Winston lifted his chin with a cold expression in an attempt to avoid being subjected to Kennedy's influence.Turning to Millie, Kennedy added, "For example, Ms. Caldwell."Millie rolled her eyes. "Stop dragging me into this mess." Kennedy should have used Joanna as an example because Winston cared more for her. Millie was painfully aware of the fact she meant nothing to him. Winston noticed the calm in her eyes. In the past, she would have bothered him and demanded to know her importance to him.Why was he feeling unsettled at her calmness? He hung his head as the light in his eyes dimmed.Was there truly no one he cared about in this world? If so, why did he instinctively turn to Millie instead of thinking of Joanna when Kennedy questioned him? Sensing the growing tension between the two men, Millie decided against hanging around them."It's getting late." Straightening her clothes, she said with a nonchalant look, "I'm going home soon. You two can stay here or whatever.
"I'm only showing you mercy as an old friend. Did you really think I couldn't hurt you?" Winston inched forward with an icy and sarcastic expression on his perfectly chiseled face. He had repeatedly exercised his tolerance on Kennedy, but he would not put up with Kennedy's continuous provocation anymore."Winston Greer, you'd better watch your tone when you speak to me." Kennedy's tone took a sharp, unfeeling turn.Winston swallowed hard. Kennedy warned him, "Only Millie would allow you to speak to her in that tone because she's a massive fool who listens to you no matter what."Winston frowned at Kennedy's mention of Millie, which irked him even more. Kennedy seemed to care a bit too much about Millie, and he sounded as though he were closer to Millie than Winston.Not only that, he spoke about Millie with such tenderness."Kennedy, if you're interested in Millie, I suggest you give up." The look in Winston's eyes hardened. If looks could kill, Kennedy would have died a long ti
Feeling irritated, Winston pushed Kennedy out of his way and left.Kennedy stared at Winston with a grin. "Do you feel embarrassed because I correctly guessed what was in your mind?"Winston didn't even turn to look at him. He hopped into his car and left in no time.Kennedy slumped on the bench. He let out a casual and hearty laugh at the sky.…Feeling lost and irked, Winston sped down the road. He was unable to calm down as emotions washed over him.Finally, he pulled over by the road and got out. Leaning against his car, he heard Kennedy's words echoing in his ear. "Do you feel embarrassed because I correctly guessed what was in your mind?""Looks like you did fall for her, but you're unaware of it." "Ask yourself—are you really in love with Joanna Lowell?Kennedy's words sent a wave of panic through his body. He failed to calm himself down, even though he prided himself on his self-control in the past.He was easily affected by minor issues in life recently.Tilting
The man grabbed Millie's leg when she went up to check on him. He gasped, "Save me!"She was stunned by the situation.…Back at HK Hotel, Millie folded her arms and stared at the man in bed with mixed feelings. At six feet tall, the man had a fit body and good looks to go with it. Even when he was unconscious, she could tell that he was hot from his tall nose, thin lips, and thick lashes.The man suffered from a stab wound in his stomach. He had lost a lot of blood when she saved him from the side of the road.Standing beside Millie, Marvin whispered, "Who is he?"She replied, "No idea. I picked him up from the streets."Marvin teased her, "That's bold of you. Aren't you worried that the man is trouble?" She smirked. "It's not like I'm ever afraid of trouble.""Yeah, right. Nothing scares you in this world, except when Winston—" He caught himself before the words slipped out.Nothing would faze Millie except when Winston got into trouble.She shot him a threatening look,
Millie and Marvin glanced at Sean at the same time. So, Sean turned out to be the son of Bob Stringer and the heir of the Stringer family—one of the Four Great Families of Yerwick.She checked him out. They weren't acquainted as he had left to study abroad very early in his life. She hadn't expected such an interesting first encounter with Sean, and she was surprised."I guess we're all friends now," he muttered feebly.Millie pursed her lips. Well, she certainly didn't agree to befriend him."That's because Winston is a good friend of mine," he replied while mimicking the way she cocked her head at him.Smiling, he added, "You're Winston's wife, if I'm not wrong.""Mr. Stringer, you must've been abroad for far too long. You're not in the loop anymore," she said with a sigh.Confused, he questioned, "What do you mean?""Mr. Greer and I might still be the trending topics if you check Twitter now." She pointed at his fingers.He immediately picked up his phone. At the same time,
Sean sat in the bed as he watched Millie leave the room. A grin played on his lips.Millie Caldwell. She was as feisty as before.He glanced down at his stomach and wondered about Millie's stitching skills. He'd be mad if she gave him an ugly stitching.A WhatsApp message notification chimed on his phone. Jake had messaged a WhatsApp group chat titled "The Studs". Jake: "Sean Stringer, where did you fucking go? I waited for you for an hour at the airport!"Sean: "Something came up. I've left the airport. You don't need to wait for me."Jake texted him a string of question marks followed by some cursing. "Fuck you!"Sean: "It's my fault. I'll buy you a meal."Jake: "Thankfully it wasn't Win at the airport today. He'll kill you for standing him up for an hour."Soon, a user profile popped up in the chat. Winston wrote: "I nearly went to pick you up."Winston had planned to pick up Sean from the airport after dealing with the goods at the harbor, but he ran into Millie on his
