“No, Henry! You can’t! What about Melinda?” Linda threw herself onto him in a panicked state. “She’s your favorite daughter, you can’t give up on her!”Melinda was crying so hard that her tears had almost run dry. She could not believe it. How did things end up like this?She had lost her shares and her succession rights, and the shareholders were all cursing her name… this was supposed to be the day North Myers died. Why was she the one who ended up losing it all?!When Melinda looked into North’s eyes, indignation and anger rose within her. Everything went black and just like that, she passed out.“Melinda! Melinda!” Linda crawled to Melinda’s side, crying. “Save our daughter, Henry… ”However, Henry had no time to waste on them. Fearfully, he asked, “Are my arrangements good enough for you, Mr. Gerald?”Gerald replied casually, “For North’s sake, I can drop the issue with Myers Corporation. However, I hope you understand that a b*stard daughter is a b*stard daughter, Mr. Henry
“I was looking at…” North was still wondering what she should say when she suddenly thought of a good idea and replied, “I was looking at… your face! I’ve never seen a man as handsome as you are, so I got distracted!”Gerald was speechless.The two of them stood at the stairway for so long that women kept passing by them. The women would murmur things about Gerald being handsome and charismatic. Some even said that he looked like a celebrity.Now that North had useful proof, she raised her voice. “See, everyone thinks so too. You’re so perfect, Mr. Howard. What’s wrong with looking at you?”Gerald suddenly chuckled. “But why are you looking at me? Do you like me?”North’s mind went blank. Was that what she was saying?Gerald leaned closer, making his face look bigger and bigger. He only stopped when their faces were only an inch apart.North felt chills. On instinct, she wanted to close her eyes. However, she was stopped.“You can get a closer look if you like, Mrs. Howard. Y
They were only married in name, and their marriage was a marriage of convenience. There was no point in asking things like these.…Over at Myers Corporation, the meeting room was filled with dead silence after Gerald left. Disappointment was practically written on the shareholders’ faces.Henry took a deep breath, then said, “Let’s end the meeting.”As the shareholders walked out, Madam Myers was still shaking and muttering, “You can’t let that b*tch get away with this, Henry. You can’t…”Linda joined in, crying, “Why did you promise Mr. Howard to do that, Henry? What would Melinda do without the succession rights? She was a b*stard daughter, to begin with. How could you play favorites like this? My poor daughter…”Henry felt a splitting headache coming on. He felt like his brain was about to explode.He felt so many emotions all at once. He was lost, regretful, indignant, and enraged. He just wanted some peace and quiet, but these two women just would not stop crying!He co
Boarded the plane? Ten hours or so? Was that woman returning from overseas?Since when did Gerald have such a close friend? And a female friend, too… “Your dinner is ready, Madam.” Steward interrupted North’s train of thought. “How’s your practice going?”North snapped out of her trance and replied, “I’m quite familiar with the song now. Madam Bracken won’t be disappointed.”Steward shook his head. “You should be calling her Grandmother. Alright, let’s eat.”North nodded, then seemed to think of something. “Mr. Steward, who was Gerald talking to on the phone?”Steward’s expression stiffened, but he quickly recovered. “Yes, Mr. Gerald has a friend who’s returning soon. Please don’t think too much of it.”North frowned.She had not been thinking too much of it…But now that Steward had asked her not to, she suddenly got the feeling that he was trying to cover something up.What kind of woman would make Steward so worried about her misunderstanding that he would feel the need t
North barely batted an eye. “Is bullying the weak the only thing you learned from all those years you spent with Melinda? Can’t I buy something without knowing how to appreciate it? What, do you own this store?”“Why, you!” Summer got anxious enough to snap, “You’re just a country girl who won’t understand a painting even if you bought one! How is that a good thing?”She had heard the gallery was tied to Nicholas Sherman. That was why she had deliberately dressed up and pretended to be a woman of culture. She had been hoping to bump into Nicholas here.However, not only had she not met Nicholas yet, but she had bumped into North!Summer suddenly thought of something and acted as if a light bulb had lit up in her head. “You’re not here to seduce Mr. Sherman, are you?!”North raised an eyebrow. “Seduce?”Summer acted like she had caught North red-handed, yelling, “How could you be so shameless?! Do you think Mr. Sherman is someone you can target? I know he’s both handsome and capab
When Summer heard Melinda’s name, she hastily smiled. “You remember me, Mr. Sherman? We met at the South family party the other day. Yes, she’s my cousin. North insisted that you knew her and you were here for her, so I couldn’t stand it—”“Do you think she’s wrong?” Nicholas asked coldly.Summer froze. “O-Of course I do. Why would North Myers know you?”Nicholas snorted. “Miss Lane, I just told you North was my esteemed guest. Did you not understand what I said?”Summer’s smile stiffened.Of course, she understood. She just did not want to believe it.Why would North Myers be Nicholas Sherman’s esteemed guest? What did that country girl do to deserve this?!Nicholas scoffed. “Looks like you did understand me. But if that’s the case, I’m curious. On what grounds do you think North isn’t fit to work with me?”Summer’s mind went blank. The way Nicholas defended North made her both jealous and indignant. “Because Melinda said…”“The reason I returned was because Miss Smithson str
The looks in everyone’s eyes shifted.“Stole a necklace and framed Miss North for it?” an onlooker asked.“Yeah, Mr. Sherman. What if she pulls the same trick again?” another asked.“I was wondering why she accused Miss North right away. She was trying to make her the scapegoat,” someone else added.Meanwhile, North smiled. “What do you think, Mr. Sherman?”Nicholas looked into her eyes and finally understood what she was trying to do. “I was there when it happened. Miss Lane stole a sapphire necklace that belonged to Melinda, then tried to frame you for it. Indeed, a person like her is not welcome at our gallery.”Everyone else believed him.After all, there was no reason for both North and Nicholas to frame Summer, right?Everyone could not get far enough away from Summer.Their disdainful gazes hurt Summer so badly that she got desperate. “What are you talking about, North?! It wasn’t me, it wasn’t! It was…”Melinda was the one who could not stand the sight of North. The w
North flinched. She thought she had heard him wrong. “T-There’s no way it’s that coincidental, right?”Nicholas shrugged and stepped aside to make way. “Go see for yourself if you don’t believe me. However, I should remind you that if you don’t come up with some excuse, Gerald will be coming in.”North gulped and fell silent.Then, she became visibly anxious. “Has he seen me yet?”Nicholas shook his head. “No, actually.”North suddenly had an idea. “Then pretend I was never here. I’ll leave through the back door!”She was about to take action and leave through the back door with her painting. However, by pure coincidence, Gerald was at the back door too!North could feel her scalp tingle. She sensed there was no escape and was thinking of an excuse when suddenly…“Gerald, I’m done shopping. Mom and Dad are asking if you want to come over and have dinner with us?” a woman asked gently from a spot nearby.North paused. That voice was just like the one she had heard on the phon