However, Leia didn't believe that Renee would have given up on Stefan. Based on their night chats a while ago, she could tell from Renee's tone that the latter was still confused about Stefan and couldn't part with him.It wasn't long ago, but now, Renee wanted to marry someone else. It was abnormal."Yes, I did…" Renee coldly looked ahead and added, "I did just now.""What?" Leia's eyes went wide, and she didn't stop questioning Renee. "What happened just now? Nothing happened!""Let me be frank with you." Renee decided to be honest with Leia since Leia insisted on getting to the bottom of it. "Justin told me something the night he saved us. Stefan informed him and asked him to come to our rescue.""I know that. And then?"Leia had heard the same story from Justin. She and Liam kept cursing Stefan for being a dirty coward all night long. It was infuriating. Stefan didn't try to save his beloved woman, but made his rival in love do so instead. It seemed he had given up his belo
Justin walked over and tapped his wristwatch. "It's almost time. Let's go.""Okay." Renee nodded, then said to Leia, "Just go home and take good care of Liam. Tell my brother and kids that I'm fine. I'll be back at Beach City soon.""Uh…" Leia wanted to stop Renee from going to Beach City, but she couldn't find a reason to make Renee refuse. Of course, Renee had to stop the program which never responded."Fine. Take care. Call me immediately if anything happens!" Leia, enlightened, decided to respect Renee's choices. She hugged Renee and sobbed, "I hope you'll pick happiness no matter who you choose to be with!""Of course. I want you to do the same." Renee hugged Leia firmly.Then, she got into the small private plane bound for North City with Justin."She left…" Xavier muttered. He watched the plane take off for North City as he sat in the lobby, feeling complicated. He felt sorry for Stefan, but at the same time, he felt that Stefan had brought it upon himself. Being on
Stefan got involved with Briar. At the same time, something seemed to be wrong with Renee and she insisted on meeting Justin's parents. In short, they were lying to themselves.Xavier found it ridiculous that they would break up and date someone else, when in truth they loved each other passionately and had gone through so much together. They were just cowards who refused to face their problems head-on."Well said! I agree." For the first time, Leia and Xavier shared the same thoughts on the issues related to love. Aside from Stefan and Renee, there were many similar examples. Leia was convinced Liam was doing the same thing. She couldn't understand why they had to hurt themselves like that. It would be better to make peace.Suddenly, Xavier turned around and looked at Leia passionately, and declared with utmost seriousness, "So, we can't do that!" Having his face so close to hers so suddenly, Leia's heartbeat quickened. She pursed her lips and stood up shyly. "You're nuts
"Mmph!" Renee was sitting beside the window, watching the floating clouds up in the sky when a sudden pain gripped her heart—as if it was clenched tight. "What's wrong?" Justin asked nervously. Sitting across from her, he could feel something wrong with her. "I'm fine." Renee shook her head and tried to soothe her stuffy chest. "My heart suddenly hurt just now. I guess it's because of the sudden weightlessness when the plane took off."Justin sighed in relief. "I've heard that some people might get dizzy or feel their ears ring because of weightlessness, but I've never heard of hearts aching.""It's fine. It's something rare, I guess. I'll feel better after a while." Renee waved his concerns away, taking a deep breath. She picked up the cup in front of her and sipped some water, and felt better. Perhaps the water had cooled her heart. However, Justin felt a little uneasy. He knew her heart wasn't his though their destination was the same."If you can't forget about him, yo
"I'm sorry!" Renee blurted—she realized her selfishness."I admit that I took you as a substitute. I wanted to get out of that suffering relationship, and I didn't care about your feelings. I'm so sorry."At first, she wanted to forget Stefan and start a new relationship. And then, Justin risked his life to save her. On top of that, they were compatible in various aspects. She felt that she could spend the rest of her life with him.However, Renee realized that her actions were purely self-serving. She never considered Justin's feelings or asked about his willingness. She merely took him as a convenient tool. "No, you did nothing wrong," Justin said. "You have your choices. Likewise, I have my choices too."He stared at Renee passionately, his teary eyes filled with pain, and held her hand. "I chose you. I want to stay with you while you're trying to forget about him. I want you to be happy with me.""You…" Renee looked into Justin's eyes. His generosity, firmness, and thoug
In the past, Renee recalled hurting Justin once. If she chose to get off the plane, she couldn't regret it. For a moment, she was unsure. She wondered if she was ready to make such a huge decision."It's fine. I told you, it's not too late if you don't get off the plane," Justin whispered. Although he looked hurt, he remained gentle and kind. "You have one minute to reconsider.""No, that's unnecessary." After taking a deep breath, Renee finally made up her mind. "I'll go with you."She had made such a decision after much contemplation. Since she was bold enough to board the plane, then she could get off it."Alright!" Justin's eyes brightened. He walked over and interlocked his fingers with hers. "You don't have to be scared. I'll be with you every step of the way. Let's face everything together."They walked side-by-side as they got off the plane.They took an individual pathway to exit the airport since they rode the exclusive plane of the Baldwin family. The Baldwin family ha
