"Mommy, why are you saying that? Did you argue with Daddy again? Did something happen to him? Why are you so sure that he won't be back?" Adie's gaze was sharp as he asked Renee."Umm..." Renee stalled, not knowing how to explain it. Adie squinted at Renee and said slowly, "You must have argued with Daddy. Daddy's probably scared of coming home and facing your anger, right?"Renee sighed deeply, and confessed, "I do want to argue with him… but the problem is that I never saw him again after he left. How can I argue with him?" It was weird. They used to be madly in love with each other, and Stefan was even willing to give up Hunt Enterprise and his life for her, but why did he no longer want to see her? Adie might be right—Stefan might have figured that Renee was aware of his disloyalty and was afraid of her anger, so he was too scared to meet her. "Mommy, ask yourself this—if Daddy appears before you now, will you be happy or mad? Will you welcome him with a hug, or will you slap
Meanwhile, Stefan stared at the computer screen in a manor not far from Everheart Manor. He read the email he had just clicked on and frowned, his gaze cold but also somewhat sad."Don't come back for the rest of your life if you don't want to?" Xavier sipped his coffee as he leaned over Stefan's shoulder to read the email. He chuckled when he saw who the sender was. "I'm sure Adie didn't write this. It sounds so angry… I'm sure it's Renee.""I don't need your analysis. I'm not stupid," Stefan growled icily. He had been living next door to Everheart Manor recently, watching the house secretly. He had emailed Adie to reassure the two children, and they had been keeping in touch, so he knew how his son wrote emails. He didn't need Xavier to point out the obvious. "Stefan, why do you insist on hiding from everyone?" Xavier could not bear to see Stefan this dispirited, and tried to persuade him. "You should talk it out with Renee so you can resolve this conflict. If you keep acting lik
Stefan's expression didn't change and he was quiet for a while. Finally, he asked, "Do you have a needle and string?""No?" Xavier looked confused. "Why are you asking?" "I want to sew your lips shut," Stefan said casually, then stood up and walked towards the kitchen. "Actually, a knife will do too. I can cut off your tongue and solve this problem forever.""Stefan, no! I know you're upset that your masculinity is on the line, but don't implicate the innocent! The medical field is very advanced now, and I'm sure a good doctor can cure it." Xavier babbled nervously, picking up a pillow and using it like a shield.Stefan glared at him. "Why would you assume there's something wrong with me?""It was just a guess!" Xavier argued, "If there's nothing wrong with you in that aspect, why did you suddenly go missing? And you even watch them constantly. If you weren't handsome, people would call you a pervert." Recently, both Xavier and Renee had almost lost their minds searching for Stef
If Stefan lived near Renee, he could at least watch Renee secretly. It was as if they were still together but in a different way."Of course I care about someone a lot," Xavier protested, immediately bringing up Leia. "Don't I care about Leia? You know how shameless I am just to get close to her. Back then, didn't I do everything for Shirley too? Did I give up? I'm bolder than you in my love affairs. Don't you agree?" Xavier felt that Stefan could doubt his morality, capabilities, and even looks, but he couldn't doubt Xavier's feelings. "Although we didn't have dramatic pasts like you and Renee, our feelings were real, and we faced the same challenges. We're just not as crazy as the two of you!""So?" Stefan stared at Xavier icily. "Are you both a couple? Are you closer to her than before?""Umm..." Xavier seemed to shrink, and looked away awkwardly. Stefan was right in a sense—all Xavier's attempts at a relationship were failures. At first, he had loved Shirley madly, but he then g
After that, Xavier left the manor and chose to head to Everheart Manor. Even after Xavier scolded him, Stefan still behaved like a nocturnal animal that lurked in the dark. He neither went out nor prepared himself to meet Renee, and just sat there gloomily for a long time. Finally, he stood up and picked up the high-power binoculars on the table, then pointed it at Everheart Manor through the thick curtains. His bedroom was facing the backyard of Everheart Manor and Renee's bedroom. He saw Renee having fun with Adie and Abby in the yard, and his heart ached. Her new eyes looked nice, and he was happy she could see again, even if they weren't as beautiful as her old eyes. She could play with the children and take care of them well now. Jovan could be quite extreme sometimes, but he had done a good thing for Renee. Because of that, Stefan would give them his sincere blessings if Jovan did win Renee over. The backyard of Everheart Manor was large with lush grass and plenty of flowers.
