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
Renee gasped. She was afraid that Liam might actually lose control and beat Stefan up. There were so many people around, and they were both from respectable families - it wouldn't look good if anything happened.Renee quickly stood up to drag Liam back, but Leia stopped her. "Don't worry, Renee, you know my brother won't do anything stupid. Just wait and see.""You're right…" Only then did Renee sit down.Liam was the sixth son of the Osborne family, a famous elite in Beach City. He was known for his intelligence, and he had punished many bigshots for misbehaving. He definitely wouldn't do anything stupid!When Stefan saw Liam walking over, his expression remained blank, and he acted as if he couldn't even see Liam.Xavier, who was much more straightforward, stood up and glared at Liam. "What's your problem?" He asked in an unfriendly tone.Liam smiled. "No need to get riled up, mate. I mean no harm. On the contrary, I've always looked up to you since you're all older. Fate broug
"Hurry up and explain to her, then!" Amber said hurriedly. "Matt, you're close to her. You know Ms. Everheart and Ms. Osborne would never do that on purpose. Try to persuade her to let this go, and then you can immediately set them free.""I don't have a say in this." Mateo shook his head, pretending to be helpless. "You know how much Luneth dotes on her son. Ms. Everheart pinned him to the ground and beat him up. His head got injured and started bleeding. I heard it's a large cut with a lot of stitches. We can't let it go just like that.""But you can't—" Amber wanted to say more, but Liam interrupted her. He looked at Mateo, his eyes cold and fierce. "I know you set them up. Just be frank. Why did you do that?" "See?" Mateo sighed. He pretended to be aggrieved as he looked at Amber. "The guy you like is sinister. I kindly helped him, but he didn't thank me. He even accused me of setting this up… He always sees the worst in people. He criticized me in front of you and sowed di
Liam immediately noticed something wrong. He asked Mateo fiercely, "What do you mean?""Calm down." Mateo put away his gun and placed it back around his waist. "They broke the rules and barged into the orchard. Plus, they hurt Luneth's child. So, I locked them up for the time being."He appeared calm, as if he was discussing what he had eaten for dinner. He didn't feel that he had been over the line. "Go to hell!" Liam finally failed to hold himself back. He rushed over and grabbed Mateo's neck fiercely. "You can harm me, but how dare you harm them!"At the same time, Mateo's subordinates raised their guns and aimed them at Liam. The recently eased atmosphere immediately became tense again."Hey, don't!" Amber, all tensed up, braced herself to try and stop them. Even so, she was mentally exhausted."What? You want to strangle me?" Mateo was fearless. He grinned deviously and teased, "Cool it. I just locked them up, but they didn't suffer. They're fine. If you harm me, though, I
Livid, Mateo pulled the trigger without hesitation. However, he moved the gun less than an inch. The bullet passed by Liam's ear and hit an orange behind him.The fruit immediately blew up, its juices splashing on Liam's face."Aaaah!" Amber, terrified, trembled. Her eyes turned red, and she hurriedly tried to plead with Mateo. "Matt, cool it! Aren't you and Liam friends? You guys drank and chatted together in the past. You were so close to each other. How could you do this to him? Hurry up and put the gun away! If it goes off accidentally, it'll be over!"However, Mateo ignored her. His eyes were red as he glared at Liam. "Did you see the orange behind you? Let go of her now! If not, I'll blow up your head just like I did to that orange!""Is that all you got?" Liam taunted. He refused to let Amber go. He whispered to Amber, "Watch well. If he shoots me today, promise me not to marry such a man. I can use my life to knock some sense into you.""No!" Amber shook her head. Liam
"What bad timing!" Mateo's indifferent voice came from behind Amber.Amber turned around and saw Mateo with a team of armed soldiers. Terrified, she quickly put some distance between her and Liam. She stammered an explanation. "Matt… It's not what you think. Liam and I came here to look for people. Ms. Everheart and Ms. Osborne are gone. Liam couldn't find them and guessed they might be in the orchard. He wasn't familiar with the orchard and asked me to guide him."Mateo looked livid, but still cracked a gentle smile. "Silly, you don't have to be scared. I know you're prudent. He must have forced you to come here. I don't blame you."He extended his hand and beckoned Amber toward him. "Come here. You're my fiancee. You should stand with me.""I…" Amber bit her lip—Mateo was right. She kept her head low, about to walk to him.But in the next second, Liam firmly grabbed her wrist. "You can't go!" Liam held Amber's wrist tightly and shot Mateo a challenging look."When did Amb
