'Lover?'Corinne was dumbstruck. After a while, realization clicked in her mind, and she nearly chuckled. "Oh, I don't know. His wife might try to give me a hard time!"Richard snorted confidently. "You bet! If you want me to keep this a secret, you have to think of a way to make Mister Jeremy agree to work with Alpha Enterprises!"Corinne sighed helplessly. "Mister Richard, it's not that I don't want to help you, but I can't do that. As you said, I'm just his lover. How could I have the power to change his mind regarding his work?"Richard smiled lustfully, scrunching his eyes and brows. "Why not? You girls just need to make a man happy on the bed. He could offer his life to you when he's satisfied."This disgusted Corinne. She sneered, "I don't know how to do that. Why don't you do it yourself? See if he'll listen to you when you satisfy him."Richard was stunned silent, and he exploded with rage. "Corinne Carew! You don't have to pretend you're a good girl with me! I saw your
Corinne respected Jason for being honest in answering. Just as she was about to fight back, however…Jason smiled and stopped her from talking. "Wait, don't answer that. It's going to look bad on me if I continue to bother you when you specifically reject me."From the way Corinne reacted, he was sure she was going to reject him. It was not going to happen, even if she tried to be polite.This startled Corinne. At that point, she had a feeling that this man was very smart."Corinne Carew?" Jason tried to call her full name."Huh?" She had to look up at him because she was enjoying her dessert when he called her.He smiled. "Nothing. I heard this name uttered just now, so I wanted to make sure it's yours. How do you spell it? C-o-r-i-n-e?""No. It's C-o-r-i-n-n-e. Double n," she corrected him."I see. Corinne Carew… What a lovely name. You look very lovely, too but your personality doesn't really match your look," he said.Annoyed, she rolled her eyes at him. This, to Jason, lo
Therefore, Corinne left the coffee shop with Jason and got into his car.Somewhere no one was noticing, a flashlight and a click sound from the camera appeared in a flash.After Jason started the car and drove off, an orange sports car followed them."Tail them."The one driving the sports car was called Felix, Sunny's minion. "Sir," he said, baffled by Sunny's command, "why are we following Mister Jason?"Sunny stretched his hand out and smacked Felix from the passenger's side. "Idiot! Why do you think I'm following Jason? I'm after the woman in his car!"It was a piece of bad news to Felix. "Sir, don't tell me you're in love with Mister Jason's woman!"Sunny knocked Felix's head again. "Bullsh*t! Do you think I'd like that ugly woman? I'm not blind!"Felix scratched his head in confusion. 'That woman isn't ugly at all, though,' he thought.When he and Sunny stalked the pair, he noted how beautiful the woman was: pure and cute, just like a little fairy.Sunny furrowed his ey
Corinne and Jason arrived at an artistic building. He passed the car key to the valet for the valet to park his car. Later, he led Corinne into his art gallery like a gentleman.…The orange sports car was parked somewhere not too far from the art gallery. The people in the car were looking over."Sir, I think they're just here to see the art exhibition," Felix tried reasoning. "They're not having an affair as you think. The relationship between our family and Holdens is already bad. It's just going to make things worse if you continue to stalk Mister Jeremy's newlywed wife!"Sunny thought otherwise. "You know nothing! There's something fishy about them going to the art exhibition alone!"After that, he got out of the car and wanted to continue stalking Corinne in the art gallery, but the staff at the entrance stopped him. "I'm sorry, sir. You'll need to have the invitation card to enter."Sunny frowned unhappily. "I'm a Rivera. My family has been close to the Talbots for many ye
Suddenly, Jason bent down and got close to Corinne's ear. He whispered, "But, if you like them, I can give them to you…as proposal gifts for your hand in marriage."Corinne grimaced and shot him an annoyed stare. She was going to ignore his joke, but as she tried to think of a way to get Jason to sell those paintings to her, an ominous feeling rose in her chest.She frowned, and her expression was looking terrible, too.Jason noticed Corinne was feeling unwell and asked, "What's wrong?"There was sweat coming out of her forehead, and her lips had turned pale. "I'm just…not feeling quite well."Jason looked worried. "Did you catch a cold because of the low temperature in the art gallery?""M—Maybe." She gritted her teeth uncomfortably. She even started to shiver.Jason took off his jacket to put it on her. He said softly, "Let me bring you to the lounge so you can rest. There's no air-conditioner there, so the temperature is slightly warmer.""Thank you."Corinne had a hard tim
At that moment, Corinne raised her head and, spotting Pamela, was stunned. Despite feeling weak, she feebly greeted, "Grandma? Why are you here…?"Before Pamela could say anything, Francine stepped forward with her arms on her waist and scolded, "Corinne Carew! Aren't you ashamed of yourself? The Holdens would never allow a sl*t like you to be part of the family!"Sunny looked pleased with the result and joined in, saying, "Corinne, you're caught red-handed! Stop pretending!"Corinne's eyebrows furrowed. At that moment, she did not have the energy to argue with them.Unlike the others who barged into the lounge, Jason stood quietly and watched them before turning his attention back to Corinne. She looked pale, still. He was amazed by the relationship between her and the people who barged in. Gradually, he connected all the dots.After he helped Corinne to sit steadily, he got up and smiled. "Hello, ma'am. I didn't know you were coming. Why didn't you send someone to notify me in a
When Francine knew her grandmother, Pamela, was going to believe what Corinne said, she quickly cut in. "Grandma, don't listen to her! Don't let her lie to you again. If she was sick, why didn't she go to the hospital? Why did she instead stay in this room with another man? Our family would never allow such a shameless woman into the family. Corinne Carew is a bad person. She didn't just have an affair; she even stole Rosie's watch yesterday. Ask Rosie about it!"Rosie, pretending to be generous and forgiving, shook her head. "Ma'am, I'm fine. It's just a watch, and it's not really that expensive. Though, what Corinne has done now… It's unforgivable. She betrayed Jeremy."Corinne's face was as white as a piece of paper. Still, she managed a smile as she continued to ignore Rosie and the others. Pulling the blanket away from her, she tried to stand up. "You may choose to not believe me, Grandma, but I'd never do anything that would bring shame to the Holdens."It was haunting for Pam
Rosie was sure this was the climax of this escalating tension. She felt a sort of joy when she felt Corinne's misfortune approaching. 'This is karma for ruining my watch! Won't it be nice if I can actually say she deserves it?'Rosie pretended to sigh and approached Jeremy, attempting to console him by saying, "Jeremy, don't be angry. No one expected Corinne to betray you…"Jeremy glanced at her for just a second before looking back at Corinne. He said coldly, "Come here."Despite all that happened, Corinne was very calm. She expressed her gratitude to Jason, who helped her, and slowly walked toward Jeremy as she was told. "Mister…"Before she reached Jeremy, however, a dizzy feeling hit her, and she nearly fell again. Jeremy's long arms managed to catch her, and he pulled her to his form, furrowing his eyebrows as he did. "Is this what you got? Why is your body so weak?"The sick feeling overwhelmed her, and it did not help that Jeremy mocked her for being in such a state. If she
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