"Oh. Rachel can't make it because she's busy," Millie replied, and Jake looked disappointed.It was so hard to meet up with Rachel, whose schedule was jam-packed."Has she signed with you?" Millie asked. "I haven't noticed any public announcement about it."Jake nodded. "It's signed, but we haven't taken her official portraits. She said she was busy lately. ""That's true. She has many more galas to attend toward the end of the year. I hope you understand," she replied with a smile.Then, she added, "Rachel will get her manager to schedule a time to meet you as soon as possible.""That's fine. I signed the contract with her at the last minute anyway. She also said that she'd arrange for the transition," Jake replied.Right then, someone called for his attention. He nodded and dragged Sean with him. He couldn't be sure that Sean wouldn't fall for the gorgeous Millie in her exquisite dress that evening, right after Sean had just touched down in Yerwick.Besides, the two of the
Millie was the last to board the cruise. The scale of the cruise appeared grander than she initially imagined.She entered a digital reception lobby, where the hottest women of Yerwick served as the waitstaff. The striking beauties stood in two lines in their uniforms.Millie handed her invitation card to the person in charge. The latter nodded at her. "Welcome onboard, Ms. Caldwell.""This is your name tag." A young lady went up to Millie and pinned a lovely and understated butterfly badge on Millie's chest.Prior to joining the cruise party, each attendee was required to fill out a form indicating their preference for the badge. The host would customize the badges based on the attendees' selections, and each badge came with a location tracker in case anything happened onboard.After all, the host would not want to be held responsible for any disappearances or accidents, given the high profile of the cruise party attendees.Millie nodded at the staff member and adjusted her badg
Sean pouted. "Are you avoiding me? Let's have a chat.""What's there to talk about?" She casually glanced at him before picking up her wine glass again.He stopped her and took the glass away from her to drink it. She immediately held his wrist, stopping him. "Mr. Stringer, you shouldn't drink."After all, he hadn't fully recovered."That's going to be so boring," Sean grumbled. What was the point of attending a party if one couldn't drink?Smiling, Millie picked up a glass of water and some non-alcoholic drinks for him. "Try these instead.""I don't want to." He pushed aside the other drinks and insisted on drinking alcohol.Frowning, she cautioned, "Drinking will make your wound fester. If it doesn't heal in time, you need to be in the hospital again.""That's fine. You're at the hospital, aren't you?" He flashed her a mischievous grin, causing her heart to sink.Sean might be smiling and innocent, but he was quietly making advances. She turned away and refused to engage fur
Millie was stunned and confused by Sean's bold move.However, she soon calmed down. After all, she too grew up abroad, and she understood the cultural differences in self-expression.This reminded Millie of an incident abroad, where she was out buying some flowers. A handsome man footed her bill before praising her beauty.She had never encountered Chirean men who openly flirted with her in this manner.More importantly, she wondered if Sean was misguided. She reminded him, "Mr. Stringer, I'm the ex-wife of your friend."He tilted his head quizzically. "So what? You're divorced now, aren't you?"She was rendered speechless. Those who lived abroad certainly were more liberal and free-spirited, reckless enough to flirt with a friend's ex-spouse.Unlike the fraught relationship between Winston and Kennedy, Sean enjoyed a close friendship with Winston.She shrugged. "I'm not interested in pitching two friends against each other for love."Sean wanted to reply, but she cut him off
Millie thought she'd be more fearful of the ocean, but it turned out to be not a big deal at all. However, swimming in the ocean would be a different matter altogether.She looked down at the bottomless ocean and gulped. She would probably fear the thought of swimming in the ocean. If she had fallen into the water, she might still suffer a breakdown and freeze, just like the other day.The frightening imagery made her look away from the ocean.Suddenly, she received a text notification on her phone. Rachel had sent her a WhatsApp message. "Sorry, I can't make it to the cruise party with you! It's a pity. Have fun, Mills!"Millie smiled. Soon, Rachel texted again. "I heard Winston and Joanna are there too. Don't play nice if they humiliate you. Just fight back, especially with that bitch Joanna! "Don't waste your time talking to her—just teach her a lesson with a slap. I can't believe that the homewrecker is playing the victim!"Rachel added, "Mills, don't keep everything to your
Winston lowered his gaze onto Millie's face. Millie watched the stranger pause and leave the scene. After that, she removed Winston's hand from her shoulder. "Thanks, Mr. Greer," she said flatly."You're welcome," Winston replied in a dull tone.With her head hung low, she prepared to head indoors, but Winston stopped her. "Millie.""Yeah?" She looked up calmly."What were you trying to say to me on the bench last night?" The question troubled him for a long time, but he couldn't figure out what she tried to say.She pursed her lips. The look in her eyes deepened. "There are many people around here. It's not the best place to talk about it."Besides, it'd take her a while to go through everything."Is it something important?" Winston asked.She laughed. "Yes. It is important to me."She nearly lost her life for him, but perhaps that wasn't important to him. Forcing a smile, she explained, "But I don't know if it matters as much to you."She'd be really happy if Winston as
