"Yeah, maybe." Renee didn't deny it either. Thinking back, despite having been married to the man for so many years, despite expressing every ounce of love she had for him, she'd never really tried putting her ego aside to make him stay either.She had been willing to give up everything for him, but she had let him go as soon as he brought it up. She didn't bother to try to save the relationship and even left before he could leave her…She couldn't help but wonder if things would've been different for them if she had just done something back then.As time passed, the clock soon struck 3 AM, which was usually when the human body felt most exhausted.Renee was starting to feel drowsy, and her movements were slowing down. However, she knew that she couldn't sleep now, as she wanted to get the Rainbow Glaze. She simply had to finish this project before dawn arrived."I'm getting sleepy." Stefan stretched as he looked at the Lego set that was only partially complete. He turned to the w
It was already afternoon when Renee woke up the next day. She was on a soft large bed that had a relaxing fragrance emanating from its sheets. She soon realized that it was Stefan's unique scent.It was said that a person could identify the scent of someone they loved very much; it wasn't the smell of their perfume, but the scent coming from within their very souls. It was likely that Stefan was considered somewhat important in her heart, which was why Renee could still recognize his unique scent."Damn it!" Renee jumped up from the bed as soon as she realized where she was, the shock waking her up in an instant. She was the only one left in the room at the time, as Stefan seemed to have gone off somewhere already."Ugh, how could I have fallen asleep?" Renee slapped herself on the forehead, frustrated that she hadn't finished building the Lego set. Furthermore, she just had to end up sleeping in Stefan's bed.She could only imagine how Stefan would humiliate her because of this. N
Renee tried to explain. "Grandpa, actually, last night…""You don't have to say anything more, you don't have to be so shy about it either. You're both youngsters after all, even if something did happen between the two of you, it's completely normal. I may be old, but I'm not that conservative. I understand." Timothy was grinning widely as he cleared his throat. "It's good that the little punk finally came to his senses. This morning, he even told me that you needed lots of rest after last night, so I shouldn't disturb you. He said you could sleep till whatever time you liked."Renee blushed, her voice panicked. "Grandpa Timothy, you've misunderstood. Nothing happened between us last night, we-""Nothing happened? And yet… you've slept in his bed the whole night." The old man grinned at her cheekily."Well… He… He didn't lay in bed with me. He was probably building his lego spaceship, so we really didn't…" The more Renee tried to explain, the more guilty she looked."Oh child, I
Renee left Hunt Manor with the Rainbow Glaze in her arms, still feeling rather conflicted. She then called Rubio, hoping to settle matters regarding Everheart Manor as soon as she could.The two decided to meet up in a lovely villa within Care Farm. Rubio was smoking a cigarette at the time, a young woman in her early twenties was sitting right next to him."You're quite a diligent woman, I must say! You were able to get your hands on this priceless treasure that many would sell their souls for, in such a short period no less! I knew you could do it—you're capable and tenacious, as expected from my confidant."Renee had placed the Rainbow Glaze into a beautiful box, holding it with both her arms carefully the whole time. She smiled softly and responded, "You're too kind, Rubio. It's just an artifact, really. There's probably loads of substitutes out there. It's not like it can grant immortality, so how could people be willing to sell their souls for such a thing?" Rubio just smile
Renee carried the Rainbow Glaze with her the entire time and arrived at the Azure Group with an absent mind. She was wondering if she should return it back to Stefan. After all, if the relic truly was an important item to him and to his family, she couldn't possibly repay his kindness for giving it to her without any requirements at all.She wouldn't even have the heart to give him attitude the next time they bumped into each other. 'How frustrating would that be?! Ah, whatever, I should just give it back! Nothing's free in this world!'The employees of Azure Group instantly fussed over Renee when they saw her."Ms. Everheart, what brings you here? You should be resting at home! Please don't walk around too much!""We're here to look after the company, and everything's going smoothly. Don't you worry about us. You should take care of yourself first!""Ah! Ms. Everheart, slow down! The janitor just cleaned the floor earlier, so you might slip!" Everyone swarmed Renee with concern
Renee stood before the windows while she tried her best to adjust the angle of the telescope, acting as if she was a spy focused on her mission. Everyone had a tendency to snoop at some point, and it should be fine if she snooped on the legendary Stefan Hunt himself.The man was currently sitting before his desk, reading through the document in his hands thoroughly. His defined, charming features were perfectly sculpted, making him look like he belonged on the front cover of a magazine."Ugh, just look at how serious he's pretending to be. I refuse to believe you won't yawn or pick your nose in private!" Renee scoffed cheekily as she stayed in the same position for quite some time, hoping to capture a glimpse of Stefan's uglier side.After a short while, Stefan received a call and got up, walking over to his windows with a cup of coffee in his hand."Shit!" Renee ducked immediately, worried that she would be caught red-handed. From what she knew of the man, he was a complete narcis
