Stefan felt a little sorry for Kurt, seeing him in this state.Back then, he only cared for Gwen. His only concern was to have the love of his life live her best life yet had neglected his brothers in the process.If he were still alive, Kurt, the man who was always loyal to him, would not have been attacked so badly.At that thought, Stefan took a deep breath and smiled at Kurt. "Who said we don't know each other?"Then, he clenched his fists and glared at the thugs fearlessly. "I'm here just to let you know one thing."Whether in the past or the future, Kurt Will is under my wing. If you want to bully him in the future, you'll have to go through me!"Then, he swung his fist at the thugs.The leader of the thugs never thought that Stefan would be so courageous. They were caught off guard and stumbled a few steps backward, almost falling.After a while, the thug got a hold of his footing. He looked up and glared at Stefan. "How dare you hit me?!"Stefan snickered. "Not only do
Kurt was even more baffled at that moment. His boss was not dead, but he even gave himself a new name!He went from Luke Jones to Stefan Joneson?"Let's go. I'll take you to the doctor." Stefan furrowed his eyebrows, walked over, and helped Kurt stand up. "What happened to your arm?"Kurt paused for a while before saying honestly, "I broke it in an accident on delivery a few days ago."As Stefan helped him up, he sighed and added, "Max Church sent those men to check on me to see if I've been in contact with Gwen, but when they saw my broken arm, they started extorting me for money and bullying me."Kurt smiled bitterly at Stefan. "Have I embarrassed you?"Things were different when he was with Luke as it was him doing the beating; never was there a moment when Kurt was beaten. However, at that moment…Kurt felt terrible letting his former boss see him beaten up so badly."It's not embarrassing at all." Stefan was silent for a long time before sighing deeply. "It's my fault. All
"I'm fine. I helped out an injured person on the way back." Stefan smiled. "Don't worry; not many people can hurt me in a place like Sea City."At that, Gwen was instantly silent. After a while, she said gently, "Okay. Come back quickly."She did not wait for Stefan's response as she hung up.Stefan furrowed his eyebrows, a little surprised that she hung up on him so quickly. Gwen was usually very polite to strangers and people she was not close to. Only with people who she was very close to would she show her true character, doing things like hanging up on them before they could finish a sentence."Boss…" At that moment, Kurt said feebly, "Don't you think you've kind of exposed your identity a little by what you said just now? Gwen thinks you're a foreigner, being your first time here in Sea City, yet you said that no one could hurt you here."He cast a careful glance at Stefan, saying, "Do you think she'll realize who you are?"Stefan furrowed his brows. He realized that ever s
Gwen's entire body stiffened when she saw Stefan's reaction. She furrowed her eyebrows and immediately realized what she had done. "Luke is…someone that I used to know.""That's the name of my old boss," Kurt said as he stepped into the house. "He passed away some time ago."Since he had promised Stefan that he would go along with his act and pretend to be acquaintances, that was what he had to do.He strode over to Gwen and reached out to shake her hand. "Long time no see, Ms. Larson."Gwen widened her eyes in shock when she saw who it was. A split second later, her gaze changed to one of incredulity. "Are you…Kurt?""Yes, that's me." Kurt chuckled. "I thought you had forgotten me.""Why would I?" Gwen shook her head, and her gaze fell on Kurt's broken arm. "I just never thought that…"Kurt was one of the bravest and most ruthless of all of Luke's men. Out of all of them, he had been selected to become Luke's personal bodyguard and had assumed this role for many years. Thus, it
Seeing that Gwen and Stefan had offered, Kurt did not think it was polite to refuse anymore, so he nodded and agreed, "Alright, then."However, he had one request. "Can I stay in the room underneath the stairs?"Gwen froze, then turned to glance at the room he was talking about. "Why… Why do you want to stay there?"That room had been converted from a storage space to a bedroom meant for the servants. Back when she and Ben got married, Ben had insisted on renovating the room underneath the stairs to become the servant's bedroom to assert his dominance as master of the household.At that time, Gwen had disagreed. The servants could have just slept in the guest bedroom, and she did not think it was necessary to force them into a cramped bedroom just to save face. However, Ben insisted and went ahead with his plan anyway.She and Ben had been close for a period of time after their marriage, so she tolerated his little quirks.However, despite having prepared the room, Gwen never onc
[I…didn't.] Gwen sighed when she saw Sean's text. [Nothing. Just asking.][Don't you worry.] Sean sent a reassuring sticker alongside his reply. [I know how much Luke and Steven meant to you, so you'll be the first to know if I hear anything. Don't be too sad, okay? Since Steven has chosen to start his new life afresh, I'm sure he must've landed on his feet, and we should be happy for him.][You should move forward and stop getting caught up in the past. Remember, you have your own life to live.][You're right.] Gwen sighed. [I shouldn't be caught up in the past anymore, and it's about time I live my own life. Thanks for trying to cheer me up. How's Denise doing?][Not too well, but the doctor says she's improving, and I'm sure she'll be up and at it in no time.]After a brief chat with Sean, Gwen decided to flip through all the contacts of her old friends and family in Sea City, including the employees that had worked for Larson Group under her and her father, Andy.She could no
