Ben nodded. The twins’ naps could last up to two to three hours as long as their stomachs were filled. Once the wives were out of earshot, Zachary told Ben, “You guys are probably being watched. To be specific, someone is after Laurence.”Ben’s gaze turned serious. Josh was confused. Zachary explained, “Josh said a suspicious man came to Wiltspoon with bodyguards and only stayed briefly. You and your family just happened to visit Wiltspoon with Laurence today. I think these incidents may be related somehow.”Ben was FC & Co.’s owner and a well-known figure in Annenburg. Anyone who dared set their eyes on Ben could not be underestimated. More importantly, they knew there was a totem on Laurence’s back and the vengeance he sought. Laurence’s family was murdered. He only escaped because his nanny fled with him to Meadspring. Those who had wiped Laurence’s family out had been hunting him down since. However, Jane found Laurence and adopted him as her son. He was safe becaus
“Laurence will be leaving in two days. He’ll only be back again next year. Let’s just let him enjoy himself while he’s here.”Zachary and Josh nodded. They promised to keep the secret. Laurence was still young. He knew nothing about the responsibility of avenging his family. He did not understand why his teachers were particularly strict with him too. No one expected him to kill, but they had to make sure that he did not get killed. Laurence needed the ability to protect himself. As for his revenge, the law would take care of that. Once Laurence grew up and gathered enough evidence, all of his enemies would be brought to justice. After the Lafayettes’ case, they learned how to use the law to seek justice. They get their revenge while keeping their hands clean, otherwise it could affect the rest of their lives. The Lafayettes had been doing well since. Those who had hurt them had received their punishment. Perhaps death would have been a better choice for them, as l
Liberty planned to walk around for market research. However, she was not surprised at Belinda’s men blocking her way.She knew Belinda would send someone to her, but she did not expect it to happen that fast. “What do you need?”Belinda’s bodyguard said respectfully, “Madam Fisher is hosting a banquet at her manor tonight, and she extends her invitation to you, Ms. Hunt. She hopes you don’t decline since you’re relatives anyway.“Madam Fisher has also prepared a room for you to stay in. She feels bad for letting you stay in a hotel.”Even if the said hotel belonged to York Corporation. Liberty said, “Please tell Madam Fisher that I’ll be there for dinner tonight, but I’ll kindly refuse the offer to stay in her house. I’m fine with living in a hotel. I don’t want to impose.”Fisher Manor was Belinda’s territory and she had absolute power at that place. It would be easy for her to commit a crime against Liberty. If Liberty moved into Fisher Manor, she could lose her life.
Kevin said, “I’m meeting Hayden at her office later. I’ll ask her if she has time tonight. We won’t have to worry about Madam Fisher attacking you if we’re there with you. We’re letting her know that even if you came here alone, you have people backing you.“She’ll have to think twice before murdering you in Jensburg. She has to be wary of Hayden’s influence in Jensburg, if not ours.”“Is it a good idea to get Hayden involved? The Queens and Fishers have been coexisting peacefully. We can’t drag her into this because of our grudge against the Fishers.”Getting Kevin involved was inevitable as Serenity was Kevin’s sister-in-law. Even if Kevin did nothing, Belinda would still consider him as Liberty’s ally. Kevin said, “Don’t say that. Hayden’s my future wife. She’ll be the York family’s young missus and Serenity’s sister-in-law. People will know that she’s on our side without her doing anything.”Liberty laughed at him. “You’re declaring her as your wife even though you haven’t wo
Kevin waited outside a conference room at Queen Enterprise with a money bouquet.Hayden was still in a meeting. The woman was truly busier than he was. She managed a huge company and had endless meetings, paperwork, and business negotiations.Although it was time to get off work and the sky had turned dark, Hayden’s meeting went on. The evening wind was strong. Kevin specially picked a larger coat to wear when he was heading out, so Hayden could stick close to him and share his warmth. She probably did not need it though. After about ten minutes, the conference room door opened. The senior executives who attended the meeting filed out of the room. When they saw Kevin with the huge bouquet, they stopped their discussions and greeted him politely. “Mr. Kevin.”“Mr. York.”They addressed him differently, but he returned each greeting with a smile. Since Zachary was not around, those who said “Mr. York” were addressing Kevin. When the crowd was far enough, they whis
Hugh smiled but returned after taking a few steps. He approached Kevin and asked cautiously, “You won’t tattle to my parents about me, right?”“I won’t as long as you promise to do the same.”They had some control over one another. Kevin was afraid of Hayden getting mad, while Hugh feared his parents urging him to marry. Even if Donald and Sophia did not urge Hugh to marry, they would give him a good scolding. Kevin had become their new favorite person. He was more adored than Hugh, the couple’s real son. Hugh often complained to Hayden that he probably was not their parents’ biological son. Donald and Sophia liked Kevin too much. He and Kevin might have been switched at birth. Hayden’s reply was an ashtray flying toward him. Hugh felt he was at the bottom of the food chain within the family. Sigh. It was because he was never in a serious relationship. If he were to bring a girl home, his place in his parents’ hearts would rise. However, upon thinking about how much
“Hugh is too laid-back. You should give him more work to do.”“I’m aware of his capabilities. I already assigned him everything he could handle and withheld those that were beyond him. He shouldn’t bite off more than he could chew.”Hugh was great, but he was slightly lacking compared to his sister. Besides, Hayden had been managing Queen Enterprise for several years. She had accumulated more experience than Hugh. Suddenly, Hayden smiled. She said, “Hugh will be angry if he finds out that you’re asking me to increase his workload.”“I’m not scared of him. I’m sad to see you working so hard every day. On the other hand, Hugh has so much time to accompany different women and go shopping or to parties every day. He’s living his life.”Hayden said, “I’m used to this kind of life. I can’t get used to being idle even for a day. Maybe I’m born to work.”“Where’s Liberty?” Hayden asked. “She’s waiting at Fortress Hotel. Should we meet her there or head to Fisher Manor separately?”
