Isabel's eyes instantly lit up, but she was still angry and did not utter a word.Soon, the phone was taken away by a small hand. Liam's cool appearance and Flint's adorable face appeared on the screen.Liam hugged Flint and asked, "Mommy, when will you and Daddy be back tomorrow?""We're going back in the morning, so we should reach home at noon."At that moment, Flint also waved his chubby hand at her. His mouth babbled, obviously wanting her to carry him. His adorable expression melted Sylvia's heart, and she could not help but pucker her mouth and make a kissy noise at him.Flint immediately burst out into giggles.Then, Isabel's scoff was heard from the side. It was clear that she was unhappy again.Sylvia's expression changed, and she quickly said, "Isabel, come here and let Mommy kiss you too.""I'm not that naive." As soon as she spoke, her chubby pouting face squeezed into the screen.Sylvia held back her laughter and blew a kiss at the screen. After that, she called
Startled, Sylvia wrapped herself in the bathrobe and walked out.In the bedroom, Odell was wearing a black robe, and his tall figure sank lazily on the sofa. Seeing her come out without showering, he was stunned and asked, "What's wrong?"Sylvia said embarrassedly, "I'm on my period.""That's it?""Yeah."The light in the bedroom was quite bright, so Odell could see the plea in her eyes at a glance. His eyes narrowed as he said, "Oh, I see."Then, he picked up the book next to him and read it again.Sylvia's throat choked. "Um, can you...""Can I, what?" He looked at her again with dark eyes.At this point, Sylvia simply said, "Can you ask someone to buy me a pack of tampons?"Odell curved his lips in a seductive smile. "What do you think?"Sylvia blushed and could not help but glare at him. Just as she was about to take her phone to place a delivery order from a supermarket, he suddenly picked up the landline next to him.The phone was quickly connected. He looked at Sylvi
"Okay."...After washing up and getting dressed, they had breakfast. By the time they finished, it was exactly 10 a.m.Sylvia and Odell walked out of the hotel together.Jacob and Cliff were already waiting for them, and John's assistant, Peter, had also arrived.After Peter greeted them, he picked up a beautiful box and said with a smile, "Master Carter and Mrs. Carter, this is a gift that Master Stockton personally chose for you. He is sorry that he couldn't come over to give it to you in person, but this is a little token of his appreciation."Odell glanced at Cliff who immediately went forward to take the box.Odell said, "He shouldn't have. Please pass on my thanks to him."Peter said, "Yes, I'll definitely convey it to Master Stockton."After the formalities, Sylvia and Odell got into the car, and so did Cliff and Jacob.The black MPV quickly drove into traffic.Cliff handed over the gift.Odell glanced at it and gave it to Sylvia.She weighed the box in her hands. T
John shook off the hand that she slapped away. He glanced at the two people in the front row with a grim gaze. "You two, get out."The driver and Peter hurriedly got out of the car.Then, his straight figure approached Sherry, and one hand reached for her face again.Sherry sat in place, her hands clenched into fists by her side as she looked at him coldly. Just when his hand was about to squeeze her face, she suddenly got up.Bam!With a heavy sound, she pressed John back against the car seat. She pinned him down, clutching his collar with both hands, and asked him coldly, "What did you give them?"Her face was red, and her eyes were full of hatred and killing intent.John was stunned for a moment. Then, his face returned to normal. "Seems like I've treated you too well these few days.""Cut the crap!" Sherry directly grabbed his neck, her gaze sinister. "Tell me. What exactly did you give them?"John narrowed his eyes. "Don't you want to help the Fowlers and your childhood f
At that moment, Sylvia's cry drew a response."Mommy!" Isabel's loud voice sounded, and she scurried out like a gust of wind.Immediately after that, Liam and Aunt Tonya, who was carrying Flint, also came out.Sylvia first hugged Isabel, kissing her chubby face a few times, then took Liam into her arms and did the same to him and Flint.Flint giggled at all the kisses.Isabel and Liam were confused, obviously not expecting Sylvia to kiss them so fiercely as soon as she came back. However, they were only stunned for a few seconds before smiling silently.At that moment, Odell's tall figure walked over.Isabel's eyes lit up as she ran to him. "Bad Daddy!"Odell picked her up with one hand and walked over."Aah!" Flint, who was in Sylvia's arms, also seemed to miss his father and immediately reached out his chubby little hand toward Odell.Odell carried him with his other hand.Seeing the two children being held by their father, Sylvia subconsciously looked at Liam. The little
Sylvia played with the three little ones until the evening.In the evening, Isabel and Liam both had a piano lesson. Aunt Tonya brought Flint to bed.Sylvia went to the third floor by herself. There was a big room with three walls facing the sun.At this time of the day, the orange sunset slanted from the west and landed on the neat and clean table, the floor, and the painting and carving tools on the table.Aunt Tonya had told her about this place, saying that it was a workshop specially prepared for her.Although Sylvia had no memory of this place, she had a familiar feeling as soon as she stepped inside. She could not help but look at the complete sets of painting tools, and the two paintings hanging on the wall.The paintings were framed. Both of them were landscapes, and the artist's signature stamp on the bottom read: Sunflower. The signature stamp was placed in a box in a corner of the table.Sylvia lifted her hand to touch it, but when she remembered that one of these th
