Lana was feeling drowsy from her sleep. She looked at her phone, and it was almost 1:00 am. About five minutes later, Lana brought the keys and handed them to Thaddeus. She looked at the guest bedroom and gave a few words of advice. "Mr. Holt, it's easy to keep Mrs. Holt happy. Women are generally sensitive to what people say. You just need to coax her a little, and your fight will be over."Thomas really wanted grandchildren of his own and constantly called her to ask about it. Lana couldn't do anything about Thaddeus and Jessamine's spat. Both of them had their own opinions. She dared not give too much of her input because they would be annoyed. Thaddeus took the keys and nodded. "Sorry to bother you, Lana. Go back to sleep."Lana quickly went downstairs, not wanting to delay Thaddeus and Jessamine making up.Thaddeus inserted the key into the door to the guestroom and twisted it, unlocking it with ease.The fragrant scent in the room made him feel relaxed. Jessamine was us
Thaddeus and Jessamine answered their calls almost at the same time.Shane asked, "Jessie, who gave you that glass of juice at the table yesterday?"Jessamine had just woken up and was still groggy, so she simply hummed in response. Without waiting for her reply, Shane continued, "Something happened. I drank your fucking juice yesterday, and I ended up sleeping with a man."Jessamine stirred awake slightly. "It's normal for you to be sleeping with a man."For him, sleeping with a woman was the more shocking situation.Shane paused briefly and said, "You know the person I slept with."Jessamine remained silent, wondering who he slept with. She remembered that Sasha was the one who had given her that juice the day before. On an occasion like yesterday's, she would never accept a drink from someone she didn't trust. She didn't even notice that Shane drank it instead, and something really happened.Thinking of this, Jessamine felt a chill run down her spine.At this time, Thadd
Jessamine gasped, "Thaddeus, he's your uncle. Get your mind out of the gutter!"Thaddeus scoffed, "Get my mind out of the gutter? I'm a man. I know what other men think. Don't think their intentions are pure like what you're doing now."He easily spread her legs, and Jessamine instinctively closed them. "Get away!"Thaddeus chuckled, "Are you kidding me? You can't back out now. Jessie, relax. Don't refuse me. Just like how I entered your room, I can have you whenever I want."He gave her a fierce and intense kiss, not giving her a chance to breathe.Just then, the phone rang. Thaddeus impatiently declined the call with one hand and continued his ministrations. Within a minute, the phone rang again, seemingly not giving up until he answered the phone."G-get the phone." Jessamine's voice broke from the pleasure she was experiencing.Thaddeus paused for a moment, smiling maliciously. He picked up the phone next to the pillow and put it on speakerphone. "Hello? Who's this?"Jess
If the reporters could get footage of this scandal, they would be able to reach this month's performance target. They could even earn a significant bonus.Sasha was silent. She knew that Jessamine was the woman in the room, not Jaylen. Of course, she wouldn't tell the truth. Otherwise, those losers wouldn't do her bidding."Hold on." Sasha walked to the stairs to make a phone call. She wanted Thaddeus to end things with Jessamine in front of everyone.…Thaddeus was currently smoking a cigarette on the bed with a satisfied expression. As he listened to the running water in the bathroom, he felt quite pleased with how he performed in bed.Just then, the phone rang. Since Thaddeus was in a good mood, he answered the phone and asked politely, "What's the matter, Sasha?"His expression shifted when he heard what Sasha said on the phone.Jessamine walked out of the bathroom, wiping her hair dry. Water droplets covered her entire body.Her body was sore after their romp. And now, she
Jessamine paused at his question and turned to look at him. She couldn't believe Thaddeus was bold enough to ask such things with a severe face.She could perfectly dress herself with no issue. He didn't need to help her. It made more sense that he was taking a chance to feel her up.However, Thaddeus wasn't joking. He had gone to the closet in the master bedroom to get some clothes. After a while, he returned with a light gray dress and her underwear.Jessamine felt a chill running down her spine. What was he up to this time?"Thaddeus, can I stay home? I'm a bit sleepy," Jessamine said.She wanted to say she was tired, but then he would be proud because he thought he had worn her out during their romp. Therefore, she said that she was sleepy instead. She couldn't inflate his ego further."I'm not wasting your time here, Jessie. I really have something to do. Why don't you try on the clothes that Jordan sends every quarter? A lot of them still have their tags. You should try thi
Thaddeus had good taste, and the clothes he picked for Jessamine suited her elegant air.The knee-length dress was perfect for the spring weather in Zenville and suited her tall figure. Jessamine's hair rested behind her shoulders, the scent of shampoo lingering on it.She looked elegant and refined like this.Thaddeus usually wanted to pin her down at the beautiful sight, but he didn't, so Jessamine knew he had something urgent to do. Otherwise, judging by his assertive nature, they would be having sex again by now.Jessamine sat in the passenger seat of his car and fastened her seat belt. "Where are we going?"She was so dazed by Thaddeus helping her change just now that she forgot about such an important question.Thaddeus ensured Jessamine had put on her seat belt before leaving the villa. After a while, he answered, "Your friend and Benji are stuck in a room together because the reporters are waiting outside. We're going over to help them."Jessamine hummed in agreement and
