"W-Wilson..." Clara said his name in a murmur."Clara," Wilson answered, very slowly. Clara stared into his eyes, her stomach sinking. She could not read his mind—how much did he hate or love her?"Are… Are you out of the hypnosis?" she asked with a shaky voice."Yes," he answered."So, now…" she parted her lips nervously, not sure what else to say. Should she ask him? Did he still love her? Did he still want her?Facing him, she panicked slightly. When she made up her mind to bring him out of his hypnosis, she was ready to do her best to get him back. Clara, what are you scared about? Clara scolded herself in her mind, and silence loomed between them."Why did you decide to bring me out of the hypnosis?" Wilson muttered."If I didn't bring you out of hypnosis, soon, I'd be skating on thin ice. I didn't want that. I didn't want to live in constant worry, fearing the day your hypnosis might be lifted."Clara remained calm. "You gave me the choice, and this is the decision I
Overwhelmed by emotions, Wilson slowly pulled Clara into his arms. He squeezed her in a tight hug that lasted a long time before letting go."I'll trust you one last time, Clara. Promise me you'll never leave me again!" Wilson growled, burying his face in her shoulder."You're the one who decided to bring me out of the hypnosis. You must take responsibility!"Clara froze, trying to get her head around it. Was he willing to stay with her? Did he believe her?"Aren't you angry at me? I thought you'd hate me…" Clara asked in a murmur"I am angry. But so what? I know what's most important to me! Like you said, you'd always be the one I love, no matter what!" Wilson replied, his voice dangerously low.All the pain of the past suddenly felt insignificant compared to his love for her. He loved her so much he would let go of the past!Wilson hugged Clara so tight it hurt. Wanting the hug to last a little longer, she stayed in his arms and ignored the discomfort. Slowly, she wrapped her
Summer readily accepted Clara's invitation. "I'm free this weekend. We haven't gathered since Coco's housewarming party, so it's a good time to meet."Over the weekend, Clara made a reservation in a famous club in Solaria for the gathering. She got a private room well-equipped with entertainment systems. No one brought their children this time, making this an adult-only gathering.Clara and Wilson's relationship became the main discussion during the party. Then, they began talking about Coco and the possibility of her pregnancy.Nosy by nature, Lisa was the first to ask, "So, are you pregnant yet?" "No, not yet." Coco shook her head with a bit of regret. It had been months since her wedding, but she was not pregnant, which made her a little anxious."Have you done any health checks at the hospital?" Serenity asked, concerned for Coco's health."We got a pre-wedding health check done, and there was no issue." Coco looked at her friends and sighed, "Seems like all of you got pregn
"Maybe because I had complications during labor. I almost died giving birth, and that traumatized Terry forever. He won't let me have a second child no matter what I say!" Lisa said with a hint of regret. Lisa had always wanted more children and a lively family, but her husband had said no. Terry would not change his mind no matter how she begged. He even got a vasectomy surgery to prevent any surprise pregnancies. "Well, you did have a dangerous complication during labor," Clara recalled the time Lisa had given birth. Everyone had feared that Lisa would not make it, and Terry's desperation at that moment remained clear in Clara's mind. "By the way, that boy from the Wood family, does he visit you often?" Clara asked. Lisa had given birth to Renee safely, and no one had expected a little boy to save Lisa and her daughter. Morgan Wood helped, but with a strange request—he wanted Renee. The result was that Renee would be the boy's future wife. The good news was that the boy wa
"Lonely?" Summer widened her smile. "I'm not scared about the loneliness. For me, I fear not knowing the purpose of living. I have a purpose now. I have my son and my friends, and that's enough. I've learned to content myself with what I have now.""You're right. I was overthinking it." Serenity was relieved to hear that. Clinking her glass softly against Summer’s, she lifted it and sipped the wine with a smile.Meanwhile, the men were chatting on the other side of the room. Lucas turned to Wilson, asking him," I heard you recently had your wedding photos taken with Clara?""Yup." Wilson nodded. "Remember what you told me? You know what, you were right.""What was it?" Lucas asked."Even though it's painful, you'd never want to forget it," Wilson immediately answered. "If only you had told me that earlier. Maybe Clara and I wouldn't have taken so long to be together.""Better late than never. Maybe it was meant for a better future," Lucas said."Right." Wilson snorted. "What a
"You guys go ahead. I have to go to the office early for my morning shift. I'll be going first," Summer said, much to Lisa's regret."Are you leaving already?" Lisa whined."We can gather more often. It's not like this will be the last time we get together," Serenity told Lisa. Then, she turned to Summer, "I'll have my driver take you home.""It's fine. I'll take a taxi," Summer refused at first, but Serenity insisted."Summer, please. I’d feel more at ease." Serenity grabbed her phone and dialed the driver. "The driver is right outside. You'll see him when you go out of the club.""Okay, thanks." Summer said and left.After Summer left, the rest of the group gathered together. Looking at the number of people left, Lisa suggested a game. "Why don't we play cards? How about Rummy?"The group agreed with no objections. "We have eight people here. Two tables, then?" Four players could play at each table."That's so boring," Lisa giggled. "Let's just have one table.""One table?
