The girl had a pretty face, with big, soulful eyes. She looked like a college student who was new to the scene.Under the three men's watchful gazes, the girl walked to the bar counter and sat down.Xavier patted Stefan on the shoulder. "Stefan, you sure are lucky—that girl's really pretty. Meanwhile, my luck is so bad that I only ever encounter large men or women in their fifties. What are you waiting for? Hurry up and go dance with her."Christopher nodded. "She is. She reminds me a little of Ms. Everheart, actually, but with less bite. Ask her to dance with you… I doubt she'll say no."Stefan pursed his lips and didn't say anything as he stared at the girl in the white dress.She sat at the bar alone, seemingly waiting for someone. Her anxious demeanor suggested it was her first time in a place like this.Her innocence certainly reminded Stefan of Renee… the Renee of the past.Stefan stood up and walked towards the girl.Due to his imposing aura, the girl noticed him from th
Renee also happened to be wearing a white dress. She didn't have much makeup on, and her hair was brushed to one side. Despite appearing innocent, there was something very alluring about her.She smiled in satisfaction. "This place isn't too shabby. I think we should definitely come here more often. Having Ms. Lee on the team has definitely lifted a weight off my shoulders. We should celebrate…"Renee trailed off when she noticed Leia staring at something in the distance."Ren, doesn't that handsome guy on the dance floor look a little like your husband?" Leia tugged on Renee's arm and asked cautiously.Renee looked in the direction Leia was pointing, and to her surprise, it was indeed Stefan.Liam and Leia looked at each other worriedly, wondering how Renee would react.However, Renee laughed it off. "He's not my husband. He's my ex-husband. Get it right, guys.""Boss, if you're uncomfortable with this, we can go elsewhere. Why don't we go to-""Why should we go somewhere else
"What pro? Is it a guy or a girl? Is he handsome? What's your relationship with him?" Leia could smell gossip from a mile away, and her eyes lit up immediately.Renee smiled mysteriously. "It's a guy, and yes, he's very handsome. You know him.""A guy?" Liam wasn't too happy to hear that. "Who is he to you?" He asked, unable to hide the jealousy in his voice.Renee didn't answer him. Instead, she made a call."Yes, just keep walking…" Renee said after a while on the line.At that moment, a tall, handsome man appeared at the bar's entrance. He wore a black mask, and his eyes were dark and calculative.Renee quickly stood up and waved at him. "Over here!"Liam, Leia, and even Christopher and Xavier, all looked in the same direction.The man walked to where Renee was, then removed his mask.Leia was momentarily stunned. "Isn't he… a younger version of Stefan?""What do you mean? He's nothing like that jerk. This guy's name is Julian, and you introduced him to me as a gift. Have
"What do you mean?" Xavier asked curiously."He's the most handsome member of SK Group, a new idol group. People even call him 'Mini Stefan Hunt'," Christopher said with a grin."Pfft!" Xavier almost spat out his drink.Stefan's nephew was a chief engineer, a gamer, and the most handsome member of an idol group? Julian really was an interesting person!"If he's a member of an idol group, why is he still developing chips?" Xavier asked."How am I supposed to know? Maybe he got sick of researching and wanted a different lifestyle." Christopher observed Julian from afar, admiration in his eyes.He and Xavier could only dream of living this kind of life, where one did whatever they wanted and chose their own lifestyle.Stefan was dancing with the girl in the white dress, but he was distracted. He had noticed Renee and the others as soon as they walked in. In the beginning, he felt a little guilty. He was worried Renee might misunderstand his relationship with the girl, so he intenti
"Dance?" Renee cleared her throat awkwardly, and pretended to be uninterested. "I'm not a fan of dancing."Julian smiled, a knowing look on his face. He stared into Renee's eyes challengingly. "Is that the truth, or are you just scared?""Are you kidding me? Why would I be scared?" Renee scoffed, but she couldn't meet Julian's gaze.Julian's piercing eyes reminded her of Stefan. When he looked at her, it was as if he could see all her secrets.Truthfully, how could she not care that Stefan was dancing with another girl? She was only pretending not to care, but unfortunately, her acting wasn't good enough. As soon as she saw Stefan chatting and laughing with that girl, her walls came down… She got so distracted that she forgot about the game and dragged her team down."If you're not afraid, then dance with me. I'm sure you'll feel much better after we dance," Julian insisted and offered his hand to Renee again.Although he was Stefan's nephew, he was only one and a half years youn
Renee immediately stood up. She touched Liam's face, then patted Julian on the head. It looked like an emperor choosing his consort. "One is handsome and positive, while the other is quiet and thoughtful. Don't worry. I'll dance with both of you!""I'll dance with Julian first since he came from far away. Liam, wait for me like a good boy!"Liam was extremely jealous. He could easily get any woman he wanted, and the look in his eyes said he knew it. However, he still nodded obediently. "Alright. Boss, you can dance with the fake Stefan first. I'll join you once you're ready for the grand finale.""Good boy." Renee smiled and touched Liam's face again. She reached for Julian's hand, and he led her confidently to the dance floor.All the women in the bar sighed, their chins on their palms."That woman is so lucky! She has two handsome men by her side… it's really the best of both worlds!""I'm curious how she managed to do it. I'm sure her family must be rich. Either that, or she r
