Zachary replied with a question, “Is it weird? The boys in my family can cook. One of my brothers can cook better than the chef at Wiltspoon Hotel.” The female reporters enviously lamented, “Your wife is so lucky.” “I think I’m luckier. My Seren is good to me. She’s a fabulous cook. She always makes my favorite food.” Jealousy would kill everybody before they could ask further questions. The young couple was not in the same room right now, but the way Mr. York talked and the expression on his face explained how happy he was with his married life. The media wrapped up the interview after asking a few more details about his life. “That reminds me. Don’t go hounding my wife. You can come to me with any questions. I’ll make time to take the interview. My wife prefers to live a quiet and mundane life. The people gave their word, “We won’t intrude on the missus without your permission.” The most they would do was snap photos of her in secret. They would not dare to mob Sere
Zachary was speechless. “I’m looking for encouragement and support here, Josh. I’m worried about what Seren’s going to think.” “I support you wholeheartedly and in spirit. No matter what you do, I’ll always support you. Zachary, I’m your No.1 fan! Keep it up, Zachary! Even if your world comes crumbling down, you’re a tall guy. Stand up and hold your world up. It’ll be fine. The worst that can happen is you getting crushed.” Zachary was at a loss for words. “But your wife might stumble upon the truth if you keep up with the secrets. She’ll be angrier than ever and might dump your sorry ass. Prepare to sign the divorce papers, man. “You should prepare for the storm instead of having the storm sneak up behind you and take you by surprise. We have each other if your wife is mad at you and gives you a snub. Haha. I don’t have to watch you act lovey-dovey with one another anymore.” The men could chase after their wives together. Zachary uttered, “I shouldn’t have called you. Yo
It would take a couple of days before their order could be processed. Serenity and Jasmine needed to get all the study materials the students needed for the new school term before the school reopened. They should at least know the materials needed in advance so they could place the order. Putting the mop back into the closet, Jasmine uttered, “I found out last night what we needed and made a list. The list is in my bag. You can check it and phone the supplier to make the delivery in the next few days.” Students would purchase the school materials assigned by the teachers or that were recommended in the first few days of school. It would be the busiest time in the shop. Serenity asked her sister and Mrs. Lane to help out at the shop on the first day of school. Liberty had gotten in touch with a contractor to remodel her restaurant. Now that the price had been agreed upon, the remodeling would begin in a few days. The students would be returning before the restaurant's reno
Jasmine was highly interested in the identity of Mrs. York. She was in awe of Mrs. York’s ability to turn a callous man like Mr. York into an uxorious husband. She had heard a lot about Mr. York adoring his wife lately. Jasmine had asked Josh before to pull some strings and introduce her to Mrs. York. Josh was Mr. York’s most trusted man, so he must be one of the first to know that Mr. York was married. Jasmine bet Josh had met Mrs. York in the flesh. Alas, Josh turned down her request, saying that he could not reveal who Mrs. York was until Mr. York was ready to make the public announcement himself. It got Jasmine down for days. Josh was trying to win her heart right now, but he could not even make her one wish happen. It showed how protective Mr. York was of his wife. Now that some news was finally out, she had to click on it and see what was going on. “What’s there to read? It’s only about his marriage.” Serenity laughed and added, “Why are you people dying to fi
It explained why Zachary went away on business after Serenity did a DNA test with her aunt. Zachary was trying to get away from meeting Aunt Audrey in case the jig was up and his cover was blown! Serenity’s mind flashed back to the moments in their four-month-old marriage as color washed off her face. Jasmine noticed that Serenity’s hand over the mouse was shaking. “Seren. Seren. Are you okay? Are you alright?” Serenity’s reaction gave Jasmine a scare. Jasmine immediately smacked and shook her. Like a puppet, Serenity sat still and did not respond no matter how many times Jasmine tried to get her attention or smack her. Serenity simply stared at Zachary’s face blown up on the computer screen in a trance. It was him. It had to be him! He was her spouse. There was no way she could be wrong about that. They were a couple who shared the most intimate moments together. She was beginning to trust her spouse, but he turned out to be a big liar! He had her fooled from the sta
Duncan shot Liberty an angry look before getting out of the car. He went into the restaurant and picked up the keys to lock the place up. Back in the car, Duncan concentrated behind the wheel and asked, “What happened? You’re all over the place, and you look pale.” “Jasmine called me to say something happened to Seren.” Color washed off Liberty’s complexion further at the mention. Her sister went to the bookshop to tidy up the place today. What could have happened? Did a bookshelf topple over her sister? There were a lot of books on the shelf. The weight of the bookshelf with the help of gravity falling on a person… Liberty stopped herself from dwelling deeper into that scenario. She was terrified. What if something happened to her sister? What if her sister had an accident? Liberty had lost her parents and only had her sister, growing up. If her sister… Tears streamed down Liberty’s face. Duncan asked with concern, “What happened to your sister?” Since Sereni
