The following day, Stanley's team inked a deal with Azure Cloud. They also received news that they would be heading to Aquaville for the weekend on a work trip with Azure Cloud.It made sense. They had to check out the data on-site to get ready for the next phase of development. If Stanley had to go, Zara was going too.With the contract signed and the meeting over, Zara stepped out. She saw she had missed a call from her sister on her phone.She called her back right away."Cheryl.""Zara, you got a minute?""I'm free now. What's going on?"Her sister spoke up, "I need to talk to you about Mom."For the last couple of days, Sharon had been saying her chest felt tight and she could not breathe properly. She hardly ate anything and looked really pale. "I'm worried her heart condition is getting worse."Without a second thought, Zara said, "I'm heading back now to take Mom to the hospital for a check-up."Cheryl offered, "I'll come with you.""There's no need. You stay at ho
"Your dad and I had a little grocery store. You, Cheryl, and Holly were all still growing up. After school, you'd dash to the candy aisle. Dad would pretend to be mad, calling you girls little money wasters. He joked that we couldn't keep the store stocked fast enough for you. "He'd pick up a stick and pretend to chase you around with it, but you'd all hide behind me. I'd stand up for you, and you'd laugh and scamper outside to play."Dad never really wanted to scold you. I'd step in, and he'd back down. He'd just tell you not to eat too much because he was planning to make his special shrimp dish for dinner... Those were such good times..."Yes, they were good times indeed.Before that awful trap ruined everything, their lives were simple and full. That trap tore their family apart.Zara still could not make sense of how everything had gone so wrong.She tried to look into it once she knew the right people, yet it was like those involved had just disappeared. They left no trace
On a sunny winter day, which was a rare treat, Yosef and Ophite decided to hit the golf course.Today was Ophite's lucky day. His golf swings were perfect, and he even scored a hole-in-one, which got everyone cheering and teasing him to give out treats and gifts.Ophite did not mind. He happily paid round after round, and by the end of the day, he had spent a small fortune.Yosef, looking cool in his white and black sports outfit and shades, looked over at the hole on the hillside. He took a swing with his club and said, "Keep your gifts. But that brandy of yours, I've been eyeing it for a while. That's what I want."Ophite chuckled and teased back, "I'm saving that for my wedding toast. Dream on, buddy."Wilder, who was just there for the laughs since golf was not his thing, chimed in, "Harper's already tied the knot. When's your turn, Ophite? You and your girl have been together forever, right?""Selena's too busy this year. We'll think about wedding bells next year," Ophite re
Cheryl had come to see their mom, so Zara left Sharon with her and stepped out of the hospital.Cecil had news about the person who spread the rumors. "Remember Scarlett Hemsworth?"That name rang a bell.Zara paused. "The girl from our college dorm?""That's the one! The girl who tossed her dirty socks all over and skipped her turn to clean! She even left her used pads in the bathroom!"Zara was taken aback. "She's the one leaving those comments?""Absolutely! Her latest tweet said she's at a café enjoying the afternoon with friends. She's probably still there. Let's go now."Zara caught a cab and called Shelby en route. Zara quickly filled her in and asked if she could come along.Since the issue might touch on legal matters, Zara wanted a lawyer there just to be safe.Shelby was free and agreed to meet. The three women headed out from different locations, converging at the café at about the same time.Cecil led the way, storming into the café.It was quiet inside, and she
Shelby's brows were furrowed.Beatrice stared at Cecil. "Ms. Jones hurt me before. My wound has healed, but the scar is still there. I have the photos of my injury and the proof from the doctor. If I share these online and explain what happened, that's not lying or being mean, is it?"Zara had not told Shelby about this, so Shelby was totally surprised. She looked at Zara.Cecil did not know what to say.Zara kept her cool. "Sure, you can share it all.""I'm pretty famous online now. Everyone knows I'm the woman from that hospital incident. If you bring this up, they'll figure out you're the one who got the donated heart. They might even find out we both worked at Azure Cloud."Beatrice bit her lip. "So what?""I don't know what'll happen. Online folks do what they want. It's like when a butterfly flaps its wings. You never know what big things it might start. We'll just have to wait and see who ends up losing the most from all this mess."Beatrice was speechless.Zara turned
Zara did not say much more.She was busy helping Sharon find a caregiver.She was about to leave on a business trip with Stanley this weekend, and it was unclear how long they would be gone—maybe a week, maybe two. Cheryl had a two-month-old baby to look after and probably could not spend much time at the hospital.Cecil scrolled through Twitter and said, "Scarlett's such a chicken. She made a statement blaming others, claiming she was just repeating rumors and didn't mean to cause such a fuss with her tweets. "She told everyone to ignore her words, but people in the comments are really mad at her."Soon after, Cecil mentioned that Scarlett had turned off the comments on her posts. Another two hours passed, and Cecil announced that Scarlett had completely deleted her Twitter account. "Let's just drop it," Zara said, not wanting to waste any more time on the issue. Cecil added one last thought. "Things changed so fast. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I'd think someone
