At the Pearson residence, a sulking Aubree locked herself in her room. She was so pissed off about the photos Frieda had sent her in the afternoon that she had no appetite for dinner.She did not expect to receive more photos from Frieda when she was about to sleep.In the photos, the man, whom Aubree could not get to meet no matter what she did, was doing all sorts of service for Roxanne—putting his jacket on her, buying her flowers, and holding her wrist.The two looked just like a couple in love.Rage burned in Aubree as she looked at the photos.They were practically disregarding her position as Lucian’s fiancée.If word got out, not only would she be utterly humiliated, but her dream to become Mrs. Farwell would also be shattered.A vicious look crept over Aubree’s face when she thought of that.“That b*tch! Why did she even come back?”She shot up from her bed and flung the things on the table to the ground.Downstairs, Gina was just worrying about her daughter. Earlier, when s
That same night, Sonya was preparing to go to bed when Gina called her. Right after she picked up the call, she heard Gina sniffling from the other end of the line and Samuel’s shouts in the background.“Gina, what’s wrong? Did you argue with Samuel?” Sonya asked out of concern.Gina looked at the father-daughter duo, who was acting at the side. Then, she took a deep breath and choked out, “Samuel is angry at Aubree. I think you should hurry and come over. Aubree won’t listen to any of us right now, but maybe you can get through to her.”Sonya frowned and listened carefully. Indeed, she could hear Aubree’s sobs in the background.Because of the car accident before, Sonya was very considerate toward Aubree. Upon hearing the latter crying, she felt her heart clench. “Calm down and talk to me properly. What happened? What made them so worked up?”“It’s all because of…” Gina stopped her sentence midway as if she was reluctant to speak. She then sighed loudly and continued, “You should ju
“No! I waited for Lucian for six years. Why should I cancel our engagement?” Aubree protested with teary eyes, making sure to look at Lucian pitifully after speaking. Lucian frowned again when he met her eyes.If this were a typical day, he would surely make things clear with the Pearson family.However, he couldn’t do so now since they got into such a big argument because of the matter.Meanwhile, Samuel’s anger barely dissipated when he heard Aubree’s words. He slammed the table furiously and yelled, “If you don’t cancel it, get out of this house! Don’t come back until you come back to your senses. Get out!”Following that, Samuel strode out of the study with a steely face. As he pa*sed by Lucian, he gave the latter a nod.With knitted brows, Lucian watched Samuel leave. In the study, Aubree continued to sob.Gina looked at her husband and then at her daughter. Feeling lost about who she should persuade first, she turned to Lucian in the end. “Lucian, uh… I don’t think Samuel will
As the elevator approached the top floor, the doors slowly opened. Lucian immediately returned to his senses. Upon stepping out of the elevator, the sight of the dimly lit corridor made him frown a little.Aubree quietly followed him from behind.When they arrived at the doorway, Lucian inserted the keycard and opened the door for her. He stopped and looked at her indifferently, waiting for her to enter the room herself.Aubree paused, turning to look at the person beside her. She was silently asking why he was not going inside.“You’ll have to make do with this for the next few days. I’ll try to talk things through with Mr. Pearson. Maybe I can make him calm down and see reason,” said Lucian coldly. He had deliberately turned a blind eye to her questioning expression.Having heard this, Aubree became visibly crestfallen. “Lucian, have you really not figured out why I argued with my dad? Is that all you have to say to me?”Lucian’s expression remained as mild as it was before. “You’r
Meanwhile, Roxanne did not have the slightest clue about what Aubree and her mother were planning. The whole day had been spent playing with the children and dealing with Lucian. Hence, Roxanne fell asleep the moment she lay down.However, she was awakened by the phone ringing the next day.In a daze, Roxanne opened her eyes and picked up the phone without looking at who the caller was.“Ms. Jarvis, are you awake? I’ve got something that needs your attention.”She barely had time to take a breather when Jack’s voice broke the silence.Upon realizing that it was Jack, Roxanne suddenly became alert. Curiously, she asked, “Has something happened?”Roxanne rarely had personal dealings with Jack, so she knew that he was likely calling her for a business or medical issue.Regardless, both matters were not to be taken lightly.On that note, Jack broke the silence first. “Do you remember Jamie? That kid from the medical consultation the last time?”Roxanne’s expression immediately turned gra
Lucian’s gaze darkened slightly at Archie’s reply. Treating a child? Roxanne could be with either Jack or Larry.Lucian clung to the last sliver of hope as he asked Archie and Benny, “Do you remember what the man looked like?”The boys looked at each other. Benny sensibly remained silent and allowed Archie to take the lead.The elder twin replied somberly, “The man looked very handsome and seemed to be on good terms with Mommy.”He hoped it would remind Lucian that their mother had many admirers and spur him to step up his courtship.Sadly, his plan backfired. He did not know Lucian and Roxanne’s relationship had grown tense because of Larry and Jack.Archie’s reply only added to Lucian’s suspicions of Roxanne’s relationship with the two men.He thought of asking the boys for more details but decided against it when he noticed their blank expressions. With his brows still knitted, Lucian asked, “How will you go to school later? Do you need me to give you a lift?”The boys shook their
