Annie stepped back almost instinctively. "What are you doing?"Aaron held them tightly and said, "I didn't use any of the ones you bought for me the other day."Annie was speechless. 'And? What is he trying to tell me? Is he saying he didn't use them because he did it raw with his girlfriend the other day? Is he trying to say he doesn't mind having a baby with her? Is he warning me to stop having feelings for him?'She felt a little embarrassed. "Okay, okay. I get it. I won't bother you again in the future. You don't have to do this to me."Aaron did not know how to react after concluding she had misunderstood. "What I'm trying to say is, I can't bring myself to use what you bought for me, so I didn't do anything with that woman."'What do you mean by that? You're acting super weird today! I can't even understand what you're talking about!' Annie thought to herself. She then asked, "Umm… What are you even talking about?"Aaron smiled and leaned over to her ear. He then whispered
"Who?" Aaron and Xante asked."You'll know soon enough if he's willing to help me." Corinne felt that it was best not to tell them who she planned to seek help from until she was sure that person was willing to help.Aaron and Xante looked at each other. Neither could guess who Corinne wanted to seek.The three of them had lunch in the bedroom. When Corinne asked someone to come in to clean up the dishes, Bowen followed the servants in and passed on a message. "Ma'am, the card table has been set up. Madam Pamela invited you and your friends for a round of card games."'Guess she hasn't forgotten about the card game, then…' Corinne thought. She nodded and said, "We'll head down right away."After Bowen excused himself, Corinne turned and told the two of them, "We're playing card games with her."Although Aaron and Xante were hardly interested in card games, they did not dare to disobey their boss's orders.Pamela had told her servant to arrange the card table in the quiet and ele
Annie had been offended by what Aaron said to her in the bathroom earlier that day. She did not want to talk to him anymore and even considered skipping work the next day.Perhaps he genuinely did view her with contempt. There seemed to be no other explanation for why he would say such humiliating things to her!"You're not planning on going home? Where are you going, then?" Aaron asked. He was leaning against the car window with his head jutting out slightly."I don't have to report everything to you now that I've clocked off work," retorted Annie without looking at him.Aaron frowned slightly. "You came with the two of us today, so it's considered official company business. We'll have to bear the responsibility if anything happens to you on the way home. Please get in the car, and stop being so unreasonable."Annie insisted, "Don't worry. Even if something happens to me, I'm not going to blame you and Miss Xante. You should go home and get some rest! Bye!" She then turned into a
Corinne brought some baby food for Joey. She told him to stop playing for a while and have dinner first.Joey was very obedient. He swiftly put down the toy and got off the bed to eat his dinner. Corinne taught him to eat with a spoon, and Joey followed suit with a nod. His movements might be a bit clumsy, but he was able to learn how to eat.Corinne could not help but feel a little emotional when she watched him use the spoon. She was leaving, and she did not know if the Holdens would take good care of her once she left. Since he was not blood-related to anyone in the household, there was no guarantee that the jerk Jeremy might treat his adopted son well in the future. Even if he did, he was the kind of man who had little time to take care of his children.That was one of the reasons she taught Joey to eat with a spoon. He would be independent enough to feed himself if no one fed him after she left.She was staring at Joey in a daze when her cell phone began to ring. She had two m
After ending the call and tossing the phone, Corinne took out a tissue and wiped Joey's messy face. She then lifted the little guy. "Are you full?"Joey wrapped his arms around Corinne's neck and said, "Mhm! I'm full!"Corinne then gave him a mini-lecture, "That's good. You need to learn how to use a spoon so you can eat without an adult's help in the future. That way, you won't get hungry even if there isn't anyone to feed you."Joey looked at Corinne somewhat anxiously. "You…won't be with me all the time?"Corinne smiled at him gently and avoided answering his question directly. She said, "Your father will always be with you, but he'll be very busy with work. He can't be with you all the time, so you need to learn to be independent."Joey nodded obediently. "Okay. Joey will work hard and learn to be independent! You and Dada won't worry about me all the time."Ever since she started taking care of Joey, she frequently spoke to him whenever she had time to spare. Their exchanges
There was a pleasant ring to the man's tone. Judging from the background, he seemed to be at home.Corinne said, "It's me, Corinne."Jason was stunned for a moment. His charming eyes then lit up. "Corinne? I wouldn't have expected you to call me."Corinne cut straight to the chase. "Can you do me a favor?"Jason asked with a smile, "Will I get anything in return?"Corinne frowned. She pursed her lips and asked, "Shouldn't you be asking me what sort of favor I want from you?"Jason answered flirtatiously, "That's not important! As long as you give me a chance to get close to you, I'll agree without even batting an eye."Corinne frowned. She always believed Aaron to be a one-of-a-kind flirt, but it was after meeting Jason that she realized that the latter was far ahead of Aaron in that aspect! She could not care less for his sweet-talking and laid out her plans to him right away.Jason was forthright about it as well and proposed the benefits he would like in return.After consi