Renee looked down and saw her foot on top of Julian's. Her face burned in embarrassment and she mumbled awkwardly, "I'm so sorry. I wasn't paying attention.""You're dancing with me. If you're not paying attention to me, who are you paying attention to?" Julian asked her casually.Renee stepped on Julian's foot out of anger this time and hissed, "Why did you have to say that? I'm already in a tough spot here!"Wasn't it obvious? Of course, she had been focusing on Stefan. She felt like a thief prying into other people's business when Julian called her out like that.After a while, the song ended, and the lights went out.Julian suddenly let go of Renee's waist. He spoke just loud enough for Stefan and the others to hear them. "Since we aren't good dance partners, why don't we try exchanging partners?""What?! Exchange partners?" Renee sputtered, but before she could react, Julian started walking towards Shirley. He reached out to her. "Shall we dance?""I…" Shirley's cheeks turn
Renee's face turned red for some reason, and she avoided Stefan's gaze. Her mind went blank, and she didn't know how to answer him.Fierce pride rose in Stefan and he continued triumphantly, "Your silence tells me that I'm right. You still have feelings for me, don't you? You can't move on."Renee had nowhere to hide. She made several mistakes while dancing and Stefan's feet suffered the consequences.She was a coward! Renee was furious at herself and gathered the courage to speak. After taking a deep breath, she looked up daringly into his eyes. "Mr. Hunt, it seems to me that you're very self-obsessed. I had never fallen for you to begin with, so how can I move on?""You're acting tough again…" Stefan sighed, then leaned down to murmur in her ear, "You know very well that you're in love with me."Renee's face turned even redder. She wanted to deny it, but the song suddenly came to an end. Stefan immediately went back to his indifferent self and let go of Renee. Though they had bo
"Baby…baby Baldwin. He'll be the baby for every Baldwin!"Austin was always a solemn man, but he grinned heartily when he thought about his future great-grandson. He didn't look serious at all. "Baby Baldwin? Don't joke around. I think we need to come up with a name that has a good message." At first, Jack didn't join their conversation because he found drugging others a very shameful trick. Still, he couldn't help chiming in when he heard them talk about the baby. "What kind of name has a good meaning?" Sophia sounded dissatisfied. "I think the name we got for Justin isn't good. It made him wild and uncontrollable, like the wind."Her son was always insensible and casual, and she felt that it was most probably because of his name. Justin was as fickle and unmanageable as the wind. He always stayed away from home all year round, and was incredibly rebellious."I agree. Justin isn't serious since we didn't get a good name for him, so we need to be careful when picking a name fo
"Dad, stop looking at me like that. You got the wrong idea. I did nothing. I just…" Sophia, feeling guilty, averted her gaze. She couldn't face anyone else at the dining table. Then she added in a whisper, "It's just that… It's written in the stars.""What happened? What are you saying?" Austin grew more solemn. Worried his insensible daughter-in-law might do something outrageous and hurt his future granddaughter-in-law, he said fiercely, "Hurry up and tell me! If not, I'm going to punish you.""Please don't! I'll tell you everything. Don't always talk about punishing me. I'm getting old, and I can't stand that."Sophia grew frightened. She retreated, ready to run away at any minute. "I prepared a head-to-toe treatment for Ren to relax. But… One of the aromatherapists made a mistake and gave a chance to the young couple. So, I think we should eat first. We shouldn't disturb them."Austin didn't let it go. "What kind of mistake?" "Uh… The aromatherapist used an arousal-induc
A sumptuous feast was served in the dining room. Both Austin and Jack had taken their seats. They were a little unhappy when they noticed Sophia return to the dining room alone."Why aren't they coming? The food is getting cold." Jack started complaining. "Is Ren that conceited? She can't be so rude for the first meal. How can she make us wait for her? This is unacceptable.""Shut up!" Austin glared at Jack and berated him. "You always eat on your own, and you never wait for me. Why are you pretending to be a good son today?""No, Dad. I think…" "Ren suffered a lot these days. I'm aware of the Jenkins family. They're inhumane barbarians. They do all kinds of messy things and are not governed by law. She must have gone through a lot there. She finally escaped from hell and wanted to take a good rest. I don't think there's anything wrong with it. Stop finding fault with her," Austin said grumpily.As Renee was Maurice's granddaughter, Austin favored her and tolerated her without bo