Jessamine wasn't afraid at all. She knew what Thaddeus was capable of. He could disband the media companies in a matter of minutes. Since these people brazenly took pictures of him, they probably hadn't experienced how vicious some people could be.Thaddeus had already reached the room door as he talked. He looked at the room number; it was the room where he had brought Benji the day before. He remembered locking the door for Benji after helping him settle down yesterday.Sasha looked at Jessamine unhappily and said uncertainly, "Ted."However, Thaddeus ignored her. The reporters were still taking pictures of him.He grabbed the nametag of the reporter nearest to him and looked at it. "You're from Creative Wave Media, right? If you leak even one of the photos you took today, your careers will be over."His smile didn't reach his eyes. His intimidating attitude made the reporters around him put down their equipment.They all looked at each other before looking at Zachary. "Zach, d
"Did you fucking plan this? Tell me!" Benji shouted.With the door closed, the room seemed cramped with the four of them. More importantly, Benji kept anxiously pacing around the room.As though he had done something wrong, Shane explained, "Someone tricked me yesterday. I had a spiked drink."The blanket on the bed was scrunched into a ball. The pillow he had slept on was also still indented, and small torn square packets were in the trash can on the floor.Benji felt himself falling apart even more. Why did he invite Thaddeus and Jessamine in here? He should've just talked outside. He felt as if he was giving them a sneak peek into his private life.Thaddeus simply watched him quietly. He thought it wasn't a big deal. "We're all adults here. It's not a big deal if you slept with someone."Benji wanted to break off his friendship with Thaddeus. Thaddeus was an awful friend. He was pissing him off even more. Benji didn't believe in casual relationships. He didn't know Shane wel
Thaddeus was dumbfounded. Why hadn't he considered using blood types to eliminate the possibility first?"My dad has type O blood."Jessamine's stroked his Adam's apple softly and deliberately. "My mom has type B blood, and I have type AB blood. Do you think it's possible that we could be long-lost siblings?"Thaddeus thought for some time and couldn't help but burst out in hearty laughter. It was impossible for someone with type B blood and someone with type O blood to have a child with AB type blood. What was he worrying about?At that moment, he couldn't believe how foolish he'd been. Biology was his best subject in school, yet he didn't think about this until Jessamine reminded him. His biology teacher would be furious if they knew."Why didn't you say so earlier, Jessie?" He regretted not talking to her about it sooner and ended up suffering in prolonged silence by himself.After Jessamine got bored touching his Adam's apple, she started playing with his rough chin. "I just
Jessamine lay still for a long time, aware that Thaddeus was also awake, battling insomnia just like her.This visit to Zenville to solve one mystery ended up bringing her an even bigger one.The gathering took place years ago in the restaurant owned by Benji's family. She had even asked Benji about it. The surveillance footage from over 20 years ago wouldn't be around now, and even the staff had changed several times. The restaurant's manager from back then had left the job many years ago.It wasn't easy to uncover the truth from back then unless they found the people who were directly involved. The closer they got to the truth, the more pressure she felt.By investigating this matter now, she was essentially peeling back the layers that had been hiding a much deeper issue. As she confronted the dark side of human nature, the ultimate victim ended up being her beloved mother.If Jessamine didn't look into this matter, she felt like she would be letting Elizabeth down. She wanted
Thaddeus frowned immensely at his request. "Don't be ridiculous!""I'm serious. You could help me rent one too. You know, the kind that charges by the day. I'll fool my dad first. We'll deal with everything else once he gets better," Benji said.Thaddeus cursed inwardly, "Dude, don't drag me into this, especially with my wife watching. It sounds like you're implying I have ways to get or rent women."Thaddeus glanced back at Jessamine and said, "I don't know about this. You should ask someone else. If you're at your wits end, go ask one of the assistants in your company to help you out."Benji seemed to come to a realization. He said, "It's getting late. You all should go back and rest. There are doctors here. I'll stay and keep watch."Jessamine asked, "Can you handle this on your own, Mr. Moore?""Sure, thank you… all of you," Benji replied.After saying a few more words of comfort, Jessamine and Thaddeus went downstairs to the car. Thaddeus' phone started ringing again."Mr.
