"I've been married to Sebastian for four years, and we're both adults with normal needs. Will you even believe what you're saying?"This was her prepared argument. If they were to end, they would end completely.Damon, being a proud and fastidious person, could never accept a woman who was impure.Sure enough, Damon's eyes instantly turned blood-red."Celeste, what do you mean?""Exactly what it sounds like. Sebastian and I are husband and wife. It's only natural for us to be doing what couples do, including fulfilling marital duties, sleeping together, and trying to have another child." Celeste's heart trembled slightly as she watched Damon's eyes turn red. Still, she continued saying her prepared lines."Leo said you two are only together on the outside." His throat felt bitter and dry. Every word he said was forced out with difficulty."No matter how genius Leo is, he’s still a child. It’s normal he doesn’t see the whole picture. Of course, we’d keep this from him."Celeste
"What did you say?" Even as he watched the girl in front of him move her lips, Damon felt as if he hadn't heard what she said."I said, men over thirty are worthless. Even though you have some money and status, you’re divorced with a child.""Of course, I can overlook your age and your divorced status, but I have one condition. If we have children, we can only have one, and the child must take my last name.""Once I get married to the Bishop family, can you arrange for some of my relatives to work at the Bishop Group? Is a monthly salary of 50,000 dollars too much? Also, I have a few cousins who are about to get married and don’t have houses yet."The girl in front of him didn’t look more than 22 years old. She had thin eyebrows, long eyes, a pointed chin, and a face that was both cold and seductive. She looked smart, but what she said was very off-putting.Damon had always been confident and never thought that he would be seen as an old divorced man with a child.And what did sh
Damon's mood had been terrible, but Veronica's frantic defense of her dignity made him laugh."Oh? Not willing to sell yourself, you say? It's because the offer is too low. How about 5 million dollars?""No, no, no. Damon, it's not about the money. I genuinely don't feel anything for men. I can't do it." Veronica looked uneasy already. She grabbed her bag next to her seat and tried to get up a few times."10 million dollars," Damon said coldly without moving his eyes off her."Uh…" She hesitated for a moment."Damon, will you be quick?"Veronica's look clearly implied that she might tolerate it for the money.However, this was a blunt question, and it made Damon's expression turn cold."Damon, I didn't mean that, really. But if you insist and offer that much money… maybe I can tolerate it, but I've never been with a man. I…" Veronica started to explain herself. She was clearly torn between money and morals.Who was Damon? Even if he were just a regular guy earning 3,000 a mon
Celeste tried to control herself but still couldn't resist clicking on the survey link.In the organizer's introduction section, it read, "Veronica, a senior journalism student at Taverdale University, top scorer in the college entrance exams, recipient of the national scholarship for four consecutive years."The attached photo showed a girl in a school uniform standing on a podium with striking features, a cold expression, and an air of arrogance.This time, it wasn't a naive girl. Celeste was slightly surprised.Even Megan had somehow heard the news and sent over Veronica's information.The girl was a beautiful academic achiever from a middle-class family, three years younger than Celeste, and a top scorer in the college entrance exams.Megan even found an interview video of her."Ms. Salt, you've achieved such excellent results. Can you tell us how you usually study?" the interviewer asked."I think I have a talent for studying. After all, I took an international IQ test, an
Celeste thought she wouldn't feel sad. After all, she had told Becky that she hoped Damon could move forward.She was married and had announced her plans for pregnancy. It was unreasonable to expect Damon to stay single and childless for her.How could that make any sense?But seeing them holding hands made it hard for her to breathe. It was as though a giant stone had weighed down her chest.She knew Damon too well. No one could force him to do anything. Even when he was with Sherry, they never held hands!Just a few days ago, he said he couldn't live without her, and now things had progressed so quickly.The pain in her chest spread. For some reason, Celeste felt her stomach, waist, and abdomen all going numb."Ms. York?" The client mentioned something about the contract and noticed Celeste's lack of response, so he called out to her.He followed her gaze and also saw Damon's back.Celeste and Damon's relationship wasn't a secret. The atmosphere became slightly awkward."Mr
Why did he come to see her?Damon couldn't possibly tell her that he came all this way to pick up Veronica just to provoke Celeste.Thus, he came up with a random excuse. "I was passing by and thought I'd let you know. I invested 3 million dollars into your father's business. If it's not enough later, you can ask for more.""Thank you, Damon. 3 million dollars is a lot for our small workshop. My dad is just a commoner, but he got lucky in the past. The industry is too competitive now, and he hasn't kept up. Thus, it's normal for him to lose money. Let's see if your 3 million dollars can save him. If not, there's nothing we can do. I'll repay you when I earn money in the future."Veronica's words were sharp and sincere. Damon couldn't help but take another look at her."What do you want to do after graduation? I could invest in you." He didn't mind helping out a young person with ideas and confidence."Thanks, Damon, but I've already sent my resume to Stellar Company and got accep