The person who spoke was none other than Xavier, who had just arrived from the other manor. Leia was also there, having rushed over after she heard the news, as well as Justin, who refused to leave, and Jeffrey, who was always cautious of the people surrounding Renee.Renee turned around and saw them standing there. She sighed helplessly and complained, "You're all so clingy!" She wanted to have some fun with the children alone, but these people followed her everywhere she went. Now, they were even insisting on joining this simple game."You look great, Ren! You have no idea how much I missed you when you were away. I couldn't even sleep..." At first glance, Leia could tell that Renee had changed a lot. The depressing aura surrounding her was gone, and she was back to her usual spirited self. Delighted, Leia rushed over and hugged Renee tightly, sobbing, "Welcome home, bestie!""Thank you for forgiving me!" Renee hugged Leia and patted her shoulders reassuringly. "Anyone else would
Xavier adjusted his 'blindfold', the eye mask, and jumped forward, hoping for the best. The others did the same, but they could avoid the Poison since they could see. Xavier could also grab someone to be his Scapegoat, who the champion could punish too. For his first jump, Xavier was lucky—although he did not jump to the Castle, he did not jump onto the Poison either. He jumped onto the Apple, which was neither good nor bad.Abby was the shortest there, and unluckily jumped onto the Poison on her first jump. Justin and Renee jumped to the Castle, while Leia, Jeffrey, and Adie jumped to the Apple. Each square was only a meter large, and the Apple square soon became crowded. Both Leia and Jeffrey held their breath in fear of getting caught by Xavier.However, Justin crossed his arms and teased Xavier. "Mr. Stuart, don't you want to make me a Scapegoat? Come at me! I'm reaching out, so it's easy for you to grab me." There was a Poison square between the Castle and Apple squares, so the
Xavier was afraid that Justin might escape, so he tightened his grip, but... something felt wrong. The body in his grasp was soft, and it didn't feel like Justin. In fact, it felt like… However, before he could come to a realization, someone slapped him. "Xavier, you jerk! Just what do you think you're grabbing?" Leia blushed and smoothed her clothes, then slapped Xavier again. "I thought you've changed and become more polite, but it seems you've just become a bigger pervert. You're disgusting!"Stunned, Xavier realized that he had grabbed the wrong person… and the wrong part. Feeling awkward, he tried to explain, "No, I wasn't trying to grab you or that area. It's all a misunderstanding, I swear…" Xavier rubbed his stinging cheeks miserably. "Even if I wanted to be handsy with you, I would have done it in private. I didn't do it on purpose; you have to believe me."Everyone found it amusing, but they were too embarrassed to laugh.Renee turned to Justin and said jokingly, "Did y
Austin was having breakfast in the dining room. When he saw Justin and Renee walk over intimately, he finally believed that they had slept together. They seemed like a real couple."Good morning, Grandpa Baldwin!" Renee obediently greeted Austin just like before. She acted normally."Good morning." Austin nodded, unable to suppress his smile. After sizing them up, he calmly said to Renee, "We know how apologetic you are after you toasted to us last night. We'll forget about the past. You're still a part of my family." "Grandpa!" Justin interrupted Austin; he was very protective of Renee. "She's a woman, and we're not married yet. Please don't say that. A woman's reputation is the most important thing.""You…" Austin wanted to refute Justin, but their conflict was just resolved so it would be bad to pressure them more. He shook his head and said, "Fine. You two always have a bland romance. Finally, you've made some progress. I'll let you two decide what to do next.""Got it, Gr
"Hey, Haze! What are you doing? Get off of me!" Renee struggled in confusion."Hush!" Justin gestured and stopped her.In a while, someone unlocked the door of the room."Mr. Baldwin, let me help you and Ms. Everheart change your clothes." A kind middle-aged woman walked into the room casually. When she found them sleeping together intimately, relief washed over her. "Oh, you guys are still sleeping… Fine, I'll leave you be." Then, the woman exited the room.After that, Justin stopped hovering above Renee, looking awkward. "I'm sorry. It happened all of a sudden. If I hadn't done that, they wouldn't let us go. I just did a small thing to resolve the issue." Justin was fully aware of Austin's thoughts. Although Austin was still angry at Renee, he was satisfied with her and wanted to see her get into a real intimate relationship with Justin. If that did not happen, Austin might tie them up together since the drug had failed. Justin could only act with Renee to avoid the in
Renee grinned, satisfied after a long rest. "Why didn't you sleep a bit longer? This bed is comfortable and fluffy." While talking, she behaved like a fish as she extended her limbs and rolled around in bed childishly. In comparison to her calmness and ease, Justin behaved gingerly and did not dare to move as he lay in bed."Do you have any idea what had happened? We aren't dreaming. We're lying in the same bed," Justin said.He was certain that Renee was not fully awake. It explained why she was that composed. Otherwise, any normal woman would get out of bed with a start and keep screaming if they found herself lying in a man's bed."I know!" Renee said. After having a great time rolling around, Renee faced Justin with her head on her arm while lying on her side. "I wanted to drink wine to say sorry to you guys last night, but your family drugged the wine. You drank the same wine when you tried to stop me. We were controlled by the drug and were locked up in this room. T
