My whole body went numb at his words. I hoped that he was joking. Nooo! He could not ask for something like that from me, right?However, he leaned closer to me and looked at my lips. “Little Champ, are you going to do it?“ He asked.I hurriedly shook my head and looked away from him. “What is wrong with you?“ I asked angrily. Why was he behaving like that all of a sudden?Xin sighed. “Do you want to know what is wrong with me? Give me a kiss first, then I will tell you,” he said in a serious tone.I sighed and stood up. “I don't care if anything is wrong with you. Just please keep your jokes and dirty tricks to yourself,” I said. I was never going to let him take advantage of me again.Xin stood up with me. “I wasn't making any jokes, Isabel. I meant everything I said. Anyway, it doesn't have to be now. Kiss me once you are ready, okay?“I rolled my eyes at him and began walking out of the room. I had come to the conclusion that something was wrong with the man.Xin sat on the driver
When it was time to leave work, I went to Xin's office to take Little Lion. I had not been worried about him because I was sure he was fine.However, I tensed when I did not see either him or Xin. Where had they gone?“Um, Bella. Are you looking for Little Lion?“ Birdie asked when he walked into the office.I hurriedly nodded. “Do you have any idea where he is?“ I asked. “Yes, Boss left with him. He told me to tell you that you should not worry. Little Lion was safe,” Birdie explained.I sighed in relief, but I still felt a little angry. How could he take away my son without my permission? Still, I could not show my anger to Birdie. I smiled at him and thanked him.I immediately called Xin. I needed him to tell me where they were so that I could pick up my son.“Hello, Little Champ! Do you miss me?“ I heard his lively voice from the other side, and I almost chocked on my saliva.How could he still have the guts to joke when he had left with Little Lion?“Are you an adiot? Where is my
I held tightly to the shirt on my body and took a few steps back. "You? How long have you been here?“ I asked.Xin smiled while looking at me up and down. “Long enough,” he said. He did not look like he was doing anything wrong.My lips twitched. “Aren't you a pervert? What did you see?“ I asked angrily. Could it be that he had seen me change?Xin burst out laughing. “Aren't you so insecure? I have some respect in me, okay?“ He said it, his voice full of ridicule.But I sighed in relief. At least, it meant that he had not seen me naked. I swore to try and never come to his house again.I pursed my lips when I remembered what life had been like in his house in the past. Luckily, this was a different house. If not, I wasn't sure I would have the courage to go over.Xin took a step towards me and once again held my hand. I looked at him in confusion.And he sighed. “Didn't you want to see Little Lion?“ He asked. “Why do you keep your guard so high against me?“I shrugged and let him take
Xin was silent for some time. I also felt awkward with my own words. But I tried assuming that everything was okay.“Little Lion said that you were not seeing anyone,” he finally said. And I froze in my place. Little Lion had told him something like that the day he picked me up for work.I pursed my lips and looked back at him. “Because he is still a kid and doesn't know a lot of things,” I said. Xin did not have to know everything about me.He sighed and held my hand again. “Will you tell me the truth then? Are you seeing someone?“ He asked.I fell silent. I couldn't lie to him about that. But I still did not want to tell him that I wasn't dating. I forced a chuckle. “Why do you care so much? Whether I am dating or not, it has nothing to do with you.““I am sorry,” Xin said, and he began eating. Even though I didn't know why he was sorry, I was only confused by the fact that he could apologize. The man was always so full of himself.After dinner, he showed me the guest room, where I
I was about to hit the man, but I stopped when I saw who he was. “Eze!“ I called in confusion.Eze immediately pulled me into his arms. “How have you been, my dear? I miss you so much,” he said, giving me a peck on the forehead.I was used to his behaviour. I gently pushed him away with a sigh. “You scared me to death. Next time, tell me when you come,” I said.The look on his face turned a little questionable. “Where were the two of you?“ He asked.I froze in place for a second. What was I supposed to tell him?“Um, we visited a friend. How long have you been here?“ I asked. I didn't want him to start asking about the kind of friend we had visited.“Bella, you know what you are doing, right?“ He asked and moved closer to me. I was scared that he could see through me.“Daddy Eze! Do you forget about me every time you see my mommy?“ Little Lion looked up at him with a pout.And Eze's attention was diverted to the child. “Oh, my goodness! I will never forget about this little darling,”
Eze sighed and looked back at me. “And you just agreed to sleep in his house? Bella, tell me honestly, do you still love him?“ He asked.I was so shocked that I almost chocked on my saliva. I coughed awkwardly. “Love him? What are you talking about?“ I asked back. Did he know something?Eze sighed again. “Don't play dumb with me, Bella! I know who he is. He is Little Lion's dad, the man you had been married to five years ago..."“Stop!“ I shouted in fear. “Why do you care so much about my life? Didn't I tell you not to investigate me again?“ I asked angrily.I didn't like how he dug up information about me. Little Lion and Xin's relationship had been my secret for so long. Even my uncle and cousin did not know about it!Eze seemed startled at my words. “What? Are you getting mad at me because of him, Bella? Did you forget that he is the man who hurt you? What did he do to your company and your parents?““Eze!“ I called out sharply. “What is wrong with you? I asked you to stay out of m