Finally, the only people left in the room were Renee and Stefan."What the heck? What does he mean by 'many children'?" Renee turned to Stefan in alarm.'Could he have found out about Abby and Adie's existence? If he has, there's going to be a battle soon. This is war!'She knew that this wasn't the right time to go against the Hunt family, which was why she still felt somewhat uneasy. However, if it was bound to happen, she would not go down without a fight either. 'No one… And I mean no one can take Abby and Adie away from me!'"There's no one around, so drop the act. I know about our child," Stefan said nonchalantly.Renee clenched her fists, still pretending to be aloof. "What child? I don't understand. If you want babies to continue your bloodline so badly, just spread the news and pick a girl with the best genes! Aren't you being a little ridiculous by clinging to your ex-wife like this?!"Stefan stared at Renee, pausing before he gave her a cryptic smile. "I thought you
Stefan's threats made Renee feel more alarmed, and she wondered if he had noticed any discrepancies in her denial. However, since he hadn't made it clear that this was the case, she didn't want to question him any further either.Just as the man was about to leave, Renee's eyes landed on the box which contained the Rainbow Glaze. "Wait."Stefan's tall figure halted, anticipation in his eyes but his voice cold as he turned back to her. "What is it? Have you changed your mind?"Renee couldn't help but roll her eyes. 'This man is so self-absorbed!'"You've misunderstood. I just wanted you to take this back with you—I don't need it anymore." The woman pushed the box towards him with a cold expression.Stefan looked visibly upset, and his aura was so menacing that anyone around him would get chills. He scoffed, "You don't need it anymore?""Actually, I just don't want to owe you any favors. This thing seems pretty valuable, so if I were to take it, we'd only be making things harder to
The Lotso bear was a villain in the movie, but it was a pitiful villain because it was abandoned by its owner. It used various means and encountered a lot of hardships to return to Daisy, its owner. In the end, it found that its owner had long gained new toys.After getting hurt, it no longer wanted to be kind. It was used to act cunningly as a form of disguise. But honestly, it was a dear baby who needed love. Of course, it was not a villain at all. Renee liked it because she saw herself as well as others in it. Everyone was gloomy in some way. People got hurt and slowly became gloomy. Instead of criticizing such a thing, Renee felt more compassion and sorry for such a situation. "But you still don't want it and want to throw it away." Stefan was gripped with complicated feelings after listening to Renee's explanation. He sounded sad."Yes, I like it. But I still want to throw it away. It's better to stop in time." Renee laughed and stopped shaking her legs. She was her usual
A week later, Renee recovered because she listened to the doctor and underwent treatment. She could be discharged from the hospital.In the meantime, Stefan stayed outside the ward and did not enter the ward.On the contrary, Jovan kept entering the ward from time to time. Renee would either scold or drive him away. Stefan entered the ward on the day Renee was leaving the hospital. He quietly helped Renee pack up her things. Generally, a caretaker could do that. However, Stefan acted like he wanted to repent and felt better when he took it upon himself. "Do you still need this?" Stefan pointed at a Lotso bear toy at the head of the bed and asked Renee calmly.During the one-week hospitalization, Renee got bored. Stefan would give her some blind boxes as entertainment. Renee found Rubik's cubes, stickers, and keychains when she opened the boxes. She would always throw them away because she was not interested in them. When she unpacked a rather large Lotso bear toy, she became
Jovan had kidnapped Renee, but he risked his life for her though he appeared like a cunning and selfish man. Renee felt that she did not deserve his love. She had wronged both Jovan and Justin, but she could not love them back. On the other hand, the one she wanted to love kept pushing her away cruelly…She slapped herself fiercely. Her action frightened the nurse. "Ms. Everheart, we can talk things out! Why did you hurt yourself? You can't…" "Don't worry. I'll get better and won't harm myself again." Renee was teary and laughed at herself. "I slapped myself because I recalled the things I'd done. I was very stupid, and I wanted to knock some sense into myself." "Okay, I'm glad to hear that." The nurse heaved a sigh of relief, but she was afraid to see Renee keep acting crazily. After she was done bandaging Renee's wound, she left hurriedly.When Stefan saw the nurse exit the ward, he walked in nervously and inquired about Renee. "How she's doing?" "She's already feeling be
