Zachary knew Serenity was not the type to scream when a man stripped in front of her. Serenity would watch with great gusto, even going as far as getting handsy. Straightening his back, Zachary stopped trapping her between his arms in a suggestive way. It would not work on her. “Can you sleep by stuffing cotton in your ears?” Serenity shook her head. “It doesn’t feel comfortable.” She had nothing to cover her if she slept on the sofa. Zachary could not possibly tell her to sleep on the floor of the guest bedroom. The temperature really dropped tonight too. After a brief silence, Zachary picked up his glass and headed to his room. “You can sleep in my room.” His husky voice echoed along the breeze. Serenity was dumbstruck. Somehow her lashing out at him did the trick. Zachary only stopped and looked back once he was at the front of his door. Seeing that Serenity stood still, Zachary’s face fell as he callously uttered, “You can sleep on the sofa if you mind that m
Sighing inwardly, Zachary lay down next to Serenity. Even if he were to take her, it should not be in such circumstances. Serenity had to be at least willing and conscious. Otherwise, everything would be a blur to her, and she would not know who she got in bed with. Serenity slept like a log despite the change of environment, but Zachary was a different story. He had never shared a bed with anyone before, let alone a gorgeous and hot young woman. This woman happened to be his legal wife too. He was a fish out of water. Amid deep slumber, Serenity even curled up against him like he was a heater. Feeling frustrated, Zachary reached out to unbutton her pajamas, but he gave up after the first button. He looked at the sleeping beauty before leaning over for a kiss on her lips. In the end, he defeatedly let her snuggle up against him while meditating in his mind, ‘I am in control of my body. I can do without!’ Once he got the green light from her, Zachary was not going to h
Rain poured the whole night and only stopped at first blush. Serenity woke up at her usual time. Opening her eyes, she had a full front view of Zachary’s handsome face. Serenity was caught in a daze until last night’s events entered her mind. She sat up and tried to tiptoe her way out of there. After much thought, she looked back and stared at Zachary before nudging him. Zachary was lost in dreamland, but it made sense since he survived yesterday by drinking coffee. He took off work today anyway, so he should sleep in. Although Serenity did not want to disturb Zachary, what she was doing was harassment. With his aesthetically pleasing face right in front of her, Serenity could not help but steal a few kisses. She murmured to herself, “You have a better-looking face than mine. I would’ve gotten it on with you if you didn’t always have a long poker face. I’ve got to toughen myself before I can canoodle with you.” It took a few smooches before Serenity remembered the matter at
By the time Zachary woke up, Serenity was gone. Looking rather upset, he mumbled to himself, “You slipped away and didn’t even wait for me to wake up after sleeping with me.” Serenity would be telling Zachary to watch his mouth if she was here. Sure, she slept with him but only in the same bed minus the hanky-panky. Zachary would be rendered speechless. He walked out of his room to find the three ladies missing. Only the pets were around. Needless to say, the women must be getting groceries at the market. Zachary sat down on the swing on the balcony. He relived the beautiful moment of sharing a bed with his wife. In short, Zachary was not used to it, but he did look forward to doing it again. It did not take long before Serenity and the other ladies returned. Apart from groceries, Serenity also bought bed linens. Since the furniture shops were not open this early, she had not gotten a bed frame picked out. She was going to head back out later to get a new bed to set u
Serenity was startled. There were too many cases of one party moving their wealth elsewhere during a divorce. In light of the Browns’ character, Hank was likely to transfer his assets away. “Nana, I’ll tell my sister about it.” Grandma May replied, “Good. Let Zack know if you need help. He’ll get someone to investigate it.” “I won’t hesitate to look for Zachary when the time comes, Nana.” The old lady was pleased with Serenity’s readiness to seek help from Zachary. Zachary had smiling eyes, but he put on a straight face when Grandma May looked at him. Grandma May criticized him in her mind, ‘Go on. Go on with your act! We’ll see how long you can keep up with it.’After breakfast, the group went to Bright Boulevard. Liberty was already waiting with her son at the neighborhood gate. Sonny had adapted to the new routine after going with his aunt in the past few days. He did not kick up a fuss today. “Nana.” Seeing that Grandma May was around too, Liberty said hello to
Liberty did not say much to her sister. After handing her son to Serenity, she waved to her brother-in-law and the old lady before quickly riding away.She arrived at the office fifteen minutes before working hours started.In the beginning, it took her twenty minutes to run five laps. Now that she had gotten used to running, her speed increased slightly.She could still make it.After parking the bike, she locked it and started running.Liberty ran five laps around the small garden in front of the office building before going to work every day. Everyone in Lewis & Co. knew about it. At first, they watched Liberty like they were watching a show.Not two days later, some people joined the run. Sitting in the office every day with minimal exercise made it easy for them to get out of shape, too.Liberty spent fourteen minutes running five laps, and the last minute was spent sprinting to clock in.She went out late today, so she got a little stuck. Fortunately, she was not late.“