Everyone looked at Yvette. Sophia, grumpy, asked fiercely, "What's going on? Why are you screaming? You're so rude."Yvette bowed and reported nervously, "I… I suddenly realized that there was something wrong with the spices I prepared for Ms. Everheart. There's something special in there." Anxiety instantly gripped Sophia and she hurriedly demanded, "What is it?" "Uh… It's something that can arouse people." Yvette fearlessly reported everything. "Generally, aromatherapists will take care of this kind of thing while serving customers. We'll add it for our female customers to deepen their bond with their significant others. I did the same thing this time, but it doesn't seem appropriate.""Is that so?" Sophia's fierceness immediately subsided, replaced with a gentle look. She grinned. "That isn't a problem at all. In fact, I'll reward you handsomely!" "Huh?" Yvette looked up, flattered.While the average people might generally find that kind of thing fun, it might seem disres
The next second, Renee instinctively slapped Justin."What are you doing?" Renee shyly interrogated him. "I don't know. I think I'm greedy today. It seems like a kiss isn't enough…"He held her face and closed his eyes, trying to continue with the kiss. However, this kiss was not as simple as the previous one. It was full of his desire, unlike his usual self."Mmph, you can't…!" Renee resisted and tried to push Justin away.But he grew more outrageous and stepped into the bathtub, the water soaking him. The frightened professional physical therapists stood outside and talked among themselves. Holly, the massage therapist smoothed her chest and said, "Oh, I'm embarrassed! I'm sure Mr. Baldwin didn't see anything, did he?"Nova, the top beautician, said sensibly, "You're overthinking. It isn't a big deal even if he saw anything. Do you want to hold him responsible for it? He came home with his fiancee. Stop imagining things.""No, I'm not overthinking. I'm just embarrassed. Y
"I want to take things slowly too," Justin whispered, holding Renee's cheek gently as his gaze grew more amorous, "but I'm just a normal guy. I can't take things slow when I see something like this."He loved Renee very much—he had fallen in love with her at first sight. The more time he spent with her, the more he grew to like her. Renee was devastatingly beautiful, with exquisite facial features. However, she didn't look meek or submissive, giving men the notion that it was impossible to conquer her, even if it seemed doable. In the steam, Renee's cheeks grew rosy. Her hair was tied up high, exposing her delicate neck. She looked like a seductive woman in an oil painting from Varangia. No man could resist her."We're about to marry each other. We can kiss, can't we?" Justin raised her chin, looking like a hunter who wanted to swallow his prey. "If we can't be this intimate, we don't have to marry. It means we can never fall in love with each other.""I…" Renee pursed her lips,
Justin walked quietly to the bathtub and looked down at her as if he were enjoying a plate of wonderful dessert. His gaze deepened. "You came here to spend the rest of your life with me. Plus, we're about to get married. Don't you think our bodies are still strangers to each other?"The only time that they were intimate with each other was when he kissed her as a joke, which earned him a beating from her.At that time, Justin didn't intend to do much. He just behaved like a naughty boy while teasing his beloved woman. His action didn't have the desire men held for women.But that was a different time. When he wanted to get close to her, it was for different reasons. This time, he was full of possessiveness for her. "Stop messing around! If you make things weird, we can't be friends anymore," Renee said.She didn't dare to move in the bathtub. She feigned indifference while teasing him and trying to make him regain his wits. "Friends?" Justin snorted and bent over a little. He
However, the cry did not come from Renee but from the professional people who served Renee.Only women were in the bathroom. They didn't have a lot of clothes on because they wanted to improve their service. Besides, the bathroom was full of steam. Although it wasn't a debauched scene, it was unsightly. Justin was the only son and rich heir of the Baldwin family. Plus, the Baldwin family had always been the core large family in North City. The women felt very awkward to face Justin with how they currently looked like. Startled, they ran out of the place, leaving Renee and Justin in the room.He was standing upright and wearing clothes while she was naked and lying down.Luckily, the bathwater that the aromatherapist made came with thick foam. Only Renee's head and neck were exposed. Yet, the vagueness made it more enticing. "Ahem, are you…okay?" Justin buried his head and explained awkwardly, "I heard you calling for help. I thought something happened to you.""I'm fine." Ren
Renee wasn't embarrassed since the whole room was full of only women. She walked to the bathroom, took off her clothes, and sank into the bathtub comfortably. At the same time, the massage therapist, beautician, and nail artist served her from head to toe. She enjoyed a great time.It couldn't be denied that Sophia had a great understanding of people. The nice things she prepared were indeed great.After more than an hour, Renee was fully relaxed. She enjoyed a great massage. Justin, waiting outside, started dozing off."Justin, come with me. She'll come out when she's done enjoying a great time," Sophia said, trying to persuade her son. She had waited for half an hour with him, and started yawning too. "No, just leave me. I want to wait a while longer. What if something happens to her?" Justin didn't even look at Sophia. He kept staring at the door of the bedroom as if illegal activities were being carried out in the room. He was worried that Renee might be in danger if he