Serenity said amusedly, “I think it was an accident. Chloe didn’t mean to hit her brother.” Jane smiled. “The little guy is a crybaby. Connor and Oliver can have a crying match.” Serenity knew that Lilian’s son, Oliver, was a fusser too. Lilian was afraid of his cries, and was always tempted to run and hide every time he shed tears. In fact, Lilian came all the way to Wiltspoon and stayed for a while after treating Camryn’s eyes. She said she would only return to FC Manor after Serenity and Zachary’s wedding since Oliver was in good hands with her mentor. The legendary doctor had more experience caring for babies than Lilian did, having raised her himself. Lilian also left her student, Laurence, in his care.She adopted a hands-off approach with Laurence, only testing him every once in a while. Laurence was about the age of Sonny, but his memory and comprehension were much better than Sonny’s. Otherwise, Lilian would not have chosen him as her student. Lilian had met So
Mrs. Lane served the guests beverages, fruit, and snacks. Elisa took a seat and found the courage to carry the baby one more time. She asked for Chloe from her future mother-in-law once again. The baby stared at Elisa with her bright eyes and flashed a smile. “Chloe smiled at me.” The infant’s toothless grin brought Elisa so much joy that she gave Chloe multiple smooches. Antonia was very pleased with Elisa as her future daughter-in-law. Although she loved Jane as her daughter-in-law too, Elisa’s personality shared more similarities with hers, so she found Elisa easier to get along with.She smiled and said, “Chloe rarely smiles. I think she likes her new aunt.” Jane jumped in. “Chloe is like her father. Although it’s too early to tell for sure as she is only a few months old, her personality may become apparent in a few years. She doesn’t cry much and usually keeps to herself.” Chloe would not smile at those she only met a handful of times. Elisa was Remy’s love, and
Antonia looked at Elisa lovingly and said with a smile, “I’m happy to have you and Jane as my daughters.” Elisa felt shy. Even though she had not married Remy, Remy was the only one for her. Everybody burst into laughter. Soon, Remy arrived at Liberty’s place. His beloved woman and women he respected were there, so he did not want to miss out on the fun too. Hearing that Remy had arrived, Elisa mumbled, “Why is he here when he’s supposed to be at work?” Remy must have skipped work again. Jane smiled and teased her, “Remy can't focus on his work since you're away with Serenity. His mind and heart are with you, even when he’s in the office. He might as well join you before he gets even more distracted.”“You’re making fun of me again, Jane.” Serenity said with a grin, “I’m close enough with Remy, so it’s fine if I don’t open the door for him. Elisa, you should go.” Elisa stood up. “I’m your cousin. I should attend to the guests for you.” It was clear that Elisa was eag
“Thank you.” Elisa accepted the bouquet and thanked Remy before saying, “You knew I was with Serenity, and yet you bought me flowers. I feel embarrassed to carry the flowers into the house.” “There’s nothing to feel embarrassed about. Serenity is the witness to our love story. She’ll be happy for you that we’re closer than ever. She won’t laugh at you.” Remy held her hand as they walked into the house together.“That’s true. Seren only wants me to be happy. I know that she blames herself that Zachary and I couldn’t be together, believing she stole my happiness. I can tell, even if she doesn’t say it.” Elisa added, “She got the wrong idea. I have never placed the blame on her. Zachary and I are not meant to be. Besides, Zachary has never loved me or promised me anything.“To be honest, I don’t think Zachary would even give me a second glance if I wasn’t related to Serenity.” Remy understood and said, “I get why Serenity would think that. She can only let go of the past when
“My family is only a plane ride away, and the flight isn’t long.” Everybody was happy for Remy to get married, so they would not bother about trivial matters like the engagement venue. The most important thing was their happiness. “Once my family has chosen a good date, they will send it to your parents for their approval. If there are no problems, we can finalize the date and have our engagement party in Wiltspoon. We're sticking to the location.”Remy added, “It’s our marriage, Elisa. Whether it works out is up to us. What other people say doesn’t matter. You’ve never cared about their opinions before.”“I love you and care deeply about you, so I care about what people say about you. I don’t mind what they say about me because I can take their criticism.” Remy smiled and pulled Elisa into his arms. He was careful not to squish the flowers. He uttered, “Your words mean a lot to me, and I’m ready to do anything for you. I don’t care if people say that I’m marrying into your f
At first, Corey was against her son getting together with Liberty. She did not like that Liberty was a divorcee with a child. Duncan later got into a car accident. Corey then hoped that Liberty would accept Duncan into her heart. While the pair had not officially started dating, everybody in Wiltspoon saw them as a couple. No one would dare steal Duncan’s woman. It was said that Liberty’s ex-in-laws had been trying to get Liberty and Hank back together. However, she would never give her cheating and abusive ex-husband a second chance. “I’m Harvey, Harvey Gray.”Harvey was, in fact, the man who had been drinking heavily after being dumped. He would pass out drunk anywhere in the neighborhood of East Hill Apartments. He would also leer at any young women who passed by.Since meeting Liberty, Harvey had stared at Liberty for days until she moved out of East Hill Apartments. He had never seen her again. Now that Harvey had stopped drinking, he decided to get his act together