Duncan’s words made Liberty’s face burn red.Her being out of shape was a result of being a glutton and neglecting exercise."I will, Mr. Lewis. I promise I'll get into shape during the probation period."In fact, Liberty planned to run not only in the morning but also at night. She firmly believed that she could shed the excess weight, regain muscle mass and be healthy again."Good. Your probation period is now reduced to one month. Good luck."Duncan offered a few encouraging words before leaving Liberty and heading towards his private elevator. In the blink of an eye, his robust figure vanished inside the elevator.When Liberty could not see him anymore, she finally looked away and turned her head to find that her boss was glaring at her with displeasure.She pursed her lips and silently returned to the finance department office.Liberty used to be a CFO. Although she was now a small clerk in the finance department, everyone tacitly agreed that there was something going on b
On the way to Westyard Resort, Serenity called Jasmine. “Jas, I’m going out with Nana for a walk today and can’t go back to the store. I’ll leave the store to you.”Jasmine laughed. “No problem. You can stay with Grandma May and take a break. I’ll take care of the store. Everything will be fine.”It was the weekend tomorrow anyway.The store was usually closed during weekends. If they did open, it would only be Serenity inside, rushing her orders.After ending the call, Jasmine muttered to herself, “Seren’s life after marriage is getting more and more exciting.”“Jas.”The familiar voice made Jasmine’s pretty face turn cloudy.She looked at Shawn as he walked in, and said to him unpleasantly, “Shawn, are you ignoring what I said to you last time? Don’t come here again. There’s no chance between Seren and you!”It had just been a few days, but Shawn looked haggard. There were dark circles under his eyes, and his stubble grew out. At that moment, he did not look like a young man
Zachary said those words, but in his heart, he was thinking that he had to keep an eye on the younger generations of the major families in Wiltspoon, particularly those who stood out. He would make note of any promising boys, so that when he had a daughter, he could arrange for that boy to grow up alongside her. If they became childhood sweethearts, she would not have to marry far away. Of course, once he had a daughter, he would not want her to get married too early. He would still be fine even if she was unmarried at thirty.Zachary drove his beloved wife to the Stone residence. Audrey was walking in the yard with Patrick. The weather was nice today, and the temperature had risen a few degrees. Patrick had been ordered by Audrey to stay inside and avoid the cold wind, but he was now finally able to get out and walk around.Elisa had gone to Annenburg with Remy to celebrate Christmas. Anthony, afraid of his parents’ constant nagging to settle down, had bought a plane ticket abroad
“Duncan is a good man. Being with him, you will definitely be happy, Liberty. I wish you both a lifetime of happiness, growing old together, and may you have children soon.” After a pause, Hank added, “Or maybe don't have children, I'm afraid that if you have your own kids, you might not love Sonny as much.”He was still quite selfish. He hoped that Sonny would be Liberty’s only child. As long as Liberty and Duncan did not have children, the fortune and empire Duncan built would eventually become his son's legacy. Then again, thinking about Liberty’s current status, Hank sighed quietly, knowing that his selfish prayer would never come true. Liberty would definitely have another child. She would need a daughter to take her place and eventually take over the Fisher matriarchy in Jensburg.What if Duncan had a biological child? Would he still treat Sonny well?Hank was actually quite worried that if Duncan had his own child, he might not treat Sonny well. That was why, when he last s
“Go cook some food. It's rare for Hank to be resting at home, so don't say those unpleasant things in front of him. Honestly, if he hadn’t gone after Jessica, she wouldn't have ended up like this. As a married man, Hank shouldn't have pursued a young, innocent girl in the first place. Everything that happened to him is his own fault—it’s all self-inflicted.”Ever since Hank divorced Liberty, and after seeing how Liberty had turned her life around and was living a better life, Luke had changed a lot because of regret. It made him realize many things and change a lot.Olivia opened her mouth as if to say something, but said nothing in the end. After a heavy sigh, she stood up and went to the kitchen to prepare food for her husband and son.In the past, when Liberty was still part of the Brown family, every time Olivia came to her son’s house, she never had to cook. She only had to mention what she wanted to eat, and Liberty would prepare it for her. All she had to do was eat and still
