Twenty-three years. Twenty-three years had passed without them meeting or contacting each other.Ever since she had called, he had been feeling unsettled. He could not bring himself to avoid her, so he agreed to meet her when she begged him to do so.A long time later, he quietly said, “Book me a flight to Prosa City.”Prosa City?Nathan was startled, but eventually figured it out. So…it was her.He did not dare delay and hurriedly said, “Yes, Young Master Burton.”“Also, run a background check on her current situation and update me.” His tone was condescending. Nathan nodded solemnly. “Okay, I’ll check it out as soon as I reach the company.” In less than half an hour, a complete document was placed in front of Zivon, with everything clearly laid out from twenty years ago to now.Zivon’s eyes fell on the last page and his eyes dimmed.[Divorced, bereaved.]Ah, so that was why she wanted to meet him.He looked at Nathan. “Has the flight been booked? What time is it?”“You
Zivon gritted his teeth, his nails digging into his palms.She had never taken any initiative with him, but she was this enthusiastic with Mark? Where did that signature shyness of hers go?Oh, that’s right—she had been willing to give Mark everything when she was eighteen, so she could not be faulted for rekindling their relationship!Zivon clenched his fists tightly, making his knuckles crack. The atmosphere was dangerously tense.“Young…Young Master…do you still want to go to Prosa City?” Nathan mustered up the courage to speak.Zivon glanced at him sharply. “Why wouldn’t I go?”Such a meaningless thing wouldn't affect his meeting with his mother. Yes, the person who called and texted had been Zivon’s biological mother. They had depended on one another when he was young, and their relationship had only taken a turn for the worse when he returned to the Burton family. Nevertheless, she was still his birth mother.Nathan lowered his head. “But Madam asked to bring her over…
“Miss Lockhart, is this an admission of your relationship?”“Can you give us a statement?”The reporters relentlessly questioned her.The woman looked around helplessly. “Sort of. Everyone, please go back and rest early. Goodnight.”After saying that, she closed the door and the corners of her mouth curled up into a sinister smile. She took out her cell phone and called Sophia. “Miss Harrison, I’ve done it. You will soon see news about Xavia Lockhart and Mark Newman being in a relationship.”“Well done. I’ll take care of the rest,” Sophia said curtly, then pursed her lips and said, “Thank you, Jenna.” The person that she once thought was the worst was actually the most helpful in her time of need. She was much better than Xavia who was always going back on her word. Jenna smiled lightly. “You’re welcome. Isn’t it all because Xavia is a hillbilly who is not worthy of Young Master Burton? I will help you drive her away, Miss Harrison.”“Mm. You'll certainly be rewarded when eve
“What?!” Dolly was confused. “That’s clearly you in the picture, how can…No! Could it be Jenna?”Xavia nodded. “Mm. I was asleep here the whole of last night so it could only be her.”Dolly was stunned, and eventually became furious. “D*mn it, that b*tch actually dared to impersonate you? She is really too bold! What exactly is she trying to do? I’ll expose the truth immediately and ruin her reputation!”“Wait, hold on.” Xavia felt that things were not that simple… Jenna would never do something so stupid. “I’ll go check on Mark first and find out what’s going on.”She was worried that Mark was in danger.Dolly said, “Okay, I’ll go with you.”The both of them quickly arrived at the hotel, where reporters, fans, and onlookers were gathering. “I heard that Xavia Lockhart and Mark Newman are still inside.”“I want to see them!”“Who is Xavia Lockhart?”“It’s that girl who received the Best Newcomer Award at the Youtube Grand Ceremony for filming the sunrise.”“Oh, her? I have
“Xavia Lockhart, surely you've seen the news, right?” Sophia’s tone was unkind as she said bluntly, “I was the one behind all of it to help you break up with Young Master Burton. Now, as long as you do not explain things to Young Master Burton, you will not have to worry about how to leave him anymore.”“What do you think? I’m quite considerate, right? I know that you cannot bring yourself to be intimate with other men, so I arranged for your elder sister to do it for you.”So that was it!Xavia was utterly shocked and in absolute disbelief. “Miss Harrison, you…” How could she be so merciless?!Before Xavia could say anything, Sophia interrupted her, “What's wrong? I helped you this much, so why are you still dissatisfied? Don’t tell me that you don’t want to break up with Young Master Burton after all?”Xavia really did not want to, but even if she did, she didn't want it to be like this. She eventually said, “I just feel like something that is forced will not end well. If Youn
It wasn’t exactly an easy decision to make, and it ended up troubling Xavia throughout the day… Fast forward to the evening, Yulia returned from dance class… and the second she saw Xavia, she immediately scoffed, “From today onward, I’m not talking to you! I refuse to have a Mommy who’s such a bad woman!” Following that, the child stomped her way to her room before slamming the door shut, leaving Xavia astonished. When she finally snapped out of it, she turned to look at Dolly and asked, “…Did… I miss something…?” Shrugging in response, Dolly then explained, “Well… You have quite a few fans in the dance class, and well… They talked about your relationship with Mark. As you can guess, Yulia grew very upset when she overheard their conversations…” …Even the schools had heard the news…? Feeling helpless, Xavia made her way to Yulia’s door before saying, “Yulia…? Be a good girl, alright…? That news is clearly fake, and that person isn’t Mommy… You can ask Aunt Dolly if you don’t be
However, he had never planned to step into that house again and be forced to face his dark past… Due to how deep in thought he was, he failed to even hear Maison calling him… Realizing that his father couldn’t hear him, Maison was prompted to add, “…Daddy. Aunt said that the news was fake-” “Maison, your father is in a bad mood… Don’t bother him…” interrupted Sophia as she walked over to the boy and pulled him to another room. Naturally, Maison didn’t know that Sophia was the true mastermind. However, he did know that Zivon had been nice to her in the past, so he didn’t think too hard about it when he said, “…Is Daddy upset because of the news regarding Aunt…? I already know the truth and I just want to tell Daddy about it so that he doesn’t feel upset anymore…” “…Truth?” replied Sophia with a slight frown. In response, Maison got his phone out and began playing a recording… “Yulia…? Be a good girl, alright…? That news is clearly fake, and that person isn’t Mommy… You can ask
Naturally, this made Sophia smirk sinisterly. No matter how much Zivon loved Xavia, he wasn’t someone who would just accept having his feelings ignored. The second his love was left unanswered, there’d be no future for his love interest! With that in mind, Sophia knew that all she had to do now was keep things this way. If all went well, then she’d end up becoming the next Mrs. Burton in no time…! Fast forward to the next morning, Zivon led Sophia and Maison over to an old, rustic courtyard house… And upon seeing the building, he couldn’t help but notice that the patio hadn’t changed at all even after all these years… As he reminisced about his childhood days, it didn’t take long before a familiar voice called out, “Zivon.” Looking up, Zivon was greeted by the sight of a white-haired woman… A woman whom he hadn’t met in the longest time. With a plaid top and simple gray pants on, the wrinkly-faced woman honestly looked like a generic farmhand… Even so, an onslaught of memories im
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