Angeline went straight into the lounge of room 8918 through a side door. She found only Sean in the lounge. Sean rested his head on the sofa with his eyes closed in fatigue. His glasses lay on the coffee table before him, alongside a cup of steaming tea.In the room separated from the lounge by a glass door, the company executives Angeline saw at the airport were still celebrating. She withdrew her gaze and walked over to Sean. Before she could speak, Sean opened his eyes."Why are you here?" Sean adjusted his position and massaged his temples before wearing his rimless glasses."Taylor had a family-related emergency and asked me to pick you up," Angeline said, bending down to offer Sean the tea. "Are you alright? Do you need me to get you some hangover medicine?""I'm not hungover. It's just a severe headache."Sean took the teacup."I'm sorry I couldn't return for dinner with all of you today.""That's alright. I left after dropping off Yasmine." Angeline sat on the so
Angeline's mind went blank for a moment. A familiar yet unfamiliar masculine scent enveloped her, tinged with a faint smell of alcohol. The kiss wasn't deep, but Angeline felt as though she was suffocating.As Angeline grew lost in thought, Sean released her lips and rested his forehead against hers. "Is that okay?" he asked. His rich, deep voice filled her ears, causing her to heat up."W-what?" Angeline spoke with a trembling voice.Sean lifted his hand to touch her delicate, fair cheek. He caressed her lips with his thumb and asked, "May I kiss you?" Without waiting for Angeline's response, he pressed his thin lips on hers again.His breath, mixed with alcohol, filled her lungs and clouded her mind. She felt her face burn up. She panicked, pushed him away, and turned her head. "You're drunk!" she exclaimed.Just as she pushed him away slightly, Sean grabbed both of her wrists from behind with one hand. He sealed her lips again, pressing her waist toward him with the a
Angeline tucked strands of her messy hair behind her ear. She cleared her throat. "Is Fletcher Corporation in a rush?" she asked."They are quite eager," came the reply."Even though they are eager, tell them not to rush. At Vitality Biotech, we always offer domestic partners prices much lower than international rates. We do this to benefit our own country with our technology. I don't want a repeat of what happened with Zenith Ventures. If they disagree with our terms, we'll keep pressing them," Angeline stated.Vitality Biotech had a partnership with Zenith Ventures previously. However, they raised their prices to be higher than international medical centers. Angeline would have preferred Vitality to deal with the hospitals directly if not for the complicated process involved in working with domestic hospitals that ultimately delayed usage."But Tyler said business is about making money…""We're not cutting Fletcher Corporation out from any profit margins. We simply don't have
Angeline's lip hurt at the slightest touch. Sean asked her to sit down. Then, he opened a bottle of distilled water and moistened a cotton ball to clean up the traces of blood.They were in such proximity that Angeline could see Sean's long eyelashes. Her breathing became uneven again as she looked away."Sorry!" they both spoke at the same time.Sean couldn't help but lean in closer as he looked at Angeline's expression. Angeline hugged her laptop to her chest and moved back. "I… My lip is split," she said."Yes, I know," Sean replied. He fixed his deep eyes on hers before leaning in again to kiss her gently on the lip, caressing the corner of her mouth tenderly. "Sorry, I'll be more careful next time."Angeline stood up with her laptop and hurriedly said goodnight before fleeing to the master bedroom.She had to return to Cloudsville early the next morning but struggled to fall asleep. Closing her eyes brought back the image of kissing Sean. Touching her swollen lip insta
Marion was always carefree. Suddenly, she remembered her child at home. She pulled Reese aside by his sleeve and whispered, "Have the housekeeper take our kid to my mom's place. My pregnancy was around the same time as Angeline's. Since Angeline lost her child, I don't want her to feel sad seeing mine.""Brilliant idea, my dear!" Reese praised Marion.While chatting with her seniors, Angeline received a call from James. He asked her and Gregory to head to the auditorium first.After hanging up, Angeline said, "I'll go ahead then.""Okay! You may go with Gregory first. We'll change and come soon," Marion responded.Gregory was on his way to the venue but was delayed because he ran into Angeline."Alright," Angeline nodded.While walking with Angeline, Gregory hesitated but asked, "I heard from my cousin that he saw you in Krontos with a young girl by your side."Angeline didn't mind Gregory's question and smiled at him. "What about it?"Gregory felt embarrassed and scratche
When students from Oceanford College pinned Gregory down, Cloudsville College students instantly clashed with them. "Damn! We're here for a basketball match, and you attack our people!" one shouted. "Who gave you the guts to pick on our Cloudsville people on our turf?" another retorted.Students from both sides fought fiercely, blurring friend from foe. Angeline shouted several times, "Stop, or I'll call the police!" Eventually, they ceased fighting. The thought of police involvement and potential disciplinary action calmed them down while security separated the students.Gregory spat out blood-stained saliva. He wiped his mouth with his sleeve, glaring fiercely at the Oceanford students.Soon, the team leader from Oceanford and the teacher coordinating the match from Cloudsville hurried over. "What's this mess? You're here for a friendly match but end up fighting at the host school?" the Oceanford teacher scolded their students.The Cloudsville teacher also reprimanded t
