“That’s right. Don’t listen to her, Sonny. Don’t take your Granddad or your Grandmom’s words to heart either. If your Dad says bad things about your Mom and Dunc, don’t listen to him either. They’re all just jealous.”“I know, Aunt Ser. They think I don’t know anything because I’m young, but I do.” Sonny was well aware of who was truly good to him and who was not.It was just that he was too young to express all of this clearly.Serenity patted Sonny’s head.She had to tell Liberty to limit Sonny’s contact with the Browns.That family would never change.She once saved Chelsea’s youngest son and thought that Chelsea would change because of it.Before Liberty started dating Duncan, Chelsea did treat the Hunt sisters much better and even turned around to pick on Jessica instead.Now, however, Chelsea had returned to her old habits.Zachary put Sonny down when they got into the elevator.Sonny held Serenity’s hand in one hand and Zachary’s in the other.Though his parents wer
If Grandma May knew what Zachary was thinking, she would say, “I’m only going to dote on my great-grandson!”Once the elevator reached the first floor, Zachary picked Sonny up again.“Let him walk on his own,” Serenity said. “You spoil him too much.”Sonny hugged Zachary around the neck as he said childishly, “Uncle Zak loves me the most. You’re just jealous, Aunt Ser.”Serenity could not help but laugh as she pinched his cheek lightly. “Yes, yes. Your Uncle Zak loves you the most. Who doesn’t?”From the York family elders to the Stones, even the Lewises, all of them doted on Sonny a lot.She and Liberty were stricter with Sonny so he would not be spoiled rotten.Zachary was cold by nature, but he doted on kids very much when he loved them.She wondered what Zachary would be like when their baby was born.Sonny said that it was a boy.Her in-laws hoped it was a baby girl, but they would love the baby all the same. After all, the baby would be the eldest in his or her generati
After dinner, Zachary sent Serenity and Sonny home with his bodyguard while he continued working.Once they got home, Sonny practiced the piano and then his drawing, while Serenity sat on the sofa flipping through a magazine about jewelry.She and her partners were planning to start a jewelry business.Jane had started one too, and it was already turning a profit. Her mother was helping her design most of it.Serenity did not know how to design jewelry, but Elisa did.Elisa mentioned that she wanted to design her own jewelry and open her own store.It was just that she was too busy chasing after Zachary and gave no thought to earning money. Her entire family doted on her so much that she was never short of money.Her monthly allowance alone was an amount regular people would never earn in their lifetimes.Later, when Serenity started her fresh produce company, Elisa temporarily set her jewelry business idea aside.Now that they had made some profit and were looking for somethi
Nevertheless, the blood relation between Caroline and Belinda could not be erased. If Belinda had indeed murdered Tiara, Caroline would be an enemy to Serenity and the rest. After a short silence, Liberty asked, “Where’s Sonny?”“He’s drawing now. He was practicing on the piano for a while just now when we got home.”“No homework?”Serenity smiled. “No. Even if he does, he can finish it within a minute. He simply needs to draw with a pencil. At his age, having fun at school is the main priority.”Learning how to write was a task they assigned to Sonny. Although most children were having fun in school, those enrolled in Wiltspoon’s most expensive and best preschool were from wealthy or influential families. They would succeed their families in the future, so tutors were hired by their families to educate them separately. Quite a number of Sonny’s classmates could recognize many words. Despite their young age, they were brimming with talent. Not wanting Sonny to lag behin
“I believe Duncan won’t fancy Mrs. Torres. He only has eyes for you.”Liberty smiled. “That’s why you don’t have to be worried about me. If there’s a love rival, then it’ll be a trial for Duncan and me.“You don’t have to keep an eye on Mrs. Torres for me, Seren. Let nature take its course. If she can secure Duncan’s heart, then I have nothing to say. If she fails, she might look for me instead.”Liberty had experience in facing love rivals. Before Liberty and Hank divorced, he cheated on her with Jessica. Even so, Liberty did not lose. She was the one who suggested they get a divorce. She could not accept any dishonesty. Hank did not treat Liberty well. He was generous with Jessica but not her. As such, Liberty granted their wish. Divorcing was not that bad after all. Liberty was living a better life now than before. She received help from Serenity, but she believed she could have pulled through those tough times after divorcing even without Serenity’s help. After exp
Sonny nodded. “Your dog isn’t as big as before, but Chunky is still fat.”Although Mrs. Lane had the pets’ meals under control, Chunky would still sneak some food. “Let’s go for a walk and have a look at the dog.”Serenity put the drawing down and brought Sonny out for a walk. Zachary’s private villa was so huge that even a stroll in the garden could take a long time. Since Sonny visited often and Serenity was pregnant, Zachary had modified a part of the garden into a playground. It was smaller than the one in Wildridge Manor, but sufficient for one or two kids to play. The dog, Snowy, came running at Serenity and Sonny the moment they exited the house. Sonny released Serenity’s hand and ran toward Snowy. The child and the dog soon started playing together. Sonny even rode Snowy like a horse. Snowy allowed him to sit on it but stood still, afraid Sonny might fall. Therefore, it remained static while Sonny was on it. Serenity watched them with a smile. She could not he