Millie grunted flatly while brushing her teeth. "Yeah. I got it." Julia could be really long-winded sometimes.Julia tapped her on the head with a doting yet frustrated look. "You little rascal!"Millie pouted at her mom. She took a shower before putting on some makeup. It was past 2:00 pm when she got ready.Something tugged at her. She stared at the ceiling to recall it.Right. Her phone. She reached for her phone by the bedside table, only to realize the battery had died.She fell asleep last night after she reached home because she was tired. When she turned on her phone, she finally recalled the unfinished task that bothered her.Winston's texts flooded in. "Is your phone turned off? Did you stand me up?""Millie Caldwell, you only have until 2:00 pm!""Fine."She stared at his texts wordlessly. She wondered if she could argue with him, telling him she slept her way until noon the next day because she arrived home late last night from saving Sean's life.She was about to
Joanna handed a glass of water to Millie as the latter watched on in silence.She waited for Millie to accept the glass of water, as that would signify that Millie acknowledged her as the lady of the house. She didn't care for anyone's acknowledgment except for Millie's—it was important that she received Millie's approval.Millie felt bitter when Joanna handed her the glass of water. Things had changed. Smiling wryly, she finally accepted the offer. "Thank you, Ms. Lowell."Joanna's eyes lit up with joy. No one could cheer her up so much by accepting her offer of water. Only Millie could do that.Millie took a sip of water and placed the glass aside. Joanna had initially planned to leave for her home to grab something, but she decided to linger around Winston's villa after Millie showed up.Removing her thin jacket, she settled down from across Millie and initiated a conversation. "Are you joining the cruise party tonight as well?""Yes." Millie stole a glance at the second flo
While in the hospital, Millie rubbed her arms to keep warm. Then, the person on the bed woke up.Millie turned her head and looked at the person on the hospital bed. Winston's eyes were dull and showed signs of exhaustion. Their eyes met, and neither of them said a word.The nurse entered and saw that Winston was awake, so she patiently asked about his condition.He just kept looking at Millie without saying anything.Millie glanced at the nurse, signaling that she could continue with her work. Winston seemed fine now."You're not allowed to drink anymore," Millie said, her voice calm and indifferent.He closed his eyes, turned his head away, and didn't look at her again.Millie frowned and asked, "What do you mean by turning your head?"Winston remained silent, unable to speak because of the tightness in his throat.Millie poured a glass of water and asked him, "Would you like some water?"He still remained silent.Millie grew impatient and said, "Then I'll call Eli to take
Other than that word, Everly couldn't hear anything else."Dad, I can't hear what you're saying at all." Everly was becoming frustrated.Thomas exclaimed, "I said, Mills!""Yes, you're talking about Mills. And then? What about her?" Everly was extremely confused.She picked up her phone to check the time—it was already 3:00 am.She was about to lose it. From New Year's Eve till now, she did nothing but take care of Thomas."Dad, why don't we just go to sleep?" Everly didn't want to listen anymore.Whatever it was, she would be nice to Millie and not go up against her.She didn't like Millie before, but that was simply because she disliked how obsessed Millie was with romantic relationships."Oh! Ah!" Thomas suddenly started grumbling as he threw back the blanket. "Why can't you understand?"He was getting agitated.Everly was also getting extremely agitated. What exactly did she need to understand?He wasn't even speaking loud enough."I mean your sister! Millie!" Thomas s
Everly, feeling exasperated, helped Thomas off the couch and took him to the bathroom.Thomas lifted his head. His face was flushed, and his eyes dazed over. "My daughter, my daughter, I didn't throw up…"Everly looked at the mess on the ground and felt a headache coming on. Thomas had already thrown up, yet he still claimed he hadn't."You're drinking so much even though you can't handle it!" Everly shouted."What are you saying? It's like you're saying, saying, saying… ugh!" Thomas immediately leaned over the toilet, unable to finish his sentence. It was like he was speaking in tongue twisters, and no one could understand him.Everly sighed. She twitched her nose and turned to go outside to wait for him.Ten minutes went by, and Everly had finished tidying up the house. There was no sound coming from the washroom where Thomas was.Everly furrowed her brows and called out, "Dad?"Fine. It seemed like he was going to end up sleeping on the toilet.Everly walked over and, as ex
