Renee was a bit taken aback. She had done extensive research and had discovered that the property was owned by Rubio.However, according to him, it belonged to someone else."Since the boss' identity is unique, he is unable to seize control of the property using his own name. Fortunately, the Pascal family has the financial means to purchase the property, so I helped him with it. On the surface, it seems that I am in command of the land, but I do not make the decisions. Additionally, it wasn't me that wanted the Rainbow Glaze, but him."Rubio purposely reminded her, “I'm warning you now—we can’t afford to offend the boss. Don’t try and do anything under his watch.”"I want to meet the person who can make you call them 'boss.' I'm not concerned about regaining ownership of the land. I just want to meet him," she said excitedly. She was like a lively child eager to start a new game.She wasn't really pleased to see Rubio since she felt he was rather plain. However, now that she knew
“Ah, it's Daddy Q, and he's come to play with us! Let me go open the door!" Abigail's rosy cheeks were the colour of apples as she grinned and rushed towards the door."Daddy Q, you've arrived. We missed-" She opened the door while standing on tiptoe, and the smile died on her face when she realized the tall and attractive guy standing outside the door wasn't Mr. Q. "Wow, uncle, you're quite handsome," she said adoringly. "Are you lost? Who are you searching for?"Stefan looked down at Abigail standing there adorably. "Excuse me, does Renee live here?" His icy stare softened involuntarily."Handsome Uncle, why are you searching for my Mommy?" Abigail was naive, and spoke bluntly.Stefan's eyes widened slightly when he heard this. "Your Mommy?"“Yes. Renee is my Mommy. She is still working, so you'll have to wait a bit if you want to meet her!"Abigail liked Stefan instinctively, and pulled him into the house by grabbing his large hand with her small, pudgy fingers.When she noti
"Come with me, Abby!"Aiden glared at Stefan, then took his sister's hand and led her into the study."What is it, Adie? It's not polite to leave the handsome man out there all by himself! We should spend more time with him."Abigail stared impatiently out into the living room, gazing at Stefan, sitting on the couch, wishing she could always cling to the man.But Aiden swiftly slammed the door shut and, with a stern expression, scolded his sister, "You silly girl! Still can't recognize who that man is?""What do you mean, Adie? Do you know that handsome man?""So you really can't recognize him. Fine, I'll show you a picture…"Aiden picked up his phone and browsed through it for ages, punctuated by periodical "ums" and "ahhs" before finally tapping on Renee and Stefan's wedding photo."Ah, he's our Bad Daddy!" Abigail covered her mouth with her hand. Her eyes widened with shock, looking as big and juicy as grapes. She had always known that their Bad Daddy was very handsome, but
Stefan remained calm and completely unruffled. He eyed Margaret up and down with a cold gaze that bathed him with an oppressive aura."Are you… Renee's nanny?"He had an inkling of a memory of what Margaret was like. He remembered how Margaret used to like matching him up with Renee in the past. He wondered why she would suddenly change so dramatically and become so hostile to him that she even wanted to chase him away with a knife.Margaret's eyes oozed with animosity towards Stefan. She glared viciously at him, and with a kitchen knife in her hand, she sarcastically taunted, "I can't believe the noble and haughty Mr. Stefan Hunt would remember an old woman like me! Well, in that case, you must know full well that there is a mortal grudge between us. What gave you the audacity to step into this house yourself? Are you plotting something evil?""I'll give you three seconds," she continued. "Get out of this house, or I'll give you a taste of my kitchen knife!"Margaret feared that
"That's impossible, Margaret! Handsome Uncle is a good guy! He gave us these tomatoes. I tasted them, and they were very sweet! I ate so many just now! Try them yourself, Aunt Margaret! Once you've tried them, you'll know that Handsome Uncle can't be a bad guy!"Then, like a nimble little cat, Abigail slipped through Margaret's fingers and ran from behind her towards the basket of tomatoes, picking one up and offering it to Margaret with bright, innocent eyes."You're such a silly girl, Abby! Bad guys don't have the words "bad guy" written on their faces so you could tell them apart from the others! Don't you remember the story of Little Red Riding Hood that I told you about? The big gray wolf pretended to be her grandma and tricked her into trusting him; that's how she ended up getting eaten by the wolf… That man is just like the big gray wolf! You must always keep your eyes open and use reason to distinguish the bad from the good, and you must stay away from him, understood?"Marg
The twins ran happily towards the kitchen, and from then on, Stefan could hear the clanging of kitchen utensils emerging from the kitchen mixed with the sound of children laughing.Stefan walked around the house as if he was back in his own home. After a while, he headed towards the kitchen and asked the twins, who were mixing a batter. "Do you need any help?"Abigail gazed at Stefan sweetly, her eyes sparkling as brightly as stars in the sky. "Do you know how to cook, Handsome Uncle?"The sight of Abigail made Stefan feel as if his heart was soaked in sugary syrup. He smiled without realizing it, then shook his head and replied, "I never knew how to cook. It's too trivial and such a waste of time. It's the kind of thing best left to the servants.""But it won't be the same!" argued Abigail. "The servants are not your family members, so the food they make won't taste as good…"Abigail was a bona fide foodie, so she had high expectations for the food she ate. To her, good food not