"I'll think of something." Stefan furrowed his eyebrows, downed the entire glass of water Gwen had poured for him, and set the empty glass down on the table. "Since none of the people you contacted know anything…maybe Kurt and I can give it a try."Gwen's eyes widened in shock. "Are you saying that you and Kurt are going to try joining the gang?""Yes." Stefan nodded. "Kurt used to be a part of it, so I'm sure it won't be hard for him to rejoin. As for me, you've seen me in combat; I'm sure I'll hold up well against them. But…"He paused, then glanced at Gwen. "I need your help on something."Gwen was puzzled by this. "What is it?""I need some help from the husband of your friend, that Joshua Lynch fellow," Stefan said with a frown, trying to pretend that he and Joshua did not know each other. "Winson has met me before, and since he's part of the gang here in Sea City, he might be able to recognize me and, in doing so, will know that you've returned. This will bring a lot of trou
The next morning, Gwen woke up at the crack of dawn. She called Luna on the phone while she was washing up, and told Luna about her request."No problem!" Luna was smiling as she said this. "You say that that bodyguard of yours needs a mask, huh? Well, what kind is he looking for? One that's made to imitate human skin? I don't think that's a good idea. It'll come off easily if someone were to punch him, and I think a better option will be something made of metal, like those masks you wear to a costume party. We can easily make it look more lifelike!"That way, even if he wears the mask, you'll still be able to see the angles of his jaw and his other features…" Luna explained as she busied herself in the kitchen. "I think you'll be captivated by him sooner or later."Gwen almost choked on her mouthwash when she heard this. She let out a few coughs, then finally got herself together. "Why are you becoming more mischievous as time passes? I'm getting him a mask so that he can go underc
At that, he looked at Gwen. "Actually…"Steven found himself unable to finish his sentence. After a long while, he shook his head and smiled. "Forget about it.""Steven…" Gwen looked at him, and her tears fell.Her heart was not made of stone. How could she not know Steven's feelings toward her?She was silent for a long while. In the end, she stood up and slowly walked over to Steven with arms opened wide. "Give me a hug."Steven hesitated for a while, but he still stood up.They hugged."Gwen." Steven hugged her thin figure. "I have to meet you earlier in the next life so I can compete fairly with my brother."Gwen nodded with tears streaming down her face. "Okay."They thus hugged once more. Minutes later…"He's gone," said Stefan.Tears kept falling.They hugged for a while longer before pulling apart. Gwen looked at Stefan with her tear-stricken face. He had tears on his face as well.She bit her lips and reached out to wipe his tears. "A—Are these tears…yours or his?
The next day, Rachel flew from Merchant City to Sharnwick City to diagnose Anne's condition. Theo tagged along as well because he had another identity, Rachel's boyfriend."According to the report, Anne's condition is slowly recuperating." Rachel was relieved after assessing the report. "Although she is very weak, she is going to get better with lots of rest."There is nothing wrong with her vocal cords too. It could be a psychological thing that makes her lose her voice. A knot in her heart that causes it." She looked at Luna, then at John. "Considering all factors, I think that knot is Luna."Rachel continued, "John, I know Luna is the root cause of all these bad things. Being away from Luna, Joshua, and other people is going to guarantee a safer life for you and your family. But have you thought about it from Anne's point of view? Other than you and Sammie, she has her own life and her circle of friends. Never has she blamed Luna for what happened, yet you forced her to leave Lun
It was almost a miracle for Anne to willingly leave the house just to visit him!Robyn, meanwhile, sobbed at the sight.The nurse who accompanied Anne to the ward was puzzled. What was going on with these people?She snuck her phone out of her pocket and took a photo of this surreptitiously. Then, she sent it into the nurse's group chat with the caption, [What a strange family I met today.]The nurses in the group chat began gossiping about this. One of them tagged a fellow nurse named Daisy and said, [Hey, isn't this the guy who saved the old man you're looking after? What a hero!]Daisy was, at this moment, walking into Andy's room to help him change his wound dressing. She saw the message but was not able to type on her keyboard to respond, so she recorded a voice message instead. "Yes, that's the man. What's wrong with his family? What are you guys talking about?"As soon as she finished her sentence, she lifted her head and finally realized that Andy was not there.Instead,
