Clive fell silent for a bit before answering, “It’s not far, but…” “Mr. Stone.”Putting on a serious face, Remy earnestly said, “I like Elisa. I’m after a serious relationship with the intention of marrying her. I won’t give up on her.“I understand your family’s concern. That was why I bought this villa. My main responsibility is FC & Co.’s business in Wiltspoon, so I’m a permanent resident here. I rarely return to Annenburg. We’ll be staying in Wiltspoon and living in this house if Elisa chooses to marry me.” Remy believed he had done enough to provide the assurance. “No one can say what will happen in the future. My mom will only consider you as Elisa’s husband candidate if you marry into the family.” “I can do that if that is Mrs. Stone’s wish. My brother can fulfill his duty as a son to our parents.” Clive was speechless. His mother had never said such a thing. She would not budge on giving Remy the stamp of approval though. The last thing his mother wanted was f
Remy fell silent for a moment before giving his two cents. “Our parents want what’s best for us, but we may not approve of their methods. We might take it the wrong way and think they’re making our lives difficult.” “That’s right. Do your parents do the same too?” Elisa asked. “My parents stay out of my business once I reach adulthood. Then again, they don’t really get involved because my eldest brother is the boss of me. The seniors in my family don’t interfere with the younger generation’s business. Though, they might say something if we haven’t settled down.” Elisa smiled. “That’s right. I heard the elders of the Johnsons are pretty liberal like the Yorks. No wonder you guys are the 1% of the population. Everything seems to be going well for your lives.” “Elisa, is your mom forbidding you to date me?” Elisa gave an honest answer. “That’s right. My mom said you’re from out of town. She doesn’t want me to marry off to a faraway place. She is forceful and determined to separa
After dinner, Serenity returned to her room to take a shower before heading to the guest bedroom where her sister was. Liberty was carrying her son out of the bathroom. “Sonny is just done with his shower.“He had a blast today, and now he’s sleepy. I quickly gave him a wash, and he was nodding off in the showers.” Liberty lay her son down on the bed as the little man was asleep. Serenity pinched Sonny’s cheek with a smile. Sleeping like a log, Sonny had no reaction to his aunt getting a good squeeze of his face. “He and Rowan were really running around the place today. It’s a good thing. The pressure to do well in his studies is real even though he’s only in tenth grade. His cousins and brothers performed well academically, so he will be lagging behind if he doesn’t put in the work. His cousins and brothers won’t be pleased about that.“All that fun is a good stress reliever.” Serenity’s heart went out to the youngest member of the York family. The kid was a sweet talk
“I understand, Grandma May.” Duncan was down in the dumps. Still, the frustration only lasted for two minutes, and he regained his fighting spirit. Duncan had not begun the pursuit yet, and for him to lose the will now, he might as well move on. “It’s late. You should go home.” Grandma May showed Duncan the door. Duncan said with a kill, “Are you kicking me out, Grandma May? I was going to have a drink or two with Zachary.” “I’m not drinking tonight.” Zachary was quick to say no.Duncan chucked. “I heard that you don’t really drink at business parties anymore. Apparently, you quit alcohol because your wife doesn’t like you drinking. You don’t smoke, drink, gamble, or solicit. Our Mr. York has become a model husband.” The grandmother and grandson blurted in unison, “Watch and learn.” Duncan was speechless, to say the least. In the end, Duncan left Wildridge Manor. Once he was gone, Zachary stayed to chat with his nana for a while. Since the grandmother and grandso
It took less than two minutes for Zachary to take a more active role rather than being passive. He carried his wife to the bed and demanded more. No words were needed for the rest of the night. The following day was when Jasmine would drop by her family home for a visit as Mrs. Bucham. Serenity and her sister were having lunch at the Soxes’ residence. Zachary would, of course, be with his wife. After the visit, Jasmine and Josh would travel for their honeymoon the next day. It would also mark the end of the brief public holidays. Then came the time to get back to work, back to school, and back to business as usual. For the mass public, they were to resume the normal routine. Apart from watching the shop, Serenity would find the time to return to her hometown with Elisa to check on agriculture progress. The seasonal vegetables had been planted as planned. Looking at the greens all around, Elisa told Serenity, “The administrator said that the vegetables will be read
Sam was snickering to himself.Zachary had completely become a slave to his wife.Serenity laughed on the other side of the line. “I’ll be home soon. Are you home?”“Yeah, I just got home. Where are you now? Let me pick you up.”“It’s okay, don’t trouble yourself. I can drive myself home. Besides, it’s too much of a hassle for you to come all the way from home just to bring me home. I’ll be back in ten minutes. Just wait for me at home, babe.”“Sure. Drive safe. Remember that you’re driving a car, not flying a jet.”Serenity chuckled. “I don’t even know how to fly a plane.”During late nights when there was less traffic, Serenity would sometimes speed on the way home and would soon be dissuaded by her two bodyguards.When Zachary knew of it, he gave her an ear-lashing. He then told Liberty about it too, which resulted in Serenity being reprimanded by Liberty.Serenity realized Zachary loved complaining to her sister.He would turn to Liberty whenever his advice for Serenity f
