sob was lodged in his throat.She really looked a lot like Xyla. Yet, the cool brilliance from her eyes looked so much like his.Rowan smiled and felt sullen. He had promised Xyla that he would never disrupt their lives. Those formulas had severed all their relationships. The moment Xyla left Southeast Aciatic, they were strangers to each other.Rowan’s fingers on the wine glass tightened, and his joints turned white from the exertion.“Mr. Irwin, what’s the matter?”“Hmm?” He snapped out
Nelly stood rooted angrily.The auction began, and the guests eventually got seated.Zephyr and Cordelia sat at the frontmost VIP seats while Rowan did not make a public appearance. He found a suitable spot on the second floor, and its angle allowed him to look down and catch Cordelia’s side profile.Nelly noticed it and was even more convinced that the old lecher, Rowan Irwin, had eyes for Cordelia! He had never spoken a word to Cordelia before, but he defended her so much!Meanwhile, Nelly had spent the whole night talking to him, yet she could not compare to that b*tch…Nelly had rage boiling in her and did not even go to her seat. She went to a corner to make a call.“Where’s Kelly Tanner?” The resentment in her voice was hardly hidden. She took a deep breath and sounded vicious. “Hah, tell her that her big sister will pay her a visit when she’s done with this auction!”“Ms. Nelly, but…” The servant on the other end of the line sounded frantic.“What else do you want? Just
Josiah was not wearing pants! He was not wearing any pants!“Ahh!” Godd*mn!Josiah kept shrieking as he frantically pulled a piece of clothing from the side to cover himself.The girl was terrified, shaking as she crouched on the floor with her hands wrapped around her head.At the same time, someone knocked on the dressing room door.Josiah stopped screaming abruptly and was still in shock when he heard someone asking, “Is there anyone in there? Can I enter?”It was a man’s voice.Josiah was a little befuddled. He was going to open the door when something grabbed his ankle. Looking down, the girl crawled in front of him, grabbing his foot. Her eyes were misty.“No…” she pleaded. “Don’t open the door. Don’t say that I’m here…”“What?” Josiah was lost. “What’s happening?”“Please!”The knocks grew louder.Josiah did not have much time to think. The moment the person outside kicked the door open, he grabbed the clothes he covered himself with and pressed the girl on the floor
“Is your name just Kelly?” Josiah puffed his cheeks and frowned, looking lost. “What’s your last name?”Kelly looked down and stayed quiet.Josiah laughed. Who cared what her last name was? A name was just a term of address.“Alright, I’ll take you for a walk!” he said and was going to leave the room.“Hey, you…”Kelly tugged him back before he could walk away.Josiah paused and looked down… He still had no pants on!He flushed immediately and looked up at her in a panic, forcing a smile that looked more like a wince.Kelly was amused by it, and there was finally some color on her pale face.Josiah ran back inside the dressing room frantically and pulled on a pair of pants before he took Kelly for a walk.The fall night was beautiful. The porch was in the sun the whole day, so there was still a warm sunlight scent now. It was quiet all around, with occasional bird chirps and dots of light that seemed like fireflies.Kelly took a deep breath and closed her eyes gently. Standi
Josiah suddenly felt his heart skip a beat. He could no longer control it.It was like Kelly had magic. Her eyes felt like a mysterious world that tempted him to explore.He looked at her in a daze and felt their surroundings quieting down all of a sudden. It was like all the lights in the world were concentrated on her.A cool breeze blew, prompting coughs from the girl. It snapped Josiah out of his daze, and he removed his jacket to drape it on her.“It’s okay…”“Put it on!” Josiah pulled it around her. “Don’t you have a weak body? You can’t catch a cold!”Kelly licked her lips and looked at him quietly.There were noises from the auction, and people were already walking toward the door.“Looks like it’s over,” said Josiah. “Uh… Let me send you home. Where are you living?”Kelly shook her head. Everything that happened felt like a dream. Now that it was time to wake up, she should go back to her reality.Her reality was that she was the unknown daughter of the Tanners. She
Cordelia blushed red and struggled away from Zephyr’s hold to run into the room while he was distracted.Robert sucked in a cold breath, but it was already too late to run.Zephyr’s glower was so dark that it could drip ink.He walked briskly to the door and pulled the metal bolt open with a clank. His eyes felt like ice as they gave Robert a death glare.The corners of Robert’s lips twitched as he plastered on a smile, his heart almost leaping out of his throat.“What is it?” Zephyr spat coldly.Robert had completely forgotten what he wanted to say and stared at the man dumbly.The few seconds of silence felt as long as centuries.Cordelia then heard someone’s deafening growl from where she was in the room. “Robert Davis…”Helen was picking vegetables and hurried out of the kitchen, shocked by the noise.“What happened to Mr. Zephyr?” Cordelia sat on the couch with a secret giggle.“What did Robert do this time?” Helen sighed, shook her head, and turned back to the kitche