"I'll go get your medicine for you. Wait a moment." Millie intended to get the medicine from the bedside table.But then, Winston grabbed her arm. His palms were sweaty, and when he held her hand, it felt so hot it was as if he might burn her.Millie looked down at him.Winston looked up at her face, worried that if he let go, she might disappear.However, he knew very well that Millie wanted to leave, and he couldn't stop her."Millie, do you really have to give up on me?" Winston asked again, seeming determined to get an answer.Millie furrowed her brows, breathing heavily."Do you have to?" He looked at her. "Hmm?"Millie felt her heart tighten, and she just couldn't bring herself to say, "I have to let you go.""Winston," she called to him.Winston had no more strength left in him, as if he couldn't wait any longer to hear those words from her.He suddenly bent over and fell to the ground.Millie paused for a moment, then she quickly crouched down. "Winston?"She immed
Millie tightened her grip on the doorknob and turned to look at Winston.He stood next to the coffee table, his hands dangling awkwardly at his sides. The expression on his face seemed profoundly sorrowful. Although they were close, it felt as if a huge ocean stood between them when he looked at her, making it impossible for him to bridge the gap.Winston made a slight groaning sound, licking his lips and breathing heavily. His body was also swaying a bit. His stomach felt extremely uncomfortable, churning violently as if he might throw up at any moment.What bothered him even more was the comment Millie had just made.She said, "Let's end this."End it? But how would they just end it? Then were her seven years over just like that? Did his guilt and regret count for anything?She could move on from him, love someone else, and marry them. But what about him? He could never forgive himself for the rest of his life…Could they just end it?"Millie. Tell me, how are we supposed to
"Listen." Millie bit her lip but finally mustered up the courage to speak. "Let's end this between us."During those years with him, she caused her family a lot of worry and concern. She no longer wanted her family to worry about her.Or perhaps, she had become scared. She didn't want to gamble with her feelings anymore."Winston, I admit defeat. I don't have the courage to go through this with you again." Millie's voice was choked with emotion as she struggled to hold back her sadness while saying this.Winston instinctively reached for her hand."Millie, you promised me. You said you'd give me a chance. Why?" His eyes suddenly turned bloodshot, and his voice was so hoarse it seemed like he could barely speak."There's no reason. The new year has begun, and I hope you get better. Don't come looking for me anymore." Millie pulled away from Winston's hand, turned around, and got ready to leave.He suddenly hugged Millie tightly and said, "Don't…"Winston's voice seemed to pierce
Millie opened the car door and pushed Winston inside the car.Winston fastened his seatbelt in the dark by himself.Millie got into the car and saw him sitting there quietly, which made her smile and sigh.Millie drove at a moderate speed. The road was busy, with many people out to watch fireworks, while others were heading home.Winston looked to the driver's side, his gaze fixed on Millie.Millie could sense that he was watching her, but she kept avoiding eye contact. Her mind was preoccupied with the messages her dad had sent.Let him go… The question was, could she give up on him?Millie furrowed her brow and rested her hand on her forehead, deep in thought."Did I make you hate me…?" Winston's raspy voice suddenly sounded next to her ear.Millie looked over at him with confusion."Does my drinking make you hate me?" he asked again, just like a child afraid of upsetting Millie."No." Millie shook her head.Despite having drunk too much, he still made an effort to pay at
After the video call ended, Millie placed her phone on the table.Thomas said to Millie, "Hahaha! Mills, look, he can't handle his drink!"Having been the son-in-law of the Caldwell family for three years, I only just found out that he can't hold his liquor."Millie gave a wry smile. This statement seemed to be a double-edged sword. For three years, he hadn't visited the Caldwell family even once. Winston was truly ruthless at that time.Winston quickly explained to Millie, "Millie, I haven't had too much. I can still drink, honestly."His face was completely flushed, and it was clear that his speech was slurred.The two of them had already finished a bottle of vodka.Thomas was even ready to switch to a different type of alcohol.Thomas had spent many years away from home and was quite a heavy drinker. His drinking ability was different from that of Winston.Winston could ask Eli to drink on his behalf if he didn't want to, but if Thomas was trying to win resources for Rach
At the dining table, Thomas and Winston started drinking vodka.The TV was showing this year's New Year Gala while Millie was quietly eating pierogi.She hadn't had homemade pierogi for three years, and they tasted so good. It felt like being back in her childhood, celebrating the New Year with her family. That was what made the festival truly special.Millie looked at her grandparents with a constant smile on her face. She felt happier than she had ever been before.She wished her parents were here too. Oh, those two…Just as she was thinking about this, her phone rang. It was Terrence calling.Millie answered the call without saying a word and pointed the camera toward Thomas.This year, Thomas had no one to drink with, so he turned to Winston for company.Terrence was lounging in the sun when he caught sight of Winston. His eyes widened in surprise, and he immediately set down his juice."Who is that? Am I seeing this right?" Terrence sat up straight, his voice filled with