After parking the car, Rhea changed out of her flats into high heels. She took her bag and got out of the car. “Mom.”Dean hugged her. “I missed you, Mom.”They would only meet each other every morning and night. During the day, Rhea would not be home for lunch as she was busy with work. Her in-laws or housekeepers would take care of Dean. Although Dean was a sensible child, he was unhappy. He felt like he had lost his mother alongside his father because she had not been spending much time with him.Even during weekends when he did not have to go to school, she would still work. It was either eating or golfing with her clients or attending various banquets. Rhea’s heart ached. She hugged her son back. Her nine-year-old son had the body of a seven-year-old. She always thought Dean’s slim figure was a result of her disregard for him because she was preoccupied with her business. Unlike Liberty, Rhea did not have a kind sister who would look after Dean for her. Liberty coul
“I’ll send you abroad after you graduate from middle school. It’s too competitive here.”Rhea could not bear being apart from Dean before he became a high schooler. Even if she did not have time to spend with him at the moment, they could still see each other every morning and night. Besides, her in-laws wanted their grandson around as well. If it were not for Dean, they would not have lived through the news of their son’s death. Dean was their mental support. “Grandpa checked my homework after I was done. I got one wrong. That question was worth two marks in tests. I got everything else correct. I’m improving, Mom. I’ll study hard and not let you down.”Dean knew that his grandparents and mother had high expectations for him. Although Dean was not too bright, he was willing to learn and work harder than others. Therefore, his grades gradually improved. “That’s a great improvement. You deserve a compliment. Have your grandparents slept?” Rhea asked. “Not yet. They were
“He will get better soon now that he’s taken the medicine. Don’t worry too much. When you're taking care of him, make sure you wear a mask so you don’t catch it from him. You’re pregnant, and if you catch a cold, it’ll be more troublesome.” Liberty was relieved, but she then reminded Serenity to take extra care of herself, worried that her son’s cold might spread to her.Pregnant women had limited options for medication, and many pregnant women endured mild colds without taking medicine out of caution.“I'm fine, really,” Serenity reassured her.“When Sonny is sick, he's especially vulnerable and relies on me. If I don't take care of him, I won’t feel at ease, and neither will he.”Zachary was busier than she was, so Serenity did not want to trouble him with such minor matters.“Don’t you worry, Liberty. Once Sonny is better, I'll send you a message. Even if Sonny begs me, I won’t let him eat anything too greasy from now on, to avoid aggravating his condition.”“Children are bo
Sonny weakly protested, “The medicine will be really bitter.”“Yes, but good medicine tastes bitter because it helps cure the illness,” Serenity comforted him.Under her coaxing, Sonny took the medicine, drank a glass of water, and went to the bathroom. He came back and fell into a deep sleep in his aunt's arms.Serenity wanted to carry him upstairs.“Let me carry him—you’re pregnant,” Lilian said considerately.Sam immediately interjected, “Dr. Carden, Missus, allow me to carry Mr. Sonny upstairs.”Dr. Carden was a distinguished guest of the family. How could he allow her to carry Sonny upstairs? Sam stepped forward and carefully took Sonny from Serenity's arms before carrying him back to his room.Serenity followed them upstairs.Lilian did not follow.To her, Sonny's common cold was not serious. She only personally took care of him because she quite liked Sonny.Serenity sat down on the edge of the bed and told Sam, “I can’t do it myself right now, so please make sure to t
After New Year’s celebration, Liberty left for Jensburg and told the teachers that if anything happened to Sonny, they should contact Serenity, which explained the teacher's call coming through to Serenity.“I’ll go pick him up right away. Thank you, Ms. Penny.”Sonny’s teacher Ms. Penny replied, "Alright, please come and take him to see a doctor. Recently, a lot of kids have been catching colds."After hanging up, Serenity said, “Jas, I can't stay here and chat with you. I need to go fetch Sonny from preschool. He's got a fever. Lately, he keeps kicking his blanket off at night.” Though she and Zachary often helped cover Sonny back up, they could not always catch it every time he kicked off the blanket, so he had probably caught a cold.“The temperature has been rising these days, so it's a bit hot sometimes. Look, I don’t even need to wear a coat now.” The temperature was around 68°F during the day. When the sun was out, it was really warm, and there was no need for a coat.
