Seeing that it was Josh, the two hounds stopped barking and wagged their tails at him. Josh was often around the Soxes’ residence in the name of hanging out with Drake. His frequent visits gave Mrs. Sox the wrong idea that Josh took a fancy to Drake, but it also drew him closer to the two hounds. Drake came to open the door. “Are you here for me?” Josh answered with a smile, “You wish. I’m here for your sister.” Drake grinned. “I found out yesterday that my mom thought you had a crush on me. Haha! That was hilarious.” “I’m surprised Mrs. Sox took it the wrong way.” “Well, you always came looking for me. Anyway, my sister’s getting dressed upstairs. She said she doesn’t care if you come, but she hasn’t decided what to wear since getting up. Oh, women. It’s one of those no-means-yes moments.” Josh told him off, “Don’t speak ill of your sister in front of me.” Drake commented, “Are you on her side already?” “Drake, is that Josh? Oh, it is Josh. Come on in.” Mrs. Sox
Josh said with a smile, “I better work on it so I can get the bigger gift from you soon.” “I heard that no gossip slips past your family,” Mr. Sox chimed in. Josh replied, “That’s true. Are you into gossip?” Mr. Sox uttered with a straight face, “Gossip doesn’t appeal to someone of my age, but you can share a little with me when we have nothing to do. I’m fine with it.” Squealing at her husband, Mrs. Sox remarked, “Jasmine takes after him.” Jasmine’s love for the buzz and gossip came from her father. Josh happened to be the same type. He and Jasmine seemed destined together. God knew what embarrassing moments Jasmine’s parents would share with Josh while she was not around. Hence, Jasmine finally decided on a dress after standing in front of her wardrobe all day. Jasmine wore a dress, grabbing her phone on the way out. “Get it together, Jas. Josh is downstairs.” Drake called her sister’s attention to her bearing. She should walk like a lady. Now that an eligible
Zachary had no idea his commitment to work had caused distress to the entire office. It was Monday after he took seven days to cool off. He invited Serenity out at the start of a new week. The injury on Serenity’s hand healed up well after seven days of rest. At least, she could now drive. Zachary asked to meet her at the presidential suite on the top floor of Wiltspoon Hotel. Serenity brought Sonny along. The little man was with her today because the facelift for Liberty’s restaurant was nearing completion. Since Liberty would be busy in the coming days, she did not have time to look after Sonny. The responsibility of caring for Sonny fell on Serenity’s shoulders. “Mrs. York.” Standing at the hotel entrance, Jim and his colleague watched as Serenity carried Sonny out of the car. Jim went ahead and respectfully said hello. “Where’s your boss?” “Mr. Zachary is waiting for you on the top floor. Please come with us.” Remaining deferential throughout, Jim and his colleagu
Paperwork for the transfer of Zachary’s personal assets, including York Corporation shares, bank accounts, and all title deeds of residential and commercial properties had been sorted and packed in one envelope for Serenity. “You will own the company’s equity, but I’ll manage York Corporation for you. The profit will be yours to keep. I’m only working for you. If you have a financial target in mind, I will do my best to help you reach that goal. “We can proceed with the paperwork to transfer everything to your name if you’re okay with it. I won’t keep anything. You can decide how much you want to give me for allowance.“I kept my guard against you, thinking you were out to get my money. Now, I’m handing over everything I have to you to prove my confidence in you and apologize through my actions. I promise all the hiding and lies won’t happen again.” Without looking at the deeds, Serenity stuffed the document back into the envelope and stared at him in silence. “Say something,
Pre-empting that Serenity would reject his gesture, Zachary put forth a threat before that could happen. “I’ll throw these papers out of the window if you don’t accept the envelope. You’re the head of the household. Why should I care if you don’t give a sh*t about our family asset? All that matters to me is you.” Serenity was lost for words. After going a week without seeing each other, Serenity thought he understood where she was coming from and was ready to change his tyrannical attitude when he asked to meet. Nevertheless, Serenity was left to sigh at his threat. A leopard could not possibly change its spots. He was born this way. She should not have counted on herself to be special and be able to change him. Zachary would not change, and she did not want to change. The only option left was to work their problems out one by one. Serenity locked eyes with Zachary for a long time before picking up the envelope. She pulled out a black card from the envelope and gave it to
“Um… Can I take you to see our properties?” Zachary was referring to the houses he bought before they got married. The properties he bought were mostly villas with front and back gardens. Zachary only purchased properties in catchment areas that were highly sought after. He was single back then, but he knew his family would not stop bugging him about getting married. There would be a time when he would have a family of his own. For his children’s education, he bought houses in a few areas with great schools. His future children would have the freedom to study wherever they wanted to. “Aren’t you busy with your work?” “Work comes second when I’m with you.” Serenity replied disagreeably, “It should at least be sometime during the weekend when you and I don’t have to work.” She did not want to pull him out of his busy schedule. Zachary was only testing the waters. Now that he got an answer, he could breathe a sigh of relief. For Serenity to be fine with looking at the
