"Every time I went on business trips, she’d worry that I wouldn't like the food there, so she would cook some dishes and pack them for me. She’d always tell me that if I couldn’t cope, I didn't have to be strong and earn money to bring home.No matter my age, she still treated me like a little girl. The devotion that I had for my work was on par with the devotion she showed towards me. Sadly, I did not cherish it, and I would be so busy that I would go a few days without contacting her.I thought she would always be there for me. When she passed, I looked through her photos and realized that my beautiful and capable mother already had gray hair and wrinkles. She was old and needed her daughter, but by the time I realized it, it was too late. My mother isn't around to leave the light on or make porridge for me anymore, and there’s nobody waiting for me to come home. I wanted to leave my job to go shopping with my mom, watch movies with her, and have dinner together, but I’ll never h
“…Dark eyebags are the least of my worries…” She, for one, knew that Zivon and Sophia were no strangers to charity events like these. With that in mind, how was she supposed to face them…? And if they crossed paths, should she bother explaining things to Zivon…? Knowing what was worrying Xavia, Dolly quickly replied, “…Don’t think too much about it. Remember, there is a clear distinction between emotions and logic, so I feel you should eventually meet up with Young Master Burton to explain the misunderstanding. However, try not to do it during such a big event. After all, you wouldn’t want trouble if you two got photographed together, right?” “Regardless, let’s get a move on already. Relax, it’s just a simple charity event. All you need to remember is not to get involved with Young Master Burton while you’re there, alright?” concluded Dolly. After hearing all that, Xavia sighed before ultimately nodding. True enough, she had to prioritize the event for now! Her train of thoug
The first Mr. South design that Xavia had worn had already garnered her the attention of the entire internet for a whipping ten days, with each day placing her more and more in the spotlight! Hell, she got so famous that there were still fashionistas who were singing praises of her till this very day! Now that she was wearing another stunning dress, the other celebrities immediately felt robbed of their chance to stand in the limelight again! How absolutely hateful…! As the celebrities continued clenching their fists in fury, they failed to notice the icy-looking man sitting in the center of the room… and unlike the other celebrities, his frigid glare could kill…! So… She was wearing a dress made by Mr. South, huh? Or rather, Mark Newman…! She hadn’t even bothered to explain the incident last night yet here she was, participating in the event in one of Mark’s designs…?! Was she challenging his authority or something?! Moving back to Xavia, she couldn’t help but gulp when she felt
At that exact moment, all the celebrities who had trash-talked Xavia felt like they had just been given tight slaps! Xavia herself didn’t feel like listening to their grumbling anymore, which was why she didn’t refuse the invitation. Still, she didn’t feel relaxed at all as she began making her way up front. After all, Sophia had told her not to appear before Zivon any more last night… Why was she inviting her to sit by her side now, then? That aside, how was Xavia supposed to keep a straight face once she met up with Zivon…?! Her train of thought was cut short when she heard Sophia say, “Have a seat, Xavia.” …She had been so preoccupied with her thoughts that she hadn’t even realized that she was already next to Sophia… Regardless, Sophia maintained a rather estranged tone as she added, “I heard that you had some misunderstandings with Young Master Burton last night… Since that’s the case, the two of you should straighten things out.” …What an articulate way of saying it. To
“While we all know that you two were only dating before this because Miss Harrison got all the correct answers on that app, could it be that you’ve grown close enough to start an official relationship?” concluded the host, instantly prompting the crowd to hold their breaths in anticipation…! Though there were many who wanted Zivon and Sophia to finally be together, there were also those who hoped that that wasn’t the case. After all, who knew if they had a chance, right…? However, there was also a third group of people… People who didn’t really know whether they supported the idea or not… and Xavia was within this third category. After all, if Zivon really got tougher with Sophia because of last night’s misunderstanding… Xavia really wasn’t sure whether she could just accept that. As she clenched her fists and everyone else continued staring at the duo on stage, Zivon slowly swept his gaze across the room… before ultimately replying in an aloof tone, “You’ll hear about the good n
As expected, the internet went abuzz with Xavia’s generous donation, and her beautiful dress only served to increase her popularity! To top it all off, her kindness was simply unheard of these days! How inspiring! Naturally, with all this hype, there were also individuals who chose to be sour about it, believing that she had only made that massive donation to show off and make herself more famous. Though a few of those comments were made online, Xavia’s fans were quick to take action! ‘Just to show off? Why don’t you donate eighty million dollars then?’ ‘The fact that you’re so sour about this must highlight how bitter your life is!’ ‘Envy is the only thing keeping you alive, isn’t it?!’ It didn’t take long before random internet users found this trending post, and since there were so many people defending Xavia, they ended up joining in as well! Naturally, Xavia was completely unaware of all that was happening. After all, her only focus was to leave once the event was over…