Gregory's suit and shirt were all dirty. While Gregory returned to his dorm to change, Angeline bought medicine and band-aids. When Gregory came downstairs, Angeline pulled him to sit on a bench and started treating his wounds.Finally, Gregory couldn't hold back. "That guy was talking nonsense. Don't take it to heart. I don't believe you would drug someone. But... Did Ned really post your photos?""Yes," Angeline responded as she focused on tending to the wound.Gregory clenched his fist. "I'm sorry.""It's not your fault," Angeline said with a light laugh. "You don't need to feel sorry.""What exactly happened between you and Ned?" Gregory looked at Angeline. "Don't mind me asking. I grew up abroad and only connected with Ned's family five years ago. So I'm not clear about your situation. I heard some really confusing stories.""It's nothing much," Angeline said while dabbing at Gregory's cuts with iodine. "I accidentally saved Ned when he was kidnapped as a child
"This is Gregory you were asking about!" James introduced him to several leading figures in the scientific community. "Bringing back this genetics prodigy from abroad a few years ago was quite a feat. It really took a lot of effort!"Gregory greeted everyone with a smile and shook their hands."This is Angeline." James remembered that Angeline had asked not to reveal she was the founder of Vitality Biotech. He simply smiled and said, "She's currently with Vitality Biotech.""Angeline, I've heard so much about you! You were brilliant at the exchange meeting in Dmont four years ago."An older biologist shook hands with Angeline. "It's a pity I wasn't there. My colleague spoke so highly of you. We haven't heard from you since. Is it because of your work at Vitality Biotech?""Yes," Angeline nodded. "Many experiments are confidential, but I really enjoy diving into the work in the lab."Everyone had a great time talking. Angeline's sole focus on her experiments allowed he
As soon as the words were out of Angeline's mouth, the sound of lounge slippers padding across the floor rang out. Yasmine ignored the shock on Ned's face and turned to reach for Sean. "Hold me, Daddy!"Sean smiled and lifted her into his arms. Then, he stood beside Angeline and looked at Ned imperiously. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Fletcher. I'm Shane Kingston. Thank you for pushing Angie away in the past—it led to my relationship with her."Ned knew precisely who "Shane" was. Just a few days ago, he'd seen the news about Melissa's press conference explaining her relationship with "Shane".His mind buzzed. He knew Sean and Shane looked similar enough for Dexter's men to have gotten the wrong person. However, he hadn't expected "Shane" to have anything to do with Angeline!"You… Are you the kids' father?" Ned's voice was incredibly shaky."Yes, and again, thank you for that!" Sean smiled. "We've never told anyone about this because I didn't want to endanger Angie and the kids.
Sean didn't give Angeline the chance to finish. "You were right to bring this up to me!"He wrapped his arms around her from behind and continued, "You and the kids will always be my main priority. I know I said I want Melissa to remain safe and happy under my watch, but my feelings for her are purely familial love."She's family to me, and I must care for her. But you and the kids mean more to me than anything else in the world, including her."His honesty made Angeline feel slightly more at ease. She said, "Those are your words, not mine…""I swear on my life that I mean every word." He pressed a kiss to her head. "Can I stay here tonight? I want to sleep with you and the kids. Also, I came from Brayden's place upstairs, so no one will know I'm here.""Granddad made it clear that if anyone finds out about this, he won't allow the kids to see you anymore.""Got it. Don't worry about a thing. Mr. Lawson Senior raised me, and I owe him for that. I won't put him in a tough
Angeline nodded without saying anything. Once Nathaniel was gone, she received a call from Sean."Now that everything has been taken care of, I want to give you a gift," he said, the smile in his tone evident. "Can you have the kids spend Friday night at Grand Court Residences? I want to show all three of you my gift on Saturday."He missed Yasmine and Xavier terribly. Before resolving the issue with Melissa, he hadn't dared to say he wanted to see them. Even if Angeline were okay with it, Robert probably would've objected to his wishes. Now that the dust had settled, he couldn't wait to see them."I don't call the shots regarding the kids now. I'll have to ask Granddad," Angeline said."I'll talk to him about it." Sean was worried Robert would take his anger out on her. "This all started because I insisted on being with you, so I'll handle it. I'll visit Mr. Lawson Senior later today."Angeline didn't know how Sean's conversation with Robert went, but Robert had Asher drop