And just like that, the twins successfully baked a cake for Stefan, which they then presented before him."Handsome Uncle," Abigail called with a sweet smile. "This is your first time visiting our house, so we specially made this cake for you to welcome you here. You must eat the whole cake! You don't want to waste our efforts, do you?""No problem," Stefan promised. "I have a bit of a sweet tooth anyway."He then took a spoonful of the cake along with the icing and put it in his mouth. It was sweet, fluffy, and creamy—every bit as heavenly as a cake made by a professional bakery. He continued to eat mouthful after mouthful, finding himself enjoying more with every bite.But then, the more he ate, the heavier his eyelids felt, until eventually, his whole body slumped onto the couch…-After leaving Azure Group, Renee headed towards Celestial Pavillion by following the address given to her by Rubio. The place was one of the most exclusive restaurants in Beach City, where the food
"Hmph, you crafty, conniving man!"Renee could not even guess what Haze was scheming right now, and she was no longer in the mood to skirt around the subject, so she told him point-blank, "Just tell me what you want. If it's something that's within my power, then I'll try my best to do anything you like.""Marry me!" Haze half-joked with a faint smile."Don't even dream about it!" Renee refused without even thinking.It was not the first time the guy made such a shamelessly preposterous proposal to her, and it was certainly not the first time she refused him. As time passed, such a gesture no longer affected her. The only thought that crossed her mind now was that Haze was deliberately looking for a chance to get beaten up."I just knew that you'd say no," Haze clutched his chest as if Renee's answer had deeply wounded him."If you keep on acting crazy like that," Renee warned him coldly, her fists tightly clenched, "then I'm not going to hold back any longer. Tell me exactly wha
Leia couldn't understand it. Both Renee and Stefan once loved each other passionately. They had soldiered through a lot of difficulties. But when everything became better, they stopped seeing each other. Such separation brought a fatal blow to her views on love. Suddenly, she found herself too timid to give up her heart. After all, it was nothing. People could break up with each other easily."No wonder Xavier refused to come. If he was here, I would have hated him because of Stefan. I'd beat the crap out of him!" Leia was furious, but she couldn't find someone to vent her anger on.The Stuart family was invited to the party too, but Xavier refused to come. He claimed that he would have betrayed Stefan if he had come to the party.However, Stefan was the greatest betrayal of his romance since he remained silent and indifferent. While Leia was still angry, everyone in the hall suddenly fell silent. They stretched their heads to look at the entrance of the hall."The Hunt famil
"I… I don't know what you're talking about," Liam muttered guiltily, avoiding Leia's scrutinizing gaze. "You must know what I'm talking about!" Leia refused to let Liam go and went straight to the point. "Look! Because of such a bind, you probably fell in love with Amber, who isn't related to you. Why can't Ren fall in love with Justin after spending a long time with him?""So, what's your point?" Liam didn't refute Leia. He was curious about what she was trying to say. Leia reasonably explained her opinion, "I'm trying to tell you that things might not be as bad as you imagine. Even if you take Ren away and stop this ceremony, things might not be better either."She was too timid to tell Liam that she regarded Renee and Justin's marriage in a favorable light because she found them similar. Similar people could at least lead a stable life though it might not be very passionate and exciting.After leading a wandering life for such a long time, Renee needed steady happiness. It
Liam was impressed while looking at Justin's calm expression. He had always thought that Justin was cunning and full of schemes. He was even worried that Justin might plot against Renee in the future.However, Justin was quite open and generous. He was considering things from Renee's angle. He could be Renee's haven, but if he stepped down, he could willingly grant Renee's wish to be with the one she loved. It seemed that Justin was selfless, and Liam felt that he was worse than Justin. No wonder Renee would choose to spend the rest of her life with Justin. It seemed like he was a reliable man.Justin pocketed his hands and asked casually, "Is there any other problem now?""Not at the moment." Liam frowned in defeat. Since Justin had made such a big compromise, he would seem like a fool if he was too arrogant and refused to give up. A long sigh escaped him as he let go of Renee's hand, but he was still hopeful. He boasted to Justin, "Wait and see! I'll make Stefan appear.""Go