Celeste had been hesitant, but when she saw the blood in the tub, her first thought was that there couldn't be anything wrong with the baby!Panic set in, and she was terrified something might happen to the baby.Her instincts had made the choice for her."If you didn't know me and just heard this story, you'd probably think I'm a fool." She was still reading the instructions on the prenatal medication. Her eyes were slightly downcast as she spoke."At every step, I made the most incomprehensible choices."When she discovered Damon and Fiona together, she chose to keep the baby and went abroad to give birth alone.When she got pregnant again, she didn't reconcile with Damon but instead chose to push him away once more.Worst still, she chose to keep the baby again in such a situation.Among the new generation of independent women, there was a saying, "Keep the child, ditch the father." This meant finding a quality man, having his child, and then leaving him.Though fate pushed
Celeste couldn't bother to worry about anything else after seeing Ava in such a state. She quickly grabbed her car keys and took Ava's hand, leading her outside."Calm down. Take your time and explain." Despite just returning from the hospital, Celeste somehow managed to stay calm and comfort Ava. She even fastened her seatbelt for her.Ava, who was usually so carefree, now looked like a fragile woman while sitting in the passenger seat. Even her face was pale.Through Ava's fragmented words, Celeste managed to piece together the whole story.Ethan's new movie had a scene with an explosion. Although the amount of explosives had been carefully calculated, something went wrong. The blast radius exceeded expectations by nearly a meter, and several crew members were injured.Ethan was the closest to the explosion's center and had lost consciousness immediately."Ethan mustn't get hurt," Ava murmured. She leaned back against the passenger seat with a pale face."Mr. Sullivan will be
He never would have imagined that the intelligent and aloof Celeste would have a day like this, appearing adorably naive and innocent.Damon used to like girls who were delicate and pure, but that changed when he met Celeste.She had a face full of charm and allure, but her expression and personality were always cold and unyielding. She was pale and slim, yet not childlike. On the contrary, she resembled a young poplar tree, proud and upright.Because of her, he began to like girls who sparked his desire to conquer, and he scoffed at those who were simply weak and shy.But now with Celeste like this, he didn't feel annoyed. In fact, not only was he not annoyed, he actually found it cute and interesting.“What's your name?” she asked again."Damon.""Oh, that sounds really nice."The initial confusion in her eyes was gone, replaced by a sparkling glimmer, and her tone carried a touch of a young girl's excitement."You are actually my husband… Wow, great job, me! I've managed to
"What? Aren’t you my husband? Do I still need to avoid you while changing clothes?" The confusion in Celeste's eyes didn’t seem fake.Damon was speechless and didn't know how to respond at that moment.When Damon didn't respond, Celeste suddenly felt a bit nervous."I'm sorry… I can't remember clearly. Aren't you my husband?"Damon raised an eyebrow casually and asked, "Why do you think I am?"Celeste innocently blinked, her eyelashes fluttering like fans. "The nurse said it. Besides, if you're not my husband, why would you sleep with me at night?""What did the nurse say?" Her reasoning was actually logical and undeniable. For a moment, Damon found it somewhat amusing."The nurse said that my husband is really thoughtful," Celeste responded seriously. Then she asked, "Aren't you my husband? Then why would you be willing to stay here with me so late?"This one sentence left Damon speechless.The reason he was willing was because he was a coward. He said that he didn't care abo
Damon frowned upon hearing the classic amnesiac questions being asked."Celeste, are you trying to act out a TV drama?"Celeste still looked at him blankly. "What do you mean?"Damon didn't answer and went straight to the director's office to get Nicholas.Knowing her, she wasn't the type to joke around, especially not with Leo still missing. She must have hit her head hard.Nicholas was equally surprised and hurried back to the room with Damon.Celeste was sitting up, hugging her knees and staring into space."You're awake? How do you feel?" Nicholas asked with a smile as he entered."Why am I here?" Her voice sounded hesitant, and she turned to look at them.Her confusion seemed genuine. Nicholas and Damon exchanged worried glances."Celeste… you don't remember?""Celeste?" She asked, "Is that my name?""Yes.""I don't remember. My mind is blank.""Do you remember… Leo?" Nicholas hesitated. After all, if she knew that her child had been missing for three days, he was wo
