Before Hailey pulled into her parking spot at home, she noticed Travis’ car parked in the space next to hers. Initially, because the space next to hers only had a private sign without a license plate, she thought it was for sale. It was only when she accidentally mentioned it in front of Travis Blake that he said, “That’s my parking space.”Hailey suddenly realized. Since it was Travis Blake’s parking spot, he naturally had the final say on whether he wanted to display his license plate number. After parking, Hailey didn’t immediately get out. Instead, she rested her head on the steering wheel. Was it because she had witnessed the cheerful smile of a future ordinary wife? She experienced mixed emotions when she realized that Travis Blake was likely upstairs in his house at that moment. She didn’t feel like seeing him.She knew well that many parties played a significant role and contributed to her decision to marry into the Blake family. Even if she conducted investigations and traced
Travis Blake was surprised. He never imagined that Hailey’s explanation would be like this. He clearly understood what Hailey envied, and an indescribable feeling spread through his heart.After some time, he grunted coldly and asked, “Why are you envious?” Are you jealous that her husband isn’t dead? There are many people in the world with dead husbands. It’s better to have a dead husband than a living husband who doesn’t do his part for the family. Such wives must raise their children alone and cannot remarry until they are adults. What is there to envy?”Hailey’s eyes widened. She realized she couldn’t refute Travis Blake’s words. Her mother turned out to be one of those women. Sadness welled up inside her.“Are you considering the possibility of Calvin’s survival, despite your forced marriage to him?” Travis Blake wanted to say this, but he swallowed his words.“You can envy others and be negative. All of that is valid, but not in front of me.”Hailey looked at him incredulously.
Katie froze in shock. “Young lady, don’t tell me... Are you afraid of ghost stories?”She approached Hailey and observed her expression, only to realize that Hailey’s face had turned even paler than before, as if the hot soup hadn’t warmed her at all. Ghost stories appeared to have exacerbated her paleness.Katie apologized profusely. “My apologies, young lady! I didn’t know you were afraid, or else I wouldn’t have said anything.”Hailey seemed upset. “It’s okay, Katie. I’m a bit of a coward. I didn’t mean to worry you.”Katie frowned at Travis Blake. She finally realized that Travis Blake had deliberately made her tell ghost stories to the young lady, all the while knowing that she would be scared.“I wonder how the young lady angered the teacher today. This is unfortunate to see.”“I’ll bring you some herbal soup to calm your nerves, young lady,” Katie said. “Movies are just fiction, right? No matter how spooky they are, it’s all fake. You won’t be anxious if you think of it that wa
“Do you feel a sharp pain, like there’s something there?” Hailey lifted her head and innocently asked.Travis Blake replied, “No.”He pretended to look concerned. “Really? I’ll check again, just in case.”He took another cotton swab and pressed harder on his wound, even making it bleed again.Katie, who was watching from the side, realized what Hailey was doing. She thought, “William was right. These two are flirting, so we can’t understand them.”After torturing Travis Blake’s wound again, Hailey felt much more satisfied. She disinfected it thoroughly before applying any medication and then put a bandage on it.Travis Blake sat quietly, not complaining about Hailey’s treatment.Katie told Hailey, “Young lady, the master’s wound should not contact any water. You need to be aware of that when he showers tonight.”Hailey, puzzled, couldn’t quite digest Katie’s words. “Why do I need to be aware?”Katie was stunned and then tried to express it differently. “Since the wound should not come
Travis Blake lay down on his bed and said, “Sleep before I change my mind.”Hailey’s eyes widened. “That means he’s willing to let me sleep next to him in bed!”Realizing this, Hailey immediately lay down, her back to the man. She maintained a proper distance from him; Travis Blake was not a bed-sharing companion. If she accidentally touched him, she might face his wrath the next morning. However, she had no other choice. This was much better than sleeping alone, so she had to endure it.Hailey was the one most afraid of ghosts. What’s worse is that she was also afraid of the dark. Fear would split her mind in two. One side would insist that everything was fake, and that ghosts didn’t exist. However, the other part argued that there was an unidentified entity watching her in the darkness, ready to jump out and attack her at any moment.When Hailey was a little girl, her friend played a prank on her that triggered the fear she still carried with her to this day. It had traumatized her
Hailey asked Travis Blake to take her place. If she had to work overtime, like secretaries, they might have to do the same. Travis Blake replied, “No, you can leave work on time as usual.”Apart from that, he didn’t explain further. In the end, Hailey thought she might crave coffee and left it at that. Hailey handed Travis Blake the cup of coffee as soon as she finished preparing it. Then she remembered what Hailey said and asked if he also worked overtime.Travis Blake took a sip and said quietly, “I don’t have to, but you do.” Hailey froze.“Is there any other document I need to handle?”Hailey has been assigned her only basic data entry tasks since she was still an intern. Hailey hadn’t given her any challenging tasks yet. Still, data entry could be tedious; she couldn’t even finish it during work hours, so it wasn’t exactly the first time she worked overtime. However, it was the first time Travis Blake ordered her to work overtime. As a result, she was very excited, believing he h