"Let go of her!" Justin turned cold and grabbed Renee's other hand. He said darkly to Liam, "You don't have the right to take her with you!""Hmph! I don't have the right to take her with me? Well, you don't have the right to marry her. I must take her with me today. Worst comes to worst, I'll fight your family!"Though he was too weak to fight the powerful Baldwin family, Liam was never a coward. He would fight the whole world alone for the sake of Renee's happy and stable life."Calm down…"In comparison, Justin was calmer. He was probably more confident since it was his territory and he could affirm Renee would not leave with Liam. He started mocking Liam. "I'm not the kind of person who will force others to do things they refuse to do. If Ren wants to leave, I'll let her go even if my family disowns me. But I know that she won't leave. At the very least, she won't leave with you.""What do you mean?" Liam could tell that Justin was mocking him, and it annoyed him. "Why are
Liam felt that his situation at the fort was almost the same as Renee's current situation. He had thought that the marriage was just for show. If he was unhappy, he could get a divorce. Even then, things were not that easy when he wanted to get out of that mess. If Amber had not protected him, Benjamin would have long gotten him killed. He knew better than anyone else how unfair it was for the other party when one tolerated and went through with the marriage.Amber was naive and was willing to be treated unfairly, but Justin was no fool. He would not be able to take it if it lasted for a long time. It was easy to imagine what Renee would face when Justin stopped taking her side."Let's go! I'm not afraid. You don't have to be afraid, either." Liam made up his mind to support Renee, who was standing behind him.Renee bit her lips and started to waver; not because she did not want to be with Justin, but simply because she was not confident in herself. She was afraid she would neve
"Liam, what are you doing?" Leia looked at Liam, unable to understand his sudden excitement."I'm going to meet Austin or Justin. I want them to cancel this engagement ceremony." Liam held Renee's wrist and tried to drag her out of the suite.He was certain Renee didn't want to marry Justin, so it was very likely that she would regret it in the future. It would be hard to settle if she regretted it after the engagement party. Liam felt that he had to try his best to put everything under control while he still could. Feeling helpless, Leia complained, "Stop making a scene… This is Ren's marriage. You can't make all this fuss!""You don't know. I'm doing this for her. I want the best for her." Liam knew the consequences of resisting Austin, given the man's position. He was also ready to be punished by them. Even though he would be beaten up vigorously, he would not hesitate as long as he could stop the ceremony and help Renee avoid such risks. "If you want the best for her, just
Leia felt so awkward that she wanted to run away. "Hey, can you stop flattering yourself? You haven't settled your messy romance, so please don't get Ren involved. You shouldn't joke like that!"Similarly, Liam found his joke impudent and admitted to his mistake. "Yeah, I was wrong. Don't take my joke seriously."Both Renee and Leia were amused. It helped relieve their tension. "But have you thought it through? After this ceremony, you'll be a part of the Baldwin family. You can't regret it by then," Liam said; he was worried about Renee. Everyone knew the Baldwin family's style. They had such a grand ceremony today. If anything went wrong, the Everheart family might be ruined for the second time. Although nobody knew who would win the battle, the trouble could be avoided. Liam was clueless as to why Renee wanted to take such a risk."Yes, I have." Renee nodded and added firmly, "I'd thought it through the moment I boarded the plane with Justin to fly here."It was the last c
Renee was done getting ready. As her closest friend, Leia came to North City with Liam immediately.The engagement ceremony was held in a magnificent hall of a top hotel. The guests arrived one by one and chatted among themselves. It was a luxurious and grand scene. "Ren, I'm sorry I'm late!" Leia arrived at the hotel suite where Renee was waiting. She put her hands together to express her apology. "It's Liam's fault! He was out of his mind and insisted on not coming here, but I forced him to and took some time. Please don't be mad at me!""Silly, I won't be mad at you. Plus, this ceremony doesn't carry much meaning. The Baldwin family just needs this as an assurance. It doesn't matter even if you're absent."Renee looked indifferent and was not at all happy and eager like a bride-to-be. The engagement ceremony was held to announce to the world about the relationship between her and Renee. In all honesty, Renee was resistant to it. She did not want her family or friends to at
Margaret decided to be frank since Renee had said so. "I can tell that you don't sincerely love Mr. Baldwin. Your marriage is just a way to avoid reality. Why are you so harsh on yourself if that's the case? Now, you're making such a big fuss about moving here. If you fail to get along with him and have to return to Beach City in the future, many people will gossip about you. They'll say nasty things about you. Why do you have to put yourself in such a condition?""Margaret, you don't understand…" Renee looked at herself in the mirror. She looked very charming, like a bride in ancient paintings. Everyone would be charmed by her—including herself. She knew very well that she was the one taking the lead in her romance with Justin. They could go on forever as long as she didn't end it. She was just afraid she could not hold on and wanted to stop, and the only reason that she wanted to stop was probably because of Stefan. "If I stay in Beach City, I'll come across Stefan. I know t