Xin was in a foul mood when he left Isabel's place. He did not like the thought that another man could enter her house as he wanted.He had just walked to his house when he received a call. Looking at the caller ID, he was slightly shocked to see that it was from Isabel.He hesitated for a while before picking up. “Is everything okay?“ He asked in a not-so-good tone.The person on the other side sighed. “Xin, just be careful. You might be in danger,” she said.Xin was confused for a second before he burst out laughing. “Do you care about me? Are you scared that that man will hurt me? Rest assured, I am fine,” he said.There was only a humph on the side, and the call was disconnected. Xin looked at his phone and sighed in disappointment.“Why call me when you don't even mean anything?“ He asked and put away his phone. But the presence of that man still troubled him.…On Monday, I took the morning off work so that I could take Little Lion to school. I was so excited about his scholarsh
I sighed and looked between the two of them. Xin had his hands in his pockets, and he was looking back at Eze so calmly.“Um, Little Lion needed someone to act as his dad,” I explained. I did not want Eze to have any misunderstandings.“What?“ Eze said. “Why did you go looking for a stranger when I was just around?“ He asked.I pursed my lips. Why was he making a big deal out of it? Xin had only offered to help. And also, he was the person the Little Lion had chosen. What was I supposed to do?“Hey, I am not a stranger to her. Little Lion wants me to be his…” Xin said it coldly. But I quickly shook my head to stop him from speaking.He rolled his eyes and held my hand. “We have to go back to work. Wasn't your leave supposed to be in the morning only?“I swallowed hard and nodded my head. “Eze, let us talk about this later on, okay?“ I said.We still had a lot to talk about. We had just met after he left angrily on Saturday. And I felt a little guilty that he did not know anything abou
Xin seemed to have come back to his senses when I called him. He dropped the gun he was holding and held tightly onto me.“Bella, are you still there?“ He asked, his body trembling.I could feel that I was actually losing consciousness. So I could only groan at him. There were so many things that I wanted to tell him, but I could not.“Hang in there!“ He shouted and rushed to his car. “I am going to make sure that you are fine.““Xin…” I called. To be honest, I never felt like I could make it. “Take care… of Little Lion,” I said.“Bella!“ Xin called out fearfully, and that was the last thing I heard from him.…I tried to move my hand to get rid of the thing that was obstructing my breathing. However, I felt numb, like my body didn't belong to me.“Mommy?“ I heard a small voice beside me, and I quickly opened my eyes.I was confused for a second as I stared at the child before me. “Little Lion?“ I called. Wasn't I dead?“Mommy? You woke up?“ Little Lion asked and sprang to his feet. “
I felt my blood boil in anger, but I was too scared at the same time. I pulled Little Lion into my arms and hugged him tightly.He had been shot in the arm, and he was bleeding. I was scared that I would lose him if I wanted any longer.“I'm fine, mommy. We have to get out of here,” Little Lion said weakly. He was biting on his teeth, obviously trying to suppress the pain. And that hurt me even more.“Hold on a little longer, baby,” I said, standing up. I took the gun that he had been holding and pointed straight at the man in front of me.The others tried to shoot, but they were too slow for me. I shot at them, knowing that it was either me and my son or them.In a split second, most of them were lying on the ground. I didn't want to check whether they were breathing or not.The others, including my mom, looked a bit scared. They no longer dared to shoot.I took another gun from the man lying closest to me and pointed at them. "I am going to walk out of this place with my son," I sai
Knowing that he was talking to Old Xin, I felt so annoyed. “Old Xin, I want to talk to you. Why are you a coward? Come out and face me!“ I shouted.Why was he hiding in the shadows while trying to take advantage of us? If he wanted to kill us, then he should have done it himself.However, two men walked forward and captured me. “Watch your tongue, young lady,” they said.I struggled against them when they tried to pull me towards the gate. “You have to live and never come back. If you show up ever again, he is going to kill you,” one of the men said.I struggled intensely. “I am not going anywhere. I want to see my son. What have you people done to him?““Stop!“ Someone shouted when the gate was opened. And seeing that it was my mom, I felt even more terrible.The men paused, but they didn't say anything to her. They just stared at her calmly, as though nothing she said mattered.“I will get her out of here. She is going to leave and will never show up again, right, darling?“ She aske
