She turned to Mandy and said, "Mandy, remember, you’re the young lady of the Jewell family, and you should embody the grace and demeanor befitting one. Be dignified and poised, not resorting to the tricks of those deceitful types. Don't feign innocence or play the victim. A young lady from the Jewells should be proud and noble, not pitiful or distressed."Mandy was both angry and embarrassed. She could not believe Paige had the audacity to lecture her, and in front of Andrew at that!She glared at Paige with red eyes and bit her lips. She was on the verge of exploding. If Andrew were not there, she would have lashed out at Paige.However, as Andrew was present, Mandy held back. She did not want Andrew to think of her as an uncultured woman.Chris chimed in, "My wife's right."Paige blushed, feeling a little shy as she glanced at Chris. Saying such things in front of so many people made her feel embarrassed but mostly delighted.Luna observed Chris and Paige, her brother and siste
Paige was mesmerized by the soap opera. It was genuinely captivating. Then, she witnessed a woman causing another pregnant woman to miscarry with just a bowl of soup.Her hand instinctively touched her belly, and she could not help but ask Chris, "Honey, do you think that drug really is so potent?"In soap operas, women seemed so susceptible to miscarriages. A random ingredient or drug could induce a miscarriage effortlessly.Chris lifted his head. Even though he had been working, he caught snippets of what was happening in the soap opera. As a businessman, he was not well-versed in such matters, but he had basic knowledge."It's just for the sake of the plot," Chris explained. "In reality, if a woman wants to terminate a pregnancy, she would require specialized medication or even surgery at times. It's not as simple as sipping something, and the child is gone. A child's life is not as fragile as we imagine."Paige pondered for a moment and found Chris's words reasonable. Th
Paige was caught off guard. How should she respond to that?"He was like that even in school, always focused on studying and nothing else," Nina said with a smile. "I remember back then, after classes, the other guys would either engage in sports or fool around with girls, but not him. He was immersed in his studies. Even when class was over, if he wasn’t in the restroom, he'd just sit there reading or doing exercises."Paige found listening to another woman talk about her husband's school days felt strangely surreal.Nina’s eyes also sparkled with interest as she spoke about Chris.Could it be that Nina liked Chris too?Paige thought it was possible. A man like Chris, during his school days, surely had many admirers."It seems like, apart from studying, nothing else piqued his interest. Now that he's married, is he also obsessed with work and ignores everything else?" Nina asked curiously.Paige pondered for a moment and replied, "Not really."Nina chuckled. She thought Pa
"Don’t worry," Chris said calmly.Paige hesitated. How could she not worry?Chris continued, "Your sister won't let herself be at a disadvantage."Paige remained silent."Your sister is the one involved. Whether James loves her or not, she understands that better than us. Besides, in this world, marriage and having children don't necessarily require love. How many genuinely loving couples have you seen in our social circle?" Chris asked.Paige paused and realized it was true. She had limited exposure to ordinary marriages, so she was not qualified to speak on such matters.However, in the social circles she was in, marriages were often alliances based on interests. Both men and women had money and influence. In fact, those who hold the power could pretty much get whatever they wanted — be it pleasure or material wealth.Paige fell silent. If her sister, despite knowing that James did not love her and treated her poorly, still chose to marry him, it could be because she value
Paige could not help but wonder whether she really knew who her better half was.Exiting the secretary's office, Chris cast a glance at Paige and asked, "Missing Gloria already?"Paige hesitated, sensing a tinge of irritation in Chris's words. "No," she replied cautiously."Is that so?" Chris hmphed lightly and walked away, leaving Paige bewildered.It was utterly perplexing.Chris seemed to be getting more and more inscrutable. What a moody character he was. Paige hurriedly followed him. Otherwise, he would surely be upset again.Back in the office, Chris resumed his work. Since Paige was afraid to disturb him, she sat on the couch, engrossed in her phone.As she was on her phone, a thought struck her, and she looked up at Chris. "Honey, I visited my sister in the hospital and bumped into James's sister."Chris raised his head and furrowed his brows as he pondered for a moment. "James's sister?"He had not heard that name or seen that person in ages."Yeah." Paige nodd
Shelly was like a red rose, the boldest and most vibrant in color. If the teenage Shelly was a budding rose, the Shelly now was a fully bloomed red rose, exuding an enticing fragrance, proudly showcasing her beauty to the world.Shelly smiled. She was always proud of her appearance."How have you been all these years?"Nina, who fell ill at 18 and went abroad for treatment, had completely lost contact with them. It was more of a one-sided cut contact on Nina's part as she was sent abroad for treatment by her family. Attempts to reach her through WhatsApp, phone calls, social media, and emails had all failed.Nina nodded with a smile. "I've been doing well."Shelly observed Nina, trying to figure out if Nina had truly recovered. Judging by Nina's appearance, it seemed she had.Shelly had seen Nina during her illness.It was the time when Nina was emotionally low, uninterested in anything, filled with distress and sorrow, irritable, and short-tempered. It was as if she had lost
