When Christopher saw the forced smile on her face, he pursed his lips and decided to stay quiet. Sylvia continued watching the dancing couple at the floor. Odell and Lily were swaying romantically along with the soothing music. Odell’s towering figure looked elegant as he held Lily’s hand around. Lily followed his lead. She tiptoed and spun elegantly from time to time, showing off not only her dancing skills but also her slender figure. The two of them really looked great with each other. Sylvia simply watched in silence. Thomas also watched them beside her, and he would observe her expression from time to time. However, Sylvia was captivated by the dancing couple and did not notice Thomas’s gaze. At the end of the music, the first dance ended. The crowd applauded enthusiastically, and even Sylvia clapped a few times just to go along with the flow. As the applause subsided, Odell held Lily’s hand as they walked off the dance floor. It was then that the yellow ligh
Odell frowned. He put his glass down and bolted up, which startled Lily. Master Springsteen had returned to his chamber due to his health reason, so only Madam Springsteen and the other family members were around. The moment he stood up, he caught the attention of the other members of the Springsteen family. Odell turned to Madam Springsteen and said, “Madam, please excuse me as I need to attend to my work affairs.” Madam Springsteen was stunned, and so was Lily. The expression on the young lady's face froze. Before anyone could react properly, Odell was already walking toward the exit. It was then the lively crowd became quiet again as the second dance ended. They were to pick the third and final lucky pair to have the third dance. All the lights went off, leaving only the spotlight on to pick its lucky pair. A few seconds later, it stopped on the third pair of couple and the result shocked everyone. Someone said out of surprise, “Who are they? I haven’t seen the
Madam Springsteen was surprised by his sudden return. She immediately smiled at him politely. Lily also turned to him. Ramona asked with a smile, “Odell, aren’t you going back?” Odell sat down on a single couch and answered, “I figured I haven’t received the prize from Master Springsteen.” He sounded cold, similar to his frosty look. Ramona chuckled awkwardly. “Oh right, you were the first lucky winner of the night.” Madam Springsteen shot a suggestive gaze at Lily. The man sounded unhappy. Could it be that he was unhappy about his ex-wife dancing with another man? Lily stared at Odell with a complicated look. Odell started sipping on his glass of wine elegantly as he stared at the dancing couple with a frosty look. The music was at its conclusion. Sylvia spun two turns under Thomas’ arm and precisely stopped her movements along with the music. The crowd applauded. Sylvia and Thomas bowed at everyone and wanted to return to where they came from. However, the
Thomas had a subtle glance at her before he took his gift. The butler smiled at them after giving them their respective gifts. He then took the last box from the servant and went over to Odell with his back arched. He wanted to present the gift to Odell himself. Sylvia had one glance at the direction and saw Odell’s frosty gaze. She looked away immediately and went back to the corner on the other side of the hall. Thomas also followed her away. Thud! Odell suddenly bolted up. The butler was startled by the man’s sudden reaction. He stepped back immediately and said in a small voice, “Master Carter, this is for you.” Odell frustratedly frowned and said, “Give it to my grandaunt.” He then walked toward the direction where Sylvia and Thomas went off. “Uh… Sir? But…” The butler awkwardly turned to Madam Springsteen and Lily, requesting further instructions. Madam Springsteen reacted bitterly, and so was Lily. The young lady’s face was smeared with displease and fr
There was quite a distance from the door to the main gate. Both sides of the pathway were covered with plants of different heights. Many of the lamps were blocked, causing the pathway unusually dark. There was no one on the pathway at the moment and the chilly night breeze whirred in the air, making it extremely eerie to look at or to be on it. Sylvia tightened her jacket and held her breath as she strode along the eerie pathway. Just a few steps later, a long arm reached out to her from the dark and grabbed her arm. Sylvia was shocked but before she could scream, she was dragged into a familiar embrace. The man’s strong and hurried breathing came from above her head. Sylvia looked up and saw a handsome but frosty face. The man stared at her with a sharp gaze. Sylvia blinked twice before she tried to break free from the man’s embrace but his long arm constricted her waist tightly, preventing her from breaking free. She shouted, “Odell, let go of me!” The man tight
The man’s strong scent of cologne assaulted her nose like a tsunami. Sylvia tried pushing him away but he hugged her with both his arms. He hugged her so tightly that it cramped both her arms in between their chests. There was no space left for her to struggle. The chilly breeze continued to whirr and the leaves of the trees and plants rustled. Under the dim environment, the two of them stayed close together and showed no signs of separating for quite a while. Further away, behind a robust tree, a tall figure saw the two of them. He stared at the intimate duo and saw how the man forced himself onto the woman. Both hands of the woman were cramped tightly and she could not break free at all. He continued to stare with his frosty gaze. …Sometime later, as though the chilly breeze finally stopped, Odell let go of her. Sylvia seized the chance and pushed him away. Odell was caught off guard and was pushed to a stagger. Sylvia also took several steps backward. She wip
“Mommy!” Isabel scuttled away from Aunt Tonya and ran toward her mother. Sylvia carried the little girl in her arms and sat down beside the quiet little boy. She then smiled at Aunt Tonya. “Aunt Tonya, I’ll take care of them. Why don’t you go have some rest?” Aunt Tonya rubbed her eyes tiredly. “Okay, you too.” “Thank you.” Aunt Tonya then went out of the room. Sylvia sat down on the bed with both of her children in her arms. The two little ones looked at her and the girl asked, “Mommy, why is your face red?” Sylvia recalled Odell’s forceful kiss and it made her blush even harder. She gasped for air and forced a smile on her face. “Maybe it’s the wind.” “Are you sick again?” Isabel then got up and put her tiny hand on Sylvia’s forehead. Her soft and warm hand stroked the forehead for a few seconds before she retracted it. She could not tell if her mother was having a fever or not. Sylvia smiled and stroked her head. “Don’t worry, Mommy is fine.” The little gir
On the second morning, Sylvia was still fast asleep when she felt something heavy on her stomach. It felt like a soft rock falling on her. She opened her eyes and saw Isabel giggling at her. “Mommy, the sun is up! Hurry up and wake up!” “Isabel? Why are you awake at this hour?” Sylvia got up with a confused look. “The baddie is here. He said he’s taking us to some fun place today.” Isabel then looked outside the door. Sylvia followed her gaze and saw Odell waiting outside the door. He was leaning on the frame with a sleepy Liam in his arm. He had been staring at her deeply when she was still asleep. Sylvia glared at him the moment she widened her sleepy eyes. He got in! Not only that, he came all the way to her room! Odell curled his lips. “I’m here to bring the kids out. Are you coming?” Sylvia did not want to talk to him but she tended to be less frosty to him in front of the kids. “I have to attend some events at the Art Academy today. I don’t have the time.” O