Hayden saw Caroline enter the hotel before telling her driver, “To Queen Manor.”“Okay.”Hayden rested in the backseat and pondered Caroline’s issue. Those who meant her harm were obviously her family. Madam Fisher and her extended family were the ones who truly wanted Caroline to be the next matriarch. Celine used to be the heir of the Fisher family but she was not Madam Fisher’s biological daughter. It was unlikely her extended family would allow her to be the successor.If Caroline could not hold her fort as the true heir, then the daughters of her extended family would start aiming for the position too. Hayden supposed that those who tried to harm Caroline were her family, and while her extended family might have known about it, they did nothing to stop it. Although Caroline was the Fishers’ flesh and blood, she did not grow up in the family, and neither did she have much chance to interact with them. Her extended family was worried that she would be even more impartial
Even if Madam Fisher wanted Caroline to gain some experience in overcoming tribulations, she would not risk Caroline’s life. If the car had been hit by other cars when it broke down, it would be challenging to ensure that Caroline was unscathed. Madam Fisher might have seemed like she still favored Celine and mistreated Caroline, but she prioritized blood relations. Caroline was her biological daughter, who had finally returned to her. She would not risk Caroline’s life, no matter how ruthless she was. “That’s Caroline’s problem. We can just stand by and watch. Let’s not interfere.”If Kevin were the one who had met Caroline on the way, he would not have helped her. He supported Serenity. Caroline’s mother, Madam Fisher, was most likely the person who murdered Serenity’s grandmother. Hayden did not speak as she was aware of Kevin’s stance. “Is Hugh back?”“No.”Kevin added, “Donnie and Sophia aren’t home too. We’re the only ones having dinner tonight.”He would have a
“Alright. I’ll make the plans. I’ll show you a good time tonight.” Kevin would do anything to get a date with Hayden. She looked at him and smiled. “I’m happy just to be with you. You’re a joy to be around.” Kevin chuckled gleefully. Hayden was the wife for Kevin. She was a reliable and practical person, so he did not expect her to be the type to say something sweet. Although there was nothing suggestive or lovey-dovey about what she said, Kevin still took it as sweet talk. He was so smitten with her words that he could develop a sweet tooth.During dinner, Kevin was attentive to Hayden’s needs. He would have fed Hayden if he could. She amusedly looked at the big plate of food in front of her and said, “You didn’t have to order so much food for me. I don’t know where to start.” Kevin proceeded to order dessert and another drink for her, apparently to help her wash down the food. Hayden had no words. She then did the same to Kevin, ordering additional appetizers fo
“Yes, but I won. Well, now you had to place a bet with me.” Hayden’s heart went out to Kevin. “Alright. I mean what I said. I don’t go back on my word. I’ll take the risk with you.” Now that Kevin had her word, he jolted up and said, “Excuse me, I need to go to the men’s room.” With his hands over his stomach, Kevin ran to the washroom. Hayden burst out laughing. She could tell Kevin’s feelings for her were genuine. A while later, Kevin emerged from the bathroom. “Do you need to go to the hospital?” Hayden asked with concern. Straightening his back, Kevin said, “No. I’m okay. Let’s go for a stroll to help the food settle. Then, we can head out.” He had never eaten so much in his life. He was so full, he had an upset stomach. Fortunately, he won the bet. He won her promise of forever. She gambled on her marriage, but he did too. Hayden rose to her feet and docilely uttered, “Come on. I’ll walk with you.” The pair walked out of the main residence. Hayden took Ke
Hayden said, “You owe it to your grandmother. She found out that I’m a woman, not you.” Kevin chuckled. “Of course. I have my nana to thank. If it wasn’t for Nana, I would’ve never known you were a woman. I wouldn’t have pursued you.“I thought my nana was trying to give me problems when I first got your photo from her and was told to woo and marry you. I wondered why she picked a man as my wife. “Nana then told me that you were a woman, but I didn’t believe her. You looked really handsome in the photo. “That was why I was against the whole thing at first. “I didn't want to pursue you because I was afraid of what people would think. I tried to expose you as a woman, but I was terrible at it. Your disguise was flawless. I bet Nana had a hard time figuring it out too.”It dawned on Hayden. “No wonder. I got a feeling you were out to get me for a while. You suspected that I was a woman, but I didn’t think it was likely since we hadn’t met much before.“What happened next?” Hayd
Hayden thoughtfully said, “That's how it is with seniors in the family. My parents are the same. They are most worried about my marriage.“You've given my parents hope for my marriage. They're finally starting to see a future for me.”Kevin was smug. “I make an excellent son-in-law for them.” Hayden grinned. “Of course. You’re an outstanding man.” The pair enjoyed a good laugh and chit-chat along the way, and soon, they arrived at Fortress Hotel. Like before, Kevin took Hayden to go along the green channel. Without alerting anyone, he brought her to the rooftop swimming pool. While Hayden put down her walls for Kevin, Caroline finally closed the business deal. She walked the client out of the hotel and watched them leave in a car, then heaved a sigh of relief. Caroline stood outside the hotel for a while before calling Darren to pick her up as her car was at the service center. “Wait for me inside the hotel. Don’t stand outside. The weather is still hot in October,”
Darren took large strides into the hotel and looked around, finding Caroline in no time and hurrying to her side. “Mr. Fletcher.” Caroline put away her phone and stood up once she spotted him. “Why didn’t you call me if you have problems with your car? I could’ve gotten you another one,” Darren quietly told Caroline off for omitting her car troubles. Caroline whispered, “We’ll talk in the car.” He looked around warily before rushing out of the hotel with Caroline. Minutes later, they drove out of the Jensburg Hotel. “Was your car tampered with?” The car was a private space, as Darren only used it to drive Caroline around. He would inspect the car for tampering or listening devices before driving it. The car was also bulletproof. It was a safe vehicle. “Yes.” Caroline answered, “I ran into Mr. Queen. His chauffeur, who knows a thing or two about cars, examined my car and told me that it had been tampered with, which was why it broke down in the middle of the road.