When Zara got to the bottom of Cecil's company building, she saw Cecil in tears. She was tugging at her boyfriend Craig's arm.Craig looked annoyed and disgusted as he jerked his hand away. Cecil's coworkers were peeking out the windows and snapping photos from downstairs.Cecil stumbled and fell to the ground as Craig drove away, leaving her crying her eyes out.The woman who was always so easygoing and full of life had become the joke of the whole company.Zara did not think twice. She dashed out of the car, took off her jacket, and draped it over Cecil's head.Stanley pulled the car up close, and Zara helped Cecil get in.Cecil cried into Zara's chest. "Craig, Craig broke up with me!"He picked me up from West Palace that night, and when he saw the state I was in, he kept asking if something had happened. I was too scared to tell the truth. I just said I got drunk and ran into some mean guys, but nothing happened because you were there."He saw those photos today too. I aske
Zara went with her to the police station to report what happened.The person who had sent out the photos in Cecil's company chat had left the group right after. When they looked into it, they found out the IP address was from another country.That made things really tough to figure out.Zara and Cecil visited Shelby at the law firm. Shelby did not sugarcoat it. "The police probably won't bother with this unless you've got some solid evidence."It was not a big-time crime, and it did not shake up the community. Nobody got hurt, and the person they were after was in another country. This would make it expensive to investigate.It made sense that the police were not jumping in to help.Zara was trying to think of a plan. Cecil just looked so tired, though. It was like all her energy had been zapped away. She dropped her head and mumbled, "Let's just forget about it, then.""Forget about it? You're not going to follow through?" That did not sound like the Cecil everyone knew.Cecil
Harper's kisses were always teasing, intentionally awakening her senses.Their tongues tangled, taking her breath away. When she felt like she could not breathe and instinctively grabbed at his shirt, Harper let go and kissed his way down to her chin, neck, and chest.She could not resist him.Shelby was torn. She did not have to hold back her body's needs and reactions, especially since they could not end their marriage just yet. He was her husband, after all, so why should she deny herself? She decided to make the most of it.Men could easily separate love from physical desire, and women could too. Shelby did not think that accepting Harper's touches meant she liked him. It was just about meeting a need.She would just get that over with.Shelby's fingers gripped the sheets tightly as Harper kissed her growing belly. She was six months along, and her belly was a little bigger. The thought of their child made his heart melt, and he kissed her several more times before suddenly s
Shelby made a sound of agreement, her back sore from sitting too long. She leaned back against Harper without much thought. She was busy with her work and not in the mood for conversation.Harper quickly got the gist of the case file. In short, it was a classic example of someone facing the consequences of their own actions.In the western part of Starville, there was a middle school and a vocational school. The two schools were just a street apart. Not all, but at least 80% of the vocational school students were troublemakers.One of those students, Yered, often rounded up his gang to shake down the middle school kids for their money.Since last year, the bullies had been targeting Steven Scott, a middle schooler. They would often demand money from him. Steven was shy and scared, so he never stood up to them and just handed over the cash.However, this time, as he was walking with a girl from his class, the bullies blocked their path again. They started to pick on the girl becaus
Samantha was really happy. She lifted her finger elegantly and said softly, "One step at a time. First, we'll make sure the child is gone. Then, we'll push them to divorce, and in the end, when she's weak from losing the baby, we'll take care of her." If Shelby died as Harper's wife, then Harper would get everything, and that would be bad. The two women agreed. While reclining on their bamboo chairs, they started dreaming about their perfect future—one with the Young family and the other with all the money. Since the foot masseuse could not hear or speak, they talked freely, not worried about anyone overhearing them. After the massage, they even went to eat together. The masseuse quietly cleaned up and tidied the room. Then, she headed straight for the lookout point. The resort was in the mountains, with lots of trees and streams. The lookout was up high, with a great view of all the little mountains. It was a beautiful spot that every guest at the hotel made sure to visit.
