"Noelle?" Joseph was stunned. "What's Noelle got to do with Sir Hoffman's birthday bash? Could that girl even set foot in the Hoffman estate?" Joseph was sure he had gotten it wrong. He had never thought much of Noelle and saw her as an overlooked Shaw daughter. He would not have let Xavier break it off with her if he saw her as anything more.Xavier could tell by the look on Joseph's face that he really did not think much of Noelle, which left a sour taste in his mouth. They did not like her, and she did not like them either. "Dad, Noelle's gotten married.""Married? To who? Don't tell me it's Sean." He had caught wind of the news. "Who cares? I think you should forget about her. No matter how great she is, she's not yours.""That's right, Xavier. Your dad's got a point. You're married to Winter now, so forget about your past with Noelle. You're not a kid anymore. It's time to think about the big picture!""No, she didn't marry Sean. It’s... Charles. She married Charles." Xavier f
"If Winter hadn't visited the Hoffmans today, we'd still be clueless. They've been married for ages, yet that sneaky brat kept it under wraps so well. I bet she's...""She did the right thing!" Samuel’s voice echoed from upstairs. With Eli helping him down, Samuel's icy stare swept across Jade and Julian before settling on Winter."Noelle's made a good match. Shouldn't you be happy for her, as her parents and big sister? Instead, you're throwing a fit and smashing things up! What a lovely family.” Samuel's voice dripped with sarcasm."What's there to be happy about? That girl got married and didn't bother to tell her own family. Winter says she's been Mrs. Charles for over six months now, but she kept quiet about it. Winter and I have been running around playing matchmaker while she's already tied the knot. It makes us look like total chumps. How can I be thrilled about having a daughter like that?""Seriously, you don’t deserve to be happy!" Samuel huffed, his voice icy. "As Noell
“Preposterous!” Samuel thumped his cane against the ground as he glared at Winter. “Noelle is your sister. Why would she not be a real daughter of the Shaw family?” As Samuel spoke, he glared at Jade so vehemently that she could not stop herself from shuddering. Samuel was genuinely angry. In all her years of marriage to the Shaw family, Jade had rarely seen Samuel lose his temper. “Father, Winter was just speaking nonsense. Please don’t take it to heart!” As Jade spoke, she glanced at Winter through the corner of her eye. "The child has not been in the greatest of moods recently, but she and Noelle have always been close to each other. Isn’t that right, Winter?”Jade tugged on Winter’s hand. "Winter, set things straight with your grandfather now!” “I…” “Winter was wrong, and it’s also my fault for not teaching her better, Dad.” Finally, Julian, who had been silent all this while, spoke up. He sighed softly. "I’ll make sure to teach Winter better. She and Nolle are sisters, and
One fine day, Colossus Group welcomed a special guest—Kelly’s son, Seth. It was not Kelly who brought him over, but one of the Hoffman family’s help staff instead. Apparently, the child had been sobbing and asking for Kelly at home, so Sir Anderson did not know what else to do other than ask the help to bring Seth to the office. At that very moment, Kelly was photocopying documents on the 27th floor. She had spent the past few days trying to enter Charles’ office and gain closer access to him, but every attempt so far had been unsuccessful. Just earlier, she had tried once again but was told that Charles was not in. It frustrated Kelly, but all she could do was repress her frustration. There was actually nowhere in particular Charles needed to be. However, Noelle seemed to be taking deliberate steps to avoid him recently and had spent the past few days out on business trips. This meant Charles had no time to speak to her at all. The number of times the two had met at the office
Charles stiffened slightly before he immediately frowned. “Yes!” “That was how I felt the other day,” Noelle said as she reached out and placed her hands against Charles’ chest. She could feel his heart thumping madly through his shirt. Noelle tugged the corner of her lips upward into a slight, sad smile. “I’ve been lied to and betrayed in the past. However, that never hurt as much as this did.” Noelle was speaking softly, but her words felt like hammers hitting Charles’ chest hard.“Charlie, I’ve never thought about leaving you throughout our entire relationship. What about you?” “Me too!” Charles said. “I’ve never thought of leaving you either!” “What about Kelly Anderson? This is the only time I’ll ask you this question. What is your relationship with her?” Charles lowered his gaze and fell silent. Noelle’s heart began racing as she gazed at Charles. She was waiting for an answer for him. However, the longer she waited, the more anxious she felt. Finally, she spoke. “Yo
“Yes, that seems to be the case. His DNA isn’t an extremely high match to Grandpa’s, but he is still a member of the Hoffman family.” Charles felt annoyance wash over him whenever he thought of those results. He was confident that he was not Seth’s father, but this fact caused him so much worry. The Hoffman family was huge, but only a few were direct descendants of the original family line. Other than himself, the men of the original family line included Sir Hoffman, his father, and his Uncle Henry. There was no way Uncle Henry would have children with another woman, which made his father the most likely suspect. If that were the case, Charles was at a loss as to what he should do. Charles pinched the space between his eyebrows. It seemed he had run into a massive problem this time. When Noelle noticed the look on Charles’ face, the first thing she thought of was not the fact that Charles had lied to her but everything that was going on between him and the Hoffman family. “You…”
