Feeling Serenity’s concern for him, Zachary said in a warm voice, “I have a dinner party tonight, so I won’t be home early. You don’t have to wait for me. Go to bed early, but sleep in my room.”His handsome face turned slightly red as he said the last sentence.That was because he remembered how he was the one who told her that his room was off limits and had forbidden her from entering his room.Now, he was the one asking her to enter his room.Serenity smiled. “Sure. I’ll leave the door unlocked for you. Hurry up and go in. Don’t stand here in the cold wind.”Zachary turned around reluctantly and went into the building.Serenity watched his handsome figure walk farther away before driving away.After entering the office building, Zachary saw Josh standing there, looking at him with a smile.Zachary was speechless.‘This gossiper!’He shot a side glance at Josh and walked straight ahead.Josh did not care about how Zachary looked at him and he followed suit. After entering
“What did you say to him?”“What can I say? I can’t tell him bluntly that his successor is trying to steal your woman from you. This was caused by your personal matters, so you deal with it yourself. I’ll ask Mr. Chaplin to squeeze in a time for you to meet with Mr. Lowe.”Zachary said indifferently, “Save it for after the New Year’s. I’m going on a business trip in two days.”Josh froze, suspecting he had misheard. “You’re going on a business trip? Where to? Can you bear to leave your wife? Your relationship happens to be improving now.”Zachary was silent for a long time before saying, “There’s no harm in telling you this. The whole city will know sooner.”There was finally gossip to share.As the representative of all gossipers, Josh’s ears immediately perked up. He grinned and asked, “What happened?”“The sister who Mrs. Stone has been looking for is most likely my mother-in-law.”Josh paused before saying, “You have a mother-in-law? I mean, didn’t your mother-in-law die a
If Serenity had known from the beginning that Zachary was the heir of the York family, she would not have married him so suddenly.It could be said that the entire York family, starting from Grandma May, hid the truth from Serenity.Josh spat in his heart, ‘The whole family are liars.’Even if Grandma May wanted a granddaughter-in-law, this was not the way.Josh suddenly felt distressed when he remembered that he did not confess his identity to Jasmine. He decided that the next time he saw her, he would tell her that he was actually from the Bucham family; lest he followed in Zachary’s footsteps.“Well, you do you. I’m not you, so I can’t make decisions for you, but your wife’s temper is stubborn. If you don’t handle it well, you two might end up separating.”Zachary’s face went as white as a sheet.He was afraid that Serenity would break it off with him.That was why he wanted to wait until their feelings were deeper and she was reluctant to leave him; only then would it be ap
In fact, Zachary felt that actions spoke louder than words.It was easier to prove his love for her with concrete actions than to say sweet nothings with his mouth.Of course, if Serenity liked to listen to mushy words, then he would learn no matter how cringy it was.Josh stood up and leaned over to remind his friend in a whisper, “Ask about Ms. Sox.”Zachary pushed him away lightly with one hand. After chatting for a while longer with Serenity over the phone, he helped Josh ask, “Seren, will Ms. Sox be back at the store this afternoon? My colleague was thinking of going to see her because she’s not feeling well.”Serenity replied, “Jas is not coming over. I told her to rest at home and come back when her fever was completely gone. Does your colleague want to see her? He can call her directly and ask her out.”“Ms. Sox is sick, and the temperature dropped today so it’s even colder. My colleague will blame himself if her condition worsens after he asks her out. Send me a message
Zachary accepted the bag from Mr. Chaplin.Inside contained two red brocade boxes.He took one box out.Josh was not stupid and knew that Grandma May retrieved this from her private treasury to please Serenity.He envied Zachary for having a good grandmother who was worried about his marriage.Grandma May was the pillar of the York family and was respected by everyone. No one would stop her if she arranged for a sudden marriage like the one between Zachary and Serenity.Josh wanted a handful of grandmothers like that.Unfortunately, his grandmother passed away.“I’ll go back to work.”Josh did not want to be further provoked by his best friend again. There were some things that should not be envied.He stood up and left the office with Mr. Chaplin.Zachary looked at the two diamond rings that his nana had sent him and took out his cell phone to call her. “Nana, I’ll buy these two rings from you. How can I accept wedding rings as a gift from you?”Grandma May laughed. “Sure.
