When Javier turned around, he saw this scene. The corners of Claire’s beautiful lips were raised a little, forming a faint smile. This smile only lasted for a moment, but Javier managed to capture it.Sometimes, the smallest, most unintentional actions were the deadliest.Javier felt his heart melt softly. His eyes were fixed on her, and he was mesmerized. “I have to say, this woman is extremely beautiful,” Javier thought and was compelled to kiss her.But before he could make his move, the woman beside him noticed his gaze and was slightly stunned. Claire touched her face with suspicion, and after confirming that there was nothing wrong with her face, she then asked, “Is there anything wrong with my face?”She looked extremely innocent, and this caused Javier to simmer down and hold back his urge to kiss her. This was also because he had something important to attend to later.Claire did not realize Javier’s strange behavior. She had no time to care about this. Her mind was f
Javier sighed helplessly and nodded. “Fine, go ahead. But you must promise to come back immediately after you finish your work, understand?”Seeing that Javier had agreed, Claire was secretly overjoyed and immediately agreed.Javier still had a straight face on. He gave Claire a helpless look, as if he was extremely upset.Patty, who was on the side, saw that Javier had compromised, and she felt very relieved. She initially saw Javier’s angry expression and was shocked. She thought that Javier would definitely lash out. After all, no one could defy his words. Now, it seemed that Claire was an exception.Meanwhile, Claire did not know this. She was just happy because Javier had agreed to let her go to work. She had been resting at home for the past few days and had almost died of boredom.Patty continued to prepare breakfast, and Claire sat on the couch and read a book disinterestedly. After a while, Ollie came running down the stairs. His eyes sparkled when he saw Claire. He dashe
Morrow wanted to slowly snatch away everything that belonged to Javier. Of course, that included his woman.Thus, Morrow was very agitated by the scene he saw earlier.He took some time in his car to calm down.Morrow walked slowly into the building, and as he passed by Claire’s office, he paused for a moment before withdrawing his gaze nonchalantly.When he reached his office, he thought about it, then picked up his phone and called a number.“David, come to my office later.”About fifteen minutes after he hung up, David rushed over to his office. He panted for a while and said, “Mr. Marquez, you were looking for me. Is there anything I can do for you?”It has only been a day since he last saw David, but David looked haggard and had stubble all over his jaw.Morrow was taken aback. He furrowed his brows and grunted. “What happened to you? You look so disheveled.”David smiled awkwardly and scratched his face. He then chuckled and said, “Mr. Marquez, I can’t do anything about
David left after giving his word. He was planning how to manipulate Claire so that she would fall into his trap. This time, he'd need to plan even more meticulously, and he refused to fail again.He could not bear to see Claire be happy for too long. His jealousy was driving him crazy.What Claire did not know was that someone was working to harm her behind her back. The only thing on her mind right now was to quickly settle matters related to Thomas. Because Thomas’ filming had come to an end, she had to be careful about picking which film he would be starring in next, as it would be a crucial time for him.After dealing with some documents and making an appointment with the collaborator and director, Claire gave Thomas a call to schedule a meeting. Before long, it was time for the meeting, so Claire called a van to send her and Thomas to their destination.On the way, they did not talk much, but Thomas’ gaze lingered on Claire. It made her feel slightly uncomfortable. So, when
Henry’s expression looked as if he were facing a formidable foe. Javier pondered for a while and solemnly said, "Let her in."Hearing this, Henry’s anxious heart had finally settled down. He was harshly rebuked by Hattie just now. Yet, he dared not offend her as the Snyder family had deep ties with the Marquez family, so he could only swallow his grievances.Although he dared not offend Hattie, he still had no choice but to stop her since Mr. Marquez had previously instructed him that if she did not have anything important to discuss, she should not be allowed to enter the company.Now that Javier had agreed to let Hattie in, he dared not delay and quickly walked out with his head lowered.At that moment, Hattie was solemnly sitting on the couch in the lobby. The people around her looked at her curiously but dared not speak to her due to her imposing demeanor.Henry sighed inwardly and thought that Miss Snyder always acted fragile in front of Javier, but she was like a tyrant in f
However, he did not change. Not even a bit.Aside from his usual indifference toward her, Hattie noticed that he was getting more and more impatient with her. He had nonchalantly answered all her questions. It turned out that being treated indifferently was the cruelest thing in the world.Realizing this, Hattie felt her heartache intensify. She took a deep breath, so as to prevent herself from collapsing from her overwhelming emotions. She had to stay strong, she could not collapse. Her lifelong wish was to marry Javier and make him fall in love with her. She would not give up no matter what!Clenching her fist tightly, Hattie vowed that she would not let Claire give birth to the child inside her!Now, Javier was already treating Claire differently. If Claire really gave birth to Javier’s child, then Hattie would have no chance at all. With these thoughts, Hattie had a plan in mind. She glanced at Javier’s office before striding away.Henry saw Hattie get into the car and finally
