More than ten years had passed, yet Celeste still remembered everything clearly.She recalled that day—how she had gone to the restroom, heartbroken, and when she returned, she saw Erin holding two ice creams, one for her and one for Wynn.One of them had been slightly scraped when a waiter carrying a dirty tray accidentally brushed against it, leaving a bit of grease on it.Wynn immediately picked the untouched one.Erin had merely ruffled her hair with a smile. She didn't bother to replace the dirty one with a new one.When she returned, Erin handed her the damaged ice cream without saying a word about why a chunk was missing.At that time, given the Locket family's financial status, buying not just one but a thousand, even ten thousand ice creams, would have been no issue at all.Yet, she simply didn't replace it.It was at that moment that she became acutely aware—Erin's feelings for her had long since changed.She would also never forget the look on young Wynn's face as s
As they walked further away, Oscar asked, "Is there something going on between you both and the Lockets?"Matthias and Celeste exchanged a glance. Then, Celeste said, "No, there isn't."It wasn't a misunderstanding, after all.However, Oscar misunderstood her words, thinking that she truly had no conflicts with the Lockets. "Very well then." Oscar was optimistic about YodaVision's prospects. Hence, he remarked sincerely, "Considering how highly Trevor regards Ms. Locket, the Locket family is about to skyrocket in status. The Flemings, especially Trevor, are not people to mess with. Even if you don't want to get close to the Lockets, it's best not to provoke them."Celeste smiled, realizing what Oscar had said was quite ironic. Who else but her would ever be told to maintain a good relationship with her husband's mistress, all because her husband cared about his mistress too much?Matthias couldn't stand listening to that as well.He said, "We're not afraid of Trevor at all.
Basically, Trevor wasn't going to attend the celebration.Why did Celeste have to ask any further then?Thus, without adding anything, she ended the call.Celeste used to ask him every year to join her at the Rodriguez residence for Betty's birthday. However, Trevor didn't seem to realize that she hadn't asked him this year.After Celeste ended the call, he handed the phone back to Jordyn and said, "Mom will be fetching you to Granny's place tomorrow night. Make sure you listen to her on Saturday and don't go anywhere."Jordyn pursed her lips. "But…"Trevor remained silent, staring at her expressionlessly. Jordyn then realized that there was no room for discussion. Hence, she mumbled reluctantly, "Okay…"Trevor nodded. "Good girl." With a pout, Jordyn insisted, "But I want to go see Wynn on Sunday, and you have to come along.""Alright," Trevor replied with a faint smile.…On Friday night, Celeste went to the Fleming manor after work.She noticed Trevor right after she
Jordyn didn't notice the indifference in Celeste's tone. She breathed out a sigh of relief upon hearing what Celeste had just said. Ivan handed his gift to Betty, and Celeste followed afterward. The first gift she gave Betty was an embroidery painting. "Grandma had Trevor help prepare this painting for you."Betty took the painting, unfolded it, and examined it for a while. It was exactly what she wanted. Smiling with satisfaction, she said, "How considerate of her."Next, Celeste handed the emerald jewelry set to Betty. "This is from Trevor."The jewelry set was of exceptional quality. Betty liked it a lot. However, since it was a gift from Trevor, she closed the box and put it away right after she took a glance at it. She remarked in a neutral tone, "It looks lovely. Pass along my thanks to him for me."She never asked whether Trevor would come to celebrate her birthday.She didn't care enough to ask, nor did she want to. Celeste knew Betty wasn't fond of Trevor. She'd
Some of them didn't want to cross Trevor. However, some of them were eager to establish good relations with the Lockets and Shaws. After all, the Rodriguez family had been struggling quite a bit in recent years. The Lockets and Shaws, on the contrary, had Trevor backing them up, so it was clear what the right choice was. Robert left after apologizing to Ivan. Betty and Adeline didn't pay attention to it at first. As more guests arrived and only to leave shortly after, and with the meal about to begin, fewer and fewer people remained in the banquet hall. A lot of seats were left empty, and they finally realized something was off.Frowning, Betty and Adeline walked over and asked, "Why have so many guests left? What happened?"Ivan and Celeste were at a loss for words. At this point, they could only tell them the truth. Ivan uttered, "The Shaws and Lockets have moved to Baumond, and the Shaws held a housewarming party today. Besides, they have sent invitations to most of
Seeing the endless stream of arriving guests, Patricia and Mason were all smiles.It was just as what the Rodriguez family thought, they did remember Betty's birthday. No, in fact, after so many years of celebrating Betty's birthday, forgetting it was simply out of the question. Thus, it was no coincidence that they held their housewarming party today. They couldn't help but fume, thinking back to how they had planned to move across from the Rodriguez family, only for Celeste to interfere and enlist Trevor's help, throwing their plans into disarray. But Trevor later made up for it, and ironically, they ended up better off because of it. It made them even more delighted, thinking about how they had scheduled their housewarming party to clash with the Rodriguez family's event and successfully diverted their guests. "Their party must be nearly empty now, huh?" Linda stifled a quiet laugh. "They couldn't even keep their guests after all that effort. It's just humiliating at th
