A short pause later, he was prompted to ask, “…Well?” After clearing his throat, Jovan replied, “…It appears that both Ms. Jenna and Ms. Xavia really are your sisters.” Eyes widened, Ian quickly said, “Are… Are you absolutely sure?” “I am. Apparently, the Great Lady and Mrs. Lockhart gave birth in the same hospital. The Great Lady… she gave birth to twin girls, and Mrs. Lockhart had two boys… All this happened during the Presidential elections, and… this is just a hunch, but the former Great Lady may have swapped the children because she figured that having boys would solidify the lineage…” “To make sure that this never got out, the doctors and nurses involved were even sent abroad and given hypnotic therapy to forget about the incident… It’s how all this has remained unknown till this very day… Naturally, I made sure to run DNA tests on the Lockhart sisters’ hair as well, and… well, the results confirm it…” After taking a look at the DNA report, Ian found himself slightly li
Either way, Ian replied, “I am. See, Xavia grew up in S City, and that tourist spot wasn’t far from Xavia’s home. What’s more, Xavia often went up that mountain to pick herbs and dig up bamboo shoots! It all checks out.” “While it’s true that Jenna had been studying abroad at the time, the mistake was made when the Great Lady met Jenna later on in S City. Since she didn’t know that Xavia had a twin sister, she must have thought that Jenna was her savior back then! With how crafty Jenna is, it makes sense that she’d catch on quickly, which was what allowed her to play us like fiddles up till this very moment!” “Jovan was the one who researched all this, and I made sure to give the details a good look before sharing this with you. It’s all real,” concluded Ian. After hearing all this, the Great Lady’s initially shocked face turned to one of fury…! “She… She lied to me this entire time…! All that kindness had been a farce…?! And… And to think that I gave her so many things over th
Moving back to Xavia, since the kids were still with Zivon, the house was all nice and quiet. After taking a bath, she laid in bed… but even after tossing and turning for a while, she simply couldn’t fall asleep. After all, this entire time, she had felt that Ian was simply a friendly person… After what he said earlier, however… …He couldn’t actually like her, right? She wasn’t even that capable! There was nothing to like, right…? He had probably just said that since he didn’t like owing others favors… Was he worried that she’d start asking for things like Jenna had done? That was probably the case, right? Her train of thought was cut short when Dolly walked up to her and asked, “What’s with the frown, hmm? What’s on your mind?” Shaking her head, Xavia replied, “…It’s nothing. Just still a little surprised by the Great Lady’s reaction toward Jenna…” “…Well, yeah, even I’d be pissed if I found out that I had been supporting a faker this entire time. That aside… Ian’s really poli
After all, she pulled up Xavia’s nightdress to take an explicit photo! By the time Xavia realized what she had just done, Dolly had already sent the photo to Zivon! Now as red as a tomato, Xavia glared at her while yelling, “H-hey! What the hell was that?! Let me delete that photo while I can!” Chuckling mischievously, Dolly hid the phone behind her while replying, “No can do! You said you wanted him to forgive you, right? Well this is the best method to do so! Besides, it’s good to occasionally send pictures like this. You wouldn’t want another woman to seduce him because of your inaction, right?” “…You say that, but what if he gets horny from my pictures? Won’t that tempt him to find other women even more?” grumbled Xavia. “…I… You’re right,” replied the surprised Dolly before taking Xavia’s phone out again. Watching as Dolly fiddled around with it, Xavia assumed that she was simply deleting the text or writing an explanation for the photo. With that, she simply left Dolly
...Did this man have to make everything an innuendo?! Before Xavia could even think of an appropriate response, she heard him say, “…Also, it looks better than before…” “…What does?” “…Your figure.” …What was with him tonight? Sure, the lower half of her breasts were revealed, but… Did he have to say that?! “…Delete it or I’m not talking to you anymore…” grumbled Xavia before hanging up, leaving Zivon speechless. As he continued standing by the fridge, he couldn’t help but look at the photo again… While it wasn’t exactly the clearest photo in the world, the blurriness of it somehow made her look even more enticing… Gulping slightly, he knew that he couldn’t continue looking at it, at least not for now! After saving the photo, he deleted the chat history before drinking another glass of icy water… Thankfully, that seemed to temporarily subdue his desires… Alas, the throbbing returned to his pants shortly after! In the end, he opted to take a bath while also dealing with his
It was a picture of Zivon’s upper torso! With his broad shoulders and well-defined muscles, the man looked extra wild and enticing! Truly a man amongst men! Unable to handle that visual assault, Xavia ended up having to look away for a while! After taking a deep breath, the blushing woman was prompted to reply, ‘…Thanks for being so considerate, now can I get some sleep?’ ‘What? Don’t like what you see?’ As if! Who wouldn’t like to see such a perfect body?! But it wasn’t like she wanted to talk about this with him either! A brief pause later, she sent a message, stating, ‘…Are you only ever interested in discussing such things?’ ‘Only when I’m with you.’ …There was no winning against this man! Bah! Forget it! If she continued talking to him, she wasn’t going to be able to sleep a wink tonight! Fast forward to early the next morning, Xavia was surprised to see a group of government officials walking up to her yard. Before she could say a thing, the head officer said, “Good d
“I’ll say it right now that you won’t be able to change my mind, and worse come to worst, I’ll just have all the residents in the area move with you. Losing a billion dollars or so means little to me,” added Ian in an indifferent expression, causing Xavia to feel a headache coming. She, for one, was well aware that those with power enjoyed expressing their gratitude through monetary means, and if their gratitude was denied… Well, they’d assume that the person had a hidden agenda. Regardless, that also meant that he was probably being extra overbearing because he wanted to put some distance between them. Understanding that, Xavia replied, “…Fine, I’ll move out, but I’m not living in the palace. I’ll simply stay in the home you chose for now, and this means that you’ll no longer owe me anything once I leave. Deal?” As if! She was his sister for heaven’s sake! Still, he couldn’t just tell her that, so all he could do was agree for now. He’d deceive her one step at a time… Regardle
Ian’s words were as sharp as blades. After all, he was still pissed by the fact that Zivon had managed to hurt both his sisters! That half-hearted man was unworthy of both of them! Regardless, Xavia remained silent after hearing all that. If she had been born in the palace… of course she wouldn’t have chosen Zivon. Rather, she’d probably be unable to choose the love of her life in the first place! She’d probably be married off to some politician or equally ranked family… A truly terrible fate. Thank God she wasn’t a princess… Shaking her head, Xavia finally replied, “…Grand Duke, I assure you that I don’t like Von for those reasons. Now stop trying to sow discord! You know what, I don’t think I can continue living here anymore. Thank you and goodbye!” Xavia, for one, hated what he had to say about Zivon, and she wasn’t about to stay any longer in case Ian tried anything else! Naturally, Ian was startled to hear that. He had only said that to help, but it seemed that Zivon had h
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