Not even bothering to give an immediate response, Zivon simply glared at the doe-eyed woman for a full minute… before ultimately pinning her against the car door and growling, “No misunderstandings between us, huh? You don’t even feel a need to explain yourself…?!” …He… He was enraged because of what she had said to Sophia earlier?! Now seeing the full picture, Xavia whimpered, “I-I didn’t mean-” “Also, a tailor-made dress, huh? What sizes did he measure, hmm? Your waist? Chest? Buttocks…?!” growled Zivon as he glared at her body before raising her chin, prompting Xavia to go even paler than before. How could he insult her like that?! Besides, wasn’t it perfectly normal for designers to take measurements of their clients?! Glaring at him, Xavia couldn’t help but retort, “…You’re being far too paranoid. If you’re only going to insult me, then wait till you’re calmer before we talk again!” Before Xavia could even attempt to push him away, Zivon increased his force on her before g
Unbeknownst to Xavia, Sophia was together with Zivon at the time… and upon hearing the woman’s yells, Sophia couldn’t help but frown as she muttered, “…What is she doing in the villa?” Retaining a poker face, Zivon replied in an icy tone, “She misbehaved, and she had this coming. Regardless, if you aren’t fine with her being here, I can just take her to another condo. Bear in mind, however, that that’ll be a bit difficult for me.” The fact that his words suggested that this wasn’t the first time he was doing such a thing made Sophia clench her fists. So she still managed to come here in the end…?! Sophia wasn’t about to let her off that easily then! After ensuring that she had a calm façade on, Sophia took a deep breath before saying, “…I believe you’ll abide by the contract, so just keep her here. That aside, I’ll be heading in to check on her.” “There’s no need for that. I’ll just bring her downstairs with me,” replied Zivon as he began ascending the stairs, instantly prompti
Staring in shock at the kneeling man, Yulia mustered her remaining sanity as she replied, “B-but you’re younger-” “Even if that’s the case, doesn’t that mean that I’m much more ‘capable’ than your older pursuers…?” …Why were his words so suggestive all of a sudden?! Forcing herself to calm down, she took a deep breath before saying, “…Elliot, I’m not sure what spurred this decision, but… I’m not the one for you. Please find someone your age. I’m sorry.” After saying that, she strode straight for the car… but before she could start the engine, she couldn’t help but notice how desolate he looked standing under the pouring rain… Clenching her fists, it took her a while to finally sigh and walk back to him… “…Are you really sure about this?” asked Yulia, much to Elliot’s delight. “I am! Please! Give me a chance! You won’t regret it!” …When he put it that way, all Yulia could do was help him up before finally deciding to return his kiss… Sure, things had taken a sudden, unex
She stared in horror as he removed his shirt right there and then! “W-what are you doing?!” yelped the startled woman as she quickly looked the other way. “…Huh? I mean, I’m drenched, so…” “E-even so, you shouldn’t change right in front of me!” “…Yulia, we bathed together as children… It’s not like you haven’t seen everything already…” “Y-you can’t compare that to this situation…!” “Fine, fine, I… Um… Go cook, I guess… I’ll go get a change upstairs first…” muttered Elliot as he headed upstairs. Yulia herself had to try her best to calm down! After all, Elliot had been plaguing her mind in the past few days, and… she even had dreams where he had… …No! She couldn’t be thinking about such things! She needed to cook! Maybe that would help get her mind out of the gutter! Once that was done, she’d leave and finally start devising a plan to get rid of him…! As Yulia scurried off, Elliot himself was currently staring at an old photo that showed him eating some candy in Yulia’
Just as she had arrived at her car, the president of the Halls Group suddenly walked up to her, a bouquet in hand! The Halls Group had collaborated several times with the Burtons before, and because of that, she was well acquainted with the man. Sadly, he had also proposed to her on multiple occasions… and though she kept rejecting him, he never seemed to get the hint! “There you are, Miss Burton… Since you’re off work, I was wondering if you’d join me for dinner tonight…” asked the charming man. Feeling awkward, she was just about to come up with an excuse when Elliot suddenly grabbed her by the waist and said, “Oh? Another one of your admirers, Yulia…? Sorry, but she already has a boyfriend, my man. If that doesn’t deter you enough, then you should know that she prefers her partners younger. Now please leave.” Startled to hear that, the man glanced at Yulia, his eyes begging for an explanation… Yulia herself was eager to just escape this embarrassing situation, but before s