Charles smiled slightly, the look in his eyes equal parts happiness and admiration. “So, you’ve been putting up with Kelly all this while not just because she saved your life but also because of Seth and his biological father?” “Yes!” Charles nodded. “I don’t know who Seth’s biological father is yet, but I know it’s definitely someone in the Hoffman family.” “But, the Hoffman family…” Noelle was tempted to point out the fact that other than Charles, the only Hoffman men were his grandfather, father, and uncle. All three men seemed unlikely to have such a relationship with Kelly. Charles could immediately tell Noelle was overthinking things. “Actually, there’s one other person besides my father and uncle who’s part of the same bloodline as me.” “Who?” Noelle was stunned. “I’ve never heard of such a person!” “It’s not just you. Even I don’t remember him very well. If I hadn’t considered how my father and uncle couldn't be involved in this matter, I wouldn’t have thought of him
Kelly's words were like a thunderclap in the clear sky, leaving everyone around stunned. Though she did not explicitly state her point, her comments strongly implied a connection between her and Charles, sparking a wave of speculation.Rumors spread like wildfire. By the next day, as Noelle and Charles resumed their usual routine of him dropping her off at work, whispers filled the air at the entrance of Collosus Group. The moment Noelle walked through the doors, she caught snippets of hushed conversations."Did you hear? Ms. Anderson brought her child to the company yesterday and claimed the kid is Mr. Hoffman's!""Yes, exactly! That child must be about three years old. Who would've thought Mr. Hoffman already had a son that grown?""But I don't think Mr. Hoffman has any feelings for Kelly. If anything, he seems more interested in Noelle from the project department... Didn't he spend all that time driving her to and from work?""True, but who can say for sure? They look so alike.
"This is my best friend and roommate, Liliana. Liliana, meet Sean," Tania introduced, not missing a beat to bring Liliana into the spotlight. Liliana, who had tried to make herself invisible when Sean walked over, was suddenly the center of attention.Feeling two pairs of eyes on her made Liliana squirm. She mustered all her courage and said, "Hello, Sean, Joanna," in a voice barely above a whisper. She quickly looked down, wishing for nothing more than for Sean and Joanna to go away. Tense all over, Liliana missed the shadow that crossed Sean's face.Tania watched Liliana's stiff behavior with a frown. She knew Liliana was not usually this shy—no, it was caution, not shyness.Tania knew her friend well after so many years. Liliana was never this guarded, even with strangers. However, she was all nerves and tension now.Tania snuck a peek at Sean and saw he was still watching Liliana. She giggled and teased, "Are you looking at Liliana?" Liliana looked up at Tania's words, and so
Joanna did not think much of it. She just found it a bit unfortunate. Still, she knew this was not the time to reveal any reaction. Instead, she simply turned her head and smiled, poised and gracious. "Sean, do you still remember those two juniors?"Sean only seemed to notice Tania and Liliana then. "Who are they?"He spoke in an unemotional tone. They were not very close, but they were not too far away either.Liliana's face went white when she heard Sean's voice, but she took a deep breath. Her heart fluttered when she saw Sean and his friends approaching, but she managed to keep her face calm."Hey, do you remember me?" Joanna asked, looking at Tania and Liliana with poise. In her mind, she saw Tania as a serious competitor and hardly gave a second glance to the girl at Tania's side, missing Liliana's anxious look.Tania was not someone to underestimate. She did not have any issues with Joanna, but Joanna's challenging look made it clear. Was she trying to start something?Eve
Liliana felt Tania's eyes on her and bit her lip. "I guess!" She tried to act normal and quickly looked away from where Sean was.Liliana could try to hide all she wanted, but Sean had already seen her. He did not just see Liliana but also noticed Tania next to her. When his eyes landed on Tania, a subtle spark flashed through them, but he quickly looked away."Sean, I really didn’t think you would come." Joanna was genuinely surprised to see Sean. She had mentioned the talk to him before, but he had not made any promises.Joanna had her own ambitions too. She had been studying medicine for five years, and this was her final year. With graduation just around the corner, she really wanted to land a great job. It just so happened that Sean was the dean of his own hospital, and thanks to some school gossip, everyone thought she was Sean's girlfriend. They all expected her to work at Sean's hospital after graduation.Joanna was quite proud of her skills in her field.However, she was
On Wednesday, Liliana and Tania got a message from their mentor. The school wanted to make sure their graduating class had some guidance as they started their new lives in the real world. Thus, they had planned a special talk in the school auditorium with some super successful Vista University grads sharing their tips.Liliana and Tania had jobs lined up, but they knew some advice from the pros could still be a big help. They showed up at school bright and early."Wow! I thought our class was pretty sharp, but look at all these people here to learn more," Tania said, surprised by the crowd.Liliana chuckled. "Being smart doesn't mean you can't learn something new," she teased.Tania gave her a playful look. "Oh, come on. Don't call me out like that!" she said, giving Liliana's arm a gentle tug. "Hey, look over there! Isn't that Joanna from the med department?"Tania did not really remember Joanna all that well, but she knew her as one of the girls who had won the title of pretties
Charles's face took on a more serious look. "Alright. You should head back first."Liliana let out a relieved smile and nodded. "Okay, I will.""Liliana," Charles called out to her again. She stopped and turned to face him. "Yes? Is there something else?"Charles narrowed his eyes and said, "Make sure you come home when you have the chance."Liliana tensed up when she heard that. She bit her lip, looking a bit troubled, but Charles did not wait for her to respond. "Go ahead!"She let out a sigh of relief and quickly left.Charles watched Liliana walk away for a long time before he turned around. Suddenly, he heard a clear, beautiful voice nearby, "Xavier, I've already told you I'm busy today. I can't hang out with you!"Charles paused because of the voice. A cute girl walked by him, sounding slightly annoyed but happy, "Yeah, I've already made plans with Rowena and Teresa. Let's leave it at that!"After the girl ended her call, she felt someone watching her, making her uneasy.
