Marlene's mother-in-law—Zayden's mother—was a low-class model who didn't deserve respect. But Shannon was different.She came from the Guetta family and had Guetta Group backing her, along with her powerful and wealthy brothers. They had connections on both sides of the law. It wouldn't take much for them to get rid of someone.Marlene had always resented the fact that she wasn't Shannon's daughter-in-law. If she had been, Malcolm would've long since secured shares in Lane Group. But despite the bitterness coursing through her, she couldn't show it. She gave Shannon a polite glance, then looked over at the elegant Zoey. Zoey smiled at her. "Marlene."Marlene nodded and walked away. As Zoey watched her leave, she felt a surge of joy. It seemed she wasn't the only one who disliked Yvette. She must make a covert effort to become friends with Marlene.Upon noticing that Noah wasn't around, Shannon asked Yvette, "Where's the child who came with you?""Noah went to the washroom,"
In reality, Noah would never do something that gross. He'd just spilled water on Xavier's pants by mistake. Pretending to wipe it off, he said, "Mom says being a stepfather is harder than being a real dad. Don't be mad at me. I'll wipe it clean for you."The crowd almost burst into laughter. Even the usually stern Clifford nearly lost his composure. But he kept his wits about him. Where had this child come from? Was he really Xavier's son?As Clifford was about to inquire, Malcolm, sitting next to him, looked shocked. "Zac, what did you call Uncle Xav?"Zachary?Noah dropped the act, his big eyes looking straight at Malcolm. "I'm not Zac; I'm Noah Lander. Mr. Xavier and Mom are together, so he's going to be my stepdad soon."Malcolm was stunned by this. The boy looked the same—so why wasn't he Zachary? He studied Noah closely. The only difference was that the boy in front of him seemed paler and didn't speak as seriously as Zachary.Upon hearing this, Clifford was even mo
Today, Lane Mansion was livelier than ever before.Malcolm's little face turned red as he angrily pointed at Noah.The others exchanged glances, shocked that Marlene had said such things to the child in private.Marlene felt embarrassed. "Malcolm, don't talk nonsense. I only said that Uncle Xav's wife isn't around, so they don't have children."Malcolm, a mere child, couldn't fathom the complexities of adult conversation. He promptly countered, "That's not true. Mom, didn't you say before that Uncle Xav wasn't normal and couldn't have children?"Marlene wished she could smack her son. "You misheard me."Malcolm didn't care. He ran to Clifford, grabbing his hand. "Great-Grandpa, chase this feral boy away. He's not one of us at all. He's only here to swindle me out of my rightful inheritance."He pointed menacingly at Noah. "I'm the future heir of the Lanes! Don't even think about it. I'll kill you if you try! Believe me!"Noah's mouth was covered as he watched Malcolm, the brat,
Xavier froze in place. "Yvvy…""There's no need to explain. You're right." Yvette wasn't angry, but she felt a sense of relief. She knew Xavier couldn't have suddenly figured out the truth."But I won't use your money to raise Noah and Zac. Don't worry." She didn't lack the means to raise two children.Xavier wasn't referring to material support when he said he was raising sons for another man. He wanted to explain but didn't know where to start."Let's go back." Yvette stepped forward to take Noah's hand.Noah let out a silent sigh. Yvette was way too accommodating. Noah won't let himself be exploited by his bastard father. "Mom, I'm so tired. Can we rest here for a bit before going back?" Noah pretended to look weak. "I don't think I can ride in the car now."Yvette immediately crouched down to check on him. "What's wrong? Where do you feel uncomfortable?"Noah shook his head. "Maybe it's because Mr. Xavier carried me like that earlier. It made me dizzy. I feel awful. I want
Xavier finally understood what was going on. "I told the staff beforehand to leave everything exactly as it was. Not a single item, not even the position of a pen, was to be altered. Everything else depends on my memory."Yvette looked around after hearing that. Indeed, everything was in perfect order, without any changes. Even so, she couldn't help but admire him. Even if everyone else went blind, Xavier was the kind of person who could navigate. Some people were just born to lead."You're amazing," she said sincerely.It had been a long time since Xavier had been praised by Yvette. Her sudden compliment caught him off guard, and a smile crept onto his face. He tightened his grip on her hand."Silly." The air crackled with unspoken attraction.Yvette's face inexplicably flushed. "Let go. I'm going to... mop the floor.""Okay." Xavier obediently released her hand.Yvette's palm grew warm and clammy under his grasp. Without giving it a second thought, she grabbed a mop and quic
Back inside the house, Xavier looked furious. No man wouldn't mind his wife having an affair. However, it had already happened. Unless he could turn back time, there was nothing he could do about it.At that moment, he just wanted to keep Yvette by his side. As for Zachary and Noah, he could force himself to accept them. However, he wanted Claude to stay abroad.Yvette didn't know what was on Xavier's mind and thought he'd only accepted Noah and Zachary because of his amnesia.Noah hadn't been sleeping at all, so when he'd heard the commotion downstairs, he'd secretly taken a look. He'd thought Shannon had been too fierce. However, he'd been ecstatic when Xavier had been reprimanded."Mom." He pretended to rub his eyes like he'd just woken up.When Yvette heard him, she looked up at him. "Why are you awake?""I woke up when I heard someone talking." He walked downstairs as he spoke."I'm sorry for disturbing your sleep," said Yvette."It's fine." After coming downstairs, he sat
"Where are we going now?" Xavier couldn't help asking when he felt the car moving."Well, the festival is here. Naturally, we need to have some fun." In the past, Tristan and the others would always spend their time at Empire Club."Tell your driver to turn back." Xavier thought there really was something important. He still had to accompany Yvette at home.When Tristan heard that, he had no choice but to tell Matt to turn the car around. "Are you going to spend time with Yvette again?"He'd stopped calling Yvette "Deaf Yvvy" and started calling her by her name. Xavier wasn't surprised by that and answered with his own question. "What do you think?"After saying that, he added, "You should accompany your woman as well."Kiki was Yvette's best friend. If Tristan could get along well with her, Xavier's relationship with Yvette would definitely improve.Upon hearing Kiki's name, Tristan became unwilling to go home. "Well, I'm going back with you to visit Yvette."Xavier was speech
Tristan's hand froze in midair for a while before he pulled it back. "I…" Yvette didn't wait for him to finish his words and returned inside the house. He still wanted to apologize to her, but Xavier pulled him back. "What are you doing, Xav?"Xavier said calmly, "You can apologize next time."It was a festive day, and he didn't want Tristan to ruin it for him. When Tristan heard that, he figured he should also take it slow. "Sure."He'd wanted to see Noah at first, but now it seemed better for him to leave for now. "Well, I'm heading back now. I'll visit again next time.""Yeah."Then, Tristan left in his car.After Yvette entered the house, she got back on the couch and continued reading. When she saw Xavier entering the house after a short while, she couldn't help asking, "When you said you had to step out, was it because of Tristan?"That was why Xavier had been afraid that Tristan would ruin the day for him. After hearing Yvette ask him about it, Xavier immediately denied