Mr. Brown had a hunch. It must be related to the divorce with Liberty.Olivia brought the cutlery and served her son food. “You didn’t tell me in advance, so I didn’t cook for you. This was supposed to be for the dog, but you can have it instead. I’ll cook some pasta for you later if you’re still hungry.”“I’ll be full after eating this, Mom.”From the moment he walked in, Hank let his mother serve him food and even set the table for him with cutlery ready. He was used to his mother doing this.After the family of three finished their meal, Hank handed the manila folder to his father.“What is this?”Mr. Brown was suspicious, but he reached out and took the envelope. He opened it and took out a stack of papers and photos from inside.Olivia took a peek too.The husband and wife frowned as they looked at it.“Hank, you kept so much money?” Olivia was shocked that her son had so much money.Mr. Brown frowned and asked his son, “Did Liberty give you this?”Hank nodded.“What d
“The fight was just kids being kids. Plus, it was an accident. We will take good care of Sonny and keep him from harm’s way when we get custody.” Mrs. Brown heartachingly said, “Hank, don’t go with the divorce. I can’t take it.”It never crossed her mind that fights between children could influence decisions on a child’s custody. Despite Mrs. Brown’s old age, she had never seen anyone take their divorce to court. In the separations that she came across, the women would pack their things and walk out, leaving the house, car, and children to the men. “Sure, it was just a fight between children, but people would see Sonny living with us as whether it’s conducive to his growth and well-being.” Hank patiently persuaded his parents. “Mom, I don’t love Liberty anymore. It’s not like Liberty would take me back either. You can’t make things work just by force. It would be hard for her and me at this rate. Besides, Liberty’s willing to settle. The divorce is going to happen.“I’ve mad
Mrs. Brown grabbed the divorce paperwork for another look, feeling the pain every time she read the line on the payout to Liberty. “I thought the estate was split evenly. The amount doesn’t seem right.” “Liberty’s relinquishing her rights to the house and car, so I need to make it up to her monetarily. Altogether, that’s the total payout.” Mrs. Brown replied after a pause, “What about the renovation cost for the house?” Hank answered, “It’s not included. I’ve said it before. I won’t compensate her for that.” Although feeling a little better, Mrs. Brown said, “The renovation was tens of thousands of dollars. I guess we benefited a little since she didn’t ask you for the renovation cost.” It did not hurt as bad anymore for the money they were losing. “Hank, how did Liberty collect these photos?” Mr. Brown believed his daughter-in-law did not have such means. “Did someone help her?” “I asked her, but she wouldn’t say, nor did she know who helped her. The person’s pretty good
Celine, whom they had cared for all long, was not their biological sister but the daughter of the previous butler. Celine’s father was ambitious. He tried making his daughter the Fisher family’s successor. Justin was speechless.“Free me, Jason. I’m already in your hands. Are you still scared that I’ll escape? Let me out. It’s too stuffy in the sack. I feel terrible.”Caroline made a request. Jason seemed to be the one with some lingering feelings for his sibling. Well, that was not really the case.If he truly had even a sliver of sibling love for Caroline, he would have stopped Adrian and Justin from kidnapping her instead of joining the plan. If Caroline had been fortunate, she could have had five brothers doting on her. Sadly, she was unlucky. None of the five brothers had cared for her. They all wanted her dead. Was she a failure as a person, or were they too cruel?Jason said, “Just stay put, Caroline. We’ll let you out when we arrive.”They could not release Car
Caroline could not beat them. Then, her mouth was gagged with a cloth, and her head was covered with a sack. Someone forced her into a car. She heard Adrian saying to his brothers, “Let’s go.“Tell Celine’s brothers to follow us. Assign a few people to clean up and leave quickly.”After that, Caroline heard the sound of an engine starting. The car moved. She could not see what was happening. While she was shoved into the backseat, her arms and legs were unbound. She removed the cloth from her mouth but not the sack from her head.Someone held the sack tightly and started hitting and kicking her. “Tie the sack, Justin,” said Jason in a hurry. The person beating her up was Justin. “I know it’s you guys, Justin and Jason. What are you doing? Let me go. Mmph…”Caroline grunted in pain. She suffered a punch from Justin. She held her head tightly to prevent any injury to it. Many blows landed on her body. “It’s fine even if you know it’s us, Caroline. You better stay
“Ms. Caroline.”The bodyguards looked toward Caroline. Caroline opened her eyes and said calmly, “Stop the car, but don’t get out. Only get out when the situation gets out of hand. Remember to protect yourselves.”“Ms. Caroline…”“I’ll keep myself safe. Don’t worry. I treasure my life. There’s still a long life ahead of me. I haven’t even started enjoying good days. I won’t want to die.”Caroline chuckled, but her smile did not reach her eyes. There was sorrow in those eyes. In the end, she and her brothers could not coexist. It made her realize how bad her luck was with families. She was switched at birth and mistreated by her adoptive family. She thought her biological parents would treat her well after returning to them, but it turned out to be the opposite. Caroline had many family members, yet somehow, she was still alone. The people who truly cared about her were Darren, Liberty, and some others. Caroline’s bodyguards knew she had been waiting for that moment.