"W—Why is Xante's phone w—w—with you?"Corinne felt a headache coming on. "I'll repeat my question. When did that happen?"Sunny did not know how to answer her. He was even more afraid of answering her when he remembered Xante's warning—he was not to breathe a word of what happened between them to Corinne."Oh, Lucas is telling me to do my homework! Talk to you later!" He ended the call swiftly.Corinne took a deep breath after hearing the dial tone.Having another problem on her hands was far from ideal. It was bad enough that Aaron got involved with Jeremy's niece. Even Xante hooked up with one of the Riveras.'It's one thing after another…' Corinne lamented.Early the next morning, Corinne brought Joey downstairs for breakfast as usual. Having taught the boy to eat with a spoon the day before, he had since picked up the necessary ability and did not even need to be fed at all.While Corinne was eating some oats, Greg—who never liked her very much and rarely showed any concer
Pamela's heart ached as she looked at Corinne. 'She looks healthy, but why isn't she as energetic as before?'Corinne turned to leave after she said what she had come to say. Her goal was to make Pamela feel guilty so that the old lady would let her guard down. She vowed to escape from the Holdens, who changed her life's trajectory, no matter what tomorrow.After coming out of Pamela's room, Corinne saw Francine and Joey playing in the yard with Chester watching from the side. After thinking about it, she went out to join them.Joey immediately toddled over to Corinne when he saw her walking toward them. "Auntie Sissy…"Francine followed after him, shouting playfully, "You little ungrateful brat! I spent the whole day playing with you, yet you dumped me the moment you saw your Auntie Sissy?"Joey giggled at Francine while keeping his chubby arms wrapped around Corinne's legs. It was obvious who he preferred.Corinne ruffled his hair and said, "Go play with Aunt Francine. I'll be
Sherman could not help but feel fearful when he recalled the incident.Rita gently smoothed his furrowed brow. "I knew you'd come to rescue me, just like all the times you did. I love you, Sherman."Previously, Rita confessed her love to him when she was groggy. At this moment, however, she was clearly awake, even sporting a faint smile on her face as she confessed.Sherman immediately blushed. "I love you, too."Rita did not stay long in the hospital; she quickly returned to the Parr family's mansion. Just as Sherman's grandparents had said, Rita did not have any major injuries, so there was no need for her to stay in the hospital that long. In fact, she might even recover faster emotionally under the care at home.Not once did Sherman bring up Rita's job, but she surprisingly resigned from New Capital Times on her own accord. It would be difficult for her to investigate cases with her current condition; not to mention Sherman had handed over the evidence to the police. The polic
"Sherman, I like you. I love you," Rita finally confessed.Sherman, deeply pained, pulled Rita into his arms. "This is all my fault. I should've looked for you quicker. I've never blamed you. All I want is to see you smile. It's enough for me as long as you're willing to let me stay by your side."You don't have to confess to me. I know it's hard for you to do that because of your family. I've seen the way they've treated you, and…"The bodyguards who had barged in with Sherman felt a bit awkward to see their company president in tears. However, the priority was to get Rita to the hospital for a check-up. Being tied up for hours could cause circulation issues, and it could be dangerous if her limbs did not regain feelings soon.In the end, they got the bravest among them to convince Sherman to let them take Rita to the hospital. Instead of letting them do it, Sherman wiped away his tears and, with ease, lifted Rita as if she was as light as a feather.Fortunately, after the hospit
With that, Karen left without looking back. She was carrying Vince's baby in her womb, so how could she pin all her hopes on Sadie? Since Sadie was obviously unruly, she would have to rely on her son.'Sadie can spend the rest of her life with Esmond since she likes him so much. God knows it had been exhausting enough to raise her. Plus, it's only fair for Esmond to take care of her since I've done my part taking care of her until now,' thought Karen.Meanwhile, the only consolation for Sherman was that Esmond did not try to put up a fight. It seemed that he still cared about his daughter Sadie.Sherman led his men to a dilapidated house. Esmond had been cautious enough to choose a rundown house situated at the end of a village.When Sherman barged in, he found Rita lying on the floor while Esmond's men ignored her. Esmond's men had followed his orders, and since he did not instruct them to do anything to Rita, they left her well alone.Before the men could react, they were surrou
