At this moment, the audience began shaking their heads. They had sharp eyes, and they could tell that Summer was just an ordinary woman who couldn't handle such an occasion. Caroline's face was especially gloomy. Had she known that Summer was this incompetent, she would never have allowed her to marry James.Whispers sounded as everyone began to gossip about the Quigley family. Being caught in the middle of it all, Caroline's face darkened even more, but she still maintained her composure and stood in front of the crowd without saying anything.The situation worsened by the second and became more tense. It was then that James stepped forward and held Summer's hand. His touch was warm, and it was as if he were able to channel some strength through it to Summer's heart. "Hello, everyone. My name is Summer Charter. I am James' wife." Finally, Summer spoke up, bravely introducing herself to the audience.Keeping the momentum, she continued, "I'm just an ordinary woman, and meeti
As one person came forward, others naturally followed suit."Mr. Quigley, you cannot possibly marry a woman like this. You deserve someone better.""That's right. There are so many outstanding women in the four major, prestigious families for you to choose from. Why choose this woman?"Everyone seemed genuinely worried, as if they had James' best interests at heart. But James didn't need their concern.Taking the microphone from Summer, James spoke with authority. "The affairs of the Quigley family are none of your business. Keep your mouths shut!"His words silenced the entire hall, as though it were a royal command. Even the band stopped playing, and the whole place fell into complete silence. No one dared to even breathe, fearing that they would anger the frosty man on stage.James controlled his temper once he saw that everyone had quieted down. However, his tone didn't soften as he continued to say, "This is my marriage, and it's no one else's business unless you have th
Perhaps Summer sensed James' unease. Although he had an imposing demeanor and gave off a sense that everything was under his control, he was still worried about the possibility that they might not have a future together.At this moment, James felt isolated and uneasy, like flowers swaying in the winter wind.Time slowly passed. As the clock turned and the night went on, even the moonlight appeared to be dimmed.At this moment, Summer also felt like her future was unclear. She didn't know if she and James could be together in the future. After the party, she had realized that there were many people who didn't want them to be together.If she divorced James, would she be sad or happy?She didn't have a clear answer to the question.Although their time together had been short, Summer had unconsciously grown dependent on James. She had already grown accustomed to his presence, even though their love had yet to bloom.Summer gently parted her cherry lips and said, "If… If we divo
"Of course you should care! Although Quigley Group is powerful, aren't you afraid your parents…" Bradly stopped midway through his sentence, but James could already guess what he wanted to say. He was about to mention whether James' parents would strip him of his title as heir. The four major prestigious families would designate an heir when their children were of age. James was currently first in line to become the heir of the Quigley family. His younger brother, Howe Quigley, was the next candidate after him.Actually, he had nothing to worry about. Compared to Howe, he was exceptionally capable and outstanding. It was as if the two brothers came from different worlds. Howe wouldn't be chosen to be the heir under any circumstances.Besides, so what if James' parents were to strip him of the heir's position? James wasn't afraid. He would rather love Summer than take over Quigley Group."Bradly, thank you. I will handle all of this," James said."You better handle it well
Keith sat on a red couch. With one hand supporting his head, he looked lazy and content. He said, "You guys discuss James' matter. You're his brothers, not me.""Keith, why do you always say such things? Clearly, you care a lot. Why do you keep opposing James?" Seeing Keith's indifferent attitude, Zach felt rather helpless.The thing about Keith and James was that they had been in competition since childhood. After all, they were the most powerful competitors among the four major prestigious families. From a young age, they had often been compared by the elders of their respective families. As adults, they were both chosen as the successors to their families. In the future, the competition between the Quigleys and the Ritters, and who turned out to be the strongest, largely depended on the two individuals.Keith understood the situation. He deliberately kept a distance and maintained a hostile attitude toward James.Seeing Keith's cold attitude, Zach knew that asking for his
"No, no. Mr. Quigley made it for you. I can't have it," Charlie replied urgently.Summer also didn't force him when she noticed his expression. He looked as if eating her breakfast would bring him bad luck. Instead, she continued to eat on her own.Charlie stood in front of her and said, "Mrs. Quigley, Mr. Myers wants to see you."Summer looked up and asked, "Mr. Myers? Who's that?" "Zach Myers. Mr. Myers. Mr. Quigley's friend," Charlie replied.With Charlie's reminder, Summer finally recalled who Zach was. She had heard before that James and the other heirs of the four major prestigious families were good friends. Apart from Bradly, James' friendship with Zach was quite good too. However, Summer was not familiar with him at all. She wondered why he wanted to see her."Let him in," Summer said.Summer felt that it would be better to meet him. After all, they had met before. She remembered him as a somewhat simple-looking man.After entering the room, Zach sat in front of S
Summer would never follow Zach's instructions. She pretended to be cold and instructed Charlie, "Please escort our guest out."Charlie acted promptly. After receiving the order, he politely approached Zach and said, "Mr. Myers, Mrs. Quigley would like you to leave.""Charlie, step aside. I'm helping James here," Zach ordered. He knew that Charlie was James' bodyguard. Both Zach and Charlie were also sort of acquainted, so Zach directly gave the order. However, Charlie didn't comply."Mr. Myers, I know you're a good friend of Mr. Quigley's. However, I have received direct orders from Mr. Quigley that I must obey Mrs. Quigley's commands," Charlie replied."So, are you going to kick me out?" Zach asked.Charlie lowered his head and murmured, "I wouldn't dare to." Although his status wasn't far behind Zach's, he still couldn't resort to violence. So, Charlie could only politely ask Zach to leave. Summer noticed the difficulty Charlie was facing. She didn't want to force him.
