Luke's expression when he mentioned asking his father for help, along with his earlier words, made me realize something. "Your dad agreed to help Joey transfer on certain conditions. You made a deal with him to help Joey.""Joey gave up transferring, so the deal fell through."Joey had been pushed to her breaking point by bullying. If she considered transferring again, Stephen would have turned to Luke for help. Luke might appear aloof and reserved, but he's deeply loyal to his friends. He wouldn't have remained indifferent to Stephen's plea.Noticing my confusion, Luke said, "I did ask my father for help twice. The second time, he proposed another condition, which I refused.""You’d already given Joey a chance."Luke didn't specify the conditions his father set, but from his attitude, I could tell they were unacceptable to him.He was clear-headed and independent, not a pushover. He wouldn't put himself in a dilemma just for Joey's sake.Just as Luke was about to say something,
"By keeping such a close watch on her, you’ve forced her to become even more cautious. Sometimes, loosening the grip a bit can yield unexpected results."Stephen had maintained constant scrutiny of the situation, burdened by his own guilt and desperation to bring Crystal Kingston to justice. His intense focus only made her more vigilant, leaving no room for mistakes or slip-ups.Stephen seemed to be considering Luke's suggestion."As for Jon, Joey knows more than she's let on. We've already invested so much time in this. I hope we can resolve everything related to her quickly."With that, Luke ended the call. Stephen was smart, he would understand the implication in Luke's words.The car pulled into the residential complex and stopped in front of Luke's house.He showed no signs of getting out, so I reminded him, "Mr. Walker, we're home.""You haven't brought Doggo over recently.""Doggo hasn't been feeling well the past couple of days. I took him to the vet."Ever since that
The photo hadn’t changed. Could it be that Jethro’s rumored girlfriend just looked similar to Penelope?I zoomed in on the picture, examining it closely. Left and right, I scrutinized every detail, and then I noticed a faint mole near the corner of her eye. That confirmed it—the person in the photo was definitely Penelope.Penelope, dating Jethro? How could that be? Why would she expose her own relationship?I quickly skimmed through the article. The report didn’t mention Penelope by name, referring to her only as a “mysterious woman.” However, the comment section was already buzzing with speculation about her identity. These netizens were relentless; it wouldn’t be long before they dug up everything about Penelope, leaving her with no privacy at all.Jethro was a top-tier celebrity, and with the current fan culture being so intense, his fans were extremely possessive. They wouldn’t tolerate any romantic involvement, real or imagined. If Penelope’s identity was exposed, it would
"Thank you, Doctor."I patted Doggo's head and stayed with him for a while before heading to work.Most of the people working in the Greenfield building were young professionals, buzzing about the rumored relationship between Jethro and Penelope."That girl must have saved the galaxy in her past life to be dating Jethro!""Rumor has it she's seven years older than him.""Seven years older? My heart is shattered."I followed behind them into the building, silently fuming.Penelope was actually the same age as Jethro!She must have the worst luck in the world to have become the target of his outburst.Online, people tend to blow things out of proportion. To them, Jethro was the pinnacle of stardom—handsome, gentlemanly, the ideal man—while they criticized Penelope from head to toe, tearing apart every feature.In reality, Penelope could hold her own even among the most beautiful actresses in the entertainment industry.Listening to them belittle her made me think about myself.
The women gossiping about Luke and me outside the Greenfield Building that day were employees of Luminance Advertising. Luminance had collaborated with Hanque multiple times, with Hanque being the client. For agency employees to gossip publicly about their client was a reckless move.Since that day, Patrick Lumos, the general manager of Luminance, had been making daily visits to JL Capital, trying to maintain good relations with Luke. After the incident, his employees were probably under a lot of pressure at work. However, Luminance had a strong reputation and consistently delivered creative advertising campaigns. During their collaboration, they had never dropped the ball, so Luke hadn't initially planned to pursue the matter further. But Mr. Lumos's eagerness provided him with an excellent opportunity to negotiate a better deal.Today, Luke had asked me to schedule a meeting with the head of Hays Advertising. When I got a call from the front desk, I went downstairs to greet our gue
"This situation teaches us that when faced with challenges, it's essential to stay composed. The more you panic and try to test others, the more likely you are to lose."Luke was always calm and composed, navigating the business world with ease and confidence. Being around him gave me a sense of security. But that sense of peace was shattered by a call from Mrs. Walker.It was almost as if she had timed it perfectly. I had just parted ways with Luke, returned to the office, and barely settled into my chair when my phone rang.Mrs. Walker was cunning, and I wasn't good at putting on a false front. Interacting with her made me uncomfortable.I took a deep breath, steeled myself, and reluctantly answered the call.The moment I picked up, her concerned voice came through. "Ms. Middleton, how is your wrist healing?""Thank you for asking, Mrs. Walker. It's much better now." The wound on my wrist was already scabbing over. Wendy's friend had brought back a few boxes of scar-removal cre