The bodyguard in the passenger seat turned and informed Caroline. Caroline remained calm. She said, “Speed up and let them chase us. The road ahead has many curves. A truck will turn over if it goes too fast.”The people in the truck were probably her brothers from the Dott family. She wondered how much money Adrian had given them. Were they planning to drive the truck to chase her and create an accident?Caroline’s driver immediately acted on her orders. The truck behind them accelerated as well. Soon, they arrived at the section of the road with many curves and downhills.Accidents could happen easily if a car drove too quickly at a curve. The truck driver was not ready to give up his life. He decelerated when he saw the curved road ahead. By the time the truck turned, Caroline’s car was gone. The truck driver immediately stepped on the brake. He stopped by the roadside and made a call. He was not one of the Dott brothers but someone else they hired. The driver c
“They’re my biological brothers and father, Em. Although they had attacked me with their words before, they never hurt me physically.“It’s okay. I have bodyguards with me.”Caroline was letting Emma know that she would still be heading home. After sighing, Emma said, “Be careful. Call the police if something feels off. We didn’t treat you well in the past, Carol, but I saw through your family and came to a realization.“You helped me a lot, and you’re the aunt of my children. I wish you well.”Caroline knew Emma was genuinely concerned about her. Ever since she exposed her brothers’ affairs and took her sisters-in-law’s side, her sisters-in-law, especially Emma, have changed their attitudes toward her. When Adrian and Emma were fighting on the verge of divorcing, Caroline stood by Emma unwaveringly. She had also assisted Emma in many instances. Although Emma had left the Fisher family, she would always be Caroline's sister-in-law. “I will be careful and live well, Em.
Since it would be a sleepless night, drinking some coffee could help them stay awake. At eleven o’clock, Caroline and her bodyguards left the cafe. She sensed some people had been following her the entire night. The bodyguards had also noticed it, but Caroline prevented them from alarming those people and let them continue following her. It would be none other than Adrian’s people anyway. Adrian, Justin, and Jason had finished their tasks early and got off work on time. They had the entire night to themselves as they did not have to work or attend events. After Caroline got in her car, she suddenly received a call from Emma. She picked up the call. “Hi, Emma.”“You can call me comfortably, Carol. I’m not your sister-in-law anymore.”Caroline immediately switched to Emma’s nickname. “Why aren’t you asleep but calling me at this hour, Em? I hope my nieces and nephews are obedient. Now that the school term has started, you should be able to relax when they’re at school
Liberty and Sonny had a lot to share with each other. Meanwhile, Caroline had not gone home yet. She told Liberty she was going home after they separated but ended up going shopping instead. It was still early. There were too many cars on the road. Even a fool would not choose that time to make a move. To play along with her brothers’ scheme, she had to go shopping and only head home late at night. That would make it easier for Adrian and his brothers to take action. Darren sent Caroline a message to tell her that the Dott brothers and Clark brothers were waiting to ambush her when she was on her way back. When she approached them, they would hit her car with theirs. Her dying on the spot would be the best-case scenario. If she did not die, they would kidnap her. Adrian was already waiting in a deserted place by the sea. They planned to chop her up and throw her body into the sea. The fish in the sea would eat her up. The Clark brothers were cruel. Caroline wa
Sonny himself needed taking care of. Duncan said, “Summer vacation, then. Since it’s a long holiday, you can be in Jensburg for two months.“Once you graduate from preschool and come over to Jensburg for elementary school, you’ll be able to see your mom every day. I’ll also move my business to Jensburg. That way, the three of us can reunite as a family.”While Lewis & Co. had businesses in Jensburg, there were not many. Since Liberty would be living in Jensburg permanently, Duncan increased his investments there to expand into a new market. Therefore, he had to be in Jensburg as the CEO. It also presented him with the opportunity to accompany Liberty and Sonny there. Sonny pouted. “Okay.“Mom, you haven’t answered my questions.”Sonny turned his attention back to Liberty. Liberty smiled. “I’m not as busy tonight, so I don’t have to work till late. I’m on my way home now. I called you because I knew you’d be going to bed soon.“Do you miss me, Sonny? I miss you so much.”“
Serenity shouted from the stairs, “Sonny, your mom’s on the phone.”Sonny was concentrating on his game of chess with Liam. Naturally, he was not as good as Grandpa Liam. He lost most of the time, aside from the few games Grandpa Liam let him win. However, even if Sonny always ended up losing, he was determined. Liam realized Sonny would change his strategy after every loss. He would learn from his mistakes and even emulate Liam’s playstyle. Sonny had a versatile mind. He was clever. Liam thought, ‘Maybe this is why our family loves Sonny.’Sonny was intelligent, studious, and thoughtful. Serenity was about to give birth. If Liam’s grandson would be as adorable as Sonny, he would not mind having a few more. “Let’s pause this round for now, Grandpa Liam. We can continue after I talk to Mom on the phone.”Liam smiled. “You should go to bed soon, Sonny. You still have to go to school tomorrow. We can leave this here and continue tomorrow evening. I promise not to move the