Luca could not help but click on his picture. The group photo was enlarged on the screen.She still remembered that memory from three years ago. The weather was wonderful and the sun was warm. The wildflowers were in full bloom and were fragrant. There was an atmosphere of happiness all around.That day, their kids had a great time playing around. Luke, whose expression was mostly cold, also showed a bright smile on his face.Luca remembered everything from that day clearly. She looked at the photo, the corners of her mouth slightly raised as she touched the screen."Ms. Luca..." Tommy's muttering interrupted her.Luca turned off her screen, turned sideways, and looked at Tommy. He was close to her. She asked in a soft voice, "What's the matter?""I want a hug..." Tommy had not fully woken up. His voice was sleepy and he acted like a baby.Luca smiled softly, took him into her arms, and whispered, "It's still early, go back to bed."Tommy closed his eyes and felt extremely happ
Seeing his pitiful appearance, Luca could not bear to let him starve. She nodded and said, "Okay, I'll take you to breakfast, but after eating, I’ll send you back to Mr. Crawford. Promise me that you won’t make a fuss then."From past experience, Tommy would try his best to stay by her side every time they had to separate. She wanted to cover her ground to make sure that Tommy would not get in the way later because he did not want to leave. "Okay, Ms. Luca!" Tommy nodded and agreed.The two left the room together.Luca brought him to the restaurant downstairs. Rhett, Dr. Albus, and the others were already sitting there eating breakfast.The hotel that Jason booked for them had a breakfast buffet, so they were all here to fill their stomachs."Dr. Craw, good morning." Rhett greeted her because they were sitting near the door."Good morning." Luca nodded at them, then took Tommy to the self-service area.Dr. Albus looked at the scene and could not help but say, "That's Mr. Crawf
Luke's expression was neutral earlier, but it turned gloomy after Luca left. Jason lowered his head to eat his breakfast silently. Tommy was the only one who dared to ask questions.Luke glanced at his son, then turned to look at the entrance of the restaurant. Luca and the others had already left. He looked away, picked up the napkin, wiped his mouth, and stood up.Jason followed him, stood up, and asked, "Mr. Crawford, are you going to the office now?""Mm," Luke took Tommy's hand and walked out.Jason followed behind him as he took out his phone and gave the driver a call, asking him to wait for them downstairs.Tommy looked up at Luke and asked, "Daddy, are we going to where Ms. Luca is?""No," Luke stood in front of the elevator and answered his question with a stern expression."Ah, why not?" Tommy thought they were going to be at the same event together, which was why he agreed to Luca’s request obediently.After Jason spoke to the driver, he said to Tommy, "Tommy, Dr.
Dr. Albus, who was watching as things went down, gave Luca a thumbs up. He smiled and said, "Dr. Craw, impressive."In his heart, he secretly despised Luca and thought that she was something else. ‘No one, not even university students, can escape her seduction. It’s no wonder she receives special treatment from Luke.’Luca kept quiet and followed the signs to the venue.William, who watched her walk away, was a little sad. He thought that the language barrier was a pity.His friend on the side noticed that he looked sad and lost. He patted him on the shoulder and asked, "William, why are you so upset?""Paul, I fell in love with her at first sight, but such a beautiful woman doesn't understand our language..." William was head over heels and stared at Luca's back.Paul sneered, snapped his fingers, and said, "Friend, you were deceived by her. She’s walking to the university’s auditorium. There’s a medical lecture in the auditorium today, and those with her don’t look like student
Luca opened his friend request but hesitated for a long time. She wanted to accept the request, but her rationality told her that she should not. The fewer interactions with her, the better it was for him and the children. She struggled internally for a long time before putting her phone back into her handbag. She did not accept his friend request. She knew Luke's character very well, and she knew that he would not ask her directly to accept the friend request. All she had to do was to wait three days for the request to expire, and she should be off the hook. Meanwhile, Tommy was sitting next to Luke. "Daddy!" He exclaimed when he saw Luke end the video call. "Don't disturb her," Luke said and handed the phone back to him. He knew that Tommy would be bored, so he asked Jason to buy several children's books. "I'm not disturbing Ms. Luca at all. Can't you see that she's so bored?" Tommy pouted and protested. Luke stood up as though he did hear what Tommy said. Seeing th
William noticed that Luca was looking at him, so he waved to her. "Hey, what a coincidence! We meet again. I'm William. Do you remember me?" Luca planned to use the same trick as in the morning. She pretended not to understand him, looked away, and continued to eat her food. William glanced at Paul when he did not get a reply from Luca. Paul said, "Why don't you try the translation app you downloaded earlier?" William nodded and opened the translation app on her phone. With the app, Luca could not use the excuse that she did not understand English. Dr. Albus watched the scene unfold and remembered how Luca had given him the cold shoulder earlier. A mischievous thought brewed in his mind. "Do you need something from Dr. Craw?" William paused and smiled. "Dr. Craw? Is Craw your name?" Luca frowned when she heard the student call out her name. Did Dr. Albus deliberately do that? She turned her head to look at her surroundings. Thanks to William's presence in the restaurant