Odell looked at her with a stern gaze. "You're not allowed to carve anymore. Wait until your hand is better."Sylvia pursed her lips.Odell frowned again as his expression turned cold. It was clear that his words were not up for discussion, so she had no choice but to put down the carving knife and stood up.He held one of her hands and led her outside.When she passed the painting area, she could not help but glance at the two paintings again.Odell noticed her gaze and looked over."Odell, did I really paint those two paintings?"He looked at her and pursed his lips. "Yeah.""I'm really amazing."He held back a smile and said, "If you feel your hands itch, you can paint for the next few days and continue carving when your hands are better."Sylvia hesitated. "I'd rather not."The reason why she could carve so smoothly was most likely because she used to carve erasers for fun when she was in school. However, the two paintings in front of her were in no way something that sh
Half an hour later, Sylvia arrived at a pedestrian street near the Art Academy.The street architecture and installations exuded a vintage and scholarly feel. Various stores were interspersed with the galleries and several small art stores, among which were two sculpting studios.Sylvia went in for a stroll.Some of the carvings were not very skillful, but they had a distinct design. Sylvia bought two trinkets to carry in her hand and then continued to stroll inside.Unknowingly, she reached the end of the street and entered an open painting exhibition.In front of her was a moderately-sized square filled with paintings of all kinds.Sylvia was confused for a moment, but her steps did not stop as she walked toward the paintings.Some of the paintings were mature, some were childish, some were introspective, and some were cheerful and with a lot of personalities. It did not seem like they were the work of students of the Art Academy. Instead, they looked like they were painted by
She was her usual self in every aspect. She put her heart into her job and never started trouble so long as nobody tried to start trouble with her. The crew cycled through their locations during their shoot. The constant travel made her skin break out slightly, but there were no other concerns otherwise. The shoot progressed very smoothly and within three months, they managed to wrap up everything at the mountainous region previously mentioned. It was nearly evening when they wrapped up the shoot. Holding a bouquet in hand, she took a group picture with the crew and celebrated with everyone. After that, she planned to hitch a ride with another crew member and leave for home. To their demise, some men in uniform who claimed to be the road maintenance technicians showed up to break the bad news to them. They mentioned that they had to repair some of the roads urgently and so the way home was temporarily obstructed. The director took his phone and called the city hotline fo
He remembered his first meeting with Isabel. She was sitting all by herself on the floor, in the middle of nowhere. Her vulnerable expression only made her more endearing. So, he managed to get her to go to his place and installed her in his home. He fell for her and paid careful attention to all her needs. It did not take long before Isabel caught feelings for him as well. The two of them got together in no time. Their days were plain and ordinary, but also very fulfilling, that was until he met Clarice. With the help of his father, his power struggle with Roland had reached a tipping point. It was at that opportune moment when Clarice’s father saw something in Roland and planned to wed his daughter Clarice to him to join up their families, which was a cause for alarm for Decker. He stressed over it for an entire night before approaching Clarice himself the very next day. Clarice quickly caught feelings for him as well. Furthermore, Roland had been foolish enough to reject
Decker was smiling quite earnestly at Isabel. Isabel threw a deeply suspicious look at him, then she glanced at the stack of documents laid out on top of the table in front of her. “Transferal of Shares.” She was dumbfounded. "I've gone through the contract, it’s safe to sign so go ahead.” Roland picked up a pen and handed it to her. "Roland, I..." "Sign it first, I’ll explain when we get home.” Isabel frowned and tried to protest. "I—" "Don't make me have to beg." Isabel did not know how to respond. Fine. She briefly scanned through the contract. The contract stated Decker’s agreement to transfer the remaining forty percent of his shares in Rockwell Corporation to her. Roland must have talked to the shareholders of Rockwell Corporation about this as well. They all regarded Isabel with polite smiles. Isabel had flipped through the final page of the document. She signed her name on one of the marked-out sections. She proceeded to sign all thr