With that tale done, it was now time to return to Yulia’s story… Ever since she was a child, she had undergone countless hardships with her mother… and even after she was able to reunite with her father, things didn’t go much easier from there. To make matters worse, Fabiola ended up getting kidnapped for the longest time, resulting in Frank ending up the way he was today… Because of all that, it only made sense that she’d mature much sooner than others her age, and unlike the naïve girl she used to be, she was an extremely competent woman today. Alas, because of how used she became with working, she soon lost the urge to find herself a romantic interest… Things continued that way until… Well, that time that Elliot… …Wait, what was she thinking?! He was younger than her, for heaven’s sake! Quickly shaking her head, she attempted to force herself to concentrate on work again… But before long, a knock was heard on the door. After being allowed in, the department manager entered t
Knowing that there was no point in keeping things a secret anymore, Rea took a deep breath before saying, “…Alright, so… The truth is, I’ve always been highly competent, but… I’ve been pretending to be useless just so that you’d eventually marry me… The trip my parents are taking… That was my suggestion too…” Feeling speechless, it took Frank a long while to reply, “…So you weren’t really drunk when you did all that last night?” Pursing her lips, Rea awkwardly muttered, “…I wasn’t… Luna suggested it, and since it sounded like a good idea to accelerate things…” …Fucking hell, to think that he had fallen straight into her trap without even putting up a fight! Watching as he glowered at her, Rea gulped before adding, “A-anyway, now that we’re married and there’s potentially a baby in my belly, you won’t divorce me, right…?” “…Oh, believe me when I say that divorce is the easy way out! From today onward, I’m making you pay for your actions for the rest of your life!” Fast forwa
Fast forward to the next morning, Rea awoke with a yawn… What a nice sleep… Wait. Why was she naked? And why was Frank…?! Her following scream immediately woke the icy man up… and upon looking at her, he was immediately reminded of what had transpired last night! Essentially, Rea ended up clinging to him, and though he initially wanted to just carry her to bed to let her rest… Damn it! Had she really been that sensual?! How had he lost control so easily?! His train of thought was cut short when he realized that Rea was bawling her eyes out… and after rubbing his temples, he was prompted to say, “…Why are you crying when you’re the one who initiated this? I’ll have you know that I never forced you-” “I-I know, but…! I’ve just…! This is my first time…!” whimpered the quivering woman, prompting Frank to purse his lips. As if he wasn’t in the same situation… “…You’re not alone there.” “It’s not the same! Men are free to sleep with whoever they want but when it comes to women, I’l
“Say, wouldn’t you agree that the food smells delicious…? Why don’t I teach you how to grill, Rea…? Oh, but make sure to take your clothes off first before we start! Wouldn’t want them to get dirty…” With how drunk Rea was, she wasn’t able to fully register his words… and just as he was about to touch her clothes, an icy voice roared, “Stop right there…!” Instantly feeling a shiver run down his spine, the man turned around… and to his horror, it was Frank! Young Master Burton’s perpetually icy son…! Why the hell was he here?! Before the frightened intern could think of how to even react, Frank walked up to him and growled, “Leave now before I chop your hands off…! Don’t make me repeat myself!” Nodding in terror, the man frantically bolted off… and once he was out of sight, Frank glared at the tipsy Rea before adding, “This is what you meant by learning how to be more responsible…?!” “Huh…? But the food really did smell super good… I want to learn…” mumbled the drunk woman.
After leaving his office, he headed off to look for Rea. She had said that she wanted to use the bathroom, but… It had already been half an hour since she disappeared. What trouble had that idiot gotten herself into this time? Thankfully, it wasn’t long before he found her laughing along with some of his interns… When the interns saw him, they were quick to bow and say, “Good morning, Mr. Burton.” Barely even glancing at them, Frank looked at Rea and said, “It’s time to head home.” “I… Won’t be following you back…” “…And why is that? Are your parents back?” “No, it’s just… These are my good friends back from school, and they’ve been staying together to learn to be more independent… With that said… I think that staying with them will be a good start for me to learn more about how the world works. Thank you for taking care of me up till this point, Frank… I won’t bother you anymore.” Raising a slight brow, Frank then looked at the interns for a while before saying, “…Are you
Regardless, after leaving her in the room, Frank returned to the shower to cool himself off… but no matter what he did, he simply remained irked. It got to the point where he couldn’t relax at all, and after wrapping a towel around his waist, he grabbed his phone to send his father a text. ‘Was there really nobody else who could’ve taken care of Rea?’ ‘What? Can’t even care for a woman properly.’ ‘I’m a busy man.’ ‘I trust in your time management skills.’ …Though he really wanted to tell Zivon that he had misplaced his trust in him, he didn’t want to disappoint his father either. With that, all he could do was clench his fists before giving Rea’s parents a call… “Hello? Frank? Why are you calling at this time of night?” “…When are you and Uncle Saltman returning, Aunt?” asked Frank who wanted them to take back their idiot already! “…Huh? What was that? Sorry, the line isn’t very good… I hope Rea isn’t giving you too hard a time! Don’t worry, we’ll be back after about a