"Mmph—!" Xavier would never have guessed that the previously shy and timid woman would suddenly become so passionate now. His body immediately tensed, and he didn't dare to move.Wrapping her arms around his neck, Leia closed her eyes tightly as she enthusiastically kissed the man before her, the alcohol in her body spurring her on. She had been unsure about Xavier's feelings for her in the past, but she was confident now after seeing those photographs today. "Xavier, just admit it—you like me. You don't have to pretend."She grasped the back of his head, demanding, "Tell me the truth!" Even though Xavier had always been able to handle the countless women who threw themselves at him, Leia was the first person who was so brave and enthusiastic.It was hard for him not to be moved..."Woman, are you a woodpecker? Where did you learn how to kiss? You're terrible at it!" He said hoarsely as he broke off the kiss, and then gently held her face in his hands, and leaned down. His eyes d
If Xavier and Liam ever bumped into each other in public, they'd usually be at each other's throats.Liam was wearing casual clothes at the moment, and his skin was tanned. He even had a brown cowboy hat on his head, complimenting his carefree look. He narrowed his eyes, sizing Xavier up before he stared at Leia solemnly. "I think you should see an eye specialist, sister dearest. Do you realize that man over there is the infamous playboy of Beach City who's fooled around with countless women? Even if you can't marry yourself off, you don't have to lower your standards this much.""No, you don't understand!" Leia stomped her feet and retorted angrily, "Being a playboy is just a pretence, he's actually a loyal man! I know we were prejudiced against him earlier because of Ren, but you can’t say that about him now!""Tsk! Women are bound to side with their men. How long have you been dating him? Are you both planning to elope?" "Ugh, you wouldn't understand. What we have is true love,
At last, Leia let Xavier go. If he stayed any longer, he and Liam might get into a fight, and then she would be forced to break up with him. "You heartless man! You travelled the world for such a long time. Did you have any unforgettable experiences? And the most important thing is... Did you come home with a gift for me?" Leia asked eagerly as she helped Liam carry his luggage into the house."The only gift I have for you is a slap! Do you want that? I need to knock some sense into a lovestruck fool like you!" Feeling sad that she had failed to live up to his expectations, he patted her cheeks and asked slowly, "Didn't you suffer another heartbreak recently? Why did you jump into another abyss after you just crawled out of one?" Liam's carelessness had led to the failed relationship between Leia and William in the past. If he had been more strict, his foolish sister wouldn't have been tricked. On the other hand, Xavier was an experienced and slick man—he was much more horrible t
Leia ran upstairs swiftly, all while joking around with him. "Say, Liam, you went on a little pity party trip and left for almost a whole year. But look at you; you still haven't moved on from her. Your little trip was such a waste; your heart, destined to stay with Ren all along…""Nonsense, I've moved on long ago.""Sure… and yet you still get nervous hearing her name."Suddenly, Leia remembered something and quickly became serious. "Though you did come back just in time. Azure Group is in shambles; they're being targeted, and Hunt Enterprise is leading this attack. Besides, Ren and that Stefan guy aren't even talking to each other, either. It's your time to win her back."Liam frowns as well. "That's exactly why I came back. Boss has two kids and a business to run. She can't juggle all of that all the time.""Right? I had to step up and help too. But I was too inexperienced and offended some people, I almost ended up in jail after being framed too!" Leia exclaimed. She was remi
Renee was also overjoyed to learn that Liam had returned to Beach City.She even went out of her way to prepare a grand banquet at a five-star hotel in the next city so that they could welcome him back. Her brother, Chase, and some of the founding members and leaders of the Azure Group were invited too.The luxurious banquet hall was decorated to specifically incorporate many of Liam's favorite elements, such as superheroes, sports cars, beautiful women, and so on.Quinton was wearing a black suit, holding a glass of wine in his hand, and leaning against the piano, watching as people walked by with a bored expression.However, he was the one who stood out the most. With the unique black feather mask on his face, it was quite hard to not get people to turn their heads.He wasn't exactly interested in this banquet. If not for his sister's pestering, along with the mention that the main character of this party was very important to her, he would not have attended.As the organizer o
Having wandered around for so long, he had experienced many odd adventures that he simply couldn't ever finish talking about. He always thought that he would be able to face this woman with a calm heart since he had endured quite a bit of training. However, at this very moment, his heart couldn't help but flutter uncontrollably."Hey, I showed you how much I missed you! And all I get is a ‘long time no see’? Come on, dude!" Renee was still quite overwhelmed, with tears in her eyes. She had so many things she wanted to say to Liam, but the man's indifference made it feel as if he didn't want to talk to her at all, which made her rather disappointed.After all, Liam was one of the few people who truly understood her. He was practically her soulmate, someone she could speak to day and night."Sorry, Boss. Leia told me everything that happened. I'm sorry I came so late. You must've suffered so much…" Liam's eyes reddened as he responded. In actuality, he was very excited to see he