The Baldwin family was so excited that they couldn't sleep. They waited at the exit of the airport eagerly for a long time."Dad, you can't be this fierce. The past is the past. What's important now is Justin has brought Ms. Ren home. He didn't let us down. And don't scare her off again. Just smile!" Sophia boldly reminded Austin, who looked stiff, for the sake of the bigger picture."Why should I smile? I'm born like this. I hate smiling!" Austin retorted stubbornly. His face grew stiffer and he looked more solemn. "Why can't you take my advice? Ms. Ren came to a strange city all alone. I'm sure she's scared, but you're going to be so fierce to her. If you scare her off, you'll make a scene again. It'll be too late if you regret it by then!" Sophia nagged, insistent on explaining the interests at stake."Okay, stop. Dad's always like that. He's a general. No general loves to smile. When did he ever smile? Stop forcing him. We'll do the smiling." Jack dragged Sophia to the side, f
"What do you mean, brat? Do you want to get a beating?" Austin snarled. He immediately put away his smile and glared at Justin, waving his walking stick threateningly. "No… I've lived with you for so many years, but I never saw you smile. Now, you're smiling so brightly. It's frightening!" Justin swallowed and added carefully, "Act normal. It's better if you are serious.""How dare you!" Austin, unable to hold himself back, raised his walking stick and hit Justin's back hard.Justin stood upright, neither yelling in pain nor frowning. His parents stood behind him, seemingly used to it. They didn't stop Austin, either.Renee watched the scene and found it horrifying. "Don't we have to do anything?""It's fine. Grandpa used to do this," Justin said, smiling at Renee. He even smoothed his hair indifferently. After all, physical punishment was normal to the Baldwin family."Hmph, brat! You always ruin my reputation." Austin finally put away his walking stick after he got tired from
After all, Jovan was a human being. Such direct physical pain made him shake and groan. Normally, he should get angry and try all means to make her stop biting him.However, he was not an ordinary man. Although he trembled in pain, he maintained his posture and let her bite him as if he wanted to see who would give up first.Renee kept biting him fiercely, as if her teeth would gnaw through his palm. Blood oozed out of the wound. She was full of hatred, wishing to vent her anger. "Just bite me hard as long as you're happy. I'm enjoying myself too!"Jovan looked at her, whose head was lowered as she kept biting his palm fiercely. It was a bloody scene, but his words made everything sound ambiguous. Renee noticed his underlying meaning and was disgusted. She immediately let go of his palm. "Bah! Disgusting! You're sick!"Her lips were still stained with blood. From afar, it looked like a blooming rose from afar. It looked attractive on her. Aroused, Jovan held the back of her
The bed was around seventy inches large. Renee's eyes were closed as she moved anxiously.She thought she was still sleeping in the West Chamber, but the mattress didn't feel the same. Then, she abruptly opened her eyes. She saw a luxurious bedroom in the Paris La Nuit Club style. Above her hung a brilliant chandelier akin to the ones in medieval castles. A fragrant scent permeated the air. "You're finally awake…" A man's bewitching voice came from an inconspicuous corner. "Renee."Jovan was sitting in a luxurious chair, his legs crossed, swaying a glass of red wine. He appeared like a stereotypical vampire as he stared wickedly at Renee. "Are you out of your mind, Jovan? What did you do to me?" Renee yelled.Recalling what had happened, she abruptly sat up. Once she realized her situation, she started snarling at him. "Do you or your family hold a grudge against me? Why did you kidnap me from my engagement party?! Have you thought about the consequences? I'm sure you know h
"I… I don't know! I really don't know!" The makeup artist's face was flushed, her eyes rolling back. She felt like she was about to faint again."Are you still trying to hide the truth?" Justin continued flexing his fingers. He was certain that the makeup artist who suddenly wanted to modify the size of the gown must be aware of the truth.With her eyes rolled back, the makeup artist begged him, "I'll tell you…! Please let me go! I'll tell you everything!" Hearing that, Justin slowly released his grasp.The makeup artist finally got a chance to breathe. She kept taking deep breaths and almost cried because of her terror. "What should I tell you?" She truly knew nothing."What?" Justin's gaze grew fierce."Oh, I remember it now…" She drew in a cold breath and hurriedly said, "A handsome guy came not long after you were gone. I think he's Mr. Hunt. When Ms. Everheart saw him, she was very…"She paused, trying to find her words. "She was very…?" Justin urged her. This was the
