That sent a jolt through his body. He turned his head to look at her in surprise. His dark eyes contained many emotions that she could not decipher."Jack, let me talk to him," she said as she gripped his hand hard, as if she was comforting him.Jackson pursed his lips and looked at her without moving an inch.He was hesitating. He did not know what to do.Serenity took a step forward, stepping out from behind Jackson. Jackson did not stand in her way.Her eyes fell on Lucas, who was now only a few steps away. "I'm not the person you're looking for. I don't have the slightest recollection of the things you mentioned, so I think you must have gotten the wrong person!"When she finished, the light in Jackson's eyes wavered, while Lucas seemed like he was unwilling to believe her. "That's impossible. You... you must have forgotten. You've forgotten, haven't you? Have you forgotten because it's been too long?""My memory has always been good," said Serenity, "I really don't remember
Jackson remained silent and kept driving. He was feeling a panic he had never felt before.He did not know what he was afraid of. Was he afraid of Lucas finding out that Serenity was indeed the person he had been looking for? Or was he afraid that Serenity would develop some kind of feelings for Lucas in the future?No, Lucas... shouldn't be able to discover anything. Jackson had already taken the necessary precautions, just in case something like this happened.Meanwhile, Serenity seemed to have forgotten about the things that had happened in the past. According to Jackson's investigation, in the days after Lucas was found, Serenity had fallen terribly sick with a high fever. She was even sent to Solaria for treatment.She must have forgotten certain things because of that high fever.But... even though Jackson had taken the necessary precautions, why did he still feel so apprehensive?He felt as if something out of his expectations would happen, thus throwing his plan off.Lik
"What are we doing here?" Serenity asked, feeling puzzled. Jackson pursed his lips tightly, looking at the view of Solaria through the window glass.The young Jackson had come here with his father once. His father had brought him here and told him, "Jack, you know what? You'll understand what it means to be unstoppable only when you're high standing. You often have no control over your own destiny unless you have enough power."If one wanted to be truly in control of his own destiny, he would have to keep climbing higher and higher!Whenever Jackson was frustrated, he would come here and look out over this view of Solaria. He had told himself that one day, only he could control his own destiny. He had not been here for a long time since he had taken over the Valor Group and yet, he was here again. How long had it been?The last time he was here, he thought he was finally in complete control of his own destiny. He would no longer be at the mercy of anyone. However, he had come her
Why? Must she tell him the answer to that? Jackson seemed like he clearly needed an answer from her."Hey, tell me. Why? Why won't you have a crush on Lucas?" Jackson urged.Serenity's face turned slightly pink. Even so, she stated clearly, "Because you're the one who makes my heart beat. I don't want you to get the wrong idea, Jack. There's really nothing between Lucas and me. "Was it really nothing?Jackson's eyes darkened. The photo of Lucas embracing Serenity in his computer's mailbox seemed to flash before his eyes again. There were also photos of Lucas in tears in front of Serenity.Those photos seemed like a silent irony to him. Despite all his efforts, he could not break the bond between Serenity and Lucas."Is it really nothing? You're not hiding anything from me?" Jackson asked in a low voice."I've told you everything between Lucas and I." Serenity thought Jackson was asking about today."So... Serenity, how much do you love me?" Jackson's breath was on her face, hi
Serenity was stunned. Prove it? How could she prove it to him?! She was a little unsure of how to respond initially but suddenly understood something, seeing how he stared at her.Serenity hesitated. Then, she raised her arms and wrapped them around Jackson's neck. She tilted her jaw up slightly and pressed a gentle kiss against his mouth.Jackson's lips were soft, and his cool lips and scent made her feel at ease. It was just a touch of lips, but the kiss was her initiative.Serenity brushed her lips against his with love. It was her way of proving how much she loved him, but this kiss alone was not enough for him.When she was about to withdraw eventually, Jackson abruptly cradled the back of her head, his lips devouring hers gently yet firm and slightly dominantly.She jolted at the suddenly intense kiss, only to drown in it the next moment. Did Jack know what this kiss meant to her? This kiss made her realize her heart and her feelings for him even better.Unsure how long the
Serenity caught her breath. There seemed to be a dangerous aura around him. She instinctively tried to push him away, but his hand would not move."Serenity, I love you!" Jackson murmured softly, "Not just how cute you are. Only I can see the many faces of you."Jackson straightened up and gazed down at her. "So don't ever fall for someone else. Don't even try to think about it."He wanted her to be only his. He wanted to be absolutely sure that she was his. He wanted to have her all to himself and eliminate any of the remaining uncertainties that might make things go wrong.Was this love? Though his love had become fear, he wanted all of her. Had his father loved his mother the same way? That was why his father had lost the will to live after his mother had left.Jackson had thought that he would never love anyone in his life. Even if he got married and had children, his only goal was to leave the Valor family with an heir. However, Serenity was like a brand in his heart. Her imp
"Jack... Jack..." 'It's her. She's calling for me again... But why does it sound like a choked sob? Is she... crying?' Jackson's mind finally focused again, his eyes meeting Serenity's tear-stained face.'Serenity? Is she crying?! Did I hurt her?!'Yes. Serenity was suffering because Jackson had almost lost his mind.Seeing the tears on her face and the fear in her eyes made his heart ache terribly. It was the deepest blow to him.What had he... Was Serenity afraid of him?Jackson had lost the sanity he had always prided himself on because of what had happened between Serenity and Lucas!"Are you... Afraid of me?" Jackson murmured, his voice hoarse. All he wanted was to see her smile! Seeing how her smile lit up her face and calling him 'Jack' in her soft voice made him feel alive.Perhaps the last thing he wanted to see was her fear. However, he had unintentionally scared her this time. Serenity trembled slightly. Afraid of him? Yes, a little. No matter how hard she had r
After a brief pause, Serenity parted her lips. "If you really insist... If that's the only way to prove how much I love you, then... Okay."Serenity was unwilling to do this. They might get found out, and it would be extremely embarrassing. Despite that, if it was what he truly wanted, she was totally willing to give it to him. All she wanted was to ease his fear of vulnerability and take care of him.Jackson looked at Serenity in a daze. Her familiar voice rang in his ears, but it sounded like a stranger.What did she say? She had said okay. Serenity was still shaking in fear. Even so, for him... She was willing to do anything for him.Contentment flowed over him, making him feel a little overwhelmed. Despite that, it somehow soothed all his worries. The coldness in him seemed to be gradually fading.Serenity Lewis, the woman he loved...There was a long silence. After that, Jackson let out a slow breath and draped his suit over her body to cover her."Sorry... I wasn't being
“……” 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