Feeling slightly aggrieved, Leia glared at the man who got angry out of the blue. "I got an allergic reaction instead of you. Why did you yell at me? If I wasn't afraid that you would be embarrassed, would I have eaten so many prawns and crabs? How ungrateful of you!""You..." Xavier's anger soon subsided. Feeling guiltier, he lowered his head more and whispered to her, "Why were you so silly? I thought you liked eating them, so I kept on peeling them for you..." "You're the silly one, not me!" Leia rolled her eyes at him and complained grumpily, "You didn't have to peel them for me even if I liked eating them. I'm nobody to you. Why did you exhaust yourself so?" Xavier heaved a long sigh and shook his head. "Yes, I'm silly. I'm the silliest person in the world... You're the smartest. There's nothing you don't know." When William witnessed their ambiguous interactions, he felt rather sad. "Lei, your allergic reaction needs to be handled right away. Follow me." He bypasse
'What's wrong with him today? Is he in a drunken fit? Why did he go berserk all of a sudden?'"Lean your head closer." William was wearing white gloves. He was ready to use professional tactics to apply anti-allergic medication for her. After calling her name several times, she seemed to have still not heard him. All her attention seemed to be attracted by the noise outside. "Oh, I'm sorry."It was only then that Leia noticed his instruction. She obediently leaned her face closer to him."This medicine is a bit stimulating, so you may feel a bit of pain when I apply it to your face. But it's highly effective, and it can help reduce the swelling rapidly. Just bear with me." William patiently introduced the medication to her, and his techniques were very gentle. "What did you say... Ah!" However, she still did not listen to him. On the other hand, she was all ears while listening to Xavier's words from outside. When she heard of something, she inevitably laughed. After tha
Leia gave William a disdainful look and said coldly. "I don't have to inform you about my relationship with him, do I?" William appeared defeated. He even sounded slightly anxious. "Lei, don't be mad. I just feel that he's not a good man. He looks like a playboy. You'd better stay away from him so you won't get hurt." "Hmph! Even if he doesn't look like a good guy, he's better than a liar like you!"She then grabbed his collar. At the same time, her eyes were full of hatred. "It was merely because of my generosity that I let you stay alive. It doesn't mean I've let bygones be bygones and forgiven you. You'd better don't test my patience." "You can hate me or even kill me. But please don't give up on yourself and get such a man to harm you. You..." Before William could finish talking, Xavier, who was eavesdropping outside, could not remain calm. He barged into the room again. "What did you say just now? Who gave herself up? Who is a bad guy? What f*cking kind of man am I? Te
"William?" When Renee saw him, she was shell-shocked. She thought that such a scumbag like him should disappear from Leia's world. Unexpectedly, he'd be so bold to appear again. When Renee recalled Lei's bad deeds, she was fuming with anger. So, she grabbed his collar. "You're still alive? Why do you pester Lei again? If you're courting death, let me help you!" "Ms. Everheart, I know that you have powerful means. You can kill anyone you want. I'm not the first, nor will I be the last. Go ahead if it makes Lei happy!" William closed his eyes and said with a profound meaning. Renee was confused. She tightened her grasp and frowned deeply. At the same time, she glared at the man in front of her as though he was asking for death. "What do you mean? Why do you make me sound so ruthless and bloodthirsty? Why claim that you won't be the first nor the last one?" William was strangled by her grasp around his collar, so he found it hard to breathe. As a result, his face flushed. He
"Have you heard of a saying? The only two things that one needs to forget about a person are time and a new lover..." Leia's gaze became distant as she said slowly, "I traveled around the world during this period to meet different people and gain new experiences. I want them to heal me."At first, it was ineffective. But God made me bump into Xavier on Quartz Island. He isn't my new lover, but he's indeed like a lifeguard. He pulled me out of the deep sea so I could crawl out of the hurt William had caused me. But now it seems like... I've fallen into a deeper abyss." When Renee saw her downcast look, she felt very sorry for Leia. "You should try to seek his heart if you truly like him. I think he must be troubled by some rancor, so he's so hesitant and awkward. He isn't bold enough to get closer to you. He may be in some kind of abyss too, and he needs you to pull him out." "His rancor..." Leia looked at Renee and smiled with a profound meaning. "Maybe it's you?" "Leia, don
William pat Renee on the shoulder after seeing her panicked reaction. "Don't worry. You're Leia's friend. She'd be upset if something were to happen to you, so I won't run my mouth either."Renee seemed conflicted, taking a deep breath as she looked toward the man. "You have to promise you won't tell a single soul, and I mean it. I know I did something bad, but I want to wait till the right time to put an end to it all.""Ms. Everheart, you don't have to tell me anything. I don't think you're wrong at all. Briar deserved it! Let's just pretend none of this ever happened. We'll bring this secret to our graves," William said coldly and resolutely.The woman didn't doubt William's words at all. A frosty expression like that indicated that his love had completely run cold. However, she just couldn't understand how people could behave so indifferently after they've had a change of heart.She knew just how much William used to love Briar after all. He was even willing to trick Leia just
