Timothy suspected that Mr. Q was probably a source of contention between Stefan and Renee, so he avoided asking anything else about him.Aiden, on the other hand, was a child. Even though he had tremendous intelligence, he had little understanding of relationships and continued to battle for Mr. Q's justice. "I disagree with you marrying Bad Daddy, Mommy. You should get married to Q—He's a thousand times better than Bad Daddy!"Pouting, the little boy fiercely declared, "If you don't marry Q, I won't acknowledge you anymore!"Timothy was perplexed. He grinned as he affectionately rubbed the boy's head. "Can you explain why you like Q? How is he superior to your father?""Q aced all of my tests. He cooks well, talks kindly, sings well, makes Mommy laugh, and most importantly, he has a house full of unique treasures. If Mommy is upset, she will go inside for a stroll and immediately feel better!""Treasures?""Yes. It's Water Dock's treasure house. Everyone admires and fears him. He's in
Everyone left Renee and Stefan alone at night so they could have some private time together.She wheeled him to his bedroom, and the atmosphere felt loving."You must be tired today… Rest up. I'll go get some rest as well. The servant will arrive later to assist you with cleaning." Renee carefully tucked her hair behind her ear and prepared to leave.Before she could, Stefan gripped her slender wrist and gazed at her intently. "We pretended to be in love for an entire day. Isn't it pointless if you leave now?""Didn't we agree that this is all a ruse? They've fallen asleep, so it's time to call it quits.""But I want it to be real." He softly took her hand and put it on his handsome face. He was like a lion who had let go of his pride to beg for a pat on the back. "You want it to be real, too, right?""I…" She couldn't find the words to reply. His stubble pricked her palm as she stroked his face, and her heart pounded in her chest."Stay. I want us to sleep together… like a married cou
Stefan's back had healed and was stronger than before a week later. His bond with Renee has strengthened rapidly as well. She didn't mind spending more time with him, and they were kissing and touching each other like any other husband and wife.Stefan was happy with their current status and treasured his time with her. The thrill of regaining what he had lost was the greatest gift God could have given him!One morning, the sun was bright outside the window, and the birds were chirping as a breeze swept through the beige-colored drapes. Renee lay in Stefan's warm arms, refusing to move."It's time for you to wake up, sleepy head." His strong arms wrapped around her, and he tapped her nose softly as he murmured, "Today is a special day. I want to take you and the kids to celebrate.""Shh. It's so warm here. I want to sleep." She held him tightly, nuzzling his chest like a contented cat. She loved lying in his arms like this because it made her feel safe. She refused to leave this warm
"That's not right, Francine! Shouldn't you be angry with your daughter-in-law for being so lazy?""I don't see any reason to get angry," said Francine in a considerate tone as she took a sip of her tea. "If the young couple wants to sleep, then let them. It's perfectly natural that they're especially affectionate with each other. I don't see any problem in letting them roll around in bed for a while anyway.""But that's nonsense!" one of Stefan's aunts argued indignantly. "She's a member of a respectable family now, and she should learn to act like it! All of us who married into the Hunts know this! We make sure that we're elegant, dignified, graceful, and courteous at all times—the basic qualities that the wife of an affluent man should…""My daughter-in-law doesn't need any of these qualities," Francine interrupted. "All she needs to do is to spend the rest of her life happily with my son.""You may be able to accept this, Francine, but what about Stefan? Can he endure having suc
The atmosphere in the great hall tensed up immediately. The tension was so thick in the air that it felt like a knife could cut through it.Ever since Stefan faked his death and Jovan colluded with his cronies in an attempt to seize power in Hunt Enterprise, the Hunt family was divided into two warring factions. The first took Alexander's side, while the second took Arthur's side—and from then on, the two cousins then became adversaries.Alexander had a forthright personality, so when he saw Arthur approaching from a distance, he immediately glowered and blurted, "Hmph! I can't believe you have the gall to step into this house! If I'm not mistaken, I don't think my father ever invited you and your wife here today!""Come on, Alex! Why are you treating me like I'm a stranger?"Arthur, cunning as an old fox, wore a wide phony grin on his face as he walked up to Alexander and put his hand on his cousin's shoulder in a fake brotherly gesture."How could I not be here when it's such a
