“Honey.”Once the door was opened, Serenity looked at Zachary’s handsome face. He instantly wore a flattering smile.However, on other typical days, he would pull a long face, showing a stern expression. He would hardly smile. At that moment, Serenity felt that the smile was fake.“Honey, I’ve brought over your changing clothes.”Zachary handed her two sets of clothes. One set was pajamas, whereas the other was her outfit for tomorrow.“Let me bring them inside for you, okay?”Serenity forbade him to enter the room. After taking her clothes, she retreated and slammed the door shut. Then, she locked the door from the inside once again.Zachary was speechless.He did not walk away and stood at the door instead. At the same time, he was wondering when Seren would open the door and look for him.Sure enough, he heard the sound of the door being unlocked in two minutes. He immediately straightened his body and wore a smile on his handsome face.The moment Serenity pulled open the
Zachary’s handsome face turned grim. “Serenity, I’m not lying at all. Some of my words are sincere. I love you, and this is definitely true.”“Yes. You love me. You love lying to me, right? Are you going to get out? If you’re not, I’ll crush your leg!”After speaking frostily, Serenity forcefully shut the door.Zachary dared not feign pity and obediently withdrew his leg. Then, he watched Serenity shut the door and lock it.Only after some time did Zachary return to his room. After taking a bath, he moved a single-seater couch and placed it outside Serenity’s room. Then, he brought over a blanket. He sat on the couch with the blanket wrapping him and slept at the door to block her way.He was worried Serenity would sneak out of the room and climb the wall to leave the house after he fell asleep. In fact, Serenity did have such an idea.In the dead of night, she secretly walked to the door and opened the door gently. She pulled the door slightly open, only to see Zachary sleepin
It was impossible Zachary would allow Clive to come over.Clive was unaware that Zachary had restricted Serenity’s freedom. Serenity did not think about asking for Clive’s help either. If Clive came over to look for Zachary, he was bound to learn it.Zachary had no regard for other people.However, he must not hold Clive and his mother with contempt.Furthermore, Mrs. Stone was Serenity’s aunt and elder.She had the right to stand up for Serenity.“Alright. I’ll let Clive know.”With that, Josh promptly ended the call. If he had ended it any later, Zachary might ask him for a solution again.Zachary rejected his suggestions, so what could he do?Zachary soon left the villa. He told Brandt to remind Serenity to have her breakfast.He had half the group of security guards to watch the villa in case Serenity escaped when he was away.Forty minutes later at the CEO’s office in York Corporation.Zachary and Clive entered the office practically one after another.Zachary walked
After a while, Clive asked, “How did Serenity react after she learned of your identity? Her phone has been off, so I can’t get through.”Zachary said sarcastically, “You’re not close with your cousin because you haven’t spent much time bonding with her, huh? I could already get through Seren’s phone last night. You claimed that her phone had been off, but how many times have you tried to call her?“Why should I tell you her reaction? That’s our business. It has nothing to do with you.”Even though Mrs. Stone was Serenity’s aunt, they had not spent much time bonding with each other. Their relationship was new.To him, only his sister-in-law had the right to tell him off.The Stones had no right to do so.Clive was at a loss for words.After being quiet for a while, Clive continued, “Zachary, sorry to bother you today. I might sound selfish for considering Elisa’s feelings and not Serenity’s.“You know Serenity better than I do. You should know her temper. After she learned of yo
“If this had happened two months ago, I believe she’d happily agree to get a divorce without any regrets. But now, I don’t think she’ll do so. After all, it’s not easy to get over a relationship.”After pausing for a moment, Josh asked curiously, “Have you gotten her pregnant?”Zachary replied, “Nope…”Zachary and Serenity did not use protection. They tried their best to make a baby, but nothing happened.Perhaps they were not fated to have a baby yet.“Since you don’t have a child to connect you and Serenity, you have only yourself to rely on. Zachary, you’re no fool. Since the incident took place, you’ve done a series of things based on instinct. Ask yourself. If you were Serenity, how would you feel after being deceived, imprisoned, and hit?“Now, we’re not talking about whether you lied to her. This isn’t a big deal. The main issue is that the things you did after you made a mistake have upset Serenity.“You fear she wants a divorce, but can you stop her by imprisoning her?