That night, Melissa called Sean. "Shane, let's publicly announce our divorce. We can tell everyone that we only got married on paper so the Lane family could offer you its protection."Tell them that Dexter repeatedly tried to harm you so he could take the Kingston family fortune, and tell them how he tried to snatch you from the Lane family so he could secretly deal with you."She paused, then continued, "Now that Dexter's in prison, we can get a divorce, and Lori can adopt me as her daughter. We'll become cousins, and we'll still be a family.""Melissa…"Sean was surprised. He didn't expect her to see the light in such a short time."Since you don't have any feelings for me and won't ever make me your wife, I'll settle to be Lori's daughter. That way, you'll always be my family!" Tears streamed down Melissa's face as she spoke. "I adore Lori and want to be her daughter.""Alright," Sean said."Can you head to Keman with me, then? We can visit Dad together before getting
Melissa stared at Lori, who chuckled gently. "It's alright. There's no need to rush into anything. Take your time to think about it. Get good rest for a few days, then go shopping with me. We can buy some clothes to keep up with the changing seasons."I heard from Brayden and Sean that you're the expert in fashion and dressing up. I've always wanted a daughter who could shop, exercise, travel, café hop, and go on spa days with me."She paused and continued, "I didn't get to do any of this with you because you weren't in the best state before this. Now, though, you're all better. You're back to normal, and you've regained your memories!""I'd love that!" Melissa said without hesitation. She'd only done these things with her mother and Emelia in her dreams, but that was all they were—dreams. She was delighted now that Lori was back and willing to make her dreams come true.Sean sat on the couch and sipped his coffee. He knew Lori was doing everything she could to make his life ea
Melissa nodded. Sean said, "I know you have no company management experience. Mr. Lane might have entrusted Trustworth Group to me, but it's still yours. Before you find someone to take over, my plan for the company is still to move its focus back to Lonla."The global situation isn't the best now, and Lonla is the safest place for expansion. That's why the company's focus has to return to Lonla—""You can hand the company over to Brayden," Melissa interrupted. "The only people in this world I trust are you, Dad, and Brayden. Now that Dad's in prison and you don't want me anymore, Brayden is all I have left.""I'm still your kin, Melissa. I won't kick you to the curb and leave you to die. Nevertheless, Trustworth Group is yours. You can have whoever you want to manage it. Brayden is capable of that." Sean looked at Brayden. "What do you think? Are you willing to take over Trustworth Group?""I'll do it as long as Melissa is okay with it!" Brayden nodded. He turned to look
"That's not it! I've always been willing to care for you, and I'm more than willing to care for you in the future! It's not something that I'm forced to do…" Brayden feared his words would inadvertently hurt Melissa, so he decided not to continue in that vein.He said, "C'mon, you should head downstairs to eat something. You've already slept the day away.""I don't want to eat!" Melissa lay down again and pulled the sheets around herself. She said dully, "I want to sleep for a bit longer. Shut the door on your way out."Seeing that she'd already shut her eyes and started weeping, Brayden said softly, "I'll have the kitchen keep the food warm for you. Remember to call me when you wake up, okay? I'll be right downstairs!""Okay." Brayden left the room after hearing Melissa's muffled reply. He shut the door behind him.Melissa remained upstairs. She didn't head downstairs, even when Sean returned. Sean had already spoken to Angeline on the phone and told her he wouldn't meet
Melissa slept in her room and only woke up at night. She removed her headphones and opened her red, swollen eyes. She stared dazedly at the night sky, only returning to her senses when her headphones fell out of her hands.Brayden, who'd been waiting outside this whole time, heard them fall to the floor and hurried into the room. He saw Melissa sitting cross-legged on the bed. She propped herself on one arm while leaning down to pick up the headphones.He hurried forward and picked them up for her, then remained on one knee by the bed. He looked up at her and said, "You slept for ages, Melissa. Do you want to have anything to eat? I got all your favorites, and there are different cuisines. I also got your favorite fruits and snacks!"He'd already had the maids throw out the food he'd bought at noon. Then, he'd had his subordinate buy a fresh batch.Melissa turned to look at him dazedly. She said hoarsely, "Brayden…""I'm here," he said. "C'mon, should we get something to eat
Melissa knew Sean well. So, it was impossible for her not to know if he was being serious. Sean was indeed threatening her, and he was using his life to do it. That way, she wouldn't dare to harm Angeline for fear of hurting him.She loved Sean so much that she could give up her life for him. She wondered why he was treating her that way. He knew she wouldn't allow even the slightest possibility of her threatening his safety.Just then, Sean received a call from Brayden. He said, "...Yeah, I've already picked Melissa up. We're heading to Southstream Manor now… Yeah, you can head over there. Buy some food on your way—Melissa probably hasn't eaten anything yet. She should be hungry."At his words, Melissa couldn't hold back her tears any longer. She covered her face and started sobbing. She'd spent her whole life dreaming of becoming Sean's wife, but he was now in love with someone else and no longer wanted her.Yet, she couldn't do anything about the situation, or she'd be hurting