Paul smiled and shook his head. "I'm not interested in Russians, bro. No matter what you want to do later, I'll be there to support and help you. Don't worry, I've heard that Russians aren't as cold as they make themselves out to be. Once you claim her body, I'm sure that she'll fall for you as well." William puffed out his chest confidently. He knew that no woman who had slept with him could resist his charms. "Of course." "I'm helping you because I don't want to see you looking like a walking corpse after she rejected you," Paul said as he continued driving. "Thanks. Let me know if you need my help next time." William thought that Paul was a good friend. Paul smiled but did not say anything. He had to focus on the signal because his tracker was not a very good one, and the signal would be lost if the tracker went too far away. The signal eventually stopped at the hotel. Paul glanced at the six-star hotel in front of them and frowned. "Bro, I think the woman stays here." "
William shot his friend a glance, angry at his mocking tone. "Shut up!" He said. "I told you that I'd help you." Paul walked toward them with a sinister expression on his face. "No!" William refused because he knew that Luca was on her period. "Why not? This is the only chance you're going to get, William. Are you sure that you won't regret it?" Paul said as he stood in Luca's way. "The conference is a one-day event, and that woman won't show up in the university tomorrow. Also, I guess that she isn't from New York either. Don't tell me you want to go into a long-distance relationship, do you? How foolish. Aren't you satisfied if you could claim her for just one night?" Luca slowly clenched her hands into fists when she listened to his words. She did not want to get physical just now because she did not want to cause trouble. Moreover, William was only a university student. However, the two boys seemed to have other plans in mind… "What do you want?" Luca said. Paul loo
“As long as he stays out of your sight, I won’t make a move,” said Ray.If Gordan were not one of Luke’s pals, he would have been long gone.Anyone who dared to mess with someone Ray cherished would not be let off easily. The only reason Gordan was still breathing was thanks to Luke.“Alright, Ray. Just let it go. I’ve moved on and started a new life. Plus, I’m studying at Capital University. We have mutual friends, so running into him is inevitable. If that happens, we’ll just be strangers. There’s no need to step in for me or act impulsively.” Just as Vivian finished speaking, the doorbell rang.“Is it the clothes delivery?” asked Ray.“No, while you were talking with Mr. Crawford, I asked someone to buy some medicinal cream. The ones here work better than the ones in Russia. A little massage with it should help you heal faster,” Vivian said, grabbing a mask and hat before heading to the door.“Miss, is the boss alright?” asked one of Ray’s subordinates.“He’s fine. Did you ge
When Ray heard that there was a 90% chance of success, he could not help but ask, “Can you walk me through your plan?”“The prison where Kassy is being held actually has an underground passage. I’ve already spoken with the prison officials, and we can use that passage to transport her out. It connects to the sewage system, which leads directly to another detention facility. "The only catch is that this facility’s underground pipes don’t connect to the outside world, so the remaining 10% risk lies in moving Kassy onto the main road and securing her at the new location.“This whole operation can be done without anyone noticing, which is why I’m confident it’ll work.” As Luke explained, he pulled out a detailed map of the sewer system. “Here’s the layout I had someone retrieve. This is the starting point, and this is the destination. If we take this route, we can move Kassy without alerting Abel’s people.”Abel’s men were keeping a constant watch outside the prison now. That was prec
Luke had no idea what kind of mindset the person who poisoned Vivian had. However, he found Gordan’s current behavior quite intriguing.“Luke, what’s with that look?” Gordan felt uneasy under his gaze.“You seem pretty concerned about Vivian,” Luke leaned back on the couch and said thoughtfully.Gordan froze for a moment before laughing it off. “What? No way! Why would I care about her? Come on, Luke, don’t say stuff like that. If she hears it, she might start getting ideas.”Luke could not be bothered to expose his act and got straight to the point. “Why are you here?”“Speaking of that, I almost got sidetracked by that woman.” Gordan quickly pulled out his phone, grimacing. “Man, Ray really didn’t hold back. I need to get some treatment for these bruises later.”Luke took the phone and tried to unlock it. It needed a passcode. He handed it back. “Unlock it.”“All set, boss.” Gordan unlocked the phone and went back to pressing an ice pack against his face.Luke scanned the scr