“I came today to apologize to you in person. I’m sorry. I truly am. I will apologize to others I have scared too.” Harvey had a plan to chase after Liberty, but he could not possibly be honest right away. He used the apology as an excuse and included other people so as not to raise suspicion. Otherwise, Liberty would not accept his apology. Liberty poured Harvey a glass of water and responded, “I accept your apology, Mr. Gray. I’m happy for you to sober up and not dwell on past pain.“There are many fish in the sea.” Harvey smiled and said, “Yeah. There are plenty of fish in the sea. I can’t force what’s not meant to be mine.” Liberty did not accept the flowers from Harvey. Instead, she said, “I accept your apology, but I can’t accept the flowers. Please take the bouquet with you.” Harvey did not insist and put the bouquet on her desk instead. He looked at Liberty in hesitation and said, “Ms. Hunt, I didn’t come just to apologize today. There’s one more thing I need your
The flowers Harvey brought were left on Liberty’s desk. She grabbed the bouquet and ran out to return the flowers to him. However, Harvey left in a rush and was long gone by the time Liberty emerged from the restaurant. Helpless, Liberty held the bouquet and did not know what to do with it. Coincidently, Duncan arrived at the scene. Duncan saw Liberty standing outside the restaurant with flowers in hand. Thinking the bouquet was for him, Duncan smiled broadly as the bodyguards wheeled him over. “Liberty,” Duncan cried. “You’re here, Mr. Lewis.” Liberty carried the flowers down the steps. Duncan waited until Liberty was close before reaching his arms out to take the bouquet. He said, “Why did you get me flowers? My birthday has passed.” Liberty replied awkwardly, “These flowers aren’t for you, Mr. Lewis. Mr. Gray gave them to me as an apology. I didn’t accept it, but he left after putting the flowers down. He was gone by the time I came out of the restaurant to look
Isabella’s bodyguard had only called out to her, not daring to touch her, so she had not woken up. However, when Austin gently patted her face and called her, she woke up almost immediately. When she opened her eyes and saw Austin’s handsome face, Isabella was momentarily dazed, thinking she was dreaming about him.She had actually dreamed about Austin. Had she developed feelings for him? If she had not, why would she dream about him? In all her life, this was the first time she had dreamed about a man. Isabella wanted to touch Austin’s face, but as she raised her hand, she realized she was not dreaming.Austin was real. She could smell the fresh scent on him because they were so close.He had showered.Isabella quietly lowered her hand, hoping Austin had not noticed her earlier intention, lest he misunderstood.“Ms. Isabella,” Austin’s warm and pleasant voice reached her ears, making her want to close her eyes and go back to sleep. With him around, she felt safe and secure.
Hunter had neither money nor power. What could he possibly use to save his sons?“Dad, go home. When the trial starts, we’ll send someone to pick you up so you can attend and observe.”Hunter stood up angrily and stormed off.After he left, Ellie asked Ava, “Are we really not going to do anything? My child is still young. Having a father in prison will always be a stain on their life.”“What can we do? Even if we wanted to save them, we don’t have the means. We know what Caroline is like. She’s not going to let this go lightly this time,” Ava replied. “Anyway, think about last year, when they were caught cheating. How did they treat us then?”Remembering the events from last year, Ellie said, “Let them serve a few years in prison, then. Ava, Caroline is in the hospital. Should we go visit her?”“We should. Let’s go tomorrow. We’ll call Emma and visit Caroline together. The Fisher family is full of terrible people, but Caroline still has some conscience. She’s always been kind t
Hunter was momentarily speechless. He did not have much money. When Belinda was alive, he never had more than five hundred dollars on him. After his children grew up, he secretly asked them for money. During that time, he had money to spend freely, living a lavish life outside.However, all that money had been spent. He had no savings, mainly because he was used to spending extravagantly.He had been unable to save money. He did not own any shops or properties either; Belinda had kept him on a tight leash.The house in their hometown had been built with Belinda’s money, but it was not under his name. It was under his three sons’ names.After Belinda’s death, his sons supported him. Each son gave him over a hundred thousand dollars a month for living expenses.Combined, that was several hundred thousand dollars a month, allowing him to live comfortably in Ashford. He had managed to save a little, but not much, just over a million dollars in total. Hiring the best lawyers for h
