Rose had accomplished her goal.She stood there pitifully as she tried to explain to the onlookers. "You've all misunderstood. That's not what I meant.""Rose, aren't you afraid that Mason will get angry that you labeled him as someone that has been cheated on?" Summer asked indifferently.Rose froze in place.The surrounding discussions instantly stopped as well."I barely even know him, and I've only exchanged a few words with the transfer student. Next time, try going for something easier if you're going to make things up," Summer said. She tilted her chin toward the crowd. "There are so many people here. If word gets out, what do you think Mason will do considering his personality?"Rose had never even considered that. She only brought up Mason to provoke Summer.Summer walked in front of Rose and casually straightened the latter's crooked collar. After that, she whispered so that only the two of them could hear, "Right. I forgot to ask you at home last time. How are thing
Rose started to worry after that. How did Summer know about Anthony and her? She had always been careful about keeping it a secret.After the fiasco today, Summer would definitely maintain peace with her on the surface.To ensure her future plans went smoothly, she would need to properly keep her temper in control. Only then would Summer lower her guard.…Summer made her way back to the dormitory. As soon as she stepped out of the elevator, someone suddenly ran out of the stairwell and blocked her path."You again?" Summer stared at Chandler, who was panting, and started to lose her patience."Have a chat with me," Chandler said."Not interested," Summer said and tried to leave.He grabbed her hand and dragged her to the stairwell. "Don't scream. You know what people will say if they see us like this."She looked at him.Chandler was definitely up to something. He was completely different from when he was in school."I wasn't planning on screaming. Who exactly are you?" Sum
After spending time around Summer, Chandler was sure she was just another version of Mason—a cold-blooded, ruthless person that was only driven by profit. She would never truly love someone.She was only with Mason for the sake of his power. The moment Mason fell, she would throw herself into the arms of another man without any hesitation."Let me tell you. Mason won't last much longer." Chandler sneered.He continued, "By the end of this month, he'll be done for. Royal Financial Group will end up in my father's hands. When the time comes, my father will clear out everyone who was secretly aligned with Mason. Hartford Group won't be able to get out of it unscathed."Summer's eyes turned even more frosty. "Royal Financial Group can't even touch Hartford Group with Mason in power. Do you think your father can do it?""Summer, are you really that naive? Back then, Mason was just one step away from acquiring Hartford Group. Even your grandfather, with all his capabilities, could do no
Summer replied, "It's me. I'm so sorry. I need to speak to Mason, but I don't have his contact information.""Are you in trouble?" Kyle asked."I'm not. Is he not free to take my call?" she asked back."Mr. Hunt is dealing with something right now, and I'm not with him." The voice on the other end sounded vague.Summer's heart sank a bit. "Did something happen?"Kyle immediately answered, "No! If you have a message, you can tell me. I'll pass it on to him the moment he's free.""Just tell him to call me back when he's done," Summer said.She did not know if that person was loyal to Mason or not. That was why she decided not to say anything after some hesitation."Okay." The call ended.Kyle sat in his car and glanced at the massive, shadowed building in the distance. It was the Hunt residence.Mason had been in there for a long time. The Hunt family had been quiet for a while, but for some reason, they were stirring up trouble again recently. They were moving in full forc
"Ms. Hartford, don't worry. I guarantee that you and Hartford Group will never be implicated in this." Mason's voice grew even more serious on the other end.Summer realized she might have overreacted to it. It was probably because she knew she was very important to Mason.She guessed that those who were favored really did act fearlessly.Wasn't that exactly what she was doing?"It better stay that way." She gritted her teeth, trying to maintain a firm stance.No matter what, she couldn't allow anything bad to happen to her family."I'll deal with Chandler right now," Mason answered.Summer fell silent for a moment. "If there's nothing else, I'll hang up now.""Okay."The call ended.Mason lowered his phone with a terrifyingly cold expression.When Kyle saw it, he couldn't help but shiver. It was like a kind of eerie calm that signaled the coming of a storm."Mr. Hartford, did something happen to Hartford Group?" Kyle asked carefully.Mason looked at Kyle. "Chandler's back
"Why would someone fake their identity just to enroll in here?" a student asked in surprise."Who knows? Either way, it's pretty shocking."Summer listened quietly as she continued to write with her pen without pause. She quickly finished the paper."Summer, did you get even faster?" Lindsey had barely made it to halfway through when she looked over. There was a sense of defeat when she saw Summer reaching for the next paper."This one's easy," Summer replied.Lindsey was speechless.Easy? Did she not know what easy meant?"Summer, I can't figure out this question no matter how hard I try. Can you take a look?" A girl from the class scooted over to Summer at that moment.Summer glanced at her and took the paper for a look. Then, she quickly wrote down a formula before handing the paper back. "Try this."The girl stared at the formula and suddenly had a moment of realization. "Summer, you're amazing! Thanks!"Summer maintained her usual indifferent expression.Not far away, R
