"N-No… I wouldn't dare… Mr. Hunt, please forgive me. I won't do it again. Please…""Don't worry. I'll spare your insignificant life. I'll give you a taste of hell on earth!" Stefan stepped on the man's head and pressed it into the mud.The pervert didn't dare fight back, and he soon passed out from fear…Renee was still lying on the cold mat. She was already untied, and her clothes were also loose. Her fair skin was slightly pinkish. She looked like the most enticing meal in the world.Renee wriggled her way to Stefan and wrapped her arms around his legs. She then pressed her face against him. "Stefan, you're really here. Am I imagining things?"Stefan looked down confusedly at her. "You've been saved. Hurry up and put on your clothes. Stop messing around!"He didn't know that Renee was under the drug's influence and couldn't think clearly. He also didn't know that, from her perspective, he was the only cure for her burning passion."I haven't been rescued yet. I feel awful. It'
Renee was dumbfounded. She blinked several times before carefully asking, "W-What do you mean?"Stefan's facial expression was cold. He looked Renee up and down without revealing the contents of his mind.Renee was wearing a revealing silk pajama. She quickly covered her exposed skin with a blanket. "I can't remember. Why don't you give me a hint?" She asked carefully."Don't you remember what you did to me?" Stefan walked to the edge of the bed and asked in a deep voice, "Or are you pretending to forget so you won't be held accountable?""I honestly can't remember a thing. Show me the evidence. Don't slander a good person!" At this moment, Renee felt like a part of her memory had been erased. All she remembered was lending her phone to a guy after work ended. She genuinely couldn't remember anything else that happened after that.Which was why… She wasn't sure if she had gone berserk and 'bullied' Stefan last night.She prayed she didn't—otherwise, it'd be too embarrassing—and s
Stefan pursed his lips. "I tried to resist, but it didn't work. You know how strong you are, don't you?" He asked."Well…" Renee glanced at the ridiculous scratch marks on his body and suddenly felt less sure about her line of reasoning. "You should think about whether your outfit was too revealing. Did you use suggestive body language? Were you intentionally seducing me?""As a man, especially an attractive one, you should abide by modest virtues. Don't flirt all the time. If you can't even protect yourself, how can you expect others to protect you? If you tell people that you were 'bullied' on the internet, they'll only say you deserved it!""..." Stefan was speechless.What was wrong with him? Why was he arguing with her about this?In the end, Renee still felt a little guilty. She started coaxing him. "Alright, alright. Don't be sad. I acted too rashly and didn't take your feelings into consideration… I'll transfer some money to your account later. You can buy some supplements
"Renee, why are you in front of Stef's room? Did you two…" Xavier was the first to gasp.The others, including Christopher, who were from wealthy families, all appeared equally surprised.Renee cleared her throat and pretended to be calm. "I came here to talk about business. Nothing happened between us. Don't let your thoughts wander," she said arrogantly.In the next second, Stefan walked out of the room in his pajamas. His hair was still wet. "Oh, good thing you haven't left. Don't you want your scrunchie anymore?"Renee's facial expression froze. 'Damn! This is embarrassing!'She accepted the black scrunchie from Stefan. "What a coincidence. I was looking for it everywhere. It seems that you found it."Stefan crossed his arms before looking at her from top to bottom. "You look sexier with your hair down. Last night…""Ahem!" Renee coughed profusely in an attempt to stop him from speaking.Was he blind? There were so many people around. Was it necessary to describe such intim
Stefan looked at Renee and smiled. "What do you think, Ms. Everheart?"Renee rolled her eyes out of anger. "You're all sick. Do we even know each other that well? Why would a bunch of guys have the audacity to ask a woman to roast food for them? I…""That's true!" Stefan smiled vaguely. "After all, you used up a lot of your energy last night. It's such a pity that I…""Shut up!" Seeing how Stefan was about to take off his robe, Renee quickly cut him off. "Fine, I'll do it!"She wanted to discuss something in private with Xavier anyway.There were various ingredients, and a barbecue grill on the green field made up part of the vast backyard.The sun was blazed with fury. Stefan and the other men sat on deck chairs under the canopy and chatted.Renee, on the other hand, sat in front of the barbecue grill, roasting food for them. She had a sour expression on her face.The roasted pork belly was oozing oil, and the crispy chicken wings were coated with a layer of honey. There was a
Stefan giddily took a bite of the chicken wing while his friends observed in envy.After that, an intense spiciness began to spread from the tip of his tongue. It felt like it was being cut by a knife, and it was horrible."How does it taste, Stefan? Ms. Everheart roasted it with a lot of love. We're already drooling from just the smell…" Moses, the youngest in the group, asked with an envious look on his face."Cough!" Stefan neither chewed nor spoke. It was way too spicy.However, at this point, if he said it tasted awful, it would embarrass him too much.All these years, his ego had already been hurt enough by Renee's disappearance.This was especially true when he went searching for her on the deserted island. In the end, he had to beg for help from his family to safely return to Beach City. His friends had constantly teased him for this.Now that he finally had an opportunity to claim a small victory, he didn't want them to find out the truth just yet.Otherwise, his frien