At Fisher Manor, Belinda was hosting a banquet and had invited Liberty over. The manor’s employees had been busy since afternoon. Many family members had come over to help out as well. As it was supposed to be a family banquet, only the Fishers would be attending it. Everyone who had some sort of status in the family was allowed to attend whereas those with lower ranks or were distant relatives were not allowed to attend.Many of the Fishers were unsatisfied. Since it was a family banquet, everyone in the family should have been invited. Even if they were distant relatives, they still bore the Fisher surname and were part of the family. Why could they not attend a family banquet?Their dissatisfaction with Belinda grew. Nevertheless, they dared not voice out their unhappiness for fear of Belinda’s revenge upon her discovery. She treated the lower-ranked family members worse than she would a stranger. Therefore, many of them missed Tiara, who used to view everyone as equal
Although Callum had started viewing Dalton as a brother after Dalton got married, he still kept his guard up around Dalton. He only let his guard down a little after Melissa got pregnant.It was also because Dalton treated his wife with utmost sincerity and love. Dalton had nothing to worry about and could focus on his life after knowing Camryn was doing well and had the York family supporting her. Not only that, her husband and in-laws adored her. Camryn would come over to handle more important company matters, while Dalton could deal with smaller ones. He rarely attended business engagements at night and chose to accompany his pregnant wife most of the time. Melissa was kinder to Camryn as well. Although they were not sisters-in-law, they shared a close relationship. “Melissa’s baby probably has a sweet tooth. Tell her to be careful and not eat too many sweet things at once.”Camryn wanted to say that Melissa was probably pregnant with a girl. However, she did not say it ou
After her call with Leah ended, Camryn put down her phone and leaned against her office chair. She rotated her chair back and forth. She was at Newman Enterprise.At that moment, someone knocked on the door. Dalton entered soon after.“Dal.”Camryn stood up when she saw him. “Are you daydreaming?”Dalton asked softly, “Are you tired? Go and rest if you are. You should return to Wiltspoon soon. I can handle things here.”“Melissa is pregnant. You should spend more time with her.“I’m not really tired. I was on the phone with an employee of my flower shop earlier and thought of some things that made me feel unhappy.”Dalton and Camryn sat on the sofa in the guest lounge. “Why are you upset? Is the flower shop not doing well?”Camryn had put in a lot of effort in Spring Blossoms. It had accompanied her through her tough times. No matter how her identity had changed, it would always have an important place in her heart.Despite becoming rich, she still kept the store up and
To Louise and Leah, Mrs. Longbottom looked too young.Carrie caressed her stomach. She sighed and said, “I was pregnant before, but it was a high-risk pregnancy and ended up in a miscarriage.“My husband told me to recuperate first before we try for another baby a few years later. We’re still young anyway,” Louise consoled Carrie. She picked two jade plants and two money trees for her. After paying, Carrie got her two bodyguards to carry the plants. Before leaving, she handed Louise and Leah her calling card and said, “Please call me if your boss or Mrs. York comes over. I want to make an appointment with them, but it’s too difficult to do so.”Leah accepted the card. After taking a look at it, one of them replied, “Mrs. York is heavily pregnant, so she rarely drops by. She’s usually resting at home. I can inform you if our boss comes.“You should probably have Ms. Camryn’s number if you wish to make an appointment with her. You can try calling her.”Carrie replied, “I’m not
Since Carrie was approaching Spring Blossoms, she decided to drop by. It was a pity she could not wreck the store as she was heading there as Mrs. Longbottom.When she arrived, Camryn was not in the store. Only Louise and Leah were there. Carrie asked casually, “Where did your boss go?”“Our boss is very busy. Usually, we’re the ones looking after the store. She only comes by when she’s free. Are you looking for her, Mrs. Longbottom?”Louise and Leah recognized Mrs. Longbottom. “No. Your boss is always around whenever I’m here to buy flowers, so I’m just curious since she isn’t here today. Get me two jade plants. The ones I have aren’t growing well. I want to change them,” said Carrie. She really had jade plants at her villa and she was the one who bought them. In fact, they were growing well. It symbolized her having great luck with wealth.Indeed, she was doing well financially. Mr. Longbottom had never mistreated her in terms of living standards.Carrie wanted to get
