Was Willow seriously planning to go against Celia?Celia looked at Willow intently. She was just about to raise her hand again when a man's voice sounded from the entrance of the auction hall. "30 million dollars!" 30 million dollars! The audience in the auction hall whipped themselves into a frenzy when someone added a whole 10 million dollars. Hearing the familiar voice, Celia frowned and looked toward the entrance. Yardley's tall figure came into view.He was dressed in a well-fitted suit paired with a dark green tie, exuding nobility and elegance. He walked into the banquet hall with steady strides. Celia's breath hitched in her throat. Why was Yardley here?Reporters swarmed over in the blink of an eye. "Mr. Hughes, how'd you find the time to attend tonight's charity auction?" Yardley replied apathetically, "I'm just doing my part for charity." "Mr. Hughes, what—"The reporter wanted to ask more questions, but Yardley waved his hand to indicate that h
"It's true. Celia is nothing but a flirt. She seduces men left and right everywhere she goes. She doesn't deserve you."Willow continued to speak poorly of Celia. "She had a fling with Parker, a thing with Norman, and now she's even gone to a bar in the dead of the night to flirt with men while she's in Festras. Yardley, she's cheating on you behind your back. Why don't you get it?""Shut up." Yardley yanked his tie in frustration in response to Willow's incessant chatter. He raised his hand to check his wristwatch. He was perplexed as to why Celia hadn't returned yet, despite having been in the restroom for quite some time. He was afraid that she might have left in anger. He picked up his phone and called Celia, but her phone was turned off. Yardley stood up and walked toward the restroom, slightly concerned. "Yardley, where are you going?" Willow inquired. However, he completely ignored her. She stood up and hurriedly followed after him. Her eyes
Yardley knocked on the door, but the restroom was locked from the inside."Celia, are you in there? What's going on?"There was no response. Worried about Celia's safety, he forcefully pushed the door open.As soon as the door swung open, Yardley noticed two Festrasian men lying on the ground. Their faces were pale and contorted in pain. Celia, on the other hand, had her arms crossed across her chest. She was looking down at Annie, who had fallen to the ground. "What happened here, Celia?" He walked over to her.He was puzzled. He thought Celia was being bullied. He hadn't expected to see such a scene. Celia turned around and said casually, "Oh, it's nothing." "What happened to your neck?" Yardley frowned as his gaze landed on Celia's neck.Annie had left a red scratch mark on Celia's neck from where she'd pressed the knife. It was a very fine line that no one would notice unless they looked closely. Celia hadn't noticed it at first, but she felt a slight st
Celia didn't know what to feel at that moment.She looked up at the man in front of her. Her heart skipped a beat as their eyes met. "Thank you." Celia reached out and took the plush cat. The cat's fur was stained with Yardley's fresh blood. Its original white fur had turned dark red in certain places. Yardley chuckled when she took the plush cat."Feeling better?"He reached out and pulled Celia into his arms. He whispered into her ear, "I meant every word I said to you yesterday. Trust me, okay?"Celia plastered a smile on her face but didn't respond. Instead, she gently pushed him away. "Let go of me first." "You smiled! Does that mean you're not angry anymore?" he asked. "Does it matter if I'm angry or not?" Celia stroked the plush cat in her hand gently. "It matters a lot," he answered solemnly as he looked into her eyes. She pursed her lips and remained silent. After a while, he asked, "What happened in the restroom just now?""Oh, nothing muc
Celia found it hard to believe that the plane had lost control out of the blue.Her heart raced as panic and fear washed over her.Yardley patted her shoulder and stood up. His remarkably handsome face had become exceptionally cold. "I'll go take a look." He headed toward the cockpit after he said that. "I'll go with you." Her face was as pale as a ghost's. Celia was already afraid of heights, so the plane's shaking made her feel extremely uncomfortable."Alright." Yardley extended his right hand and pulled Celia into his embrace before comforting her. "It's okay. Don't be afraid." The plane was still shaking violently, so she found it exceedingly difficult to walk.Her heart was racing with a terrifying sense of impending doom. Fortunately, Yardley's firm grip on her provided her with a sense of security she had never felt before. The couple quickly arrived at the cockpit. "What's going on?" He frowned as he looked at the captain.The captain's fo
"Hmm?" Yardley held her in his arms. His deep gaze was filled with anticipation and nervousness as it locked onto her face."Yardley, my answer is—I agree." Celia pressed her lips to his ear and whispered, "I'm willing to spend the rest of my life with you."She then looked at the man in front of her tenderly. Her red lips parted, and she added firmly, "No matter life or death.""Celia, I've been waiting for this answer for a long time." Yardley's eyes sparkled with excitement as he grinned. He lowered his head to kiss the woman he held tightly in his embrace. His breath caught in his throat as that familiar feeling washed over him."Cece, Cece …" he kept murmuring her name. He wrapped his strong and sturdy arms around Celia's slender waist and deepened the kiss. That electrifying sensation surged through her entire body as the two of them kissed passionately. Her heart had never raced like this before.Celia finally understood her own feelings after that near-d
