Tommy sounded as though Luke should have put more effort to win Luca's heart. Luke's expression turned grim. "Who let you watch those soap operas?" "I watch them whenever Grandma Susan watches them in the living room. What's wrong with soap operas, Daddy? Why would Grandma Susan watch them if there's something wrong with them?" Tommy asked several questions at one go. Ever since Allison went to prison, Susan acted like the matriarch of the household. Whenever Old Master Crawford was not at home, Susan would sit on the living room couch and watch meaningless soap operas with convoluted family plots. She did not care if what she watched would negatively affect the children's development. Luke had never heard his son use that word before. He wondered if he should talk to Susan. She had a television in her bedroom, so it was probably better to watch it there than in the living room. "Because they're boring," he said. Tommy nodded. "Oh? If that's the case, I won't watch them n
Luke frowned when his mother was mentioned. "Did the lawyer say anything?" He asked. Ever since Allison was sent to prison for stealing the antiques, Luke had always wanted to visit her, but she had always refused to meet him. He had never gotten to meet his mother for the past three years. He stopped trying and hired a lawyer to take care of her. Old Master Crawford wanted to say something but stopped himself. Eventually, he said, "I'm not sure how to tell you. The lawyer has arranged everything. You should go there and see what's going on." "Mm, I know," Luke said. "I'll go tomorrow." When Tommy heard that, he said, "Daddy, I want to visit Grandma too." Luke could tell from his grandfather's expression that the meeting with Allison tomorrow was most likely not going to end well. He said, "No, you have to go to school tomorrow." "But I miss Grandma. Please let me go with you, Daddy," Tommy said coyly. Even though Bianca was his favorite person, Allison had pampered him t
However, the problems were only limited to Allison's face and neck. She did not feel unwell at all. The doctor concluded that the wrinkles posed no threat to her health. However, she could not stop new wrinkles and cracks from appearing on her face. The doctor wanted to refer her to a plastic surgeon, but prison inmates were not permitted to undergo plastic surgery procedures, not even if her son had a lot of money to hire the best plastic surgeon. Since the wrinkles and cracks were not life-threatening, Allison eventually gave up on trying to fix them. Luke frowned and looked at the lawyer. The lawyer explained, "The doctors said that there's nothing wrong with Mdm. Tanner's health, and they can't find a rational explanation for what happened to her face. That's why it's been left untreated." Luke turned his head toward Allison. He could not bear to look straight at her even though he had seen his fair share of bloody scenes. "Why, my son? Are you scared?" Allison smiled
After Luke left the prison, he gave a call to Johann. He found out that Johann was performing consultations at the outpatient department and had no operations scheduled, so he made an appointment with him and went over to the hospital. Johann had already informed the nurse at the registration counter that Luke was coming, so Luke went straight to his room. "Let me deal with this patient first!" When Luke walked in, Johann was telling the patient to turn around and take a deep breath. Luke leaned on the wall. "No rush." After checking the patient's vitals, Johann scheduled an X-ray for him. After the patient left, Johann closed the door and grinned, "You don't look like you're not in a rush." If Luke had nothing urgent, he would usually find Johann after work. After all, Johann was one of the most popular doctors in A City. Luke had to have something incredibly important to take up Johann's precious consultation time. Luke looked at Johann for a short while and said, "I ne
Luca tried to read Luke's expression, but he did not express any emotion on his face. "Should I prepare anything?" She knew that she could not refuse, so she asked him more questions, hoping to find out what he wanted from her. "No," Luke said and left her office. He did not give her any chance to ask any more questions. Luca was speechless as she watched the door close. Judging from Luke's attitude, he did not seem like he wanted to ask her out on a date. If that were the case, why else would Luke ask her out? She could not think of a reason… However, she was quite relieved that Luke did not ask too much of her. The next day, Luca went downstairs at half-past seven in the morning. True to his word, Luke's car was parked next to the neighborhood entrance, and he was already waiting for her. As she approached the car, Luke got out of the driver's seat and opened the door on the other side for her. "Good morning, Mr. Crawford," she greeted him. "Good morning. Let's go,"
Johann nodded and said casually, "It seems that you’ve been paying attention to Mr. Crawford."Johann had no particular intention when he said it but Luca read into it. She lowered her gaze to look at the cyan floor tiles and replied softly, "I noticed it by accident."Johann did not notice the change in her tone. All he was thinking about was Allison's situation.The prison guard took them to the visitation room.Luca did not prepare anything and walked in empty-handed, but Johann brought a bunch of equipment that was packed in a medical kit.The guard asked him to open the box so that he could check the equipment inside.Johann cooperated and opened the box for him to inspect. After the inspection, no contraband was found so the prison guard walked Allison out.Luca looked at the other door where a frail-looking woman was led out by the guards. The woman had her head lowered, so they could not see her face.Luca noticed her thin arms and noted that the woman seemed malnourish
Allison's pulse was steady, and there seemed to be nothing wrong with it.Luca stared at the peeling skin on Allison’s face and asked, "Have you taken any special medication or used any uncommon products before you arrived at the prison?"Allison smiled contemptuously and said, "I only take big-brand health supplements. Are these considered special medications?""Can you tell me what you consumed?" Luca guessed that her condition had something to do with her lifestyle before she went to jail."There’s no problem when others take it, so why would it be a problem when I take it? All of the skincare products and cosmetics that I use are branded. You can't afford them." Allison did not forget to show off as she spoke.Luca reacted neither haughtily nor humbly. She did not humor Allison but instead asked, "Can you tell me the brands that you use? Also, does this only affect your face?"Allison frowned and replied, "Yes, it only affects my face. It was three years ago, so I don’t remem