Maya also knelt by the bed and started crying."Dad, don't speak for now. Please be okay."Benji zoned out. Seeing Carmen and Maya crying, his mind was in a mess. He realized that he couldn't continue to live aimlessly—his family needed him now."A girlfriend, a girlfriend..." he mumbled, not even sure of what he was saying.The doctor hurried to the room upon hearing the call, checked on Jonathan again, and then sent the family away."The patient needs rest and should avoid additional emotional stress. You all can wait outside for now. There's no need for everyone to be here, one would be enough. The room can be stuffy if there's too many people here, too."They then left the room. Benji was holding the X-ray images of Jonathan's brain, but he couldn't make any sense of it. He felt completely lost.Shane quietly slipped away from the crowd after watching from afar. He went to an empty hallway and called his father. "Dad, are you free to analyze some X-ray images? It's for a fri
Benji had always lived a smooth and pleasant life. It hit him hard after hearing what the doctor said, leaving him in a state of shock and bewilderment."Mom, hasn't Dad always been in good health? How did he suddenly..."Carmen's eyes were red and swollen from crying."He mentioned feeling dizzy a few times recently and said he'd go for a check-up but actually never did. Plus, he's been swamped with work lately and hasn't got any time. Today, he suddenly fainted at the office. His assistant called an ambulance right away and brought him to the hospital. By the time I got the call, he was already being examined inside."Benji's face turned pale. With Jonathan down, the burden of supporting his family fell on him. He had been free from responsibility for the past 20 years, and now, suddenly having to shoulder this heavy load, he felt completely lost.His father had been asking him to get familiar with the company's operations a long time ago. However, he was too lazy to bother abou
Benji never had any grand ambitions. From the day he was born, people always told him that he didn't need to worry about anything since most problems in this world could be solved with money, and his family had plenty of it. He just wanted to drift through life."I don't need to surpass him. As long as I can cover my daily expenses and not have to ask him for money, that's enough," Benji replied.As they were talking, Shane had prepared a table full of dishes. He set out four sets of plates and cutleries before calling everyone over to eat. "It's time to eat."The four of them hadn't seen each other in a long time, so they had to have a drink.Jessamine looked at the beautifully prepared dishes on the table and couldn't help but offer a compliment. "Shane, your cooking skills have gotten so good."Shane opened a bottle of red wine and poured some for everyone. "What can I do? There's a glutton at home."Benji was not happy with Shane's comment. What did he mean by saying there wa
"It's great that you came by today, Jessie. I'll pay you back the money. Friends who are willing to lend money these days are rare, so I want to thank you again," Benji said.He hadn't repaid the money he borrowed last time yet. Coincidentally, he received some money today, so he decided to settle the debt in person. With that, he picked up his phone to make the transfer.Jessamine's phone chimed, indicating that a payment had been received. The amount was a bit more than what she had lent out."Mr. Moore, I'm not here to ask you to settle your debt. You can keep it for now. I won't need the money for the time being," Jessamine said."If one borrows and returns promptly, borrowing again won't be difficult. You're much easier to talk to than Thaddeus. Despite knowing him for so many years, borrowing money from him is such a hassle. You saw it last time yourself. That scoundrel's attitude was terrible!" Benji complained.At this point in the conversation, Thaddeus happened to arrive
Thaddeus tightened his grip on Jessamine's slender waist. "What am I going to do with you, Jessie?"He thought to himself that if things really were just that coincidental, he would rather play the fool and pretend to know nothing at all. He just couldn't leave her.Jessamine asked softly, "How about you ask your dad?"Thaddeus paused for a moment and took out his phone to call Corey. He couldn't calm his mind at all.After a few seconds of hearing the dial tone, the call was answered."Dad," Thaddeus said.On the other end of the phone, Corey was about to go to sleep. He had been adjusting his routine lately, aiming to go to bed early and wake up early."What’s up?" Corey asked."Do you remember the gathering over 20 years ago with Mr. Hardy, Jacob Langston, Leon Lincoln, Paxton Loomis, and a few others?"After that, Thaddeus added, "That night, a beautiful woman came over. She drank some alcohol and was drugged."There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the ph
On the other side, Jessamine and Thaddeus got into the car.Jessamine and Beatrice were quite familiar with each other. However, it was Jessamine's first time meeting Sabastian. Surprisingly, she had a pretty good impression of him."Do the Hardy and Holt families have business dealings with each other?"Thaddeus drove as he answered her question, "We don't have much interaction. We would occasionally invest in small projects and conduct some charity work in Zenville together."Mr. Hardy is an upright and trustworthy person. He has a good relationship with Grandpa. Hayden would often come to my house with him when I was young."Jessamine paused for a moment and asked, "Does he have a wife?""Hayden's mother passed away from an amniotic fluid embolism during childbirth. Since then, Mr. Hardy has remained single and never remarried."Jessamine was deeply moved. In this era, who would remain loyal for a lifetime to their deceased wives? Most men like Sabastian, who had both power a