The people gathered to dance were the staff’s family members. The staff and their families were considerate of each other because they were neighbors and co-workers. The dancing ladies would not be selfish and draw hate just because they wanted to dance. Austin smiled. “That’s great. It’s fun and a great use of spare time.”He knew his nana was a playful old lady. In the past, she had been busy searching for suitable partners for the York brothers. Now, even he already had a target to pursue. Although River and Alex were adults, they were still young. It had not even been two years since they started working. Therefore, Grandma May was not anxious about their marriage. Rowan was off limits because he was still studying in high school. Grandma May had nothing to do, and she could not travel because it was the end of the year. Hence, she would talk to her friends or join their dance sessions. “Of course. I’m enjoying myself before your nephew is born. I won’t have time to ha
Grandma May was confident in the grandsons she had raised with her husband. Her grandsons were definitely not petty people. They were broad-minded, ambitious, and big-hearted. The more tolerant a person was, the more fortunate he would be. Therefore, her grandsons were very fortunate people. “I made some desserts and brought them to Isabella this evening. I suddenly missed you when you were mentioned in our conversation.”Grandma May chuckled. “If that’s the case, why are you calling me now? Shouldn’t you have called me right away if you missed me?“No wonder I kept sneezing this evening. I thought I caught a cold and was about to make myself some ginger tea. Turns out you were missing me.”Austin was used to his nana’s way of speaking. He simply moved on and said, “I brought my future brothers-in-law shopping afterward. Their energy just wouldn’t run out. I got tired before they did. We bought a lot of stuff. With the number of bags I carried and the two boys following me
“I won’t. You can have a daughter with Isabella as soon as possible to test me.”Austin was speechless.He had not even held Isabella’s hand yet. Having a child would have to wait. Isabella was still unaware that she was his target. “You should urge my older brothers to give you a great-granddaughter instead. Isabella’s not even my girlfriend yet. Us having a daughter isn’t within the foreseeable future.”“You want me to miss you when you aren’t giving me a great-granddaughter? You’re a little shameless, Austin. I’m hanging up now. I don’t want to spoil my mood. Why am I in a family filled with men? Hah!”After complaining, Grandma May hung up before Austin could speak. He could not help but laugh. His nana must have known that he was making good progress, so she was not worried about him. Besides, he would be turning twenty-seven next year, which was not too old. Compared to Zachary, who had only married in his thirties, he was considered young. Also, Dylan and Peter h
Sonny replied, “I’m happy. Why do you have to work somewhere far away, Uncle Austin? Why isn’t your boss letting you rest? Doesn’t everyone rest for Christmas? Even my mom is coming back.”To Sonny, Liberty was the busiest person he knew. If his mother could be back for the holidays, he would think everyone could do the same. Little did he know that not everyone could enjoy holidays. “I have to earn money for my future wife, so I came to work at a faraway place. My boss pays me well. My salary is triple if I work on public holidays. I’m not resting because I can get good money.”Sonny hummed. He probably did not understand what Austin said. “You can talk to Uncle Zak. Aunt Ser is asking me to go to bed. Good night, Uncle Austin.”After bidding Austin goodbye, Serenity took Sonny away. Austin continued chatting with Zachary. Half an hour later, he heard someone knock on the door. He stayed on the call while opening the door. It was Dominic. “Ms. Isabella is back, Austin.
“Thanks, Ms. Isabella, but I prefer standing.”Austin was not being formal but simply aware of his identity. He would not relax before his identity in the O’Connor family changed or Isabella fell in love with him. He did not want to ruin Isabella's impression of him. “Sit. If you continue standing, I’d have to raise my head to talk to you. My neck will get tired.”Since she said so, Austin immediately sat with an upright posture.Isabella looked at him for a moment and smiled. “You sit like a soldier.”Austin also resembled an elementary school student who sat straight in class out of fear of getting scolded by a teacher. He did not reply to her comment. “I love the things Louis bought for me. You must’ve been tired after shopping with them for the entire afternoon. How much did you spend in total? I’ll return the money to you.”Austin said, “Mr. Louis and Mr. Philip are shopping experts. I got tired, but they seemed fine throughout. Nevertheless, I enjoyed taking them sho
The ones Phillip bought for Isabella and Tati would also be in the correct sizes. Austin rarely met the other O’Connor sisters or had not seen them before, so he would not know their clothing sizes. Therefore, the two boys were in charge of buying their clothes. The other O’Connor young ladies could probably get an exchange in the store if their clothes were of the wrong sizes. “Mr. Louis is clever. He has a good memory too.”Isabella said, “Louis is smart but too playful.”After a pause, she added, “However, he’s still young. Kids that age love to have fun.”“Playing is a child’s nature. There’s no need for him to take up heavy family responsibilities yet. He should enjoy his playtime to the fullest and study hard when needed. Studying shouldn’t take up his entire childhood. It’s okay to have fun when he’s young.”Isabella agreed. She taught Louis the same thing. She told him to have all the fun he wanted when he could. However, he also needed to work hard when it was