She didn't expect Liam, whom she used to make fun of for his lack of martial skill, would become so agile after a mere year. He managed to dodge three attacks from Quinton, who nearly struck his vitals at one point.As Quinton tried to punch him straight in the chin, Liam turned and dodged it with ease. He got down and did a sweep kick in a fraction of a second.Quinton had great reflexes and immediately leaped into the air, attempting to grab Liam by the shoulder with his big hands.Even so, Liam's core strength was strong, and the attack didn't move him in the slightest. He then unleashed his next attack right after.The entire fight was tense and intriguing through and through, as the two were at a stalemate. This attracted a lot of attention from the guests."Great fight! Great fight!" The guests applauded and cheered loudly as if watching a professional match.Renee, too, was in absolute shock during the entire process. Her eyes widened. "I can't believe it. I really can't…
Liam held onto his chest after being kicked. With his face twisted in pain, he seemed to show remorse. "I'm sorry… I… I didn't know you…"He really didn't know that the 'Midnight Demon' would have looked this terrifying under his mask.Seeing this showed just how ruthless Stefan used to be. This grudge between the two families would never heal unless Renee somehow wished… to give up on her twin brother."Good skills, kid." Quinton soon regained composure, ignoring the strange looks from the crowd as if nothing had happened. He then spoke to Liam arrogantly. "Few people can counter this many of my attacks, so it turns out you aren't a weakling after all. But… if you really want to be my sister's brother, you'll need more than just courage, but also strategy."Liam seemed relieved and confidently replied. "That's my strength, for sure.""Don't celebrate just yet, I have a task for you…" Quinton glanced at Renee mysteriously as he spoke, signaling toward Lia. "Come here. I'll tell
"I'm so thirsty!" The burning sensation of the wine made Renee thirsty. She wanted to drink some water.In the dark, she heard some rustling. The next second, something was on her lips. It seemed to be someone else's lips. She wondered if someone had secretly kissed her."Who are you?" Renee grabbed the person in front of her and interrogated angrily, "How dare you kiss me without my permission! Do you know who I am? I'll cut off your lips!""Let's see if you can do that or not." The man sounded dull and drunk, but he was also overbearing.Although Renee was drunk, she could discern who it was. She called out in the dark and tried to confirm her doubt. "Haze…?" "Yeah, it's me," Justin admitted, but he did not plan to let her go. He used a more overbearing manner and trapped her between him and the door."What do you want?" Renee panicked. She wanted to kick him away, but she did not resist when she learned that it was Justin. After she had done so many things to hurt him, s
The servant walked forward with trepidation and helped Justin back to his room. Austin's eyes were dark. He whispered to his assistant, who nodded and immediately carried out his order.After two glasses of strong wine, Renee felt dizzy and could not stand steadily. "It's weird. Is this wine this strong? I just had two glasses of it, but I feel quite dizzy." It was hard for her to exit the hall. She could not stand properly, so she supported herself against the wall."Ms. Everheart, you didn't seem well. Let me help you to get some rest." Austin's assistant caught up to her and stood behind her. He even sounded respectful. "It's… fine. I can go back to my room." Renee waved; she didn't want to trouble others. Besides, she did not want others to see how miserable she was. She had assumed that she was good at drinking and would not get drunk, but it seemed like she had overestimated herself. After two glasses of wine, she became quite drowsy. She would not easily leave if s
Renee blinked and smiled brightly at Justin, asking him, "Are you worried about me?" "No, I'm not worried about you!" Justin said angrily. "I don't want you to get killed here. I can't explain it to your brother and kids. It's hard to handle the three of them."He was not lying. Although he had befriended Quinton, Adie and Abby might make a scene there if they realized that Renee had drunk so much wine at the party. They were witty, always full of ideas.Hence, it was better not to cause trouble. Before they could make a scene and things get out of control, Justin must stop Renee. He wasn't worried about her at all. "So, you're not worried about me?" Renee's gaze turned dull as she sighed. "It looks like you didn't forgive me. So, I must drink this glass of wine." Something was wrong with Renee, or perhaps she just wanted to torture herself. It seemed like she insisted on drinking the wine. She swung off Justin's hand and gulped down the wine."You're out of your mind!" Justi