I was puzzled when Wendy, sitting in a corner, stood up and waved at me. "Jen, over here!"I glanced in the direction Mrs. Walker had left, then went to Wendy's table and sat opposite her, asking, "Did Mrs. Walker have an urgent matter?"Wendy tilted her chin toward something behind me. I looked and saw a waiter cleaning up on the floor.A plate of sizzling steak had been spilled, splattering hot oil everywhere. The fragrant aroma in the air instantly revived my appetite."Did Mrs. Walker get scalded by the steak?"No wonder Mrs. Walker had left with a sour expression.As the prestigious Mrs. Walker—elegant and dignified—having her designer outfit soiled in public must have been mortifying for her."This is for your trouble," Wendy said, raising an eyebrow at me before taking out her wallet and handing a stack of bills to the restaurant staff cleaning up.The employee's eyes flashed with surprise, but he quickly composed himself. "It was our mistake that caused you distress. We
"We're about to celebrate our happy event. When the time comes, I'll personally bring Janet to deliver the invitation to you."After saying this, Carter glanced at me once more before leaving."That asshole!” Wendy glared at Carter's retreating figure and spat out a curse. "That scumbag is capable of anything. Honey, stay far away from him in the future."I had heard plenty of dirt on the second son of Kingston Industries before.I had already noticed his malicious glance, so I nodded. "Has Janet agreed to get engaged to him?""I haven't seen her since she returned to the country," Wendy said, her fingers lightly stroking the glass in front of her. "It's not that I haven't had the chance to see her; I just don't want to. Before she left the country, I repeatedly warned her not to contact family or friends for a while. I told her to wait until Carter lost interest in her, or until her family found a way to resolve their difficulties, before taking any action. But now..."Wendy see
Due to jet lag, I was already exhausted though it wasn't dark yet.Ian was drooping too, suddenly slumping against me.Worried he'd fall, I quickly steadied him.He glanced at me before contentedly closing his eyes again.He was completely worn out.Mr. Lloyd, who had been chatting with the director, noticed this and quickly wrapped up his conversation to join us.Still half-awake, Ian instinctively held onto my arm when his father reached for him."It's your Dad."At my words, Ian let go.Mr. Lloyd picked him up and strode toward the car, while I gathered Ian's things and followed.On the way back, I offered to drive.Mr. Lloyd was quiet. I turned on the car's music system, and soft music filled the space.Having debuted overseas as a trainee, Mr. Lloyd's fingers unconsciously tapped along to the rhythm on his leg.At a red light, I caught this movement in the rearview mirror.Mr. Lloyd had been an all rounder superstar - consistently among the top three highest-earning
Since Penelope was mid-flight and unreachable, I sent her a message and forwarded Sara's letter."Are you okay, Jen? You seem worried," Ian asked."Just blown away by your amazing performance. I'm still thinking about it."Ian was a natural - his acting could really move people."I might be cocky,” Ian grinned.He looked proud, and I ruffled his hair. "No chance of that."For a four-year-old, he'd shown remarkable composure during the preschool incident.Even after being cleared, he hadn't played the victim. That kind of emotional strength showed real character.A few compliments wouldn't change that.Ian's smile lit up his whole face, showing perfect baby teeth."When do you start filming your scenes?"The director was clearly impressed - Ian's role was locked in."Not sure yet."Ian looked up at his father."Soon," Mr. Lloyd said, clearly proud of Ian's performance. "I'll stay on set with Ian these next few days. Jen, feel free to explore the city. I'll call if we need
Just when they thought they'd found hope, the bad guys caught up with them.During their escape, his best friend fell off a cliff. When Bobby was finally rescued and led them back, they found his friend's body, mangled beyond recognition. He was devastated."I'll start now!"In an instant, Ian transformed. He walked heavily toward a chair, his expression gradually filling with pain.Kneeling beside the chair, he reached out as if to touch "him" but couldn't bring himself to do it. Tears silently rolled down his face.The director checked the script and signaled his assistant to remove the chair, simulating the scene where the friend's body would be placed in a body bag.At this, Ian broke into heart-wrenching sobs.His emotional outburst impressed everyone watching on set.Mr. Lloyd looked proud, and the director, as if discovering a treasure, praised Ian after his performance: "Your acting reminds me of your father in his prime.""If I'm as good as Dad was at my age, imagine