Isabella smiled. “I can give a set of jewelry to you if you want it. The jewelry Louis got me is made of gold. They aren’t that expensive, just tens of thousands of dollars. They’re still not as expensive as yours.”A set of her mother’s jewelry could cost up to hundreds of millions. Delphine took the jewelry box from Isabella and opened it. She smiled. “Maybe Louis bought these for you because they're gold and shiny. He’s still young.”“I never said I didn’t like what he bought.”Isabella loved Louis’s gift. “Since this is Louis’s present to you, I shall not take it. Seeing you two having a close relationship is the best thing I can ever ask for.”Delphine did not say that out of jealousy. She was glad to see that her children were getting along well. “Louis said they used Austin’s money to buy everything. He asked us to return the money to Austin.”Isabella said, “I’ll have Dominic transfer the money to Austin tomorrow.”“Louis and Phillip must’ve spent a few months’ wo
Delphine would get a headache whenever she thought of her daughter being picky about food. She was worried that no one would apply to be their private chef in the future. What would they do if Isabella got bored of Austin’s cooking?After a moment of silence, Isabella said, “Let’s not think too far into the future. For now, I’m satisfied with Austin. I haven’t gotten bored of the dishes he makes.”“He has only been here for a month. You might get bored as time passes.“Why don’t you extend Austin’s contract, Isa?”Isabella thought about it and said, “Austin is ambitious and capable, Mom. He shouldn’t be restricted to our kitchen. He hopes more people can taste the food he makes.“It’s good enough if he works an entire year. There’s no need to extend his contract.“If one year has passed and I have no intentions of hiring someone else, I’ll have to seek his opinion about extending his contract. I won’t force him to stay if he wants to leave and continue running his businesses.”
Imogen did not know that Dylan had woken up. She was still on the phone with Maria outside.Maria felt reassured when Imogen mentioned that the person she liked was a member of the richest family in Wiltspoon. All was good as long as he was not a social climber. Imogen asked, “Maria, when are you coming back? It’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other. Kade will be back soon. Are you really not coming back?“Maria, Kade and I are like siblings. Please don’t misunderstand or overthink it. Actually, you should know this—the person Kade likes is you. You two are the real childhood sweethearts, you grew up together.”Imogen and her mother’s godchildren had known each other since they were young, but the three of them had not actually spent much time together as she had always stayed with her master while she learned the trade, only returning home during the summer and winter holidays.Once the holidays ended, she would leave again. Even her formal education was completed in th
There were so many other possible choices. Why were they so fixated on him?Leticia sighed. “Alright, just pretend I never said that. You youngsters will decide for yourselves anyway, we don’t have a say in it. Remember to fetch Kade from the airport on Saturday.“I’ve already told him and he knows you’re supposed to be picking him up. And remember to get some flowers too. You two haven’t met in ages and you should give flowers at a reunion.” She reminded Imogen.“Mom, I can pick him up, fine, but I’m not giving him flowers. Who said you’re supposed to give flowers at a reunion?” Imogen refused to give Kade flowers when fetching him from the airport. “Oh, Mom, I gotta go. Bye!”Imogen quickly hung up, not allowing her mother the chance to speak further. Then, after a moment of thought, she texted Kade to ask when he was expected to arrive at Huntington Airport.It took a while before Kade replied that he would arrive around eleven in the morning on Saturday.Imogen replied wi
“I know you only view Kade as a brother, but who knows, if you nurture the relationship, those feelings might turn romantic? Jen, before you agree to be with Dylan, give yourself another option.“Make Dylan nervous. He’ll get jealous. He was jealous when he overheard our conversation that day.“You need to make him realize that even without him, you can still marry well. The Butchers like you a lot, and our families have a close relationship. You and Kade have known each other since you were young, so you guys could be considered childhood sweethearts.”Imogen said weakly, “Mom, I’m worried that if I get too close to Kade, not only will Dylan misunderstand, but even Maria might misunderstand. Kade and she are a thing, after all.“I really don’t understand what’s going on with Kade. He and Maria clearly have feelings for each other, they just haven’t made it official yet. Don’t their families see this?”She did not have any romantic feelings for Kade, but both families were trying
Although Leticia was angry over how Dylan had treated her daughter previously, at least he was not two-timing. He made things clear to Imogen right after realizing his feelings and stopped her from loving him. He still had a decent character.Besides, Imogen had also kept secrets from Dylan and she tricked him. Dylan still did not have sufficient evidence to prove that Imogen was the Chameleon Fox he loved. Dylan would start pursuing Imogen again after some time. Leticia heard that it was Serenity who had given Dylan a hint that Sugar was Fox. After that, Dylan sought confirmation from Old Mrs. York but only received a vague answer. However, he decided to continue pursuing Imogen because he believed his nana would not bring him harm.After going in circles, Dylan still ended up returning to Imogen.Actually, Leticia already viewed him as her son-in-law.Since Imogen’s happiness was on the line, she was concerned about her future son-in-law’s condition.“Dylan’s hospitalized.”