“Babe, I’m home!”Serenity yelled as she entered the room with some snacks.Zachary walked over to meet her.He saw that she was carrying a bag containing several disposable boxes.“I thought you said that you don’t eat at this hour. Why did you still pack supper home? Are you disgusted by my poor cooking skills? Is that why you rejected the idea of me making supper for you?”Zachary was petty and would magnify a small matter to the point where he thought Serenity loathed him.“No way! Babe, your cooking skills have surpassed mine. When I was passing by the night market, I just felt nostalgic and couldn’t help but stop by and buy some of the few snacks I used to eat.”Zachary did not know how to make these local delicacies. He only ate what the common folk ate for breakfast because he was pretending to be poor. Serenity was in the dark back then, so she always packed a local breakfast for him, and he ate it because he did not want his secret to get exposed.He still remembered
“Babe, I love you.”Serenity said the words that Zachary liked to hear the most.“From now on, I’ll buy you flowers every day, okay?”Buying flowers was easy.Serenity just had to tell Camryn to prepare a bouquet of flowers for her every day, then she would just give it to Zachary.“I only have one vase in my office. Alternate days will be good enough.” Zachary’s expression finally eased.Serenity said, “Why don’t I buy a few more vases for your office?”“I don’t want people to see me as a vase.”Serenity laughed and said, “You’re a man. Who would regard you as a vase? Alright, so instead of buying you more vases, I’ll just send you a bouquet of flowers every other day. It’s Friday tomorrow. Shall we go shopping on Saturday? I’ll buy you new clothes.”Zachary had plenty of new clothes in his closet. Every once in a while, a fashion designer would tailor new clothes for him.However, a certain someone still liked to receive clothes from his wife.Since Serenity learned of Zac
“Okay.”Kade said gently, “I’ll hang up and send you my location. We can talk when we meet.”Soon, Kade ended the call and sent Imogen his location. It took Imogen and Dylan about ten minutes to find him. “Kade.”Imogen was happy when she saw him. She ran toward him elatedly.Dylan saw a man about his age or a few years older than him. The man looked handsome and gentlemanly. He wore a gray suit without a tie, which made him look like a successful person. From Imogen, Dylan knew his love rival was a senior executive of a multinational company. He was competent since he was assigned to return and handle the business in the country. Kade’s mother and Leticia were best friends. Kade was also Leticia’s godson. Imogen had known him since he was young, and the parents of the two families intended to bring their kids together. Upon seeing Kade in the flesh, Dylan felt threatened. If he wanted to win, he had to put effort into pursuing Imogen. If Imogen loved him and was will
“You can decide what we have for dinner, Mom. I don’t have any opinions.”Some of the Doyles were busy during the weekends, while others would take a rest. Either way, they still had time to have dinner together. After ending the call with her mother, Imogen told Dylan, “When we meet Kade at the airport, we can have lunch there first. We’ll only eat with my family during dinner.”Dylan had heard Leticia’s words through the phone. He said, “Will Mr. Butcher be staying with your family?”Dylan found it normal for them to have dinner together. After all, that Kade guy was his future mother-in-law’s godson. Since he was finally back in the country, it was customary for Leticia to invite him over for a meal. However, Dylan could not help but feel jealous about Kade staying at the Doyles’ mansion. When he could not even enter their mansion most of the time, Kade could immediately move in. If Kade got closer to the Doyles, he would be a more significant threat to Dylan. Imogen
“We can head there in my car.”Dylan was delighted that Imogen allowed him to go to the airport with her. “Any car is fine.”Imogen led him out of the house. Dylan quickly followed after her and opened the car door for her. He even hovered his hand above her head to prevent her from hitting the roof of the car.“You’re so attentive.”Imogen complimented him as she fastened her seatbelt in the car. “I’ll only be gentlemanly to you aside from my family members.”Imogen glanced at him but did not say a word. A few minutes later, Dylan drove out of the Doyle residence with Imogen in his car.Not long after they left, Leticia went downstairs.She noticed the gifts on the table but did not see Imogen anywhere. Thinking he had kidnapped her daughter, she quickly called Wendy over and asked, “Did Jen head out?”“Yes. Ms. Imogen had gone out with Mr. Dylan. She said they were heading to the airport to receive someone.”Wendy had overheard Imogen and Dylan’s conversation, so she
