"Yes, the school won't find fault with Mr. Hunt, but the parents aren't easy to pacify," Joanne added worriedly, "Lone Pine Elementary is an important school in this city, and its students come from either rich or noble families. Now, my class's parents know that I'm a teacher without any academic qualifications or experience, and that I have terrible scars all over me. They won't let it go. They'll demand an explanation, and then they'll find out that Mr. Hunt played a part in this. It'll affect Hunt Enterprise, and Mr. Hunt too.""Yes, you're right." Renee nodded in agreement. "Well, people are always afraid of what society says, and Hunt Enterprise has had quite a bad reputation lately. The news more or less affects the enterprise's stocks and sales." Renee wasn't worried because large companies like Hunt Enterprise usually had a Public Relations department to handle any bad news that could affect the company's image."So, you should know why I insist on going back. As the person
The atmosphere immediately became tense."Okay, both of you stop talking." Renee became helpless and exhausted. She had finally persuaded Joanne to stop being stubborn, but once Quinton appeared… Well, everything returned to how it used to be."Get out!" Joanne picked up a pillow and flung it at Quinton fiercely, then jumped out of bed and hurried to the window. "If he doesn't leave, I'll jump!""Hey, stop! Let's talk things out!" Renee had to stop Quinton from approaching and prevent Joanne from doing anything stupid, and she couldn't do both at the same time. "Don't worry, I'll get him out of here. I promise I'll stop him from entering this place, and if he does, I won't stop you if you want to leave," Renee said to Joanne, then quickly walked to Quinton and grabbed his arm. "Go out. You're not welcome here.""I didn't do anything wrong. Why should I go?" Quinton demanded aggressively, not intending to leave. He sneered at Joanne, "It's been so many years. Is that all you got? Th
When Renee had first reunited with Quinton, Margaret found Quinton a dangerous and extreme person. That was why Renee had to explain Quinton's past with Joanne to Margaret. Margaret had felt sorry for both of them when she heard their story, so she didn't mind talking to Joanne. "Leave it to me. I'll take good care of Ms. Garcia," Margaret promised. She had wanted to meet Joanne for a long time, and as a member of the Everheart family, she had always wanted to repay Joanne. Since Joanne was there, Margaret could finally take the opportunity to do it. After some contemplation, she entered the room where Joanne was. Meanwhile, Quinton was still angry that Renee had dragged him out of Joanne's room. He wanted to keep arguing with Joanne."Enough!" Rene finally yelled in frustration. "Quinton, can you stop making a scene and being so pretentious?""What did you say?" Quinton was shocked, and stared at Renee in disbelief. "What do you mean? Did you finally see my dark side and start ha
"What background?" Renee dragged Quinton to the side and whispered, "How could you say that? Wasn't that child… yours?" As a woman and mother, she could empathize with Joanne. The man Joanne regarded as family and admired as a brother imprisoned her and took advantage of her. In the end, he even cruelly aborted their child… It would be devastating for any woman."Hmph! Did she tell you that?" Quinton's gaze darkened with anger as he tried to suppress his emotions."Stefan said that, so I guess Joanne must have told him about it," Renee answered honestly. She knew that was the main reason behind Quinton and Joanne's resentment towards each other, but she couldn't bring it up in front of Quinton because it was a sensitive topic. If she spoke about it, she might end up cursing him or beating him up, which would affect their relationship as siblings. There were all kinds of scumbags, but Quinton was the worst."That useless piece of trash!" Quinton clenched his fists, his hatred for Ste
At first, Quinton could forget about his hatred though he had forced himself to do so, but now he felt it bubbling up again when it came to Joanne. Because he had suppressed those emotions for so long, he became even more extreme and cruel. He wanted to do the things he had always wanted to do. "This is my business, so stop meddling in it. After so many years of loving and hating each other, we've finally parted on good terms and stopped being a part of each other's life. I'm liking the way things are right now. If you go to him again, you'll get Stefan involved in my life again, and that won't be good for me." Angry, Renee glared at Quinton. "If you want to see me in pain again, go ahead and attack him. I'll probably get killed from protecting one of you, then maybe you two will learn to behave.""Calm down!" Quinton did not want to see Renee get hurt, and her teasing hurt him enough to make him regain his sanity. He hurriedly said, "I won't go to him if you don't want me to. I als
Quinton gazed at Renee, sensing the sadness behind her smile. It broke his heart. "I'm sorry." Feeling guilty, Quinton apologized to Renee. "It's my fault for letting you recall those things, but don't worry. I won't find fault with Stefan or force you to pick sides." Although he never truly forgot about his hatred toward Stefan and dreamed of hacking him into pieces, he could suppress his feelings when he recalled how Renee suffered because of it. For now, he could only dream of making Stefan's life miserable."Thank you… I mean it." Renee's eyes were watery too. She knew how hard it was for Quinton to let go of his resentment for Stefan, and understood how he was compromising for her. Yes, he was a bad person, but he was trying hard to change for her sake. She hoped that he could one day become a truly nice person. "What's your plan now?" Renee asked Quinton curiously after she had calmed down. "I don't really know…" Quinton spread his hands, looking helpless. "You know how it i
