Under the impression that Charmine was convinced, Claire then added, “You might be wealthy, Charmine, but you know that it’s all about connections and resources in this modeling industry. It involves proper planning such as organizing resources, fan management, marketing, photoshop, copyright, and so on. “A top supermodel needs at least a team of twenty supporting her. How could you manage it all by yourself? Don’t you think it’ll be tiring? Once you sign with HollyOak Entertainment, we’ll sort them all out for you.” Of course, Charmine knew these things; she was merely wondering about Kelly Milan’s intentions. If memory served right, Kelly Milan was trying to sign her to freeze her fame. Why else would someone as bitter as Kelly want to be nice to her? “I’m sorry, but someone’s managing them for me,” she deadpanned before marching out of the restroom. Claire wanted to run after her, but Charmine was taking the VIP aisle which was only allowed for people of high status. Claire
Claire turned to look at the person yelling her name and saw Hubert walking up to her. She then sneered, “Mr. Zane, as a chief executive officer, you certainly don't have a spark of decency in you. Are you one those nouveau riches?” “What’s wrong with that? Don’t think you can, can you? Ha! A nobody like you dares to challenge me. You obviously have your head too far up your *ss. Let me tell you now: I’ll be signing Charmine Jordan. You try anything funny and you’re dead meat, you hear me?” sneered Hubert in an attempt to steer Claire away from his plan. She frowned. “Charmine? She’s not signing with my company.” “Stop your shenanigans! You’ve been trying to compete with us since day one... I think you need to be taught a lesson. Do you want me to expose the fact that your artists are nothing but a bunch of phonies?” Hubert threatened. Unexpectedly, Claire began to laugh at this. “Go ahead! Let's do this little dance. You expose my phony talents, and I’ll expose your pimped-out
Due to the commotion and aftermath of Hubert and Claire’s showdown, Anthony’s VIP room was flooded with clamor the moment Charmine opened the door to enter. Chris—who feasted on fried chicken wings—was blatantly startled at the noise. “Mommy, what’s happening outside? Why so noisy?” “Nothing, just two dogs fighting.” She closed the door and shut out the hubbub. Charmine then sat down beside Chris and gently wiped his mouth with a napkin. “You should eat more,” she spoke, “your body needs more energy.” “Okay! Mommy should have some too. This cake is yummy!” Chris forked a piece from the cake and tried to feed her. Charmine obediently opened her mouth, and his chubby hand carefully fed it to her. The boy’s act warmed her heart. She never knew happiness could be so simple. Anthony dined gracefully as he watched the two interact with one another, and a smile slowly made its way to his face. It was a lovely dinner.… Anthony finished his meal about twenty minutes later.
Anthony’s brows furrowed. “I can help your company grow faster.” “Ah?” It was only then that Charmine felt something was amiss. “Is there a problem?” Why was he, oh-so suddenly, talking about helping her company grow faster? He never brought this up before. Anthony's expression hardened, but just as he was about to speak, Charmine’s phone rang. She picked up her phone. “Charmine,” came Eric’s stern voice from the other side, “what the hell have you done? Why is the whole internet banning you?” Big brands had fought each other to work with Charmine after last night, but they all put the brakes on their invites. Charmine frowned. “Ban? Today? I didn’t do anything…” Charmine trailed off as she remembered the incident with Hubert and Claire. “In less than an hour? Man, they’re efficient,” she mumbled, somewhat surprised. “Okay, so you did do something. How did you manage to get the whole internet to boycott you in one day?” Eric asked in confusion. Anthony had his piercing
Charmine remembered she had assured Anthony that the situation was under control, yet he was still worried about her to the point he could not sleep! She instantly broke off their eye contact and changed the subject. “Everybody is following these two entertainment giants because they’re using their A-listers as bargaining chips,” Charmine explained. “What if we recruit their artists instead? Make them lose their leverage.” “Recruit them?” Anthony raised his eyebrows. “Yes. I know RisingHawk isn’t mature yet, but we’re not short of money either. If you can fix a problem with money, it isn’t a problem at all.” It was only then when Charmine turned to look at him again. “Guess how many people would flock to us if I announced whoever signs with us will get a hundred percent of their endorsement fee.” “A whole hundred percent?” Anthony placed his hand on her forehead and said, “Charmine, you’d earn nothing.” “I’ve earned enough over the past five years. I just want to have some
HollyOak Entertainment was the top dog in the industry. Where would their artists go if they terminated their contracts? The assistant quavered from head to toe before she inhaled deeply and added, “Charmine just tweeted... Miss Milan... I think you should look at it yourself...” She was too terrified to break the news. Kelly immediately took out her phone and checked Twitter. There it was; Charmine’s tweet that read, [HollyOak and Fortune Entertainment have formed an alliance to crush me. Haha! You’re foolish to think that you can destroy me. Within ten days, whoever signs with RisingHawk will get a whole hundred percent of their earnings, and you even get to decide the terms of your contract. For those who decided to work with my company, you’ll get a DovEgg diamond ring, limited to the first ninety-nine people!] Though she was basically blown off from the internet and the tweet did not become one of the trending posts, Charmine still had her dedicated fans to viral her po
Kelly’s eyes burned with anger as a million thoughts raced in her mind; she struggled to find the best answer for her difficult predicament. It did not take long before she growled, “I don’t have the company’s seal with me. The chairman took it. We’ll talk about this later.” Kelly did not wait for a reply as she walked toward the door. The celebrities in the room immediately sprang into action as they blocked her way. “You can’t leave! You’re the largest shareholder of the company, and we’ll only be needing your signature!” “You’ve been taking advantage of us for a long time! We have money with us this time, so why won’t you just sign the paper?” “Sign the papers! You can’t leave if you don’t sign them!” They effectively barricaded her exit. Left with no other choice, Kelly yelped, “Security! Security!” Just like that, securities barged in and Claire stepped forward to protect Kelly from the mob. They eventually made it out, though not without a scuffle. Both of th
Charmine then sent an ultimatum to Eric: [It’s a yes to the Amor Group.] Eric instantly made the arrangements after Charmine’s answer. Charmine then walked back inside from the balcony after the matter was settled, and she saw Momo staring blankly at his book on the table. It seemed as though he was troubled. Charmine then walked toward the boy, When she got close enough, she gently asked, “What’s wrong, Momo? Do you need help?” “Mm... Momo needs to write about ‘family’. Momo needs to write about Daddy, Mommy, Grandpa, and Grandma. Momo has Mommy, but Momo doesn’t have a...grandpa and a grandma,” muttered Momo, a deep frown on his face as he spoke. Charmine was puzzled at the boy’s answer. “You sure Momo? That can’t be. Mommy remembers my Momo having awesome Grandpa and Grandma.” She knew that Chris’ grandfather was from a family of doctors. He was renowned for his medical skills and had come a long way with awards throughout the years. His wife, Chris’ grandmother, was born
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