“Is that you, Ms. Sox?” a voice interrupted the trio. Jasmine and her brother turned their heads toward the source of the voice. Serenity calmly drank her wine as though she did not see Josh. “Mr. Bucham?” Jasmine was surprised to find Josh here. Josh explained, “I got together with a few buddies to let loose here since it’s the weekend. I wasn’t expecting to see you here, Ms. Sox.“Do you mind if I sit here?” Jasmine replied with a smile, “Well, you already sat down. Are you waiting for your friends?” She saw that he was alone. Josh sat down and said hello to Serenity. Serenity merely bobbed her head as an acknowledgment to his greeting. “My friends have left.” Looking at the drawing, Josh asked Jasmine, “Who drew this? Can I have a closer look?” With Jasmine’s eyes turning to her best friend, Josh got an idea of the artist behind the artwork. Serenity went on drinking without a word. Taking it as a no, Josh did not pick the drawing up, but he was still able to
“Seren.” Jasmine immediately went to help Serenity up. “I can still drink…” Despite being held up, Serenity was mumbling away about having more drinks. Looking at the state Serenity was in, Josh did not feel right to pull out his phone and take a video of her. Nevertheless, there was security surveillance in the place. He could pull the security footage and show it to Zachary. Zachary married a wonderful wife but could do better at cherishing her. They often fought and got into silent wars while the people around him were dragged into the crossfire. “You’re drunk, Serenity. I’ll take you home.” Jasmine got up and said to Josh apologetically, “Serenity had too much to drink, Mr. Buchan. I’m going to take her home now.” “I don’t think you can drive since you had something to drink too. I didn’t drink, so I can drive you home.” As Josh came here for Jasmine, he did not have a drop of alcohol. He was looking for a chance to get Jasmine in his car. “Thank you, Mr. Bucha
Zachary clutched the paper without a word, but judging by the bantering look on Josh’s face, he could guess the drawing had something to do with him. He had seen Serenity’s artwork before. Serenity would often draw samples for her crafts and she was a good artist. “Zac…hary…” Nestling against Zachary’s chest, Serenity mumbled. Zachary carefully carried her into the car and sat her down at the backseat. He then sat next to her and propped her body against his before she slipped down from her seat. “I’m here.” He breathed a husky voice into her ear, “I’m here, Seren.” Serenity had no idea. She was so wasted that she could not open her eyes. Held tightly in Zachary’s embrace, Serenity drifted between sleep and mumbles. Sometimes, she could voice her strong opinion about Zachary, but other times, it was hard to catch what she was saying as she murmured under her breath. Jasmine and her brother stood outside the bar and watched as the sedan drove off. “Who was that man
Josh left quite a good impression on Drake. Jasmine suspected Drake would sell her off if the boys kept in touch behind her back. Josh pulled out his phone with a smile plastered on his face. “That’s very thoughtful of you, Drake. Let’s exchange numbers. I think we hit it off, Drake. Let’s have dinner sometime.” Drake happily whipped out his phone and exchanged contacts before saying, “Well, we should get going, Mr. Bucham.” “See you. I’ll treat you to dinner next time.” “Sure thing.” Drake was overjoyed but stopped short following the glare from his sister. He rubbed his nose and got into the car straight away. Standing there, Josh watched as the siblings took off. Once afar, Jasmine told her brother off, “Do you know who Josh is? Why did you act all friendly and exchange numbers?” “I don’t care who he is. All that matters is that he was on a blind date with you and he’s interested in you.” Jasmine was speechless. “Do you want me to kick you out of the house?” “I d
Back at Brynfield, Zachary gently carried Serenity out of the car. “Mr. Zachary, Mrs. Lane is staying with the missus’s sister,” said Jim. Zachary huskily replied, “I don’t need Mrs. Lane. I can take care of her.” He carried Serenity into the building. Jim waited until Mr. Zachary was inside the building before driving away. Zachary took notice of his loafers at the front of their house. His gaze deepened as his mind harked back to when they got married. She did the same thing to send a message that there was a man in the house. It was a safety precaution. Although Serenity was a good fighter, it was better to be safe than sorry. “Stand here, Seren. I need to grab the keys and open the door.” Zachary put Serenity down, but she was too drunk to stand still. She would collapse to the ground the moment he let go. Zachary immediately grabbed ahold of her. Putting his arms around her waist, Zachary guided Serenity to lean on his shoulder. He tried to feel the keys with his
That girl had always said she did not want to marry up but in reality, her family was rich too.It was just that the Sox family was low-key and pragmatic. They lived ordinary lives like ordinary people despite their wealth.“My parents are asleep, so I won’t invite you in, Mr. Bucham.”Josh smiled. “It’s late, and I didn’t bring a gift either, so I won’t go inside and disturb your parents. I’ll visit them another day when I come bearing a generous gift.” Jasmine said in her heart, ‘You’ve only just given me a bouquet of flowers and started pursuing me, but you already want to meet my parents.’“Mr. York came back in a hurry. Will he need to continue his business trip tomorrow?” Jasmine asked suddenly.Josh thought about it and said, “I think he still has to rush over tomorrow. After all, he’s responsible for the matters there. If something goes wrong, he has to go over to deal with it.”“That’s quite tiring for him.”“It’s tiring, but he’s willing to be a little tired for his
After slipping out, Josh said to himself, “He’s a clean freak, but he didn’t push her away when she barfed on him. How much love does he have for her to tolerate that?”There was nothing more to say.Josh was still a big fan of his boss’s wife. He admired her to the core.In the house, Zachary first took off his jacket and threw it on the ground before doing the same for Serenity.He would clean them up later.First, he had to carry this drunk little woman back to their room.Serenity threw up once and might be feeling soberer or slightly more comfortable as her mouth started to mutter.“Zachary...”She suddenly called out Zachary’s name loudly.“I’m here,” Zachary answered softly. He carried her into his room and instantly noticed that it was different.Everything that belonged to her was gone.Did she... move back to her room in a fit of rage?Zachary stood at the door of his room in silence for a few minutes before finally deciding to carry Serenity back to her room.