It then dawned on Zachary the difference in various levels. Serenity would end up like Liberty before the divorce if she did not have a job. She would have to rely on Zachary’s handouts, which he might start to moan about at some time. Unlike his mother, Serenity did not go from one wealthy family to another. Even without working, his mother received profits from her family trust fund and inheritance to be financially independent. Tania once mentioned that her parents were worried she might have a rough time with her in-laws after marrying Zachary’s father, the heir of the York family. To counter that, her parents named Tania as one of the bigger beneficiaries of the family inheritance. There was a company under Zachary’s mother’s name that grew into a listed corporation through the decades. His mother now managed a company that brought in billions in revenue. Suddenly, it made sense to Zachary why Serenity asked for independence and to have time to blend into his circle. S
Serenity carried Sonny all the way to the car. She unlocked and opened the door to place Sonny in his child’s seat. She then turned around to face Zachary who was standing behind her. “I got to go.” Zachary looked into her eyes for a while before finding his voice. “Okay.” He looked at her front bumper and commented, “You should use another car.” Serenity had gotten into the car and started the engine by then. Winding down the window, she said, “This is the first car you gave me.” Zachary’s eyes darkened. She drove off. Standing there, Zachary watched as her car disappeared. Jim, together with the other bodyguards, stood on duty a distance away. They dared not come close. Although Mr. Zachary and his wife did not get into another fight, the couple was distant from each other. The prior lovingness was no more. Once Serenity’s car was out of sight, Zachary put his hand up and waved. His security detail approached. “To the office,” Zachary uttered gruffly. With Ji
Austin said, “He’s definitely here to discuss a potential partnership with your company.“He's just the acting head of the Longbottoms. He doesn’t truly control the family. If the real head returns, everything he’s worked for will go to someone else.“The downfall of Belinda Fisher probably gave him a wake-up call and he doesn’t want to end up like that.“He’s definitely seeking to cooperate with you regarding his personal business. He’s just using the Longbottoms’ name, since their influence in Windermere is enormous.”In terms of wealth, the O'Connors and the Longbottoms were on equal footing, but the O'Connors had fewer members and did not have the same level of influence in Windermere as the Longbottoms.Isabella said, “He’s very ambitious. A partnership would only just be the beginning. Once it’s established, he’ll start thinking about how to cheat us and steal our business.“Plus, he’s very lecherous. Nobody can put a number to how many women he’s toyed with. Some even lost
Tony was aware that whenever his wife had to play the villain, it was always to protect him. He said, “You're right, I misspoke. Your mother isn’t that kind of person.”“Manny, I’ll be leaving soon. You stay here, and I’ll leave half of my men with you. If anything comes up that you can't handle, contact me. I’ll be waiting to hear good news from you.” Tony decided to fly to Wiltspoon in the afternoon. He would only stay for two or three days before returning to Havenmill to handle business.However, as he thought about how he was working like a horse for Longbottom Corporation when many of the benefits did not even belong to him personally, Tony felt a bit disgruntled.“Got it.” Manny did not reject his father’s arrangement.As the Longbottom father and son were discussing how to deal with the O’Connors, Austin entered Isabella’s office.Isabella was busy, so Austin did not disturb her. He quietly sat at the tea table and made some tea.“It seems you’ve learned the art of tea-
Manny had never been to Wiltspoon, but he knew from his father that several prominent families in Wiltspoon had close ties with the Johnsons from Annenburg. It was possible that the child adopted by the Johnsons’ young missus was Laurence. Unfortunately, he could not meet that child, so he could not be a hundred percent certain. The child was currently out of sight and well-protected, hidden so effectively that even the Longbottoms’ information network could not find anything. The other prominent families in Wiltspoon were also helping to keep the child hidden, so Manny deeply disliked the people from these families. Even though they were thousands of miles away, they were still an obstacle to him and his father in their pursuit of becoming the true head of the family.“That's right. If we can conquer the O’Connors, we’ll have a backup plan,” his father said. “You must put your all into it, son. If you need help, just let me know, though this is also an opportunity for you to ge
