Shelly screeched, "What do you mean the transaction won't go through? How can that be?""It just won't, Ms. Barrett."Shelly felt embarrassed. She'd bought a number of things this month, so she'd already been close to her limit. That, coupled with the fact that Mia had deliberately led her into a trap, would definitely mean that she'd exceeded her limit.Shelly put on a serious expression. "Why don't you just wrap these things up for me first? Put them on my tab. I'll settle the bill later.""We're not allowed to do that, Ms. Barrett. All customers have to settle the bill before taking the items home," the salesperson said.Shelly gave her a tight slap. "I'm a member of the Barrett family! This whole mall belongs to my family; would I really stoop low enough to steal these things from you?"The salesperson's cheek turned red and swollen from the slap. She didn't know what to do.Mia couldn't take it anymore. "The mall's rules were set by the Barrett family, Shelly. It doesn't ma
"How is she considered a customer?" Shelly shrieked. Forcing her to apologize to Mia made her feel worse than getting killed.Timothy said coldly, "As a member of the Barrett family, your actions have severely impacted our image. If you don't apologize, you won't be allowed to set foot in any of the Barrett family's malls in the future. Security, get her out of here!"He was a ruthless, decisive leader. He didn't give Shelly any leeway.When Shelly saw the security guards approaching, she knew Timothy was being serious. If she were to get kicked out today and be barred from entering any of the Barrett Group's malls, she would be the laughingstock of the city.In the end, Shelly shuffled over to Mia reluctantly. Her eyes were red as she glared at Mia and snarled, "I'm sorry!"Mia raised an eyebrow and gave Timothy a surprised look. She hadn't expected him to actually force Shelly to apologize to her. Or was he only doing this for the Barrett Group's sake?Eva asked calmly, "Is tha
Before Mia could say anything, Eva beat her to it. "For an awards ceremony, of course."Awards ceremony? Timothy recalled the list of finalists for the Fleur International Design Competition. Indeed, Mia had gotten through to the finals. He hadn't expected it.When Laura had insisted on getting Mia a spot in the competition, Timothy hadn't believed that she would get far at all. His gaze landed on Mia as he said in a low voice, "Congratulations."Mia looked calm. "Thanks."Timothy switched tacks. "But that evening gown doesn't suit you.""Why not? I think it looks pretty nice.""It's revealing too much of your back."Mia was lost for words. The dress had been designed to have cutouts in the back. Of course, it would reveal her back.Eva glanced at it, then said, "It does. Let's look at some other ones."Dominic and the others would probably flip if they saw Mia wearing something so revealing. It'd be better to have her wear something more conservative.Mia was given several m
"Timothy, how could you stand up for Mia? I was so humiliated," Shelly complained.Timothy retracted his gaze and said coldly, "If I catch you doing this again, don't even think of setting foot in any of the Barrett Group's malls in the future. I'm a man of my word.""How can you do this to me, Timothy? I have shares in the company, too.""Because I'm the one calling the shots now. It's bad enough that you don't contribute to the company at all. There's no way I'll allow you to drag the company down." With that, Timothy turned and left.Shelly was left behind. She stomped her foot angrily but didn't dare to rebuke Timothy. After storming out of the store, she called Maya. "I need to tell you something, Maya. Mia actually got into the finals of the competition.""Really?" Maya had been too busy with her work to pay attention. She only checked the list of finalists that had been sent to her through WhatsApp. Sure enough, she saw Mia's name on the list.Her expression turned cold. "
Timothy's car had pulled up by the road. The paparazzi had their cameras aimed at it.The door opened, and Timothy got out. He wore a dark suit, and it made him look mature and handsome. As soon as he got out, a pair of heels followed closely behind. A woman in a white gown got out after him.Mia watched as Maya got out of Timothy's car. Obviously, they'd come together.Her pupils constricted, and she felt a little gloomy. Still, she quickly composed herself. It was only normal for them to come together. After all, they were supposed to be a match made in heaven.Liam opened the door. When he made his appearance, one of the paparazzi cried, "Linden Lane is here!"The other paparazzi swarmed the car when they heard this. Liam kept a low profile and rarely made public appearances when he wasn't filming. He didn't even shoot many commercials, let alone accept interviews.The paparazzi surrounded the car."Mr. Lane, why are you at the Fleur International Design Competition?""Mr. L
