Was Stephen hinting that the two items Sadie stumbled upon were part of a setup?Madeline thought back to how Sadie had casually perused the market stalls and everything clicked. She had not really been choosing at all.That explained it.Madeline gave Hector a sly look. "Mr. Ferguson was a stand-up guy like the rest of us, but you, Hector Ferguson, I suppose... "Hector's face flushed a deep red. "What's it to you? In battle, anything goes!"Stephen's voice was icy. "You pulled out all the stops and still came up short."Willa snorted with laughter, which only made Hector glare at her harder.Scared, Willa bolted. "I'm off to make some coffee!"Madeline's gaze remained focused on Hector. "Mr. Hector Ferguson, you've lost. You know the deal. Stay out of Lydia's life and you don't get to see her again."So, that was the bet Madeline had made.Trevon and Stephen both looked down, their faces clouded.Hector was seething as he bit back his words.Madeline raised an eyebrow. "W
Hector was frantic, but even that could not stop his brother's declaration."He bet that if he lost, he'd be your nanny until your baby's born," Stephen announced.Madeline and Trevon were speechless.Trevon did not even think before he objected. "No way."Madeline waved it off too. "Don't bother."They both looked utterly repulsed at the thought of Hector helping out. It seemed more likely that Madeline would end up babysitting him instead.It was the last thing they needed.Hector was not keen on the idea either, but their disdainful looks suddenly made him defensive. "What's with you two? Do you even know who I am?"He flaunted his hand and added, "This hand? It's insured for a cool 15 million bucks!"Hector's hand was his tool for crafting breathtaking designs—a gem in the eyes of the world. "Me, taking care of you? That's a privilege!"Madeline rolled her eyes. "You can keep that privilege to yourself. Thank you."She shooed Hector away as if he were the last person on
The buzz from the live stream was lighting up the internet.The moment Raphael's painting hit the screen and Jay slapped down a whopping 12 million dollar bid, the live stream shot up to the top of the trending charts.Yancy, video in hand, rushed into Cilix's office. "Mr. Sanders, you've got to see this."Cilix looked weary.The Lowe Clan village mess had only popped up a couple of days ago, and he was already feeling beat.Yancy even asked him to watch a video, which clearly annoyed him. Should they not be focusing all their efforts on finding Jared?Despite his irritation, Cilix took the tablet and gave it a look.The live stream played, and there was Jared, the guy he had been trying to track down with no luck, looking friendly and ordinary next to Madeline.They were deep in conversation with big smiles.By the end, Jared's eyes were full of respect for Madeline.Jay, the big-shot president of the Redenbaugh City Chamber of Commerce, was the very guy Cilix had been tryin
In the end, Madeline found herself in the backseat of a car, heading to the wine party she had been so set against.Trevon had played his cards right, dangling the bluefin tuna, then the caviar, and raving about the celebrity chef flown in just to dazzle the high rollers. That was a one-time deal, and she was in for the ride.Trevon promised Madeline a quiet spot where she could just savor the feast without the fuss of a party. Somehow, she found herself saying yes.It was probably the little one doing somersaults in her tummy, drooling over the thought of top-notch bluefin tuna.That had to be it.They slipped into their fancy outfits at Tracy's shop, sneaking into the bash without causing a ripple.Trevon had the room all set, and Madeline kicked back, comfy and carefree.However, the star of the show, the bluefin tuna Trevon raved about, showed up fully cooked. No raw sashimi delight because Trevon was playing it safe against any pesky parasites.Madeline could not help bu
Cilix spun around to see Madeline, hand on her stomach, coming from the other end of the hallway, a sneer plastered on her face.Next to her stood Trevon, his face icy.Cilix's forehead creased with worry. "You turned down Mr. Wafford in front of everyone. Don't you see anything wrong with that? Is this the kind of manners you were taught?"What did your mom use to tell you? Sure, you're young, and it's forgivable that you didn't think this through. As your dad, it's up to me to sort these things out for you."Madeline stared at his two-faced grin, Hoyt's words echoing in her head.How dare he stand there and lecture her with such high and mighty talk?She used to think his favoritism was because of Skylar.That the tiny bit of fatherly affection he had could not reach her.Then, she got it. It had nothing to do with Skylar.From the get-go, the one who was truly selfish and unfeeling was Cilix. Without Skylar, without the Lowes, there would just be another family like the Zwi
Jay's secretary courteously showed Madeline and Trevon out. When he came back, Jay was still lost in the painting's charm.Suddenly, Jay chuckled to himself. "She's a genuine one, that girl. Doesn't seem like she's just putting on a show for me."Later that night, Trevon and Edith each called Jay in turn, their words laced with concern and defense.He had not been bothered before, but their protective tone piqued his interest.Trevon had just sent word through the grapevine. Madeline was supposed to come by and apologize to him face-to-face.It was the perfect timing for a meet-up.The secretary's lips gave a little involuntary twitch.Apologize in person? More like Trevon was treating Madeline to a meal, and the apology was just a side dish.He had seen it himself—plate after plate of perfectly good tuna, grilled to a crisp, delivered to Trevon's lounge. What a waste of perfectly good fish.It took a while, but eventually, Trevon's messenger came back with another update.He
Madeline's heart skipped a beat. She had not expected to stumble upon such a bombshell, and it was too late to sneak away unnoticed. The sound of the balcony door swinging open made the two people next to her jump. They clammed up and turned to look at her all at once. Madeline saw it was the girl who had been singing earlier and Stephen. She gave an embarrassed grin and mustered up the courage to say, "Hello, Mr. Ferguson. Good evening. I should probably get going... You guys chat." Madeline was about to retreat and close the door behind her when Stephen, with a resigned smile, stopped her, "Hold on." Madeline peeked out from the door's edge. Stephen, with a furrowed brow, asked, "What brings you here?"He had canceled the dinner to keep her from getting too tired, and there she was at an even more exhausting party.Madeline offered a sheepish smile and explained, "Well... I heard the bluefin tuna here was out of this world, so I thought I'd give it a try." Stephen's exp
The 'Mr. Shaw' that Stephen mentioned was the president of a company that partnered with the Gibson Group. They were in the business of chip materials, pretty much a key supplier for the Gibson Group.Their partnership ran deep. Austin Shaw was close with Trevon's father.At the party, Trevon knew he could not just skip out on the meet-up, but to his surprise, Riley and Amelia Shaw were there too.Trevon did not think much of it at first, until Riley started nudging the idea of a marriage deal between their families.Austin seemed to be eating it up. Amelia, her cheeks all kinds of red, did not bolt, though.Then, Riley had the nerve to suggest Trevon walk Amelia home.Quick on his feet, Trevon made up some business with Jay to make his escape.However, the real mystery was how Stephen got wind of the whole thing so fast.Stephen's grin turned icy. "Mrs. Yagle's dead set on playing matchmaker for you, yet here you are, still hanging around Madeline."Madeline's face said 'shoc