Suddenly, Madelyn's wrist was grabbed firmly. She lost her balance and almost fell.Zach violently dragged her into the study and closed the door, locking it from the outside.Rosario hurriedly rushed over and said, "Mr. Jardin, what are you doing?"Madelyn pounded on the door, "What are you doing?! Let me out. Zach, you jerk. Who do you think you are to lock me up?!"Zach removed the key after he locked the door. His face was stone-cold as he told Rosario, "Don't bring her any food without my permission."He turned back towards Madelyn and said, "You can come out once you've realized your mistake! Let's see if I have to power to control you or not, like you said!"Jadie was awakened by the noise outside. She leaned toward the door and listened. She thought, 'Is Zach arguing with Madelyn?'Jadie came out of her room at seven-thirty in the morning and sat down to have her breakfast. The atmosphere in the living room was tense. Jadie, who was eating the pancakes, lifted her head,
Madelyn sneered, "Why are you so angry? Isn't it the truth? You drugged me for so many years, and even had people rape me... And now you act like you care about me. What are you trying to do? Are you worried about me now? Or is it just pity?"I'll say it again, get lost!"Zach suddenly bent down. He kissed her soft lips.Madelyn bit his lips hard. Zach frowned in pain. Both of them tasted the taste of blood.After a brief pause, he became more aggressive. He endured the pain and bit her lips. Madelyn struggled in pain...Zach thought, 'Her scent is so addictive. If the first kiss was part of my plan, what about this time? Is it anger? Why am I angry? Was what Madelyn said wrong?'Every word that Madelyn said was true. She did not make any false accusations! He knew that Madelyn was intentionally distancing herself from him and trying to avoid meeting him.He was well aware of what he was doing too! It was unexpected and sudden, but he just could not control himself!He had cro
"You're...my brother..."Madelyn relented and gave in.'So what if I admit he's my brother? Are we going to pretend he never hurt me? Zach... What're you trying to do?!' she thought.Zach chuckled.'She knows she's asking for trouble by resisting me, so why does she never listen and keep acting defiant like this? She's always making me take drastic action.'He said menacingly, "Don't ever talk about those things again. I won't deny they happened, but... I don't like hearing about them! Understood?"Madelyn was silent.Zach gripped her chin and forced her to lift her head, "Speak!"Madelyn did not plan on giving in.'If we don't get this over with, things will just remain the same in the future,' she thought to herself."Zach... I'm only reminding you, but isn't your true goal to ruin my life? Right now, all you're doing is behaving inappropriately toward an eighteen-year-old student."Suddenly, Madelyn chuckled. With an icy and hateful gaze, she continued, "Zach, you didn't
Madelyn dabbed some concealer onto the red, swollen area around her lips and avoided the wound. She then put on some lipstick.'Otherwise, I'll have a hard time explaining the situation again when we get back,' she thought.Madelyn waited for half an hour before she started feeling impatient.Finally, Zach emerged from the supermarket exit with two big grocery bags in hand. He placed all of it into the trunk.Then, he went to the passenger seat. By the time they got home, Jadie was already back. She heard their footsteps and excitedly went to the opened the door while in her slippers."I'll take them, Zach.""There's no need. They're pretty heavy.""Alright, then."Madelyn was not in the mood to watch them play-act as loving brother and sister.'If there were others around, they'd instantly notice that I'm not needed around here,' she thought.Zach went to put the groceries into the fridge, and Jadie trailed behind him."Zach, is Rosario off today? What're we having for dinn
It was fifteen minutes to ten, before Madelyn had to go upstairs."Stand right there!"She heard someone roar.Then, she saw two persons walk into the neighborhood.Forrest walked over with a cigarette in hand while a young, beautiful girl ran after him. She had long, wavy hair and wore a knitted long dress.The girl ran to face him and slapped him across the face, "You're scum, Forrest!"She continued, "How dare you break up with me over a single text?! What do you take me for? Do you think I'm just a toy you can discard at your will?"Forrest was unfazed. He chuckled and chucked away the cigarette he was holding. He stuck his hands into his pockets and said, "It was just a fling. We broke up because I got tired of it."The white streetlights shone on Forrest's hair. The breeze gently blew against his bangs, and they fell over his eyes, which quickly swelled up and revealed a handprint from the slap."I'm not interested in women who desperately throw themselves at me. Maybe y
After George left, Ethan picked up his phone.His hopes were shattered.Ethan threw his book out of frustration, shattering the million-dollar painting on the wall. It was an original work by a renowned artist.George sighed when he heard the commotion coming from Ethan's room.'If this goes on, he'll eventually relapse. He's finally managed to take over the company's affairs, so it'll be disadvantageous if something happens to him now! Not only does he have the backing of Mr. and Mrs. Arnold Sr., but he also has the backing of Mr. Young's ex-wife. That's why his current position is secured. Now's not the time for him to mess up.'George stared at the glass of water in his hand, 'Not even the best medicine can replace Ms. Jent's company. Perhaps it's time for me to do something. If his illness relapses, I hope he doesn't self-harm like he did in the past.'Meanwhile, Madelyn ended the conversation with Ethan by giving him a slipshod excuse of being busy with her studies. Then, sh