Millie cast a wary look at Joanna. Joanna raised a brow in amusement, saying, "I won't hurt you. We're at a party with people all around us."Millie shrugged. She wasn't exactly afraid of her anyway.They took their seats at the same time. Not far away, Jake was drinking and enjoying the ocean view while stealing occasional glances at the two women.Joanna sat across from Millie with her arms crossed, looking just like a young lady who grew up in wealth. On the contrary, Millie casually lounged on her chair, looking elegant and at ease.Millie's evening dress was way more graceful than Joanna's. On top of that, she was blessed with great looks. Sitting beside Millie only highlighted Joanna's flaws—she was no match for her.However, that was the least of Joanna's concerns that night. After a short silence, she began, "Let's start with Winston's abduction."Millie was caught off guard for a moment, as she had never openly discussed that incident with Joanna over the years.Smili
Joanna let out a deep sigh before finishing her wine. Millie didn't seem to know Winston that well. He was a man with feelings too."Millie, let me tell you the reason Winston stays by my side and dotes on me unconditionally," Joanna said, looking intently at her.Millie waited patiently for her explanation. She would very much like to know the reason behind Winston's insistence on getting a divorce to marry Joanna.Joanna beamed. "It's because of you."Millie frowned. Because of her? How so?Joanna tilted her body forward. The words were on her lips, but the band suddenly switched to a new song, hyping up the crowd.At that moment, Jake wandered over to the ladies and lifted Joanna by the arm. "Stop drinking. Let's dance."When Millie looked up, Jake had dragged Joanna away. Joanna wore an annoyed look on her face. She grumbled, "Jake Webson, can't you tell that we were having a serious talk?""And what could it be about? I should thank the gods as long as you're not stirrin
Soon, it was New Year's Eve. Yerwick City didn't have a ban on fireworks, so the neighborhood had been lively since early in the day.Arthur wanted to hang some lights to bring more festive spirit into the house. However, when he looked at the high places where he needed to hang them, he felt like he just couldn't manage it.Just as Thomas and Everly arrived outside the door, he called out to them, "Hurry and hang up these lights.""Oh dear, be careful not to fall at this age." Thomas quickly took the string of lights from Arthur's hands.Arthur replied, "I was just waiting for you all!"Everly joked, "Grandpa, are you upset that we arrived late?""Hmph! You weren't early enough. Millie hasn't even shown up yet!"But as soon as he finished speaking, Millie walked in holding some things. "Grandpa, I heard you talking about me from far away, and I've sneezed several times because of it," she said with a slight smile, her voice bright and cheerful.The group turned their attention
At that moment, a cold snort came from the staircase.Arthur looked up. Wasn't that Layla standing there?Layla walked downstairs, her tone sounding incredulous as she said, "Is this guy really willing to go to such lengths to get what he wants? He even had the nerve to say something like that?""When pursuing someone you like, there's nothing you wouldn't do, no matter how embarrassing. Back when I was trying to win you over, didn't I wait for you outside your house every day?" The thought brought Arthur a sense of sorrow.The Cadmores were a medical family, and Arthur was a businessman. Even though he also made a fortune in the medical field, the Cadmore family wasn't willing for the two of them to be together. They just wanted Layla to marry someone who was also studying medicine.Believe it or not, back then, there really was another medical student as her suitor. The Cadmore family liked them, and outsiders also thought they were a good match.In the end, the persistent suit
The car was parked in front of the Caldwell residence. Eli took out the items and silently handed them to Winston. He wanted to see if Winston could help escort the two elderly people to the door."No need to accompany me any further. Let's leave it here," Layla insisted, maintaining her refusal.She always maintained a sense of propriety, even in how she addressed Winston.Winston found Layla harder to impress than Millie."Grandma, let me help you take it inside. It's not far. I'll just go in and come right out. I won't stay long," Winston said with a smile.Layla was about to speak. Arthur nudged her arm, suggesting she let it go, as she had been bothered enough already.Layla remained silent for a moment before nodding.Winston was given permission, and he immediately followed the two elderly people into the Caldwell residence with the items.Eli sighed and couldn't help but take a video of Winston, feeling really humbled.It was really hard to believe this was Winston.W