"Yes!" Summer nodded."I heard from Lionel that your ultimate goal is to collaborate with Hartford Group?" Saul asked."That's right," Summer answered."Why Hartford Group? From what I know, they don't have much experience in the field. Compared to them, Royal Financial Group might be a better choice," Saul said.Summer smiled. "I have my reasons, but it's not convenient for me to tell you right now."He nodded and didn't press further. "Don't worry. I'll link up your company with Hartford Group as soon as possible.""When the time comes, I'll make sure to give you a generous commission," Summer replied."Good!" Saul smiled warmly.His words were gentle, and his smile was tender as well. Summer didn't feel any wariness or annoyance with him, unlike with Anthony and Chandler. Was that the difference between someone who was truly kind and someone who was pretending to be?After that, Summer and Saul finalized some details of the proposal. By the time they were done, it was alr
"Damn it!" Summer quickly retraced her steps in her mind. Her phone must have fallen out of her bag when she ran out of the car.At that moment, the driver regained his senses and started to chase after her while shouting.She had no choice but to hope she'd run into a pedestrian or a passing car that would stop and help her.Ever since she was reborn, she had been incredibly careful about everything. She never expected she would still fall for a trap today.But who was behind this?The driver realized he couldn't catch up on foot after running for a while. He ran back and drove after Summer instead.Seeing this, Summer ran right into a narrow alley where the car couldn't follow. She was quite unlucky. Even after running for over ten minutes, she hadn't bumped into a single person along the way.Thankfully, no one was chasing her anymore.As she panted, she spotted what looked like flashing police car lights not too far away. She almost cried in relief as she immediately tried
"What does it have to do with you?" Mason sneered."You…" Snow was shocked by his indifference.She'd just caught them doing something inappropriate. Shouldn't he be panicking? Shouldn't he be begging for her to keep their secret?Then, Mason forcefully pushed the door, shoving Snow outside and slamming it shut.Snow stomped her foot on the ground furiously, but there was nothing she could do. She thought to herself that she would go look for Summer tomorrow. If Mason didn't care, surely Summer would have some shame.Then, with a huff, she yanked up the pajama top that had slid down her shoulders and stormed back to her room.…Early the next morning, Summer woke up, washed up, and went to knock on Mason's door. After that, the two of them went to have breakfast in the dining room.Snow, as a volunteer, was in the dining room as well. When she saw the two of them walk in and how attentive Mason was to Summer, she felt a surge of jealousy in her heart."You still haven't gotten
Summer sat on the bed while Mason knelt at the bedside. He carefully applied ointment to her bites with visible concern.Summer reassured him, "It's just mosquito bites. They'll be gone after a good night's sleep.""Plenty of people have gotten sick from mosquito bites," Mason said.Summer reached out, grabbed his wrist, and attempted to pull him up. But she lost her balance and tumbled backward onto the bed, almost dragging Mason down with her.Luckily, he braced himself with both hands on either side of her, narrowly keeping them from falling. Now, he was hovering above her, and their eyes met.The scent of herbal balm filled the room, somehow making for a strange atmosphere."You got bitten on the cheek, too," Mason said as he looked at her face."Don't put that green stuff on my face. It's weird," Summer said."No…" Mason protested.Summer blinked. "It'll be fine. If you're really worried, just kiss it. Saliva has antibacterial properties, too."Mason said nothing as he l
Otherwise, Mason truly didn't know what he would do.Would he try to snatch Summer away? What if she hated him for it? What if she was never happy again because of it?That wasn't what he wanted. All he wanted was for Summer to live a happy, joyful life. Whether or not he was a part of that life didn't seem to matter much."There are some water lilies over there. They might still be in bloom, so let's go check them out." Summer's cheeks were flushed, and she was still slightly out of breath."Alright." Mason nodded.The two of them walked over side by side and even held hands for a while. By the time they reached the water lily pond, Summer let go.There were two couples by the pond. One pair was leaning close to the other, while the other was taking photos.Mason looked at them, finding the scene both dazzling and enviable. Once again, he regretted accepting to pretend to be her brother."Look! There are so many water lilies!" Summer didn't notice Mason's gloom as she grabbed