As time was of the essence, Roxanne forced herself to calm down and asked Jack for an acupuncture kit. She then got to work and administered acupuncture treatment to help stabilize Jamie’s condition and keep his illness under control.Fortunately, it wasn’t Jamie’s first time experiencing such a treatment, so he felt no fear whatsoever when he saw the long needles.Roxanne remembered how Jamie had rather unique acupuncture points. Since he was ill, she made sure to be extra careful when inserting the needles.Her entire forehead was drenched in sweat by the time she completed the acupuncture procedure.“I’ve just spoken to the doctor in charge of Jamie,” Jack called out to her from behind.Roxanne immediately tensed up upon hearing that. “What did he say? Did you manage to obtain any useful information?”“All we know is that Jamie is suffering from some malnutrition,” Jack replied with a frown.Roxanne furrowed her brows as the two of them shifted their gaze toward the director of th
Jack knew she only invited him to lunch because of all those hints he dropped, but he still agreed to it happily when he saw the smile on her face. Although Roxanne was the one paying, Jack was the one who drove and picked the restaurant to dine at. Roxanne’s jaw dropped in surprise when they arrived outside the restaurant. Given Jack’s status, she had a*sumed he would take her to some fancy restaurant in the city. Instead, the one they were at was an old Chanaean restaurant. It had a rather tasteful decor, but the food there was fairly cheap. The customers were mostly ordinary white-collar workers and middle-cla*s families. “I got used to having Chanaean cuisine at home. I’m not sure if this is to your liking, though,” Jack said with a smile. Roxanne flashed him a smile in return. “Honestly, I’ve been eating Chanaean food throughout the years I spent overseas.” Jack arched an eyebrow at her in amusement. “Is that so? I thought you would prefer western cuisine instead.” The two
Cory was in a good mood, knowing he had once again made a fortune. He then said, “Of course. Ms. Pearson, I’m sure you’ve come to me again because you believe in my capabilities. Now, tell me. What is it that you want me to investigate?” Narrowing her eyes, Aubree said, “Investigate what happened between Roxanne and Lucian!”Cory let out a meaningful chuckle when he heard what she said.Aubree questioned coldly, “Why are you laughing?”As if unaware of her anger, Cory muttered, “Since you’ve agreed to the price I proposed so readily, I have to show you something.”With that, he took out a phone from the bag beside him and typed away on the screen.Soon, Aubree received a few messages on her phone.“I believe what you’re about to see won’t disappoint you, Ms. Pearson.” Cory sounded confident.Aubree furrowed her brows and swiped open her phone, checking the messages he sent.The chat interface showed that Cory had sent her more than ten pictures.Each picture was attached with the tim
Aubree followed Estella closely into the room. Hesitantly, she muttered, “Lucian…” She felt somewhat guilty when she noticed the young girl fuming at Lucian.At the same time, she was relieved that Estella had not said a word to her father.Lucian nodded at Aubree and said, “Sorry for troubling you to look after Essie.”Aubree was delighted by his words. She sputtered, “Not at all. I’m happy to do this. Essie’s a lovely girl.”As for how she upset Estella in the car earlier, Aubree decided to sweep things under the rug if the young girl kept things to herself.“Dinner’s ready. Why don’t you eat with us?” Lucian offered.Aubree was over the moon. “Sure.”They entered the dining room one after another.Catalina had already set the table for three.Aubree said, “I’ll go get Essie.”Despite her suggestion, she was not confident about coaxing Estella downstairs.After all, the young girl was put out because of Aubree, and she might not listen to her instructions.If she throws a tantrum i
Archie and Benny stayed in the bathroom for a little while longer before heading out. Roxanne was still chatting with Jack at the time.She had wanted to get him to leave as soon as possible, but Jack started talking about the ancient medicine books halfway through the conversation.Due to Roxanne’s incredible pa*sion for medicine, she couldn’t help but get carried away talking about it again.It wasn’t until Lysa told them dinner was ready that she snapped out of it.“Would you like to stay for dinner, Mr. Damaris?” Roxanne asked out of courtesy.Jack arched an eyebrow when he saw Archie and Benny standing next to the kitchen.They were both glaring daggers at him and looked like they would tear him to pieces if he accepted her invitation.Because they were still kids, they just looked adorable no matter how fierce their expressions were.Jack couldn’t help but smile in amusement as he drawled suspensefully, “Thank you for the invitation, Ms. Jarvis. I—”He was halfway through his s
