Sean looked up from the monitor and asked, "How did you know?" Angeline hadn't mistaken the man in the photo for someone else. Sean was indeed at Cloudsville. "I saw it on the news," Angeline said while smiling. "Perhaps the algorithm showed me that news piece because I've searched for information about Trustworth Group and Melissa. "It reported that Melissa had block-booked the most luxurious restaurant in Cloudsville for her husband's birthday celebration. But they returned to the hotel instead because the husband didn't want to be disturbed." "I frequented that restaurant when I was in Cloudsville. I was worried that the waiters might recognize me." Sean looked unwaveringly at Angeline. His gaze filled with honesty with no intent to lie to her. Angeline nodded and reminded Sean, "It's better to be cautious."Sean noticed something was amiss about Angeline but couldn't put his finger on it. He replied, "Don't worry, Angie. I'm well prepared. No one would recognize me
"Angie…" Sean furrowed his brows. Angeline's understanding smile caused him to feel guilty. He felt especially so when she said it was his birthday, not hers. It made it seem that she didn't mind not celebrating his birthday if Sean himself didn't mind about it either. "What's the matter?" Angeline asked while looking at Sean. After a moment of silence, Sean said, "Nothing. Let's dig in." After the meal, Sean asked in hindsight, "Hey, Angie, were you jealous because I met Melissa yesterday?" "I wasn't jealous, per se. After all, you two didn't do anything, did you?" Angeline asked while reading the work documents. "Look at me, Angie." Sean turned Angeline's face toward him. Angeline stared straight at Sean with her beautiful eyes. Her gaze showed no emotion. She held his hand, which was on her face. "What's wrong?" "I grew up with Melissa. Because she lost her mother, she spent pretty much all of her childhood at our house. I've always seen her as my little si
"It wasn't just the rings. My mom also said she wanted to hand down all her jewelry to her daughter-in-law," Sean said with a smile. However, after the incident, Dexter inherited all of the Kingston family's property. He gifted or sold most of Emelia's jewelry. Sean had secretly tried to recover all of Emelia's jewelry, hoping to gift it to Angeline one day to fulfill his mother's wish. "Was this the thing you wanted to gift me today?" Angeline asked. "It's not from me, to be exact. It's from my mom to her daughter-in-law." Sean's eyes were filled with warmth when he talked about Emelia. He tucked Angeline's hair behind her ears and continued, "My mom would have loved you if she had met you. Perhaps even more than I do." Emelia always wanted a daughter. However, her health condition prevented her from getting pregnant, which was her one regret in life. Emelia always bought jewelry from the auction market when Sean was little, but she would lament that she didn't have a
Angeline nodded. "Could you ask Mr. Powell to send me the documents from last year? I'd like to study for it." "Sure." Sean couldn't help but cradle Angeline's head and kiss her deeply again, emptying the air in her lungs. Angeline cuddled up into Sean's embrace. Their lips stuck to each other's. Sean used his tongue to push apart Angeline's teeth, reaching for her tongue to lick and suck on it. Angeline clenched Sean's shirt so tightly that the back of it scrunched up. She leaned into his embrace, trembling while lifting her head to accept his deep kiss. Their rapid heartbeat synchronized as their chests moved following their breath. Angeline believed that if they were on the couch instead of the dining area, she would've been pressed beneath Sean's body and swallowed by him. Angeline's phone on the dining table rang. Sean's tongue wrapped around Angeline's once more before he finally released her. He chuckled as he looked at Angeline, who was left dazed from the kiss,
Anthony's grandfather, who had passed away, was one of Robert's close friends. Manocean Bank had reportedly helped Lawson Global when they were in trouble many years ago. That was why Robert wanted to work with Manocean Bank for the development plans in Horian. So, Angeline had no choice but to get in touch with Anthony. "Have you considered that Mr. Lawson Senior insisted on working with Manocean Bank because he wanted to set you up with Anthony?" Sean asked while slowly adjusting his watch. "He's clearly uninterested. Still, you're going to meet with him?" "Set me up with Anthony?" Angeline chuckled as she picked out a long gown. "I don't think so. You're overthinking it. Everybody knows Anthony's a playboy despite his great personality. Granddad won't throw me under the bus just like this. "The collaboration with Manocean Bank was merely Granddad's way of returning the favor without significantly affecting Lawson Global. As the successor, I have no choice but to fulf
"What? Do you expect to meet Mr. Hooper today? Dream on! Mr. Hooper Senior grounded Mr. Hooper. A lowly plebian like you should not be in a party of this scale!" someone in the crowd said. A man in a suit and earrings named Aaron Hatfield glared at Rachel with his arms crossed. He laughed and said, "Guys, stop it. How could Rachel not know that Mr. Hooper was grounded? She must be here to pick her next target because she knows she can't get into the Hooper family. "How about this? You're fairly pretty. I can buy you for a night if you like. How about ten thousand dollars?" "Wait, Mr. Hatfield. You don't mind tasting Mr. Hooper's woman?" someone mocked. "Of course I don't! Which is why she's only worth ten thousand dollars!" Aaron laughed. A waiter escorted Angeline into the luxurious yacht when Rachel saw her and shouted, "Angie!" Upon seeing Rachel, Jamie asked Angeline, "Should I deal with them, Ms. Lawson?" The people surrounding Rachel looked relatively young, and
Rachel bit her lip without a word. Tiny teardrops hung on her eyelashes, over her emotionless eyes. "It's almost time. We should go," Eleanor said. "Let's not waste our time on a plebian." "Could you please take me with you?" Rachel once again gathered her courage and looked up at the bullies. She hoped to meet someone who could contact Nathaniel at this party. Jeremy's assistant had called Rachel's parents, informing them that she would never marry into the Hooper family. So, Rachel's parents planned to sell her off at a high price. Despite knowing these bullies would humiliate her, Rachel still asked for their help to save herself from being sold. Rachel must contact Nathaniel immediately and prove to her parents that he hadn't given up on her. "Could you stop messing around?" Eleanor said with a disgusted look. Then, she raised her brow when an idea occurred to her. "Like I said, I'll never allow you to enter the party in the same dress as mine and make me look
Aaron peeked at the teary-eyed Rachel and whispered to Eleanor, "Is what Rachel said true? What if that woman is Sean's lover? What if Nathaniel finds out about this?" Eleanor's cousins, the Carrey Sisters, were a precedent. Aaron was worried Eleanor would be in trouble next. "What's there to be afraid of? So what if she's Sean's lover? She's still a mistress that's kept under the table! Remember, Sean has a fiancée!" Eleanor said coldly. "Scheming women like her who sleep with men gets on my nerves!" The Carrey Sisters were once regarded as remarkable women until Rachel ruined their lives. Everyone said Brittany Carrey, the older of the Carrey Sisters, was crazy. Her love for Nathaniel turned to hatred because Rachel ruined the sisters' chance of marrying into the Hooper family. So, she wanted to destroy Rachel, whom Nathaniel valued. However, Eleanor believed Brittany hadn't lost her mind and was indeed telling the truth. Otherwise, Brittany's parents wouldn't have remain
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