Ava could not shake the feeling of injustice, believing that those who did not know the truth should not speak. Yet, she knew that when many voices joined together, the noise could be overwhelming, and things were rarely as simple as they seemed."Time to get back to work!""Alright," Ava replied, her energy drained. However, as she turned, she caught sight of Xavier, and her expression turned complex.Noelle caught sight of Xavier as well, and her eyebrows knitted together in a slight frown. Their relationship had changed so much that she hardly ever spent time with him anymore. Xavier, however, did not seem to realize that things were different now.Xavier walked over, his lips pressed tightly together. He was not happy when he saw Noelle's look. "Yesterday, you..."Noelle interrupted, looking up, "What? Is there something you need, Mr. Harris?"Xavier's brows were creased with worry. "Why didn't you come home last night? You're a girl, and you didn't come home all night. Don't
Noelle had wanted to earn Xavier's affection through her own hard work, so their romantic relationship was a secret to almost everyone. She never imagined that a single mistake would turn into a weapon for Xavier and Winter to use against her.Only their families knew the truth about them, but to everyone else, it was a mystery.Winter, a celebrity in the spotlight, had an engagement party with Xavier that drew in hordes of media. The story that Noelle had come between Winter and Xavier seemed to be confirmed.Noelle did not know who had managed to keep the story quiet in the end, but she was sure she would be left with the blame.Her eyes darkened as she locked eyes with Xavier. "What's done is done, and I can't change the past. But please don't come looking for me from now on unless it's work-related, especially not for these insignificant things!""What's not important?" Xavier was puzzled. He and Noelle had been so tight before, and she used to say yes to everything. Now, she
"Let me go!" Noelle squirmed, feeling sick as she looked at Xavier. She swung her hand and slapped him hard across the face. "Snap out of it, Xavier! Look at me—I'm Noelle, not Winter. If you've lost your mind, go chase after Winter.""Noelle, I made a mistake. You know you're the one I love. With Winter... I just lost control. She lured me in, Noelle." Xavier suddenly wrapped his arms around Noelle. No matter how much she wriggled and squirmed, he would not let go.Xavier's grip was so tight that Noelle could barely catch her breath. She felt gross all over, especially hearing his words. "Let me go, Xavier! If you don't, I'm going to scream for help.""Go ahead and scream. I'll just tell everyone you like me and that we're a couple. Noelle, I know you're mad about Winter, but you've got to understand that she has shares in City Ring Corp. I had no choice." He gripped Noelle's arms, continuing, "After I marry Winter and get the shares, I'll divorce her. Then, it'll be just you and m
"No, he's not some kind of wild man," Noelle said without thinking. After catching a glimpse of Xavier's face, she took a deep breath. "Xavier, this is the last time I'm going to say this—stop doing things that gross me out."She reached out and peeled Xavier's fingers away one by one. "We really should keep our distance at work!""Noelle!"Xavier watched Noelle walk away. Feeling frustrated, he punched the elevator door, startling the nearby employees. "Mr. Harris!""What are you doing here?" Joseph's voice came from behind Xavier, making him panic. "Dad!"Joseph gave Xavier a fierce look. "How many times do I have to tell you to behave at the company? You're engaged to Winter, so leave Noelle alone!" Joseph was so disappointed with his son, wishing he could just shape up. "You need to know what you really want!"Xavier scowled. "But Dad, Noelle and I really love each other." He did not want to be with Winter. He just wanted her shares and the company. Even though he was att
Noelle's heart clenched sharply as she gripped the phone tighter. She closed her eyes, taking a moment to calm herself. "Mom, do you really not understand the reason why I haven't been going home?""You..." Jade had not heard Noelle say a word until then. She had thought Noelle was still the same old pushover, easy for her to control. However, to her surprise, Noelle cut her off. "What the hell are you trying to say here?"Noelle said with a sad smile, "What do you think, Mom? You know exactly what I mean. Why did you call?" Noelle knew her mom well. Jade would not bother with her unless it was something big.Jade snapped, "Come back home! Don't you forget, this is your home. Your grandpa treats you so well, you—""I'm really busy right now!" Noelle cut in without hesitation. She would definitely visit Samuel because he had always been kind to her. However, he understood her and would not ask her to come back, so Jade's excuse was not going to work.Jade said through clenched te
Noelle ended the call and felt like all her energy had been sucked out. She slumped to the floor, her eyes empty and unfocused.Ava rushed over when she saw her. "Ms. Shaw, are you okay?"Noelle forced a weak smile and shook her head. "I'm fine, really!" She told Ava to get back to work and made her way to her seat."Are you sure you're okay?" Ava asked, still worried.Noelle nodded, and Ava reluctantly went back to his desk.After sitting quietly for a moment, Noelle pulled out her phone and looked up Charles' number. She paused when she saw his name, then quickly changed it to 'The Man at Home.'She tried calling Charles, but there was no answer. It seemed he was busy, too busy to pick up the phone.…Charles was in the middle of a meeting, with his phone on silent mode, so he missed Noelle's call. The atmosphere in the meeting room was tense, with the recent trouble involving Robert causing a split among the group. Some supported Charles, but others were upset with him, es