Maya walked over to Timothy. "What are you looking at?"She followed his line of sight and saw Mia. Her expression turned ugly. "I didn't expect Ms. Bowen to be so capable. It's not easy to get into the finals, after all. I found it weird earlier, but everything's clear now that I see who her companion is."Timothy turned to look at her. "What do you mean?""The man beside her is my cousin, Liam Lane. He's also an award-winning actor from Nord City. I didn't expect to see him here, nor did I expect him to be here with Ms. Bowen. He's always kept a low profile and never had any women in his life."Maya said these things on purpose. Sure enough, she saw Timothy's expression turn icier. She shut her mouth and looked in Mia's direction. A hint of confusion flashed in her eyes as she wondered when Mia had gotten to know Liam.Liam and his brothers were actually quite distant from her and her family. Maya had heard that it was partly due to the daughter that had gone missing and partly
Mia lowered her eyes to conceal her true emotions at Shelly's words. She'd already signed the divorce papers; who Timothy wanted to cheer on and be with was none of her business.Later, no matter what else Shelly said, Mia ignored her. Soon, Maya walked on stage to announce the commencement of the ceremony. "As we all know, there have been some changes to the rules for this year's competition."There will only be ten winners, which means one of the 11 finalists will leave with nothing. For the sake of fairness, the designers' names will be concealed when the judging is conducted. The announcement of the winners will also be different—we'll start from the tenth place."Mia looked at the panel of judges. Timothy was among them. Obviously, he was one of the judges.If she were being completely honest, she was quite nervous. At this moment, she received a WhatsApp message from Liam. "Don't worry. You'll be fine."Half an hour later, the judging ended. On stage, Maya announced the resu
Mia barked out a laugh. "I don't need them, and I don't need you to interfere in my matters. Let go of me!""You'd better watch your attitude!" Timothy growled.As they fought, Maya's voice rang out. "Tim!"Mia watched as Maya and Shelly approached them from the other end of the corridor. At this moment, the grip on her wrist disappeared. Timothy retracted his hand.A trace of mockery flashed in Mia's eyes. He'd let go so quickly when he saw Maya coming. Was he afraid of her getting the wrong idea?Maya's gaze became colder when she saw Timothy's and Mia's linked hands. But on the surface, she smiled innocently. "I was looking for you everywhere, Tim. The judges are wanted for a discussion."Maya strode over and looked at Mia. "I'm sorry you didn't win anything this time, Ms. Bowen. You're pretty talented, though. Maybe you can try again next time."Mia didn't say anything. She looked at Maya coldly.Timothy turned away. "Let's go."Maya nodded. "Okay. I'll be right behind you
None of the major shareholders was a fool.After that, Mia was busy handling Barrett Group affairs and barely had time to rest.With an exhausted look, she returned to the hospital.Mia looked at Timothy and said, "I'll run away if you don't wake up soon.""No… Please don't go…" Timothy grabbed her hand. His gaze was deep.Mia's eyes reddened as she gazed at the man who had just regained consciousness. Timothy finally came out of his coma.After that, everything was back to normal. Those who caused trouble quieted down.Sharon visited Timothy and told him that she was going to settle down overseas and would not come back anymore.Timothy bought her a property and gave her a huge sum of money before sending her away from Bern City.As for Maya, it was discovered that she was not the granddaughter of the Prime Minister of Yellow Island but merely his caregiver. Yet, she had been deceiving people outside.After Maya was exposed, she ran away dejectedly. Nobody knew where she was
Sage stood beside Timothy in silence.Soon, news that Timothy was hospitalized spread, and Barrett Group's stock plunged.The relatives of the Barrett family requested to hold a board meeting to elect another CEO.On the day of the board meeting, Mia brought her two children to Barrett Group.They managed to keep everyone on a leash as Sage bore a striking resemblance to Timothy.Mia marched into the meeting room, sat in Timothy's chair, and glanced at everyone present. "Let's begin. Didn't you all want to have a meeting?"One of the middle-aged men said, "Ms. Lane, this is the Barrett Group board meeting. It's not appropriate for you to be here.""That's right. Though the kids are Mr. Barrett's children, they're still young and do not have any shares. You all shouldn't be here."Mia flung a document onto the table. "This is an agreement signed by Grandma Laura to authorize me to manage Timothy's shares.""Anyway, we still need to elect a CEO to handle our company affairs.""
