Cynthia glanced at him and said, "Suit yourself."She found a place with few people and sat down, but what she did not expect was that Joshua had been staring at her since she sat down.Ten minutes later, Cynthia turned to look at him and said directly, "Can you stop staring at me?""If you do not want to owe a debt of love, just chat with me normally." Joshua's deep eyebrows and eyes were so deep that it was hard to see through.Cynthia stood up and planned to change places.Joshua spoke, "Ian likes you. If you do not stay with me, he will come to you right away.""Really?" Cynthia asked."Yes." Joshua's voice was deep."Then why should I still stay with you? Is being with someone who likes me not more comfortable than being with my ex-husband?" Cynthia's words left Joshua speechless.Joshua's mood suddenly sank. "Cynthia!""You can yell louder. It is better for your mother to hear and let them see how you take care of me," Cynthia said very directly.Cynthia deliberately e
Listening to her words, Joshua looked at Cynthia coldly with an evident hint of disbelief. "Is that so?"Cynthia was someone who cared a lot about appearances. This was something he knew better than anyone else."What do you mean? Haven't you heard the saying?" Cynthia calmly turned her head to him.Joshua just looked at her.It was as if he was silently challenging her to come up with some twisted reasoning."Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. As long as I like him, I'll find him good-looking no matter how he looks," Cynthia spoke directly, her expression becoming more serious."Do you really believe that?" Joshua uttered.Cynthia's gaze met his, and she replied firmly, "Why wouldn't I believe what I said?"With just one statement…A strange atmosphere welled up between the two of them.Joshua recalled how Cynthia used to ask him if he would never believe anything she said.Ian gathered up the courage to speak, still a bit apprehensive of Joshua. "Well, can we exchange
Anyway, there was no one here.Even though Cynthia's outfit today was unsuitable for a fight, it did not mean she could not engage in one."I dare you to make a move." Joshua's presence also became intense.Cynthia aimed a punch at his face, but Joshua swiftly caught her hand. In an instant, their confrontation sparked.Cynthia then lifted her leg to kick, but Joshua sidestepped, narrowly avoiding her kick."Today is Old Man Neal's birthday celebration, and I don't want to make things ugly. I hope you'll stop here as well." Cynthia maintained respect for her elders. "Speaking so self-righteously, just to cover up your new relationship immediately after our divorce." Joshua knew she was not that kind of person, but he did not want her to leave like this. Even if they argued, even if it got messy, he still hoped they had some involvement with each other.Cynthia looked at him as if he were a fool and retorted, "Even if I were in a new relationship immediately after our divorce, i
For Cynthia, choosing to start a new relationship meant she had let go of the past. Whatever complications arose in that previous relationship or whatever reasons she was unaware of, they were all in the past, and there was no need to bring up and rewrite what had already been concluded. Life would keep moving forward, not waiting for anyone.Betraying the current partner for the ex's sake would be the most foolish and irresponsible behavior.Joshua did not believe Cynthia could be so indifferent. "You can say that because the situation didn't really happen to you. Can you honestly say that when you married me, you had completely let go of your first love?"Cynthia remained silent.She wished she had a first love, but she did not.Joshua believed he had guessed Cynthia's thoughts. "If you truly let go, you wouldn't have silently downed three glasses of alcohol when Moses asked you to call him last time.""Believe what you want. I have a clear conscience, and that's enough." C
"There's something I've been thinking about, and I think I should tell you." Mitchell opened the WhatsApp chat records on his computer.Cynthia rarely heard him speak so formally. "What is it?""Captain messaged me a few days ago. He asked about you." Mitchell smiled, resembling that of an older brother next door.Cynthia was taken aback.Being targeted by Captain was not a good thing. "What…did he ask about me?""He asked if the marriage and divorce were true." Mitchell was curious about how Captain found out about this matter, especially since he could not casually use his phone in that restricted area.Cynthia felt slightly relieved. "That's fine. As long as he's not asking if I've fallen back on certain skills."Mitchell's gaze fell on the last message Captain sent him, and his gaze deepened. In the end, he chose not to tell Cynthia about Captain's return. If he did, Cynthia would definitely have trouble sleeping."I'll hang up now. "We'll talk later when I get back." C
However, just because Cynthia refused did not mean Chyler did not want to talk to her. When he saw her ignoring him, he strode over with her long legs and blocked her path. "Let's talk?""About?" Cynthia was still rather calm toward everyone except Joshua."Ellora," Chyler uttered.Over the past half month, he had turned the world upside down, trying to find her. He had searched almost everywhere he could think of in Nexuria, but he had not found a trace or even the slightest bit of information.Cynthia suddenly understood the saying 'birds of a feather flock together'. Both Joshua and Chyler were scumbags."I searched everywhere but couldn't find her. I want to know where she is," Chyler said calmly, even though he wished he could teach Cynthia a lesson."I don't know," Cynthia replied.Those words triggered Chyler's suppressed anger. "Don't test my patience.""What if I do?" Cynthia was frustrated, and Chyler was the perfect outlet. "Can you win in a fight against me?"Chy
Cynthia recalled Ellora's previous mention of divorce and said, "If you really want to see her, wait a few more months. She'll contact you."Under normal circumstances, the husband could not initiate a divorce during pregnancy, but the wife could. Ellora would have a solid case for filing for divorce since Chyler pressured Ellora to have an abortion. However, Chyler had not even considered the possibility of divorce and only replied to Cynthia with a question, "Is she willing to see me?""She needs some time to consider and calm down." Cynthia did not answer him directly.Hearing this, Chyler automatically interpreted it as what he had done previously had caused a significant emotional impact on her, and she did not want to contact him for the time being. With that thought, he felt slightly relieved. He was willing to wait as long as Ellora was willing to see him. "Take good care of her during this time. If she needs anything, you can let me know." Chyler looked at Cynthia.