It was a challenging assignment to tackle. Caroline put Darren on the job because he was the best. Darren had also hand-picked and trained a few reliable allies for Caroline.He said apologetically, “I could’ve done better. I let you down, Ms. Fisher.” “It’s not your fault. The incident happened decades ago. Even if there was any trace left behind, my mom likely destroyed it. Anyone who knew about it is probably dead now. It will be very difficult to investigate and find evidence.“I haven't been able to find anything in Wiltspoon yet. Their influence and network are too strong there.”Caroline’s cousin, Audrey, was in Wiltspoon. “Nothing still in Wiltspoon?” Darren asked, curious as things had been awfully quiet in Wiltspoon. Caroline fell silent for a bit before answering, “Zachary and Serenity’s wedding is around the corner, and Liberty’s new restaurant just opened. I’m guessing Audrey doesn’t want to put a damper on anybody’s plans.” The DNA test results between Caroli
“Isa, Austin promised me that he would make cartoon-shaped snacks for us this Saturday. You won’t mind, right? I’ve already told my classmates, and they’re all coming to our house!”The little boy was also concerned about his image. He was afraid his serious eldest cousin would refuse, and if that happened, he would be so embarrassed. After all, after Austin promised him, the other kids at preschool treated him so well. They all wanted to try the cartoon-shaped snacks Austin made. However, since Austin was Isabella’s private chef, if Isabella did not agree, there would be nothing even Austin could do about it.Isabella lightly pinched Phillip’s cheek. “Since Austin’s promised, he’ll keep his word. I’ll be resting at home this weekend and won’t stop you, but don’t make a racket here. Go do it at your own house. I need to rest.”“Thanks, Isa! I’ll tell my friends not to disturb your rest. Isa, has Louis not woken up yet?”With Isa’s promise, Phillip’s little face lit up with a smil
Upon hearing that Phillip might be coming, Louis moved much faster.Isabella did not wait for her brother. She said, “Head downstairs by yourself later, and make sure to check your schoolbag to see if you’ve packed your books and water bottle.”She would not help her brother check those things. Every day, she made sure her brother checked everything himself because it was his responsibility. If their parents or employees tried to help, she would scold them.Now, their parents no longer dared to help Louis with things he could do himself. They let her take charge of him. Her parents had Louis when they were in their forties, and he was their only son. If they were the ones raising him, Isabella was sure her brother would have been spoiled beyond reason.“I know, Isa,” Louis replied, already starting to brush his teeth.After leaving her brother’s room, Isabella headed downstairs. As soon as she reached the first floor, she saw Phillip running in with his little schoolbag on his
Isabella patiently said, “No, you can’t. If you sleep for ten more minutes, time will be too tight, and we’ll hit the worst of rush hour when everyone’s heading to school or work. There’ll be too much traffic and you’ll be late. You mustn’t be late.” If her brother was constantly late, he would get used to it and start liking to sleep in. Isabella would not let him develop such a bad habit.“Isa, I won’t be late. Every day when I arrive at school, there are still plenty of classmates who haven’t arrived. I can just tell the driver to speed up.”“Absolutely not! It’s not safe to drive too fast. It doesn’t matter if the other students are late, but you can’t be late. Get up now, or I’m going to get angry.”Louis pouted.Amused, Isabella pinched his lips, saying, “Come on, get up. In two more days, it will be the weekend, and you’ll get another two days off.”“This holiday was too short.”Under his sister’s urging, Louis reluctantly sat up. “It feels like we just got let out for w
The O'Connor family, due to a predominance of daughters rather than sons, was extremely cautious about their sons-in-law.Even though they did not have a son-in-law yet, it was clear from the way Isabella’s uncles were not allowed to interfere in the family business that they were worried about a son-in-law taking control of the O'Connor family’s wealth.Even Isabella’s aunts were forbidden from involving themselves in the family business. This was to protect their love-obsessed selves from being easily manipulated or influenced by their in-laws.At twenty-seven, Isabella had not even considered dating, as she knew once she had a partner, her elders would put their guard up against her and her partner.It was not just the elders who would be cautious, Isabella herself would be wary of her own husband.Too many men had used their wives’ family wealth to rise to power, only to later swap their wives out for younger and more beautiful women. Some even swallowed the entire family fort