It was the sound of a body slamming onto the ground.Gordan’s furious curses rang out. “Damn it! You're really going all out, huh? Do you think I'm scared of you?”Another loud thud followed.Vivian frowned. What the hell were they doing? Were they really going to fight until one of them won?Both of them were skilled fighters. If they kept this up, neither would walk away unscathed.“Enough!” shouted Vivian.The two men locked in the fight froze for a moment.“Vivian, stay out of this. I’m beating him to a pulp today,” growled Ray, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. He was not in great shape, but neither was Gordan.“Ray, I don’t want to see him,” said Vivian. She did not want Ray fighting him. It was not to protect Gordan but because she did not want Ray getting hurt.Also, she definitely did not want Gordan to see her like this. She could already picture his smug face, his sarcastic remarks and his gloating.“Fine. If you don’t want to see him, I’ll just beat
After returning to the hotel from the hospital, Vivian felt much better.To her, the fact that Ray had taken her to the hospital meant there was hope for the future, which lifted her spirits. She picked up an apple from the fruit platter the hotel had provided and took a bite.“Ray, this apple is really good. Want to try one?” asked Vivian.Ray shook his head. “You go ahead. By the way, can I take a look at the luggage you brought from Russia?”Vivian nodded. “I only hung up my clothes. Everything else is still in the suitcase. You can just take the things out.”Ray walked into the bedroom, pulled out her suitcase, and opened it. Inside were just books and a few other small items, nothing unusual.“You didn't bring any food with you?” asked Ray.“I haven’t really been in the mood, but the food here is way better than Russian food, so I didn't feel the need to bring anything.” Vivian’s tone was lighthearted now that she was in a better mood.“That's true.” Ray agreed, then asked
Ray's tone turned serious. “Alright, I'll make the arrangements immediately. Dr. Craw, once the toxicology report is out, we’ll still need your help.”“For toxicology cases like this, I recommend combining both modern medicine and traditional herbal medicine. Don’t worry, if I can help, I definitely will,” Luca assured him.“Alright, thank you.” Ray expressed his gratitude and ended the call before updating Luke on the situation.Luke reassured him, saying, “If Vivian was really poisoned, don’t worry. Previously, Luca discovered that her biological mother had been poisoned with a slow-acting toxin. She prescribed herbal medicine and used purely traditional herbal medicine to detoxify her. It didn’t take long for all the toxins to be expelled, and her health fully recovered. So, rest assured. If it’s something she can fix, she’ll do everything she can.“Besides, once we identify the exact problem, the doctors will be able to step in and help, right?”“Yes. Thank you both in advance
Gerald walked over. “Ms. Sanchez, what's wrong?”He was eager to get back upstairs and stash his cigarettes before someone noticed and took them.Hera yanked open his bag, glanced at the cigarette brand, and scoffed. “I thought it was some expensive brand. But it's just this? And you’re acting all deferential to her over this?”Gerald was rendered speechless. “I knew Ms. Craw was going out, so I asked her to bring these back for me. This is the brand I’m used to. Maybe it’s not expensive to you, but for me, it’s what I can afford.”Realizing she had misspoken, Hera felt a bit awkward. She quickly changed the topic. “Still, is a pack of cigarettes really worth you being so grateful to Luca? How much could it have cost?”“It’s not about the money,” replied Gerald. “It's just a nice surprise. I never expected to get anything out of helping Ms. Craw, and this kind of unexpected gift has nothing to do with the price. Besides, I'm not being overly grateful. I'm just happy.”He was ba
Luca’s lips were already swollen and flushed from Luke's kisses.That deep shade of red, reflected in Luke’s eyes, was utterly captivating. It tugged at his nerves, stirring an uncontrollable desire within him.At that moment, he had only one thought, and it was to completely lose himself in her.…The two of them stepped out of the bedroom.Vivian quickly turned her back and greeted Luke when he saw him coming out, “Hello, Mr. Crawford.”“Vivian, don’t worry. Everything will get better,” replied Luke.Vivian simply hummed in response.Ray gave them a grateful nod as Luke took Luca’s hand and led her away.It was only after hearing the door close that Vivian finally turned back around.Ray glanced at her and said, “Vivian, they’re your friends. You don’t have to act this way around them. They won’t judge you.”“I know they won’t…” Vivian let out a soft sigh. “I just feel like I look terrifying right now. I didn’t want to scare them, so I avoided facing them directly. But it’
“I once treated someone who had been slowly poisoned over a long period of time. Their pulse was similar to Vivian’s. Given that your family has good genetics, yet Vivian is different from the rest of you, and her skin improved after leaving her original environment, all of this confirms my suspicion.“Could it be that someone in your family has been poisoning Vivian? That would explain why her skin ended up like this.”“If she really has been poisoned, then would staying away from that environment or identifying the person responsible help her get better?” asked Ray.Luca shook her head.“The poison I’ve encountered before was a slow-acting toxin that kept the victim’s skin dark. I don’t know exactly what it was, but long-term exposure to any poison has an effect on the body. It's just a suspicion now. I need to consult someone I know. And honestly, I can’t be sure what’s really causing Vivian’s condition.“Is her skin deteriorating so quickly because she was poisoned once more a