"What injury?" Cynthia asked."The staff told me you had just fallen and were badly injured." Joshua hurried over upon hearing this news.Cynthia froze. Suddenly, it all became clear to her. Cynthia was about to speak up and tell him that he had been tricked when she saw the door that Joshua had opened being closed by a person dressed in black, wearing a black mask and hat.Bang!The loud noise made Joshua turn to look. In an instant, he also understood and asked, "You're fine?""I'm fine." Cynthia remained calm.After hearing this answer from her, Joshua felt relieved and turned back to open the door. Cynthia stared at the door. As she had expected, the door was locked tight and could not be opened, even after a few tries. Joshua frowned. Compared to the other rooms, this room was slightly more secluded. Moreover, everyone was on the first floor, so even if he broke the door, no one downstairs would hear any noise.While contemplating, Joshua took out his phone to c
Isabella glared at Nick. He actually betrayed her! Caught off guard by Luther's honesty, Nick quickly explained, "Don't look at me like that. Luther forced me to do it. If I didn't agree to his request, he would've spilled my past to my current girlfriend.""Current girlfriend?" Isabella looked puzzled.Nick confessed honestly, "My new girlfriend."Isabella was at a loss for words. Nick was very handsome. His looks could rival top celebrities. Naturally, with his face and charisma, he had no shortage of admirers. That led to a habit of frequently changing girlfriends."I made my rules clear to her. No shady behavior allowed," Nick added quickly, sensing what Isabella was thinking.Hearing this, Isabella did not say much.A moment later, Luther, seeing that their conversation had wrapped up, took Isabella's hand and left. On the way back, he deliberately brought up the topic of proposals."What kind of proposal do you like?" Luther asked."Anything works," Isabella replied
There was a time when Isabella considered letting Luther propose to her. However, he had not shown any signs that he would or asked for her ring size. There was no need to overthink it; that fool probably had not even thought about it. Nonetheless, Isabella did not blame Luther. After all, she was well aware that everyone expressed love differently. Yet, that was also precisely why she wanted to propose to him, to make him understand just how much she cared."What's wrong?" Annie asked, concerned."I'm just worried," Isabella replied. The ring sizes had been a constant worry for her."Because of what you just mentioned?"Isabella nodded. "Yeah.""Why do you want to propose to him?" Annie looked toward a dark corner. "In most relationships, the boyfriend proposes to the girlfriend, right?""I want him to feel loved," Isabella answered simply.Luther was different from most people; he always suppressed his negative emotions and limited his freedom. He no longer wanted to restr
"No," Luther declined; he still wanted to be the one proposing to her."Okay," Joshua agreed readily.Luther nodded, letting his mind wander. In the following days, Isabella kept checking on the progress, each time being informed that there was no opportunity to measure Luther's finger.In the blink of an eye, three days passed.Cynthia and Matthew had a conversation with Isaiah.Due to prior preparation, Isaiah handled Cynthia and Matthew's questions smoothly. Although they knew Isaiah had not been entirely truthful, based on his attitude toward Sandra, they agreed to the marriage without excessive probing into his relationship with her.As for Isabella, she waited for a few days but had not received any news. Frustrated, she decided to go to Jiverton herself to find Luther.When Joshua heard about her plan, he asked her to give him a bit more time. He assured her he would have the sizes by next Friday at the latest."Really?" Isabella was worried about running out of time.
