Charmine went in to scoop Maurice another bowl. “Thank you.” Maurice accepted it as if this was the best soup in the world. He ate it appreciatively. A warm bowl of soup not only warmed his stomach; it even warmed his heart. Maurice found it surprising that whenever Charmine cooked something, he did not hate them and found them delicious instead.He never felt this way in the past, no matter who made the food or how delicious the food was. When Charmine noticed just how much he enjoyed the soup, she felt a sense of achievement. Seeing that he had finished his second bowl, she went in to get him a third one. She sat by him, watching him eat. She had a thought and asked, “Mo, why do you have anorexia?” The question threw Maurice off his balance as he turned toward Charmine. “How did you find out?” Charmine said, “Sofia told me.” Maurice frowned and looked away. He continued drinking the soup and did not seem willing to mention his past. “It’s nothing much,” came his si
Although Anthony did buy Charmine things that cost more than 1.4 billion, he… He did not even keep his basic promise! When she agreed to marry him, he instantly broke up with her and went to Waverly right away! What a pretentious and disgusting douchebag. Seeing that Charmine’s face changed, Waverly turned smug. “I came here to tell you that my ring has to be perfect. Anthony specially asked for a line to be engraved on it: ‘I will be your rock forever.’” Charmine’s hands clenched the documents tightly. ‘I will be your rock forever’? This was the promise he made for Waverly? She felt like throwing up. Charmine scoffed coldly, “Ohly doesn’t accept any special request. You either get a ring from us or get lost.” Waverly was fuming at this point. She clenched her fists and mocked coldly, “What are you so arrogant for? You’re just a woman who got dumped!” Charmine curled up her red lips and looked at her nonchalantly. “He loved me so much but still left me. What are you
It was then a thought occurred to Waverly as she darkly turned to look at Charmine’s villa.Was it Charmine’s doing? Was it that b*tch? She was the only one who knew she was here.Did Charmine decide to get petty just because she triggered her?Waverly was furious as she clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging deep into her flesh.That Charmine Jordan would not walk out unscathed!Just as she was overtaken by fury, Waverly spotted Anthony walking toward her from across the street.She instantly masked her anger and put on an innocently wronged look. She picked up her bag from the ground and went toward Anthony. “Anthony, I was bullied! Charmine is jealous of you buying such an expensive ring for me, and she had people rob me! They even slapped me!”Waverly made out to be a sympathetic sight as she caressed her throbbing cheeks, looking at Anthony meekly.Anthony, however, sneered. “Good for you!”Waverly was caught off-guard.What… What did he say?Good for her?Antho
Charmine wanted both Anthony and Waverly to hate each other’s guts once they got married. She wanted them miserable. Charmine excused herself from the filming set and phoned the SN Diamond Mine, which just so happened to be one of Charmine’s diamond mines. When the staff answered the phone, he explained, “Boss Jordan, we haven’t extracted it yet. We have a few problems with mining them. It’s hollow below the diamond, which will likely result in a landslide, so we can’t take any chances for the time being.” Charmine frowned. She had to go over in person to find out what the situation was. She had to walk a few kilometers of rugged mountain road to get to the site. Bringing her tools with her and ignoring everyone who stopped her from entering, Charmine walked into the mountain alone. Since she had agreed to hand a diamond ring to Anthony in a week, she had to get it done! Furthermore, the Blue Charm began trending online, and many would come over to see it. She had to be qui
Thomp! Thomp! Both Charmine and Maurice fell into a collapsed yet huge cave. Maurice had instinctively held Charmine tighter to him, and when they fell, his entire being ached. Even with that, he shook it all off, not bothering to inspect himself as he made his way toward Charmine, checking up on her. “Gem, are you hurt?” he asked, sounding concerned. “No.” Charmine looked at him worriedly. After making sure that he was not hurt, she looked around her surroundings. Maurice straightened up, wanting to get back to the surface. However, the mud was too soft; it would not withstand the weight of a person. A person would sink with just a leg in. Maurice took a few steps back to find his balance. Charmine attempted to stand up but ended up in the same state. The mud was too soft—it kept sinking. She grew helpless. The tall mountain not far away from them might collapse anytime and bury both of them in. She did not want to get Maurice in danger because of her. Charmi
Since she was still conscious, Charmine turned around to take one string for Maurice. “Mo, you tie up my hands, and I’ll tie up yours.” This was the only way to prevent anything unsavory from happening. “Okay.” Maurice took the string from Charmine quickly, trying her wrists together, and Charmine did her best for Maurice, too. Following that, the two of them sat at two ends of the cave. A short while later, their body temperature rose. Not wanting this to escalate, Charmine piped up, “Mo, why don’t we talk to distract ourselves.” “Okay.” Maurice’s voice was gentle as always. “What would you like to talk about? I’m listening.” Charmine fell silent for a while before asking, “Mo, how did you suffer from anorexia?” Maurice’s expression changed. He did not want to talk about this as this reminded him of his hurtful past. However, this was not a bad time to talk about it. He took a deep breath and cleared up his mind before saying, “Growing up as a child, my family was po
Charmine learned that her fiancé was in cahoots with her sister in framing her. When she was on the verge of breaking down, she met Anthony. He gave her reasons to live on. He treated her well, loved her, cared for her, and showed her that there was love in the world. When she was finally opening herself up to him and started believing in this man, he cheated on her. Maurice thought of how strong she stood tall these days. He felt his heart shrinking. How did she get weather through all that storm on her own? Maurice gazed at Charmine with his clement eyes. He was worried about this young lady. His throat was burning, and his voice was hoarse as he spoke, “Gem, don’t think too much. As you said, your environment made you who you are today. We don’t need romantic love in this world: We’ve got friendship, family, and our career. You’ll have a better future!” “Yeah.” Charmine thought of the disgusting things Anthony did, and determination flashed across her eyes as she declared, “
Anthony went crazy. He stomped on the gas pedal, and the car zipped away so quickly that it almost vanished. What was supposed to be a two-hour car journey finished in an hour! Anthony arrived before the mine. It was pitch dark and hard to see inside. Heart tightening, he used his phone to light up his way so he could walk forward. Not long after, the sky slowly grew brighter, but he still had not made it to the top. Anthony had not slept for a few days; he even drank bottles and bottles of alcohol. As he walked, his head suddenly buzzed. It was followed by sharp pain, and it felt as if thousands of needles pricked at his nerves. It was so painful that it felt numbing… His face was very pale. His entire body hurt so badly that he could not even continue his walk, only able to prop himself against a tree to massage his head. Afraid of forgetting something, Anthony mustered whatever remaining strength he had to fish out his phone shakily, trying to jot it all down as
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