She did not expect him to be discharged that soon.“Let him in.”Mr. and Mrs. Doyle were not awake yet. They would not stop Dylan from entering. With Imogen’s orders, Wendy quickly called the security booth and told the security to let Dylan in. Imogen stood at her door a few minutes later and watched his car stop before her. “Why are you discharged?” Imogen asked as soon as Dylan got out of the car. He was still coughing.Imogen frowned. His body belonged to himself. Who would love him if he did not know how to care for himself?“I feel much better after spending two days in the hospital on IV drips. The doctor said I could be discharged and gave me three days’ supply of medication. If I’m not fully recovered after finishing the medicines, I can return to get more.“The doctor said I should be fine after this round of medication. He also said I’m generally healthy and that my condition only got that severe because I ate a lot of chili peppers in one sitting.“I have to e
Imogen smiled. “Stop teasing him, Layla. He doesn’t eat spicy food at all. Eating that much chili peppers can be deadly for him.“I’ll be heading back to work today. I can’t take care of him at the hospital every day. I don’t want to let him think that I’ve accepted him just because he ate chili peppers once.”Layla said, “That’s right. You can’t be tricked by his pity play.”“Dylan didn’t torture himself to gain my pity, Layla. He was hospitalized because he ate the chili peppers. His fever, cough, and sore throat are all real. His voice is still hoarse when he speaks.”Imogen could not help but defend Dylan.Layla replied, “Look at you. I only criticize him a little, yet you’re already defending him.“Jen, the person who falls first will always be at a disadvantage.“Listen to me. Don’t dedicate anything to this relationship before Dylan falls in love with you as who you are. Don’t be manipulated by him.“You’re usually sharp and capable, yet you seem to lose all rationality
“Why do you want to see me? Didn’t you see enough of me yesterday? Besides, I’m not your beloved Miss Fox. You said it yourself—no matter how you tried and put in the effort, you couldn’t love me.“I’m just a good friend to your sisters-in-law, and Grandma May specifically called me to ask me to look after you for a day. That’s the only reason I did it.“Dylan, I’m not going back to you.”It was he who said that he did not love her. She had fallen for him, but when he said he did not love her, she hid her feelings.Now, he had realized that she was Chameleon Fox and the person he truly loved had always been her. Imogen had been more or less jealous of her own self all this time.If he had not fallen for Imogen but proceeded to get together with her, then it would feel like he was treating her as a substitute. Fox was Imogen, and Imogen was Fox—but she had still stubbornly distinguished the two.“I know, Imogen,” Dylan said softly.He did not assume he had won her over just bec
The night passed peacefully.The next morning, Dylan woke up. He had been woken by the heat.The room was heated, and he had bundled himself up tightly before going to sleep. By midnight, he had started sweating, but he continued to sleep, so by morning, he was feeling too hot and woke up.“Imogen…” He instinctively called out her name.His voice was still hoarse, but it was much better than yesterday. When he received no answer, he remembered that Imogen had gone home last night. He was alone in the hospital.Late last night, his mother had called him, but only to laugh at him.Now, all alone, in a strange place, and sick, Dylan felt just a tiny bit homesick. It was much more comfortable at Wildridge Manor, after all. When all the York boys were home, it was lively and warm. There was his nana to fuss over him, and even though his parents liked to make jabs at him, they still cared deeply for him.It felt boring at home, but once he left, he realized how warm home really was.
Sasha chimed in, “Exactly. It’s fine to laugh in front of us, but you laughed so loudly on the call too. Dylan is hurt both physically and emotionally, and no one is comforting him.”Rosella responded, “But Imogen is there to take care of him. She’ll comfort him.”Sasha sighed. “It’s so late now. Imogen needs to go back and rest, doesn’t she? Dylan hasn’t even won her over yet, so how could Imogen stay the entire night in the hospital with him?”Grandma May laughed, “You ladies know it’s late too, so why aren’t you three going back to your rooms to rest? Fortunately, the rooms are big enough that we can all chat here without disturbing anyone.“Remember, we’re guests. We mustn’t disturb the rest of the Johnsons just because we’ve come.”The three sisters-in-law glanced at the clock. It was almost midnight.As the eldest sister-in-law, Tania led the way. She stood up and said to Grandma May, “Mom, we’ll head back to rest now. Tomorrow, let’s go out and walk around.”The scenery a
“Mom, I’m your real son!”“If you weren’t, I wouldn’t even bother with you and don’t even want to make this call.”Rosella added, “Alright, now that I know you’re fine, I can relax. Be good to Imogen, she’s a really good girl. I like her a lot. I hope you can get together this year.“Once you’re finally not single anymore, it should be about time for your younger brother to start dating too. Once all three of you are out of the bachelor’s club, all I have to do is wait for my first grandchild to be born.“I’ve saved up a lot of money for both your weddings, though honestly, I don’t think you’ll need it. You all are capable enough to make your own money to get married, so the money I saved for you can go toward my granddaughter instead.“I don’t even know if I’ll be fortunate enough to have a granddaughter.” Rosella sighed. “After seeing little Clo-clo, I finally understand why your nana is so fixated on her and wants to kidnap her. “That kid is so cute. She’s pretty, adorable,