Charmine was still deeply asleep. Feeling unwell and not wanting to wake her up, Anthony gently left the bed. Before he left, he left a slip on the desk that read, [I’ll sort out some matters in the company. Contact me if anything happens.] It sounded so nonchalant as if he had forgotten what he promised Charmine last night… It was almost ten when Chamine woke up, frowning when she noticed Anthony was not in the room. She wanted him to have a proper rest, yet he still got up so early? She then realized Anthony was not even in the villa after washing up, though he had left a slip on the table. Charmine frowned. Had Anthony gone to his company again? Did he not promise her he would come to the studio with her? Why did he sound as if he had forgotten? As she was about to call him, Senior Jordan phoned her. Senior Jordan spoke the moment she picked up the call, “Charmine, didn’t we agree to meet at ten in the morning? It’s almost ten. Why are you two not here yet?” Not wa
Although Charmine no longer loved Julian, the hurt he caused her had traumatized her. Currently, Anthony seemed overly busy and did not give her enough attention. Would he change in the future? Charmine felt unusually uneasy at that. However, since Senior Jordan was with her and not wanting him to fret over her, she composed herself and assured him, “Don’t think too much about it, Grandpa. Anthony did want to come, but he’s stayed up till three to four in the morning. I don’t want him to overwork, so I turned him down from coming here. Furthermore, the gentleman’s makeover is quite simple, and it works anyway. I have you to keep me company.” Senior Jordan was speechless, but he also did not want to scratch open her wound. He could only say, “So long as you believe he loves you, Charmine. I only want the best for you; don’t settle for less.” “Don’t worry, I’m not someone who’d settle for less. If Anthony doesn’t treat me well, you don’t even have to ask for it—I’ll kick hi
Charmine remained calmly seated as she slowly raised her clear eyes and glanced at the woman behind her. She scoffed. “What do you have to do with this? Didn’t you do everything on your own when you got engaged with Anthony?” It felt as though her wound was stabbed, and Waverly’s face turned a few shades paler despite having to act like Charmine did not faze her. “Getting engaged and getting married are two different things. I’ll only tell you this, though. If he doesn’t care even for the wedding, do you think he’ll treat you well afterward? He can ignore you now, and he’ll ignore you ten times, a hundred times, after the wedding. He’ll forget you entirely one day!” Charmine’s fingers curled up unnoticeably, and her words resonated constantly in her ears. ‘He can ignore you now, and he’ll ignore you ten times, a hundred times…’ All of a sudden... “Since when does an outsider like you have the right to meddle with my marriage with her?” a cold, masculine voice was heard from
Two hours had passed, and Charmine's hairdo was finally done. Her hair was curled, and a golden crown was fitted on her head. This headpiece was made with great detail, and it looked sophisticated, beautiful. It went along with Charmine’s temperament—incredibly willful and arrogant, wrapped in elegance. Charmine looked at herself in the mirror, and she was satisfied. She turned to look at Anthony. “You got a good taste.” Anthony locked eyes with her reflection, his voice magnetic and hoarse as he responded, “It’s my wife who looks good in anything.” Charmine was speechless. Although this was overly sweet, coming from a cold and arrogant man like Anthony, it sounded so…pleasing! After completing her look, Anthony had a few simple touch-ups. Even though they were merely simple touch-ups, he looked elegant and regal, and one would adore him with just a glance. Both of them stood together like the two main characters of a fairytale. One seemed noble, and the other was wil
Anthony seemed as if he had completely forgotten about it as he drove home. … Charmine rushed to HN Restaurant at 6 p.m. to chat with the four men. They happily reminisced the good times they had back then. A waiter came to their table at the instructed time—at 9 p.m.—to take their orders. Uncle Zul frowned and said, “Charmine, didn’t you say Anthony will be here at nine?” Charmine was confused. Why did he not arrive yet? He promised her before leaving that even if he could not come home beforehand, he would arrive at the restaurant at this hour...but it was already past nine. Why was he not here yet? “Does he not take us seriously at all?” grumbled Uncle Max. “No,” Charmine explained, “maybe he’s caught up in traffic.” “Charmine, call him and ask him where he is at,” said Uncle Pop. Charmine thus took out her phone and called Anthony, and all four pairs of eyes were on her the entire time. She believed Anthony. He said he would come, and he would! Perhaps somethi
Had Anthony grown out of his feelings for her, then? He was not this kind of man… Did something happen to him? Charmine grew antsy the more she questioned it. She sped up and drove home quickly. The moment she pushed open the door, she stared wide-eyed in disbelief at the sight of the living room. Anthony was playing a game with Chris on the sofa, aloof and elegant as he always was. All he had in his eyes was Chris, just like when she first met him. It was as if he had forgotten about her existence… Charmine frowned. If he was home, why did he not join her meal with the four men? Why was his phone turned off? Anthony turned the moment he heard footsteps, frowning when he spotted her. Charmine asked right away, “Anthony, did you forget what you promised me?” Why did he look so relaxed? Meanwhile, Anthony felt his heart drop when he heard her question. What had he promised her? He tried his best to think about it, but it only made his head hurt. He then vaguely