After speaking, Zach finally left, closing the front door loudly.The living room became quiet. Dust settled, and sunlight flickered on the glass window, as if nothing had happened.Lexi, who was standing behind Summer, was a bit confused. She whispered, "Mrs. Quigley, why did you say such things? Do you not have feelings for Mr. Quigley at all?"Summer turned away and replied calmly, "No."But Lexi knew that Summer was just pretending. Feelings were like muddy water. The more one tried to understand it, the more vague it became. Right now, Summer didn't want to admit that she was in love because her romance with James had just begun.…Time passed. In the evening, James was ready to get off work at Quigley Group. As he headed to the parking lot, he saw a white-haired old man in a black uniform waiting for him. James recognized the man as Caroline's housekeeper, Luca Lennon.James asked, "Luca, did Mom instruct you to come here?"Luca replied, "Yes, Mr. Quigley. Mrs. Quigle
"Of course. I'm the chairman of Charter Corporation, after all. Why can't I continue working? I took care of Charter Corporation back when you got married, didn't I?" Fred patted his chest firmly, looking quite confident.Summer also believed that her father would be able to manage the company well if she left it in his care.Fred was the founder of Charter Corporation, after all. He had worked on it for decades, and he was the person who knew it the best. If he was the one taking over, Summer definitely had no reason to worry.However, Fred had already retired, so he should be relaxing at home at his age. Summer felt a little bad if he was suddenly asked to manage the company again.James comforted Summer, saying, "Summie, why don't you let him help you? Of all the people in Charter Corporation, he must be the person who's the most invested in the company other than you.""That's right." Fred smiled confidently. "How can I not care about my own company? Don't worry, Summer. Just
They were having a meal right now, so where was Fred going? Summer asked in confusion, "Dad, where are you going?"When Summer asked the question, Fred had already left the living room. He seemed to be on his way back to his room.Amelia explained, "He's preparing a gift for you.""Preparing a gift? What gift?"Soon, the gift Amelia mentioned was brought over to them.Fred was carrying a large cardboard box, which he processed to place on the table. He retrieved children's toys, baby clothes, and a jigsaw puzzle from the box.Summer was speechless when she saw that. So this was the sort of gift Amelia was talking about. But why would Fred give her these things out of the blue?Holding the clothes, Fred explained gleefully, "Several months ago, Amelia and I were shopping when we came across some baby products. We were wondering when you'd have children, and we feared that you wouldn't be able to buy all the baby products you would need, so we bought some ahead of time."Summer s
Nearby, James faked a cough as if there was another matter at hand. Noticing something off with his expression, Summer thought that he choked on something, so she asked, "Would you like some water?""No, thanks… Summie, did you forget why we came here in the first place?"Thanks to James' reminder, Summer finally remembered that she wasn't here for a simple visit. She had to tell her parents the good news of her pregnancy.At that moment, Amelia and Fred were leisurely enjoying the food. Summer knew that if they heard the news, they might get overwhelmed with emotion, so she decided to give them a heads-up. "Dad, Mom, we actually came here to tell you an important piece of news. Maybe you can stop eating for now.""What's the matter?" Fred asked curiously."Well… This is a very serious matter. Before I break the news, I'd like you to be as calm as possible. Please don't get too worked up."When Amelia and Fred heard that, they exchanged glances. They had no idea what exactly Summ
For example, Summer and James were taking a walk in the park. They might look like they were alone, but in reality, more than a dozen bodyguards were hiding in bushes and various corners of the park. To protect the child, the Quigleys pulled out all the stops to ensure Summer's safety."Alright, I get it." Summer chose to compromise. She was living a wonderful life at the Quigley residence, after all, so she felt like she shouldn't ask for too much.Also, as Caroline had said, Summer would regain freedom once she gave birth to the child. Summer would be able to live her happy life with James then, and Caroline wouldn't be around to nag her about the child.The next morning, the Quigleys arranged for a luxurious limousine to send Summer and James to the Charter Estate. Amelia and Fred already knew that their daughter would be coming over, so they were waiting at the entrance. When they saw their dear daughter, elated expressions appeared on their faces."Summer, you're back! We've p
