The last time Giselle had felt this way was during her first love.Back then, she and Jonathan couldn't get enough of each other and spent every moment they could together. They always checked in with one another before doing something.But their conversations quickly turned one-sided. The chat was filled with her updates and messages, while Jonathan replied to only the last message or none at all. He would divert the topic too.She tried to communicate and fix things, but it proved useless. Jonathan no longer cared about her feelings. Whenever conflicts arose, his go-to strategy was to give her the cold shoulder, certain that she would eventually cave in and apologize.In their seven years of dating, Giselle had spent about six and a half of those feeling neglected and wronged.Looking back now, she realized how foolish she had been. She had wasted so much time on someone who wasn't worth it.Snapping herself out of her thoughts, Giselle set aside her emotions and didn'
Giselle accepted the card. "Alright, Mr. Barton."Having more friends meant more opportunities. Though Chris' favor wasn't ideal, it was better than nothing.Who was to say? She might come to need it someday. Even if she didn't, Emma might. Considering Larry's actions, they needed to stay on guard.Once the deal was settled, Larry was finally allowed out of the interrogation room. His expression turned ugly when he saw Chris. "It's you?"Larry hated Chris' guts. His half-brother was just three years older and overshadowed him in every way. Their father even entrusted the family business to Chris. As for Larry, people may respect him for being part of the Barton family. But he was just a disposable chess piece.Chris glanced at him coolly. "Didn't your mother teach you manners? Not even a word of thanks?"The atmosphere tensed. Giselle was waiting for Emma to arrive and perked up at the commotion. She quietly moved closer and found the perfect spot to eavesdrop.Larry
Both the slap and Larry's voice rang in the quiet night. Giselle calmly withdrew her hand while Larry clutched his face and stared at her in disbelief."Sorry, it was a reflex." Giselle shrugged.Larry lunged toward her. This wasn't her fault! Giselle would never admit the slap was personal. She wasn't stupid. Larry was infuriated. "Giselle Stone! Do you have a death wish?"The anger he had been suppressing went out of control. But before he could act further, someone suddenly rushed out from behind Giselle.Another slap. Larry's other cheek now matched the first. The fiery sting on both sides of his face only fueled his rage. But he froze when he saw who hit him. "Emma?""What are you doing, Larry? Looks like you're the one with a death wish!" Emma stood protectively before Giselle, shielding her while her eyes brimmed with disgust. She hadn't expected to hear Larry threatening Giselle after months of separation.She wasn't going to just let this slide. If they wer
"Here's the settlement fee—from Chris," Giselle said.A look of surprise flickered across Emma's face when she heard the name. She asked, "It was Chris who came to bail Larry out?"The relationship between the two brothers was deteriorating by the day. Why would Chris personally come and bail Larry out? On the day Emma got married to Larry, Chris did not even attend their wedding ceremony. All he did was send a wedding gift over.Perhaps they were on better terms now? No, this seemed implausible.Chris was a complicated person. Emma simply could not wrap her head around it.Eventually, Emma gave up trying to figure it out. She returned the bank card to Giselle and said, "Keep this, Gigi. I'm sorry about Larry. I didn't know he had people following me…"Had Emma not returned to Giselle's place to get her things, Larry would not have harassed Giselle.In the end, she was the one to blame.Giselle responded, "Why are you apologizing? Larry's got nothing to do with you anyway. Be
"I have decided. I will not be going even with Cody anymore. I'll be the one to shoulder all our living expenses."His money will be used to pay off the mortgage and the car, while the rest will be saved for the wedding."Maddie appeared determined as she came to this conclusion. Not a single word was said in jest.Giselle forced an affectatious smile and said, "It's such a waste.""What is?" Maddie asked.Giselle answered, "It's such a waste that I'm not a man, or I'd be the first one in line fighting to ask you out."Maddie smiled bashfully and said, "Stop teasing me, Giselle."Giselle was lost for words.All hope was gone. There was no cure for Maddie anymore. She could not even tell when someone was being sarcastic.Giselle had her fair share of meeting people like Maddie before. Those who heeded her advice had a happy ending. As for those who ignored her advice, all they could do in the end was cry in regret.The girl sitting in front of her was stubborn beyond salvation
"A reasonable amount of help is fine. But don't you see that you're like a walking ATM to him? What has he given you in this relationship?"Giselle bombarded her with multiple questions at once, leaving Maddie stunned for a moment, unable to answer her.Giselle continued, "You can take your time to answer my question. Text him now and ask him what his plans are for the evening."Maddie followed her orders without question.Two minutes later, she lifted her head and said, "Cody said he'll be out drinking with Mr. Lawson and some clients at the nightclub down at the city center."He had even mentioned the location. It was apparent that he did this to lower Maddie's suspicion. At 30 years old, he really was a seasoned veteran.But Giselle could see through his act. In that instance, Giselle locked eyes with Maddie. With quiet resolution in her eyes, she said, "Maddie, come with me somewhere tonight."…It was nightfall, and neon lights began flashing in the city center. There was