The aged white wine was strong. Ordinary people would find it hard to drink a glass of it. Yet, Renee had drunk two glasses of it consecutively. It was a little dangerous. Everyone at the dining table was initially watching the fun, but they showed Renee some pity after she drank two glasses of wine consecutively. After wiping her lips clean, Renee staggered and said to Justin, "Let me toast to you now. I've wronged you the most." Justin, sitting there, said with a poker face, "You don't have to say sorry to me. We don't hold each other any grudge. After all, we can't make others fall in love with us.""No, I must apologize to you. It's for my sake." After that, Renee used a bigger glass and filled it with wine."Whatever!" Justin frowned and ignored Renee. He had no idea what was wrong with her. He had yielded and let her off, but she stubbornly wanted to keep drinking the wine.He wondered if she had forgotten the fact that she had just recovered from a serious illness. She
Suddenly, Justin became mature and stopped making jokes. He talked steadily and was no longer emotional. It filled Austin with worry because it made him feel like Justin was an emotionless robot.In comparison, he liked Justin's previous self better. At that time, Justin was simple and sentimental. He was the grandson Austin doted on the most.Sophia grinned and commented, "Dad, you don't have to worry about Justin. Men will change. Previously, he was just a childish kid even though he was in his twenties. He didn't know how to see through people's pretense. But he's all grown up now. He knows what's right or wrong. That's a great thing!" As a mother, she naturally did not want her son to get hurt. Although she favored Renee and wanted the latter to be her daughter-in-law, she would give up since Renee had let her son down and harmed him. All she wanted was to see Renee get away from her son."Yes, you're right. People need to grow up. He has grown up a lot lately, but the price
After a while, a servant quickly came back with a bottle of wine tied with a piece of red cloth. "Sir, Madam, this bottle of white wine was brewed more than ten years ago. It comes with a rich taste and is strong. I'm sure it's suitable for Ms. Everheart to toast to everyone as a form of apology.""That's good. That's what I want." Rose accepted the heavy bottle of wine. Although it was yet to be unscrewed, she could smell its pungent scent. "I won't easily let anyone drink this. Plus… Believe it or not, a glass of this wine can knock out anyone here." Rose carried the bottle of wine and walked around the table. Finally, she stopped in front of Renee. "I'm letting a sinner like you enjoy such a great thing today. You must drink all of it. You can't waste it.""Huh? Does she have to drink it all? I'm afraid she'll vomit from drinking.""People will lose themselves with only three to five glasses of this wine. If they drink half of it, they might get alcohol poisoning no matter
If any Baldwin demanded an explanation from Renee, she would not resent them."Fine, I won't go easy on you since you said so." Rose laughed recklessly, looking malicious. Everyone knew Rose was fierce and malicious. But none of them said anything, including Justin. They behaved like onlookers and wanted to see how Rose would punish Renee. "Please go ahead." Renee nodded and sounded very calm. "Don't worry. Regardless, you were the only woman my dear grandnephew had loved and wanted to marry. So, I won't be harsh on you. If not, he won't forgive me." At that point, Rose purposely paused and wanted to see how Justin would react.However, Justin merely sat there indifferently and had no intention to get Renee out of the predicament. Hence, Rose became bolder. "Well, let's do this. You've wronged not only Justin but everyone in my family. Since you're here to apologize, you should toast to all of us. Then, we can forget about this."After that, Rose turned to Austin and asked
The party started officially at night. It was a small party, and only some close relatives of the Baldwin family attended.Austin took the main seat while his son and daughter-in-law sat in the secondary seats. Justin and the others sat accordingly.After dressing herself up, Renee attended the party in simple clothes. She looked like a young lady from a great family. Adie, Abby, and Quinton did not attend the party to avoid unnecessary disputes. Renee was the only one who attended the party. When she reached the hall, the people had already taken their seats. They sized her up maliciously and studied her as if they wanted to make her pay a heavy price."Hello, ladies and gentlemen. I got here late." Renee took a deep breath and naturally greeted everyone. She appeared composed, but she knew she was rather frightened. She never panicked when she faced such a scene alone in the past. She could easily handle it because Justin would always take her side no matter what happened.
Quinton was fine even if Renee wasn't that happy. But she must lead a steady life and live beyond a hundred years old. "Quinton, I know I owed the Baldwin family a lot, even if you didn't tell me. I won't be back if not for the sake of their kindness."Renee did not hide or lie even if Justin was around. She merely wanted Justin to hold no hope in her. "How could you be this straightforward?" Quinton had purposely brought Justin along because he wanted to bring Justin and Renee together. He felt that they could still be together since things weren't that hopeless. But the disappointing Renee ruined all possibilities easily. Kindness didn't exist between a romantic couple."It's fine." Justin looked indifferent before he snorted. "I'm glad she made things clear. It's better than being ambiguous.""I'm sorry." Renee looked at Justin. Although she had made herself clear, her guilt did not diminish. She immediately expressed her guilt and helplessness since Justin did not igno