They were more than just old-timers. However, Collosus Group's current structure dictated their composition. Even if Charles had great abilities, he could not completely change Collosus Group.The old-timers at the company usually did not do much work, and Charles thought it would be great if they just backed off. However, would they give up that easily?Charles had just handled a problem with Robert, taking over his and his buddies' company shares for himself. That was what really ticked off the old-timers. They kicked up a fuss today, trying to snatch the shares back from Charles or water them down so he would not have them all to himself.They were worried Charles would get too powerful and hard to handle. Charles was young, but he was sharp and knew how to play the game just as well as they did.Now that Robert was out, his department was up for grabs, and everyone wanted to put their own people in charge to get a piece of the pie.Ronald asked, looking over some papers, "Mr
Rowena was always blunt and did not like beating about the bush. When she heard what Noelle said, she got really upset. "And your husband? What does he think?"Noelle bit her lip. "He knows about it and said he'd take care of it. But just a day later, my mom showed up. I bet he doesn't even know yet! I tried calling him, but he was busy and didn't pick up. What should I do now?" Noelle looked worried."Your mom's being really weird, using that to threaten you. Shouldn't that stuff be destroyed? Shouldn't she go stand up to the York family?" Rowena was just as puzzled as Noelle about the Shaw family's behavior.Rowena did not hear anything back from Noelle and was worried her words had been too harsh. "I'm sorry, I..."Noelle shook her head. "It's fine, you're just stating the facts. I have to go there today, Rowena. Can you come with me?""Absolutely!" Rowena exclaimed, her hand on her heart. "What time tonight? And where?""Seven o'clock, at the Golden Oasis Hotel!" Noelle repli
Liliana's mind was a whirlwind. She found her key card fast, but just as she was about to shut the door, a big hand stopped it.She was not strong enough to close the door against Sean, who pushed it open.Liliana took a shaky step back, looking at Sean with a bit of fear. "Sean, it's late. I need to sleep."Sean just kept looking at her. "Liliana, what... what's wrong with your mouth?" he asked as he reached out, his fingers lightly touching the corner of Liliana's mouth. Liliana felt a rush of heat through her body, making her shake all over.In a swift motion, she knocked Sean's hand away. "Leave me alone."With his inscrutable eyes, Sean noticed the blood on his thumb and Liliana's unusual red cheeks. A flicker of surprise showed in his eyes. "Liliana, did..."However, Liliana was already clenching her fists, all pretense gone. She was shaking and crouching on the ground, her tears filling her eyes. "Sean, please. I'm begging you, just go, okay?"Sean's brow furrowed. His
Liliana could not make out what Sean was saying anymore. She felt awful and shut her eyes tight, not wanting Sean to notice.Sean thought Liliana had dozed off from drinking too much and had a headache, so he stopped talking.The car pulled up to Liliana's hotel, and Sean gently shook her. "Liliana, time to wake up. We're here."Liliana slowly opened her eyes and saw Sean's face close to hers. Her heart, which was already fluttering, started racing.She turned her head away, swallowing hard. "Are we here already?"Once she saw they were outside the hotel, Liliana quickly got out of the car and opened the back door to help Adalee. "Ms. Cobb, can you walk?"Adalee nodded. "Yes, I can."With a sigh of relief, Liliana told Sean, "Sean, we've made it. Ms. Cobb and I will head up now."Liliana rushed off, scared that any delay might make her lose her composure. She could not let herself fall apart in front of Sean again—not after what happened years ago.Sean noticed Liliana rushing
The moment everyone in the private room saw Bob, they were scared out of their wits.It was Andy, the favorite son of the Jones family in Cascade City! Even though he was the second child, he was the one everyone knew would run the company one day.Everyone felt a wave of relief, glad they had not messed with Liliana earlier. They knew that if they had, they would not just be outcasts in Cascade City, but probably everywhere else too.Sean gently put Adalee in the back seat of the car and then helped Liliana into the front seat. Noticing Liliana's pale face, he asked, "Did you have too much to drink?"When Sean touched her forehead, Liliana felt a wave of heat rush through her, like she was on fire. Sean's hand was cool, and the moment it touched her, she could not help but sigh in relief."Maybe," she said.Sean shook his head. "Where's your hangover pill? Take it now. Where do you live?"After Liliana told him the address, she saw that Adalee was already fast asleep.Sean tur
