Stefan then got into his car and sped towards the forest as fast as he could. Francine's casual chit-chat during dinner had reminded him that the cemetery indeed had complex terrains, with smog all around it. He was worried that something might've happened to Renee. Although the possibility was extremely low, he still had to personally investigate the area to ease his anxiety.The car continued racing through the night, with its headlights being the only light source. Stefan was gripping the steering wheel tightly, scanning the area with his sharp gaze, all while loudly calling out to the woman."Renee!"Night time in the forest was exceedingly quiet. Any sudden sounds would echo through it loudly, startling the birds nearby.Soon, he had reached the area where he had kicked Renee out, and he got out of the car right away."Where are you, Renee?! Answer me!" Stefan yelled louder than before, his voice turning hoarse. However, all he received in response was either crows cawi
Stefan gripped his dislocated left leg, breaking out in a cold sweat. However, he still managed to plaster an arrogant expression onto his face."That's good." Renee felt more relaxed now.'That man sure is tough—he's fine even after falling a few miles down a cliff. That's impressive, not going to lie!'"How are you feeling?" Stefan endured the pain and shifted towards Renee in the dark."Terrible! I'm pretty sure I have a concussion, and my leg is fractured! I'm tired, cold, and starving! I feel like I'm going to die soon!"Renee tried to get up a few times, but her leg didn't allow her to move at all, so she could only lay there helplessly. She thought she was about to see the light when the hunger kicked in."How could you fall from just walking? How stupid are you? Couldn't you have called someone for help?" Stefan was so worried that he wanted to beat some sense into the woman.'It's been four years and she's still the same—she can't take care of herself!'"My phone is br
"Huh?" Renee stared at the man's wide shoulders under the dim moonlight. She looked rather hesitant and replied, "That's not appropriate, is it?""Stop dawdling. If you won't get on, I'll just leave you here," Stefan said frostily. In reality, he knew that he didn't have much time with his dislocated leg, and that he wouldn't be able to help if they kept stalling."Ah, fine, fine. If you insist," Renee said and put her arms around the man's neck, putting her entire weight on him."Hold on tight." Stefan reminded the woman and tried his best to stand up. Despite his tall build, having to endure this extra weight made him sway back and forth unsteadily.Renee held her breath, not daring to move a muscle, and asked softly, "Hey, are you okay? Why do I feel like you're having a hard time carrying me? It's like you're about to faint!""I'm… fine!" Stefan said with difficulty, gritting his teeth.It was as if his left shin bone had fractured, with the pain piercing his flesh like thous
"Okay!" Renee couldn't quite remember where she saw these numbers, and didn't have the time to think about it. She quickly typed in a number into the keypad and dialed it. The call immediately went through."Liam, it's me. Do you have time to pick me up from X cemetery?"Meanwhile, Liam had been panicking over Renee's sudden disappearance, and had nearly barged into Hunt Manor to look for her. Now that he had received a call from her, he was extremely agitated.As the two continued conversing, Stefan could no longer listen and snatched the phone, yelling. "Enough! She's hurt, so get over here!"At that moment, Renee finally noticed Stefan's hands were covered in blood. This immediately sparked her anxiety, which made her rush over to him. "Stefan, you… where is the blood coming from? Are you hurt too?""I'm fine." Stefan retracted his hand swiftly."Stop lying! You've lost so much blood already! Quick, tell me where you're hurt!" Renee shouted as she used the flashlight on the ph
"Ah, it's a long story. Just send us to the hospital now!" Renee said, as she knew that they didn't have time for idle chit-chat, especially not with Stefan's critical condition."Alright!" Liam nodded, suppressing the resentment he held for the man and carrying him into his car. He then drove as quickly as possible to the nearest hospital. Once he got there, he carried Renee in his arms, yelling at the emergency unit with a panicked expression. "Doctor, please help!"Renee, however, turned to look at Stefan, who was still lying in the car. She grabbed Liam by the arm and said, "Don't mind me for now. His condition is worse than mine. He should receive treatment first!"Liam had always listened to Renee's every order, but this time was different. He was still dashing through the halls as if he was participating in a marathon. He then lowered his gaze to speak to the woman in his arms. "Renee, I love and respect you a lot, but please don't forget that I am only a man. I am not as
"That's because he carried me all the way up to the road, despite knowing that he was injured badly too. If something happens to him, or his leg, I will never be able to repay him for his kindness. I was just worried that I'd have to deal with him for the rest of my life, which is why I kept asking you about his condition. Do you understand now?" Renee truthfully explained everything to Liam."What? He… He carried you up there?" Liam turned around, disbelief written all over his face. "I don't believe it. I saw how badly injured he was! He can't have been able to walk, let alone carry you up a cliff… I won't believe it!""I didn't believe it either. He's always been such a cold, heartless, utterly selfish man… but I can't deny the truth. If it weren't for him, I would still be stuck at the bottom of that cliff! Even if I didn't die from the pain, I would've died from starvation…"Renee recalled how the man carried her up the cliff. Every step he took felt unreal as if she had dreamt
Liam couldn't bear seeing Renee like this, and said, "Don't worry, just rest first. I'll go ask the doctor about his condition. I'm sure Stefan is fine—you know how tough he is.""That's true, that guy really is a tough cookie! Waves couldn't drown him, and fire didn't bother him either! A little fall is probably nothing to him!" Renee finally felt much more relaxed, urging Liam instead. "Well, don't waste any more time on me, go look for a doctor! If you won't, I'll just have to do it myself!""Don't move, I'll go right now!" Liam said as he stood up to leave. However, he was still rather uneasy, pointing at the food he brought. "I hope you finish this before I come back, Boss. You know your body best, and think of the kids… What would they do if you starve yourself till it affects your health?"After Liam left, Renee still had no appetite due to her anxiety. She couldn't imagine Stefan losing his life or his leg just because of this incident. She had no idea how she could possib
In actuality, Stefan's condition was much worse. The tissue around his leg had been severely damaged, so much so that he'd be risking amputation and his life along with it."I'm finished! Ah, I'm so full!" Renee patted her stomach with a satisfied grin. She then turned to Liam and asked, "Did the doctor mention when I can take this cast off? And when is my estimated discharge date?""That depends on your physical condition and cooperation. It'd take at least two weeks, and at most months.""I have to rest well then. Once I'm completely healed, I have to personally thank Stefan for saving me."Upon hearing this, Liam couldn't help but feel slightly panicked. "You don't really have to, right? He did you so wrong back then! Just take this as his way of atoning for his sins. What is there to thank him for?!"He was worried that Renee wouldn't be able to handle the shock and sadness if something really were to happen to Stefan. Hence, he figured it would be best if the two stopped seei
"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