Imogen looked at Dylan’s message for a beat before replying. [I’m not sure yet. Why? Do you want to treat me to a meal? Or is it that you can’t bear to see me go?]Dylan replied, [I want to treat you to a meal and talk to you again.]Imogen asked, [About? Our future? Or have you decided to choose her? If you really have a girlfriend, let me meet her. I promise I won’t ever appear in your life again after that.”She did want to fight for it, but if there was no hope, she would just give up. It was rare to find a good family like the Yorks, but Dylan had to like her and be willing to marry her in the first place for her to be a part of the family.A few minutes passed before Dylan replied again. [I do have someone I really like, but we’re not in a relationship yet, so I can’t let you disturb her. We can talk about the issues slowly when we meet. Are you free tonight?][No.][Let me know when you’re free, then. I’ll treat you to a meal.]After a moment of thought, Imogen replied, [
Especially Serenity. Carrie hated Serenity more than she did Camryn.When the Newmans ran into trouble, it was all due to Serenity’s meddling that so much changed and Camryn took power.Carrie dearly wished she had some sort of superpower she could take revenge with.Serenity was currently pregnant and coddled by the Yorks so that her baby could grow healthily, whereas Carrie’s first pregnancy was with a man she did not love. Regardless, she was not allowed to keep the baby because Mr. Longbottom did not allow it.They were both women, but had drastically different lives.The heating in the room made Carrie feel stuffy and she got out of bed to open the window. When the nurse Mrs. Douglas opened the door and saw this, she hurriedly stopped her. “Madam, don’t open the window. You’re still weak and you’ll catch a cold if you let the cold breeze in.”“It’s so sunny outside, it won’t be cold. Wiltspoon winters aren’t cold and snowy like where you’re from. At least let me turn off the
Mrs. Douglas smiled warmly. “You’re so young, so you’ll recover quickly. You won’t go out of shape. I’ve taken care of many rich women after their pregnancies and they all managed to regain their slim figures and lose their pregnancy weight quickly by working out.”She refrained from pointing out that Carrie had only miscarried and could not possibly go out of shape in just two weeks. Even if Carrie ate well every day, she did not eat a huge amount and usually only tried once of whatever additional soups and superfoods Mrs. Douglas brought before asking them to be taken away. Sometimes, she would ask Mrs. Douglas to eat them without trying them herself.Carrie stopped worrying. She said, “I’ll cut down on my food. I don’t want to become a fat whale at the end of my recovery. How long does it usually take? It’s so boring just lying in bed every day.”If she did not appear, would Serenity forget who she was? Would she have to spend even more time trying to form a connection with her t
“I couldn’t sleep and was bored, so I strolled around the block. There are quite a lot of shops nearby. It’s really convenient to buy whatever you need.” Imogen was about to help Serenity sit down, but Serenity smiled and waved her off. “It’s fine. I can sit on my own. I’m not yet at the stage where it’s difficult to move around.”They both sat down. Imogen pulled the bags over to her and said, “I bought some fruits and a few types of snacks. I’ve tried all of them and made sure they tasted fine before buying them.”“I’m not picky.” Serenity put her glass down and scooted closer to see what Imogen had bought.Imogen laughed. “I’m not picky either, but I still prefer eating good food.”“Everyone’s the same. If there’s something good to eat, of course we’ll have that, but otherwise, anything edible will do.” Serenity had lived a hard life. Even if she was filthy rich now that she was the eldest Mrs. York in her generation, she still maintained some habits.She picked up one of the
“Since we’re going to the bookstore, let’s not eat these yet. We’ll bring them to share with Jasmine. She likes the same things as I do and can eat more than I can at the moment. She’s already showing. It’s exactly the time she needs more nutrients and has to eat more than three meals a day.”Imogen asked, “Has she put on a lot of weight? The pregnant ladies at my company gained weight super fast after they got pregnant. They said that if you get morning sickness, you won’t be able to eat much, if at all, but once it’s gone, their appetites increase tremendously and they gain weight because they can’t control themselves. They said many ladies end up with big babies.”Serenity hurriedly asked her, “Do I look fat?” She had quite the appetite too.“You’re not obviously showing right now. You look a bit round, but not fat.”Serenity sighed in relief and said, “Luckily, I still work. If I stayed home all day, I’d definitely be as round as a watermelon right now.”She insisted on workin
While Serenity worked in her office, her bodyguards would stay nearby the building, constantly keeping an eye out so they could immediately follow after her when she left to protect her.On the way to the bookstore, Serenity texted Jasmine. When they arrived, Jasmine came out to greet them with a smile.The moment Serenity got out of the car, Jasmine went up to her to affectionately take her arm as she said, “I thought you weren’t coming today, you busy, busy girl.”“I don’t think I’m that busy. Elisa is, though.”Jasmine said a little apologetically, “The work should have been divided among us three, but now a lot of things have ended up on Elisa’s plate.”Imogen got out of the car, carrying the two bags of fruits and snacks as Jasmine happened to ask Serenity, “Didn’t you say you were going to introduce me to a pretty girl?”“There—she just got out of the car.”Jasmine looked at Imogen.Imogen walked up to her and introduced herself confidently. “Hello, Mrs. Bucham. My name’s
Serenity brought the fruits into the kitchen to wash them. After offering a seat to Imogen, Jasmine asked, “Do you prefer coffee or tea, Imogen?”Since Imogen had called her Jas, Jasmine decided to call her by her name as well. “Just water will do. Thank you, Jas. I drank a cup of coffee at Seren’s place. I can’t take more caffeine. If I do, I might not be able to sleep tonight.”Jasmine said, “I haven’t drunk coffee in months. I miss the days when I had a cup per day. I’m also the type who can’t fall asleep after drinking too much coffee. I usually have one cup when I arrive at the bookstore, and it’s enough to keep me awake till evening and not affect my sleep at night.”She brought Imogen a glass of water. “How many days are you intending to stay in Wiltspoon?”Jasmine bookmarked her unfinished read with a dog ear and kept it away. She would continue reading it in her free time. “I’m leaving in two days. Things are busy at the company.”“Everyone’s busy at the end of th
Jasmine’s baby bump was showing.Serenity and Imogen laughed. After a moment of confusion, Jasmine finally realized what was going on. She hit her friend lightly and said, “How dare you tease me, Seren.”“Look at 'em thicc thighs. All the better for Imogen to cling to them to ask for your help.”Serenity took a piece of fruit and fed it to Jasmine. Jasmine looked at Imogen and said, “I don’t think Imogen needs my help. Yours is more than enough.”Imogen was Dylan’s future wife and the York family would be her strongest supporters. She would not need to rely on anyone else. Serenity winked at Jasmine. Jasmine noticed it and knew there must have been some development between Imogen and Dylan. She quickly changed the topic. Any questions for Serenity would have to wait until Imogen left. At ten minutes to four, Serenity left to pick Sonny up from preschool. Imogen chose to stay at the bookstore and chatted with Jasmine. Since Jasmine loved reading, Imogen asked her to re