The woman's voice was full of surprise.She stopped Maddie, who was making her way toward Cody's room. The woman looked around but did not find anyone else.Maddie seemed to be out of it. She was in a dejected state. Streaks of tears that had not dried up yet were imprinted on her face. With bloodshot eyes and a faltering voice, she lamented, "Charlotte, C-Cody's cheating on me…"Just the evening before, he was holding her in his arms and gently singing promises to her, saying that he would treat her well forever. He had also said that she just had to wait for him to earn enough to give her a grand wedding and bring her home as his wife.But now, he was inside the private room, fooling around with escort girls.Maddie might be naive, but that did not mean she knew nothing at all.Charlotte cursed Cody inwardly, but she did not want to stick her nose into their business. After all, Jonathan was still waiting for her in room 4006!She straightened her white shawl and tucked he
Sick and tired of listening to her insufferable yapping, Giselle grabbed Maddie's wrist, pushed Charlotte aside, and walked forward.Charlotte's face was contorted with rage when she saw how arrogant Giselle was being.Even though Charlotte was boiling on the inside, she did not go after them.Once she saw Giselle open the door of the room Cody was in, she scurried into the adjacent room 4006.With the door closed, they were sealed away from everything that was happening outside.The dim light in the room dampened the blazing fire inside her. Restlessness soon began taking hold of her.It was Charlotte who contacted Cody this evening. She was the one who had set everything up.Considering the current situation the Grants were going through, she could no longer afford to wait until the end of the year for the engagement.The engagement date was just too far away. There were too many variables at play. If Jonathan happened to change his mind down the road, what would become of he
Meanwhile, Giselle had just found the first-aid kit and sat next to Chester.The light in the living room was a warm orange, softening the hardened knots between Chester's forehead. He removed his jacket, leaving only a thin shirt on. "This might hurt, so bear with me."Jonathan really did not hold back one bit. Chester's skin was already fair. The contrast only made the purplish bruise even more striking and distressing.Giselle and Chester were growing nearer to each other.They were in such close proximity that he could take in the fragrance of her shampoo.Her attention was on the corner of his lips. She had cotton dipped in iodine to clean the dried blood on the area of the wound.Chester's breathing suddenly came to a halt.His Adam's apple bobbed slightly. His breath was warm, and his gaze was deep.After a while, Giselle retreated to her original position. As she kept the first-aid kit away, she said, "It's done. When you get home, try not to let water come in con
In Giselle's cold eyes, there was nothing but indifference and annoyance."Gigi, I'm in pain…"Jonathan stared at her, the emotions in his eyes flickering back and forth. His weak and vulnerable tone was completely different from the violence he portrayed earlier.He was now trying to use pity to get Giselle to sympathize with him.Jonathan thought that if Giselle still loved him, then he would let everything go.Unfortunately, reality was more cruel than he imagined. Giselle's expression did not even waver.In an instant, the asphyxiating heartache turned into a wild beast, ruthlessly tearing him apart.Jonathan's arm fell to his side helplessly. Suddenly, he staggered backward as if his soul had left him, no longer behaving as arrogantly as he had before.He should be fuming. And Giselle should also be taught a lesson.But Jonathan could not do it.He loved Giselle so much, so why was she doing this to him?"Jon? Jon, what's wrong…"Vivian looked at Jonathan, who was obvi
Jonathan called Chester by his first name. He was not even willing to address him with due respect.Jim sensed the gravity of the situation and immediately had the other officers leave the room, giving the two some privacy.With the sound of the door locking, the atmosphere in the entire room fell below freezing temperature.With tensions running high, nobody dared to even breathe.Jonathan stood in their way, his tall stature overwhelmingly intimidating.As he stood face to face with Chester, their imposing presence seemed to match evenly.Jonathan looked like fireballs were about to shoot out of his eyes while the latter's eyes were as calm as a still, bottomless abyss, ready to erase his opponent's existence without leaving so much as a single trace.Vivian was so overwhelmed that her tears wouldn't come. She was really afraid that Jonathan would beat Chester up.The current situation was way more serious than her writing a love letter to her classmate."Why should I give y