He had only been in Allison this villa once or twice, and he did not pay too much attention to the furnishings.However, Luca seemed to be familiar with Allison’s villa. She knew what was there without Luke having to tell her.Luke said nothing and continued to observe Luca.After she walked into the beauty room, she stood there and took a few glances. The skincare products on the shelf were not dusty because of the regular cleaning. However, she thought that the products were likely expired."Mr. Crawford, can I take these?" Luca pointed to the bottles and jars on the shelf. There were several well-known international brands that she was familiar with. As for the others, although the packaging looked premium, she was unsure what brands they were."Do you suspect that these caused my mother's skin to deteriorate to such an extent?" Luke asked.Luca nodded. To be cautious, she said, "I have such suspicions, but I’ll know more after I analyze the ingredients.""You can take all of
All three of them stepped out of the vehicle.Hera realized that the surgery might already be over and could not wait to hear the results.Abel, equally eager, immediately asked as soon as he saw them, “Is the surgery finished?”“Yes, the surgery was successful. The transplant was completed, and all the nerves we could connect have been repaired. Now, it’s up to the follow-up treatment,” answered Shanks.The doctor who had been kicked out earlier stared in disbelief.They actually succeeded in the transplant? How was that even possible?“Great, fantastic!” Abel let out a sigh of relief before bursting into laughter.What had seemed impossible in modern medicine had achieved a different outcome in Shanks’ hands.Unlike others who might celebrate the medical breakthrough, Abel’s joy came from a more personal place—Kassy would soon return to his side. His delight was unmistakable.“T-This can’t be!” muttered the dismissed doctor, who was still in shock. “A surgery this revoluti
After returning to her room, Luca told Luke about the surgery that day.She explained that she had not been able to participate in the operation and was uncertain if Abel would prevent her from being involved in the future. If she was not allowed to take part, she might lose her excuse to stay here. Also, she would not be able to help with what was to come.Luke replied to her message quickly, assuring her that everything was already planned out and she did not need to worry.Luca frowned slightly as she read his message. She wanted to ask about his plan but hesitated for a moment and decided against it. Knowing too much about Luke's men might backfire.Luca deleted their chat history but soon received another message from him.He told her that T Corporation had successfully won the bid and that he had already found someone to replace Lucius’ role.Luca let out a sigh of relief. Finding a replacement for Lucius meant that he was out of danger for now. The worry that had been we
However, Abel was not fooled by her words.He asked again, “Who are you looking for?”“Oh, I'm looking for Gerald. I've noticed that most people are here, but Gerald is missing, so I was just curious,” Hera replied honestly, knowing that Abel was naturally suspicious.“I’m starting to feel like you’ve become quite close with Gerald recently,” Abel asked suspiciously.Hera froze for a moment, then laughed and explained, “I often ask him to help with little things. He might not have many qualities, but he’s pretty diligent.”Abel did not respond right away, as though he was considering her words carefully.Hera lowered her voice and teased, “What's the matter? Are you jealous?”Before he could answer, she quickly added, “You’re so outstanding. How could I ever be interested in some ordinary man?”As soon as she said that, a flicker of unease crossed her mind.Abel was far superior to Lucius in looks and wealth. However, she seemed to be more drawn to Lucius.Despite her actions
For Shanks, no matter how skilled the two ophthalmologists were, they could not compare to Luca. The key was their smooth coordination. They were used to working together. If it were other doctors, they would probably start asking questions once they entered the operating room, making it impossible for Shanks to focus and perform the surgery calmly.Shanks believed this was a groundbreaking procedure, not just another teaching surgery for ophthalmologists.Abel understood Shanks’ concerns, but he still insisted, “They’re not just any doctors. They’ve signed agreements, and they won’t interrupt you with questions during the surgery. They’ll cooperate fully.”As Luca listened to Abel, she realized what he was really worried about. Besides the risk of the surgery failing, he was not confident in her.This surgery was important, and Abel was worried she might sabotage it in the operating room.Shanks furrowed his brows and looked at Luca.Luca gave him a faint smile. Whether or not
As Gerald shook his head furiously, it was not difficult for Luca to figure out what was going on.She glanced at Hera's irritation and figured it all stemmed from Luke being reassigned. Not being able to see him was clearly driving her to act like this.Luca secretly let out a sigh. They said women were the cause of trouble, but honestly, men could just be the same.Even with Luke disguised as an ordinary man, his cold and commanding air still captivated Hera.She glanced at the bowl nearby. The food Gerald brought Hera was barely touched.It seemed like she was so consumed with thoughts of Luke that she had lost her appetite...Luca’s expression remained unchanged. She was long accustomed to keeping her emotions in check around others.“Ms. Sanchez, you’ve misunderstood. I’m not close with Mr. Lucius, so I don’t have his contact information.” Luca kept her face impassive.“You’re lying!” Hera narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “You’re so close to him. How could you not have it?”