Meanwhile, Liam and Leia became vigilant when they saw that scene."What are they doing?" Liam walked past the guests enjoying the fun and stood between Alexander and the two guards. He faked a smile and said, "We're the guests you invited sincerely. Is this how the Baldwin family treats their guests?""Guests?" Austin got off the stage and strode toward them. Although he was smiling, coldness gleamed in his eyes. "Have you ever seen any guest steal the hostess?""You can't say that, Sir Baldwin..." Liam smiled and added, "How could you be sure that it must be the Hunt family?""Who else could it be?" "This is just your guess. They've always been here. Even if they wanted to do that, they couldn't. So… You should act fair and square, given your noble identity. Shouldn't you find fault with the culprit instead? Isn't that more reasonable?" Liam looked at Austin. Although he was younger and came from a family weaker than the Baldwin family, he was still domineering.Besides, his
Alexander took a deep breath and analyzed logically, "This wasn't Stef's style. If he wanted to snatch her away, he would have done it openly in front of everyone. But this trick was cunning and dishonest!""Yes, you're right, but this is a special case. If he didn't use a trick, his woman would marry someone else. It's normal for him to be restless." Although Francine agreed with Alexander's analysis, she felt that Stefan could do anything if it concerned Renee. Naturally, he would stoop this far. "Regardless, we have to leave," Alexander whispered to Francine, sensing danger. "Austin has always been decisive and cruel. Since Stef humiliated him, I'm sure he wouldn't let Stef off easily. We're in danger too.""Is it that serious?" Francine looked at Austin, who was standing on the stage. He coldly ordered his assistant about something. It seemed like he wasn't that crazy. "I don't care what he'll do. We have to get out of North City right away because this city is controlled b
"What?! She's gone?" Justin's face fell immediately. He grabbed the collar of the person who came to inform them and demanded coldly, "What do you mean?! Why is she gone for no reason?""We… We don't know!" That person looked at Justin while trembling and reported everything. "When we got there, we found no one else in the makeup room except the makeup artist lying on the ground. We didn't see Ms. Everheart, either. We don't know what happened!""Something must have gone wrong with her!" Justin pushed that person away without hesitation and rushed toward the makeup room."Hey, Justin! What are you doing?" Sophia watched Justin disappear in front of everyone. She wanted to pursue him but failed.Everyone below the stage fell into an uproar and discussed among themselves endlessly. "The bride went missing all of a sudden! Did her ex-husband come for her?""It's possible. They were once madly in love with each other. Plus, the Hunt and Baldwin families were in conflict for many yea
On the surface, everyone felt that Justin was passionate and respected the bride well. However, only he knew that he was just terrified. He was afraid that the reality might exceed his anticipation. He was terrified to find that he was betrayed in the end when he had trusted Renee that much and treated her so sincerely."Justin, what's going on with you? How could you talk about that at such a time like this? The most important thing now is to make her come out and have this engagement ceremony. We should do the guests justice. If not, everyone will laugh at us after we've kept our dignity well for so many years!"Sophia couldn't understand his hesitation. They were just going to urge Renee to appear. It had nothing to do with their patience or ability to take good care of Renee.Both Alexander and Francine looked at each other in confusion."Dear, did you do anything?" Alexander asked Francine softly.If Renee suddenly failed to attend the ceremony, it might have been Francin
Renee was furious—he was ridiculous!"You won't allow that?" She snorted and looked at him as if he were crazy. "Who do you think you are? You can't meddle in my life!""I'm nobody, but I know that I don't want you to marry another guy." The man approached Renee, wanting to catch her."Stay away from me, or I'll get somebody! You should know how powerful the Baldwin family is in North City…" Renee spat coldly. She did not want to make things too ghastly, so she wouldn't alert the Baldwin family if she could help it. The man sneered wickedly. "Yes, the Baldwin family is strong. So? Even if they're strong, they can't fight against my cunning means!""What do you mean?" A bad feeling gripped Renee. She wanted to ask more questions, but found herself dizzy. Her surroundings became blurry. "I'm so dizzy! What…did you do?" The next second, she staggered and fainted.He firmly caught her and whispered, "You've suffered a lot, so I'll let you rest a bit.""Ah! You… You…" The make
"You flatter me." Renee smiled, sadness in her eyes. She recalled the day she was about to marry Stefan many years ago. The young female designer responsible for her makeup had praised her the same way. At that time, she had recently lost all her family members and was gripped with excruciating pain. Her waist had been much slimmer. She looked pitiful but bewitching. "Don't worry! Master Hunt is a great man. He'll be nice to you and protect you. You guys are a perfect match."Renee remembered that the makeup artist used a makeup blender to soak her tears and firmly told her that. The artist at that time also felt that Stefan would be her protector for the rest of her life. Renee had a crush on Stefan for many years. He was the ray of light that had saved her from her despair. Although she was strong, she couldn't help but regard him as her savior. At that time, she never imagined spending the rest of her life with someone else other than him. Many years passed since then. Sh