Corinne took out her cell phone and said, "Mister Jeremy probably hasn't gone far. I'll call his secretary and see if I can ask him to come back."Sherlyn was taken aback for a moment, and her guard was up. "What? Why would you have his secretary's number?"Corinne had a calm expression as she casually said, "Oh, I happened to meet his secretary when I went out of the restroom, so I chatted with him for a while and asked if he could leave his phone with me.""Why did you ask him for his number for no good reason? Are you going to try and seduce him again?" Sherlyn remarked bitterly and sarcastically.Corinne shook his head earnestly. "I wasn't going to seduce anyone...it's just… I'm your assistant now, and since you're paying me such a high salary, it's only right for me to do my job. I thought of how there are so many ways to get to know a person, so I asked him for his contact information in case he could one day be of help to you in securing some resources for your work. Dad als
Elsewhere…After Corinne set a time and place with Tommy, she hung up the phone and pulled the chair to sit. She was famished, and she really needed to eat.The place Corinne told Tommy about was actually set by Sherlyn. When Corinne was on the phone with Tommy, Sherlyn came over and placed her ear next to the phone to listen. Once she knew Jeremy agreed to the dinner invitation, she quickly told Corinne to set the dinner in the hotel. Corinne did not have a problem with that, so she told Tommy according to what Sherlyn said.Corinne had just picked up the cutleries to eat when Sherlyn grabbed them."Stand up! Who gave you permission to sit and eat?"Corinne's brow furrowed. "Sherlyn, I've fixed the problem. I should be able to eat something."Sherlyn gave her a disdainful look. "What problem did you fix? Mister Jeremy didn't come back to eat lunch with me, did he? Although you've arranged for dinner to happen, you didn't compensate for the loss I spent on this meal!"Corinne
Despite everything, Sherlyn was a little uncomfortable. "Mom, I do like Mister Jeremy, but he's a married man. That's why I hesitate a little. What if…"Lilliana, however, did not think that was a problem. "So what if he's married? Remember how I stole your father from his wife, and look how far I came. If his wife can't keep her man, then shame on her. Everyone has the chance to fight! Sherlyn, listen to me. It's better to be Mister Jeremy's mistress than marry an ordinary man. You have a whole life in the future, and there's a chance for you to become his wife in the future, too!"It sounded like solid advice, but Sherlyn was genuinely faltering. "But he's a cold and proud person. I don't really dare to go near him…""He's the young master of the first-tier family, a man who has had power over everything since he was a child. It's normal to have that kind of personality. Don't worry. After we finished eating, I'm going to bring you to buy something good!" Lilliana tried to convinc
It was 8 p.m., and Jeremy arrived at Moonlight Hotel.When he got to the front desk, the receptionist gave him a key card to Room 808 and stated the female customer had arranged it earlier.Arriving at Room 808, Jeremy used the key card to enter.It was a suite with a lavish interior design. He spotted no one in the room, but he could make out the sound of water running in the bathroom.He walked past the bathroom and glanced into it with his dark eyes. There, he could see the silhouette of a woman having a shower through the engraved glass door.His pupils shrunk. He pursed his lips while his subconscious told him to look away.It was then he noticed there were six steaming hot dishes with one soup on the dining table.Did the little rascal cook these for him? He once heard about the butler mentioning how Corinne would sometimes make some snacks for herself to eat at home. Could the brat, who looked spoiled, know how to cook after all?Jeremy narrowed his eyes and saw a note b
Jeremy's footsteps were closing in, and Sherlyn's heart pounded heavily with the sound of the footsteps.'He's coming, the man of my dreams. My future is coming to hold me in his arms!'Nevertheless, her hope perished.Jeremy walked past her without batting an eye her way as he headed straight to the door. He did not even bother to look down.Sherlyn froze. She extended her hand out and cried out with pity, "M—Mister Jeremy? Mister Jeremy? Why are you leaving? Where are you going? Don't go, Mister Jeremy! My leg hurts… Help me."Jeremy did not bother and swiftly left.Sherlyn stood up and wanted to chase after him, yet she was naked and was at an inconvenience. It was not going to help even if she went to get her clothes.'What happened? This can't be happening!' she screamed mentally.Lilliana had added both ingredients to each dish. She told her that it would only take a little time to take effect on men.The cutlery on the table was not in its original position, which meant
With her mouth taped, Corinne widened her eyes and made noises to attract the man's attention, wanting to speak to him.The kidnapper, the fat man, deliberated on this before reaching out and pulling off the tape on her mouth. He initially taped her mouth out of fear that Corinne would scream for the whole city to hear. Since they were in the wilderness, however, shouting was not going to help her.Once the tape was ripped off of Corinne's mouth, she took a deep breath and said, "Since you know it's useless to threaten Jeremy, why don't you let me go?"The fat kidnapper snorted. "Let you go? What about the work I did today? Little missy, you are quite beautiful. Why don't we have some fun together?"Corinne chuckled. "Fun? Sure! But you have to let me go first. I don't like being manhandled when I'm bound."This must have been their first time having such a cooperative hostage that the fat kidnapper and his companions were stunned as they exchanged looks with each other.The fat
At this point, Corinne was tired. Thus, she gave the fat kidnapper a last kick and prepared to leave.However, the sound of iron screeching could be heard when the iron door of the warehouse opened from the outside.Someone was coming in!It was a man about 1.75 meters tall with his hair dyed silver. He also sported a blue diamond stud on his left earlobe.Corinne looked at the man and took a few steps back warily as she studied the man.The kidnappers could not get up as some of them sustained fractured bones. When they saw the silver-haired man, however, they acted as though their savior had come."Sir!""Right on time, boss. Don't let that b*tch escape!"Corinne finally got a good look at the silver-haired man's face as he walked closer. The man's facial features looked perfect, but he had a scar on the left side of his cheek. That changed his character and assumed a cruel characteristic on him.The silver-haired man lifted his foot and stepped harshly on the fat kidnapper.
Corinne escaped from the warehouse and wandered in the wild alone without her phone. Her kidnappers must have thrown it away when they took her.It was pitch-black, and the clouds obstructed any sliver of moonlight from reaching the land, making it difficult to tell the direction. Corinne thus tried to find a place to hide until daylight would come to find a way back.This place was even worse than an actual jungle. She could have found a cave in one, but this wasteland had nowhere she could go to take shelter. Other than bramble weed, there was not even a tree that she could take cover in!Raindrops started to fall from the sky. Without a place to take cover, she could only let the rain fall on her.All of a sudden, she heard footsteps from behind her, as well as a flashlight beam moving at random.Only the accomplices of the kidnappers were out here in the wild.Corinne held her breath and crawled into the bush to hide.The footsteps sounded as though they were getting closer
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