After returning to the mansion, the old lady inquired about Layla’s husband.“He had an X-ray. Turns out he had a crack in his shin,” Hailey said honestly. “He’ll probably have to rest a lot.”The old lady then instructed the butler to send Layla some gifts as consolation.“Layla’s son- and daughter-in-law are not around, so it’s natural for her to have to handle the matter on her own,” Lilian said.“I don’t know how long she’ll be out, and a week will just stretch it.” We’re concerned that you don’t have anyone to take care of you, so I’ll appoint a new maid for you. It’ll be beneficial to have someone around, you know?”Hailey knew she couldn’t refuse. Refusing would force her to come back here.“Alright, thank you, grandma.”She didn’t bother asking who would be appointed, either, because, after all, it didn’t matter.By midday, they had decided. The newly appointed maid was a middle-aged woman named Peggy Reynolds.Claíre wasn’t sure if Travis Blake had bribed Peggy, but she didn’
Thinking back, this was the exact hotel where their ill-fated relationship had begun. “I thought you would ask me to go to the Imperial Garden,” Hailey said as soon as she entered the room. Travis Blake replied, “It’s beneficial to have a change of scenery once in a while.” Hailey’s eyes lit up.“Are you already getting worn out of it?”Travis Blake asked, “What do you mean by that?”“I mean our rooms.” Travis Blake caught her between his arms and the wall. In a dangerous tone, he said, “You seem to be in an excellent mood lately.” Hailey thought for a moment and replied, “Yes, more or less.”“I thought you would feel uncomfortable with someone else watching over you, and that might bother you. It seems I was wrong.” Hailey chuckled.“It would bother me quite a bit if this happened back then, but now it feels different.”“What do you mean by that?” Travis Blake narrowed his eyes. ‘Then? Now? What is this woman saying?’ “I won’t tell you.” Before Travis Blake could get frustrated with
“Has my mother left?” Travis asked, even though he already knew the answer.Hailey pretended to smile and said, “What a great moment. Don’t tell me someone already informed you of what happened here?”Travis didn’t even blush despite Hailey’s statement and said, “I don’t know about your closed-door discussion.”Hailey looked at Layla, who approached her with a thin blanket and said, “I’ll tell you later.”“Okay. I’ll go now,” Travis said as he hung up the call.Layla covered Hailey, who was resting on the couch, with the blanket. The air conditioning temperature was low.Soon after, Hailey’s phone rang again. It was Travis once more. She didn’t hesitate and answered the call.“My mom is here,”
Thalia was very punctual.Hailey, Layla, Harry, and Laura stood up and greeted her by the driver’s seat.Originally, Layla wanted to greet her with all the servants standing in a row. However, Hailey said it was unnecessary. She did not organize something so extravagant when her in-laws came last time even though the two were looking for a fight. However, Hailey believed it was more important for her to greet herself. Everything else was not as necessary. Not to mention that with all the servants around, it would be challenging to keep a low profile. They might also be curious about how she would act when Thalia was present. That’s why she managed without them.If she overdid it and accidentally leaked into the main mansion, someone would say she was trying to butter up Thalia.After Thalia exited the car and saw Hailey greeting her at the entrance, she smiled and wrapped her arms tightly around Hailey
Travis addressed Eva normally. He called her “aunt.” But Eva was so used to being called Madame Winters that she felt uncomfortable with the new term.“Ms. Blake...” She only got out two words when Travis interrupted her.“You’re my elder, so call me Travis,” Travis whispered.If any of the Blake family members had been here, their eyes would surely pop out of their sockets. Travis rarely spoke with such respect, and only a few people had been worthy of such consideration. His grandmother was one of them.Eva’s lips trembled. In the end, she couldn’t say his name. “You... What did you want to tell me?”Either way, there was no way out. She had heard too many unfortunate news, so she thought she could probably bear one more.Travis’s response caught her off guard. “I would like to talk to you about Hailey,” he replied calmly.“Eh?” Eva was f
Fortunately, Travis didn’t press on about the friend or the photo. After hearing Hailey’s response, he lowered his head and returned to the financial news section.Hailey breathed a sigh of relief. After finishing her breakfast, she gathered her things and prepared for her visit to the hospital. Her uncle’s surgery was scheduled soon, so she wanted to keep him company as much as possible before that.Travis did not know that Hailey was going out. According to his usual schedule, he usually headed to the mansion before lunch. Judging by his bare face and comfortable clothes, she could guess his destination.However, she still asked, “Where are you going?”“To the hospital,” Hailey said.“Yesterday, I went to the mansion and informed Grandma in advance. I can go to the hospital directly now.”Immediately, Travis dropped everything and stood up. “I’m coming with you.”