In the kindergarten, Archie and Benny sat in their seats quietly while the other children were playing games with Pippa. They could sense something was off when Roxanne said she would send them to school that morning.It wasn’t until Roxanne handed them over to Pippa that they noticed Roxanne glancing at the crowd from time to time as if she was looking for someone.When Pippa led them into the school, they looked back and saw Roxanne still looking around.Although Archie and Benny said nothing, they knew Roxanne was looking for Lucian and Estella.Mommy must feel terrible after the fight with Daddy that day.At the thought of Roxanne’s sadness and disappointment, Archie and Benny’s moods were gloomy, too.“Archie, Benny, what’s wrong?”Seeing the listless look on the boys’ faces, Pippa walked over to comfort them, “Are you missing Estella?”At the mention of Estella, Archie and Benny’s faces immediately fell. I wonder how Essie is doing…“Don’t worry. Mr. Farwell will take good care
Frowning, Lucian fell silent for several seconds. Within several short seconds, the smile slid off Aubree’s face.Until Lucian’s voice sounded once more.“Judging by Essie’s demeanor this morning, the relationship between you seemed to have improved by a lot.”Aubree froze for several seconds at his words before she registered what he said.It was true that the child had been receptive toward her that morning.Aside from rejecting her touch, Estella had responded to almost everything she had said.It was a big improvement compared to before.“I was the one at fault back then,” Aubree replied with a laugh. “I wasn’t patient enough with Essie. Now that I’m a little more patient, Essie can sense it and responds accordingly.”“That’s good,” Lucian answered solemnly. “Enjoy each other’s company.”Smiling, Aubree a*sured him she would.Without discussing it any further, Lucian ended the call on the pretext of work.Though he had already decided to proceed with the engagement, he did not ha
Estella’s resolve wavered at the mention of Lucian. She had seen how drunk Lucian was the night before and surmised he must have drunk a lot.I wonder what Daddy was up to.Aubree delighted at the indecision in Estella’s eyes and continued, “If you don’t want to attend school, I can help put in a word or two when your daddy’s feeling better.”It was only then that Estella relented and allowed her entry into the room.Aubree got to her feet to let Estella get dressed while she picked out the clothes she would wear to school.Once the clothes were selected, she a*sisted Estella to brush her teeth.Estella gradually began to let her guard down.Aubree used to threaten her whenever they spent time together.Estella supposed Aubree wouldn’t try anything since she didn’t seem inclined to do so this time.Moreover, Aubree brought up Lucian in their conversation.Estella was docile and compliant to her demands as she did not want to trouble Lucian. Nonetheless, her expression was still sulle
Aubree spent the night in the same guest room she stayed in during her previous visit. As she entered the room, she could not help but recall what she had done last time.For a moment, I even thought of using the same method to teach that little b*tch another lesson to see if she dares to be disobedient again!However, it was only a fleeting thought because, ultimately, she was still afraid Lucian would find out about it.Now that she had hope, she would never be able to forgive herself if she lost it due to another mistake she made.As Aubree lay in bed, the scene from earlier in Lucian’s bedroom kept playing through her head.I was so close to becoming Mrs. Farwell! If only Cayden hadn’t appeared!Aubree stayed up all night, waiting for Cayden to come over and inform her that Lucian had woken up.She never expected to wait until the sun was high in the sky, and he still had not come over.The memory of Cayden’s attitude toward her the night before made Aubree grit her teeth. She go
When the two women arrived at the club, Jonathan had already sobered up a little. He tensed up when he saw Aubree entering the room with his sister.Jonathan vaguely recalled Lucian making a call in his drunken stupor earlier, but he thought Lucian had made a call of regret to Roxanne with the courage of his drunken state.Even if it was not a call to Roxanne, Lucian should have called Cayden instead.Alas, Lucian had called Aubree.So all that talk earlier was a waste of my breath! Lucian has really given up on Roxanne.“Lucian, how do you feel?”Aubree instantly went to Lucian’s side the moment she stepped into the room, and she began studying the man with concern.Lucian had drunk more than Jonathan, and by then, he was already out of his mind.His only reaction to Aubree’s voice was a small nod and a slight furrow of his brows.“Aubree, you should bring Lucian back first. Leave my brother to me,” Frieda suggested.Aubree agreed to it with no hesitance. Nonetheless, she had troubl
Just as those words went past Jonathan’s lips, Lucian tightened his grip on his gla*s. Six years ago…“You must have treated Dr. Jarvis far worse six years ago than how Dr. Jarvis is treating you now,” Jonathan went on. “Back then, I wondered about what she would feel about you focusing on work and Aubree only. I thought she would have left in no time, but to my surprise, she actually lived with you for so many years and even gave birth to your children.”At that moment, a thought seemed to have popped up in Jonathan’s head. “It looks like Dr. Jarvis was deeply in love with you back then. You say you’re a persevering man, but you’re giving up on her in mere months just because she’s a little more serious about her work. In contrast, Dr. Jarvis had stayed by your side for years.”Jonathan even felt bad for Roxanne when he thought about the things she had to go through during those years. Once he was done saying his piece, he clicked his tongue and shook his head.Lucian’s expression d