"Arthur's right," Alexander agreed smugly. "No one else in the entire Hunt family could ever hold a candle to Stefan apart from your son Jovan…"Then he viciously added, "But I've got a grandson and a granddaughter now. As their grandfather, I will raise them and train them so well that they'd be able to take over the family business from Stefan one day. We won't need to trouble your son anymore."Alexander's words made Arthur and Sheila green with rage, but because old Mr. Hunt was still there, they remained cautious and dared not cause too much of a scene. Still, these two would never give up so easily, especially not Sheila—she was not one to take it lying down! She had been stifling a grudge all along, and now that Alexander humiliated her in front of the whole family, she swore that she would let them pay no matter what!"Alex, Francine, let's not forget that it is a happy occasion for the family, so let's not bring up the messy past! When I heard that Stefan got back together
"Why didn't you tell me that there were guests downstairs? What would your family think of me now?!"Renee buried her beet-red face in her hands, totally humiliated. She wished that she could find a hole in the ground and hide in there forever. They must have found out that she had been sleeping in this late, and if she showed up looking unkempt and disheveled, she would forever be regarded as the shame of the Hunt family and drown in their saliva from their disparaging opinions!"What they think is their business," replied Stefan. "All I want is for you to be comfortable."Stefan put his arms around Renee's shoulders and calmly led her downstairs. Then, in a casual tone, he greeted everyone, "Good morning, uncles and aunts. Please forgive me and Ren for getting up so late."Stefan's power and position in the Hunt family were only second to Timothy, so as soon as he spoke up, his voice carried a certain authority that instantly silenced the whole room.But when he looked down at
This bastard was downright vulgar!Sheila and Arthur were seething with anger. They quickly rushed towards Timothy to complain."You… You heard that, didn't you, Uncle Timothy? Stef was simply being disrespectful of us! Sheila only meant to give them the golden lock as a special gift with pure intentions. It's fine if they don't appreciate it, but how could he say that Jovan could be cut off from his children? You must grant us justice, Uncle!"Sheila clung onto the armrest of the chair where Timothy was seated, wailing as if the world was ending.Arthur then added, bringing up his long-dead father to put more pressure on Timothy, "My father died young, Uncle Timothy, but before he died, he entrusted me to you. Although I'm only your nephew, I've always looked up to you as my real father, so you can't let your son and grandson bully me like this. If Jovan really is cut off from his children, my bloodline will end with him, and in that case, my father will certainly have something t
Austin was having breakfast in the dining room. When he saw Justin and Renee walk over intimately, he finally believed that they had slept together. They seemed like a real couple."Good morning, Grandpa Baldwin!" Renee obediently greeted Austin just like before. She acted normally."Good morning." Austin nodded, unable to suppress his smile. After sizing them up, he calmly said to Renee, "We know how apologetic you are after you toasted to us last night. We'll forget about the past. You're still a part of my family." "Grandpa!" Justin interrupted Austin; he was very protective of Renee. "She's a woman, and we're not married yet. Please don't say that. A woman's reputation is the most important thing.""You…" Austin wanted to refute Justin, but their conflict was just resolved so it would be bad to pressure them more. He shook his head and said, "Fine. You two always have a bland romance. Finally, you've made some progress. I'll let you two decide what to do next.""Got it, Gr