"Alright," Celeste said in a deep voice. "Let me see Leo first."They pushed open the hidden door, revealing a staircase leading to the basement."Have Leo come to the stairway corner." She stood at the dark staircase and negotiated with the kidnapper."Mommy!" Suddenly, Leo's desperate cry echoed from inside."Leo!" Celeste ditched everything else and rushed down the stairs.She ran ahead, and as soon as she reached the corner, there was a loud explosion, and a wave of heat hit her face."Celeste!""Celeste!"Damon and Winston's faces changed drastically, shouting in alarm.The basement was empty. It was a trap.Had they been more careful, they would have noticed that both the kidnapper’s voice and Leo’s cry were artificially synthesized. But Celeste, in her desperation to save her son, had been too frantic to discern this.The basement was rigged with landmines. Unfortunately, something went wrong. The mine exploded when Celeste reached the stairway corner, instead of when
What? Damon was also coming? Celeste felt her heart leap, and her voice became sharper as she said, "I can handle this. You can't come!"There was no response from his end.Observing Damon’s silence, Celeste quickly softened her tone. "Damon, listen to me. I can handle this alone. There's no need for you to get involved… because I'm their main target, and they likely won't harm Leo. You need to stay home and wait for him. You need to take care of him later on…""Celeste," Damon interrupted coldly. "Are you planning on not coming out alive?"Of course, coming out alive would be ideal, but she couldn’t guarantee that."Damon, I do have a chance of surviving, but when it comes to exchanging myself for Leo, there can be no room for error. We must follow the kidnapper's instructions to ensure Leo's safety."It was out of the question to provide a false sense of security and pretend to comply with the kidnapper, only to backtrack and get Leo killed.She needed to ensure Leo’s safety a
They checked all the surveillance footage near the Bishop residence and investigated every suspicious vehicle. They also had people keeping an eye on Henry, but after half a day, there was still no breakthrough.The kidnappers had taken Leo to threaten Celeste, and the lack of communication was meant to unnerve her. If it was according to predictions, she was supposed to wait for their demands. But, as a mother, she couldn't just sit and do nothing.Celeste remembered that Shannon had called her, so she found her contact in the blacklist and called."Shannon, did you and Henry kidnap Leo?" she demanded.Shannon laughed coldly. "Don't accuse us without any evidence. Your son is missing? Maybe it's karma. Hahaha!"Celeste hung up, unable to stand Shannon's smugness.Several teams searched for over 20 hours, even involving the police, but still had no solid leads. Celeste suspected Henry, but they couldn't just arrest him without any proof.She was extremely desperate. She didn't e
"Lester isn't as clever as Leo. He's just a four-year-old child, and he shouldn't have done anything like that," Serena instinctively defended Lester. Then, recalling the last time she had misunderstood Leo for similar reasons, she felt a pang of guilt and added, "I don't mean to imply anything… I'll have someone bring Lester here."Celeste nodded. "I'm not blaming Lester. I just want to understand what happened."Soon, the nanny looking after Lester brought him in. Unexpectedly, upon seeing Celeste, Lester burst into tears."Aunty Celeste, please don't hit me. I didn't mean to lose my brother!""Lester, I just want to understand what happened." Celeste was taken aback by his crying but kneeled down to speak gently. "I'm not blaming you. Can you tell me what you saw that day?""Aunty Celeste, don't hit me!" Lester kept crying, not saying a word about Leo's disappearance."Am I that scary, Lester?"At this moment, Celeste felt at a loss. She could communicate normally with Leo,
Celeste perfectly understood what Cedric's implied. "I mean, thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to entertain me today."Cedric had indeed wanted to help her that day, but his identity was too special to admit it openly. The scratch on the paper was a subtle hint, and whether or not she could interpret it depended on her intuition. The fact that she could decipher such a subtle hint proved her intelligence and luck.Over the years, Cedric had developed a sense of respect for Celeste after learning about her. He felt she was deserving of assistance, but he couldn't make it obvious."However, be careful. I see that Henry is at the end of his rope and might act irrationally. You should be on guard," Cedric warned.Celeste nodded, having considered this as well. "Henry wants me dead."This was why she had her brother stay abroad and sent Leo to the Bishops. With only herself remaining, it was harder for Henry to use her loved ones against her."Take care of yourse
Celeste's deduction was correct. Cedric intentionally left the mark. As Winston dug deeper, he slowly uncovered a series of issues.It was a bridge project on a highway in a poor mountainous area. Not uncommon.The problem was that the person in charge of this project was a leader assigned from a first-tier city to oversee the development. Officially, he was recognised for his capabilities, but in reality, this task was one he had to succeed in without failure.He had offended someone, and this transfer was a disguised punishment under the guise of a major responsibility.If he had managed it well, the chances of him returning to a higher development role would have been slim. At best, he could stay in this position until retirement. If he didn't manage it well, his entire career could be ruined.Someone of such status naturally had supporters as well as opponents. In such a situation, it was impossible for anyone to sabotage and create pitfalls along the way."It seems the next