The next morning, Jessica started working as soon as she arrived at her office. She buried herself in a pile of documents the whole morning. Only when Wendy knocked on the door did Jessica realize that it was already noon. "Miss Hall, what would you like to eat for lunch?" "Would you please pack up a sandwich for me?" Jessica closed the laptop and rubbed her sore forehead. "Oops, and a cup of iced Americano." The Hall family was among the wealthiest families, but Jessica just went to a community high school because her parents didn't want other rich kids' ill intentions to reach her. Thus, Jessica never took what she ate and wore too seriously. Especially at work, Jessica preferred a quick and simple meal. After Wendy went out, Jessica's phone rang. She pressed the answer button. "Have you had lunch yet, sweetheart?" The call was from Morgan Hall, Jessica's father. "I just asked Wendy to buy lunch for me. What about you, Dad?" Jessica leaned back in her chair to have
"I don't know what you are talking about!" Olivia retorted as she felt that Rebecca was gazing over with confusion in her eyes. Jessica was not in the mood to argue with Olivia. She threw the tissue into the trash can and left the restroom. Coincidentally, Jessica saw Lucas after moving only a few steps. Because of what Olivia had said, Jessica did not want to talk to Lucas. Lucas watched as Jessica passed by. He felt irritated when Jessica ignored him once again. He said coldly, "Jessica." Jessica halted and tilted her head slightly to look at Lucas. "What can I do for you, Mr. Thomas?" Unlike before, Jessica's eyes were icy cold when she looked at Lucas now. Lucas felt upset about it. "Terry pursued you because of me. Please stay sober." Sober? Jessica felt that her least sober moment was when she decided to marry Lucas three years ago. "Thanks for your reminder, Mr. Thomas. But we have divorced now. I hope you and your family can stay away from me." Jessica th
Since Terry beat Jessica on horseback, Jessica agreed to attend the event as his plus—one. After that, Terry didn't pester Jessica. Instead, he rode away on his horse. Hannah caught up with them. She clicked her tongue as she saw Terry off. "What exactly is going on between the two of you?" "No biggie. I was racing with him and I lost." Jessica looked at Hannah and said flatly. "No way! You are the student of a horsemanship champion. How could you lose?" Hannah widened her eyes in disbelief. "There is always someone better." As Jessica spoke, she suddenly recalled the way Terry gazed at her. Her mind was somehow muddled with emotions. After lunch, Jessica and Hannah went shopping together. Hannah dragged Jessica to a luxury fashion shop. When Hannah showed her VIP card, the salespeople all came over, eager to serve them. Suddenly, a snide female voice chimed in. "Who on earth is there? What a pomp!" Jessica found the voice familiar. She thus couldn't help but look
Crossing her arms in front of her chest, Jessica watched with a faint smile as the salesgirls cut the price tags and packed up the clothes before handing them to Ellie. Only then did Jessica say to Hannah, "Let's go. Didn't you say you wanted to buy a Dior bag?" Before leaving, Jessica even asked Ellie and Zancy, "By the way, ladies, would you like to come with us? You can buy all the bags I fancy and make my shopping trip end fruitless. That's gonna annoy me so much." Zancy hurried to stop Ellie. "We have an appointment later. We are not as idle as you." With that, Zancy and Ellie hurriedly left with a pile of clothes. As soon as they left, Hannah couldn't help but laugh. "OMG, they are so stupid." "What a pity! Why didn't Miss Brown go on playing the hyper—rich girl? I could have picked a dozen bags for her," said Jessica with a snort. Hannah held Jessica's arm with a smile. "That's my smart girl." Jessica raised her eyebrows. She had always been a smart girl. Th
Jessica came to the event only because of the bet. She wasn't interested in anything at the auction. Terry remained quite silent as well. It seemed that nothing had caught his attention, either. Yet Terry kept gazing at Jessica. His Terry was impossible to ignore and thus made Jessica quite uneasy. She then turned around and asked, "Anything you fancy?" "Sure." Terry narrowed his deep eyes. He picked up the bottled water, slowly unscrewed the cap, and took a sip. With a sly smile, Terry turned to Jessica. "But the one I fancy cannot be bought." Jessica could tell the suggestive meaning behind Terry's words, yet she pretended not. "That's a pity." "What about Miss Hall?" Terry asked as he fiddled with the bidder card in his hand. Jessica was about to say no when a painting on the wall caught her attention. "That Frida Kahlo's artwork looks nice," said Jessica. Morgan had a collection of Frida Kahlo's paintings. Jessica knew that Morgan would love the painting when
The auction had come to an end. Lucas was the bidder of the night. He first bought a painting for 2 million dollars and then another for 35 million dollars. Hari also believed that Lucas acted kind of like a super—rich sucker tonight. Hari tried to tell Lucas that the paintings were not worth the money spent, yet he chose to shut up when he saw Lucas' grim face. After the auction was over, the four of them met at the stairs. Hari greeted Jessica, "Jessica!" Jessica smiled faintly and responded, "Mr. Hartley." Jessica nodded and then left with Terry. Lucas watched them off. His golden eyes darkened. He then left the venue as well. Terry's black Rolls—Royce was quite eye—catching. Jessica got into the car and found that Terry was gazing at her. Jessica looked at Terry doubtfully, only to hear the man chuckle and say, "Not bad." "I'm sorry?" Terry didn't explain but slowly drove out. "Are you hungry now?" Jessica didn't take Terry's response seriously. "Not real