Sean nodded. "It's all done."He glanced at Adalee, who was next to Liliana, and said, "Hi, I'm Liliana's brother."Adalee, seeing a man of such stature had arrived, did not bother to question if he was truly Liliana's brother. Her main concern was to get out of there, so she nodded. "I'm sorry to trouble you.""It’s no trouble at all. Looks like you really enjoyed your meal!" With that, Sean took over supporting Adalee from Liliana.He was a big guy, so he steadied Adalee with no trouble at all. He turned to Liliana and said, "Liliana, grab Ms. Cobb's bag. We're leaving."Sean acted as if he did not even notice the other people there. He just finished speaking and started to walk away with Liliana and Adalee.However, the other guys were not just going to stand there. Even though Sean looked pretty cool, they had not seen anyone like him around Cascade City before.They thought they had these two women in the bag, but then this guy had come along and messed it up. "Mister, sinc
The others did not buy Liliana's story for a second.Adalee and Liliana were both from Brookville, and they were strangers in Cascade City. The idea of her brother suddenly showing up seemed far-fetched, so they did not really pay much attention to Liliana's claim.However, they had made a mistake because the brother Liliana mentioned was real, and his name was Sean.As soon as she felt things were going south, she had already reached into her purse and dialed Sean's number.Liliana was not sure if Sean would arrive immediately, but she was certain he would not leave her hanging.Seeing how Liliana acted, one of them smirked. "Do you have family here in Cascade City?"Liliana shook her head. "No, not really. But my brother came with me a few days ago for an academic conference. He's actually here having dinner too, and we planned to head back together."Liliana pulled out her phone with a small, nervous smile and waved it at everyone. She tried to keep her cool, always smiling.
As Liliana walked by Sean, he gently grabbed her arm, making her pause. "What's up, Sean?" she asked, puzzled."Don't drink too much," he advised, handing her a pill to help with the alcohol. Liliana looked at it, surprised. "What's this for? Don't you need it?""Nope, it's all yours!" Sean replied, a hint of concern in his furrowed brow. "Just remember to take it easy on the drinks, and give me a call when you head home, alright?"Liliana felt warmth radiating from where Sean had held her arm, mirroring the heat rising in her cheeks. Sean's expression remained unchanged.She wrapped her fingers around the pill, holding it tight in her hand, and nodded. "Okay."Back in the private room, Liliana found Adalee had been drinking heavily. Her face was paler than before. She waved her over and whispered, "I'll pretend I'm not feeling well in a bit, and you can help me get out of here."Adalee's voice was faint, and though Liliana did not know what was going on, she could tell she looke
After speaking, Liliana supported herself against the wall and headed to the restroom. Bob, still holding the bottle of hangover remedy, stood in place with a glimmer in his deep-set eyes.He smirked faintly, then chuckled and shook his head. Casually, he stuffed the remedy into his pants pocket and lingered there a while longer, lighting a cigarette before finally returning to the private room.Sean was inside drinking with a few others. They were all people brought in by Bob and were prominent figures in the pharmaceutical and medical industries.Truth be told, the entire dinner was simply Bob paving the way for Sean. Although these individuals were leaders in their fields, they still had to curry favor. The man they aimed to please was Bob—better known as Andy Jones, the second son of Jones Group.Though Bob was technically the second son, everyone in Cascade City knew he was the legitimate heir to the Jones family and, eventually, the Smiths as well. That made him a powerful fi
Liliana had not wanted to drink, but the other party insisted on making a toast. Under such circumstances, she could not exactly refuse. It was clear they would not even continue discussing the partnership unless she played along.She glanced at Adalee, whose expression was far from pleasant. However, given that they still had to maintain a working relationship with the client, Adalee subtly signaled Liliana to go along with it. Liliana understood—she could not say no.Hence, round after round, Liliana did her best to hold her own. She even tried to fake it occasionally, but she still ended up drinking quite a bit."Excuse me, I need to use the restroom," she said eventually, unable to take any more. Her head felt light, and her steps wobbled slightly as she walked.Though her alcohol tolerance was not exactly terrible, the combination of red and white wine tonight was rough. Even someone with a decent tolerance would struggle.She had not even reached the restroom when she stum
After finishing dinner, Liliana and Adalee went to pay the bill, only to be told it had already been paid for.Liliana instinctively suspected Sean, but Adalee, unaware, asked the cashier, "Who paid for it?""Are you Ms. Hoffman?" the cashier asked.Adalee shook her head and pointed at Liliana. "She is."The cashier smiled. "That's right. A Mr. Smith said to put the bill under his account."Liliana nodded. "Got it. Thank you."Adalee gave Liliana a curious glance. Judging by her reaction, she clearly knew the person. "Didn't you say you had never been to Cascade City before? How do you know someone here?"It was not until they got into the car that Liliana explained, "He's also from Brookville—a distant relative. I ran into him just now when I went to the restroom."Adalee nodded. Though she suspected things were not that simple, she did not press further.During their business trip in Cascade City, Adalee kept Liliana incredibly busy. Every day was packed to the brim, making