Quinton smiled bitterly. "Do you think it's suitable for me to approach anyone given my condition? I'll only hurt them if I get close. It's been so many years since we last met, but she would rather die than be near me. What do you think I can do?" "I know Joanne's actions made you feel hopeless, but both of you are too extreme. You both have serious issues you need to settle." Renee patiently comforted Quinton. "But you're a man. If you want to make things better, you can only start from yourself." "What can I do?" Quinton shook his head. "I told you—I have no love and don't know how to show love. All I ever do is harm others.""You don't have love, but I do. You don't know how to show love, but I do!" Renee smacked her chest and said confidently, "Honestly, I'm an experienced kiss-ass. Stefan was the only man I loved back then, and when I married him, I tried my best to please him for many years. However, his reaction was worse than Joanne's—he didn't take me seriously and even
"What she likes best…" Quinton frowned and tried to recall it. "The thing she used to love the most was… nice food.""What?" Renee's eyes grew wide in surprise. Joanne was such a sensitive, timid, and world-weary person now… but maybe she used to be passionate and lively back then."When she was young, she loved eating and was chubby. Her favorite food was s'mores pops," Quinton recalled slowly, unable to hide the smile on his face. "My foster mother doted on her back then, and she would sometimes bring Joanne to the market to buy Joanne her favorite s'mores pops. Joanne would always enjoy them, and she'd stuff her mouth full of them. Even though it was her favourite food, she would always keep some for me in her clothes. When she came home, all of them would have melted…" Quinton recalled how Joanne would drag him to a corner every time she came home from the market, then dig in her clothes, telling him she would give him the most wonderful thing in the world. However, the s'mores p
Adie was still a child, but he acted like a smart person and could see through a lot of things. He could guess why Austin took them to the Baldwin residence. He had also heard the servants of the Baldwin family rebuking Renee in secret. After combining various situations, he learned about what had happened between Renee and Justin. Despite everything, Justin could forgive Renee under such circumstances. He also treated Adie and Abby nicely. It proved that he was a very compassionate man. A small regret gripped Adie. He wondered why Renee didn't date Justin right from the start. If Renee were with such a kind man, she might be very happy. She wouldn't have to suffer through so many hardships either. "No, you don't know me. I always sweat the small stuff."Justin was displeased since Adie had claimed that he was a good guy, like Renee had. He heaved a long sigh and said, "But it's useless even if I sweat the small stuff, so I stop trying. It all comes down to fate. We can't forc
Renee turned and found Jovan unscathed. Relief washed over her. She said grumpily, "It's none of your business!""Tsk! How cruel!" Jovan clutched his chest and pretended to be in deep pain. At the same time, he teased, "I know. Your soulmate is better. I'm so jealous of him, though he's still a fallback guy.""Go to hell, Jovan!" Jovan's nasty words drove Renee mad. She grabbed a piece of napkin, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it at his face. "If I knew you'd talk so badly, I wouldn't be bothered to save you. Maybe you'll get reborn in Ulria. Then, you have to watch your tongue!""Hey! Yeah, I was wrong. You don't have to curse me like that!" Jovan raised his hands to surrender, but felt quite moved. He poured himself a glass of milk and devotedly toasted to her. "Thank you for caring about me and trying your best to save me. I'll toast to you. And you can do whatever you want.""You're so childish." Renee rolled her eyes and was amused.Justin was quite jealous to see them
"What's that?" Justin frowned and said with disdain, "That's something to fool naive women like you. Only lovestruck fools will believe that." As a materialistic person, he never believed in things like horoscopes and fortune-telling. At most, they were mixed with some psychology. They weren't trustworthy at all.If Renee wanted to use those things to talk about their relationships and destinies, it would seem very childish. "Don't be so extreme. Those things are real and logical." Renee acted like an experienced salesperson and gradually eliminated Justin's prejudice. She said patiently, "If you believe those things, they can guide you and help you to see things through. If not, you can use them to kill time. Just try to get to know them. Isn't that nice?"Finally, Justin was convinced. He had some milk and asked her leisurely, "Fine. Tell me what kind of relationship we have based on those things." "I learned that our relationship is a declining friendship based on our birt
"I…" Renee paused. For a moment, she had no idea how to answer that question."Don't put yourself in a difficult position. Just follow your heart," Justin said calmly. "If you want to stay, my family will still welcome you readily. If you want to leave, I'll come up with a way to help you leave smoothly."After listening to Justin, Renee answered honestly, "Maybe it's better for me to leave, though I know this choice will hurt you."She could choose to stay to protect Justin's dignity and give Austin a good explanation. It would be more relaxing and steadier for her. However, Renee knew that it could only last briefly. She would cause Justin greater harm. She might as well be decisive and stop the damage in time. "Don't say that." Justin cracked a bitter smile and said with relief, "I've stopped taking things too seriously. If you like me, you won't stop loving me even if we're apart. Similarly, you'll think about another man if you don't like me, even though you're always b
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