Just then, Beck and Miles arrived. The moment the Shaws and Lockets noticed the two, they went up to them.After all, these two were anything but ordinary in Baumond. It was only natural that they held the two in high regard. Linda had already met Beck before. The moment she laid eyes on him again today, a blush crept onto her face, barely concealed by her makeup.Ruby laughed, seeing Linda's reaction. The Harpers were just as distinguished as the Flemings, and with Beck's remarkable qualities, the Shaws were more than happy to see Linda take an interest in him.With Wynn and Trevor a certainty, and now Linda and Beck potentially forming a match, the Shaws would definitely hold undeniable power in Baumond in the future. With that in mind, the Shaws showed even greater enthusiasm when talking to Beck and Miler.Wynn furrowed her brows when she noticed the Shaws' attitude toward the two men. She thought they were being too sycophantic.As friends, Wynn and Beck were e
With that, Matthias interrupted, "Can we hold off for a bit, Mr. Rodriguez? There's someone else coming, and they should be here in ten minutes."Ivan was well aware of how Matthias and Celeste were connected.Matthias had always taken care of Celeste as well. Hence, Betty and Ivan were pretty grateful to him. Upon hearing what Matthias had just said, Ivan asked, "Is he by himself? We still have empty seats at the main table if he doesn't mind joining us.""He's totally okay with it," Matthias replied. "Okay."Ivan nodded and instructed the staff to serve the other tables first, while their dishes would be served later. As the first few dishes arrived, Matthias glanced at his phone. Then, he pulled Celeste aside and said, "The person is here. I'll go get them."Celeste nodded. The moment she turned around, she heard a familiar yet icy voice. "No need, I'm here already."Celeste was stunned. She immediately turned around. "Mr. Newman?"Zachary hummed a reply.The remaini
Jordyn wrapped her arms around Celeste's neck, burying her small face against it to shield herself from the cold wind.Celeste's clothes were soft and warm, and Jordyn snuggled into her embrace, rubbing her face against her neck with enjoyment.Trevor was always punctual. By the time Celeste carried Jordyn to the parking lot, his car had pulled in.Seeing them, the car stopped right beside Celeste.Even though her dad had arrived, Jordyn didn't get down from Celeste's arms. Instead, she playfully said to Trevor, who had lowered the car window, "Dad, carry me inside."Trevor didn't say anything. He simply got out of the car and took Jordyn from Celeste's arms.Happily, Jordyn swung her legs in the air while nestled in his hold.As Trevor leaned in to take her, Celeste caught a familiar scent—Wynn's perfume.When he had been sitting beside her earlier, he hadn't smelled like this.This meant that after leaving them, he had gone to the Shaw family.Trevor looked at her and said,
Zachary said, "Sure."Trevor nodded and turned to Celeste. "Are you going home tonight?"Celeste had still been going over the conversation between Trevor and Zachary in her head. When he suddenly spoke to her, she paused for a moment before responding, "No."Trevor nodded again. "Got it." Then he stood up and said, "I'll come by later to pick Jo up."That meant he was leaving.Celeste replied coldly, "Got it."Trevor didn't say anything else to her. Instead, he walked over to Betty and said, "Madam Klein, I have things to attend to, so I'll be leaving now."Betty didn't stand up, and her tone was equally cold, "Sure. I won't see you off."Trevor didn't seem bothered by her indifference. He turned to Ivan, gave him a slight nod as a form of greeting, and then left the banquet hall.Outside the hotel, Beck had just stepped out of his car when he saw Trevor walking out. His movements stalled for a brief moment.Trevor quickly got into his car and drove off.Beck watched but re
Neither Celeste nor Trevor spoke again.Celeste's younger cousins had rarely seen Trevor before. Now that they were seeing him in person, they couldn't help but look at him with curiosity.As someone who had held a position of power for years, Trevor exuded authority effortlessly, even without trying. When he noticed their gazes, he glanced at them briefly.Unable to meet his eyes, they instinctively looked away, not daring to stare any longer.Trevor showed no reaction to this, nor did he make any effort to exchange pleasantries. He simply shifted his gaze away, calm and indifferent.Trevor was the man Celeste loved. She had thrown herself into this love headfirst, and after all these years, she still couldn't escape.Given the way Trevor had treated his own niece for so long, it was impossible for Ivan not to harbor resentment toward him.However, what could he do?The Rodriguez family was powerless against Trevor.Now that Trevor was here, as the host, Ivan had no choice bu