"Hehehe…" Renee had no choice but to take a bite for show. She then lowered her voice. "Stefan, did you have to do this? Isn't it a little too cruel?""It's your own doing. I'm just returning the favor."The two pushed the chicken wing skewer back and forth while they bickered. To others, this seemed like a moment of intimacy.Moses smiled foolishly before quickly retrieving his phone to capture this 'heart-warming' moment. "Looks like the rumors on the internet are true. Stef and Ms. Everheart really do share true love. This is such a sweet photo. I have to share it on social media!"While saying this, Moses typed 'the couple I ship is real' before attaching a picture and publishing the post on social media."Hey, don't do that…" Renee felt that it had gone too far and tried to stop him.Unfortunately, Moses wasn't the only one who did this. The others did the same. Even if she wanted to stop them, it was too late.Feeling helpless, she turned to face Stefan. "Why aren't you sa
Renee's facial expression was cold and emotionless. "I don't care if he's dead or alive. Did he care if I was happy or not during the most difficult period of my life? Did he ever care if I was alive?""Well…" Xavier felt a little guilty. He silently looked down.Stefan had indeed gone too far back then. He cheated on Renee and forced her to get a divorce. His heart was practically stone-cold. Why did he have to get so close with a bitch like Briar?Even if Renee loved him from the bottom of her heart, her feelings would eventually fade.If he asked her to give Stefan another chance now, it would only be adding salt to the wound!"I'll tell you again, and please take this seriously—my relationship with Stefan has ended, and we will never get back together. Please tell your friends, Stefan included, to stop joking around like that anymore. If this happens again, I'll cut ties with all of you," Renee said sternly to make sure Xavier got her point.Xavier nodded. "Alright. I know wh
Renee covered her lips, her tone filled with disbelief. "I…cut myself." Justin leaned against the corner and frowned deeply. He was in deep pain."Why did you cut yourself?" Renee was scared out of her wits and grew more sober. In her panic, she threw herself at him and tried to stop his bleeding.Justin reacted aggressively as he waved his dagger and warned fiercely, "Get away from me! Don't touch me!" "I…" Renee paused, too afraid to act recklessly. She pointed at his wound and said, "I'm just worried about you. You're bleeding. It must hurt a lot. Why did you hurt yourself?" "It's better to be in pain!" Justin gnashed his teeth and said in agony, "The pain will knock some sense into me, so I won't act like an animal and lose control of myself.""I see…" Stunned, Renee was moved to tears. She understood why he cut himself. Surprisingly, he wanted to stay sober and not be controlled by the drug in the wine.He could have used her to satisfy his desire, and she would never b
"You're playing with fire!" Justin leaned close to Renee's ears and said fiercely, "What do you think there is in the wine? Maybe I'm not someone who will take liberty on women, but I can't promise that the wine won't make me so." "So, you're saying that the wine…" Suddenly, Renee realized the wine was not as simple as she thought. She also understood why Rose had behaved in such a mysterious manner. "Stay…away from me!" Suddenly, she became frightened and wanted to keep some distance from Justin. She knew that people could not be trusted completely, especially under the effects of chemical reactions. Things would certainly get out of control. Justin probably did not want to do anything to her, but both of them would lose their minds under the effect of the wine and do something that would fill them with regret. The only way to prevent such an incident was to avoid each other."You want to stay away from me, but it's too late now. I'm no saint. I'm just a normal guy!"Just
"I'm so thirsty!" The burning sensation of the wine made Renee thirsty. She wanted to drink some water.In the dark, she heard some rustling. The next second, something was on her lips. It seemed to be someone else's lips. She wondered if someone had secretly kissed her."Who are you?" Renee grabbed the person in front of her and interrogated angrily, "How dare you kiss me without my permission! Do you know who I am? I'll cut off your lips!""Let's see if you can do that or not." The man sounded dull and drunk, but he was also overbearing.Although Renee was drunk, she could discern who it was. She called out in the dark and tried to confirm her doubt. "Haze…?" "Yeah, it's me," Justin admitted, but he did not plan to let her go. He used a more overbearing manner and trapped her between him and the door."What do you want?" Renee panicked. She wanted to kick him away, but she did not resist when she learned that it was Justin. After she had done so many things to hurt him, s
