"Take her out of here! Are you deaf?" Robert yelled at Asher.Afraid that Robert might accidentally hurt Angeline, Sean quickly got up by supporting himself on the coffee table, pulled her into his arms, and dragged her to the kitchen."Wait here," he said, comforting her while holding onto the back of her head. "Be good."He then looked toward Asher and instructed, "Watch her until I return."Asher nodded in acknowledgment. After Sean left to return to the living room, he said to Angeline, "Ms. Angeline, I've been working for Mr. Lawson Senior for decades. So, please heed my advice. The more you try to defend Mr. Lawson now, the angrier he will get."Based on his character, he will surely hear you out, but you must let him let off some steam first."Remembering the cane that landed heavily on Sean's back earlier, she closed her eyes and held onto the kitchen counter to support her weight. She pursed her lips, her heart brimming with many regrets.She had forgotten her place
Robert was so enraged that he staggered backward and raised his cane high up in the air before striking Sean on the back again.The force of the blow made Sean lean forward, and he had to grab the edge of the coffee table with one hand to steady himself. Gritting his teeth, he remained on his knees."You disregard propriety and integrity! You disregard the Lawson family! You also disregard the safety of Angeline and the two children!" Robert shouted, his teeth clenched. "Are you now even disregarding me, your father?""Mr. Lawson Senior, I appreciate your nurturing…"Sean hadn't finished speaking when Robert struck again with his cane. His eyes welled up with angry tears as the address provoked him "Mr. Lawson Senior"."Mr. Lawson Senior? Hah… I've truly raised a good son—a son who commits incest and shamelessly tries to whitewash himself!" he stormed, pointing at Sean with his trembling hand."If you insist on being with Angeline, then… then get out! Get out of the Lawson fami
Robert adjusted his sitting posture and looked up at Angeline.With a raised voice, he said, "Or should I simply expose your true identity and push Jessica back into the spotlight? I allowed you to return to the Lawson family because I saw your genuine love for Jessica."I thought that after I died, Jessica would still have you, her only family, to look after her. Is this how you plan to do that? By letting her drown in gossip and rumors?""Granddad, I never intended to involve Mom in this—""But you already have! Sean is your mother's brother! Your relationship will be speculated upon as long as you're with him. It will not only affect the reputation of the Lawson family but also undermine that of Jessica and me!"Robert struck the floor loudly with his cane.He wondered about the things people would say then.Robert Lawson, who abandoned his own flesh and blood, adopted two strangers, and those two ended up having a relationship.Just thinking about it made him feel an intens
So Robert could simply leave the problem to Sean and Angeline. His seemingly yielding words were meant to provoke Angeline to speak up for herself and to choose to stop Sean's revenge. It was so that Robert and the Lawson family would accept their relationship.This would be the best path for her compared to confronting the Lawson family and him.Angeline, who remained silent for a long time, looked up at Robert. Large tears hung on her eyelashes, yet her gaze was clear and determined.She said, "I don't know what grudge he holds or if I can stop him from seeking revenge. Everyone has things they must do. For me… what I must do is to protect my mother, my two children, and you."He won't and can't stop me. Naturally, if seeking revenge is something he must do in his lifetime, I won't stop him either.""Y-You…" Robert stuttered. He thought he had already shown enough concession in his words, but Angeline remained stubborn.He continued, "Do you really have to be with him? His
"Fine! It's just brilliant that you both have your own ideas and plans! Who cares about the Lawson family and an old man like me?" Robert stormed before shutting his eyes."Go with him then! I don't want to see any either of you right now…"Emotionally, he could not tolerate seeing his son and granddaughter together. He'd only be able to endure it if he lost his mind. Rationally, Sean, burdened with hatred, was even less qualified to be his grandson-in-law. After all, he might even drag Angeline into trouble with a slight misstep.When Sean decided to leave the Lawson family, Robert was destined to lose this son. He didn't want to lose his granddaughter as well, let alone bring danger to his daughter and two great-grandchildren.Robert couldn't accept this.Moreover, Angeline had a history of being lovesick. Back then, when she was with Ned, she was willing to sacrifice everything, even refusing an invitation to the prestigious Krontos University, just to be with him."Granddad
Angeline exited Robert's study and whispered to Asher, "Thank you for taking good care of Granddad.""Don't worry!" Asher replied before pursing his lips and adding, "I shouldn't be meddling in the affairs of the Lawson family as an outsider, but Ms. Angeline... I still hope that you consider the reputations of Mr. Lawson Senior and the Lawson family."Understanding his implication, she lowered her head without giving a direct answer and said, "If anything happens, regardless of the time, I'll return immediately."When Sean, who was still kneeling in the living room, saw Angeline coming downstairs with red eyes, his mind was filled with dozens of imagined outcomes. He even considered the possibility of her abandoning him for the sake of the Lawson family.He stared straight into her eyes with his hand tightening at his side. His cold and stern features displayed a terrifyingly calm distortion.She approached him and picked up the glasses from the floor before helping him up.Taki
Sean's gaze fell on her slender and graceful neck.She seemed fragile, as if her neck could break with just a little force. It was understandable that she was afraid. But since she agreed to be with him, indulging all his possessiveness and greed to the extent that it became insatiable today, making him greedy, anxious, and irritable, it would be too late for her to ask him to let go now.Angeline raised her hand to cover the back of his hand, which was pinching her chin and gently kissed his fingertips.His suppressed anger seemed to freeze as his fingers trembled, and he loosened his grip on her face."I've already told Mr. Lawson Senior that I don't want to separate from you," she finally said, her voice choked with emotion. "I won't leave you ever!"At the sound of his increasingly rapid breaths, she gently moved his hand from her chin and placed her cheek in his palm.She continued, "If revenge is something you must do, I won't stop you. Just like you won't stop me from do
A moment later, Sean's fingers touched the door handle. He hugged Angeline tightly and pushed the car door open with his foot before walking from the garage to the door connecting to the house, heading to the second floor."You… you're injured!" she blurted, not forgetting what happened at the old Lawson residence earlier when Robert's cane vigorously struck him."I'm fine!"Angeline embraced his neck and looked up to meet his gaze. Right at that moment, she understood the intense and fervent desire in his eyes, her ruby lips being kissed again.Sinking into the soft bed, she propped herself up with one hand and hooked Sean's neck with the other, pulling the man who had just taken off his suit jacket down with her.Even though he had kissed her and claimed her as his countless times, Sean still felt that it wasn't enough. He didn't think it'd be ever enough.He didn't know when he had become so insatiable.…Sean held Angeline in his arms as he watched her sleeping. He lowered
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