Adalee was doubtful. "Is it really that serious? Our husband doesn't like that dowdy wife or the eldest son. Even if he's started to favor Harper more because of his marriage to the Lambert family, that still won't affect our children.""Our husband used to leave the company matters to our sons, but now he's handing them over to Harper. Who knows what the future holds?" Samantha said with a hint of malice. "We can't take that risk. We can't let Harper get too much leverage. We can't let him and his child have too great a chance to win."Adalee could see Samantha was desperate and asked anxiously, "What are you thinking of doing? She's a lawyer. She knows the law, and she's the sole heir to the Lambert family."Samantha's eyes suddenly became slits. "That's right, she's the only one who will inherit the Lambert family's fortune. With that kind of money, there are loads of people who want to trick her or get their hands on it. "She's a lawyer, not a superhero. Just wait. I'll make
It was Shelby's first visit to the Youngs' place, and by chance, she walked in on his father's so-called second and third wives being snide to Harper. His dad had not lifted a finger to help. It seemed like this was not a one-off occurrence.Was that the way they always treated him?Harper, taken aback by her blunt question, nearly slammed on the brakes. What?"Me, being pushed around in the family? That's just because I can't be bothered..." Who would waste their time arguing with a bunch of women or stoop so low as to fight with their dad's other women? That would be so embarrassing, right?However, he stopped himself mid-sentence.Because he suddenly realized that by saying that, he was making it sound like he felt bad for being 'picked on' at home.Harper slowed the car down and glanced at Shelby. Her eyebrows were knitted together, and she looked really serious. She was definitely not happy.He almost smiled, but he pushed it back down. He swallowed hard and changed his voi
She faced Samantha, not bothering to argue about inheritance rights. "You still haven't answered my earlier question. What does 'stepmother' mean?"Caught off guard by the sudden shift back to the topic, Samantha was momentarily speechless.Shelby did not wait for her to catch up. She pulled out her phone and quickly tapped the screen."Ah, I see," Shelby remarked, glancing at her phone. "According to this, 'stepmother' used to refer to a concubine in ancient times. That's similar to a servant, isn't it? So, in modern terms, it's like a maid. "Got it now. Would you mind getting me some salad? Thanks."The nerve of her, treating Samantha like a common maid! She had never been so insulted. "You!"Shelby set her phone down and met her gaze. "Since you're so curious, I'll fill you in. In the Lambert family, my word is law. If you're ever curious about me again, just ask me directly. No need to rely on rumors."Samantha bit her lip and looked to Gilbert for support, but he just sat
It was Shelby.Pregnant and in flats, she stood firm with not a hint of weakness about her.Her steady gaze fell on the two women who fancied themselves important, leaving them at a loss for words.Harper paused for just a moment, then quickly got to his feet and hurried over. "Dear!"The Young family's house was bright and airy. Harper's eyes sparkled with the unexpected joy of seeing Shelby, who had said she would not come. His face lit up with a smile.Shelby watched him, amused. She thought he was like their excited Shiba Inu, dashing over at the sight of its owner.Harper reached her side, calling out again, "Dear."Shelby gave a small nod. "Yeah."The guests at the dining table snapped out of their surprise, and Wrenley beamed. "Shelby, you're here."Shelby greeted her parents-in-law, "Mom, Dad."Wrenley hurried over to help her, her actions showing just how much she cherished her daughter-in-law.That was Shelby's first visit to the Young family since her wedding. She
Harper waited until Wrenley had said enough, andthen he spoke up."I just don't get you. Your family's loaded, my grandparents are laidback, and Dad doesn't even like you. Why stick to him? Just divorce him, take half his stuff, go home, and hang out with some young models. "That'd be way better than sticking to a lost cause. You've got no ambition."If it were Shelby, she would have left by then if he had not trapped her by getting her pregnant and holding something over her head. Why couldn't his mom be more like his wife?"In your dreams!"Wrenley, with tears in her eyes, scoffed. "The Young family wasn't always so fancy. I married him, and he promised me the moon. 'A good wife helps me reach my dreams, and I'll pay her back in gold.' And then what? "Once the Young family made it big, he just kept bringing in more women and their kids. How can I accept that? I'll fight him to the end, even if it kills me!"Harper sighed. "You want to fight him, I don't. Shelby and her baby
"An old friend?" Zara questioned. "If an old friend wanted to see me, they should be visiting the cemetery, not here."Only a very few people knew she was still alive.Shawn asked, "Is it a man or a woman?""A young man. He also said something else...""What did he say?"The butler hesitated, then relayed, "He said... The miss tricked him, and now she owes him for it."Zara was speechless.The garden fell silent for a moment, with only the whisper of the summer wind rustling through the flowers.Seconds later, Shawn set aside his tablet and smiled slightly. "Really? That sounds fun. Get him to come in. I'd like to meet him too."Zara had thought it was just a joke, but when the butler led the visitor in, she stood up in astonishment.It was him!...In Parnova, the sun shone brightly.However, in Starville, the weather was turning.The sky had been clear when Harper left home in the morning. However, when he reached the Youngs' place at noon, he saw the sun hidden behind