"It's just a joke," Lara said before glancing at her watch. "I've got to get back. My male model is already washed up and waiting for me in bed!" Lara stood up as she spoke, swaying a little."I'll go with her to the yacht." Angeline helped Lara into the yacht and watched as she left. She looked around but could see no sign of Sean on the beach. She looked again at the campfire. The people remaining already had a lot to drink, and they were beginning to dance around the campfire. She pulled her blanket tighter around her, unwilling to return.The yacht had just left, so it would take some time to come back. Angeline was slightly tipsy. She walked along the beach with the blanket wrapped tightly around her. A bright moon hung where the sea met the horizon, and she listened to the soft sound of the waves lapping against the rocks. She carried her slippers in her hand as she walked barefoot on the empty beach, leaving footprints in the sand. Perhaps it was because Sean hadn't
The lights weren't on, but if anyone exited from the other villas, both Angeline and Sean could be seen clearly."Are you angry because I told you to restrain yourself in the office the other day?" Angeline asked gently. Not long ago, Sean's possessiveness had been like a tight net that encased Angeline completely, making her feel very secure. Now that Sean had suddenly let go, Angeline was very unused to it. The metallic lighter had been rubbed until it gleamed, and the flickering flame lit up Sean's impassive expression. As the lid of the lighter clicked shut again, the weak flame disappeared in a second. Sean continued twirling the lighter in his fingers. "Wasn't I very restrained in the past?" Sean's gaze was very distant. They were so distant that Angeline almost felt that their affection and his wild passion had all been a figment of her imagination. She and Sean had indeed behaved like this previously. They would never contact each other unless they had somethin
Angeline was tipsy, but she lay in bed for a long time, unable to sleep.She watched the bright moon outside the window, slightly veiled by the gauzy curtains. She got up and stepped on the white, velvety carpet to get her laptop. She sat on the candlelit sofa on the second-floor balcony and opened her laptop to go through her emails as the sea breeze swept over her.Monica was staying in the villa next to Angeline's. She couldn't sleep either. She walked out in a dressing gown and saw Angeline sitting on the balcony with her laptop. She raised her eyebrows and took out a cigarette. She lit her cigarette before taking a photo of Angeline with her phone and immediately sent it to her fiancé, Sean. They had only just added each other on Instagram that day.The message Monica sent to Sean read, "Are all the Lawsons workaholics?" Monica did not know where Sean had gone. She still hadn't seen him. She had expected to be alone with Sean that night and planned to get things started b
"It's nothing, really," Angeline said, smiling."You think I don't know when there's something going on?" Danny crossed his legs and looked closely at her. "Tell me. It's not like I'll tell anyone else about it. Is this about your fight to be the successor of the Lawson family? Hmm?"Angeline turned to look at Danny."Don't look at me like that!" He picked up his phone and pressed it against the armrest. "You owe Sean, but… Mr. Lawson Senior has acknowledged you as his granddaughter. Didn't he do so to see which of you is more accomplished and more suitable to take over the Lawson family? Anyone can see that.""Tell me, if Heather agreed to date you but requested you to keep a distance from her, why would she suddenly feel unhappy once you did as she told you to?" Angeline asked. "That's ridiculous!" Danny immediately felt indignant by proxy. "Oh, so she wants me to keep my distance from her but then gets angry when I do so? Then she'll still be angry if I don't. Is s
Jesse was calm before his elusive crush from years ago, Angeline, who was way out of his league. The two sat by the floor-to-ceiling window facing the lake, with colorful night lights reflecting onto the transparent glass and casting onto Angeline's natural, fair cheeks. She was so gorgeous that one wouldn't take their eyes off her. "To tell you the truth, I was a little nervous and still feel a lingering fear now when meeting you." Jesse's ears reddened. Despite his efforts to remain calm and behave naturally, his micro-expressions showed his nervousness. "After all, I know how different we are," Jesse said. "When we were young, you were always the champion in every competition you participated in. Not only was your gorgeous appearance unforgettable, but your resume was out of our reach. "In just a few years, you've founded Vitality Biotech Group. You've also secured a huge collaboration project for Lawson Global so soon after you joined them. You've always had countless h
"How do you know I'm obsessed with you if you don't give me a chance?" Jesse asked in urgency. "You might still be recovering from your relationship with Ned, but trust me! Just give me three months. If you think we're not for each other, I'll give up on you then." At the sight of Angeline's unchanged expression and sensing she was about to speak, Jesse quickly interrupted, "One month! Just one month is enough! Even if I'm not the one, Mr. Lawson Senior will still arrange another man for you. I'm sure they'll waste your time, and you'll meet them half-heartedly."Trust me, Angie. We can remain friends for a month, and I won't cross the line. That's all I want." "I'm sorry, Mr. Zinn. But I already have someone I like. It's just that Granddad doesn't want me to be with him, so he arranged our blind date today. I'm so sorry for wasting your time," Angeline said. "But are you two officially dating? If you haven't made it public, you're not officially together. Why not just give me
Sean and Angeline's seats were facing each other. She could see from the corner of her eyes that Sean was talking to the person sitting opposite him, but he never looked at Angeline. Angeline remained in her seat as she looked at Sean, who was smiling while talking to Jesse. She sipped her water and checked her phone to suppress her emotions. Although it was only a few days, to Angeline, it felt like months had passed since she last saw Sean. Angeline's last few days were torturous as she missed Sean's scent, embrace, and breathtaking kisses. But her heart sank a little when she recalled Sean walking away without stopping when she tried to hug him at Steele Group's resort villa. Angeline thought she had controlled her emotions very well, but she couldn't reach Sean's level of flexibility in emotional management. Despite their relationship becoming awkward because of Angeline's request for Sean to control himself, and even if Angeline thought she was greedy for wanting to ha
"There's something I need to do tonight," Sean said calmly. Even if Angeline was thick-skinned, Sean's stern reply still saddened her. She awkwardly nodded and returned to her table. Jesse smiled at Angeline. "What a coincidence! I didn't expect to see Mr. Lawson here." Angeline pressed her lips without a reply. Jesse remembered that both Sean and Angeline had been adopted by Robert and assumed Angeline was nervous because her family had caught her seeing a man. "Mr. Lawson is considered your uncle, isn't he?" "Yeah," Angeline replied before sipping her wine. "I've told him about our blind date set up by Mr. Lawson Senior. So don't worry about it," Jesse said with a smile. "Mr. Lawson mentioned you founded Vitality Biotech Group because you enjoy academic research. There should be a lot we can talk about." "Is that so?" Angeline finally smiled. "Who would've thought my uncle knows a lot about me." Jesse felt delighted after seeing Angeline's smile. He asked,