Despite that, Renee had no choice but to meet with Briar, all for Leia's sake."I was actually pretty shocked at the state she was in. Her hair was a mess, and she looked malnourished. And I felt sorry for her…" Renee balled her fists up, a lump rising in her throat. She was inexplicably upset."That's nothing but a facade. That woman is used to acting fragile to gain sympathy. She's actually an evil sociopath deep down. I thought I could fix her if I showed her some genuine love, but… she dragged me down to her level instead!""Hah, you sure are quick to shift all the blame to her. You men are the same. You're just mad because you couldn't handle her.""Looks like Briar is a pitiful woman after all. To think the man who claimed to love her with everything he's got abandoned her in the end regardless." Renee shook her head, sighing.Due to their similar experiences with men, Renee somehow empathized with Briar at some point in time, despite being rivals."She used my tape with Le
Renee returned to the Carmine Pawnshop after destroying the tape thoroughly. She headed to bed with a heavy heart.She was especially restless for the entire night, with several dreams popping in her head during her slumber.In her dreams, Briar crawled out of the sea with messy hair, with her limbs dislocated and her bones penetrating through her flesh. She then cackled eerily, her face completely drenched in blood."Hahaha, Renee Everheart, your days are numbered… I may not have been able to compete against you when I was alive, but I can drag you down to hell with me as a ghost!" Briar screeched as her bloodied face inched closer to Renee, to the point she seemed to be hovering right above her.The suffocating pain consumed the woman's chest. She flung her arms around in panic, screaming, "No! Don't come near me!""Ms. Ren! Ms. Ren! Wake up! The sun is up!" Margaret worriedly held her hand, sitting by her bed. "Argh!" Renee felt like she was pulled out of an abyss as her eyes
Adie was still a child, but he acted like a smart person and could see through a lot of things. He could guess why Austin took them to the Baldwin residence. He had also heard the servants of the Baldwin family rebuking Renee in secret. After combining various situations, he learned about what had happened between Renee and Justin. Despite everything, Justin could forgive Renee under such circumstances. He also treated Adie and Abby nicely. It proved that he was a very compassionate man. A small regret gripped Adie. He wondered why Renee didn't date Justin right from the start. If Renee were with such a kind man, she might be very happy. She wouldn't have to suffer through so many hardships either. "No, you don't know me. I always sweat the small stuff."Justin was displeased since Adie had claimed that he was a good guy, like Renee had. He heaved a long sigh and said, "But it's useless even if I sweat the small stuff, so I stop trying. It all comes down to fate. We can't forc
Renee turned and found Jovan unscathed. Relief washed over her. She said grumpily, "It's none of your business!""Tsk! How cruel!" Jovan clutched his chest and pretended to be in deep pain. At the same time, he teased, "I know. Your soulmate is better. I'm so jealous of him, though he's still a fallback guy.""Go to hell, Jovan!" Jovan's nasty words drove Renee mad. She grabbed a piece of napkin, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it at his face. "If I knew you'd talk so badly, I wouldn't be bothered to save you. Maybe you'll get reborn in Ulria. Then, you have to watch your tongue!""Hey! Yeah, I was wrong. You don't have to curse me like that!" Jovan raised his hands to surrender, but felt quite moved. He poured himself a glass of milk and devotedly toasted to her. "Thank you for caring about me and trying your best to save me. I'll toast to you. And you can do whatever you want.""You're so childish." Renee rolled her eyes and was amused.Justin was quite jealous to see them
"What's that?" Justin frowned and said with disdain, "That's something to fool naive women like you. Only lovestruck fools will believe that." As a materialistic person, he never believed in things like horoscopes and fortune-telling. At most, they were mixed with some psychology. They weren't trustworthy at all.If Renee wanted to use those things to talk about their relationships and destinies, it would seem very childish. "Don't be so extreme. Those things are real and logical." Renee acted like an experienced salesperson and gradually eliminated Justin's prejudice. She said patiently, "If you believe those things, they can guide you and help you to see things through. If not, you can use them to kill time. Just try to get to know them. Isn't that nice?"Finally, Justin was convinced. He had some milk and asked her leisurely, "Fine. Tell me what kind of relationship we have based on those things." "I learned that our relationship is a declining friendship based on our birt
"I…" Renee paused. For a moment, she had no idea how to answer that question."Don't put yourself in a difficult position. Just follow your heart," Justin said calmly. "If you want to stay, my family will still welcome you readily. If you want to leave, I'll come up with a way to help you leave smoothly."After listening to Justin, Renee answered honestly, "Maybe it's better for me to leave, though I know this choice will hurt you."She could choose to stay to protect Justin's dignity and give Austin a good explanation. It would be more relaxing and steadier for her. However, Renee knew that it could only last briefly. She would cause Justin greater harm. She might as well be decisive and stop the damage in time. "Don't say that." Justin cracked a bitter smile and said with relief, "I've stopped taking things too seriously. If you like me, you won't stop loving me even if we're apart. Similarly, you'll think about another man if you don't like me, even though you're always b
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