They ended the call shortly after that. Isabel glanced at Martha and was hesitating if she should break the news right away. Martha seemed to have sensed her staring and suddenly turned to her with a flash of concern. "Isabel, what's wrong?" Isabel took a deep breath and broke the news. "Auntie, Master Rockwell just passed away." Martha's eyes widened. After a lengthy silence that lasted more than ten seconds, she started to break out in tears. She covered her face with her hands and expressed amid bouts of tears mixed with laughter, “Wonderful! About time! I hope he enjoys life in the underworld. God knows that someone like him will never deserve a spot in heaven!” Isabel did not know whether she should celebrate with Martha or console her. Soon, Martha began to collect herself. She briefly wiped away her tears and joyfully took Isabel's hand. "Isabel, let’s go shopping! I’m in such a good mood today, I’m going to go on a shopping spree!” "Okay. But Roland w
Isabel held onto Roland's hand firmly during the entire drive home after leaving the hospital. It was because Roland’s hands were cold and rigid. Isabel sat with him and tirelessly rubbed his hand to keep them warm. After one hand was warm, she would shift her attention to the other. By the time she managed to warm the other hand, the original hand would turn cold again. She decided it was easier to take both of his hands and caress them with the warmth of her palms. Roland looked at her with a gentle glow deep within his eyes. “Thank you, Isabel,” he said softly. Thank you for loving him, and for sticking by his side all this time despite circumstances. Isabel smiled. “I’m just warming your hands, it's no big deal. Still, you’re welcome." Roland smiled faintly and left it at that. Soon, his hands began to warm up off of the heat of Isabel’s palms. When Isabel felt that his hands were no longer freezing, she prepared to pull her hand away. That was when
Decker looked nothing like his usual self. The pompous, arrogant man who held himself far above others and who expected everyone around him to kiss up to him because he was superior to them all. It was as if he had been plunged not only to Earth but a pile of swamp. He had completely lost his usual grace. Isabel said crossly, "Decker, have you gone mental? Is everything going on too much for you?” “Yeah, could you help me?” he said with a coy smile, “Just one hug should be enough to take care of it all.” Isabel rolled her eyes. Without warning, he suddenly braced himself and lunged right at Isabel, stepping past Brandon who was caught off guard by this sudden attack. Isabel barely had time to react. Just when it seemed like his hand was about to graze Isabel, a long pair of arms seized Isabel from behind and jerked her backward. It was swiftly followed by a long, muscular leg shooting outward right next to Isabel. Thump! Decker was kicked to the ground.
"How did you and Roland meet?" Decker suddenly asked. Isabel turned away, fully intent on ignoring him. "Did you meet each other at Carter Corporation? Or did you meet him outside of work and gradually fell in love with him, then you decided to set him up with a position at Carter Corporation?” What did he mean by that? Was he insinuating that Roland was relying on her to snake his way into Carter Corporation? She threw a sideways, belittling look at him. "Do you think Roland is anything like you? He wouldn’t latch on another woman to further his goals.” Decker was not upset by this as he continued with a smug smile. "Oh? Then how did he get into Carter Corporation?" “He proved his worth.” Isabel realized that she had been roped in by Decker again. Nevertheless, she continued, “He passed the interviews himself. I was one of the interviewers and initially planned to dismiss him, but he managed to leave a very good impression on my father and the rest was history.” "
"I never meant to kill him! Roland, you have to believe me. Why would I still try to deceive you when I’m in this state?” “In that case, you can go ahead and explain things to him in the afterlife.” Master Rockwell was taken aback by this, his demeanor tightened. "You...you..." Roland looked at him calmly. "Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you. It was Grandma and my parents who raised me. They instilled morals and virtue into me and made sure I’d grow into a decent man.” Master Rockwell was briefly relieved to hear this, but before he could rid himself of his trepidation, Roland continued in a dark voice, "But I won’t forget about you and Decker bribing all those media outlets to defame Isabel. I know you manipulated the stock prices to try to kick me out of the corporation. I’ll make sure to settle our score through the legal system.” If convicted guilty, they would have to rot in prison. “Roland… listen to me, Roland. Decker is your uncle. If you want revenge, you can come
Master Rockwell must have heard their shifting movements and opened his eyes. When he recognized the faces of Roland and Isabel, there was a brief glow in his murky eyes. He motioned to the nurse to have her help him sit up from the bed. After he managed to position himself seated up against the head of the bed, he asked the nurse to leave. Then he cast a loving, tender smile on Roland and Isabel. “Roland, Isabel, please have a seat.” Roland said disinterestedly, "We have things to get to, just hurry up and tell us what you have to say." Isabel stayed silent. A look flashed in Master Rockwell's eyes. Then, he turned to Isabel and expressed regretfully, "Isabel, I’m a foolish old man, it was me who told Decker to leak pictures of you two. He had no choice because I forced him to do so. If you have to blame someone, blame me!” Isabel frowned. She was somewhat impressed by how smoothly the old man switched his mask from one to another. From a forlorn and sad state t