Despite this, lying in bed and enduring the pain, Caroline could not help but start to cry, feeling deeply wronged.When Darren came in and saw her crying, he walked over, sat on the edge of the bed, and gently wiped her tears with a tissue.“They’re not worth your tears,” he said, his heart aching for her.Caroline sat up and buried herself in his arms. “Darren, you’re all I have now.”Darren held her tightly, his voice filled with tenderness. “I’ll always be by your side, no matter what happens, Ms. Caroline. Even if the sky falls, I’ll hold it up for you.“If you’re really hurting and need to cry, then cry. Let it all out.”It would also help her sever ties with the past and the family bonds that had caused her so much pain.Caroline did cry—a long, cathartic cry. It would be the last time. From now on, she and the Clarks would go their separate ways.Meanwhile, Hunter went to Justin’s house and called Jason’s wife, Ellie, over. He said to his two daughters-in-law, “By no
After a moment of silence, Hunter repeated the same line. “But you didn’t die, did you? You only got a little hurt, and it’s not even serious.”Caroline almost laughed in anger at this.Sure, she had not died. She had only been injured. Did that erase the fact that her brothers had tried to kill her, though?She retorted, “Dad, if I had tried to kill your three sons, but they didn’t die and only got a little hurt, would you say the same thing to them? Would you tell them it’s just a family dispute, ask them to forgive me, not to sue me, and not to send me to jail?”Hunter instinctively replied, "If you had the intent to kill, how could I let you continue down that path? Of course, I’d have to let you serve a few years in prison…“Carol, I’m old, really old. I only have the boys to rely on in my old age. Are you trying to leave me with no one to depend on in my later years?”Caroline said coldly, “I’ll provide for your living expenses. I’ll make sure you don’t starve. You can even
Darren did not let go even after being struck.Seeing Darren get hit, Caroline’s expression darkened. She coldly said to her father, “Dad, if you really want to kneel, go kneel at the hospital entrance and shout at the top of your lungs that your daughter is unfilial.“Tell everyone that your sons tried to kill your daughter, and your daughter refuses to forgive them, so you’re kneeling there to force her to forgive your sons.“Let’s see if I give in.”Hunter stopped struggling. After slapping Darren, he felt a pang of fear. He was afraid Caroline might retaliate by slapping him to avenge Darren. Fortunately, while Caroline was furious, she did not lay a hand on him.He began to cry. “Carol…” He wept bitterly.Darren released him, and Hunter sat on the sofa, sobbing, “Carol, I’m old. I have no income, my parents are long gone, and your mother is no longer here. I only have your three brothers to rely on.“If you send all three of them to prison, what will happen to me? Who w
Caroline hummed. “I do plan to visit Wiltspoon to see her sometime soon. I just don’t know if I’ll be kicked out when I get there.”“And I should visit Mr. Foster too. How is he, by the way?" Patrick was the longest-living person she had ever met. Back when she lived with her adoptive family in the countryside, the oldest people in town usually lived into their eighties, and few made it to ninety. Patrick was nearly a hundred years old. What was more, he could walk without support and even travel long distances with his old friends.Liberty replied, “He’s doing quite well. Aunt Audrey accompanies him on walks every day. When they don’t go out, he sits by the cradle and watches baby Elias for hours on end.”The bond between generations was strong. When Patrick looked at Clive’s son, Elias, he felt like he was looking at his great-grandson. As Tiara’s great-grandson, Elias was naturally like his own great-grandson, too.“Dr. Carden comes by periodically to check on him and adjus
Liberty had already called Audrey to inform her about what had happened and also mentioned it to Serenity.Knowing the Clark brothers had all been captured, Serenity felt thoroughly relieved and stopped worrying that her sister would run into trouble in Jensburg.She told Zachary that Caroline never let people down.Zachary did not comment.Caroline’s fever had completely subsided, but her coughing had worsened. The doctor had changed her prescription, but the effects were not immediate.When Liberty entered, Caroline was out of bed and walking around, supported by Darren.“Caroline, why are you out of bed?”Liberty scolded her, “Get back in bed and lie down. You’re injured. If you don’t rest properly and keep moving around, you’ll aggravate your wounds, and you’ll regret it.”She did not blame Darren, though. She knew Caroline always came first to him. He always followed her lead and was unable to influence her decisions.“I’ve been lying down all day. My back is sore, and I’m
The housekeeper replied, “Yes, sir.”They did not have much work in the first place, so they did not need to slack off. Once they were done with their work, they had tons of time to entertain themselves.Hunter rushed out the door with his car keys. Despite being over seventy years old, his driving skills were still quite good. Not needing to hire a driver, he drove himself straight to Jensburg.Upon arriving at the city, Hunter did not immediately go looking for Caroline. He was unaware that she had been injured.Instead, he went to meet his old friends to ask them to help him find out if anything had happened in relation to the Fisher family last night.After he finished speaking, one of his friends said, “We were about to ask you the same thing. Your three sons attacked your daughter with knives and even kidnapped her, intending to chop her up and feed her to the fish.“Luckily, that Mr. Fletcher, who works for your daughter, arrived with the police and rescued her, but she wa