Wynn didn't panic at all when she heard that Trevor was at the Rodriguez family's party.After all, Martha had such a close relationship with Betty. She'd definitely let Trevor attend Betty's 70th birthday on her behalf since she couldn't make it herself.Wynn had known this long ago. Still, she was a little upset even though Trevor was there because of Martha's order. When the crowd found out that Trevor went to the Rodriguez family's party instead of coming here, they assumed something had happened between Wynn and Trevor. Wynn remarked in a cold voice, "Madam Daniels and Madam Klein have a good relationship, and Trevor was only there as instructed by Madam Daniels."There had been rumors that the Rodriguez family and the Fleming family were on good terms.But people hadn't seen them interacting with each other before, so they only took it as a rumor.Perhaps it was true then, judging by what Wynn had said. At that moment, someone came in. They had a gift box in their
"Yes."Linda scoffed. "That's so shameless of her!"Just talking about that made her upset. "Could it be that they have a great connection, which is why such a significant person is attending her birthday?""No," Wynn replied coldly. "They just barely know each other." From her perspective, Celeste got to know Zachary through Matthias. So, the reason why Zachary was there today was probably because of Matthias."Oh, okay," Linda said.Beck and Miles were sitting at the table beside Wynn's, right behind her.Initially, Beck was quietly enjoying his meal. He paused for a moment when he heard how Zachary was at Betty's birthday party. He asked, "The Rodriguez family's birthday party?"Miles then explained, "Oh, today's the birthday of Celeste's maternal grandmother. The parties for the Rodriguez family and the Shaw family are on the same day, and the guest lists coincide. Thus, most of the overlapping guests are attending this one because of Trevor and Wynn."Miles had no prio
Celeste was sitting beside Zachary.He was still talking to Betty, and he hadn't spared her a glance yet. Celeste turned a little to Matthias. "Thank you, Matthias."She could tell that Betty was in a much better mood after Zachary came. "There's no need to thank me." Matthias shrugged. "Mr. Newman just happened to reply to me regarding the project you came up with not long ago. Then I told him about this, and he came. So, really, you should be thanking yourself."As Celeste was about to speak, she heard someone mention Trevor's name. Hesitating for a moment, she turned around, only to see Trevor at the entrance. With all eyes on him, he approached Betty with steady steps. "Happy birthday."Then, he handed the gift box to her and said, "Just in case the first gift wasn't to your taste, I brought another. I hope you like it."Betty didn't realize Trevor would attend at all. Yet his arrival didn't bring joy to her.Sure, the Shaws were shameless, but without his support,
With that, Matthias interrupted, "Can we hold off for a bit, Mr. Rodriguez? There's someone else coming, and they should be here in ten minutes."Ivan was well aware of how Matthias and Celeste were connected.Matthias had always taken care of Celeste as well. Hence, Betty and Ivan were pretty grateful to him. Upon hearing what Matthias had just said, Ivan asked, "Is he by himself? We still have empty seats at the main table if he doesn't mind joining us.""He's totally okay with it," Matthias replied. "Okay."Ivan nodded and instructed the staff to serve the other tables first, while their dishes would be served later. As the first few dishes arrived, Matthias glanced at his phone. Then, he pulled Celeste aside and said, "The person is here. I'll go get them."Celeste nodded. The moment she turned around, she heard a familiar yet icy voice. "No need, I'm here already."Celeste was stunned. She immediately turned around. "Mr. Newman?"Zachary hummed a reply.The remaini
Just then, Beck and Miles arrived. The moment the Shaws and Lockets noticed the two, they went up to them.After all, these two were anything but ordinary in Baumond. It was only natural that they held the two in high regard. Linda had already met Beck before. The moment she laid eyes on him again today, a blush crept onto her face, barely concealed by her makeup.Ruby laughed, seeing Linda's reaction. The Harpers were just as distinguished as the Flemings, and with Beck's remarkable qualities, the Shaws were more than happy to see Linda take an interest in him.With Wynn and Trevor a certainty, and now Linda and Beck potentially forming a match, the Shaws would definitely hold undeniable power in Baumond in the future. With that in mind, the Shaws showed even greater enthusiasm when talking to Beck and Miler.Wynn furrowed her brows when she noticed the Shaws' attitude toward the two men. She thought they were being too sycophantic.As friends, Wynn and Beck were e
Seeing the endless stream of arriving guests, Patricia and Mason were all smiles.It was just as what the Rodriguez family thought, they did remember Betty's birthday. No, in fact, after so many years of celebrating Betty's birthday, forgetting it was simply out of the question. Thus, it was no coincidence that they held their housewarming party today. They couldn't help but fume, thinking back to how they had planned to move across from the Rodriguez family, only for Celeste to interfere and enlist Trevor's help, throwing their plans into disarray. But Trevor later made up for it, and ironically, they ended up better off because of it. It made them even more delighted, thinking about how they had scheduled their housewarming party to clash with the Rodriguez family's event and successfully diverted their guests. "Their party must be nearly empty now, huh?" Linda stifled a quiet laugh. "They couldn't even keep their guests after all that effort. It's just humiliating at th