“If the woman’s side minds her moving so far away and wants us to go to her family, except for Zack, who can’t move because he’s the head of the family, the elders in our family don’t really care. As long as we’re happy, they’re fine with it.”They had the powerful York Corporation backing them, and each of them was highly capable. Even if one of them married into another family, they would not be bullied by the woman’s family. If the woman wanted to push them around, she would have to think twice, with the York family’s influence behind them.However, so far, none of his brothers had done so.Austin thought to himself that he might just set a precedent.Isabella now bore a heavy burden. Her brother was too young, and it would take at least a decade before he could take over. Isabella would have to manage the family business for many more years.Isabella’s eyes sparkled. “Your family’s so open-minded. With your family’s wealth and standing, there’s really no need for you guys to l
“Zack is much more at ease now, but honestly, the person who was the biggest help to him wasn’t any of us—it was Josh. He and Zack are really good friends, and after graduation, Zack brought him into York Corporation.“He’s Zack’s right-hand man, and he’s really impressive.“Zack is incredibly efficient too. Back then, no one in the company could keep up with his work speed. He slowed down a bit after marrying my sister-in-law and starting a family. Now, he likes to stick close to her, and he’s not as crazy about work as he used to be.“He also goes to fewer networking events now. He used to attend these events and work late into the night, but now he’s home before ten at night. No one can stop him.“Those CEOs who work with our family know this too. If they have a business to discuss with him, they try to get it done during the day. They don’t want to drag it into the night.”Isabella laughed softly, her eyes showing a hint of envy. “Before, I didn’t know you were a York. But aft
This was the main reason he insisted on his daily morning runs. Austin did not have much time alone with Isabella because she was always busy. She left for work early and came back late too. He could only see her during mealtimes, but even then, she only had a short time to eat. After finishing her meal, she would try to squeeze in a bit of rest. Austin did not want to disturb her rest, so the only time they could have some quiet moments together and chat was during their morning runs. Fortunately, back in Wiltspoon, he had already gotten into the habit of going for a morning run. “Good morning, Ms. Isabella.”As Isabella approached, Austin smiled and greeted her. Isabella, a bit tired after running for a while, stopped when she saw Austin. She walked over to him and smiled. “Good morning.” Isabella already had a good impression of Austin when she learned that he was a member of the York family, the wealthiest family in Wiltspoon. Now, knowing more about him, her attitud
Zachary had told him that the old pervert from the Longbottom family wanted to take over the O'Connors’ family business and turn it into his own private property because the pervert did not have actual inheritance rights to the Longbottom family headship, nor did he have the family head’s seal, token, or totem.“Dylan, I don’t have much advice for you. As Zachary said, we should trust Nana. As long as you follow what she says, you won’t suffer any losses.”“We’re beyond the age where Nana can make us suffer now anyway.”When they were younger, they often got the short end of the stick, largely because their grandparents would discipline them. They were told that if their abilities and plans were not sufficient, it would make them vulnerable to being taken advantage of.“Dylan, I think I’ll clock in a couple more hours of sleep before my morning run. After that, I have to prepare breakfast for Ms. Isabella.”“Okay, go to bed then. Don’t overwork yourself.”“I’m not. I’m enjoying i
Austin would not admit that he wanted to hear the gossip about Dylan’s love life.Dylan asked, “Are you free to talk right now?”“Sure. I have a whole dormitory unit to myself, and it’s quite spacious. I live quite comfortably. My salary comes on time every month, and I’m well-fed. My cooking skills have improved a lot, too.”Dylan was silent for a moment before he responded with another voice message.“You’ve only been focused on cooking? It’s been several months since you went there, and you didn’t even come back for the Christmas holidays. All you have in your brain is cooking.”“I came here specifically to cook in the first place.”Dylan was speechless.Indeed, Austin had heard that Isabella had an extremely picky palate, which he viewed as a challenge. Their nana had not even urged him once when he had eagerly gone to Satbury of his volition.Occasionally, Dylan heard his family mention Austin, saying that he was always busy researching new recipes and cooking, but seemed