When Travis appeared, Hailey continued to check both the study room and the bedroom. The sight of him shocked her greatly.“Didn’t you say you would come back tomorrow?” she asked, confused.Travis was supposed to return from his business trip tomorrow, but here he was.“I finished my work early, so I returned,” Travis replied. He didn’t tell her he had returned a day earlier because Hailey had instructed the servants to clean the villa and store his things to welcome his mother.Hailey said, “Oh, you came back just when I had someone helping me clean up the place. Can you go back to the Imperial Garden tonight? Don’t come tomorrow night either.”Frustrated, Travis questioned the obvious. “Why?”Hailey raised her eyebrows. “Don’t you know? Mrs. Thalia, your mother, will come to inspect my house in two days. I was worried she would check the upstairs, so I kept all
“About what you mentioned earlier... I think it’s a good idea.”The following day, Travis suddenly brought up this topic to Hailey.Hailey still felt quite dazed, with a bewildered expression. “What?”Travis was calm. “About getting Uncle Liam and Aunt Rowena to have another child.”Hailey instantly woke up. Travis’s words quickly dispelled her drowsiness. “What? Why suddenly?”Travis replied, “I just said; suddenly, I feel like it’s a good idea.”Hailey touched Travis’s forehead and then felt her own. “Do you have a fever or something?”Travis gently removed her hand and held it in his palm, with a serious expression. “I’m serious.”“Serious? Doesn’t it sound like you’re trying to separa
Hailey was taken aback as if Travis had said something truly horrible.“I don’t know.” She was silent for a while. Then she asked with a blank face, “Can’t you finish this contract before anyone finds out?”Travis tightened his grip on Hailey. Unable to control his strength correctly, he was about to crush her jaw.“Ah...!” Hailey cried out in pain and tried to pry his fingers off.But Travis had no intention of letting go. Hailey’s words were sharp and painful needles that pricked his heart.“So, was it all a misunderstanding? Did she not care for me at all?”At that moment, Travis had never doubted his sixth sense more.“So, what you’re saying is: if someone finds out about us tomorrow, you want to cut ties with me today?” he asked, his face grim. With each word, his heart hardened even more.Hailey thought, “I guess Travis isn’t d
Christian was a complete gentleman to Hailey. They were friends, but not the kind who had known each other for a long time and could make inappropriate jokes. Therefore, their behavior seemed normal to everyone—everyone except Travis.Travis’s expression had always been icy, so his attitude was nothing unusual to everyone. Even Helena couldn’t tell what he was thinking, let alone anyone else.After dinner, Christian drank some wine and became bolder. He boldly asked Hailey to go out with him over the weekend, saying he had plans with some friends to hike in the suburbs. If she was interested, they could go together.Hailey could feel everyone’s eyes burning holes in her. She smiled, “I’m not sure if I’m free this weekend. I’ll let you know when I’m sure.”Everything seemed normal and harmonious, at least until dinner ended, and Hailey got into the car. After she drove away and lost sight of the o
When Hailey went to sit down, she looked at Travis. His gaze was elsewhere, and he wasn’t looking at her.Christian, who had been paying attention, noticed who she was looking at. He assumed she was afraid of Travis and sighed with sadness.Since Hailey was being so cautious, he also had to be careful. He didn’t want to make things difficult for her. He knew Hailey was shunning him. If she felt the Blakes would misinterpret things if she got too close to him, she would keep her distance.When Christian arrived at the office building a moment ago, he noticed something. Hailey now had a driver and a bodyguard. The two people accompanying her were probably her driver and bodyguard. They even shamelessly followed her to the company! What the hell happened? Why didn’t he hear anything about this?He had to find the opportunity to ask her about this carefully. Thinking about it, he conclu