"I'm average at it." Coco shot Lucas a sheepish look. "I haven't played much over the past two years. I don't know if I've gotten worse."Lucas had a bad feeling. Average at it? And if her skills had gotten worse over time… How well could she play?"Well, um… I hope you don't mind… If you're forced to strip naked today," Coco squeaked. "I'll work on my skills for next time.""Next time?" Lucas raised an eyebrow. Was Coco looking forward to such a bet again next time?After deciding on the game, it was time to choose teammates. The women used rock paper scissors to decide the pairing. The result was that Lisa and Serenity would play against Clara and Coco.The women sat around a square table, and the men stood around them."How's your wife at card games?" Lucas asked Wilson."Like a middle school kid," Wilson sighed. At home, Clara frequently lost to Yannick in card games. Yannick was still in junior high, so Wilson had a point.Lucas fell into a short silence, not knowing what
Lisa was chatting about showbiz while in the middle of the game."By the way, do you know Claude Road, the upcoming star in showbiz? He's good at acting and charming!""His personality seems pretty cute too. When he shoots in Studio City, I plan to go there to have a look at him. Do you want to go together? Let's go in a group!""Claude? Isn't he 22 this year? The show he's on right now is pretty good," Serenity remarked."Which one? I'll check it out later," Clara said."The Gift of Time. He's so handsome in the show!" Lisa praised.Terry rolled his eyes at Lisa, but Lisa never noticed his warning gaze.Coco became interested in the topic. "Let's go to Studio City together next time. It's fun watching the behind-the-scenes in real life.""Oh, if you can come, that would be great! We may even have a chance to get up close with the crew!" Lisa exclaimed. Coco had married Lucas, a powerful figure in showbiz. Many people in the entertainment industry would be eager to please her.
“……” Morgan suddenly found himself unable to retort. She... wasn't wrong. “But when you play house, you can pretend to be parents with one person today and another person tomorrow. Real marriage is different; you can’t choose someone else.”Renee widened her eyes, listening intently.“The only person you can choose is me. Do you understand, Renee?” he continued.She nodded vigorously. “I understand!”“Do you really?” Morgan asked, a little skeptical. He was already fifteen, so he could grasp the concept of marriage, but she was only eight. Could she truly comprehend it?“So, in the future, I can only marry Morgan and be your bride, right? I can't be someone else's bride, right?” she asked. “I don’t want to marry other boys anyway. I like you the most, Morgan. Of course I’ll only be your bride!” she happily declared, her worries fading away.So she could be Morgan's bride when she grew up! That's great!After finishing another piece of snack, Renee thought of something. She put o
Despite her unease, she couldn’t resist when she saw the sweet desserts. She indulged herself.However, as she ate, her eyes remained fixed on Morgan, clearly still waiting for him to clarify Lucy’s claims.“You want to know if you’re a child bride, right?” Morgan began.Renee nodded.“Do you know what a child bride is?” he asked.She blinked. She had a vague idea, but not enough for her to articulate it.“To put it simply, a child bride is a girl raised by a boy's family. The girl will marry the boy when she comes of age. In the old days, some families were too poor to raise their daughters, so they would sell their daughters to become child brides for richer families,” Morgan explained.Renee blinked. “But my parents aren’t poor, and I'm raised by them, not by other people. That means I’m not a child bride, right?”“Correct, you are not,” Morgan affirmed.She breathed a sigh of relief, and a bright smile spread across her face. “I knew it! My parents would never sell me! The
"Morgan!" Renee turned to Morgan, unease etched on her face."The Moon family, eh? I'll remember this," Morgan replied calmly, then lowered his head to meet Renee's anxious and confused face. "Let's go, Renee. I’ll tell you what you want to know later."He led her away holding her hand.Benson looked worried. "Miss Lucy, how could you say that?""It's the truth!" Lucy shook off her fear and spoke defiantly. "Daddy and Mommy said she’s a child bride. A child bride is a girl sold by her own parents!""But the White family is not like that. Those things only happened to daughters of poor families in the old days," Benson explained. "You really shouldn’t have said that, Miss Lucy. You shouldn’t do that again.""Why do I have to listen to you?" Lucy retorted, displeased.Benson was too ashamed to tell Lucy in front of others that the Moon family simply couldn’t afford to offend Morgan. Dealing with the White family was already a headache, and Morgan's background was even more formi
Benson and Lucy were also dumbfounded. Benson started getting anxious. He felt like things were starting to unfold in ways that he did not expect."Mr. Grimes, I..." Benson stepped forward, intending to speak to Mr. Grimes.However, Mr. Grimes moved past Benson without so much as a glance at him. He went up to Morgan and said, "Master Morgan, I apologize for the oversight!"Everyone was stunned to hear that, including the security guards who had been called over. They were secretly relieved they hadn't forcibly removed anyone yet. If they had offended someone Mr. Grimes was showing so much respect to, it would have been really bad for them!Morgan regarded Mr. Grimes with an unreadable expression. He calmly recounted the situation to Mr. Grimes.After hearing about what happened, Mr. Grimes responded, "This set of stamps was not pre-ordered. If you like it, please take it. Feel free to take anything else in the exhibition that catches your eye."This declaration shocked every