Recalling that Anthony's absence from meeting the moguls was due to Chris and that he did care a great deal about it, Charmine was no longer angry. “It’s okay. Chris’ health is more important than anything else.” Anthony smiled. “If Chris hears this from you, he’d be so happy that he won’t be able to fall asleep.” Charmine smiled. “I mean it.” Anthony hugged Charmine as she fell asleep while he stayed awake all night. When the sky lit up the next day, he went to the experiment laboratory early in the morning to look for Jennie. Jennie was analyzing the data from the experiment when she saw him coming, unbothered to even acknowledge him. Anthony walked up to her and asked frigidly, “Why do I keep forgetting things?” Jennie scoffed. “Did you expect the suffering to last only on the day of the experiment? I’ve told you that the side effects are severe. You’re lucky that you’re not paralyzed.” Anthony squinted. “What other side effects are there?” Jennie looked at him and
Jonathan washed his hands, but just as he wanted to strike up a conversation with Anthony, he saw him leaving. “Anthony, is this how you treat a brother?” he blurted. “My team is now boycotting me, and I won’t be able to play games today. Can you chat with me?” “I’ll treat you to a meal when I have time,” came Anthony’s simple reply as he got into his car, much to Jonathan’s chagrin. He had heard this phrase over a thousand times from Anthony, but it never came true since they were young! At Violet Residence... Charmine was working in front of her computer. When she saw Anthony coming in, she chimed, “Just in time, Anthony! I just recalled that we haven’t told your grandmother about our wedding. Why don’t you make a trip home today to tell her and try to get your family’s approval?” “Okay,” Anthony agreed, “I won’t let you down this time.” He then typed in Charmine’s reminder into his watch when Charmine was not looking before going back to the company. When it was almost
There was an unnoticeable glint in Sonia's eyes. She nestled herself further into Harry's arms as she added, "Let’s go to Pares. We'll come back after I give birth to the baby.""Alright."Harry stayed by Sonia's side as he watched over her, cared for her, and talked to her until she finally slept in his care.He stood up tiredly and walked out of the room to sit in the living room.Thuck!Something fell out of his pocket.He narrowed his eyes to the source of sound and spotted a USB.Since when did he have a USB in his pocket?With a small frown on his face, Harry curiously picked it up and noticed the front side of the USB glowing. Something was carved onto its surface, too.[Granger].Was it Dior’s USB? Why was her USB inside his pocket?Harry’s clear fingers held on the USB tightly. He thought for a moment before he took out a laptop, turned it on, and plugged in the USB.A moment later, the screen showed what seemed to be peculiar surveillance footage with a descriptio
Dior was still lost in her storm of thoughts when a shadowy figure zipped past her and ran toward Harry.When she spotted this familiar figure, she reacted quickly and held onto him."Let go of me!" growled Guy. "How dare he slap you and misunderstood you? I have to beat some sense into him!"Harry broke free and chased after Harry.Dior, despite having lost all hope and life in her, mustered the last strand of her will to chase after Guy and reeled him back. "Brother, don't," she muttered, "spare your energy…" Her sorrow clouded her eyes as she mumbled, "He’s the man I love. Even though he hates me, I won’t allow you to hurt him. As for the explanation…"Dior smiled ironically. "Whatever. That slap decimated every beautiful daydream I have about him, anyway."She no longer expected anything from him.He had no trust in her, so what would it matter if she finally got him? He did not even love her, and he did not trust her either.Dior smiled elegantly, but her eyes were fille
Dior looked forward to that new shift.She watched as Harry made his way into the restaurant silently, unable to deter her mind from the daydreams she had of him, of the new chapter of their story they would have.He would apologize to her, trying to redeem himself, and kiss her dearly as he embraced her. Later down the line, they would have a child of their own, too.Harry's long legs walked in strides, his dark gaze trained on Dior.The bright light shone on Dior’s delicately stunning face, and she also wore a red dress.He remembered her wearing this back in Mount Village.He could remember how alluring she looked back then, how they stayed in the same room, how she put down her ego to treat him with so much gentleness.Harry’s cold face mellowed down, but recalling a certain memory, the vague wistfulness in him vanished and he sat in front of her.Dior looked at him fondly, like she always would. "Long time no see."Her eyes burned brightly as if she wanted to drink in his