The benefits presented by the pretty woman in front of her were indeed tempting, but she wasn’t a fool. There had to be a shocking conspiracy behind such a simple task.However, she had no way of guessing what she was up to, so the focus was shifted to the bottle of medicine. At that thought, the woman looked at the bottle in Hattie’s hand and asked, "Miss, Can I ask what’s in the bottle? What would happen to Madam if she ate it?"Hearing that she referred to Claire as "Madam" again, Hattie became gloomy and fiercely glared at her. "Just do what I say. You don’t need to know the details as they have nothing to do with you."The woman saw that Hattie was getting angry and was shocked. She stuttered, "Oh, I understand."She absolutely could not do anything illegal. Her useless son was already in prison. If she went to prison too, the family would really be finished. Although the woman was afraid, she stubbornly stayed silent.For some time, no one in the room said a word, ushering i
As Claire had this suspicion, her gaze unconsciously swept over to the man.Who was this person, and what was his purpose?Soon enough, the man noticed Claire’s gaze, and he froze for a moment.Their eyes met and he quickly averted his gaze as if he were guilty. This subtle behavior made Claire become more alert.She frowned and walked forward, wanting to take a clear look at the man’s face.However, the man noticed Claire’s gaze and pretended to look around before quickly striding away.A normal parent would not behave as such. Claire was about to call the driver and chase after him. However, after taking a few steps, she had to stop to look around. She realized that in a blink of an eye, the man had disappeared.Claire frowned, lost in thought as she looked in the direction where the man had disappeared.She was unsure if she was overthinking, but she could not shake the feeling that the man was either tailing her or Ollie. Because when she met his gaze earlier, she noticed a
Hattie looked extremely sincere in her pleading. However, when Sofia did not answer or even look at her, she began to lose confidence. Sofia's face was impassive. "Hattie, I've known you since you were a baby, but I can't help you with this. Please leave." She did not want to discuss the other stuff with her yet.However, Hattie was obstinate. She looked at her with tears in her eyes. "Aunt Sofia, please, please help me. I know it's not much trouble for you, but it can save our entire family. You've always been so kind to me. I promise that the Snyder family will repay you for your kindness!"Hearing this, Sofia felt uncomfortable. She raised her head and gazed at her coldly. "In this case, Hattie, I'll tell you why I won't help you," she said impatiently. "Do you really not know what you've done? I won't say it, but I know exactly what you've done to Ollie. You deserve everything that's happening to you now."Hattie widened her eyes, partly in shock and partly in disbelief when she h
Javier paused outside the door and waited until Claire left before giving his subordinates a look. They understood perfectly and grabbed Chantelle at once.As Javier had ordered, they were to send this woman abroad as far away as possible and leave her to fend for herself.Outside the hotel, Claire looked up at the sky blankly. She felt like a huge burden had been taken off her shoulders; for the first time in a long time, she felt relieved of all the hurt that she had suffered five years ago. Turning back, she told Javier, "Thank you, Javier, for allowing me to face my fears. I feel so relieved now."Javier's expression fell when he heard her thank him. He tapped her on the nose fondly in exasperation. "What are you talking about? Of course, I won't let those who hurt you get off so easily. They have to pay for what they have done."Claire was touched to see him so protective of her. A surge of warmness spread in her chest as she gazed at him fondly. "I'm lucky to have you, Javier."T
That was all Armand could think of.In just a few minutes, Chantelle admitted to everything she had done to Claire over the past few years.From drugging Claire out of jealousy and getting a stranger to assault her to getting Liam to banish her abroad, she admitted to everything. Claire knew some of them, but not all; only now did she know the extent of her crimes.When she was finished, everyone in the room sported conflicting expressions. Liam looked especially hurt and remorseful. It turned out that his younger daughter had always been evil, and he had wrongfully blamed Claire for all these years.Armand, on the other hand, didn't know how to feel about all this. He glanced at Claire and Javier. He felt that he really didn't deserve Claire, after all he had done. He had thought Chantelle to be kind and naive and had trusted her blindly to the point that he almost married her.Thank goodness the wedding didn't happen. Even so, he had lost Claire thanks to this. It made him regret eve