Having said that, Justin turned to leave. He knew that if he stayed, he would only look more of a fool. "Tsk! What a pity!" Jovan watched him leave, shrugging and sighing. "He's sincere and loyal. Too bad he pales in comparison to the scumbag!""Get out!" Renee was overcome with sadness and pushed Jovan away fiercely. "Get out! I don't want to see anyone!" Knowing that she had harmed Justin again, she was filled with guilt. She just wanted to be left alone."Rest well. I'll be with you until you're recovered and discharged from the hospital," Stefan said calmly before exiting the ward.In a while, a nurse came to tend to the bandages that Renee had removed. She advised Renee, "Ms. Everheart, you have to be careful. You're weak now. You can't get angry, or it might be life-threatening.""I don't care. My life is so messy, I'd rather die."Thinking of the recent events and the men around her, a severe headache hit her. She wanted to keep being unconscious."Please don't say tha
"Do you still want to marry me?" Justin asked Renee."I…" Renee could talk nonsense with Jovan, but she couldn't joke with Justin. She had harmed him many times and couldn't keep hurting him. Honestly, she didn't want to marry him or anyone else. She did not want to rely on anyone. She knew she could rely on a man and lead a steady life if there was love. But without love, it would be very hard to rely on a man.However, she knew that Justin liked her and wanted to marry her. If she promised to marry him, the impulsive Jovan would get the staff of the City Hall here. If she turned Justin down at that time, she would harm him again."Fine. You don't have to feel stressed. I know the answer." Justin was no fool. Renee's hesitation told him what she wanted. "When I begged you to marry me, you forced yourself to say yes. You just wanted to repay me for saving your life.""No, you're wrong!" Seeing Justin hurt pained her more than when she was hurt. She hurriedly explained, "I reall
"What is it?" Renee looked at Justin curiously.Renee, Stefan, and Jovan were curious about what was on Justin's mind."If my family starts fighting the Hunt family, which side will you take?" Justin went straight to the point. He had been curious about that as he made wild guesses about Renee's mind. Since Renee was right before him, he wanted to get the answer from her before he could give up."Hmph! I thought it was something serious. Why did you make it sound that serious…" Jovan burst into laughter, finding Justin a loyal man. "Isn't that obvious? If she wants to take your side, you guys would be married by now. There wouldn't be so many shitty things either!""Shut up, Jovan!" Renee glared at Jovan. If she was stronger, she would beat him up. She said coldly, "Did you forget how you took me away?""Yes, I used some cunning means to take you away, but let's be frank. If I didn't come that day, would you marry him?"Jovan had long gotten used to Renee's fierceness. On the c
Similarly, Renee used an iron wire to cut her wrist just to meet Stefan."Am I right? You did so many things just to see him. Now you finally met him. Are you happy and satisfied now? But you look worse than before." Jovan teased Renee. He found her pitiful, but at the same time, he felt that it served her right. It seemed everybody was a joke in their romance with others. Only those who never loved could be at the top of the food chain. They would laugh at those who gave up their hearts to others and could not understand those people's bizarre actions."Stop gloating. It's none of your business! Let go of me, or I'll make you feel sorry for yourself."Renee had just escaped death and was weak. Had it not been for that, Jovan wouldn't be able to stop her or watch her make a fool of herself. Still, she would be fine with losing blood again just to torment him if he kept on talking nonsense. Then, he would watch his tongue."Tell me, Phoenix. Is he telling the truth?" Justin
The loud noises in the ward naturally alerted Justin and Jovan."What's going on?" Justin became very nervous and kicked the door of the ward open. He saw that Renee had woken up and was crazily tearing at the bandages."Uh…" Justin was struck dumb. He had thought of the possibility of Stefan waking Renee up, but he did not expect it to be that effective. Renee ended up becoming a maniac who had lost control of herself. "You're awake?" Jovan was stunned too. He instantly understood the whole incident and gave Renee a thumbs-up. "You're great!"Renee looked coldly at them and ordered them, "Get out, you two! I haven't settled things with him!" Although she was fine with the way they regarded her, she did not want them to see her as a maniac. Besides, their presence would affect her and stop her from being crazy."I won't get out."Jovan turned Renee down. He rushed over and hugged her, stopping her from hurting herself."What are you doing? Let go of me!"Renee was still ha
After a long pause, Stefan finally admitted honestly, "That wasn't a lie." He turned to look at Renee. He knew what he had to do, and heaved a long sigh."But life isn't just about love.""Why not?" Renee became teary as she stared at him like a child who failed to get what she wanted. "To me, that's already enough. As long as we love each other, we can conquer everything. Without love, it'll be hopeless.""If loving each other is already enough, there wouldn't be the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. Didn't they love each other deeply? They loved each other a lot, but they ended up dead!" Stefan shot back.He could not stop himself from getting impulsive. Heartbroken, he turned around to look into Renee's eyes. "Compared to love, I'd rather you lead a steady and happy life. But I'm not the one who can give you that. I'll only bring you pain and death!""Romeo and Juliet?" Renee found that preposterous and bizarre. "What a lousy excuse! Did I kill your parents, or did you kill my p