"Hey, Haze! What are you doing? Get off of me!" Renee struggled in confusion."Hush!" Justin gestured and stopped her.In a while, someone unlocked the door of the room."Mr. Baldwin, let me help you and Ms. Everheart change your clothes." A kind middle-aged woman walked into the room casually. When she found them sleeping together intimately, relief washed over her. "Oh, you guys are still sleeping… Fine, I'll leave you be." Then, the woman exited the room.After that, Justin stopped hovering above Renee, looking awkward. "I'm sorry. It happened all of a sudden. If I hadn't done that, they wouldn't let us go. I just did a small thing to resolve the issue." Justin was fully aware of Austin's thoughts. Although Austin was still angry at Renee, he was satisfied with her and wanted to see her get into a real intimate relationship with Justin. If that did not happen, Austin might tie them up together since the drug had failed. Justin could only act with Renee to avoid the in
Renee grinned, satisfied after a long rest. "Why didn't you sleep a bit longer? This bed is comfortable and fluffy." While talking, she behaved like a fish as she extended her limbs and rolled around in bed childishly. In comparison to her calmness and ease, Justin behaved gingerly and did not dare to move as he lay in bed."Do you have any idea what had happened? We aren't dreaming. We're lying in the same bed," Justin said.He was certain that Renee was not fully awake. It explained why she was that composed. Otherwise, any normal woman would get out of bed with a start and keep screaming if they found herself lying in a man's bed."I know!" Renee said. After having a great time rolling around, Renee faced Justin with her head on her arm while lying on her side. "I wanted to drink wine to say sorry to you guys last night, but your family drugged the wine. You drank the same wine when you tried to stop me. We were controlled by the drug and were locked up in this room. T
Renee instantly understood what Justin meant by that. It turned out that the incident was just a part of the Baldwin family's plan. If she left, the Baldwin family would not easily let her off the hook.Justin still cared about her at a time like that, which moved her. "Thank you. You're great." Renee cried; she had no idea how to repay him. "You don't have to thank me. I'm not so great, either. I just hate that they always pester me." Justin purposely sounded relaxed. He finally calmed himself down as he casually grabbed some bandages to bandage his wound. Then, he lay in bed.He slept on one side of the bed and said to Renee, "It's late. You should rest early. This bed is large enough. If you don't mind, you can lie in bed too."The bed was large. It was more than enough even if Renee and Justin lay there."I…" Renee hesitated briefly before she finally got in bed. She trusted Justin. If he wanted to do something indecent to her, he would have long done that. He would no
"I don't know how to tell you. I'm sure you can understand." Renee could not bring herself to say more because it was a humiliating privacy. She might as well keep it to herself."Let me guess…" Justin's gaze grew sharp as he went straight to the point. "The man in your story is Stefan, isn't it?" Silence washed over Renee as she kept her head bowed. It was a silent approval.Justin burst into reckless laughter, which was scary. He looked down at his cut wound and laughed pathetically. "This is why he could make you fall in love with him, and I couldn't. I'm too cultured compared to him.""Don't say that, Haze!"Seeing how defeated Justin was, Renee became uneasy. "It isn't written in the stars for us. Plus, I've fallen in love with Stefan a long time ago before I even got to know you. I also rely on him physically and psychologically. I can't control my feelings. It's not something we can change. We…" "Stop!" Heartbroken, Justin pushed away everything in front of him and s
Time passed by. Gradually, the pain knocked some sense into Justin. He no longer wanted to take advantage of Renee."Let me get you some water." Renee had no idea what she could do for Justin. After some contemplation, she got to her feet and poured him a glass of water.Finally, she studied the room closely and found that it was a wedding room as Justin had mentioned. Everything was set up according to her preferences, which she had occasionally mentioned to Justin. For example, she loved keeping some ceramic ornaments on the bedside cabinet and hanging some seashell wind chimes at the windows. The entire room was painted in beige and green, which were her favorites, too. Beige gave a sense of warmth, while green gave a sense of gloominess. All of those details became the perfect wedding room for Renee.If everything went on smoothly, she would spend most of her time there, and he would be her life companion. Unfortunately, there were no ifs in the world.Renee handed the gla
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