Tony Longbottom was the only person who would put on such a parade. The big shots in Satbury usually had entourages of their own, but none would put on a spectacle as big as Tony would.As they departed in their car, Tony’s gracious demeanor utterly shattered.His face twisted into an ugly, cruel expression as he said, “I’ve never been treated like this before, even when the legitimate branch of the family still lived, and those two ignorant little girls actually refused to see me multiple times.”Manny was very angry too and he said, “Pops, since they refuse to go about this the easy way, we’ll have to show them the hard way. We can approach it from other angles, and once they’re completely out of business and they have nowhere else to turn to, they’ll be at our mercy.“Won’t they have to do as we please then? I want to marry them, they’ll have to marry me, and if I don’t, I’ll just make them my mistresses. Don’t the O’Connors have plenty of daughters? I’ll fuck every one of them
“Isabella O’Connor is so outstanding, so why are you asking me to go for Tati O’Connor instead?” Manny said under his breath in puzzlement.He had seen photos of the two ladies and Isabella’s appearance was more striking. She had a cold and aloof aura that easily triggered his desire to conquer her, and after just a few glances, he was captivated.If it were up to him, Manny would choose Isabella.Tony looked at his son, smiled, and said, “You can’t control her. Of course, if you manage to make her fall for you, we can talk about switching. But for now, focus on Tati O’Connor.”Tati was also beautiful. However, she did not have Isabella’s cold demeanor. She seemed much gentler, like she smiled often.“Marrying Tati O’Connor would be a big advantage for both you and our family.”Manny thought for a moment and then nodded in understanding. “Got it, Dad.”Manny’s good looks, wealth, honeyed tongue, and generosity toward girls made him good at winning them over. Pursuing a rich youn
After testing the O’Connor sisters and realizing they were not like other women, Mr. Longbottom thought of having his son marry Tati.He knew that his son would not be able to handle or control Isabella, so he set his sights on Tati. Tati probably did not realize she was considered an easy target. Most people underestimated her because she had always kept a low profile.At that moment, a young man got out from the other side of the Rolls-Royce. He resembled Mr. Longbottom. Indeed, he was Mr. Longbotton’s eldest son, Manny.“Dad.”Manny went to his father’s side and glanced at the building before him. He asked, “Aren’t we driving inside?”In Havenmill, Manny could do whatever he wished because his father was the interim head of the Longbottom family. While he had no respect for ordinary people at all, he was clever enough not to offend people he should not.He never parked his car outside the places he wanted to go and simply drove his car through the gates. However, Manny
Meanwhile in Satbury, a few luxury cars stopped at the entrance of Costa Corporation. The door of the first car, a Rolls-Royce, opened. A bodyguard came out of the car.He waited for his boss, who was sitting in the backseat to exit.Mr. Longbottom got out of the car. Although he was over fifty years old, he looked like he was in his forties as he maintained his appearance well.He wore a white tailored suit with a tie, which made him look more youthful.The bodyguards in the other cars alighted as well.They quickly stood behind Mr. Longbottom to protect him. It was also his display of power.A few bodyguards grabbed many gift boxes from the trunks. Mr. Longbottom stood in front of the company and raised his head to look at the sixty-eight-storey office building. It was a symbol of the O’Connor family’s abilities.Costa Corporation was not the family’s only business. They were involved in many industries and were successful in all of them.The O’Connors were wealthy and powe
Jasmine added, “In some cases, the divorced women can get married to a better man, while the divorced men can’t even find a new wife. There are many single men now.“Isn’t there a saying nowadays that men who have wives are extremely lucky?”When Jasmine was at the bookstore, she would also visit the neighboring stores to listen to juicy gossip. Many of the store owners were not locals and they had many stories to tell. Someone said there was an evil mother-in-law in a rural area who looked down on her daughter-in-law. She would egg her son on to abuse his wife and get a divorce. She would also tell her son that she could find a better and younger wife for him. However, once the divorce went through, news of the mother-in-law’s evil deeds and the son’s domestic abuse spread far and wide. Who would dare marry off their daughters to a man like that?Besides, holding another wedding would require a lot of money. The cost of a wedding had increased a lot compared to the past.Whe
“Sonny’s fine. He has recovered. You want to get Sonny from school?”After thinking about it, Serenity agreed and said, “Okay. I’ll message Sonny’s teacher later to tell her you’ll be taking him.”“Okay, Serenity. Thank you.”Hank was thankful that Serenity did not make things difficult for him. Serenity and Liberty had great character. Liberty had a new relationship and already let go of her resentment for Hank. She could coexist with him peacefully. On the other hand, Serenity still held grudges against Hank. However, since he and Liberty had divorced, he could no longer hurt her. He was also Sonny’s father. Serenity was willing to tolerate him for Sonny’s sake. Therefore, she always said yes whenever Hank requested to meet his son. “You’ll be taking Sonny out to eat after picking him up, right? Remember not to let him eat too much fried food, especially fried chicken and fries. He’ll get a sore throat.“He got a fever that day due to a throat inflammation.”“Got it. I’ll