The Nassos owned an array of properties in the capital and had an accumulated net worth of tens of millions of dollars, but even then, it was not for Kaison's to spend, but an accumulation of the entire family's shares!Although Kaison had a rather successful company of his own, he still could not afford to pay Liam's ransom, for his monthly income just barely cleared two million dollars!Liam was asking for practically six months' worth of his salary, and this was no doubt a great blow to Kaison. His mind raced at a hundred miles a minute as he tried desperately to think of ways to bargain with Liam. After all, he could not possibly justify handing over such an exorbitant amount of money at one go!Liam, however, seemed to see right through his hesitation, for the next moment, he said, "You have to think long and hard about this, Mr. Nasso. Which is more important to you—your life, or a few million dollars? I'm sure you must be furious at me for making things difficult for you, b
Jonathan had been working when his assistant burst into his office, looking panicked as he relayed the information about a mysterious new fund deposit in the company account. Jonathan's first thought went to Liam, so he called him immediately. Liam smiled at the apprehension in Jonathan's voice, then explained, "Don't worry, Mr. Nevens. It was from me. I know the company needs the funds, so I transferred it to you. Use it wisely, and let me know if you need any further assistance. I'm always happy to help."Jonathan was relieved to hear this and knew better than to ask questions. The two of them exchanged some words, then hung up.It was already very late by the time Liam arrived home. Jovie was watching cartoons on the couch by herself, and when she heard Liam arriving, she flung her stuffed toy aside to sprint to him. Leaping right into his arms, she snuggled up against the nape of his neck and said, "Why are you home so late, Daddy? I missed you so much…"Liam put one arm aro
Liam's expression darkened, and cold fury was visible in his eyes as he asked, "What happened? Why did she hit you?"Celena quickly tilted her head to one side, avoiding his gaze, then explained hastily as though she was trying to hide something from him, "No, nothing. It's nothing, Liam. We just got into a fight over the project, that's all…"Her face was etched with fear and worry as she said this, for she knew full well what Liam would do if he found out what Cheryl had done. Liam took in the panic on her face, then turned his gaze toward the bright red mark on her cheek in the shape of a palm. The stark contrast of the mark against her rosy skin made white-hot fury course through his veins. Cheryl!He had shown her mercy, but people like her did not deserve forgiveness!Liam was so furious that even the air around him seemed charged with electricity. "Liam, I'm fine. Please don't do anything rash…" Celena muttered, sensing his anger. She reached out to grab his arm, hopin
Then, by some strange surge of courage, she lifted herself up on tiptoes and kissed Liam on the lips.The kiss was as light as a feather and lasted barely a second. She quickly disentangled herself from Liam, blushing, then leaped into bed and drew the covers over herself. Then, she muttered from underneath the duvet, "You can leave now. I'm going to sleep."Liam did not expect Celena to kiss him out of the blue, much less on the lips. He was so stunned that he could not utter a word. Even though Celena had left, he could still smell the lingering scent of her perfume. Celena's voice seemed to break the spell that had been placed over him, for he finally snapped out of his stupor and said, grinning stupidly as he touched his lips, "Alright. Good night, my love…"Then, he left the room, beaming from ear to ear, and closed the door behind him. Even after he had left the room, he stood outside the door, his fingertips still grazing the place where Celena's lips had touched his.
Liam could not help but think about the neighboring nations that had been growing increasingly restless lately, stirred up by a few Westernia countries over the past few years.A steely glint shone in his eyes as he spoke, and an icy aura seemed to radiate from him.On the other side of the call, Calum's voice took on a grave tone. "Sir, you can count on me. I've arranged for our people to slip into Drunham City in waves, and I've also reached out to our contacts in the Cole family.""Good job," Liam acknowledged with a nod, his voice a mix of relief and command.Hanging up, Liam let out a deep breath. His wedding meant everything to him. It was his and Celena's big day, the one they had been waiting for seven long years. Nothing could have gone wrong. Not that time.Liam's thoughts drifted to Celena and their daughter Jovie. His gaze softened, and a warm smile spread across his face.The following morning, Celena woke up early as she always did. The redness and marks on her chee
It took a moment for the Stone family reps and the company bigwigs to shake off their shock. A few of the execs, who were right in the thick of it, were all thumbs as they tried to scoop up the papers that had gone flying across the table."What's happening here? How did a safety accident even happen?""Good Lord! Shoddy materials? And five workers caught up in safety incidents, what's really going on?""Celena, how are you running this project? How come there's shoddy materials at the build site?""Now what? Five people in accidents, how much cash are we gonna have to shell out?""Are you just talking nonsense? Is money the issue right now? We're in this with Max Group, and if they catch wind we used cheap stuff, they could come after us!!""What do we do now?? If this gets out, isn't Stone Group toast?""Celena, you owe us some answers today. How are you running things? Why are there cheap materials at the construction site?"The room was electric as the Stone family's people
Cheryl's accusation was crystal clear: she was charging Celena with swapping out quality materials for cheap knockoffs to line her own pockets!Celena's eyes brimmed with panic, and she shook her head frantically in denial. "It's not true... I haven't... I haven't profited from this...""Hmph!"Yafe had zero patience for her excuses, cutting her off with a contemptuous snort. "Listen up, Celena. You're the one calling the shots on the Max Group project. This mess is on you, and you're going to fix it."Celena, I've kept a lid on this for now, but it won't stay quiet forever. You're the project lead, so you better hustle up a solution, and fast."And if this blows up and jeopardizes our deals with Max Group and Mr. Miller, are you ready to face the music?"The moment Yafe's words hung in the air, the Stone family's representatives and the company's top brass were all on edge. If that snafu tanked the deal with Max Group and Mr. Miller, the Stone Group stood to lose a fortune!For
The assistant, visibly shaken by Yafe's outburst but driven by the gravity of the situation, did not bother with an explanation. He dashed to the conference table, grabbed a cell phone, and flicked on the TV.The screen showed a live broadcast from Drunham City's local news, zooming in on several Stone Group construction sites.The camera panned over crowds of people at the sites, waving banners that screamed accusations, [Shoddy materials cause severe injuries to five], [The Stone Group's dirty dealings], [Profiting off workers' lives], [The Stone Group's vile business won't end well], and more.The area was swarming with workers, their families, and locals rallying for justice, all waving banners and chanting with fervor, throwing the place into total disarray.The TV crew was there, filming the whole commotion, and the reporter, Rosie, was on air, her voice charged with urgency, "Good evening. I'm Rosie, reporting live. We've learned from the victims' families here that these co