“It’s not a big deal now even though Serenity brought up the divorce because she hasn’t taken action. All she did was draft a divorce agreement. As long as you haven’t received the agreement, there’s still a chance to turn back. It depends on how you handle it.“Give it some thought. I’ll go out and get you some food. Look at yourself. After a night, you lost the vitality you used to have. You look spiritless, and I sympathize with you.“Alas, why aren’t you in love with me instead? If you are, I guarantee that you won’t be facing these troubles.”Zachary grabbed something from the desk and hurled it at Josh. He could not help but taunt, “I’m straight. Stop tricking me. If Ms. Sox finds out about it, you’ll have to forget about getting together with her.”After Josh saw him smile, he said, “Now that you can laugh, I’m relieved.”He left and bought his best friend some food.It warmed Zachary’s heart.He was extremely fortunate to have Josh as his buddy.When Zachary was alone i
Zachary glanced at the stack of documents held by Mr. Chaplin and said, “Send them to Callum and tell him to take care of it. If he doesn’t dare make a decision, then tell him to ask Nana.“Also, tell him that I might only come back to the company occasionally these days. He’s also a man from the York family, so he should help share the burden of the family business.”Mr. Chaplin nodded and agreed.Was the boss going to put aside his work and devote himself to coaxing his wife?Zachary took large strides to the elevator after instructing Mr. Chaplin.A few minutes later, he left York Corporation in his car.At the same time, Mr. Chaplin knocked on Callum’s office door and relayed what Zachary said to him.Callum’s face fell when he looked at the pile of documents that Mr. Chaplin was holding. Then, he said, “Leave them here. I’ll tell you to get them when I’m done.”“Thank you, Mr. Callum.“By the way, Mr. Zachary said he might only occasionally come to the office these days.
Zachary’s eyes flashed with hurt, but he did not react as fiercely as he did yesterday.He said gently, “Seren, do you really want to keep those little animals? If you do, I’ll tell Brandt to lead the way. Ms. Sox and you can go see our family orchard. If you think it’s suitable to rear chickens there, you can keep them there. You can take care of them yourself if you want or let the workers do it.”Serenity frowned. “I didn’t see an orchard at your house when you brought me over during the holidays.”“The hills planted with fruit trees next to Wildridge Manor is the orchard. It’s the York family’s ancestral manor.”Serenity was not surprised that her in-laws had a manor.They were rich.They were involved in all sorts of industries as long as there was money to be earned.“Are you willing to let me out of this villa?”Serenity captured the key points of Zachary’s remarks.Zachary looked at her, and she met his gaze. When the couple looked at each other, Serenity finally saw t
Serenity laughed and said, “I hope I’ll be toasting at your wedding soon.”Peter replied, “I think I'll get married before Dylan does.”Dylan’s romantic path had been much more complicated because he had not wanted to follow the smooth, well-paved road that Grandma May had arranged for him.“We have lots of happy occasions lined up after Christmas, then,” Camryn remarked.“Yes, lots,” Serenity agreed.The courtyard was lively, with the elders occasionally joining in on the fun. Meanwhile, inside the house, Dylan was thinking about what Serenity had told him. She had repeatedly said that the person Grandma May picked for him would definitely be the right one, someone who would suit him well.She also suggested that he look into Imogen and that there might be a pleasant surprise in store for him, but that he was not to let Imogen know. The implication in Serenity’s words was that Imogen might be Fox and that Fox’s real identity was Imogen Doyle herself.After understanding Serenit
Dylan frowned as he pondered deeply.“The scent from outside is wafting in. I think the food’s ready. I’m going out to have a couple of skewers to satisfy my cravings. You can stay here and think things through.”Seeing that Dylan had finally grasped the main point, Serenity stopped the conversation and went out to have some barbecue. It had been a long time since she had eaten barbecue.After getting pregnant, although she was not as strictly monitored as Jasmine was, she still paid close attention to her diet and would do her best to avoid things she could not eat or had to limit. Liberty called her every few days to remind her to be careful.When Zachary saw Serenity come out of the house, he immediately picked up a plate of freshly grilled skewers to his beloved wife, saying, “I deliberately used less seasoning on these for you, so you can eat them with peace of mind. Sonny’s asleep now, right?” “He fell asleep long ago, after playing so hard today,” Serenity replied, then gr
In that case, Grandma May would not even need to step in to teach him a lesson. His older brothers would beat him up multiple times for tarnishing the York family’s reputation and dragging their names in the mud with his own.“Dylan, I told you that if you didn’t trust Nana, you’d face the consequences. Look, you’re starting to suffer now, aren’t you?” Serenity said. Who was Grandma May? She was a kind-hearted but cunning old fox who could sell someone out and still make them feel grateful for it as they counted the money she made for her. How could she pick a bad match for her grandsons? There was no way they would be unsuitable. “Serenity, it’s not that I don’t trust Nana, it’s just that I really couldn’t fall in love with Imogen. I feel like if I couldn’t fall for her in almost three months then I just won’t. And I always thought about Fox when I was with Imogen. I’m not some naïve kid who doesn’t understand what that means.” Dylan smiled bitterly. His family always compla