Serenity agreed empathetically, “You can offend anyone, but don't ever offend Nana. Luckily, she's my nana.”Out of all her in-laws, Grandma May was Serenity’s favorite because the old lady treated her the best. Whenever she had conflicts with Zachary, Grandma May would always stand by her side first. Only when she was ready to listen would Grandma May try to reason with her and speak up for Zachary. Even though Grandma May was Zachary’s grandmother, she treated Serenity like her own granddaughter; more so than Serenity's biological grandmother.“Are you going to help Dylan?” Jasmine asked.“How? He’s wooing his future wife. No one can help with that,” Serenity replied. “Zachary never meddles in his brothers' private matters. As long as they don’t ask him for help, he doesn’t care about anything.”In Zachary's words, he only wanted to take care of her. In his world, she was his priority.“True. Let’s just watch for now, unless Dylan comes to you asking you to speak well of him
“Now he's suddenly trying to pursue Imogen again? Did something happen to him? Or was it that his beloved turned him down, and then when he saw everyone else all coupled up, plus Grandma May’s pressuring him to get married, he decided to try to win Imogen back?“Who does he think Imogen is? Does he think he can just have her when he wants to, and throw her aside when he doesn't?”Even though Dylan was Serenity's cousin-in-law, Jasmine could not bring herself to take his side. Back then, when Imogen followed him from Huntington to Wiltspoon and even asked Serenity for help, all she ended up getting was an apology from Dylan that he could never love her. He even mentioned that he was in love with someone else, a woman he called Fox. How could a vixen be any good? Was she better than Imogen?Jasmine thought Dylan was out of his mind, but that was someone else's business. She was just a bystander. Even Serenity did not interfere much since she was only a cousin-in-law. After all,
Without a second thought, Leticia replied to her daughter.[Of course you should. As long as you can win that boy over, you'll be happy in the future. I’ve met so many young men, but I still think he’s the most suitable for you.]Despite her earlier anger, Leticia still hoped her daughter could win Dylan’s heart. She had always regarded him as a potential son-in-law, after all.Imogen smiled and left it at that. She had already made up her mind.In truth, when Dylan rejected her, she was not all that upset because the person he loved was still her. It was just that she had kept Dylan in the dark. One could say that he had been made to dance in her palm.However, when he realized that he could not love Imogen, he was honest with her and decisively left without bothering her further, not wanting her to fall even deeper when the situation was hopeless. In this aspect, she appreciated him.Now that she knew she was the one Dylan’s grandmother had chosen for him, Imogen was curious ab
When Dylan overheard Imogen’s phone conversation with Leticia, he realized that Leticia was trying to match her with someone named Kade. Now, he had a rival.Even though he was being asked to leave, Dylan did not get angry, nor did he shamelessly insist on staying. He stood up and said, “I’m sorry for disturbing you, Ms. Doyle. I know you’re Imogen Doyle. I also know what I’m doing, and I won’t make the same mistake again.“Ms. Doyle, you were on the nose earlier. Yes, I do want to pursue you again. Starting today, I will try to win your heart once more. No matter what your attitude is toward me, I’ll accept it.”The first time, she had offered her heart, but he did not accept it. That was his fault.This time, it was his turn to offer his heart. If it took more time to win her over, he was willing to be patient.“My nana isn’t forcing me.” He continued, “When it came to our generation, she only pushed Zachary to marry Serenity.”Zachary had been a special case. For the rest of
Imogen felt a surge of satisfaction when she saw Dylan was rendered speechless by what she said. She deliberately leaned closer to him, her beautiful face coming right up to his, and their gazes met.They were so close that Dylan could smell a faint, delicate fragrance on her. It was a little familiar, but it was not the same as Chameleon Fox’s scent, because she never used fragrance when she appeared—probably to avoid being recognized by scent.It was the scent he smelled on Imogen back when he was initially pursuing her—it was Sugar’s. Imogen smelled the same as Sugar, a scent he remembered when he was in close proximity to Sugar.Imogen was Sugar.Dylan was now sure of this, but he did not bring it up. Even if he asked, Imogen would not admit it anyway.Besides, he no longer needed her to confirm it. As Zachary had said, he only needed to trust his nana; she would not mislead him when it came to marriage. His nana knew very well that he loved Chameleon Fox, and yet still aske
Unexpectedly, Kade had to return to the country due to a work transfer and would be staying in Huntington long-term.Leticia’s best friend Jade immediately called her again to bring up the idea of a marriage match. Leticia then thought about it and decided to arrange for her daughter to fetch him from the airport.“Mrs. Doyle, the person Imogen likes is me, so please stop trying to match her with someone else.” Dylan boldly interjected.Imogen glanced at him but did not say anything.On the other side of the line, Leticia asked Imogen when she heard Dylan’s voice, “Jen, has that York scoundrel gone to look for you again? He came by once a few days ago, but you weren’t home. We didn’t even let him past the gate.“He didn’t show up again after that, so we thought he left, but he actually went to your office to look for you. Jen, what does he mean by this? Is he trying to pursue you once more? If that’s really the case, all the more you have to give Kade a chance—to make Dylan York