Liliana froze for a moment, then turned to see Sean and Joanna sitting not too far away.Joanna was facing away, unaware of Liliana's gaze, but Sean was at an angle where Liliana could easily see the look on his face.He always seemed so annoyed when he was with her, but with Joanna, he was all smiles and warmth. Even though Liliana knew where she stood with Sean, her heart still skipped a beat every time she saw him with Joanna.They had to be a couple, right? After all, they were together at Faris, sharing a couple's meal.Liliana was unsure how to feel, but then she remembered she and Sean were nothing to each other, and she chided herself for being foolish.Charles's eyes narrowed thoughtfully, and he tapped his long fingers on the table, pulling Liliana back from her thoughts. She turned to see his deep, mysterious gaze and quickly gathered her wits. "Charles!" she called out.Charles glanced in the same direction everyone else was looking and saw Sean with a woman. He notic
"Um… Sir, ma’am, our restaurant has a special couple's meal deal that's quite affordable. Would you like to try it?""Ah, no thanks. We're not a couple, we're siblings!" Liliana said quickly. "The couple's meal wouldn't be right for us.""Oops, I’m sorry about that. In that case, what would you like to order, Miss?"Liliana looked over at Charles, who gave her a quick glance and frowned slightly. "Pick whatever you feel like eating!""Alright!" Liliana nodded, chose a few things from the menu that looked good and were not too pricey, and handed the menu back to Charles.Charles added one more item to the order, then paused and turned to Liliana. "You're graduating next year, right?""Yep!" Liliana responded, almost childlike in front of Charles. "I am.”"Not much time left, huh? How's all the graduation stuff coming along?"Charles's tone was casual, like a relative catching up with a younger family member.However, perhaps because Charles sounded a bit too stern and formal, L
Sean's eyes twinkled as he casually pulled his hand back and glanced at Joanna. "What's up with Darek?" He did not seem too interested in school matters, but he was more patient when it came to Darek. Sean really liked Darek. Even though he was young, he was smart and had already won many awards. Sean was sure that Darek would achieve great things in the future as long as he stayed healthy. Sean did not have romantic feelings for Joanna, but he stayed close to her because of Darek. Joanna's eyes lit up when she heard that. She did not understand what made Darek so special to Sean, but she was happy to let them be close. It meant she had a chance to spend time with Sean too."Darek recently won a big prize in a physics contest and wanted to share his excitement with you! But he's been under the weather lately, and my parents can't decide if they should take him to the hospital. You know how much Darek dislikes hospitals, and the bills there can be really high! "Sean narrowed
Sean could not take his eyes off Liliana. When she turned and left, something inside him cracked. He shoved his hand into his coat pocket and squeezed it into a fist.Joanna's voice, clear and pretty, broke through his thoughts. Sean looked at her. "Yeah?""Sean, what are you looking at?" Joanna tried to see what had caught Sean's attention but found nothing. "Did you recognize someone?""No." Sean did not look back at Liliana. Instead, he faced Joanna. "You wanted to see me for...?""Oh, it's just..." Joanna's cheeks were pink, and she fidgeted with her hands. "Gavin from school told you, right? The school wants to invite some famous alumni to talk to the younger students about jobs. You're so great. They really want you to come back."Joanna had come to convince him today. It had been ages since they had last met, especially since Sean opened his own hospital.Feelings were not Sean's thing—work was. He had not been back to school in three years, making it harder for Joanna to