I'd dug my own grave, hadn't I?I swallowed my food, took a sip of water, and kept my head down while eating.Luke pushed the mild seafood soup toward me. "This is less spicy."Stubborn as I was, I ignored him.Luke called the server over, trying to order milder versions of the fish and pork."Don't bother, I love extra spicy food."Even though I needed water after every bite, I was determined to finish what I'd ordered.Seeing my stubbornness, Luke apologized to the server and let her go."Jen...""Don't talk while eating."By now, my soul had practically left my body from the spice. I wasn't in the mood for conversation.My throat felt like it was on fire as I gulped down more water.Luke quietly refilled my empty glass. He'd barely touched his seafood soup, his elegant movements making me feel even more ungraceful.I was suffering from my own spite!I wanted to throw down my chopsticks and leave.No, stay calm!I tried to maintain my composure, fighting the urge to d
Just as I finished speaking, my stomach let out an embarrassing growl."There's an excellent Chinese place around the corner," Luke said."You've been here before?""No.""..." Then how did he know about a good restaurant?Did he research every place this thoroughly?He'd make a perfect travel companion.I later learned he'd researched local restaurants knowing my passion for food.I'd only had water since waking up. The film crew would have finished lunch by now, with no leftovers available. I needed to find something on the way.Being in a bad mood lately, I hadn't researched any local restaurants before coming here.Craving authentic Chinese food, I decided to take Luke's suggestion.It was an upscale Chinese restaurant specializing in spicy cuisine. As soon as we sat down, a cheerful server brought out place settings and started listing their specialties."Our portions are generous. For a couple, I'd recommend one appetizer and a soup to start.""We're not a couple," I
Luke came to search for his birth mother himself?As I looked at him, he noticed me too.I greeted him and was about to get a taxi to the set."If you have time, can you show me where you saw her yesterday?""I... okay."Mr. Lloyd and Ian would be fine - finding Luke's mother was more urgent.After weighing the pros and cons, I agreed.Luke hadn't brought an assistant. I waited outside while he took his luggage to his hotel room, then we walked to where I'd seen his mother yesterday.It wasn't far from the hotel, so we went on foot.Without thinking, I kept about three feet between us.Luke: "Do I look like some kind of monster?"With his model-like features that made you want to break rules just looking at him, how could he possibly look like a monster?I shook my head."Then why are you keeping such a distance?""..." So that's what he meant...Though I'd decided to stay just friends, my heart - already full of him - still skipped beats when we were together.He was t
"If you can't find her, Luke can! Now that he has a general area, he can track her down quickly.""I'll let him know."Mrs. Walker was also searching for her, planning to use her to manipulate Luke. We needed to contact her before Mrs. Walker did.After hanging up with Wendy, I looked at Luke’s number on my phone. Several times I almost called him, but kept backing out.After hesitating, I tried calling Emily, but hung up just before it connected.Although Emily had been open with me, I couldn't be sure if she was genuinely helping Luke.To be safe, I called Luke instead. He answered on the first ring.Luke stayed silent."Mr. Walker, this is Jen.""I wasn't planning to cut you out of my life completely. I kept your number."Me: ...There he went again with his sharp tongue. I almost hung up, but remembering how much he'd helped me, and that I could finally do something for him, I told him about possibly seeing his birth mother near the hotel.After a moment of silence, Luk
"Dad, he's a bad guy!" Ian pointed at the man who was already several yards away.The robber was huge - well over 6'2", wearing a denim vest that showed off his muscular arms. Mr. Lloyd probably couldn't take many punches from him, and we didn't know if he was armed. It wasn't worth the risk.I ruffled Ian's hair. "Let's go get something to eat.""Help! Stop the robber!"A woman was running after him, desperately grabbing passersby for help, out of breath.Following the 'better safe than sorry' principle, no one stepped forward to help.She reached us, and seeing we were Asian, her eyes lit up with hope. "Please help me, I have something very important in my bag."Mr. Lloyd looked down at his arm where she was clutching it. "I'm sorry, we're new here and unfamiliar with the area. We can't help."She let go, disappointed, staring dejectedly in the direction the robber had disappeared.Ian said in his sweet voice, "When you're in trouble, find a police officer."The woman was a
His stern look only made Penelope more nervous.When Director Nolan called "Cut!", she was already drenched in cold sweat.She quickly apologized to the director.Director Nolan watched the playback with a grave expression.As the makeup artist touched up Penelope's makeup, I went to her side and encouraged her: "It gets easier after the first try. You'll do better in the next take.""Jen..." Penelope glanced at the crew members around us. "This is my first time on such a major production.""You'll have many more opportunities like this."One Entertainment had been investing most of its resources in Penelope lately, and with her connection to Jethro, her popularity wasn't waning.One hit was all she needed to skyrocket to stardom."Jen..."Penelope's voice trembled with worry.George was particularly anxious too. "You've done well in other productions. We can't mess up at this crucial moment!"A good performance in Director Nolan's film could lead to future collaborations,