Renee took a sip of her grape milk tea, then sighed. "Well, it would be rude if I didn't see it then, right?""Prepare yourself. It may be a little heartbreaking," Quinton said mysteriously.Renee could not help but roll her eyes. "Enough with the dramatics, brother. Hurry up, or I'm going to fall asleep.""You lazy pig. You sleep so much every day! I guarantee you'll suffer from insomnia after watching this," Quinton scoffed and sent a video to Renee.Renee casually clicked on it. However, the second the video started, she froze and clenched her fists subconsciously.After a few minutes, Quinton asked, "Well, have you finished?"Renee said indifferently, "I finished it.""You finished it?" Quinton was slightly surprised and asked eagerly, "So, how do you feel?""I don't feel anything," Renee replied calmly."No way! How can you not feel anything? I'm usually unemotional, but even I felt touched seeing it. Shouldn't you be feeling something more?" Quinton urged.When Renee di
"Mommy, look! Uncle Xavier took us to a treasure cove today! We caught a lot of fish and colourful starfish! Aren't they beautiful?" Abigail was carrying a small bucket, her round face flushed like a red apple. "Look, Mommy! It's a colorful starfish! Isn't it beautiful?" The little girl took the starfish by its two arms and excitedly showed it to Renee."Yeah, it's so pretty." Renee forced a smile, looking distracted.Little Abigail put down the colorful starfish and hugged Renee tightly. She looked up and asked worriedly, "Mommy, what's wrong? Are you unhappy? Did someone hurt you?""No. I'm happy. You're amazing, Abigail. Did you collect many good things?" Renee tried her best to keep her spirits up and share her children's joy. Unfortunately, her depression was like a dark cloud in the sky—it was so obvious that Aiden, Xavier, and Leia felt it too."Ren, what's wrong?" Leia put down the bucket full of fish and took Renee's hand. She asked worriedly, "Is it him again? Did he pr
Renee was not joking; she figured her brother was right. She should go back.Soon after, the group took a flight back to Beach City.Quinton came early to pick them up. His gentle and elegant appearance made him look like a kind and knowledgeable scholar. No one knew he was the notorious and fearsome Night Demon who had spilled the blood of many people.Quinton leaned against a large black SUV and kept his eyes on the exit. When he saw Renee and the two little ones, he waved at them excitedly. "Sis, over here!""Sis?" Leia and Xavier exchanged glances confusedly, then turned to Renee. "Who is he? Why is he wearing a mask in broad daylight?""He's my brother," Renee replied honestly, a smile on her face. She had been talking to Quinton on calls lately, but Leia and Xavier had been unaware of his existence."Brother? Is he your godbrother?" Xavier frowned and complained in disgust, "What age is this? That's such an old-fashioned way to hit on girls. I'm going to throw up.""No! He
The dialogue between the two siblings made Leia feel a little jealous. Their conversation touched her.Leia wiped her tears and bumped Xavier with her elbow. "Look at them! How touching… Ren rarely relies on other people, so her brother must be a really good person. I'm so envious!"Xavier was the only child and could not understand such sibling love. He frowned, looking confused. "Don't you have a brother? Isn't your brother the same?""No way. I've been fighting with my brother since we were young. He always insults me and calls me names. He always says no one will ever want me, and I will never get married. He says I must equip myself with more skills, or I'll starve to death!" Leia whined.Leia could not stop whenever she complained about Liam. "Did you know he used to trick me when I was a kid? I handed my pocket money to him for safekeeping, but when I asked him for it, he asked me to pay a service fee. I had to give him two dollars to retrieve a dollar of pocket money. In th
Everyone was at a loss for words. There was a long silence. Xavier's smile froze a little, but he eventually laughed and reached out his hand to Quinton cheerfully. "Ah, you're an old friend! I've heard so much about you!""We're indeed old friends." Quinton had a cold look in his eyes. He said, smiling, "After all, there were many times when I wanted to chop you up and feed you to crocodiles!""Hahaha! Quinton, you're such a funny man!" Xavier pointed at Quinton. "I thought Stefan had beaten you into depression. Is that why you've been hiding in Water Dock?""You must be joking, Mr. Stuart. Do I look depressed? You can try to find out.""If I do, I'll die."The two men were going back and forth with smiles on their faces, but it felt like they were fighting it out with their words.Renee and Leia held each other's hands and retreated to the side, afraid of being accidentally injured."Okay. Have you had enough? Can you stop fighting? Don't block the entrance and hinder traffi
"Ah, monster!""That's so scary! Did someone cut off half of his face? That's terrible!"The passersby's reactions hurt Quinton's self-esteem badly. He quickly put his mask back on and smiled bitterly. "Sorry for scaring you.""N-No..." Renee felt sorry for Quinton and comforted him, "I think you're very handsome. Your eyes are very much like Mom's—gentle and determined. Your mouth is very much like Dad's. You have beautiful lips. You're really my brother. If we weren't blood-related, I would've fallen in love with you at first sight!""Really?" Quinton's eyes brightened immediately. Quinton had always wondered what his mother looked like. He had imagined it countless times, but it never felt real. However, when Renee described her, her image immediately came to his mind, and his heart softened."Of course. You can ask Lei too. She's Mom and Dad's goddaughter and often visited us. She knows Mom and Dad's faces very well… Right, Lei?""Y-Yes!" Leia had been startled by Quinton's s
"Why would I lie to you?" Xavier draped his arm around Quinton's shoulder and patted his chest with his other hand. "Don't worry, bro. You are Ren's brother, so you are also my brother. I only want the best for you!""But you are Stefan's friend, so how good can you be?" Quinton frowned and looked at the man's arm in disgust, restraining the urge to cut it off. Years of bloody battles had made him wary of people and unfamiliar with intimate interactions."No, no, no. I am no longer his brother. From now on, I will cut ties with that cold-blooded and heartless man!" Xavier crossed his arms, and smiled earnestly. "I am now your buddy, so I will listen to everything you say. And I wasn't joking earlier. If you want, I can bring you to the plastic surgeon and let him see if your face can be reconstructed.""Sure." Quinton nodded, the defensiveness in his eyes fading slightly.They got into the car and started talking happily. Quinton even warmly invited Xavier to Carmine Pawnshop to ha
"This is just my brother's hobby. There are dozens more in his display case. If you like them, I can ask him to send you a few.""My gosh, Ren, you are simply too rich!" Leia pretended to wipe away tears as she complained. "Ren, you're literally living the perfect life! You were born into a rich family, you're skilled at practically everything, and are currently the president of KCL. Not only that, your children are pretty and clever, and even your brother who appeared out of nowhere is a magnate. How are common girls like me going to live? Oh, but I forget about the scum from the Hunt family that tainted your life. Anyway, it doesn't matter. You have cut ties with that pathetic being, so you can live a beautiful life alone in the future…"Renee was amused by Leia's dramatic monologue. "My dear Ms. Lei, aren't you born into a rich family? Don't you have a powerful brother? And the most precious thing is that you have a reliable man. I am the one who should envy you.""Man?" Leia fro
"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
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