While the two kids were still at school, Renee called Mr. Q on the way home."What's the matter?"Mr. Q was surprised by Renee's sudden call. "I have a situation. Where are you now?""Me?" Mr. Q paused briefly before answering, "I'm dealing with something at Carmine Pawnshop.""Is that so? When are you free? Can you come over to my place?" Renee sounded a little anxious. It seemed she had something important to discuss with him.Mr. Q could hear Renee's anxiousness and answered calmly, "Give me a moment. I'll come over now.""Sure. I'll be waiting."Renee started packing the daily necessities for her and the children as soon as she went home. About an hour or so later, Mr. Q arrived as promised."You're finally here."Renee felt an indescribable calmness as soon as she saw him. Mr. Q had not accompanied her and the children for long, but his presence gave them the warmth of home. Before she realized it, she had considered this notorious man as one of her own.Even if a wo
Renee confessed to Mr. Q about her entanglements with Stefan. She felt he had a right to know about it, regardless of their relationship."I guessed as much." Mr. Q was not surprised. He nonchalantly asked with a smile, "So, have you decided?""I won't remarry him, let alone give him custody of the two kids."Renee looked determined and gazed at the man in front of her intently. She took a deep breath and said with courage, "So, I decided to marry you!"Mr. Q remained stoic to her answer. He said indifferently, "Tell me why you chose me. You just want to keep custody of the two kids, right?"Renee fell into a short silence. Then, she shook her head and said solemnly, "I think it's more than that. I'm marrying you for way more than the kids.""Well, that's odd..." Mr. Q smiled with interest and leaned closer to Renee. He reached out to caress her cheek. "Could it be… Are you attracted to me?""I don't know." Renee did not refuse Q's touch. She bit her lips lightly and felt very
After the discussion, Renee and Mr. Q took the packed luggage and went straight to the kindergarten to pick up the two children from school.Aiden and Abigail were thrilled and proud to see Renee, and they were eager to show her off to the other children.Abigail pulled her best friend, Yara, over. She held her chin high and looked at Renee in front of the kindergarten, proclaiming, "Look there! The most beautiful lady in the crowd is my mommy. She's the best mommy in the world. I'm lucky to be her daughter!"Yara looked on at Renee with starry eyes but sighed regretfully. "Oh, Abby. Your mommy is indeed beautiful. Why is she with an ugly man in a mask? That's such a waste.""I frequently saw how the TV portrayed mismatched couples. Isn't that just like your mommy and that masked man? If I were you, I would find a beautiful man for your mommy. Maybe she'd be happier with that."Although young, the little girls were obsessed with pretty faces.Abigail loved pretty faces. Naturally
"You'll find out soon. I can't tell you now, or it'll lose its magic.""Uhh..." Renee was so amused by her daughter and could not stop laughing.Aiden crossed his arms and said cooly, just like an adult, "What secret can they have? They must be talking about handsome guys again. Childish!"Since they started kindergarten, the relationship between the two little ones had subtly changed. The cool Aiden was undoubtedly very popular in kindergarten. Nonetheless, he was too cold and distant and made no friends. The children liked him but dared not approach him. On the contrary, his sister Abigail had become the darling of her teachers and classmates because of her cute face and high emotional intelligence. She made a lot of friends and had companions wherever she went.Aiden was secretly jealous and felt he was no longer the only one for his sister. Abigail used to worship and admire him. She always listened to him unconditionally. However, now, it seemed she had her own ideas and n
"Are you joking, Mommy? Why should we live with this bad guy?"Aiden's strong reaction showed how much he disliked Stefan.Abigail, on the contrary, was blinking her shiny eyes and showed anticipation. "Really? Can we really live with Handsome Daddy, Mommy?"Her reaction irked Aiden even more. He crossed his arms across his chest and criticized her harshly, "What is wrong with you, Abigail? Don't you have any sense of danger? We are going to the place of this bad guy. What are you so happy about?""Of course, I am happy. My mood gets better when I think of seeing Handsome Daddy every day. And what's more, if Handsome Daddy and Mommy become best friends, we will have an extra daddy. Isn't it wonderful?" Abigail explained logically for her excitement."No, it is not! We don't make friends with bad people. We stay away from them!""Maybe he is not a bad guy. You don't know him yet. If we live with him, it will be a great opportunity for us to get to know him better!""There is no n
What Stefan and Abigail were doing now was the loving scene between father and daughter she had imagined countless times in her mind.She had been very hopeful about their married life when she married Stefan back then.She had wanted to give him a lovely daughter and a cool son.She had pictured in her mind that he would carry their daughter, and she would hold their son as they strolled together in the sea of sunflowers, enjoying the evening breeze and the happiness of a family. Regardless, when her dream came true, she could no longer ignite her long-lost passion."Mommy, do you still hate Bad Daddy?"Aiden was very sensitive and smart and quickly sensed the change in his mother's emotions. Like a young knight, he patted his chest bravely and said, "If you still hate him, I will take revenge for you! I will not be like that idiot Abby who smiles and gets tricked so easily by the person who hurt you. Abby is a traitor. I will find a way to make her come to her senses!"Renee
