“We’re off to Roskow, Chloe,” replied Charmine gently. “Take good care of Grandma at home. We’ll come and visit you when we have time.” Chloe pursed her lips and fixed her eyes on Charmine. She asked, “You’re leaving all of a sudden, Auntie Charmine. Are you hiding from Uncle Anthony? Have you decided to hide away for a few years to feel better? You don’t have to go so far; you can keep a low profile in Mount Village!” Charmine stiffened. It was as if she was exposed, her pupils dilated and quivered. Lips pressed into a thin line, she then parted them and said, “You’re still a young girl, Chloe, you don’t understand. I’m not doing this for anyone. I have my own plan.” With that said, she ruffled her hair. “Go back to sleep.” Charmine opened the car door. Just as she was about to go inside— Knowing she had yet to convince Charmine, Chloe blurted, “Uncle Anthony isn’t getting married; he went to get treated on an island. This surgery only has a twenty-percent chance of succes
Dior took a deep breath before she turned to look at the two children next to her. “Let’s head back and sleep,” she spoke. The two children held hands as they walked back to their homes with Dior. Chloe returned to her house while Dior brought Chris back to the bamboo house. After tucking him in bed, Dior went to the living room alone. Seeing how vacant the place was, it upset her. Even Charmine had left, leaving her in this place on her own. She was the only one brokenhearted. Charmine could reunite with Anthony, while she and Harry would never be together. Dior took out a bottle of beer from the fridge and plopped herself on the sofa, drinking away her woes. A bitter laugh escaped her lips. She acted as though nothing happened as she continued drinking the beer in mouthfuls. The alcohol burned at her throat, causing her to choke and cough. Dior bent forward, and her figure looked crushed, defeated. Meanwhile… The sky grew bright as a car drove away from Mount Vi
Anthony helplessly closed his eyes, and images of Charmine’s face danced in his mind. ‘Wait for me, Charmine. You have to wait for me.’ Nial then wore surgical gloves and said, “Take a breather, Bro. I’ll be administering anesthesia to you.” Anthony gave a sign of acknowledgment at that. Just as Nial was about to inject a needle connected to an IV of anesthesia… Thomp! The door to the operation room was kicked open. All heads snapped toward the door and saw a tall figure walking toward them, her face overshadowed by the light behind her, her figure emanating prominence. “Stop!” she demanded as she glared at the operation table. Anthony jolted. That was…Charmine’s voice! He looked over to see Charmine walking toward them lordly. “Charmine…” He looked at her in shock. “Why did you come?” Nial was in so much shock that only then did he react. “Charmine? You…” It was as though no one else was around as Charmine continued to stare at Anthony, who was laying on the
Charmine held Anthony’s hand and smiled. “Let’s head home.” Anthony nodded. ‘Head home.’ Oh, the long-forgotten words. His heart was filled at last. … Burlington, Bailey Mansion. Anthony and Waverly’s wedding was to happen in two days. The entire Burlington was looking forward to their wedding and to how extravagant it would be. The number of visitors was increasing…but Waverly was like an ant trapped in a heated pot. She was getting married in two days, but her fiance was out of touch! She was under the assumption Anthony would return and marry her after he had left Charmine, and that was why she daringly aired the news and wanted everyone to know about their wedding. Little did she expect Anthony to not have come home. None of the Baileys managed to get hold of him, either. The number of visitors was increasing, and everyone asked where Anthony was before the wedding. Susan could only explain awkwardly, “Anthony is out making arrangements for the wedding. He
Waverly beamed, “An—” Before Waverly could call out Anthony’s name fully, she spotted something. Anthony’s hand held onto the car door. With a click, the backdoor was opened, and he put his hand over the top of the door in a chivalrous manner. A second later, Charmine, dressed in a red top and high-waist black dress that showed off her long and beautiful legs, stepped out with her ten-centimeter heels. Anthony looked at her lovingly as he took hold of her smaller hand. Visitors of the Bailey mansion suddenly fell mum, unable to make a sound. They could only stare at the two of them in shock. Waverly, still riled up with anticipation a moment ago, felt herself faltering. Charmine? Why would she show up here?! What was Anthony doing, bringing her with him? What did he mean? Before she could react, well-established reporters rushed over with countless flashes and microphones pointed at the two of them. “President Bailey, why did you bring another woman home before your
Anthony merely glanced at Susan coldly, not bothering to address her as he instead spoke to Grandma Bailey, “I won’t marry Waverly. The only person I’ll marry is the one and only Charmine Jordan.” Everyone else in the mansion was so shocked at the declaration that their jaws dropped in shock. President Bailey was canceling his wedding for this woman? How riveting! The selling point was more catchy than having an extravagant wedding! The exhilarated reporters pointed their cameras and continued to take photos of Anthony. Waverly had just walked in when she heard Anthony’s bold words. She lost balance and staggered a few steps back, her already pale face had lost most of its color at this point. She could not believe a single bit of this. She held on the wine glass tightly as if she would crush it anytime. Grandma Bailey did not care about Susan’s reaction. She looked at Anthony and Charmine peacefully, satisfied as she answered, “Alright, Anthony. If this is what you’ve de
“I’ve never announced to the public that I’m marrying you; you were the one working on everything. You wanted the whole world to know, and this is the outcome of it all! “You… You…” Waverly was so overwhelmed by her emotions that she glared at Anthony furiously with reddened eyes. “You agreed to marry me! You even took the wedding photos with me and even allowed me to decorate our wedding room! Are you backing down on your word? “You knew the reason why I agreed to get married to you better than anyone!” Anthony glared at her with an owl-like gaze. “Didn’t you use it as an opportunity to steal Charmine’s man? Now that I’ve got my own plan, I don’t need you anymore. Know your place!” Waverly’s face turned pale. She knew it from the start. Still…did Anthony not suffer from amnesia? Was he not supposed to be unable to reconnect with Charmine? Why did he change his mind all of a sudden? Waverly did not mind about his amnesia, yet he would still go against her? Waverly g
Waverly’s entire form emanated bitterness as she angrily smashed a delicate vase onto the ground. What did these idiots know about what happened? How could they say such things about her? Enraged, she dialed her assistant’s number. “Instantly delete every comment about me online. I don’t want to see anything negative about me!” “Understood!” responded Britney diligently. Hanging up the call, Waverly took a sharp inhale of the smoke from the cigarette on her lips. As smoke shrouded her face, a deadly gaze shone through. To hell with that cheap person! How could she ruin her wedding? She became the joke of the town already! Charmine Jordan…and Anthony Bailey! She would have these two suffer for their transgression against her, ten to a hundred times fold! … Anthony left with Charmine and went into a car. This was the first time that they both sat together so peacefully for a very long while. Guilt haunted Anthony as he drove the car, grabbing the steering wheel 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