"Okay." Isaiah already had a plan in mind.After discussing the matter, the two did not say much more. In the following two days, Cynthia and Matthew stayed home while Isabella prepared the details and processes for the proposal.However, after going through the general plan, Isabella suddenly realized a problem. She did not know Luther's ring size. How could she prepare a ring for the proposal without knowing the size?Realizing this issue, she immediately thought of flying to Jiverton to find out but hesitated due to Luther's caution. If she returned so soon after just coming back, he would surely be suspicious. After much contemplation, she came up with a solution—Joshua.When Isabella called, Joshua happened to be having a meal with Luther."I'm not busy, what's up?""I need your help with something," Isabella said, trusting Joshua's abilities, "but Luther can't know about it."Joshua instinctively glanced at Luther.Luther was confused. He glanced at Joshua's phone and
"Quit the act," Matthew said to Isabella, "It's too bad."Isabella stayed quiet. Matthew bluntly stated, "Isaiah currently oversees the company, and the annual revenue has been consistently increasing under his management. He even took a few subsidiaries public.""And?" Isabella inquired."He has a talent for this," Matthew hinted, leaving Isabella puzzled as she struggled to keep up with Matthew's pace."He's barely in his twenties, so there's no rush to get married," Matthew explained. He saw through everything, understanding Isaiah well, adding, "If there were truly such a concern, he could easily establish a company under Sandra's name in the next few years, operate it until it goes public."With Isaiah's abilities and connections, starting a company and taking it public would be a simple task. After the IPO and proper management, Sandra's value would naturally rise. This would effortlessly 'shut their mouths'. Isabella wanted to say something, realizing her dad's words
"That depends on the secret he's keeping," Matthew responded immediately, taking the opportunity to tease Isaiah, "If it's something against our moral values, it'd be hard not to form an opinion, even if we try not to.""He's not that kind of person," Isabella defended Isaiah.Matthew did not respond but just sat there. Their father-son dynamic involved banter and teasing, but when it came down to it, they genuinely cared about each other."He's just worried that you might object to Sandra's background," Isabella continued to spin her tale convincingly.Cynthia and Matthew were confused, both staring at Isabella.Isabella felt a bit uneasy. Something seemed off with her parents' expressions. "What's wrong?""Are you sure Isaiah is worried about this?" Cynthia asked.Why was their beloved daughter so bad at lying? Not catching on, Isabella nodded, "Absolutely.""Setting aside the fact that we've always taught you not to treat people differently based on their family background
"Ah, I see." Isabella breathed a sigh of relief and purposely asked, "Is it possible that Isaiah got to know Sandra through Uncle Yves and Uncle Sean?""It's unlikely," Cynthia denied. Even though they had not arranged any blind dates or rushed Isaiah into marriage, given his personality, he would not seek an introduction from anyone."Whenever you have time, ask Isaiah to bring his girlfriend home," Cynthia said, truly wishing for her children to find happiness. Isabella agreed, "Sure.""Isabella," Cynthia suddenly spoke up.Putting away her plan book, Isabella responded, "Hmm?""Do you think I look stern?" Cynthia sounded gentler than usual, lacking the usual nonchalance.Having been accustomed to being herself, Cynthia found it a bit awkward to take on the role of an elder suddenly. If she left a bad impression on Sandra during their first meeting, it could easily jeopardize Isaiah's relationship."Not at all," Isabella spoke sincerely, looking at Cynthia affectionately. "Y
Isaiah had seen through their plans. He knew that his parents' friends enjoyed watching him banter with Matthew. Every time something was like this, they would eagerly make things difficult for him.Early the next morning, Mitchell and the others began implementing the plan. Initially, Matthew did not suspect anything and thought they genuinely had urgent matters to attend to and brought Cynthia back home first.Considering Luther's upcoming proposal, they decided not to travel the world but instead explored nearby cities. After Mitchell and the others called Matthew aside, Isabella approached Cynthia. Cynthia was surprised to learn about Isabella and Isaiah's plan."Aren't you afraid of getting in trouble?" Cynthia asked."Not at all," Isabella responded very directly, her mind focused on planning her and Luther's engagement. "Isaiah said he can handle this matter, so let's discuss the proposal first. I've thought about several options, but none seem good enough.""Okay," Cynth
Isaiah was surprised."Take her to shoot wedding photos first," Isabella suggested seriously. After giving it some thought, Isaiah said, "I'll ask her during dinner.""Why bother asking?" Isabella thought Isaiah's emotional intelligence was lacking, and Sandra's expectations were too low. "Just pick a few reputable studios and let her choose one she likes."During their conversation, Isabella noticed that Sandra was slightly anticipating a wedding, although she had refused for some unknown reason. If she was not truly opposed to weddings, there should not be an issue with pre-wedding photos."If you give it directly to her, she'll probably say she doesn't need it," Isabella coined. She could see through people and was quite clever.Isaiah clearly did not consider this possibility."Take a look at these studios. My friends suggested them," Isabella had already made the selections and recommended them to him. "Weren't you against my decision before?" Isaiah, not understanding h