Jim handled everything professionally."Jon…" Vivian reached out, tugging at Jonathan's sleeve. "Don't let mom know. She's going to be so mad."Vivian knew Jean's temper all too well. If she had not been afraid of Jean finding out about her love letter to Harry, Vivian would not have made Jonathan come pick her up from school.But if Jonathan had not come, the consequent chain of events would not have happened.Jonathan exuded an intimidating energy as he remained silent.Meanwhile, Giselle wasn't the least bit bothered.Harry was the same. After all, he had only done what he did to stand up for Giselle. Even if his family members were to come bail him out, none of them would be mad at him."Ms. Stone."Jim turned toward Giselle and said, "You may have Mr. Fordham come get you."Mr. Fordham. Chester Fordham.Jonathan couldn't bear hearing this name.As soon as he heard this name, he would immediately recall the words Giselle said. "Well, obviously I'm after his body."Absol
She was after his body. Giselle was going after Chester for his body.Jonathan completely lost all of his sanity when he heard those words, delivering another blow to the board.He could not be bothered about the excruciating pain coming from his knuckles. Through gritted teeth, he demanded answers from Giselle."You've slept with Chester?"Before Giselle could even respond, Harry, who had just returned from retrieving his phone, ran over at full speed.Without any explanation whatsoever, he punched Jonathan in the face."Now that I'm here, don't even think about hurting Giselle!"As someone young, tall, and one who worked out daily, Harry's one punch broke the skin on the corner of Jonathan's mouth.The piercing pain made Jonathan give up all his reasoning.Immediately, the two men broke into a fight.Vivian scrambled to get up from the floor, looking miserable. She wanted to pull them apart but was afraid she might get injured in the process.As such, she just glared at Gi
When they were at the hospital the other day, Chester made Vivian feel awfully stressed. This uncle of hers was way too overprotective of Giselle.If Jonathan were to lay a finger on Giselle, Chester would definitely hunt him down. And when that time came, the fact that she twisted the truth would be revealed.Vivian gritted her teeth. The fear she felt outweighed her reasoning. Without a second thought, she rushed over."Jon, stop!"Vivian held onto Jonathan's arm. The blood vessels in his knuckles popped as he squeezed every word out with restraint. "Let go."This was the first time that Vivian had ever seen Jonathan like this. She clenched down on her molars and cried out, "No!"The siblings' double act was absolutely comedic in Giselle's eyes. She rubbed her wrist which had turned red from Jonathan's grip. Then, she turned on her heels, wanting to leave.Jonathan jerked free from Vivian's grasp, stretching out his hands as he tried to grab onto Giselle once again.However,
"Giselle, I need to ask you something."The two looked at each other. One had an indifferent expression while the other looked like they could barely tolerate this request.Giselle tried to free herself but her wrist remained firmly locked in his grip. The heat between them instinctively triggered a visceral sense of disgust in her.Her stomach churned violently, and her expression went dark. "Let go."Jonathan kept his stare on her with eyes that were deep and enigmatic. "If I don't—" Before he could even finish his sentence, he suddenly gasped in pain.Giselle did not care if she hurt him. She had swiftly raised her knee and went for his groin. Even though Jonathan reacted in time, she was too fast for him to avoid the blow entirely.The anger in his eyes surged. He gritted his teeth and exclaimed, "Giselle Stone!"This "new" Giselle felt extremely foreign to Jonathan.The Giselle he remembered was someone gentle and caring. There was never a time she would be this violent.
The moment Giselle heard Jonathan call out her name in full, a look of surprise flashed across her eyes. Had he recovered his memories?Giselle scoffed. "Am I wrong? Mr. Kendrick is asking Harry to pretend that he has feelings for Vivian and to wait until the exams are over to talk about it. Isn't he asking the kid to lie?"Harry has made it crystal clear that he has no feelings for Vivian. A clear rejection is the best solution. You're afraid that Vivian's state of mind might be affected, but what about Harry's?"Every word was carefully chosen.Even though Greg did not explicitly say it, Giselle understood his underlying intention without misconstruing anything.Harry clapped his hands as sparkles danced around his eyes. "You got it! I don't like Vivian. I don't like her now and I certainly won't like her in the future!"Vivan was not his type to begin with. What's more, after learning about the things she had done to Giselle, the chances of him liking Vivian were even slimmer
Jonathan's towering figure emerged in the doorway.Instead of his usual formal suit, he was dressed in a hoodie and cropped pants.To put it simply, he looked like a mannequin. His handsome face was as cold as ice, making him look unapproachable. As his eyes swept across the room, he suddenly paused when his gaze fell upon Giselle.The hand by his side instinctively clenched. It seemed like he did not expect to find Giselle here.He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but was reminded of the ignored text and what Vivian had told him.He pursed his lips for a moment, forcing the words back down. "Now that we have everyone's guardians here, let's talk about what happened earlier today."Greg Kendrick, the homeroom teacher, pushed his glasses up and cleared his throat before continuing, "I understand how kids your age are going through a phase where you yearn for the opposite gender, but this is the time to be focusing on your studies. "The college entrance examinations