As soon as Luca returned to her bedroom after dinner, she received a video call request from the kids.It had been a long time since she last saw them. When she saw the call request, she locked the door, put on her headphones, and immediately answered.“Ms. Luca!” As soon as the call connected, the faces of all three kids appeared on the phone screen.“Sweethearts!” Luca blew them a kiss.“Ms. Luca, we miss you so much!” Tommy was the first to express how much they missed Luca.Luca's heart stirred with waves of longing when she heard them. She had been so busy recently, hoping to finish everything here quickly so that she and Luke could reunite with the kids. That was why she had not contacted them much.Plus, with Old Master Crawford taking care of them, she felt at ease.Now that Luca saw the faces of the three kids, her longing for them instantly surged and overwhelmed her.Her eyes reddened. “I miss you all so much too.”Rainie, always the thoughtful one, noticed her em
The men in the room were wincing in pain, but when they heard Gerald’s words, they were so furious they almost wanted to lash out at him. However, all their strength had been sapped by the excruciating pain, so they could only groan helplessly.As Shanks made his way upstairs, he paused halfway up the staircase and asked, “Is Luca cooking?”Gerald glanced at the kitchen and replied, “Yes, Mr. Shanks. It’s their fault. Ms. Craw was delayed in making dinner because of them.”Shanks' expression remained unchanged as he simply said, “Let me know when it's ready.”“Yes,” answered Gerald.After Shanks went upstairs, Gerald hesitated for a moment but decided to help the men to their feet, placing them one by one on the couch or chairs. As they slouched, groaning in pain, Gerald shook his head. “Do you guys now understand what happens when you mess with the wrong woman, especially Ms. Craw?”One of the men winced and asked, “Why did she have to be so brutal when throwing down?”“She
Lucius was different.He did not care about getting close to anyone, whether man or woman. Even when Hera’s attempts to seduce him were blatantly obvious, he still remained unmoved and even showed signs of rejection.Gerald could not help but marvel at Luca’s sharp observations and incisive remarks. He could not help but clap his hands lightly, genuinely impressed.“Lucius truly is exceptional,” said Gerald.Luca came downstairs.When she took the last step off the stairs, the men in the living room immediately fell silent.They held their breath as they watched the woman in front of them. Her hair was straight, not like their boss' companion.The men's gazes grew intense.Luca’s expression darkened.Gerald stood beside her and said, “See, I told you—you’re like a piece of meat dropped into a pack of wolves. Be careful.”One of the men heard Gerald and asked unhappily, “Hey, kid, what are you saying? What wolves? We’re gentlemen. We’d never dream of doing anything inappropr
When Gerald heard this, his face fell. “Huh? Ms. Craw, you're not cooking anymore?”Luca said nothing. Luke had already left with the others. She turned her gaze back before walking inside.Gerald realized that Luca had only been cooking breakfast because of Lucius. The thought puzzled him. Had they taken a liking to each other from the very start? That did not seem right.In this fast-paced modern world, even if they had, using something as old-fashioned as cooking to win someone over did not add up.Still, the timing was too coincidental to ignore. Luca started cooking for everyone when Lucius arrived, and she stopped as soon as he left. That realization gave Gerald an eerie feeling.Thinking they might have known each other back on the island, it all suddenly made sense. Of course! They must have met before. How else could this all line up so perfectly?With that thought, Gerald quickly caught up with Luca. “Ms. Craw, my cooking is terrible. Why don’t you keep doing it?”