Dior examined the footage the moment she received it.True enough, it showed Sonia and George talking about their little deal. It also showed how Dior was telling the truth while they both ganged up on her.Dior’s frail heart felt as though it was rejuvenated once more, feeling as though blood was once more pumped into her heart. Her dull eyes devoid of hope regained their lost luster once more.Not thinking twice, she dialed Harry's number with this evidence, though he had to be busy, seeing as he did not pick up even after the phone rang for a long while.Just as she was about to hang up, Harry picked up the phone."What do you want?"On the other end of the call was the voice that she had missed for so long. His low, hoarse voice sounded so cold and emotionless.Hearing his voice brought Dior back to the image of his handsome face, and her heart skipped a beat.She tried her best to restrain her fluttering emotions as she tried to speak calmly, "Do you have time? I’d like to
At Mount Village…Inside the elegant bamboo house was Dior, dressed in a beige dress. She sat in the front yard as she took sips of her wine.The sunlight shone past the leaves and illuminated her, yet she exuded an air of loneliness.She swirled the glass and could not help recalling the moments she spent with Harry.In the beginning, she was attracted by his looks; he looked so gentle and elegant.She gave him money, kept him company, and continuously showed up around him in hopes of conquering him.Alas, she ended up in this state.The time she spent with him in Mount Village was the happiest time she had ever had. They had lived inside the bamboo house together, where he took care of her and claimed her to be his woman.They even laid inside the same room.Everything was so beautiful.Cursed was her luck, however, that it was just an illusion. He had been using her from the start, while he chose to stay with the woman who lied to him and even hurt him!No matter how mu
"Although Susan was unhappy, she should've voiced out her displeasure instead of bottling things. Cheating is wrong, regardless. Furthermore, if she wanted a career, she didn't have to stay home and depend on her husband."Grandma Bailey halted.Was that what Charmine truly thought of?Grandma Bailey thought Charmine would find Susan too aggressive unto herself.Charmine glanced at Susan again and apathetically commented, "She doesn't want to make money on her own, but she wants to be rich while complaining about her man not making time for her and taking care of her? If a woman has no ability of her own and also blames others for her miseries, all she's worth is to sit quietly at home and wait for her husband to come home. She also has no right to cheat! This is how the world works."Charmine patted Grandma Bailey’s shoulder and held Anthony’s hand, her words met with everyone's evidently surprised gazes and their silence.Grandma Bailey was shocked. Sure, Charmine sounded rathe
The colossal cruise started to drift away from the pier.Eric stood on the cruise and let the wind blow at him, loneliness and hatred still oozing from his being.He stared at the blue ocean ahead of him as Charmine's words rang in his mind unceasingly.'Will you really feel good after you've killed them?''You saw Susan suffering from a serious wound; would you still kill the one sibling you have left in the world?'"Forgive them and yourself.'Deliberating everything carefully, his lips curled into a bitter smile.It was true, after all, that Charmine understood him the most.Eric poured himself another drink and downed it with loneliness as he allowed the cruise to bring him wherever it would take him.…Susan was still inside the operating room when Charmine and the rest of the Baileys rushed into the hospital.Darryl stood before the room, his expression blank, his figure lonely and helpless.So many things had happened in half a day.He found out about his wife's inf
"No one's stopping you now. Eat!"Anthony clenched his hands tightly and took another glance at Charmine. He was more determined than before, and he was close to eating the pills in the bottle.Charmine, who was held hostage, gradually opened her eyes at that moment. Her gaze drifted toward Eric before she asked, her tone challenging, "Will you really feel good after you've killed them? You saw Susan suffering from a serious wound; would you still kill the one sibling you have left in the world?"Eric halted, and his eyes darkened.Charmine had just woken up, yet what she said…He cast a cold glance at Charmine. "It's my business, and it has nothing to do with you!"They were his family, and he did not want a family like this!Charmine looked squarely at him. "Eric, I don’t care if you used me or plotted against me all these years; I've treated you like a true friend, nothing more nor less. You were the only person who stayed by my side in the past five years, so I hope that you
Anthony's breath hitched when he saw Charmine.He clenched his fists and, without doubting himself, relented "I can agree to your terms, so let her go right away. This has nothing to do with her; you only hate me after all. As long as you let her go, I'll take the pill. Everything will end right away."Susan shook her head. "We'll die after eating the pill. I’m not taking that!"She had just reunited with Eric, and she did not want to die yet. She looked at Eric and begged, "Please let Anthony be, why don't you? He’s your brother, after all, and he doesn’t even know about your existence. If you’re really angry, just kill Charmine, and I'll make it up to you—"Anthony's expression contorted in sheer fury upon hearing Susan's plea, and he glared at her with murderous intent."This was all your fault, so what right do you have to make Charmine take your blame?!""What on earth are you going on about?" snapped Grandma Bailey. "Charmine has been kidnapped because of you, yet you want