Mildred was taken aback because Justin's voice sounded distressed. She asked anxiously, "Jay, what's wrong?""Grandaunt, I've been kidnapped," Justin cried. "Grandaunt, save me. I've been kidnapped."Justin did not dare mention his gambling losses, so instead, he focused on the kidnapping angle.Alarmed, Mildred raised her voice, "Kidnapped?"The boss walked over, snatched Mildred's phone, and declared, "Mrs. Quirk, your grandnephew isn’t kidnapped.""Who are you?" Mildred snapped. "Release Jay now, or I'll call the police.""Mrs. Quirk, feel free to call the police. After that, you'll receive a part of Justin's body. Which part do you like? I can cut it off and send it to you. I heard you prefer men. Shall I send you that part of his?" the boss said with a smirk.Mildred trembled with anger and said through gritted teeth, "You dare!"That would mean that the Lawsons’ future generations would be wiped out. "Mrs. Quirk, do you think I won't do as I say?" the boss retorted.Mi
Mildred's expression soured as she remarked, "I can accompany you for the property transfer, but your people need to rush Justin to the hospital to reattach the severed finger."A severed finger could still be reattached."Of course," the boss chuckled.The boss arranged for someone to take Justin and the severed finger to the hospital for reattachment, while he personally took Mildred to get the property transferred.…After completing the property transfer, Mildred hurriedly went to the hospital. Justin's surgery was successful, and if his recovery goes well, he can return to his normal life. Mildred, relieved, sternly said to Justin, "Justin, you can't engage in gambling anymore. When did you pick up such a bad habit?"Justin replied in a gentle tone, "Grandaunt Mildred, I've learned my lesson. I won't gamble anymore. It's just that during this period, I lost my job and broke up with my girlfriend. Feeling down, some friends took me to gamble. Before I knew it, I'd lost so
The receptionist did not reply. Gloria: [You're in trouble. I can't save you now.]The receptionist: [No, I haven't eaten it yet.]Gloria: [Good thing you haven't. I'm coming down.]As soon as the receptionist received Gloria's message, Gloria stepped out of the elevator.Upon reaching the front desk and noticing the bag of strawberry laces opened on the desk, Gloria glared at the receptionist. "You said you hadn't eaten it!"The receptionist looked a little guilty. "I just opened it and haven't had a chance to take one yet."Gloria sneered. "Haven't had a chance? You sound like you regret it."“I don't.""You can't afford this cup of bubble tea. If you did take one, watch out… You might lose your job."The receptionist paused in surprise. "Is it expensive?"Gloria nodded. "It is."“Good thing I didn't take one," the receptionist mumbled. Gloria rolled her eyes. If they were not on the same team, she would not even bother saving her."Why is this bag of strawberry laces
Chris chuckled. "Really?"Paige's face turned slightly red. She felt embarrassed saying that, and it felt like Chris did not believe her. However, she bit the bullet and nodded. "Yeah, really."Chris smiled and said, "Well then, when you miss me next time, don't just think about it because thinking won't do you any good. When you miss me or care about me, just send me a message or call to check in. After all, I can’t read minds. Also, if you want to hug me, just hug me. Don't hold Hunter in your arms and say you want to hug me. That's just hypocritical."Paige faltered. Hug him when she wanted to hug him? Thanks, but she did not want to hug him. She could easily pick up Hunter, but could she lift Chris so easily? She was not that strong, to begin with."Remember. From now on, when you think of me, send me a message. Ask me if I've eaten, what I've eaten, if I'm tired from work, what I'm doing, or tell me what you're thinking about. Don't keep it all to yourself," Chris said wit
What did he take her for?Besides, what could a woman do with photos? She was not one of those perverted men who did some creepy stuff with women’s photos."Nothing worth admiring?" Chris raised an eyebrow.Paige nodded. "Yeah, they’re nothing worth admiring."Indeed, there was nothing worth admiring about the photos."Ha!” Chris snickered.Paige remained silent and thought, ‘Here comes the snickering again.’"You don’t mean what you say," Chris remarked.Paige frowned. "What did I say that implies otherwise? You're a strange one. You're right here in front of me. Why would I need to admire the photos?"Chris grinned. "So you don't want to admire the photos, but you want to admire me, a living person."Paige blushed slightly, feeling embarrassed. She did not mean that, but what she just said seemed to imply exactly that."How would you want to admire me?" Chris teased.Admire was such an intriguing word.Paige blushed harder. "How else can I admire you? Just by looking,