Such an incident could negatively impact the school's reputation, so the authorities of Ventrocloud High School quickly stepped in.Leyton inadvertently learned about what happened at school and how it coincidentally had something to do with Madelyn.He knocked on the CEO's door and immediately reported the matter to Ethan.Ethan was busy with paperwork. After he heard Leyton's report, his expression turned grave."...She's hurt? Why wasn't I informed immediately? What's the situation at the school right now?"Leyton replied, "The school authorities have stepped forward and are currently handling the incident."Ethan set down his thousand-dollar pen and closed the document in front of him."Postpone the upcoming meeting and get in touch with the school. I'll handle the matter," he said.Leyton nodded, "Yes, sir."Even though the Arnold Corporation was the biggest investor at Ventrocloud High School, there was no need for the CEO himself to personally intervene. Compared to the
A fifty odd year-old man stood up as he slammed the table. "What do you mean by that?! Are you saying my sister deserved to die?!""What about me then? Am I deserving of my wounds? I shouldn't protect myself? Also, that man Danny stabbed, did he deserved that as well?" Madelyn was about to lose her temper. Moreover, it was not like the deceased's side was at the right, and it was not as if she was disrespecting the dead. She was just stating the facts of the matter.They had been born in the sixties and seventies, an era that lacked education. Moreover, they were rural villagers with little knowledge of the law, so such things were simply incomprehensible to them.That was what Madelyn had thought, but it did not mean she was painting broad strokes. Her grandmother too lived in a rural village, and in that age, keeping themselves fed was itself an issue, much less being literate. It only took her grandfather a few sacks of grain to wed her grandmother.Her grandmother had married
Liam was standing in the rain, and though it hadn't been long, he was thoroughly drenched.Blake quickly pulled him close, her voice laced with concern. "Are you crazy? It's pouring rain! What if you catch a cold?"Liam's look was subdued, his face showing signs of fatigue. "I'm okay. This is for you; I didn't want you to have to come out in this weather."As Blake took in his forlorn appearance, her heart softened suddenly. 'Am I losing my mind?' she thought."Now you'll have to pay more attention to me, Blake... I was just so scared of losing you. I've put everything I have into getting you to agree to marry me; the idea of you walking away is unbearable."Overwhelmed with emotion, Blake locked eyes with him. "Did she teach you to say that too?" she asked, her hand moving on its own to brush away the raindrops from his hair.A maid nearby, observing the scene, rushed over with a blanket and an umbrella. However, Grace, fully grasping the gravity of the moment, halted her. Ackno
Cecilia said, "It's fine. Let's give them a week. Rearrange the flight and all the plans for the trip. This is Blake's first time getting married and going abroad for honeymoon. I want to make sure she has a good time."Susan nodded. "Okay, Ms. Samford."Not long after Cecilia left, three editors who used to work for Olivia's company entered her office. All of them spoke in panic, "Ms. Blue, what should we do? Ms. Samford already knows everything. If the legal department finds out about it, will we go to jail?"Olivia remained calm as she said, "Don't panic. Just focus on your work.""But we got into this company through you. What if they say we got into this company through the back door and then fired us?"Olivia sat at her desk, supporting her forehead with her hands. She was obviously panicking. "Don't worry, I'll handle this."You guys can leave now."Olivia did not expect this matter to be exposed so soon. She wondered how Cecilia found out about it. 'Could it be that she'
StartReading Literary was the last place Cecilia wanted to be. But she made an exception this time.Olivia had just finalized a cooperative copyright deal with another website company. Several editors from her own company were there at StartReading Literary. As she entered the office, she saw all the editors from StartReading Literary sitting upright, not daring to make a sound.She also saw her office door was wide open. She frowned as she walked into her office and was surprised to see an unexpected gust.Olivia put down the documents in her hand. "Ms. Samford, what brings you here?"With her legs crossed and Susan standing behind her, Cecilia stared at Olivia, who was in front of her.Cecilia sneered and stood up. She ran her fingers along the desk. "StartReading is actually the last place I want to be. I came here because I found out that you enjoy meddling in other people's affairs. Otherwise, you wouldn't even qualify to see me."Olivia instantly looked wary. She remained s