"Who are you?!" Benson exclaimed, astonished. The mysterious figure remained silent, simply looking at Morgan.Morgan calmly reiterated to Benson, "I said, wait for Mr. Grimes." He then pulled out his phone and dialed a number. "I'm Morgan Wood. Please have Mr. Grimes from Lazy Cat Culture come to the Sleepy Cat Exhibition in Solaria. He should be in the area, right?"After ending the call, the person on the other end stared at the phone in disbelief.The Sleepy Cat Exhibition? What's going on?Benson, Lucy, and the staff stared at Morgan in shock, but the look in their eyes quickly turned to ridicule."Ah, a young man's naive bravado – how impudent!" Benson scoffed."Sir, please don't cause trouble," the staff member warned. "Or I'll have to call security."Morgan simply lowered his head to say to Renee, "Looks like we'll be here for a while. If you're bored, I can ask someone to walk around with you."Renee shook her head. "Morgan, what if this stamp set has really been p
Benson's words were not only meant to exert pressure on the staff, but also to inform him that they were on the same side.As expected, when the staff heard what he said, there was an instant change in his expression. He turned to Morgan and Renee and said, "I'm sorry, but it turns out this stamp set has already been pre-ordered by this customer."Morgan saw through the so-called pre-order as nothing more than an act. "When I asked you to wrap it up earlier, I didn’t hear you mention it was pre-ordered.""We forgot to mention that. Our apologies," the staff replied.Lucy, wearing a smug expression, raised her chin at Renee, causing Renee to puff out her cheeks in frustration.Benson calmly observed Morgan and Renee. The White family's White Maple Group had numerous overlapping businesses with the Moon Group. They were often competing with each other. Originally, the White Maple Group’s business activities weren't concentrated in Solaria, so even though there was competition wi
But before Morgan had even finished speaking, a girl's voice piped up, "I want this stamp set!"He turned to the voice and, upon seeing who it was, narrowed his eyes slightly. It was Lucy Moon, the girl Renee mentioned earlier. At the sight of Lucy, Renee immediately reacted like an angry little kitten. "Lucy Moon, why do you always try to take my stuff away?""Your stuff? How is this your stuff? You haven't paid yet!" Lucy shot back, her eyes fixed on Morgan.Morgan was well-known in their class, admired by many girls who claimed he was even more handsome than movie stars. If only Lucy had a big brother like that! She would be the envy of all the girls in class... no, all the girls in school!Unfortunately, her own big brother was not as good-looking.Last time, Lucy had tried to give Renee Sleepy Cat toys, asking for Morgan's email address in return. However, Renee accepted gifts from everyone but her, which infuriated Lucy."But if you want, I can give this stamp set to Re
Unlike many wealthy kids, Renee was quite restrained with her spending. She had never spent recklessly and often saved leftover money. Of course, when she wanted something beyond her budget, she would act cute and ask her Daddy or Morgan to buy it for her.Lisa was the least susceptible to her charms, so Renee didn’t dare to bother her!When they arrived at the exhibition, Renee’s eyes sparkled with excitement. There were so many adorable Sleepy Cat merchandise! They're all so cute! She wanted a lot of them, but realizing her limited budget, she knew she needed a sponsor! The best one was right beside her: Morgan!"Morgan," she said, flashing him a super bright smile.Seeing her like this, Morgan immediately knew she wanted to ask him for something. "What is it? Do you want me to buy you Sleepy Cat merchandise?""You’re so smart, Morgan! No wonder so many girls in our class like you and asked me for your phone number!" Renee praised him.As soon as she mentioned it, Morgan'
"Okay," Renee replied obediently, snuggling up to Morgan and acting cute. "Take me to the exhibition, Morgan! I know you’re the best. You’ll definitely take me, right?"Morgan pursed his lips. At 15, he was no longer a little boy. Although Renee was only 8, she was his destined wife.He had been protecting her since the day she was born. At first, he thought that he would only marry her because according to the family prophecy, she was the one most suitable for him. Over the years, however, he realized that his feelings for her ran deeper than he had initially thought.He found himself wanting to help her fulfill her wishes, and would clean up the mess when she caused trouble. Things had become different from what he had expected, but he welcomed them. He felt grateful that she was the one who was destined for him!With her by his side for the rest of his life, he would never feel lonely."Will you get into fights again?" Morgan asked."No more fighting, I promise!" Renee quickly