Anne stared at John for a long time before forcibly smiling and told him in sign language, "Robyn didn't return after so long, so I got worried and came by to check on her.""Daddy, Aunt Robyn, are you two hugging?" Sammie asked, blinking innocently as she raised her head in curiosity.John and Robyn turned pale at this.It was understandable for such a young child like Sammie to misinterpret them as hugging, but what would Anne think of this?John leaped off the bed and staggered toward Anne. "Anne, it's just a misunderstanding…"However, he was still so weak that his legs could not hold up the full weight of his body at all, and he almost crumpled to the ground.Quick-witted Robyn managed to catch him before he could fall, but this gesture appeared once again rather intimate to both Anne and Sammie. Sammie furrowed her brow and asked rather indignantly, "Are you hugging again? Daddy, how can you hug Aunt Robyn like this when you've never even hugged Mommy and me like this befor
When the nurse pushed Anne to John's ward, she overheard John and Robyn fighting from the door. The fight was about how John was anxious to return home because he was worried about Anne and Sammie.However, as someone who used to work as a nurse, Robyn knew John should not leave the hospital after being shot by a gun. At least, he needed to stay in the hospital and be observed for 24 hours to make sure that he was fine before leaving the hospital. If an infection happened, John's body would crash easily and he would become weak just like Anne.In the ward, John frowned and talked with a serious tone, "I'm really fine. Get me my clothes so I can go upstairs to thank Miss Andie and go back home immediately. If Anne knows that I'm hurt, she is going to worry. She will easily be suspicious since you haven't gone back home for a long time. What if she worries about me and brings Sammie to the hospital to look for me? Can you bear yourself even just thinking about it? She's weak and Sammie
Sammie's soft and cute babyish voice melted Stefan's heart immediately. It had been quite some time since he actually put a smile on his face. "Hi, there. What's your name and how old are you?"Sammie tilted her head to look at Stefan's handsome face and smiled sweetly, "I'm Samantha but everyone calls me Sammie."Then she did not forget to introduce Anne to Stefan too. "This is my Mommy. Her name is Anne."At this point, Stefan had given all of his attention to Sammie and did not notice Sammie mentioned that her mother's name was Anne. He pinched Sammie's cheek and said, "Your Mommy is not feeling well. You have to be a good girl and take care of her, do you understand?"Sammie nodded seriously and said, "I will.""Alright, sir. I will bring them to where they want to go," the nurse saw Anne signing to her anxiously. She smiled and said, "Don't worry. I will take good care of them."The promise from the nurse gave an assurance to Stefan that they would be well taken off. He smil
This was the first time Anne brought Sammie out. Ever since she escaped from death, she became a different person—a recluse and was afraid of the sun. This situation became even worse after she became mute.The last time she left the house was two weeks ago when she had to go for surgery.However, she worried about John. In the morning, Robyn told her John was hurt and needed to stay in the hospital to rest. However, she had a hard time believing what Robyn said.After spending so many years together with John, Anne reckoned she was the one who knew John the most. If it was a minor injury, John would never want to stay in the hospital. He cared too much about her and Sammie, so he never dared to let her worry about him. Therefore, it just did not sound reasonable if John would stay in the hospital because of a small injury.Furthermore, Robyn had not returned home since the morning, which was nearly three hours since she left the house. After much consideration, she decided to call
Tara fell silent upon hearing this. She bit her lip nervously and shot Gwen a tentative glance. "I didn't mean to offend you, Gwen…" "I know." Gwen let out an exhale and interrupted Tara before she could finish, "I know you meant no harm, but I can't deny that this is something I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around. In the future, neither of you—even you, Luna—should bring this up again." Her love life was such a mess that not even she could unravel the ties, much less expect other people to understand. Tara pursed her lips and did not reply. Luna stared at Gwen in silence for a while before finally saying, "But you have to face this eventually, Gwennie. After all that you've been through with Luke, all of us hope for nothing but the best for the two of you. Even if you avoid it now, you'll have to face the truth eventually. Otherwise, are you planning on spending the rest of your life in this complicated relationship with Luke? Can you bear the thought of not being
Stefan was mildly amused by the look on her face. He extended his arms out in a gesture of defeat and said, "I never intended on ratting you out to Joshua. You three spoke about these secrets in my presence." With that, he shot Andy a rather helpless look. "Don't you agree, sir?" Andy was surprised to be called out all of a sudden. "Of course!" Although Gwen and Luke had been together for a long time, Luke had never much cared for maintaining good relations with his future father-in-law. He always thought his relationship with Gwen did not concern anyone else outside of the two of them. Combined with the fact that Andy had done some hurtful things to Gwen in the past, Luke grew even more disdainful of his future father-in-law. Because of this, he had never given Andy as much as a second glance throughout their relationship and rarely ever addressed him directly like this. The truth was, Stefan had already called out to Andy once before, during their rescue mission the day befor