Liam could only see through Amber's true thoughts if she showed her true self to him. "No, I do like you. I love you the most, and I want to marry you. But you neither like me nor want to marry me. You love freedom and Ms. Everheart. You love and yearn for the kind of life ordinary people like. So, I could only choose to give you up and let you get what you want. What else do you want me to do?" Amber was generally shy and reserved, but when Liam drove her anxious, she rambled a lot."Whatever I want is my business. You don't need to sacrifice yourself to grant my wish!" Liam held Amber's shoulders, acting like a kind senior. He tried to persuade her in earnest. "Marriage isn't a joke. Think it through. Do you like and know Mateo well? You won't be happy after marrying him, given the savage culture around here. And can you divorce him easily?""Matt will be nice to me. Even if he changes his mind, he'll still be nice to me because…my father is Benjamin," Amber replied.She chose
Being a sensitive woman, Amber immediately noticed Liam's displeasure. She kept her head lower and explained carefully, "I want a chance to choose again… I want to choose another person to fall in love with. You know that Matt and I grew up together. We're childhood friends. He likes me and always protects me without asking for anything back. I feel that it's happier to marry a person who loves me instead of marrying someone far beyond my reach."For the first time, she expressed the exhaustion she felt from her relationship with Liam. She no longer wanted to be the one who kept fawning over him. She wanted to give up and relax by being the one who was loved and adored in a relationship."Tsk!" Liam snorted arrogantly. "You don't know Mateo. He's not a nice guy. He's just good at pretending. Maybe it's just his means to get what he wants, but you assume that he loves and wants to protect you."Liam hadn't made that statement to purposely put Mateo down. After standing against Mate
Liam focused on holding Amber's hand and leading her through the orange grove. At the same time, he carefully scanned the ground and trees to find any related clues left by Renee and Leia."I don't care what others say, because I didn't do anything wrong," he said indifferently. "I hope you'll feel the same. I don't think you need to stop being my friend after choosing to marry Mateo. Am I not the friend you like the most?""That's different," Amber said.She followed Liam passively. At first, she couldn't adapt to it. After walking briefly, she felt better and found it easier to do. "Although I'm not good at my studies, I know men and women should keep a polite distance. You can't take my hand and sound righteous at the same time," she mumbled."Why not?" Liam retorted firmly. "When I was young, I always held my sister's hand wherever we went. I'm holding your hand because this fog is thick and the ground is slippery. I'm afraid of being separated from you. Just walk with me. St
Liam walked ahead of Amber, then turned to glance at her. He faked a smile and asked, "What's the matter? Are you worried that I might take advantage of you?" "No, of course not!" Amber quickly shook her head and pushed her scarf up. It had fallen a little. "I just find it improper," she answered softly.She looked like a typical woman from Southeast Aeos, petite and with a small face. Her skin was tanned, and her facial features weren't very distinct. She was charming and reserved, exuding a girlish pureness. She had put on her country's special traditional clothes. The thick clothes, embroidered with various patterns, wrapped around her petite body and gave her an exotic impression. From afar, she appeared like a colorful oil painting. "Hey, it's not improper. If I wanted to do anything to you, I would've done that long ago. I don't have to wait until now." Liam sounded relaxed and prudent to ease Amber's anxiety."Don't worry. I've always regarded you as my younger siste
Amber hurriedly turned Liam down. "You can't help with my affairs. I can handle it.""Well, tell me why I can't help you," Liam pressed. "I… I want to sew a wedding gown. And there are a lot of details that I need to add." Amber became competitive for no reason, and added stubbornly, "Your words aren't absolute. Yes, your business is important, but so is mine!""Oh, you want to sew a wedding gown. I can help you with that…" Liam said, relaxed. "Maybe I didn't get to tell you that I went to a small country in Southeast Aeos when I traveled around the world. I got to know a great sewing master. The pictures he sewed looked real like paintings! I found them interesting, so I learned from him. My sewing skills are probably better than yours. I can help you with that.""Really? You can sew?" Amber was full of surprise and admiration. Her eyes lit up. "I can't sew well. I want to learn from a great master too! If you can do it, can you teach me?""Of course!" Liam promised. "Can you he