"The shop shutting down for rectifications is necessary. If she keeps up this attitude, there's no point in having the store here. You all should remove her from this place," Layla said, intending to rid Clara of a job.When Clara heard it, her face turned pale. However, she didn't dare to speak at the moment, fearing that the more she said, the more mistakes she might make.These people all seemed to be important figures!"Alright!" Bernard clapped his hands and agreed, "Professor Cadmore, we agree. If she doesn't give the proper compensation, we will definitely fire her!"Arthur supported Layla and gently patted her back, gesturing for her to calm down and not be upset anymore.Layla had finally started to calm down a bit. She had actually become much more mellow with her temper. In the past, whether in the lab or outside, she was always decisive and assertive.This was also why Arthur had been obedient all these years. He would always go along with her."Hurry up, apologize t
Bernard gave Clara a strong push. She fell to the ground, crying out in anger, "What's the meaning of this!"Bernard approached Winston with his hands tightly clasped and bowed respectfully as he exclaimed, "Mr. Greer!"Winston raised his hand, signaling for him to get up.Clara sat on the ground, feeling completely dumbfounded. Why was Bernard treating him with such respect? Who was this person? What was his background?Winston, with a cold expression, adjusted his sleeve and looked indifferently at Clara on the ground.Bernard said, "Mr. Greer, you should have told us you were coming! I would have had someone prepared to welcome you long ago. I'm really sorry for any inconvenience you experienced. Please accept my apologies!""What's wrong with her? Is she unwell?" Winston asked, pointing to Clara on the ground.Bernard quickly said, "She…""No matter what's up with her, disrespecting customers is a big mistake. I am demanding that her shop undergo rectifications before reope
Winston raised an eyebrow and stepped forward.Clara felt a sudden shudder in her heart and instinctively took a step back.Winston scoffed. What was she backing away for? Was she scared?She was simply someone who bullied the weak but was afraid of the strong. What capabilities did she even have by picking on elderly people?Winston's gaze was steady, and his expression became increasingly cold and harsh.The woman frowned and stayed silent.Winston, speaking calmly and without any agitation, said, "If you don't want to escalate the situation, apologize now. If you're unwilling, then we'll have to get the police to handle it."To begin with, he was never a patient person. The reason he was speaking so nicely was to make a good impression in front of Layla and Arthur.In the past, whenever he encountered such a situation, he wouldn't even pay it any attention and would simply have Eli take them to the police station.Whenever someone made a mistake, it was important to address
Layla said, "Even though it's soon New Year's and everyone is busy, try to be a bit more gentle! We're all elderly people here, so what's wrong with being patient?"Since you're in the service industry, you should maintain a proper attitude. If you can't even speak politely, then you shouldn't be in this line of work. I suggest you close up shop for good!"Winston squinted. That voice sounded very familiar. It seemed like Layla's voice.He quickly walked over and saw that Arthur was helping an elderly gentleman up while Layla was engaged in a debate with a young female shopkeeper."How I run my store is my business. If you want to buy something, go ahead. If not, just leave. I don't need you to tell me how to run my life!" The store owner glared at Layla while speaking with a very unfriendly tone, their voice sharp and cutting.Layla was exasperated and asked, "Don't you understand the saying that the customer is king?""What about the damn king? Just go away," the lady grumbled,
Layla said, "Look, you're really persistent, aren't you? I don't like you. Do you need me to spell it out for you?""Grandma, I want to pursue Mills. Since I want to be with Mills, I need to have everyone's approval. Right now, I'm trying hard to make everyone like me. It's part of the process that you might dislike me at first, but I can't just give up because of that. How else would I pursue Mills?" Winston said clearly.As expected of a businessman, his negotiation style was very serious and precise. Despite his gentle tone, there was still a strong sense of pressure in his eyes and demeanor.Layla moved her lips slightly. She didn't know how to get Winston to leave, so she shouted, "I don't care! Just stop bothering us here!"Winston furrowed his brows.Layla then asked Arthur to pull the cart himself.Ding! Winston's phone rang out.Arthur took the cart and quickly left with Layla.Winston stood still, watching the couple walk away, and couldn't help but sigh. The call on
"Grandpa, are you okay?" Winston finally had a moment to ask how he was doing.Arthur nodded. His demeanor toward Winston seemed a bit more gentle than before.Layla sighed. "There's too many people. Let's all slow down a bit.""Okay," Arthur said with a smile. "Don't worry, I'm fine.""You're getting older, and a fall could be life-threatening," Layla said anxiously, holding onto Arthur's arm tightly. "Hold onto me, alright?""If I hold onto you, I'll end up pulling you down as well if I fall!" Arthur grumbled.Layla said, "I don't care. Just hold onto me.""Okay, I'll hold on to you," Arthur relented.Winston was quietly following them from behind and couldn't help but smile himself. This was pretty nice.Who wouldn't envy a relationship that stayed this loving and affectionate all the way until old age?"Should we buy some candy?" Layla said, pointing at the candy in front of them.Arthur said, "Okay."Whatever she wanted, he would agree. The two of them acted both harmo