Karen cried and silently knelt by Sadie's side without trying to defend herself. Sadie, on the other hand, feebly tried to explain herself. Alas. Vince refused to listen.There had been many occasions before when he had chosen to believe Karen and Sadie, but at this moment, he realized he had been terribly wrong to do that.Rita used to be so kind, understanding, and well-behaved. However, ever since Karen and Sadie moved in, Vince felt like his daughter had become manipulative, always trying to compete for attention, and stirring up jealousy in front of him.Unfortunately, it took Rita's disappearance to make Vince realize that Rita was not trying to compete for attention. All Rita wanted from him was to treat her the same as Sadie.Vince used to think that Rita should give in to Sadie more since Sadie was younger, too."Why don't you go live with your biological father since you prefer him so much? I never want to see you show your face around here anymore! As for your mother, s
Sadie was so anxious that she wanted to jump out. "Mom, don't tell me you fell for it! Why did you call Esmond? Now they all know where Rita is. You've ruined everything, again! What were you thinking?"Karen could not care less. She cried and slapped Sadie. "You nearly scared me to death! What would I do if something happened to you? I didn't raise you just to watch you die. I told you not to meet up with Esmond, so why did you secretly meet up with him? How can you ask him to get rid of Rita?"Are you out of your mind? All I want is for us to live out the rest of our lives peacefully, so why didn't you listen to me?!"Sadie was furious. Karen had stopped trying to get rid of Rita ever since she got pregnant, so how could Sadie not be angry? Rita was like a thorn in her side, and Sadie would never be happy unless Rita was dead."Don't you know I like Sherman? How could you ask me to do nothing when Rita has stolen him from me?! I was the one who liked him first. It's either Rita g
Karen wanted so badly to slap Esmond through the phone.'What good are his pompous words now? We wouldn't be in this mess now if he hadn't hit me back then! What's more, he's saying he's doing this for Sadie. But has he ever thought of what would happen to me and Sadie if he got rid of Rita? Rita's the heiress of the Russell family. Not to mention, she's married to Sherman, so that makes her owner of Parr Group too! What makes Esmond think he can get rid of Rita so easily?'Karen's breath was ragged as she said, "If you don't believe me, just listen to your daughter's screams. I can't save her now; you will literally decide her fate! Plus, I'm pregnant with Vince's baby, so even if I lose Sadie, I still have a kid—which is more than what I can say about you!"Sherman could not help but be impressed by Karen a little. Even in this dire situation, she did not forget to express her heartfelt feelings to Vince, letting him know that she was always on his side. It was certainly not an ea
"Sherman raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry, I'm sure it's just a minor injury, maybe just a finger. There shouldn't be any major issues. A sprained joint takes only a hundred days to heal, and it might take her even less time to heal if you take very good care of her while she's recuperating."Karen's heart ached upon hearing that. She lunged toward Sherman, wanting to hit him, but the bodyguards stopped her before she could get close.Vince, still worried, held Karen tightly beside him. "Calm down. I'm sure Sadie will come out unharmed if Rita's kidnapping has nothing to do with her. But if it does, then you should know very well that…"Vince's voice dropped an octave. He could not believe his daughter's disappearance had anything to do with his stepdaughter. However, he was not utterly naive.He continued, "How could a girl like her take Rita away? Even the car window was smashed. Others must've been involved. Does her biological father have anything to do with it?"Sherman nodded
"Yes, it's true I met up with my biological father, but it was just a one-time thing. I don't want to go back to him at all! Otherwise, I would've done it ages ago. Dad, I'm really grateful to you for taking me in and looking after me all these years. That's why I feel like you're my real father, even more real than those who share the same blood."How could you unjustly accuse me and Mom like that? Sherman is the one spouting nonsense here. He's trying to push all the blame onto us. Dad, you have to wake up and see the truth!"Karen nodded along, but her heart was racing. 'When did Sadie meet Esmond? How did Sherman know when I don't even know? Seems like Sadie does have something to do with Rita's kidnapping. I have to settle things and get Sherman out of here.'Karen never had the thought of rekindling her relationship with Esmond. The only thing she wanted then was to peacefully give birth to her son. Everything in the Russell family would eventually go to her son, and she would
Sherman detested people pointing their fingers at him when they spoke. He stood up slowly, towering over Vince instantly."You claim to be Rita's father, yet if I were you, I'd choose to shut up and stand aside. I can't believe you're scolding me for threatening Sadie when she's not even your real daughter!"Look at her guilty expression; it's clear she's involved. If you don't believe me, use your brain a little. No wonder Russell Group is declining under your leadership. It's only a matter of time before the company goes completely bankrupt!"Sherman showed no mercy, causing Vince to retreat with every word. Vince clutched his chest, struggling for breath.Karen, despite her weakness, stepped forward to support him. "How could you speak to your father-in-law like this? What has Sadie done to offend you? She has nothing but admiration for you. Plus, she's just a child. How could you treat her like this?"She went on and on, but Sherman stood his ground. Meanwhile, the burly bodyg