If Chantelle told Claire the truth about what happened that night, then there would be nothing stopping her from having a happily-ever-after with Javier.Back then, driven by jealousy, she had drugged Claire and put her in Javier's bed without their consent. She had planned all of this out herself meticulously. She had gotten Armand to catch Claire in the act so that he would call off the engagement and be with her instead. Liam banished Claire abroad to fend for herself. However, if she had known that the random stranger she had arranged to assault Claire was Javier, she never would've done it.Even so, it was a perfect plan worthy of a blockbuster film. Claire and Javier never found out the truth, nor did they know that Ollie was actually Javier's son.It took them two years of skirting around each other only to find out that they were meant to be in the first place. Now that the truth was out, Claire would not settle for prison as a punishment for the cause of all her suffering. Sh
After a lot of persuasion, Claire and Sofia finally managed to get Ollie to agree to stay in the hospital for another three days.Of course, three days weren't enough. Sofia and Pedro tried everything they could to convince Ollie to stay in the hospital for as long as possible.However, Ollie was smart enough to see through their ruse. He felt guilty when he saw them trying to cajole him into staying, so one day, after another attempt, he spoke up hesitantly, "Grandma, Grandpa, I'm glad that you're trying to keep me happy, and I'm touched that you're concerned about me, but I've been in the hospital for too long and it's making me sad. I promise that I'll listen to the doctor even when I'm at home, okay?" Under his bright, clear gaze, Sofia's protests died in her throat, leaving only exasperation and wordless sorrow.Ollie was too mature for his age. How could they not love him?Therefore, Ollie got his wish and was discharged three days later. In order to take care of Ollie, Sofia an
Hearing this, Javier narrowed his eyes. He felt like he was on the verge of grasping something, but the feeling passed too quickly for him to register it. Softening his tone, he said, "There's no need to be scared, Ollie. We're all right here with you. We'll protect you no matter what happens. Can you tell me what you remembered?"Ollie might have regained his memories from before he'd been drugged.Buoyed by the encouragement, Ollie thought hard for a moment and said with a frown, "I … I remember a lady beating me. She locked me up and didn't let me eat anything while saying bad things about me and Mommy all the time. I wanted to fight back, but I was too weak. After I tried to run, she caught me and beat me up some more and forced me to eat food off the floor." Toward the end of this, Ollie burst into tears.Claire's heart hurt for him. She wanted to hug him, but Javier got there first."Tell me, Ollie, do you know her name?" Javier's voice was thick with tears as well. "Do you remem
With that, Henry threw a glance at the rest of the employees and hurried them out. He also dragged Raina and Thomas out with him, leaving only Claire and Javier's parents to keep him company.Since it was only a small procedure for Javier, he did not get a lot of anesthesia. He tried to wriggle his body a little. Realizing what he was doing, Claire quickly helped him sit up.Javier did not look like he had just come out of surgery. Thanks to his strong physique, he looked fine.Seeing this, Sofia finally eased up a little on her worries. "How are you feeling, Javier?"Javier shook his head. "I'm fine, Mom. I just need some rest. How about Ollie? Did they say when he'll wake up?" He already knew that the surgery was a success, so he wanted to know when he would be able to see Ollie."Randy said that Ollie will be out for some time, but he's fine," Claire replied. Javier nodded. He, too, finally eased up on the tight knot of worry that was weighing his chest.Once he was sure that Javie
The surgery took three hours.As time went by, Claire got more and more anxious. However, there was nothing she could do but wait.In the end, Sofia was the first to crack. She went up to Claire and said anxiously, "Claire, are you sure that Dr. Xenos is good? It's been three hours, why aren't they out yet? I have a bad feeling about this."Claire wasn't exactly relaxed either, but she didn't show it. She gathered her thoughts and comforted Sofia. "Everything will be fine, Mrs. Marquez. Randy is a well-known surgeon, I'm sure he knows what he's doing. Don't worry." She wanted to reach out to comfort her, but in the end, she just sat there with an awkward expression. This was probably how their relationship would be in the foreseeable future—awkward and distant.Pedro watched their interaction with an air of knowingness. "Stop crying, Sofia," he said. "They're fine, you don't have to cry about them. Claire's still pregnant, don't upset her."Sofia was about to get angry about his admoni
At that, Javier narrowed his eyes dangerously.The Weiss family wasn't in a stable condition right now, so it wouldn't be hard for him to take revenge on Claire's behalf. Now that he knew the truth of what had happened, he had to find a way to punish the perpetrators.The news that Ollie was Javier's biological son quickly spread, especially after Sofia held a party in celebration. In fact, it made headlines the day before Ollie's scheduled surgery.Javier wasn't surprised about it. He had been looking for an opportunity to announce it to the public so that there wouldn't be unsightly rumors that would affect Claire. Claire, on the other hand, felt a little uncomfortable about the announcement. After all, she had always been a private person; she didn't want anyone to disturb her peaceful life.After a while, though, she got used to it.The most important contributor to this was that it benefited Ollie. From now on, he wasn't a fatherless child anymore. He could tell anyone who would l