Justin walked in with a stern face. He was not happy to see Jessica at all. Sitting in her chair, Jessica raised her eyebrows and asked, "Mr. Thomas, what do I owe you?" "It has only been a few months since we last met, yet you have already forgotten all the rules of the Thomas family. You didn't even serve me any coffee." Jessica chuckled when she heard what Justin said. "This place is not a café. If you want any coffee, you should go to Starbucks. There happens to be one nearby. Go downstairs, turn left, and walk 200 meters. You'll see it. Coffee is served there." "Jessica! You have no respect for your elders, and you have no proper manners at all. You have been disgracing the Thomas family out there. I'm gonna..." "Mr. Thomas, you seem to have forgotten that I've already divorced Lucas." Jessica's lips curled up when she spoke, yet her eyes weren't smiling at all. "This is my workplace. If you have nothing specific to say, please leave now. If you do, please say it bl
When Olivia's friend came to her senses, she asked the waiter to bring her a towel. The mango juice on Olivia's face flowed down her neck and soaked her sweater. Olivia stood there, looking extremely miserable. Only then did Jessica let go of her hand. "If you don't want to continue embarrassing yourself, I advise you to leave now." Olivia's eyes were red from anger, but looking at mango juice—sodden hair and clothes, she could only grit her teeth and leave with her friend. As soon as Olivia left, Hannah said, "What's wrong with her? Trying to throw juice on people's face?" Jessica had been through this many times in the past. She was quite familiar with Olivia's routine. Jessica glanced at Olivia and her friend and looked back at Hannah. "Who knows?" People at the next table filmed the whole thing. Jessica knew about it when she and Hannah were in the Mona club. The lights were dazzling and the music was deafening. Hannah took a look at her phone and chuckled. "Hey,
Jessica was strolling in the garden downstairs of the hospital, where a young mother was playing soccer with a little boy.The football rolled up to her. Jessica picked it up and watched as the little boy ran over."Miss Pretty."What a sweet little boy! Calling her pretty though it was the first time they met.Jessica raised a brow. "Aren't you a cutie pie?"She spoke as she handed the football back to the little boy.Just then, Lucas returned with an ice cream in his hand. The little boy licked his lips while watching from a distance.Jessica found it amusing and waved at the little boy, saying, "Come here."The little boy obediently ran over holding the football and said, "Miss Pretty.""Wanna eat ice cream, huh?"The little boy nodded and then shook his head. "No."Although he said "no", his eyes betrayed him.Jessica clicked her tongue and asked again, "You sure?"The little boy didn't say anything this time, only swallowing hard.Jessica pointed to Lucas beside her and said, "If
The two walked to a nearby restaurant for lunch. On the way back, they stopped at the zebra crossing to wait for the light. The interval was a bit long, about 100 seconds. "How about playing a little game?" Jessica was curious. "What kinda game?" "Guess whether the number of the white stripes on this zebra crossing is odd or even." Jessica instinctively glanced down and asked, "Is there a reward if I win?" "Sure." Jessica arched her brow and said, "Then what if I lose?" "When we cross the street, you're gonna give me a kiss." Jessica looked up at Lucas, figuring it was indeed something he could come up with. She shot a glance at the zebra crossing and said, "I guess it's even." "Then I guess it's odd." While they were talking, the red light across the street turned green. They exchanged a glance and both silently counted the white stripes. "11, 12, 13, 14, 15—" Once they crossed over, Jessica announced triumphantly, "And the last one, 16! It is an even number. You lost, L
Jessica was shocked by what Wendy had said. Five years ago, it could be said to be a farce. But if Oscar did have something to do with Justin's death, it was murder. Jessica realized how serious the whole thing was. She had instructed Wendy to gather more evidence and then hurriedly returned home. Jessica finished reading the report Wendy had given her, and she felt that Wendy's guess was reasonable. For the sake of certainty, Jessica called Wendy, asking her to share the report with Vincent. Jessica sat in the living room, carefully thinking about the whole thing. She always felt that Luna wanted to marry Lucas simply for the sake of the wealth of the Thomas family. Unlike Oscar, Luna wouldn't have gone as far as murdering. Luna wouldn't risk going into prison. If she did end up in prison, she wouldn't be able to enjoy a luxurious life. Therefore, it was very likely that Luna had been used by Oscar. When Jessica thought of t