Tati kept trying to match her with Austin.As soon as Austin left, Tati came in. Isabella could tell, just by the timing, that it had to be related to Austin.If she had not known how loyal Austin was to her, Isabella might have suspected her cousin was being bribed by him.Tati smiled. “I happened to see Austin leaving when I came in. He was very polite to me and his smile was gentle, and the way he looked at me was respectful. But it’s completely different from how he looks at you, Isa.“I noticed it long ago. When he looks at you, there’s light in his eyes, there’s affection, and tenderness. He’s utterly devoted to you, or rather, he dotes on you.”Isabella was quiet.“Isa, the first time I saw Austin, I knew he was no ordinary person, and I thought you two made a great match. You know me, I don’t joke around about these things, but when I saw him, I just couldn’t help it.“I really think you two are perfect for each other. Before, we didn’t know his real identity, so you mig
Tati hummed in agreement.After her cousin reviewed the documents, Tati said, “Isa, why don’t you try dating? Neither of us has a boyfriend, so outsiders are always thinking they can take control of us through marriage alliances.“You could just date. There’s no need to get married. Or you could even just pretend to date. Make them give up.”Isabella looked up at her cousin, amused. “What? That’s a crazy idea.“I haven’t been in a relationship until now because they all know I’m hard to deal with. They think I don’t even have feelings. If I start dating, they’ll realize I’m just like any other girl who dates and wants to get married. Then, they’ll get even more ideas.”Unless her boyfriend was someone so powerful that no one would dare to touch him. He would have to come from a family strong enough to protect the O'Connor family, and he would need to love only her and not be after her family’s money.Power, status, wealth, and good character were all essential.There were men
Austin quickly left the CEO’s office. Just as he stepped out, he ran into Tati, who was looking for Isabella.“Ms. Tati,” Austin greeted politely.Tati nodded and waited for Austin to leave before she knocked on the office door and entered.“Austin came early today to cook for you,” Tati said, holding a folder in her hand and opening it as she walked toward Isabelle.She sat down at the desk, handed over the folder, and said, “Isa, this is urgent. Please take a look.”Isabella took the document, glancing through it as she replied, “He comes around this time every day, neither early nor late.”“That Longbottom fellow came by again?” Tati asked.It was only after Mr. Longbottom had directly asked to see Isabella that Tati found out the old lecher had come again.“Yes, but I didn’t meet him. He brought some gifts, claiming they were holiday presents for us. I had them sent back. He’s too ambitious, and he has bad intentions. We’re absolutely on guard against him. Why would we give
Isabella turned her head to look at Austin.Austin stopped the massage and asked in a gentle voice, “Are you feeling any discomfort? I can work on it. I don't give people massages often, so I don’t have much experience. I'll keep giving you more massages as practice so I'll be able to serve you better.”“It's not that,” Isabella smiled. “It's actually very comfortable. It’s just that I really want to meet your grandmother every time you mention her.”In Isabella's mind, Austin's grandmother had already become something of a legendary figure.Austin thought to himself, ‘Nana’s already met you. You probably met her before, you just didn't know it was her.’His nana had surely spent a lot of time observing Isabella, getting to know her, and confirming that her character and abilities were suitable for him before choosing Isabella for him.“When you’re less busy, if you’re willing, you can come visit us in Wiltspoon. Lots of flowers bloom in spring, and there’s beautiful scenery ever
When Isabella first took over the family business, many of her grandparents' and parents' friends and relatives openly tried to sabotage her. They played dirty tricks, schemed, and tried various ways to undermine her.They wanted to take advantage of her, and they also did not want her to take control of the family’s legacy. They tried to prevent her from establishing herself in the company, even going as far as to collaborate with outsiders to trap her.She had suffered countless setbacks, faced numerous conspiracies, and even experienced several so-called accidents, nearly losing her life. It was only after all this that she truly understood the treachery of human nature. From that point on, she learned to arm herself with cold indifference.Though she was taking over her own family’s business, it felt like she had to fight through a bloody battle to secure her place, as if she were a king striving to ascend the throne. It was exhausting and disheartening.However, she endured an