Jasmine answered, “That’s him!“Mr. York accepted a press interview. I watched the interview, and it was about him and Seren. Seren turned white and stunned like a puppet when she saw the video. I pushed, hit, and yelled at her, but she hasn’t shown any reaction. She’s scaring the hell out of me. That’s why I’m calling you for help.” Liberty had the shock of her life. Her brother-in-law turned out to be the heir of the York family! How could that possibly be? Liberty had met the Yorks. They were no different from ordinary folks. They dressed in clothes without labels and drove mid-range priced cars. They did not seem wealthy to Liberty. The only thing that stood out was that the Yorks carried themselves with grace and culture. “I’ll be right there. Pour a glass of water for Seren and tell her to drink it. If that doesn’t help, splash her with a basin of cold water. That should do the trick.” Jasmine replied, “Won’t Seren catch a cold?” With her head clearer than before,
While Serenity and Jasmine took off from the shop, Liberty got a ride from Duncan and arrived at Wiltspoon School in no time. Since school was still out, it was dead quiet near the school grounds and the shops nearby the entrance were not open for business either. Liberty noticed the door to her sister’s bookshop was shut. “Why is it close?” Liberty got out of the room and approached the shop. She pounded on the door, but there was no response whatsoever from inside. Pulling out her phone, Liberty gave her sister a call. Serenity was bent on storming to York Corporation and getting answers from Zachary. Was he really the heir of the wealthiest York family? Too caught up in her clouded thoughts to hear her phone ring, Serenity did not pick up her sister’s call. Liberty had to call Jasmine. Jasmine was in mid-pursuit of Serenity on her e-bike, but her ride was losing speed. Jasmine had charged the battery of her e-bike a few days ago, and the battery was running out! Wi
Dylan said, “Go ahead.”He was a bit hungry too and wanted to eat.Imogen called for Wendy and instructed her to make a fresh pot of tea and serve some of the snacks she usually ate.Once Wendy finished preparing the tea, Imogen poured a cup for Dylan and said, “You can start your story now.”“Ms. Doyle, I’m not making up a story, I’m—Ms. Doyle, you are Fox, aren’t you?” Dylan asked again.“Mr. York, I’ve told you, I don’t know who Fox is. I only know a fox is an animal, like in the zoo. If you ask me again if I’m Fox, I’ll think you’re calling me a vixen.”“‘Fox’ is just a nickname, meaning she’s very cunning and deceptive. I call her Chameleon Fox for her ability to shape-shift into many different identities. She changes so much that people mistake her for many different people, but in reality, she’s only one person.”Imogen looked quite interested and said, “Oh, so you think I’m Chameleon Fox, who likes to deceive people? Do you have any evidence for this?”“No, I don’t.”“
Couples always talked about eternal love, but how many could truly last forever?Dylan stammered, unable to say anything. Could he say that he suspected she was Fox? It was just a guess, with no evidence.Under Imogen’s gaze, Dylan steeled himself and spoke honestly, “I came to apologize to you.”Imogen raised an eyebrow. “Apologize? You already apologized to me the last time we spoke. There’s no need to apologize again. I’m not angry at you. When it comes to matters of the heart, it’s all about reciprocation. You can’t force it.“Feelings can’t be pressured into existence, so I won’t pressure you to accept me.“Plus, it’s been so long, and I have no feelings for you anymore. For that, I should thank you for clearing things up for me early on. At that time, I had just started to like you and could give up so quickly because of that.”Dylan, embarrassed, said, “Ms. Doyle, it’s not about that. Recently, I… secretly followed you.”“You followed me? Why?” Imogen pretended to be clue
“Drink it while it’s hot. Only when it’s steaming will it have the best effect to ward off the cold.”Dylan nodded, wiping his nose with a tissue. He threw the tissue into the trash bin, but when he saw that the bin was full of tissues, he felt even more embarrassed.He picked the steaming hot soup up carefully and took a big sip.It was so spicy!The spice almost made him spit it out. Remembering that Imogen was right next to him, he forced himself to swallow it. After just one sip, Dylan put the bowl down.“Ms. Doyle, the soup is too hot. I’ll drink it later,” he said.It was too spicy. He did not want to take a second sip.“I’ll take the medicine first,” he added.Compared to drinking the soup, Dylan would rather take the medicine. The medicine might be bitter, but he could handle it.Imogen immediately called him out. “You’re afraid of the spice and you don’t want to drink the soup, do you?”Dylan sneezed again and then poured himself some water to take the medicine.Hav