“Please look after Dylan, Imogen. Message me when he gets better. I just need to know that he’s alive.”Grandma May knew Dylan would be okay with Imogen by his side.Imogen quickly said, “Don’t hang up yet, Grandma May. Where are you now? Wiltspoon?“If it’s convenient, please get his parents to come and take care of Dylan. I’m busy with work. I can’t stay in the hospital to look after him.”Grandma May replied, “His dad is home, but he doesn’t know how to take care of others. I think Dylan will meet his death quicker under his dad’s care.“My daughters-in-law and I are at the Johnson family’s place in Annenburg. We won’t be back that soon because we just came not long ago. We’ll head back closer to Seren’s due date. That’s why we don’t have time to look after Dylan.“If you’re busy, you can return to work once Dylan’s fever breaks, Imogen. You don’t have to care about him. He can take care of himself. It’s just like a bad cold. He’ll be fine once his fever subsides.”Grandma Ma
Imogen should have gone to stop Dylan earlier than she had. Since Layla was helping Imogen to get revenge, Imogen thought she would let Dylan put on a show to display his sincerity. She could only stop Dylan once Layla was satisfied.After handling the hospitalization procedures, Dylan lay on the bed and received an IV drip. Meanwhile, Imogen brought him water and told him to take his medicine.“Take this medicine for your fever. Your face is red from the heat.”Dylan’s temperature was close to 103 degrees Fahrenheit when they measured it at the hospital. He would cough constantly, and his face was flushed red from the fever. He looked tired and weak as well. Dylan sat up and accepted the glass of water. Imogen handed him the right dosage of medicine according to the doctor’s prescription.“Make sure you’re hydrated.”Imogen refilled his glass and told him to drink more water.“I don’t want to drink water.”Dylan lay back down.Perhaps because he was on an IV drip, his
Dalton said, “Callum spoils you a lot too. Many people are envious of you two.”Camryn smiled. “You’re right. Our lives are objects of envy to other people.“You can head back to work, Dalton.”“Okay.”Camryn saw Dalton out. She sat for a few minutes before returning to her desk to continue working.Meanwhile, in Huntington, Dylan was coughing badly. He quickly grabbed the glass of water Imogen had just offered him and took a few sips. After moistening his throat, he stopped coughing. However, he started coughing again after a few minutes. Imogen said, “Why is your cough getting worse after seeing the doctor and taking medicine?”“Ah…”Dylan pointed at his throat. He could not speak. His throat was badly inflamed from eating excessive chili peppers. His voice was so hoarse that he could not talk, and he was hacking non-stop. Imogen had already brought him to a doctor, who had prescribed some medication for him. However, his condition was so bad that the medication was no
“Did you think of your mother again?”Dalton said gently, “It wasn’t your fault, Camryn. You don’t have to overthink it or care about how she treated you. You have loving in-laws now. You’re like a daughter to them.“Your husband dotes on you a lot too. I believe there’ll be better days ahead of you. As for your mother… Let her regret what she did.”He had never seen a mother like Mrs. Newman. There were many biased mothers, but not many of them were as evil as Mrs. Newman.“She does feel regret. However, it isn’t because she had hurt me, but because she gave birth to me. She regretted not getting an abortion or strangling me to death after giving birth to me.“She said I was the bane of her existence. She had gone to a psychic when she was pregnant with me. The psychic said I was an unlucky child who would bring bad luck to my parents and that if she didn’t kill me after I was born, I would become her downfall.“My mom was just finding excuses for herself. How would I be her d
“It’s getting better. Don’t worry, Dal. Dr. Carden will be here to check on me after some time and adjust my prescription. She said I’d be able to get pregnant after two years.“Dr. Carden is the legendary doctor’s best student. I trust her skills. She was the one who helped me to regain my sight.”Camryn reassured Dalton. “You just have to take good care of Melissa and tell her not to worry about me. I believe the heavens won’t take away my right to be a mother.”If Dr. Carden said she was infertile, then it would be impossible to get pregnant. However, Dr. Carden had guaranteed that Camryn could give birth after two years of recuperation. Therefore, Camryn was at ease.“Even if I can’t get pregnant, Callum won’t divorce me. He said we could adopt if it didn’t work out.“He and his family didn’t give up on me when I was blind. I believe my in-laws won’t abandon me just because I can’t get pregnant, Dalton. Besides, I’m not actually infertile.”Camryn knew Dalton and Melissa we