“After marriage, I was always guarded against you and suspected you. I even made you sign a six-month agreement which was full of restrictions for you... I admit that I’m a jerk. I’ve only ever cared about my own interests and never thought about you.“You called me a slimeball, and you’re right. Seren, I’m sorry!”Zachary kissed her gently on the lips, his handsome face filled with heartache. “Seren, I promise you that I won’t be like this again. I’ll learn to understand you. I’ll learn to communicate with you and to trust you.“It’s your first time being a wife, and it’s my first time being a husband. We’re both inexperienced, so let’s work hard and learn on this journey, and move forward together, alright?”Zachary muttered a lot in Serenity’s ear. As he spoke, he gradually fell asleep beside her.This time, both the husband and wife had it bad after the fight.Serenity went to a bar to get wasted while Zachary pulled all-nighters without eating and resting well. When he heard
Mr. Longbottom thought he was not so inferior to men younger than him.More accurately, he was far superior. He had status, money, and power.Which of the younger men could be on par with him unless they came from a wealthy family?Many sons of wealthy families could not compete with him.“I can’t go over because I’m busy these days. But I do miss you too.“It’s more difficult because of the festive season. There are many events, and I have to accompany my family. My wife doesn't care about me, but her request is that I be with her during the holidays because we have to meet our friends and families. Do you understand?”Mr. Longbottom had a wife and children. Carrie knew about it. He had never hid that fact.Carrie did not know if he was close to his wife. Although he said they no longer had feelings for each other, Carrie dared not believe him because he had never let other women take his wife’s place.He also never allowed other women to become pregnant with his children.Mr
Carrie thought she had matured since she could figure out that much. In the past, she would not have understood a thing. Love was about accepting everything about someone. Most people could tolerate their partner’s shortcomings when they were deeply in love. However, without love, even a person’s strength would seem like a fault. Carrie smiled. “Mr. York is a workaholic. Serenity must’ve gotten the habit from him and turned into one herself. I can’t believe she’s working so hard even though she’s pregnant.”“She’s still in the early stages of pregnancy. Going to work is fine.”“Do you need anything else, Mrs. Longbottom?” Jasmine asked.“No. I shall take my leave now, Mrs. Bucham.”Jasmine was on guard and unwilling to reveal much about Serenity. Therefore, it would be better for Carrie to leave. She was not close to Serenity and her friends yet. “Bye, Mrs. Longbottom.”Jasmine saw Carrie out and watched as she got into her car.Once Carrie got far enough from the booksto
Mr. Longbottom had been surprised by her question. He told her coldly that she should refrain from asking unnecessary questions.One who knew too much would not live long. Carrie got intimidated and dared not ask another question. Although she got more curious, she did not try to gather more information for fear Mr. Longbottom would choke her again if he found out. “Nothing. I just asked because I haven’t seen her in a while.”Of course, Carrie could not reveal that she was looking for Serenity. Jasmine would get suspicious if she did. No one around Serenity was a fool. “Seren is busy with work. I rarely see her these days,” Jasmine said.Carrie knew it was a lie. She was aware that Serenity's closest friends did not trust her yet. It made her feel defeated. It had been months since Mr. Longbottom found her and asked her to approach Serenity. Despite her efforts, she still had not obtained Serenity’s trust, let alone become her friend.However, Jasmine and Serenity go
The day ended peacefully. The following day, Zachary ate breakfast and had Kevin drive him and his bodyguards to the airport. They were taking an airplane to Annenburg. Before boarding, Zachary texted Serenity to tell her he would soon arrive in Annenburg. Serenity would be returning from the Murphys’ place. On the other hand, Liberty brought Duncan to Queen Manor to visit Mr. Donald. They would soon become related to each other. Since Duncan was in the city, it was only proper that he visited the Queens. Meanwhile, in Wiltspoon, Jasmine had returned to the bookstore despite it being the winter holidays. She found it rather dull being at home all the time. At the bookstore, even when there were no customers, she could chat with the owners of the nearby stores. While some had closed their stores to celebrate the festive season, many chose to stay open. Jasmine was a month further into her pregnancy than Serenity. Her bump was huge. Luckily, it did not restrict her moveme
