Fenna stepped forward, her voice gentle. "Leo, Candice, this is on you. Your mother is getting older and as her son and soon-to-be daughter-in-law, shouldn't you be there for her? It's because you moved out and left her alone that this terrible incident happened."Elio's face clouded over, and he was ready to retort when Candice squeezed his hand, silently urging him to stay calm. She didn't want Elio confronting Fenna at the hospital.Candice had her emotions in check, but Jasper didn't. Anyone who dared to cross Candice would face his fury. He stormed up to Josie and gave her a severe reprimand. "Josie, what's gotten into you?"Josie was taken aback as Fenna watched, bewildered by his outburst.Jasper continued his tirade with his hands on his hips. "Even though Candice is engaged to Uncle Elio, she's just his partner. You, on the other hand, are Grandma's chosen future daughter-in-law. She only sees you in that role."As her daughter-in-law, shouldn't you be there to care for h
Michaela had a team of professional caregivers and rehabilitation therapists looking after her around the clock. Yet, Candice remained concerned about potential complications."Let me stay with you tonight, Michaela," Candice suggested.In a gentle tone, Michaela reassured her. "It's fine, Candice. You should head home and get some rest. I'm in good hands here."Fenna immediately nudged Josie and gave her a meaningful glance. Taking the hint, Josie said, "Mrs. Hoffis, I have tomorrow off. How about I stay over tonight instead?"Michaela glanced at Josie and pondered briefly before replying, "Sure, Josie, stay with me tonight. We have things in common."Candice pursed her lips awkwardly and stayed quiet.Growing frustrated with Michaela's behavior, which seemed increasingly out of line, Elio took Candice's hand and said, "The caregivers are here with Mom, so you don't have to spend the night at the hospital. I don't want you to wear yourself out."Candice managed a faint smile
Candice stayed quiet. The room was still.Elio switched off the lamp and drew her closer, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. His nerves wouldn't ease until they exchanged vows and became husband and wife.…The next day, Mila boarded a military helicopter bound for Phoenicia. She rushed to the hospital to visit Michaela, who had been injured.Unexpectedly, Michaela greeted Mila with a hint of dissatisfaction. "It's just a minor injury. You didn't have to rush back from work," she scolded.Deeply concerned, Mila gazed at Michaela, who was now paralyzed from her waist down. It pained her to see Michaela brush off her condition so casually. Nevertheless, Mila stayed by her side at the hospital for hours.At dinner time, Fenna arrived at the hospital carrying homemade dishes. It irked her to see Mila again. "Wanda?" she blurted out, surprised.Mila offered a faint smile, rising politely. "It's been some time, Ms. Hudson."Fenna forced a strained smile, her irritation growing as
Fenna's expression hardened visibly. Gritting her teeth, she exclaimed sharply, "Watch your words, Wanda!""What? Did I say anything inappropriate?" Mila replied nonchalantly.Fenna seethed with anger as she responded, "It's a matter of timing. I was together with Nathan after your divorce. You got involved in our relationship later.""You consider a boss-subordinate relationship being together? When will you snap out of your illusions?" Mila countered.Fenna's face twisted with anger, her fists clenched so tightly they trembled, and she gritted her teeth so hard it seemed she might shatter them.She suppressed her seething rage and said, "Elio and Josie have been together for years. They were each other's first love and were already discussing marriage. Yet, Candice swooped in and stole Josie's fiancé. How would you justify that?"Mila was left speechless. She smirked and quipped," Ms. Hudson, are you truly that oblivious, or are you simply pretending not to see the obvious?""
Elio was startled awake by a phone ringtone early in the morning. He opened his eyes to find Candice still soundly asleep in his arms. He swiftly reached over to silence the phone, his face souring as he glimpsed Mervyn's name on the caller ID.He disconnected the call and placed the phone down. Then, he softly kissed Candice on the forehead and pulled her closer, hoping to drift back to sleep.Moments later, the phone rang once more, thoroughly irritating him. Carefully shifting Candice aside, he grabbed the phone and headed to the balcony to answer it.Mervyn's voice was gentle as it came through the phone. "Good morning, Candice! Today—"Elio cut him off, his tone icy. "Candice is still asleep. What do you need?"There was a moment of silence before Mervyn's tone became distinctly different. He asked with a deep sense of annoyance, "Why are you answering her phone?""I didn't want to answer initially, so I ended the call. But you kept ringing back, so I figured it must be ur
Mervyn sneered, "What's the meaning of this? Why should you bring him along?""Because he's my fiancé," Candice replied firmly.Mervyn snorted in response. "Well, things just got more intriguing!"Candice sighed softly before saying, "I've already gone over everything. I'm quite swamped at the moment. Let's reschedule for another time."Her suggestion to reschedule seemed more like a polite brush-off that was unlikely to happen. She set down her phone and headed into the walk-in closet.Inside, Elio was busy adjusting his tie. Candice approached and gently took the tie from his hands, her fingers slightly clumsy as she carefully tied it for him.Elio paused, his gentle eyes gazing intensely at her. His voice, though hoarse, carried a tender tone. "Did he have something urgent to discuss with you?"Feeling a blush rise to her cheeks, Candice answered softly, "He invited me to dinner tonight."A shadow flickered across Elio's eyes at her words.Noticing the drastic change in his
Fenna returned to Elio and Philip, offering each of them a glass of wine. It was customary for the men to socialize over drinks at the banquet.By the banquet's end, Sean noticed Elio still hadn't shown up. Worried, he went inside to search for Elio, but there was no trace of him anywhere. Unable to reach Elio by phone, Sean grew frantic and immediately called Jasper.…Half an hour later, Josie received a call. She hurried outside and spotted Fenna's car parked by the roadside. Climbing in, she was shocked to find Elio unconscious in the back seat."Aunt Fenna, what's happening?" Josie asked.As Fenna drove away, she said, "I brought him here for you. The rest is up to you."Confused, Josie replied, "I don't understand, Aunt Fenna."Fenna glared at Josie. "You fool! I'm taking you both to a hotel. Your responsibility is to watch over him. If he shows any reaction, be prepared to spend the night with him."Tomorrow morning, I'll arrange a police raid targeting illegal activitie
Josie was taken aback witnessing Fenna being slapped twice. She couldn't stay seated any longer and swiftly exited the car. She approached with a frown, questioning, "Why did you hit her?"Mila exchanged a meaningful glance with Jasper, who understood her intention and moved to open the car door.Josie was flustered. She hurried back to the car to intervene, but it was too late. Jasper had already noticed Elio lying in the back seat."You…" Josie began, guilt overwhelming her as she watched Jasper help Elio out of the car.Keeping her anger in check, Fenna emphasized each word through clenched teeth. "Wanda, do you even realize who you just hit?""Of course, a criminal," Mila responded icily.Frustrated, Fenna raised her voice. "Elio was drunk. I was just trying to get him home safely!"Mila gestured toward the hotel behind her, questioning, "Is this where he belongs?"Fenna was left speechless, her anger simmering in silence.When Josie saw Jasper carrying Elio into their car