Liam stood up. He watched as Blake, who looked weary, walked away. "Blake, what do you want me to do so you'll like me?"Blake did not stop walking. Instead, she took even bigger steps and left.She went to the Harper residence, which surprised everyone.Grace asked, "Blake? Why did you come back here? Where's Liam? Why didn't he come back with you?"Blake stuttered, unable to find the words. She just made up an excuse, saying, "It's nothing. I just wanted to come back."After Hannah and Yael left the wedding last night, they went back to the research institute.As for Simon, he went to the farm to manage the business.After Blake went to her room, Grace became worried. She followed her and saw her sitting with a blank expression in the room, not knowing what to do.When Blake saw Grace, she quickly adjusted her mood. "Grace, why are you here?""I came to check on you. Blake, what's wrong? Did you have a fight with Liam? You just had your wedding yesterday, and you're already
The pregnancy test report came out fifteen minutes after Blake did the test. She was indeed pregnant. She was even seven weeks pregnant.Blake had indeed been involved with Kevin while in Northern Myanmar over a month ago.She held the medical report while standing bewildered in the cold hospital corridor. Lights shone through the floor-to-ceiling window onto her body, but all Blake felt was the cold, which made her hands and feet numb.She was lost in her thoughts. 'I'm really pregnant. What should I do with this baby? I want it to be born more than anyone else. But now, everything has changed. This child shouldn't come into this world.'She wandered in the corridor. Suddenly, she saw someone coming out of another gynecological room.She thought, 'Some things are just destined by fate. When I long to see him, even catching a glimpse of him in a dream feels like a luxury, an unattainable wish. But now, when I don't want to see him, it seems he appears everywhere I go.'Kevin supp
Blake wondered, 'I'm now pregnant with Kevin's child. What should I do?'She woke up groggily when she felt someone carry her. She opened her heavy eyelids and asked, "What time is it now?"Liam responded, "It's four-thirty in the morning. It's still early; go back to sleep for a while more."Blake said in a hoarse voice, "I've made an appointment for an abortion at eight o'clock. Regardless of whether I'm really pregnant or not, I don't want to keep this child."She had thought about it all night and believed this was the best decision.Kevin was going to get engaged. Blake believed he would get married and Audrey would give birth to his children. There was simply no need for her to complicate things further.She thought, 'If I choose to be selfish and decide to keep this baby, and if people find out about it, my child will be treated as an illegitimate child. I don't even dare to imagine how badly the child will be treated.'If giving birth to the baby will bring it a lifetime
Blake continued, "What about you, Liam? Do you mind?"If you do, you can choose to divorce me. After all, I've wronged you. No one wants to marry a woman who's carrying someone else's child."Liam stepped forward on the shattered cup and hugged her tightly. "I don't mind. Blake, I love you, including everything about you. I don't mind your past. I just want to start over with you. I didn't tell you about the pregnancy because I was selfish; I wanted to keep you by my side."Blake, your child is my child. I want to raise the baby with you."Don't leave me, okay?"Blake did not know why, but she was not surprised by her pregnancy. However, she felt that there were still some things that she could not let go of, though she was unsure what those were.She was not as calm as she had imagined.She thought about her past events. Then, she indifferently said, "Liam, I don't want this child. Since I'm prepared to be with you, I won't keep this child. It wouldn't be fair to you."Liam di
On this romantic night, the moon was obscured by the clouds.Breathing heavily, Blake felt some pain in her abdomen. She asked to stop. "Liam, my stomach hurts. I think I'm going to have my period soon."Liam sobered up instantly. "I'll go get you some medicine."She peeked out from under the blanket as the bedside lamp turned on. She could clearly see Liam's naked upper body. Her face flushed as she averted her gaze. "It's fine. Just help me call the front desk and ask them to bring up a pack of sanitary pads. I'll go to the bathroom to deal with it."Liam replied, "Let's go to the hospital tomorrow for a check-up."Blake picked up her clothes from the floor and went to the bathroom. "It's okay. It's probably just my period."However, judging by the blood flowing out, it did not seem like menstrual blood to Blake. It looked like something else.Blake's voice came from the bathroom again. "I think we should go to the hospital."She sat on the toilet and watched the tall, slende
Blake had no bridesmaids, so she returned to the hotel room alone. As she stepped out of the elevator and was ready to use the room key card in her hand to swipe and enter the room, she suddenly saw a figure appear from the corner of her eye.She stopped her action and looked at the person who had left the wedding earlier.At that moment, Blake felt her breath catch, but it was only fleeting. She then quickly regained her composure and averted her gaze. She asked, "Didn't you leave? Why are you still here?"Kevin replied, "Congratulations."Upon hearing his congratulations, Blake felt a mix of amusement and discomfort. "There's nothing to congratulate. If anything, I should congratulate you. You're soon to be the mayor's son-in-law. In the future, we won't belong in the same social class anymore."I'm tired and came back to rest. You should leave now before Liam comes up and sees you here."Don't look for me again. I don't want him to misunderstand."Kevin responded, "Audrey and