After half an hour, Liberty and Duncan finally arrived at the hotel. They bumped into Zachary and Kevin, who had also just returned.“You’re here, Duncan.”Zachary walked toward them. “Hi, Liberty.”Kevin walked over as well. “I told Zachary that you’d be here in no time. Being apart from your girlfriend isn’t easy, right?” Kevin teased.“You’ve experienced it yourself,” replied Duncan as he laughed. Kevin did not respond. He did miss Hayden a lot in the early stages of their relationship. “You two bought so many things.” Kevin saw the items in Duncan’s arms and on his thighs. They were all toys. “Sonny’s getting new toys again, eh?” “Yeah. We bought him some new clothes and toys. I’ve been giving him windmills all the time. It’s time to change it up.”Even Duncan found it slightly ridiculous. He thought Sonny loved windmills just because he saw Sonny playing with them once. That was why he kept getting more windmills for Sonny.Sonny used to be scared of him, but
She would wear light make-up for work to accentuate her beauty. Sometimes, she could not believe the glowing, confident woman looking back at her in the mirror was herself. She had changed a lot after her divorce two years ago. “I’m letting myself enjoy tonight because I’m with you. I won’t have late-night snacks anymore. Going on a diet is too difficult. I don’t want to do it again.”If she gained too much weight, it would be difficult to get fit again because she was happy and did not lack money. In addition, she had Duncan spoiling her. Since she no longer wanted to go on a weight loss journey, she had no choice but to control her appetite and exercise daily to maintain her figure. “I heard the others saying that you have many admirers here. Although they’ve not said anything, even a fool can tell that they’ve fallen for you just from their gazes.”The men who had a crush on Liberty knew she had a fiance who was the young master of the Lewises from Wiltspoon. While they
Liberty smiled. “We don’t have to have that many things. We can simply get our marriage license and choose a suitable date for a wedding.“I’m fine with just getting a marriage license. But, as it’s your first marriage, I don’t want you to miss out on anything, so let’s have a wedding.”Duncan did not want Liberty to feel slighted while at the same time, Liberty did not want Duncan to miss out on a wedding celebration.Liberty was about to get married for the second time while it was Duncan’s first. He was also a young master of the Lewises. Not holding a wedding for his first marriage seemed inappropriate. Duncan raised her hand to his lips and kissed it. His eyes were filled with affection as he said, “Let’s not let each other miss out on anything. We’ll have everything every other couple has and more.“I’ve said that I’d make sure you are the envy of everyone.”Liberty laughed. “I’m already envied by many. They’re saying that my luck is out of this world because I’m able to m
Now, everything was fine.However, this time, he was still unable to be by Liberty’s side. Even though it should have been much safer than when Sonny was kidnapped because he had arranged for people to protect her, he was still worried.He was afraid, feeling paralyzed as all he could do was just wait for news of her.Fortunately, everything went smoothly. No, it was more like there were scares but no real danger. When Belinda wanted to capture someone as a hostage, the first person she thought of was Liberty. First, Liberty did not know any martial arts. Second, she was the successor that Audrey had put forward, making her Caroline’s competitor. Moreover, Liberty was very significant to Audrey. If she were captured, the members of the York, Lewis, and Stone families would not dare act recklessly.Thanks to Dr. Carden’s quick actions, Liberty was pulled back, and she did not fall into Belinda’s hands as a hostage. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable.After
“It’s just that when I saw you, I was so happy that I forgot everything else. I even forgot that I’m still disabled,” Duncan said.As he spoke, he pressed her hand against his lips.Liberty looked at him disapprovingly. “Don’t say you’re disabled again. You’re just temporarily impaired, and you will get better.”Duncan smiled. “Okay, okay, from now on, I won’t say I’m disabled. I’ll get better for you. I’ll stand up again.”“You already have—you just can’t walk very far yet,” Liberty said as she supported him. “Should we head back to my office first?”“Are you done with work?” Duncan looked up at the darkening sky. “It’s almost completely dark.”“It’s only five o’clock. It just gets dark quickly in winter, plus today was a cloudy day. It feels gloomy even before six. Anyway, I’m done with work.”“If that’s the case, let’s get something to eat. I’m hungry,” Duncan said.He did not want to go into her office because if he did, he might end up staying for a while. He thought it wo