"Because to me, you're my family too," Timothy said.When Sharon heard the word 'family', her eyes turned red. Then, she turned around and left the ward.Mia walked out and asked Peyton to send Sharon to the hospital for a checkup.Looking at Sharon's back, Mia said, "I hope you don't let him down since he regards you as his family. He's the only one you can depend on now."Sharon did not turn her head around. Mia did not know if Sharon would listen to her advice.Mia immediately called her brother. "Dominic, I met Maya."She then told him everything about Maya.Dominic frowned. "I never thought she would go to Yellow Island.""Do you think she's really the granddaughter of the Prime Minister of Yellow Island?""Don't you know how good she is at lying?" Dominic said.Mia nodded. "Yeah, you're right. But I still don't know whether she's related to Yellow Island.""Don't worry, I'll find out."When Mia returned to the ward after ending the call, she saw a doctor bustling arou
Mia went straight to the hospital to ask Timothy about the matter.But when she arrived, someone had reached there earlier than her."Timothy, what do you mean? All I did was pull a few strings, but you want to humiliate me publicly. How am I going to maintain my standing in the company?" Sharon said.Mia went in with a frown. "This is funny. It's not just about pulling a few strings, but it's aimed at me. Mrs. Barrett, your actions have leaked confidential commercial information.""Stop trying to scare me. It's my son who opened doors for you. It's the Yellow Islanders who wanted to collaborate with us, and they are much better than you," Sharon retorted. Mia said with a half-hearted smile, "At first, I didn't want to pursue this matter. But since you put it this way, wait for my lawyer's letter then.""Such big talk, huh?" A mysterious-looking woman wearing a hat and a mask walked in from outside.Mia felt that the woman looked somewhat familiar. "Are you the rumored granddau
Mia glanced at the person on the screen. Without answering the woman, she turned off the laptop.After all, there was no need for Mia to explain anything.After Mia turned off the laptop assertively, she turned around and looked at Timothy. He did not say a word but started eating.Soon, Heath received a call. He left the ward and said to the woman on the other side of the phone, "She's Mr. Barrett's ex-wife. You'd better not mess with her."While Timothy was eating, Mia finished reading the proposal in her hand.She had to admit that the document was very valuable.Mia was about to leave the ward when Timothy almost finished eating, but his voice sounded behind her. "What did you say when you met her at the cafe earlier?""Did you follow me?""I followed her, to be exact. After all, the Hopkins are not good people."Mia totally agreed with that.She paused briefly before she said, "Grandma Laura asked me to talk to her because she doesn't agree with you about giving her all
"You don't know anything," Sharon said.Mia retorted, "I might not know everything, but Timothy is innocent. Before he knew the truth, he always regarded you as his mother. Even after he found out the truth, he has never mistreated you."Besides, when you said you wanted the Barrett family's wealth, he agreed. Tell me, who else could do what he did?"Mia felt that Timothy might have been hurt by Sharon's words.He seemed impressive on the outside, but his identity was a dark secret.Therefore, his relationship with Sharon became awkward.Sharon's eyes reddened. "But I also treat him like my biological son.""You're also his foster mother. Now everyone related to him is dead, and you're the only one he has. What are you afraid of?"Sharon wiped off her tears. "I'm not afraid of anything. It's just that I felt that I can't trust anyone.""Timothy is a man of his word. However, Grandma Laura said that if you remain stubborn, making the will public is her only option," Mia said.
Mia noticed Sharon's expression changing slightly when she mentioned Laura.Sharon took her cup of coffee and said, "What? Does Mrs. Barrett Senior still want to lecture me even when she's on her deathbed? She must have known Timothy's identity all along, but she conspired with her son to keep the truth from me. "She and the Barretts are birds of a feather. What else does she have to say?"Mia was not surprised by her words. She had expected that Sharon would certainly think this way.Fortunately, she managed to stop Laura when she said she wanted to meet Sharon.Sharon was emotionally unstable now. What if Laura said something unpleasant and Sharon retorted? Her words might upset Laura.Mia took a kraft envelope out of her handbag and placed it in front of Sharon. "I hope you won't regret saying those words after reading this.""What's this?""This is the will that your husband left behind, as well as the divorce agreement."Hearing that, Sharon quickly took the document out
Mia hesitated to risk exposing Laura to Sharon's potential agitation.Due to Sharon's emotional vulnerability, she often spoke impulsively. With Laura's delicate health in mind, any disruption was simply out of the question.As Laura recounted past events, Mia remained silent, absorbing her words.Upon hearing Laura's story, Mia was taken aback. She hadn't expected there to be hidden aspects to Timothy's family history.Taking a moment, she asked, "Does Timothy have any knowledge of this?""He doesn't. Some things are best kept from him," Laura replied calmly.Mia harbored some lingering questions in her mind. Unable to suppress them any longer, she asked, "Considering your knowledge of Timothy's background, what is your opinion of him?""Tim is a commendable young man, and he has never let our family down. He has achieved remarkably well for himself. To be honest, I feel indebted to him as well."At first, I only kept him around for the sake of preserving the Barrett family li
Despite her initial reluctance, Mia eventually found herself making her way to Timothy's ward.As she entered, she couldn't help but notice Timothy's expressionless demeanor as he lay there.Carrying a tray of food, Mia approached him. "The doctor pointed out your extreme fatigue. It's crucial that you increase your food intake and prioritize proper rest to reduce the risk of sudden complications."Upon hearing Mia's voice, Timothy lifted his gaze to find her seated beside him. His lips moved slightly as he asked, "What did you tell Luna?""Not much," Mia responded. "Just a sprinkle of salt on the wound and a dash of psychological pressure to make sure Luna doesn't have it easy in prison."Placing the tray of food in front of him, Mia urged, "Please, just a few bites.""I'll eat later. By the way, the kids have been here at the hospital for quite a while. You should take them home," Timothy suggested.Frowning, Mia insisted, "You should eat something first."As her words faded,