When Angeline left the laboratory at 7:30 pm to pick Henrietta up from Cloudsville High School, she was surprised to find Ned's black SUV parked outside the laboratory building. As she wrapped herself in a scarf, she descended the stairs that led to the laboratory. She heard Ned call out to her when she walked past his SUV."Angeline!"She paused and huffed before she turned around. Ned leaned against the car door, holding a lit cigarette between his fingers. He put out his cigarette and strode toward Angeline, whose hands were still tucked into her down jacket."It doesn't matter if you believe me, but I didn't know Gregory was your cousin. I had no idea he was coming before I came to the lab."Angeline had a bad reputation. When she woke up from her coma, she'd tried to get close to Ned to make him recall his memories.However, that wasn't the case this time. "I know," Ned replied, standing only a step away from her."I'm very sorry about Ms. York."Angeline clenched her
However, Ned couldn't ask any of his friends or relatives about his past with Angeline.They would discover that he had recovered some of his memories if he did. Ingrid was already insecure from his history with Angeline, so he couldn't afford to add fuel to the fire. Angeline regained her composure once she exited Cloudsville College. Only then did she leave to pick Henrietta up. She asked Henrietta with a smile, "How was school today?"Henrietta signed, "Great! I love my classmates, and they were very nice to me. I'm incredibly pleased.""That's good!" Angeline exclaimed, ruffling her hair. Henrietta nodded and stared at Angeline solemnly as she gestured, "Angeline, I'm delighted that I got to transfer to a new school. I truly am! Our lives will only get better in the future."Angeline smiled, holding Henrietta's hand as she remarked, "Indeed."Angeline returned to her dorm after she dropped Henrietta back to school. Before she opened the dorm room door, Alva, who lived ne
Alvablue: "Could it be that jerk's?"PiggyMarion: "What are you on about?"Alvablue: "I said Angie's pregnant!"Alvablue: "I saw a bunch of pregnancy test strips in her bathroom, and they were all positive!"HandsomeReese: "Alva, stop spreading rumors!"Alvablue: "I'm not! I'm worried about Angie. She has to deal with this when she'd just lost one of her family members and still has to take care of her sister. My goodness! If I were her… I'd be devastated."Alvablue: "We have to come up with a solution."PiggyMarion: "If it's the jerk's baby, Angie should definitely abort it."Reese was speechless. HandsomeReese: "That's up to Angie to decide, right? We should be more attentive toward her instead. Make sure she doesn't get too stressed."Alvablue: "She might be planning to get an abortion if she takes a day off. If she doesn't want to tell us about it, we should figure out a way for her to rest more by then."…Meanwhile, Gregory was having supper in Ned's hotel room. He l
Gregory's mother had lost contact with her family in the country for decades due to issues with his father. Therefore, Gregory had no idea that Ned was diagnosed with amnesia after the car accident. He only thought he was behaving strangely. Ned strode out of the hotel. When he saw the valet helping another guest into a cab, Ned pulled the other guest away and got into the cab instead. Amidst the other guest's grumbles, Ned tossed all his cash to the driver. "To Cloudsville College. Step on it!"The driver noticed that Ned's arm was injured and wore a grim expression. However, his car zoomed off instantly when he saw the stack of cash. …Angeline tossed and turned on her bed after a shower. She didn't know what to do with her baby. When she recalled her encounter with Robert in the car, she decided to keep her pregnancy a secret from Sean. She felt that it was partly her fault for forgetting to take the morning-after pill. Her phone buzzed on the bedside table. She reac
Angeline tossed a long down jacket over her pajamas. She changed her shoes and headed downstairs. Ned strode toward her when he saw her exiting the dormitory building. He grabbed her arm and dragged her to a secluded corner. "Are you pregnant?" he asked impatiently. "Did Gregory tell you?" Ned didn't answer, but his expression turned sour as he retorted, "Why didn't you tell me?"Angeline looked up at him and snapped, "Why should I?""You can't keep the child. Abort it!"Hearing how he ordered her around as usual, she looked at him as though he were an idiot. "What does that have to do with you, Ned? What's your problem? I left Oceanford, yet you came all the way to Cloudsville College to look for me. Do you really have no dignity at all? Or do you expect me to cling to you whenever you appear even though we're divorced?""Angeline!""Ned, do you need a sucker that badly? Will you only be satisfied if someone is fawning over you?""Angeline!" Ned's grip on her arm tig
Ned clenched his fists. His expression was dark and indiscernible. "Could you share how Gregory learned about my pregnancy?" Angeline asked. "I checked his phone. Your labmates were talking about taking care of you or something along those lines in the chat group."From that, Angeline was sure Alva saw the pregnancy test strips in the bin. "Thanks," she replied, wrapping her jacket tightly around her as she left. Ned was surprisingly composed when she left, possibly because he felt guilt over her pregnancy. He stood still as he watched her go.Angeline ran into Alva when she entered the dormitory building. She had two servings of supper with her as she looked at Angeline with concern."Angie, um… Gregory's cousin, and you…" Alva muttered hesitantly. Alva noticed the light was still on in Angeline's room, so she headed downstairs to get some supper, worried that Angeline might be hungry. She was appalled to see Gregory's cousin dragging Angeline into a corner. Although Al
Angeline instantly locked her phone screen. Her heart was pounding heavily. She recalled the bruises she saw on Henrietta's wrists when she fell asleep on the dining table. However, she found no other wounds on Henrietta when she checked. So, Angeline assumed that the bruises on her wrists were by accident.Moreover, Henrietta had returned home early with her shoes wet the other day.Yesterday afternoon, Henrietta's eyes gleamed with hope and joy when Angeline had picked her up for lunch. She was overjoyed to be transferred to a new school and was confident that life would improve for them. Angeline finally realized Henrietta wasn't happy because she transferred to Cloudsville High School. Instead, she was simply relieved she could finally attend a new school. Roaring waves of fury washed through Angeline. Her heart ached, but she couldn't stop it. She should've been more attentive and learned that Henrietta had been bullied in River Town High School. "I'm fine," Angeline m
"Alright, got it!" Marion replied, setting down the data in her hands. She went up to the translucent glass and tapped on it. Angeline accurately dripped the reagent and called Gregory over to monitor it. Marion grabbed her by the arm once she exited the lab."Angie, a video was circulated at Cloudsville High School. Henrietta might not be able to handle it, so she disappeared. But apparently, she's not out of the school yet—Angie!"Before Marion could finish, Angeline immediately dashed out. She didn't even bother to remove her lab coat. "Alva! Go check on her!" Marion yelled at Alva, who had just entered, as she took off her coat hastily. Angeline's mind went blank. Did the video reach Cloudsville High School? Were Henrietta's classmates picking on her right now?She called Henrietta as she rushed over to Cloudsville High School. However, it went straight to voicemail. As she ran at full speed, the wind rushed past her, and her racing heartbeat echoed loudly in her ears.
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