The servant walked forward with trepidation and helped Justin back to his room. Austin's eyes were dark. He whispered to his assistant, who nodded and immediately carried out his order.After two glasses of strong wine, Renee felt dizzy and could not stand steadily. "It's weird. Is this wine this strong? I just had two glasses of it, but I feel quite dizzy." It was hard for her to exit the hall. She could not stand properly, so she supported herself against the wall."Ms. Everheart, you didn't seem well. Let me help you to get some rest." Austin's assistant caught up to her and stood behind her. He even sounded respectful. "It's… fine. I can go back to my room." Renee waved; she didn't want to trouble others. Besides, she did not want others to see how miserable she was. She had assumed that she was good at drinking and would not get drunk, but it seemed like she had overestimated herself. After two glasses of wine, she became quite drowsy. She would not easily leave if s
Renee blinked and smiled brightly at Justin, asking him, "Are you worried about me?" "No, I'm not worried about you!" Justin said angrily. "I don't want you to get killed here. I can't explain it to your brother and kids. It's hard to handle the three of them."He was not lying. Although he had befriended Quinton, Adie and Abby might make a scene there if they realized that Renee had drunk so much wine at the party. They were witty, always full of ideas.Hence, it was better not to cause trouble. Before they could make a scene and things get out of control, Justin must stop Renee. He wasn't worried about her at all. "So, you're not worried about me?" Renee's gaze turned dull as she sighed. "It looks like you didn't forgive me. So, I must drink this glass of wine." Something was wrong with Renee, or perhaps she just wanted to torture herself. It seemed like she insisted on drinking the wine. She swung off Justin's hand and gulped down the wine."You're out of your mind!" Justi
The aged white wine was strong. Ordinary people would find it hard to drink a glass of it. Yet, Renee had drunk two glasses of it consecutively. It was a little dangerous. Everyone at the dining table was initially watching the fun, but they showed Renee some pity after she drank two glasses of wine consecutively. After wiping her lips clean, Renee staggered and said to Justin, "Let me toast to you now. I've wronged you the most." Justin, sitting there, said with a poker face, "You don't have to say sorry to me. We don't hold each other any grudge. After all, we can't make others fall in love with us.""No, I must apologize to you. It's for my sake." After that, Renee used a bigger glass and filled it with wine."Whatever!" Justin frowned and ignored Renee. He had no idea what was wrong with her. He had yielded and let her off, but she stubbornly wanted to keep drinking the wine.He wondered if she had forgotten the fact that she had just recovered from a serious illness. She
Suddenly, Justin became mature and stopped making jokes. He talked steadily and was no longer emotional. It filled Austin with worry because it made him feel like Justin was an emotionless robot.In comparison, he liked Justin's previous self better. At that time, Justin was simple and sentimental. He was the grandson Austin doted on the most.Sophia grinned and commented, "Dad, you don't have to worry about Justin. Men will change. Previously, he was just a childish kid even though he was in his twenties. He didn't know how to see through people's pretense. But he's all grown up now. He knows what's right or wrong. That's a great thing!" As a mother, she naturally did not want her son to get hurt. Although she favored Renee and wanted the latter to be her daughter-in-law, she would give up since Renee had let her son down and harmed him. All she wanted was to see Renee get away from her son."Yes, you're right. People need to grow up. He has grown up a lot lately, but the price
After a while, a servant quickly came back with a bottle of wine tied with a piece of red cloth. "Sir, Madam, this bottle of white wine was brewed more than ten years ago. It comes with a rich taste and is strong. I'm sure it's suitable for Ms. Everheart to toast to everyone as a form of apology.""That's good. That's what I want." Rose accepted the heavy bottle of wine. Although it was yet to be unscrewed, she could smell its pungent scent. "I won't easily let anyone drink this. Plus… Believe it or not, a glass of this wine can knock out anyone here." Rose carried the bottle of wine and walked around the table. Finally, she stopped in front of Renee. "I'm letting a sinner like you enjoy such a great thing today. You must drink all of it. You can't waste it.""Huh? Does she have to drink it all? I'm afraid she'll vomit from drinking.""People will lose themselves with only three to five glasses of this wine. If they drink half of it, they might get alcohol poisoning no matter
If any Baldwin demanded an explanation from Renee, she would not resent them."Fine, I won't go easy on you since you said so." Rose laughed recklessly, looking malicious. Everyone knew Rose was fierce and malicious. But none of them said anything, including Justin. They behaved like onlookers and wanted to see how Rose would punish Renee. "Please go ahead." Renee nodded and sounded very calm. "Don't worry. Regardless, you were the only woman my dear grandnephew had loved and wanted to marry. So, I won't be harsh on you. If not, he won't forgive me." At that point, Rose purposely paused and wanted to see how Justin would react.However, Justin merely sat there indifferently and had no intention to get Renee out of the predicament. Hence, Rose became bolder. "Well, let's do this. You've wronged not only Justin but everyone in my family. Since you're here to apologize, you should toast to all of us. Then, we can forget about this."After that, Rose turned to Austin and asked