“Anything else?” Nicole sounded cold, clearly wanting to drive her away. Norah felt embarrassed and could only quickly get down to business. “I know that you and Austin have a conflict. I was just worried that our family would get involved, so I said something that might have offended you. Please don’t mind. You may hit me if you are angry.” Norah said with an innocent look, as if Nicole would bully her. Nicole sneered as she despised someone who liked to play the victim like Norah. “Since you know you shouldn’t have said something that shouldn’t be said, you should have corrected yourself instead of coming to me to pretend to apologize.” With that, Nicole slammed the door shut. Norah felt insulted, as if she had been slapped, her face feeling a burning sensation. D*mn it. How dare Nicole disparage her? Did Nicole really think she had the right to reprimand her because she came to apologize? “Let’s wait and see, Nicole.” She stomped her feet angrily before taking her things
Everyone looked at Nicole in admiration. But the more unbelievable things were yet to come. Austin’s followers looked at Austin with confusion, and one of them asked, “But boss, yesterday, this ungrateful brat rejected your—” Before the guy could finish speaking, Austin gave him a punch with a backhand. “Stop talking like that to Nicole! From now onward, Nicole is my boss. I will not spare those who dare to bully her.” The poor guy glanced angrily at Nicole. Seeing that Austin was serious, the rest bowed their heads and submitted to Nicole. After that, Austin looked at Nicole flatteringly, hoping to get her compliment. Everyone was in a daze for a moment, as they could not believe that all this was true. Jack and Wayne behind them were speechless. Gary watched on with great interest, his eyes falling on Nicole and studying her. But Nicole was nonchalant, giving no reaction to Austin’s actions. She then calmly checked her watch and said to Austin, “I am not your boss. My
Ms. Emerson turned her head to look at Nicole with a gentle smile. “Keep up the good work, Nicole. Don’t get complacent just because you have scored a full mark this time. The monthly exam is around the corner; it is still crucial to do revision at night.” Yesterday, she thought that Nicole’s grades were mediocre. Nicole was even absent from the self-study class last night. It was only after the test did she find Nicole’s exam results were anything but mediocre. She was now much more at ease. It shocked Bradley to see how easily Ms. Emerson glossed over Nicole’s absence from the self-study class. Jack was even more dumbfounded, not expecting Nicole to be the only person who got a perfect score. He and Wayne looked at Nicole sitting in the third row from the last, as if she was some kind of monster. While passing the test papers to Nicole, there was a complicated look in Lulu’s eyes as she noticed that Nicole had corrected the two questions that she had done wrong. Those two q
Snow was cooperative. “Indeed, I can also tell that this should be Hablese coffee beans, and was probably produced last year. That’s why it is so fragrant and has a very strong coffee aroma.” Raine quickly nodded. “The roasting of this coffee bean goes through ten complex processes.” Everyone listened to them and nodded their heads in praise of their erudition. Seeing that they had gotten all the attention they wanted, Snow and Raine played humble, pretending that they were not seeking compliments, yet the smile on their faces had never stopped. Norah felt triumphant, too, after Nicole was ridiculed. Just as they were at it, sudden laughter came. Snow and Raine turned around abruptly, not realizing that Nicole was leaning back in her chair and looking at them with unbridled sarcasm. Raine was the first to lose her cool. “What are you laughing at?” “I laugh at you all, smart aleck.” Nicole did not want to intervene at first, but these people had jabbed at her. She was no
Snow was embarrassed but could only hold out her hand to Jared. “Hello Mr. Johnston, I am Snow, Nicole’s cousin. Nice to meet you.” She smiled and fiddled with her hair, trying to impress Jared. No boy at school could resist her suggestive teasing, and she thought Jared was no exception. But Jared just nodded casually. “Nice to meet you.” Snow and Raine tried their entire bag of tricks to impress Jared but hit a wall when Jared snubbed them. Norah immediately snapped back and wanted to smash down Nicole. “We are sorry for the blunder. We were just discussing the coffee beans, and Nicole was just spitballing. Hope you don’t mind if she is wrong.” Norah looked graceful. The way she pretended to speak for Nicole could not be b*tchier. Nicole’s stomach churned, and she almost threw up. Just then, Jared suddenly said, “Miss Riddle is right, this coffee bean is indeed a product of my Floezen manor, and she is spot on about the roasting method.” Everyone gasped in surprise. Th
In that case, it was not too bad to be his fiancée. Wait a minute; what the hell was she thinking? How could she compromise just for the coffee? She coughed with embarrassment but still kept her modesty. “Thank you, Mr. Johnston. I will come again when I have time.” She loved coffee, so why not since it was free? “Okay.” He stared at her pretentious look and could not help but smile. This girl seemed to like his coffee beans. “I will go now. See you around.” Nicole waved goodbye. She smirked when she turned around. She would come for the coffee often. Max came into the private lounge after Nicole left. Jared immediately instructed Max, “Check Nicole’s background and don’t alarm the Riddle family.” He wanted to figure out the relationship between this girl and Mr. Ellison, and how she knew the existence of his estate. Max bowed his head, turned around, and left to find out Nicole’s background. Turning his gaze to the floor-to-ceiling window, Jared looked at Nicole’s