All he could do was hold it in. However, he soon sneezed again.Imogen commented, “My dad told you to stand in the cold without your coat, and you really did it, like an idiot. It’s not like you feel anything for me or you’re trying to win my affection, so there’s really no need for you to listen to my dad.”Luckily, she came out quickly enough. Otherwise, he would have turned into an icicle.“It was my fault before. I hurt you, so it's only natural that Mr. and Mrs. Doyle are angry with me. They didn’t hit me or scold me, and they just made me stand out in the cold for a while; they’re already being very lenient,” said Dylan, sneezing again.He was usually in good health, but this time, he was afraid he might really catch a cold.Imogen glanced at him without saying anything. She led Dylan into the house and asked their housekeeper if the soup was ready.Wendy replied, “Almost.”Imogen nodded and asked Dylan to sit down. Then, she poured him a cup of tea and asked, “Have you ea
Dylan finally put his coat on after Imogen said that. He had only been standing there for half an hour but even in that short time, he had become so cold.Once he put his jacket on, Imogen turned around and began walking inside. “Come with me.”“Okay,” Dylan quickly bent down to grab the gifts before quickening his steps to catch up with Imogen. “Thank you, Ms. Doyle.”Imogen glanced at him for a moment before turning away. “I was just afraid you might freeze to death at my doorstep, and then your family would come after mine. Plus, since your sisters-in-law are my good friends, I couldn't just let you die at my gate.”After leaving Wiltspoon, Imogen had not gone back there under her real name, but she had stayed in touch with Serenity and the others and was still on very good terms with them.Dylan smiled and said, “Serenity will give birth in a few months, and Josh’s wife is also pregnant, but she's a month ahead of Serenity. Liberty and Duncan have already registered their marr
Her daughter’s excellence was all thanks to Silver’s influence.“What I wanted to tell you was that Dylan is standing at our doorstep. He said he wanted to see you. Your dad and I refused and told him to leave, but he’s not budging.”Imogen was not surprised by this, but she still pretended to be surprised, so as not to raise her mother’s suspicion.“Why’s he here?” Imogen asked, feigning ignorance.“Who knows? He didn’t say. He only said he wanted to see you. The way he treated you, playing with your feelings—your dad and I have been holding in a lot of anger for a long time. “But you didn’t want us to confront him, so we couldn’t vent it. Now he’s come knocking, wanting to see you? It won’t be that easy.”Imogen was not planning to meet Dylan either.“Your dad told him to stand outside for two hours with his coat off and that if he doesn’t freeze to death, he’ll let him see you.”Imogen was speechless for a moment. “Mom, it’s freezing outside. Even wearing a thick coat, it’s
“Still not up yet?” Leticia smiled and said as she entered her daughter’s room after the door opened. Imogen’s room was decorated in a warm style, but the furniture was minimal. Aside from the bed, a computer desk, and a set of sofas, she preferred things to be simple. Her room was also the smallest. She said that if the room was too big, it felt empty and she could not sleep well. Leticia thought it was because when her daughter learned self-defense from her master, she lived in a small room with her fellow disciples, so she had gotten used to smaller spaces.Compared to the average person, Imogen's room was actually quite large, but against the rooms of the other family members, hers looked smaller.Leticia sat down on the sofa.“Mom, let me change first.” With her mother here, Imogen could no longer lie in bed. She went to change and wash up, then came out of the bathroom. She poured her mother a cup of water and placed it in front of her before sitting next to her. “Mom, a
Dylan was speechless.Leaving the warm indoors, he felt Huntington's winter was really cold. It was below freezing, and the temperature was as low as 14°F to 32°F. He had never experienced such low temperatures in Wiltspoon.In Wiltspoon, the moment the temperature dropped to 50°F, everyone would start saying it was freezing.Winston and Leticia headed back. Leticia whispered to her husband, “What if he really stands there for two hours without his coat and freezes to death?”They wanted to stand up for their daughter, but they did not want to kill Dylan. That would make them enemies of the Yorks. Even if they could not become in-laws, they definitely did not want to become enemies.Winston replied, “If he really does it, in half an hour, I’ll let Jen come out and call him inside. If he doesn't follow my request, he won’t freeze to death.”At most, he would just catch a cold. If he did not do it, nothing would happen.“I don’t think he’s here for love this time either. I’m not s
Leticia harrumphed as well. “Mr. York, why are you here?” Leticia asked coldly. “We don't welcome you here. Go back to wherever you came from.”Dylan smiled awkwardly, “Mrs. Doyle, I just want to see Ms. Imogen.”“Imogen doesn't want to see you. Hurry up and leave, or we'll let the guard dogs out.” Leticia rejected him outright. “And you’d better stay as far away as possible. Do you think our Imogen is someone you can just toy and flirt with just because you want to, then say you haven't fallen for her and play with her feelings?“What's the matter? Has the Mr. York, whose heart belongs to someone else, still not managed to win his lady love over?” Leticia mocked, though she was actually probing into the reason for Dylan's visit.Dylan just took the insults without getting angry. He knew he had hurt Imogen. Even though she was someone who could take things in stride, the fact remained he had flirted with her and turned to claim he did not like her, which had hurt her feelings.