Abigail's voice interrupted Renee's thoughts.Curious, she walked to where Abigail and Stefan were standing.At the moment, the father and the daughter were standing under the garden arch where the vanilla plant grew in front of the main gate.Sitting on Stefan's shoulders, Abigail pointed at a bird nest with her tiny finger and cheered, "Mommy, look at this. There is a bird nest here, and there are four babies inside. They are so cute!""Um. so your surprise is these birds…"Renee smiled weakly and looked at Abigail with loving eyes.This dramatic girl was capable enough to make anything petty sound very serious.But it was because of her character that Abigail became Renee's angel that brought her endless happiness and surprise.Abigail explained to Renee with a very serious face. "This is not an ordinary bird, Mommy. This is a special gift Handsome Daddy prepared for you!""For me?"Renee turned her eyes to Stefan. Her gaze changed so quickly, as if the warm sun in the spr
She fished out her mobile at the same time and googled when birds can fly after hatching.And the answer: about a month.She rubbed her chin and nodded. One month should be sufficient to rebuild the Everheart Manor.The remaining three, however, reacted differently.Abigail was excited and waved at the four chicks happily. "Wonderful! We have new family members. Welcome to our family, birdies!"Aiden was as cold as ever and commented briefly, "That was childish!"As for Stefan, his thin lips curled into a vague smile. It was obvious that his "wicked" plan had worked.There were, in this world, flightless birds, such as the four he placed on the vines. They were kākāpō, the world's only flightless parrot found in Nouveauland. They were also known for their longest lifespan and low intelligence among the bird species, as well as their peculiar appearance.Renee was just like them. She was adorably dumb to be thinking of flying out of his hands. He would never let it happen!The
It would cost around 150 fifteen dollars or less. Renee found it hard to spend so much of Jovan's money.Jovan stood behind Renee and acted like her wallet. He pocketed his hands and said straightforwardly, "Just show it to us.""Sure!" The saleslady's eyes lit up. She said something to the walkie-talkie, then asked them to wait. The headquarters were trying their best to deliver the item quickly. "May I know how much the new item costs?" Renee asked the saleslady tentatively."It depends on the individual prices of the jewelry and antiques. Its starting price is around 450 thousand dollars," the saleslady explained calmly.It was not a small figure for jewelry or an antique. If they were combined, the item would be more expensive. But people who came to the jewelry shop were powerful and rich figures. Hence, it was not an expensive price either."450 thousand dollars?!" Renee pursed her lips and tilted her head to look at Jovan. "I'll make an excuse to go to the washroom late
The car drove through the city center in a high-profile manner and reached BC Airport. Jovan had bought an afternoon flight, so they had to wait for five hours. Of course, he had done it purposely because he wanted to spend more time with Renee.After parking the car, Jovan hypocritically glanced at his watch and asked in a dilemma. "There are five hours left before our flight. Do you want to go shopping?""I'm not in the mood." Renee leaned against the shotgun seat and sounded weak. After all, she had just escaped death. Yes, she had recovered, but her body had undergone a lot of hardships. She became rather weak. She was not interested in everything and was naturally in no mood to go shopping. "If you're not in the mood, let's get you into the mood. Let's go!" Jovan opened his car door and went to the other side to open the door of the shotgun seat. He dragged Renee out of the car. Helpless, Renee got out of the car with him reluctantly. After checking in on the flight, Jov
Elijah sounded urgent and serious. "Mr. Hunt, something's wrong!"Meanwhile, Renee exited the hospital. There was a luxurious convertible at the entrance which attracted a lot of people's attention. Jovan, who kept a high profile, was sitting in the sports car.He was wearing an ostentatious black floral shirt. However, his ostentatious appearance coupled with his casual aura made him look more charming like a model from an advertisement. Renee covered her face and stealthily got into the car. "Can you stop keeping a high profile? You're very eye-catching. It's dangerous!"Jovan kept waving, shouting, and whistling at her just now. It filled her with deep embarrassment. "Well, we're all experiencing the world. If I don't keep a high profile, people won't remember me. I don't care what they think about me as long as I have a great time!"After Jovan confirmed that Renee had sat properly, he pressed hard on the gas pedal and started driving. Although Renee found that unaccept
"Are you trying to sound me out?" Renee smirked, squinting her eyes at Stefan. Although he claimed that he wanted to end things with her and kept some distance from her, his actions betrayed him. These days, he kept staying close to her. Besides, he kept acting when it was time for her to leave the hospital. He purposely dawdled while helping her pack her things. Besides, he even asked about her relationship with Justin. It showed that he was reluctant to part with her. She was baffled. She wondered why he was that aloof if he could not part with her."No, I'm not." Stefan smiled and did not hide anything. He openly admitted, "I care about you.""You finally…" Renee's eyes brightened as she looked at him eagerly. She wondered if he had come to his senses and wanted to tell her the truth. He was willing to face the difficulty with her.However, he sounded even calmer. "After all, you're Adie and Abby's mother. Grandpa is always concerned about you. I want you to be happy and sa
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