Why? She had been in this family for over ten years. Was everything she had done in vain? Why was everyone so nice to Nicole as soon as she returned? The hatred inside her surged like the billowing sea, but she could only try to keep a smile on her face. “Why did you come back so late, Norah?” Samuel asked with concern. It made Norah feel better, as she knew that Samuel genuinely cared for her. Thinking of this, she raised her chin and said, “I went shopping and had a drink with Snow and Raine after school. That’s why I am late. Had I known that you guys would be back today, I would have come back earlier.” Nicole scoffed. Norah did not look like she wanted to return home when she ingratiated herself with Snow and Raine. “Come have dinner together.” Gloria smiled and beckoned Norah to sit down. But what Gloria said made Norah feel as if she was just a guest. She glanced at the long table again. There were two people on the left and two on the right, and she was superf
Nicole returned to her room after a lively dinner. Samuel’s enthusiasm was overwhelming for her. Fortunately, the few of them rarely came home. Gloria wanted to know how they were doing these days, as she was preparing what they would need to take to school later. After taking a shower, Nicole locked the door and turned on her notebook to check the job's progress. The monitoring code was working properly. Just as she was about to close the notebook lid, she suddenly noticed a program, which she did not code, running in the lower-left corner of the screen. The little program was emitting a faint glow. Nicole’s keen eye immediately recognized what it was: a location-tracking malware. “Trying to track me down? Not so easy!” Nicole scoffed, her fingers flying over the keyboard, quickly closing all channels, and shutting down this specially built notebook computer. She had many enemies. It would be too dangerous if her location was exposed. But what she did not know was that as qu
"Let's go, it's time to head down. The ceremony will start soon."The group laughed and talked as they left the bridal suite. Jared and his friends, Spencer and Preston, were also guided out by everyone.Now, only the family of four remained in the bridal suite, getting ready for their big entrance."Mommy, it's almost time. Let's get ready," Nolan said, pulling on Nicole's hand.Nicole gently patted Nolan and Lana's cheeks, whispering, "Okay."As she made to stand, Jared extended his hand toward her. Lifting her gaze, she caught Jared in a moment of elegance, his charm unmistakable. A smile bloomed on her face as she placed her hand in his.With a gentle tug, Jared drew her up, his touch tender against her palm.In a swift move, he pulled Nicole into his arms, his other hand circling her waist to pull her close.As Jared looked at Nicole, admiration shimmered in his eyes. "You look truly beautiful today," he remarked."Daddy, Mommy is beautiful every day," Lana chimed in, til
Nicole laughed off the debate between Lulu and June, saying, "Both are lovely. I'm happy with either."Both sets of jewelry were beautiful, and she felt that either would do."Exactly. Nicole will shine in anything," Cindy said, picking a set. "Let's go with this one."Lulu gave June a victorious look. "Told you this was the one."Cindy then suggested, "Why not wear this for the ceremony and switch for the reception? That way, we use both.""Great idea," June agreed, smiling at Cindy's suggestion.Nicole smiled. "Sounds perfect."With everyone agreeing, the stylist went ahead with preparing Nicole.Lulu watched Nicole, amazed by how calm she seemed. "Aren't you a bit nervous?" she asked. Lulu remembered her own wedding jitters.Nicole bit her lip, a hint of nerves showing. "I'm more excited than anything," she admitted.She had been looking forward to this day, ready to face the future with Jared with hope and joy."Just finished," the stylist announced, stepping back to adm
"Do you think I don't want to meet someone? I just haven't found the right person," Gary said somewhat resignedly. He had long regarded Nicole as just a friend."Why don't we just try the dates our families set up?" Ryder suggested, calm and collected. He figured since finding someone on his own wasn't working, maybe arranged dates could help. In their circles, it seemed like good matches were meant to be."Arranged dates don't sound great. You hardly know the person. Are we really okay with deciding to spend our lives together like that?" Preston wasn't too keen on the idea."Emery's doing pretty well with it, you know," Ryder said confidently. "I trust our families. They wouldn't set us up with someone terrible. They've probably made sure we'd be a good match."Gary thought it over. "You might be right. Our families aren't just trying to make deals; they want us to be happy."As Gary and Ryder seemed more into the idea, Preston was still unsure. "You guys are serious?""Why not