Jessica took out a small box from the drawer and there was a necklace inside. It was the necklace that Jessica found when she returned to that room five years ago. She had always thought it was Lucas'. Yet she later learned it belonged to Terry. Ever since she found out that the necklace was Terry's, she had never brought it with her anymore. She kept it in the box. Now that she looked at the necklace and had a new doubt. Why would Terry's necklace appear in that room? She checked the time before she called Terry. Terry was very happy when he received Jessica's call. She rarely took the initiative to call him. Jessica invited him out for dinner, and the two of them arrived at a steakhouse not far from the Hall Group. When Terry arrived, Jessica was already sitting in the reserved seat. He looked at Jessica's back, and a feeling of longing surged in his heart. He quickly walked over and looked at Jessica with a smile. "
Oscar stood up and walked to Lucas' table. "When I become the CEO of Thomas Group, I'd love to arrange some new work for you." "Is that so?" Lucas sneered. "Get this project done first. As far as I know, there were casualties in your first joint project with the Davison Group. If Terry weren't that eager to go against me, he wouldn't have given any project to someone like you who has no competence at all." Oscar was utterly irritated. He hated it when others said that he had no competence at all. However, Lucas was now the CEO of the Thomas Group. If he beat Lucas now, Lucas would directly drive him out of the company. He had not gotten the Thomas Group yet, so he could not make a move driven by impulse. Yet the contempt in Lucas' eyes was like a sharp knife, stabbing at his sore point. Oscar took a step back, looked at Lucas, and sneered after taking a deep breath. He said, "Have a good time now. You don't get everything. If
Although Terry rejected Oscar's request, he did give Oscar some new projects. However, compared to the projects in the northland, these projects were really not enough. In the recent company executive meeting, the number of people supporting Oscar had obviously decreased, and even the executive who had a relationship with Louis lost his confidence in Oscar. This made Oscar even more annoyed. He called Terry again. He had to reach Jessica through Terry. "If you don't help me, I will go to the Hall Group myself. It's not like I don't know what she looks like," Oscar said bitterly. "If you go to her, I will immediately suspend all the cooperation with you." Jessica was Terry's bottom line. Terry wouldn't make any compromise. After hanging up the phone, Oscar angrily pushed everything on the table to the ground, and then slammed the coffee cup. The sound of the cup shattering came from his office. Oscar sat in his chair wi
Jessica looked at Lucas. For the first time, Jessica didn't feel offended by Lucas' indifferent attitude. All of a sudden, she seemed to have understood what his attitude was about. She understood that his attitude was just a disguise. In the past, Jessica thought it was his arrogance. After all, he seemed to have owned the whole world back then. "I didn't expect that," Jessica said calmly. "I never wanted anyone to replace you. It's just I hate it when others are plotting against my family. I believe you feel the same." "Then what is this conversation about?" Lucas felt bitter. Even his voice became hoarse. "I don't think you need me to teach you what to do. You are not a person who will willingly accept failure." Jessica paused for a moment before she spoke. "But I have to accept it when it comes to you," Lucas said peacefully. The arrogant man finally admitted his failure in love. Jessica didn't feel the pleasure of revenge at al
Jessica was confused, but she didn't call Terry directly. She knew that if she called Terry, he would immediately tell her what his relationship with Oscar was. But now, she didn't know if she could believe what Terry would say. After getting off work, Jessica and Hannah came to Mona's nightclub together. Caesar and Lance were there today. The few of them chatted together. Jessica had to drive back by herself, so she only ordered a glass of alcohol-free juice. "Jessica, that Oscar seems very active recently. Do you know him?" No one from the Thomas Group and Thomas family had appeared in their topic for a long time, and after Caesar asked this question, the others all stared at Jessica. "To be honest, I didn't know this person before," Jessica shrugged. "Lucas' father has been living outside and he has a child. That's all I know." Jessica wasn't lying. She felt that Olivia and Rebecca should know something, but they wou
Oscar knew that Lucas would definitely look down on him, but he did not care. With the help of Louis, he had already obtained a management position in the Thomas Group. "How is it, Oscar?" Louis followed Oscar to his office. Every time he saw his kid with Amanda, he felt proud. Louis found himself useful. He just helped his son get a position. Oscar turned to look at Louis, and the corners of his mouth curled into a self-mocking smile. "Dad, you have to know that the entire Thomas Group will finally fall into our grip." "What are you talking about, Oscar!" Louis panicked when he heard that. He then hurriedly looked around to see if anyone was listening. "Dad, what are you nervous about? You are grandpa's only son. The Thomas Group should have been yours." "That may be true, but the Thomas Group is in your brother's hands now," Louis said awkwardly. Louis wanted to make money, but he also knew he was not capable enough to run the Tho