After all, there was no signal above the sea. Celia wasn't sure if the necklace her grandfather had given her would be able to transmit the distress signal."It'll work." Yardley arched his brow as he looked into her eyes. He had never seen such a transmitter before. He was still under the impression that Celia's grandfather was just an old man from the countryside. Hence, he was curious as to how Barnaby could possess such advanced technology. He looked at her inquisitively. His fiancée was not an average woman. However, he didn't want to ask about it if Celia didn't bring it up. He liked her for who she was, not for her identity or background. Celia looked around as they got closer to the sea's surface. There were faint outlines of several islands in the distance.Her heart swelled with joy. Just as she was about to tell Yardley, she heard his magnetic voice. "Cece, do you see those islands over there?" "Yeah." She nodded. "I was just about to te
"What's wrong, Yardley?" Celia asked in concern, noticing that something was off with him. Pain coursed through his body from the wound. Yardley took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, and forced a smile. "I'm okay." "But—" She wanted to see what was really going on with him, but he cut her off."Shh, don't talk. Conserve your energy." He placed his slender finger on her lips and made a hushing gesture. But she was still worried. "Are you really okay?""Mhm," he said dismissively. "Let's not waste any more time and hurry over." The couple worked together and swam rhythmically toward the direction of the island. Yardley kept an eye out for passing boats as he swam toward the island with Celia. Unfortunately, this area appeared to be undeveloped and remote, with no boats passing by. His thoughts drifted away as he gazed out at the vast sea. His father had taken a cruise out to sea and had also encountered a fierce storm. James had died tragically a
In fact, Yardley didn't tell anyone. … Meanwhile, Morgan stumbled upon a surprising find. She discovered two healthy, month-old babies at the orphanage. "Director, is it true that no one wants such young babies?" Morgan felt a bit emotional. How could people be so heartless as to abandon their own babies? The director of the orphanage let out a deep sigh. "You don't know the whole story. Our janitor found these babies at the orphanage's entrance. Someone left them there and disappeared. "We've been taking care of them for about half a month now, and their condition has improved significantly." Looking at the adorable babies, Morgan couldn't shake the feeling that they belonged to Celia. "I'm here on behalf of Yardley Hughes else to adopt these children, but..." Morgan expressed her concerns. Morgan anticipated the orphanage director's refusal. To her surprise, he actually agreed. "The opportunity for these two babies to have some good days is preferable to nothing.
"Let's go, Celia. We shouldn't disturb the twins' rest," said Yardley as he supported Celia and got ready to leave. Celia waved her hand and stood in front of the incubator. Even with the glass barrier, she could still discern the condition of her children. She reached out to touch them, as if her touch could make them feel her presence. She resolved to take her children home safely. Celia lingered for a while before finally leaving the hospital. Once they were home, Celia locked herself in her room, disregarding any attempts anyone made to talk to her. Yardley headed to the company to attend to some matters, while the housekeepers remained at home. Meanwhile, Morgan couldn't shake her concern for Celia, so she came to visit her. Upon entering, she heard the housekeepers upstairs calling out, "Mrs. Hughes, are you feeling better? Come out and have some soup!" However, there was no response from inside. "What's going on?" Morgan asked. The housekeepers promptly briefed
Sophie had failed to get Celia's forgiveness. So, she had no choice but to pin all her hopes on Morgan.She took all the supplements to Morgan's apartment. Richard was staying there with her.Ever since the incident with Celia, Sophie's relationship with Richard had become very strained. They barely talked to one another.Sophie knocked on the door for a long time, but no one came out.She could only wait outside. After two hours, she finally saw Morgan and Richard. They came into view, laughing and holding each other's hands.This scene pained Sophie deeply."What are you doing here?" Morgan's cheerful expression faltered the moment she saw Sophie.Sophie could only put on a smile and say, "I brought all these for you. I was wrong to come between your relationship with my son."Richard glanced at the items on the ground. He could tell from a glance that they were meant for postpartum care and immediately understood why Sophie was there."Mom, you should be honest. You got the
