Xavier listened silently. His gaze darkened, but he didn't respond to Tristan's derogatory words. It was precisely because of his indulgence that no one had treated or respected Yvette as a person. Be it Tristan, Shannon, Mark, or even the household staff at the manor, no one had shown her any regard.Tristan left in a hurry after he received a phone call.After he left, Xavier subconsciously picked up his phone. He noticed a missed call from Yvette.He dialed back but was greeted by a monotonous, pre-recorded female voice. "Sorry. The number you have dialed is currently unavailable. Please try again later."Xavier threw his phone aside in annoyance. Then, he stood up and walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window before lighting a cigarette.What Yvette had said earlier at dawn about her regrets echoed in his mind. A bitter taste rose in Xavier's throat. As he coughed heavily twice, he heard a woman's voice from behind him. "You should smoke less, Xav. It's bad for your healt
Outside the window, the wind howled. Yvette's pale, slender hand rested on her abdomen. Her gaze was vacant. Claude had just told her that the doctor had discovered she was pregnant.Yvette felt sullen; she had conceived the baby at a bad time.Viola studied Yvette's gaze, which was hollow and devoid of any will to live. She made a tough decision right then and there. "Yvette."It took a while for Yvette to come to her senses. She turned her head toward Viola and responded, "Yes, Viola?"With reddened eyes, Viola gently brushed the stray hairs away from Yvette's temples with her hand, which was marked with signs of aging. "Yvette, I don't have children and have always treated you as my own daughter. I wish, above all else, for you to have a healthy life. Being wealthy and affluent isn't really that important. "How can I live on if my only daughter yearns for death?"Yvette's eyes widened at the sight of Viola grabbing a fruit knife. "I took care of you until you were ten
About a month into summer, the areas to the south often experienced heavy torrential rain. In the days following Yvette's discharge from the hospital, Claude made time to keep her company. Yvette suffered from the aftereffects of taking a copious amount of sleeping pills. Her physical condition had worsened compared to before. However, she was in good spirits. Even when she didn't feel like eating, she would force herself to eat as much as she could.She never mentioned Xavier's name when Claude was around—not even once.Perhaps she knew she might succumb to the pain if she brought him up. She didn't want to subject Claude to negative emotions because of her, either. When Yvette was alone, she would stare at Xavier's WhatsApp profile picture. She wondered how she should bring up the topic of divorce with him again.One day, as Yvette was returning home after buying groceries, someone stood in her way and blocked her path.It was Daphne. She had a pair of sunglasses and a ma
Yvette finally understood what Daphne had meant by her parting words. The latter had resorted to complaining about her to Xavier. Before Yvette could respond, Xavier spoke again, "Our divorce is between us. You shouldn't have gotten physical with Daphne. She's in the hospital now."Yvette was stunned for a moment. Then, she quickly realized the situation. She hadn't expected that Daphne would resort to such despicable tactics to frame her. What was even more incredulous was that Xavier actually believed it."Believe it or not, I just happened to meet her. I did nothing to her." Yvette then hung up immediately.In the hospital, Xavier's expression became strained. Daphne lay on the hospital bed with a bandaged forehead. After that brief meeting with Yvette, she had hit her own head and accused Yvette of the act. "I just wanted to have a proper talk with her, but she…"Daphne didn't finish her sentence. Instead, she took out a stack of photos and handed them to Xavier. She'd ha
Mark wasn't advising her—he was educating her. In the past, literally everyone had had the right to lecture Yvette. From Xavier's family members to Mark, the secretaries, and even the household staff at the manor, everyone could "advise" her as they pleased. Back then, Yvette had to smile back and pretend to be grateful. But now she was tired of constantly allowing others to belittle her.Her hands, which were hanging by her sides, clenched into fists. She shot a cold glare at Mark and said, "So what if he's angry? What does that have to do with me? If you have nothing else to say, please leave."Mark felt a chill in his heart from her icy gaze. Before he could react, Yvette slammed the door shut in his face. This was the first time Yvette had turned him away. In the past, he was always the one who treated her indifferently. Why had the tables turned now? Could it be that she truly no longer wished to please Xavier?…Yvette knew that Mark would certainly tell on her once
Despite how afraid Yvette was, she could only cautiously protect her abdomen. After what felt like an eternity, Xavier finally stopped. "Don't make me angry, Yvette." Xavier breathed heavily. Yvette could barely make out his words. She had a vacant look in her eyes as she asked, "Didn't you say you would never touch me? What do you think you're doing now?"After saying that, she buried her face in the pillow. Xavier failed to notice how pale her face had become. She then said, "Does your beloved know about this? If she knew, she would be angry, wouldn't she?"In the past, Yvette had thought Xavier could be heartless but also deeply loyal to the woman he loved. Now, she only found him to be unbearably unpleasant. When she said "beloved", Xavier knew she was referring to Daphne. "Did you think about that when you were with Claude?" His words pierced her heart like a knife.Xavier wasn't one to suppress his grievances when faced with a woman, especially not when the woman w
After Tristan had learned of Yvette's pregnancy, he had instructed the hospital staff to keep him updated on her condition. Upon hearing Tristan's words, Xavier felt his heart skip a beat. "What happened?" "I don't exactly know what's going on, but when I went to the hospital today, the doctors said Yvette had died." Xavier felt as if he had been struck by lightning. How could Yvette be dead? She had been fine just last night!Xavier stood up and instantly felt a bit light-headed. "What exactly happened?" "The doctors told me that Yvette was brought in late last night. She died today after they failed to resuscitate her." Without another word, Xavier grabbed his coat and left for the hospital.As he drove there, the words Yvette had uttered the previous night echoed in his ears. "Mr. Lane, would you be sad if I died?" For some reason, he found it difficult to breathe. He unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt but still felt suffocated.When he finally reached the ho
This had to be a coincidence! It had to be!If Yvette was the one who had saved Tristan, why had she never mentioned anything about it to him? And if it really was her, then what had he done to her over the years?Tristan put Yvette's medical reports away and returned to his office. He sat there for the whole night. Early the next morning, he called Daphne. "Let's meet, Daph. There's something I need to tell you."Daphne arrived in the private room of a restaurant, looking exquisitely dressed. A waiter came over and took her coat. Tristan's gaze fell on her smooth, scar-free arms. Four years ago, he had been in a car accident. He had been trapped inside the car, unconscious, and covered in blood. Disregarding the danger, a girl had selflessly reached through the broken glass window to open the car door by force. She had gotten a deep cut on her arm from the shards of glass. Jose had said that the wound would have definitely required stitches. Hence, it was impossible for t