“Callum and Camryn came with Trenton, so they’re all having a barbecue together.”Serenity hummed in response. She closed the door to Sonny's room and said to Dylan, “Is it something you don’t want Zachary to know? If so, let’s go to his study to talk." “It’s not that. It’s fine if he knows, but I’ve talked to him, and he couldn’t be bothered. Then I asked Julian, but he said he was busy. He’s taking Ms. Crawford to register their marriage tomorrow. I just wanted a little help from him; I didn’t need him to do it personally.” Dylan grumbled a little about Julian being unhelpful.If Julian could hear this, he would retort, “Why should I help you? Even Zachary isn’t that demanding.”If it were not for the fact that Zachary and his cousin, Josh, were best buddies, Julian would not be so obliging either. Among the Yorks, Grandma May was the person the Buchams most respected. Of course, if it were something important, the Bucham family would definitely help, but Dylan’s request se
“I haven’t felt like snacking lately.”“Is the stuff made at home not to your taste anymore?” Whenever Serenity said she did not want to eat something she usually loved, Zachary would wonder if it was because the chef’s skills had declined, causing his beloved wife to lose her appetite. “It’s not that, I just don’t feel like eating them. I think maybe the baby is like you and doesn’t like sweets.”Zachary smiled. “If our son is like me, that’s fine. He’ll be steady, and in the future, the two of us will protect you.” If they had a daughter, he hoped she would be like Serenity. If she had his personality… Well, it would not be the most charming. Zachary wanted his daughter to be very likable. “I don’t need you guys to protect me, I can protect myself.”“Honey, don’t say that. I’m your husband, your man. You have to give me a chance to show off, or else people will say you married a useless husband. That would be so unfair to me.”Serenity chuckled.“Do you want to go watch So
“I can be just as considerate and attentive to you.”Quinn looked at him and could not help but laugh. “I don't mean anything else by that, you don’t need to be so defensive.”“You envy Serenity,” Julian said. “I don't want you to envy anyone. I want you to be someone others envy.”Uh, this sounded exactly like something Zachary would say. It looked like, occasionally, he really had learned a thing or two from Zachary.Quinn instantly felt smitten. She looped her arm through Julian's and whispered, “I already am someone others envy. I’m not envious of Serenity—I was just making an observation. They say Mr. Zachary dotes on his wife, and Serenity is very lucky. Now that I’ve witnessed it with my own eyes, I believe it. So, I genuinely sighed with admiration. I know I’m very lucky as well. You treat me so well, and I am content. I really don’t envy anyone.”The young couple’s conversation went unnoticed by Zachary. He waited for his wife to settle before answering a call from Dylan.
“Well, Rowan can play for a couple of days, but he has to start working on his homework soon. The college entrance exam is around the corner, and we can't let him relax too much.”“Rowan's grades are very stable and good. It won’t be hard for him to get into college, so don't put too much pressure on him. It's not necessary for him to get into the same university you and the others went to.”Serenity still remembered the pressure she had felt in high school, though it was not as much as Rowan felt, and her sister's expectations for her were more relaxed; she was only expected to do her best. No matter what the results were, Liberty would accept it. Of course, if she could get into an Ivy League university, that would be great. Otherwise, getting into an Ivy Plus university would also be fine. If that did not work out, she could go to a public university or even take a gap year. Liberty would have been okay with any of it. Her sister always told her that as long as she was physica
Zachary would not do such a thing. Julian laughed. “It’s my first time getting married. I’m asking around because I’m inexperienced. That way, I can make a plan.”Zachary turned to look at him. He said, “How many more times do you intend to get married? I didn’t have any experience either back then. It was my first time going to City Hall. Besides, Seren and I got married in a rush and did not even know each other well. After getting our marriage license, I completely forgot that I was a married man.“You’re in a better situation than I was. At least you and Quinn have feelings for each other and a stable relationship.”Julian chuckled. He caught up to Zachary and placed his arm on his shoulder. He said, “We all know what we should avoid after you’ve set an example.”Zachary was speechless. “You and Serenity are an enviable couple now.“I want to learn from you and make people jealous of Quinn as well.”Zachary brushed Julian’s hand off. “I think you’ll do a better job than m
Zachary and Julian exited the house with two housekeepers behind them, holding a tray each with snacks and drinks. The two men had excellent eyesight and quickly spotted the love of their lives sitting at a bench some distance away. Zachary knew that it was because Serenity got tired from walking. In the past, some pregnant female employees would return to work despite being pretty far along in their pregnancies. Their workload was only slightly lighter. Since Zachary had seen those employees insisting on working even though they were pregnant, he used to think being pregnant and giving birth were not that difficult. He had never put himself in the shoes of the female employees. They insisted on working because they feared being replaced if they took an extended maternity leave. When they returned, they could be discriminated against and had to start all over again. While there were opportunities to be promoted in a megacorporation, one had to climb the corporate ladder ste