Once Snow was gone, the other women started to whisper among themselves."I bet she's going to look for Betsy. She probably wants to switch rooms to be next to that handsome guy.""For sure. She probably went to take a shower and doll herself up, too.""She's always throwing herself at guys but still acts so high and mighty. I really don't get what's going on in her head."Summer and Mason had already walked quite far ahead.Summer couldn't hold back her laughter anymore. "What do we do, Mason? It looks like that pretty girl has a crush on you."Mason glanced at her.Before she could react, he suddenly pulled her into his arms, lowered his head, and kissed her hard. "You're very happy, aren't you?"There were quite a few guests walking around the farm at that moment.Summer was startled and tried to break free, but Mason only held her even tighter."Mr. Hunt, it was my fault!" Summer surrendered immediately.Mason said nothing."If that woman comes looking for you, I'll hel
Mason was visibly pleased when he heard Summer say that there was still plenty of time. He nodded without hesitation.After dinner, Summer and Mason took a leisurely stroll outside.The countryside at night was far quieter than the city. The farmland was in full bloom. With everything growing strong and lush, they walked along a small path, and when they looked up, the sky was filled with stars."There are so many stars!" Summer exclaimed.Mason looked up as well. He wasn't really interested in them. Rather than stars, he was far more interested in looking at Summer."You liked stars a lot when you were a kid," Mason said.Summer looked at him before she shook her head in disbelief. "We met just once when I was young. How much did I tell you?""You told me quite a lot," Mason said.Summer shook her head again. "It looks like I've always been weak to good-looking people. I told you everything, I guess."That made Mason's grin even wider. "So, is that a compliment?""Isn't that
"Hello," Mason greeted politely.Randall instantly lit up with the same warm smile as before. "No need to be so polite. The dishes are almost ready. Would you two like to eat inside the house or out in the open area out front?""What do you think?" Summer asked.Mason never expected that Summer treating him like her brother could have this sort of effect. "Whatever you like.""Let's eat inside first. We can walk around after dinner," Summer said.The owner chuckled and immediately had someone arrange it.It was the summer break, so there were quite a few guests at the farm, but not many were staying overnight.Summer had arrived late. Most people had already eaten and gone out for a stroll.Summer asked Mason softly, "What do you think? Do you like it? We can sleep here and go catch some shrimp tomorrow. There are many fruits and vegetables to pick, too. "When I came with my parents, they almost picked a whole carload and insisted on bringing them home. In the end, they gave
"How would you know where I want to go?" Mason asked with a smile."I just do!" Summer answered confidently.After passing what used to be the flea market, the road opened up into the countryside. Mason could see stretches of fields rolling by.On the way there, a call came in from the company.Summer glanced at Mason before she answered the call.Very quickly, she heard Lionel's voice. "Summer, have you eaten yet?""I still haven't. What's up?" Summer replied. Her tone was totally different from the one she used with Mason."There's a problem with the structure of the Escape From the Asylum project. I kept calling Hunt, but he hasn't been answering. Could you try contacting him later?" Lionel said.Hunt naturally referred to Saul.Ever since the restaurant incident, Saul had rarely shown up at the company. Summer had been so busy lately that the two of them barely crossed paths. Even so, they had kept in touch on the phone."I got it. If it's getting too late and you can't s
Even putting everything else aside, the incident that had taken Xena's life, according to Luke, had been a result of an internal family conflict. Xena had simply been caught in the crossfire.Cynthia had lost Xena—her sister—and then spent years in a vegetative state. If Mason ignored her, that would have reflected really poorly on his character. It would have meant that he had no sense of responsibility.Mason gave her a gentle smile. "That was a close call.""Let's go out for dinner tonight," Summer said suddenly.Mason was taken aback for a moment. "Go out? Aren't you afraid someone might see us?"Of course Mason wanted to, but Summer had always seemed reluctant to be exposed publicly like that.Summer said as she pulled Mason up. "No one will. Take off your suit. I'll bring you to a nighttime flea market. No wealthy folk will be there."Mason looked a little lost. He had never been to such places.While he went to change, Summer pulled out two baseball caps from a drawer an
In the blink of an eye, a busy month came to an end.That afternoon, Summer received a call from her apartment management. Someone from the floor below had complained about a leak from her unit, and they asked her to check it out.Summer immediately drove over.The moment she stepped out of the elevator, she didn't see the neighbor or the property staff. Instead, she was greeted with the sight of a massive bouquet, as well as Mason waiting for her right next to the door."You're back?" Summer's eyes lit up as her face bloomed with joy. She skipped over to Mason excitedly."I thought you said you wouldn't be back until next week?" Summer asked."I missed you so much that I came home early." Mason shifted the flowers aside and opened his arms.Summer lunged into his embrace with a radiant smile, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Welcome back, Mr. Hunt!"Mason held the bouquet with one hand as he gently stroked her head with the other. He lowered his head and kissed Summer on t