“Killed? He won't kill his own grandson,” I said. Was something wrong with Kaycie?But she took the phone and threw it far away. I was sure it was broken into tiny pieces. “He is willing to kill Little Lion. Do you think he cares about a grandson who doesn't listen to him?“ She asked.Though shocked by the fact that she seemed to understand Old Xin so well, I thought Little Lion was more important at the time.His new phone indicated that he was within fifty meters of range. I had to find him before anything happened to him.I pushed Kaycie away and ran back into the house, checking every room and box that I could find on the way.And when I could not find him, I ran for the nearby houses. I didn't care about what others thought of me. I would know what to do after I found him.“Stop it, Bella. You are going to get yourself killed,” Kaycie said, running after me. But it was just too late for that.…“Hello? Hey, Bella. Are you there?“ Xin asked in fear when Bella stopped talking all o
I looked at her in confusion. “Mom? Is that why you called me here? Is that why you didn't want Xin to know I was coming?“ I asked.Kaycie held my hand. “Darling, it is for your own good. Once everything is settled, you can come back,” she explained.But I couldn't listen to her. I wasn't going to lose everything that I had once again. “I'm sorry, mom. I am going back.“She quickly held my hand and stopped me from going. “You are an idiot, Bella. That man is going to kill you. He gave you the lady chance to live. Don't go back,” she insisted.And I stopped to look at her in shock when something rang in my head. “You are working with him, aren't you?“ I asked.Her lips moved, but she didn't say no. I couldn't help but sigh angrily. “You have been working with her all this time. You sold him the company. Mom, what changed?“ I asked, tears welling in my eyes.She shook her head, her Dave turning pale. “Darling, everything I did was for our own good. We both wouldn't be here if I didn't d
…Once Little Lion was dropped off at the old mansion and Xin left, Old Xin made a call.“I have him here. How are things on your end?“ He asked.“Settled. She is on her way,” said the person on the other side. “It will be done soon.“Old Xin sighed in relief. “You will receive the amount on your account the moment you have it done,” he said and hung up.But when he turned around, he saw Little Lion standing behind him. He coughed awkwardly. “What do you want to eat for dinner, dear?“ He asked.Little Lion looked at him calmly for a while before raising his brows. “Do you want to hurt my mommy again?“ He asked.The old man pursed his lips. But he couldn't let himself be exposed at such a time. “What are you talking about?“ He asked, faking ignorance.Little Lion shrugged. “I don't know who you were talking on the phone with, but if you hurt my mommy, I will never forgive you,” he said and walked away.Old Xin quickly walked after him. “Kid, what makes you think that I want to hurt you
…On Friday morning, I was feeling so tense. I had told Xin that it would be a night out for me and Abby so that he didn't suspect that I was going somewhere.“You don't look well,” Xin suddenly said as he parked the car. And I looked at him in shock.“Mmh? What do you mean?“ I asked. Could he have suspected something?He looked at me for a while before shaking his head. “You seem deep in thought. Remember that you can share anything with me, okay?“I nodded with guilt. “Of course,” I said. “I can tell you anything.“Xin sighed. “Grandpa wants Little Lion to spend the weekend at the old mansion,” he explained.I was quiet for a while before I sighed back. “Xin, I think we should let him go,” I said. And of course, I got that look of shock that I expected from him.“What?“ He asked. “You know how things are, darling. Do you really think we should? Little Lion might not even be willing to do it.“I held his hand. “Relax, honey. Little Lion is his great-grandson. He will never do anythin
…For days, I kept wondering whether it was true that my mom was still alive. That thing had eaten up my brain.“Are you okay?“ Xin asked, waving a document in front of me.I came back to my senses and looked at him. “Do you think mom had something to do with dad's death?“ I asked.Xin seemed shocked for a second. Then he pulled me into his arms. “Darling, try not to think about it now, okay? Once you meet her, she'll explain everything,” he said.I nodded my head in understanding. More than a month had passed since I learned that she was alive. Yet, until now, I hadn't gotten any information about her.“What if she never wants to talk? What if she never agrees to see me?“ I asked. That could only explain some things to me.It had been fifteen years, and she never showed up. What made us think that she would finally do it?I could feel Xin tense up a little, and I realized that he could know something I didn't. A smile appeared on my lips. “You met her already, right? She refused to s
…Immediately after Xin left, Kaycie hurriedly made a call. “Did you tell your grandson where I was?“ she asked.The person on the other side was silent for a while. Then he cleared his throat. “Did he come to find you? What does he want?“Kaycie took a deep breath. “He wants to know what happened. He wants me to explain everything to my daughter. You know that I can't see her. You have to do something about it.“The person on the other side was silent for a while again. Then he exhaled deeply. “Kaycie, what if it is actually a good thing to meet her again?“Kaycie hurriedly shook her head. “No! That wasn't part of our deal, old Xin. I left everything behind, including her. I don't have the courage to see her. I won't know what to say to her,” she said while trembling.“Kaycie. Both you and I know that some rules have to be broken. You know my grandson, right? Nothing can stop him from doing anything he wants. Sooner or later, he is going to bring her right to you. You can never avoid