Jared held Nicole close and looked at her. "After we get married, we'll move to the estate," he said.Their future home would be just theirs.He thought it was good for Nicole to spend more time with her family since she hadn't been with them for five years. But they knew they would move to the estate later."Okay," Nicole said, nodding. She was happy Jared made the estate close to her family, so she was okay with moving.Jared gently touched her hair and kissed her...****Time flew, and soon it was Nicole and Jared's wedding day.From the morning, San Joto was alive with excitement. Everyone was talking about Jared and Nicole's wedding.Politicians, business leaders, close friends, and business partners all came to wish the couple well.The Riddles were busy welcoming the guests, making everything look amazing."Patricia, hurry up, Charlie's here," Ellar called out as he spotted Charlie. He quickly got Patricia to come and greet him. Max, hearing the fuss, came over too.C
"You really need to rest. You shouldn't work for the next few days. Stay home and rest. A bride has to look her best," Gloria said, looking at Nicole and making the decision for her."Bride!" Nicole was surprised because she hadn't talked about any wedding yet."Yes, now that everything is settled, it's time for your wedding with Jared," Gloria said, deciding firmly. She used to think it was best for the kids to decide for themselves, but after several delays, she felt waiting longer made no sense. The wedding should happen soon."I was thinking that too," Jared said. They had planned the wedding after solving the Everett problem, but then they found out Lawrence had hurt Nicole in the past, causing more delays. Now, with everything sorted out, they saw no reason to wait. The wedding was the next big step.Nicole looked at Jared and, with a smile, agreed, "Okay." Their wedding had been waiting for five years; it was time, with no need to wait any longer."That's so cool, I'm the f
Patricia felt a mix of reluctance and happiness as she prepared to part ways with Charlie.Jared glanced at Charlie and said, "It's about time for us to board." He tenderly held Nicole's hand and led her toward the boarding gate."I need to go through the boarding procedures too," Patricia said, biting her lip. "You must find happiness as well.""I will," Charlie assured her with a gentle smile, giving her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "You've grown up, too. You don't need to cling to me anymore. I believe Ellar will take great care of you."Patricia nodded, then, leaning closer to Charlie, she whispered, 'When Mr. Johnston and Ms. Riddle get married, make sure you bring my future sister-in-law back with you.' Caught off guard, Charlie playfully scolded her, "You little rascal."Doretta, standing not too far away, overheard Patricia's whispered words. Her cheeks turned even redder."Let's go," Patricia announced, then turned to Doretta, adding, "We'll meet again.""Goodbye,
Lying in bed with Nicole cradled in his arms, Jared whispered gently, "Sleep for a bit.""Mhm." Finally feeling at peace, Nicole smiled slightly, and she quickly fell asleep.As Jared listened to her soft breathing, his eyes softened with affection, and he too closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.The next morning, as the group got ready to head back to San Joto, Zane and Doretta came to say goodbye."I still have things to finish here, but I promise to be at your wedding," Zane said with a big smile."And I'll be there to wish you well, Nicole," Doretta added.Saying goodbye is always hard, but everyone knew they had their own journeys to continue."Great, we'll see you in San Joto," Nicole said with a bright smile."It's time to go," Zane said, knowing they couldn't wait any longer without risking missing their plane."I've got the paperwork," Patricia said, ready to help with the travel documents for Jared and Nicole. Then, looking at Charlie, she asked, "Need help with
Nicole was quiet, thinking about everything. 'If I hadn't remembered everything, maybe Lawrence and I could have stayed friends. But after finding out about the airport, it's impossible...'Not only had she regained her memory, but she had also learned about the airport incident. Lawrence had gone to great lengths to prevent her from returning to San Joto."Thanks for saving me before, but you also hurt me. We're even now," Nicole said calmly, looking at Lawrence like he was someone she didn't know anymore.Jared squeezed Nicole's hand gently. "Let's go."They decided to leave the rest to Zane and head back."Wait." Lawrence's voice stopped Nicole. He sounded almost like he was begging. "Please, don't tell Nolan about this."Nicole paused, then said, "I won't tell him. Not for you, but because I don't want Nolan to see how bad people can be."With that, Nicole walked away with Jared.Lawrence sat down, watching her leave, with mixed feelings."Let's go too," Patricia said to C
"Your robots don't work anymore," a voice said, sounding very pleased. Then, a person came out from behind the crowd, looking pretty proud of himself."Carl!" Nicole was shocked to see him. 'It's Carl!'"It's been a while." Carl smiled and waved at Nicole.Carl had come as soon as Zane told him about the problem. He couldn't just do nothing when Nicole needed help.He didn't expect them to act so soon, which is why he was a little late. But he was still in time to help. Carl was surprised by Lawrence's robots at first, but luckily, the weapons he brought, which he had been working on for years, stopped the robots. This was a big help to everyone."We really need to thank Carl; we would have been in big trouble without him," Zane said, feeling relieved.Zane had asked Carl for help, hoping it would make them more likely to win, but Carl ended up being very important."Thank you," Nicole said with a warm smile. It was nice to see an old friend again."No need to thank me. I'm jus