Before Hunter was born, Chris was the absolute darling of the family. His grandfather favored him, and his parents loved him dearly.However, Hunter's arrival had changed everything. The elders in the family revolved around Hunter all day long. Zander’s first question upon waking up each morning was about Hunter, followed by Ann cuddling Hunter, calling him her darling, and so on.It seemed like everyone had forgotten about Chris.How could Chris, who had always been so cherished, accept that?Chris's expression stiffened as if his thoughts had been unexpectedly revealed, his eyes flickering momentarily.Paige chuckled and said, "Are you seriously competing with a child for attention? Besides, you've been pampered by the family for so many years. Hunter has only been pampered for a few days."Chris retorted coldly, "I'm not competing with him."Paige did not buy it for a second. She smiled and said, "Sure, you're not competing with him. You're just afraid we'll spoil Hunter."A
Before, Paige could not understand people showing off their babies and wondered why they would go crazy posting their kids on social media. Now, she got it. She found her kid to be the cutest in the world and could not help but snap his photos and post them on her social media platforms to share him with others, hoping for compliments and praise for her little one.However, she also understood that posting too much could annoy people. Hence, she restrained herself to only posting once a day and made sure to fit in a couple of photos!That was her absolute limit!She felt uneasy if she did not post her baby for a day. Then, when she saw her friends' comments praising her little one, she felt happy and proud, like they were getting closer as friends.Indeed, becoming a mom had changed her mindset.Chris, who was watching Paige show off their baby on social media, was even more dissatisfied! They had been married for a long time and had a child together, yet his appearances o
After what felt like ages, Ava lay on the hotel's large bed, staring blankly at the ceiling as the sound of rushing water filled her ears. Niel was in the shower. After releasing his pent-up emotions, he headed straight for the shower. Meanwhile, she lay there, her body aching. She did not want to move a muscle because every movement brought pain.Niel was thrilled with the new experience, but Ava was suffering. She was starting to regret getting involved with Niel. He was going overboard with satisfying his physical needs, and she feared that if things continued like that, Niel might end up causing her harm or maybe even unintentionally ending her life. She had heard of such things happening before, so now, she was caught between a rock and a hard place.On one hand, she did not want to let go of Niel and give up on all the sacrifices and efforts she had put in when she was on the brink of marrying into a wealthy family and becoming a billionaire's wife. On the other han
Pierre fell silent, pondering Shelly's words carefully. Upon reflection, he found Shelly's proposal to be pretty reasonable and entirely feasible. If he were to wait until Shelly entered prison to serve her sentence, he could break up with her afterward. Once his relationship with Shelly ended, his parents would not be as angry. Even if there were some constraints preventing them from openly helping him, they could still assist him discreetly. After all, he was their son, who shared the same blood with them. His parents could not possibly abandon him entirely and let him fend for himself. By lowering himself in front of his parents, he believed they would not neglect him. By then, acquiring the five million dollars would not be too difficult.Shelly watched Pierre, not pressing him to respond. She believed Pierre knew what choice to make. Five million might seem like an astronomical figure, but for the second son of the Alfonsos, it was not much.After much deliberation
She looked at the evil smile on Chris' face, and it all came back to her.Did Chris Intentionally take Hunter to the guest room to hand him over to the nanny so that it would make it easier for him to do what he wanted? What a scumbag! However, since it was something she had personally agreed to, she would not back out.Paige did not resist Chris, and a long time later, she collapsed on the bed. She felt like she should have taken care of Hunter and not fallen for Chris' tricks.Taking care of a child was not as exhausting!She was too tired to even move her fingers.The next day, Paige slept until late morning and then got up to go down for breakfast.When Ann saw Paige, she asked with concern, "Paige, didn't you sleep well last night?"Paige looked really worn out."Didn't Hunter sleep with the nanny last night?" Ann asked curiously.Paige blushed with embarrassment and said, "Last night… I wasn't used to sleeping without Hunter, so I didn't get a good sleep."Ann smile
Even if she offered her sincerity, Chris would not appreciate it, so what else could she offer? "Is money the only thing you have? Do you have nothing else besides money?" Chris said.He thought she was truly clueless. Even after being married for so long and having a child together, did she not know what he wanted?However, Paige was indeed puzzled. Besides money, what else did she have? What else could she have?Chris looked her up and down, speechless. Paige might not have understood what he meant before, but she did now. He meant that although she did not have money, she still had a young body.It seemed all Chris lusted was her body."I’m still recovering," Paige said with a slight blush on her face. She knew Chris had been patient for a long time. They barely had any intimacy during the last trimester of her pregnancy, but there was nothing she could do. She did not want to refuse him, but her body would not allow it.Chris glanced at Paige and said, "We can try other