“She lost the child when she fell on her own. That was our family’s flesh and blood, too!”Since Sonny did not live with the Browns, and despite her many objections, Olivia did not voice her criticisms toward Jessica when she was pregnant, out of consideration that Jessica was carrying the Brown family’s child.It was Jessica’s bad luck that she fell and lost the child, which made Olivia lose a grandson. If she had just one more grandson, she would not be waiting so eagerly for Sonny to return. It was all karmic retribution! “Mom, that's all in the past. I'm doing fine now. If the child wasn't meant to be, then it wasn't meant to be. They just didn't want to come into our lives. Anyway, Jessica is still my wife. I should go and see her. If I hadn’t corrupted her, she wouldn’t have ended up like this. It’s my fault, I ruined her.”When Jessica first became his secretary, she was still innocent and never thought of seducing him. It was he who fell for Jessica, and it was also he wh
Unfortunately, their regret and realization came too late. “I heard from Sonny that you and Mr. Lewis are getting married soon. When will the marriage be?”Olivia tried to make herself sound calmer. “We’ll be heading to the City Hall to complete the procedures later.”Olivia went silent. After some time, she said, “Oh, today? Congratulations, Liberty. I wish you both a happy marriage.”“Thank you.”Olivia initially had a lot of things to say. However, upon discovering Liberty and Duncan were getting their marriage license that day, the words got stuck in her throat. Saying anything was meaningless.Soon, Olivia hung up. Once the call ended, Luke, who had been sitting beside his wife, asked, “How did it go? Did Liberty agree to Sonny staying with us for a few days?”Olivia was still stunned and did not immediately reply to her husband’s question. At that moment, Hank came out of his room in his pajamas. When he saw his parents sitting on the sofa, he yawned and asked, “Wha
Serenity asked, “Duncan has no comments about it, right?”“No. He said that Hank would always be Sonny’s biological father. Sonny’s surname won’t be changed to Lewis as well. He’ll remain a Brown. That’s part of Hank’s and my divorce agreement.”Since Liberty had signed the agreement, she would keep her promise. No matter Sonny’s surname, the fact that he was a member of the Brown family would not change. If so, there was no point in changing his surname. “Duncan is so easygoing.”At that moment, Liberty’s phone rang.It was Olivia. When Liberty recognized her voice through the phone, she whispered to Serenity, “Speak of the devil. Olivia is calling me.”“What did you say, Liberty?”Olivia heard Liberty whispering but could not hear her clearly. She asked Liberty to repeat herself.“I was talking to my sister, Olivia. Why did you call?”It was still early in the morning. “You’re back from Jensburg, right, Liberty?”“Yes.”“That was what I heard. Look. The year is almo
“He doesn’t even want kids and said having Sonny was enough.”Duncan did not care about blood relations. Liberty believed him. He only cared about her. If Liberty had not had to manage the Fisher family, she probably would have taken more time to consider whether she wanted a second child. However, Duncan's love for her ran deep. She decided to try for another child so that he could have a child of his own. Liberty did not want to be selfish. She could not prioritize only herself and Sonny. She had to be considerate of Duncan as well. “By the way, there’s something that I need your help with.”Serenity said, “Oh you, don’t sound like a stranger. We’re sisters. I’m ready to help with whatever you need.”“I have to go to Jensburg next year. I think I’ll leave Sonny here in Wiltspoon for his studies. I’ll ask for Sonny’s opinion again once my situation in Jensburg is stable. If he wants to move to Jensburg to live with me, I'll bring him over.“If he says no, I’ll need y
“Morning, Liberty. The housekeeper said you weren’t out yet, so I didn’t want to disturb you.”Serenity stood and smiled when she saw Liberty enter. “I woke up when you arrived.”Liberty whispered, “Sonny is still asleep. Let’s go downstairs. You can accompany me on a walk outside too.”“What time are you and Duncan meeting?”Serenity was worried that Liberty would be late. Liberty said, “We still have to wait until the City Hall opens. Duncan and I agreed to meet at nine. It’s still early.”The three adults exited the child’s bedroom and went downstairs. Zachary remained in the house while Liberty and Serenity went on a stroll in the garden. Liberty’s villa initially belonged to Zachary. Although he sold it to Liberty, it was also considered a gift. She was the one who insisted on paying and refused to accept it as a gift. Therefore, Zachary accepted some money from her so that she would take it. The villas Zachary owned were never small. They usually came with garden
“As expected of a child’s skin. It’s so smooth,” said Serenity. “Catch me if you can, Isaac…”Sonny spoke in his sleep and even giggled. He dreamt of him and Isaac playing tag. When Isaac started running after him, he quickly turned to escape while laughing. He did not realize that he was dreaming. “I have two dads, Isaac…”Sonny spoke again.Serenity laughed and told Zachary, “Sonny must’ve had a blast yesterday. Even his sleep talking is related to playing.”She pinched Sonny’s face lightly. “You do have two dads, Sonny. They love you a lot, so you have double the love.”Serenity spoke gently, regardless of whether he could hear her. She bent over and left a soft kiss on his cheek. “That’s why you must be happy. I wish you a carefree life ahead.”She hoped he would grow up healthily and be worry-free. Sonny was in a deep sleep and did not reply to her. Liberty watched them from the door with an affectionate gaze. She felt content. Zachary and Serenity had a st