Hence, Summer could do whatever she pleased. If Caroline dared to restrict her freedom, Summer would be upset, and Caroline wouldn't want that.As Summer walked along the even path of the park, she did some stretches to loosen up. "It's a nice life. Before this, I was worried that something bad might happen if I returned to the Quigley residence, but now, it looks like I was overthinking it. Caroline is very good to me, and the others respect me too.""I'm glad to hear that. I was also worried that you wouldn't be able to get used to staying in the Quigley residence. You're pregnant, after all." James glanced at Summer's belly, his eyes filled with fatherly love and tenderness. By the looks of it, he had intended to be a father a long time ago."Hold your horses. I've only been pregnant for three weeks. They say that the baby will be born after ten months of pregnancy, and it's not even been a month yet, let alone ten." With that, Summer suddenly held James' hand and guided it tow
What would it mean to Howe if he gave up on the position of the head of the family? It meant that he would have to depend on someone else to survive, and he would be giving up on glory and riches along with a life filled with extravagance.Thanks to his wealthy background, Howe was already used to life like this. If James became the head of the family in the future, he might exercise his authority as the head of the family to limit Howe's movements. Howe would be stripped of freedom.Maeve felt that Howe was right as well. Her current life of luxury was built upon mountains of cash. If Howe didn't get to be the head of the family, he would definitely face restrictions."Howe, I want you to be the head of the family as well, but do you really have confidence in your capabilities? Your brother is so outstanding, and he's the official heir, too."Maeve hit the nail on the head. This was exactly what Howe was worried about as well. There was a world of difference between him and James,
So, when Caroline asked her to stay in the Quigley residence, Summer somewhat reluctantly agreed.At noon the next day, dark clouds filled the sky, making it look bleak. However, in the bustling Rosseera City, things were as lively as usual.In a luxury hotel situated in the city center, Howe was sitting on a chair, holding a glass of wine in one hand while his other arm was wrapped around the waist of a beautiful woman. At that moment, his expression was as gloomy as the weather.The young woman was good at reading the room. Extending her fingers, she traced circles on Howe's pink shirt. She asked, "What's the matter, Howe? You seem to be in a bad mood today. Could there be anyone in Rosseera City who's bold enough to offend you?""Hmph…" Howe didn't say a word. Instead, he downed the whole glass of wine.Noticing that he wasn't saying anything, the young woman pursed her lips and planted a kiss on his cheek. Smiling, she asked, "What's going on? Are you going to say that women w
James didn't want to agree to this arrangement. Even though it wasn't explicitly mentioned, he was fully aware that Summer didn't want to stay at the Quigley residence. Hence, he said, "I'll take care of Summer, Mom. I even hired Tina to look after her needs. You know how dependable Tina is. With her around, everything will be fine.""Nonsense. Even if Tina was there, there's only so much she can do on her own. This Quigley grandchild is extremely important. I can't just let her handle everything by herself.""That won't be an issue, Mom. Besides, Summer won't feel comfortable staying here either." Summer's feelings were James' top priority. Caroline could see this as well. In the end, the decision was Summer's to make. So, instead of addressing James, she turned to Summer and asked, "Would you like to stay at the Quigley residence, Summie?"If it were up to Summer, she'd say no. There was no way she would want to stay here out of her own free will. Just the mere sight of Caroli
Howe was the quietest person at the table. He was dressed in a shirt with floral patterns, and his hair was slightly curly. He was as still as a rock. He had a look of terror on his face for a while now—he didn't know that Summer was pregnant.Now that his parents were talking about it, he immediately asked, "Pregnant? Is Summer pregnant?""Yes, she is—haven't you heard?" Caroline replied. "No… How is she suddenly pregnant? I didn't hear anything about it until now." "I only found out recently as well." Caroline's hand moved over her mouth before she continued, "Isn't it great? You're going to be an uncle soon.""Yeah. I can't wait." Howe put on a forced smile.Everyone in the family was overjoyed by the news—except Howe Quigley. The Quigleys had a family rule. If the heir had a child, his position as the head of the family would be set in stone.So, if James welcomed a baby, Howe would lose the opportunity to take his place as the family heir. By that logic, he would never be