Renee walked into Stefan's office, led by a secretary. It had been so long since she last came here, but everything was still the same… except the man opposite her. Renee stared at him, and sadness filled her. He was standing in front of the large French windows like he used to, his back as straight as an arrow."What are you doing here?" Stefan turned around and shot Renee a cold glare, looking hostile and unwelcoming.The secretary glanced at Renee, and suggested hesitantly, "Mr. Hunt, I can show Ms. Everheart around if you're too busy. We can come back after you're done with your work." Inwardly, the secretary was grumbling, 'Why is Mr. Hunt behaving like this? They've been married for a long time, but he doesn't show his true feelings for her. He deserves it if Ms. Everheart runs away!'Stefan's face turned livid as he turned to the secretary and growled, "Get out." "I apologize for intruding," Renee said and bowed her head slightly, about to turn around and leave.Stefa
Infuriated by his carefree attitude, Renee stormed over to him and grabbed his tie, jerking his head down as she snarled, "Can you swear that you didn't slash and ruin my brother's face? Can you honestly tell me that you didn’t defeat my brother because of Joanne's betrayal?" "Joanne just did what she felt was right. I don't think it was a betrayal." Stefan looked up and met Renee's gaze intently. They were so close that they could feel each other's breath on their skin, and suddenly, the air became thick with tension. Renee swallowed briefly and put some distance between them. She gritted her teeth and said, "As a man, you should at least have the integrity to admit to what you did. You tricked Joanna and ruined my brother… Don't you feel even the least bit guilty?""As opponents in a battle, it's only natural that there's a winner and a loser. If I didn’t do what I did, it might have been my face ruined or my corpse in the sea.""You..." Renee couldn't argue."Do you believe t
Renee felt relieved after getting Stefan's answer. Some part of her knew that the man wasn't as aloof and cruel as he made himself out to be. Although she did not have much time to carry out that difficult mission, at least Stefan would not do anything to Quinton during that period. She could leave Beach City with peace of mind.After she walked out of the president's office, she saw a lot of employees in the corridor. She only knew some of them, but all of them looked at her with sparkling eyes. "Hi, Mrs. Hunt!"When some of the senior employees saw her, they waved at her frantically as if they were fans who were meeting their idols."Umm… hi." Renee nodded politely before she corrected them, "Please don't address me as Mrs. Hunt anymore. I've divorced your president." She felt annoyed every time she thought about it. She had divorced the same man twice, and the second time had been thanks to Quinton. It was just like when Stefan pretended to be Mr. Q and married her. She was
Seraphina gritted her teeth and said, "Didn't you hear what the employees call you? If this goes on, Stefan will remember everything sooner or later, and it'll be bad for his brain if that happens. We both know what he experienced a year ago and how painful it was for him. He's better now, but seeing you will probably affect him. Don't you feel bad harming him again and again like this?""I... I didn't think of that." Renee lowered her head in shame after hearing that. Stefan nearly died by her hand a year ago, so she swore to God that she would never get back with him in exchange for his safety and happiness.However, even if she didn't do anything, sometimes things developed beyond her expectations. The grudge between Quinton and Stefan was the perfect example—she was caught in the middle of it, so she couldn't just stand aside and do nothing about it...Seraphina sniffled, wiping tears from her eyes. "Ms. Everheart, I'm sorry. I'm not trying to insult you, but my relationship wit
Renee returned to Carmine Pawnshop from Hunt Enterprise.Quinton had a great time chatting with Liam, so he invited both Liam and Leia to stay for dinner.Meanwhile, Renee booked a flight ticket to Goldshire, the capital of Cyndiago, at ten o'clock that night. A sumptuous dinner was served. Everyone chatted and ate happily, and the atmosphere was warm and harmonious."Come, let's toast! I hope we can all gather here for a good meal and fine wine every year from now on." Quinton raised his wine glass and proposed heartily."Cheers!" Everyone stood up and toasted. Even Aiden and Abigail raised their cups, not wanting to be left out.Since Quinton was in a good mood, Renee leaned over to him and said softly, "Quinton, can you promise me something?"Quinton smiled warmly at her. "Of course! You're my sister. You can have whatever you want.""I'm about to set off again..." "What?" Quinton's face immediately twisted with displeasure. "You just came back, so why the hell do you wan
"Great! Quinton, you're the best." Renee heaved a sigh of relief and gave Quinton a bear hug.Leia chimed in curiously, "Ren, where are you going with Liam? It sounds so mysterious. I want to go too!"Liam stuffed a drumstick into Leia's mouth and said irritatedly, "You're just a kid. Stop meddling in the adults' business. Eat more and grow up."Leia's eyes bulged in anger, and she removed the drumstick from her mouth angrily. She glared at Liam and snapped, "Liam, I'm only a few minutes younger than you. Stop acting like a kid!" Liam could not help laughing and said cheekily, "The only child I see here is you!"The others burst into laughter as Leia hurled the chicken drumstick at Liam, missing him entirely.Leia became angrier. "Help me settle this, since we're three pairs of twins with mixed genders. Why are Ren and Abby's elder brothers so warm but my brother so mean? He always bullies me!" Liam explained, "That just means you should reflect on yourself."The others laugh
The plane touched down at Goldshire the next morning. A long row of cars waited at the exit ostentatiously, as if they were welcoming a diplomat."Liam!" A man in sunglasses and a floral shirt waved at Liam from afar. He even held a toothpick between his teeth, which was visible with his wide grin. His skin was tanned, and he was thin and tall. There were two dragons tattooed on his arms, and it was clear that he wasn't someone to be trifled with."Matt!" Liam waved back heartily, and whispered to Renee, "That's Mateo Harrison, the subordinate my master values the most. He's cruel and fierce, so everyone in this city is afraid of him. If you want to win my master's trust, you have to win Matt over first."While he was talking, Mateo walked over to Liam. Mateo hugged Liam enthusiastically, smacking the latter's back playfully. "Kiddo, you're back! Looks like you still have a heart, eh? Master always talks about you, so he's going to be so happy you're back.""Of course! Master is li
"I'm not nervous. It's just that... I think things are getting interesting now." Renee had left that circle for many years, so she rarely experienced risky situations like this. She suddenly felt like she had entered an adventure game, and adrenaline was pumping in her veins. Benjamin lived in the center of the fort. Although the large reception hall was not as luxurious as a five-star hotel, it was still magnificent, with plenty of armed guards around.Benjamin sat at the main seat in the reception hall, looking like an amiable old man in a casual floral shirt. He even had a white beard. When he saw Liam, he smiled happily. There were five men of different ages sitting beside him, and all of them looked intimidating and dangerous. They were Benjamin's foster children, just like Mateo. There was only one woman in the hall, and she was wearing a white traditional suit, looking charming and delicate. Renee felt curious just looking at her, and tugged on Liam's sleeve as she asked,
"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