Jeremy stood at the entrance, and because the television was turned on too loudly, he noticed something was different at home the moment he walked through the door. He squinted at the three strangers sitting in the living room, and that caused his handsome eyes to darken with alarm immediately.The two maids greeted him as usual. One of them helped him out of his suit jacket while the other bent to help him wear his house slippers. Jeremy took out his jacket and passed it to one of the maids, but he did not put on the house slippers."Who are those people in the living room?" he asked in that deep voice of his.The maid exchanged confused looks with one another, and one of them answered helplessly, "Mister Jeremy, they're Ma'am's family, but they…"The maid found herself unable to continue as she did not know how to tell him that Corinne had introduced the 'new Missus Holden' to them. It was too complicated to the extent that they, the servants, had no idea what happened."Well, g
A lukewarm 'hello' and 'welcome' was a rare thing to come out from the noble Jeremy's mouth.Sherlyn's heart thumped excitedly in her chest. She was delighted and thought that Jeremy must have had a good impression of her. Why else would he act so politely toward her?The fact that the cold, aloof Jeremy would welcome her was proof that she was the one he wanted to marry in the first place. Besides, Anya did tell her yesterday that Jeremy had fallen in love with her after seeing her in a movie she starred in and that was why he arranged for his men to bring the engagement gifts to her house.Then, Corinne came in between them. The people on Jeremy's side must have thought Corinne was Sherlyn because as sisters, they somewhat looked alike. Even though Sherlyn did not think so, it must be so to others.'Also, that b*tch Corinne rarely goes out with makeup on her face. Jeremy must've thought that's how I look without makeup, and that's how he mixed me up with her. Well, I don't blame
Marvin looked up at Jeremy, who was a good head taller than him, and decided to follow his lead in playing the part of the wise, old elder. He nodded admiringly and loftily said, "What a good son-in-law you are! I'm sure we'll get along just fine."Lilliana smiled and said, "Jeremy, you must be tired from work. As your mother, I'll be more than happy to cook you some of my signature dishes later."Bowen, who stood beside them, frowned unhappily. For a moment, he thought he heard wrong. 'Did Missus Carew really call herself Mister Jeremy's mother? She shouldn't do that even if she's his mother-in-law. I do not like them. They have no boundaries and no manners.'Jeremy narrowed his eyes, and there was no hint of emotions on his face. He raised his head at Bowen and said, "Please make sure Corinne's parents are well taken care of while I go upstairs to check on her.""Yes, Mister Jeremy," replied Bowen."Jeremy, wait! I want to go upstairs to look for Corinne, too!" said Sherlyn as s
"An explanation is in order."Jeremy narrowed his eyes. His gaze was focused solely on Corinne, and he did not even bother to look at Sherlyn's shy expression. He stretched out his big hand, took the suitcase from Corinne, and handed it to Bowen, who stood beside him.He then asked, "What's all this fuss about?"As Jeremy asked that question, he placed his arms around Corinne's waist and pulled her into his arms, as if worried that she might leave for real.Corinne felt that it was a little inappropriate for him to hug her in front of other people, so she pushed his chest to try and break free. Alas, she could not do so, and she could only shrug helplessly as she spread his arms and began explaining."Well, it all started when you went to the Carews to fetch your bride, which you were supposed to do by going through the main entrance. However, you went through the back door and brought me away! Now that this secret has been exposed and they found out that you picked up the wrong p
Jeremy heard on numerous occasions that Corinne had a hard life in the past, but he never thought that they would treat her so terribly. As if having a stepmother and stepsister who treated her like that was bad enough, even her father did not seem to show any care for her.Jeremy looked down at the indifferent little girl in his arms and felt his heart tense up. He could not imagine how much suffering she had to go through in the Carews as a child to be able to act so indifferently in such a situation.After listening to the Carews' ludicrous statements, a cynical smirk appeared on the corner of his lips. "Why should you switch places with her? The woman I wanted to marry has always been Corinne, not anyone else."Sherlyn did not believe it one bit. She felt that it was Corinne's sweet talk and interference that made Jeremy confused."Mister Jeremy, how can Corinne be the woman you intended to marry? You can't believe a thing she says because she'll say all sorts of sweet words to
The person who burst out cackling was neither Corinne nor Jeremy, but Bowen, who had failed to hold himself back at that moment. Despite his old age, that was the first time he had ever seen such an ordinary-looking yet incredibly self-confident woman.It was truly an eye-opener!Bowen cleared his throat in embarrassment, suppressed his out-of-character laugh, and said, "Ahem. My apologies, sir. I'll go check if dinner is ready for you and the missus..."He then excused himself solemnly.Jeremy narrowed his eyes and glanced icily at Sherlyn. "In what aspect do you think you're better than my wife? Your character? Your intelligence, maybe? Or perhaps your image? Is there anything about you that can compare to even a single strand of my wife's hair?"His words severely hurt Sherlyn's self-esteem, and although she also knew that Corinne was frustratingly good-looking, she believed herself to be quite attractive as well. Otherwise, she would not have been able to enter the entertainme
A hint of coldness flashed across Jeremy's eyes as he heard Marvin's fickle remark.'How can someone like him be worthy of being a father?! Just what sort of family environment did Corinne grow up in?'Jeremy narrowed his eyes frigidly and said, "First of all, you need to live up to your position as a father to my wife, and then I'll show you respect and accept you as my father-in-law. You've been incompetent in your role as a father to Corinne, so to me, you're not even worth being treated as a human."Marvin felt intense pressure and guilt, still wanting to argue with Jeremy. However, as soon as he met the cold eyes of his 'son-in-law', he suddenly felt an unprecedented fear and his words were stuck in his throat. His son-in-law's attitude toward him had changed completely compared to before.When they met for the first time, the handsome and imposing young man still showed hints of respect and courtesy toward him, but all he could see in Jeremy's eyes then was an abyssal coldnes
Bowen understood Jeremy's wishes and turned around to inform the servants. After all those people cleared out, Corinne felt as if the air was fresh again as she pushed the man's chest."You can let me go now, can you?"Jeremy gazed down at her, but he tightened his grip on her instead of loosening it. "You want me to let go of a ruthless little girl like you so you can bring all your belongings with you and leave me behind?"Corinne frowned and looked at him. "Didn't you notice that my luggage bag is light? It's empty. I didn't pack anything inside at all! I was just pretending!"Jeremy noticed that there was something off about the weight of the suitcase, but he was still a little displeased and had a stern look in his eyes. "Why didn't you call me when they came over to harass you?"Corinne answered indifferently, "Weren't you at work? I didn't want to disturb you, and besides, it's not worth going through the trouble of abandoning your responsibilities at work just to deal with
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