Otto didn't back down and insisted on his right to see his grandchildren. However, Yardley paid him no mind. He shook his head and said, "Celia needs rest. Please come back another day."The next second, he instructed the housekeepers to close the door and left Otto standing outside. Otto stomped his walking cane on the ground in frustration but had no choice but to leave.As Yardley made his way back inside the villa, he thought of another troubling matter.Although they had brought their children home, the twins had been weak because they had been born prematurely. They had appointed a family doctor to treat the twins but hadn't seen much improvement in their health. Yardley sanitized himself before he went into the nursery. He felt pained when he heard the twins' weak breaths."Mr. Hughes." The family doctor spoke up with a frown, indicating that the situation was far from ideal."The baby girl has been slowly recovering, but the boy remains very weak. I don't think the n
"Don't worry. She's fine. She's just a bit weak at the moment."Remembering Yardley's words outside the ward, the doctor felt a wave of nervousness. He could tell that Yardley and Celia weren't ordinary people judging by their attire. They were certainly not ones to be trifled with."Did you say that we had twins?" Yardley turned to ask the nurse after learning that Celia was alright."Yes, sir." The nurse chuckled inwardly. She found that, despite Yardley's intimidating appearance, he was a very devoted husband.Soon, Celia was moved out of the operating room and into a VIP ward.Yardley gently wiped the sweat from Celia's face again. He took in her pale complexion; it was a sign of how much she had suffered."How's Celia?"Sounds of hurried footsteps came from outside. Ashley and the others had come over. Yardley turned and signaled them to leave.Celia had just given birth, so she needed a quiet environment to rest. Having too many visitors might affect her recovery.Ever
"How could you hit me because of her? I'm the mother of your child!" Sophie shrieked.She had never suffered such humiliation. She had been showered with love from a young age and wasn't accustomed to such harsh treatment. So, she became agitated and emotional."Isn't it all because of you that things turned out this way? Would such a thing have happened to our company? Would Richard suddenly want to break all ties with us? It's all because of your reckless behavior!" Chester vented years of suppressed grievances and dissatisfaction as if it would make him feel better.Celia watched as Chester and Sophie argued fiercely. She stepped forward to stop them, especially since there were many people outside watching the spectacle."Stop fighting. This isn't the time or the place for arguments!"Sophie went at Chester and started hitting him. Celia tried to break up their fight, but Sophie pushed her. Celia took a few steps back at that. She didn't attempt to intervene anymore."It's
"Mrs. Black, we'd intended to negotiate amicably with you and achieve a satisfactory outcome for both parties. "The decision to move out was mine, and I asked Celia to come over and help me out. If you're unwilling to be decent and compromise, then let's end things between our families here."Morgan felt relieved after expressing her thoughts. It was like a significant weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "What do you mean?" Richard panicked. Just when their relationship had slightly improved, the situation took a turn for the worse again."We're breaking up for good!"Morgan left after saying that. Jessica and Darby left with her, leaving the Blacks behind."This is all your doing! Look what you've done! How many times have I told you not to be so assertive and bossy? Why don't you ever consider my feelings?" Richard punched the couch angrily, his heart filled with bitterness.Sophie hadn't wanted things to turn out this way either, but she had been too angry and spoke
"It's fine. You two can go if you have something else to attend to," Jessica said.Soon, Celia arrived at the Blacks' residence with Jessica and Darby.Sophie opened the door and was surprised to see Celia standing at the doorstep with Jessica and Darby. She couldn't understand what Celia was up to.Once they were inside, Celia didn't beat around the bush and stated her purpose directly. "I think you might be having some misunderstandings about Morgan."Sophie smiled without saying anything."Don't you think you're interfering too much in Morgan's personal life?" Celia questioned.Upon hearing this, Sophie realized why they were there. Having discussed the issue with Chester, Sophie had finally agreed not to interfere in Richard's and Morgan's lives.So, she didn't object to Celia's words. She even agreed with Celia, much to the latter's surprise.Under normal circumstances, Sophie would have argued with her. Why was she being so agreeable this time?"How about you sign a writ
After saying that, Celia hung up.On the other end, Quinn felt very displeased. After all, it was her party, and she had personally called Celia to invite her. Quinn felt that Celia had snubbed her by refusing to attend.Quinn thought about it for a moment. If Celia didn't come, Yardley probably wouldn't either. If both of them didn't show up, it would be embarrassing for Quinn.So, she decided to go and find Celia.…Morgan was taking refuge at Celia's place, so she answered the door when Quinn came over."I'm here to see Celia."Celia had instructed Morgan to turn away anyone she didn't recognize, no matter who it was. Hence, Morgan said, "Celia isn't seeing anyone today. Please come back another time."To Morgan's surprise, her words ignited the anger that Quinn had been suppressing in her heart. The two quickly started arguing.Celia listened to their argument from her room. She regretted asking Morgan to handle Quinn. She had expected that Quinn would come looking for her