Renee instantly understood what Justin meant by that. It turned out that the incident was just a part of the Baldwin family's plan. If she left, the Baldwin family would not easily let her off the hook.Justin still cared about her at a time like that, which moved her. "Thank you. You're great." Renee cried; she had no idea how to repay him. "You don't have to thank me. I'm not so great, either. I just hate that they always pester me." Justin purposely sounded relaxed. He finally calmed himself down as he casually grabbed some bandages to bandage his wound. Then, he lay in bed.He slept on one side of the bed and said to Renee, "It's late. You should rest early. This bed is large enough. If you don't mind, you can lie in bed too."The bed was large. It was more than enough even if Renee and Justin lay there."I…" Renee hesitated briefly before she finally got in bed. She trusted Justin. If he wanted to do something indecent to her, he would have long done that. He would no
"I don't know how to tell you. I'm sure you can understand." Renee could not bring herself to say more because it was a humiliating privacy. She might as well keep it to herself."Let me guess…" Justin's gaze grew sharp as he went straight to the point. "The man in your story is Stefan, isn't it?" Silence washed over Renee as she kept her head bowed. It was a silent approval.Justin burst into reckless laughter, which was scary. He looked down at his cut wound and laughed pathetically. "This is why he could make you fall in love with him, and I couldn't. I'm too cultured compared to him.""Don't say that, Haze!"Seeing how defeated Justin was, Renee became uneasy. "It isn't written in the stars for us. Plus, I've fallen in love with Stefan a long time ago before I even got to know you. I also rely on him physically and psychologically. I can't control my feelings. It's not something we can change. We…" "Stop!" Heartbroken, Justin pushed away everything in front of him and s
Time passed by. Gradually, the pain knocked some sense into Justin. He no longer wanted to take advantage of Renee."Let me get you some water." Renee had no idea what she could do for Justin. After some contemplation, she got to her feet and poured him a glass of water.Finally, she studied the room closely and found that it was a wedding room as Justin had mentioned. Everything was set up according to her preferences, which she had occasionally mentioned to Justin. For example, she loved keeping some ceramic ornaments on the bedside cabinet and hanging some seashell wind chimes at the windows. The entire room was painted in beige and green, which were her favorites, too. Beige gave a sense of warmth, while green gave a sense of gloominess. All of those details became the perfect wedding room for Renee.If everything went on smoothly, she would spend most of her time there, and he would be her life companion. Unfortunately, there were no ifs in the world.Renee handed the gla
Renee covered her lips, her tone filled with disbelief. "I…cut myself." Justin leaned against the corner and frowned deeply. He was in deep pain."Why did you cut yourself?" Renee was scared out of her wits and grew more sober. In her panic, she threw herself at him and tried to stop his bleeding.Justin reacted aggressively as he waved his dagger and warned fiercely, "Get away from me! Don't touch me!" "I…" Renee paused, too afraid to act recklessly. She pointed at his wound and said, "I'm just worried about you. You're bleeding. It must hurt a lot. Why did you hurt yourself?" "It's better to be in pain!" Justin gnashed his teeth and said in agony, "The pain will knock some sense into me, so I won't act like an animal and lose control of myself.""I see…" Stunned, Renee was moved to tears. She understood why he cut himself. Surprisingly, he wanted to stay sober and not be controlled by the drug in the wine.He could have used her to satisfy his desire, and she would never b
"You're playing with fire!" Justin leaned close to Renee's ears and said fiercely, "What do you think there is in the wine? Maybe I'm not someone who will take liberty on women, but I can't promise that the wine won't make me so." "So, you're saying that the wine…" Suddenly, Renee realized the wine was not as simple as she thought. She also understood why Rose had behaved in such a mysterious manner. "Stay…away from me!" Suddenly, she became frightened and wanted to keep some distance from Justin. She knew that people could not be trusted completely, especially under the effects of chemical reactions. Things would certainly get out of control. Justin probably did not want to do anything to her, but both of them would lose their minds under the effect of the wine and do something that would fill them with regret. The only way to prevent such an incident was to avoid each other."You want to stay away from me, but it's too late now. I'm no saint. I'm just a normal guy!"Just
"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