One could tell right away that it was her in the painting. Charmine then began, “Momo, what if we don’t—” Before she could finish her sentence, Chris chirped, “I’ll get this sorted right away, Mommy! See you later!” With that, he swiftly ran away with his two tiny legs. Charmine could only sigh. That little boy... Nevermind. She never came across any visitor since the day she lived in this mansion, and Momo did say that his grandparents did not like him. Perhaps it was unlikely for them to visit. She regained her composure and started prepping for the night’s Night of Glory. Although she had 10 hours till then, with her formal gown, she had to complement it with a nice hairstyle and pick matching accessories and shoes to show her respect for Mr. Kingston’s hard work. After the meal, April came toward her with a box at hand. “Ms. Jordan, Mr. Bailey told me to take charge of your styling today.” Charmine did all she could to avoid Anthony after their morning incident, bu
After a good while, Charmine answered, “When she wakes up, she must live-stream an apology in front of all her followers and media. She has to admit her wrongdoings and apologize to me.” Tiffany had been hiding away in the hospital as she pretended to be ill, lying on the hospital bed. She had no intention to get involved with the discussions. Did she truly think that after everything she had done, she could stay silent and let time wipe off the memory from everyone’s minds? Hmph, not a chance! Joey hesitated at Charmine’s condition; Tiffany had not been in her best state recently. What if Tiffany fainted again seeing negative online criticisms aimed at her, just as she was getting better? She had such a fragile attitude. How could she apologize in public knowing that she would be criticized for it? Furthermore, sleeping with a brother-in-law was a very shameful act, and nobody would want to speak of it. Joey could not help asking, “Is there no other option? This condition seems…
Tiffany was overwhelmed with hatred. Still, the more furious she was inwardly, the calmer she appeared on the outside. “Mom is right... I’ll apologize to my sister in front of everyone. I’ll do it.”Joey felt something was strange about her daughter’s pitiable look. Although she seemed sincere, Joey could feel that she had changed, as if something was different about her unknowingly. Joey chose not to dwell on it, however, as she just assumed that Tiffany was not in a good mood. Joey went on to cut Tiffany some fruits. Tiffany watched the moving fruit knife as waves of hatred flashed in her eyes. So, Charmine wanted to play? Well, she could barely wait to see who would be the one winning the game! Tiffany wanted nothing more than to see Charmine getting destroyed on the Night of Glory!... Paparazzi were already in the venue for the Night of Glory, even as early as in the afternoon. The night would be the biggest event in the modeling industry, and every popular supermodel in
There was nothing between Charmine and Anthony; they were not even in a relationship. Why bother complicating things? Furthermore, they were going their separate ways in two months’ time, and they would not have anything to do with one another by then. It would only be a joke if anyone found out about their ‘status’, of sorts. Of course, she could not say such things in front of Chris, thus Charmine carefully articulated her words, “Well, you have to take care of Momo, and the alley is around five hundred meters. April will accompany me. Let’s talk about this when Momo gets better.” She emphasized her last sentence to remind him: Everything would be over when Chris got better. Anthony’s eyes darkened and did not insist further. “Take care of her,” he said to April. “Yes, Sir,” came April’s dutiful reply as she walked over to hold up Charmine’s long tail of her gown. Charmine waved at Chris. “Momo needs to be good, alright? Wait for Mommy at home.” With that, she threw a goodb
With just one scratch and a bite, Charmine would be over! April shut her eyes tightly out of fear. Just as the mastiff was mere centimeters away from her, Charmine swung her arm with immense power, and it sent the mastiff stumbling back and running away. It ran for the other end of the alley, and that was where Kelly Milan was! All colors were gone from Kelly’s face at that instant. She instinctively turned and started running as she yelled, “Argh! Someone! Help me! Help me!” Unfortunately, this was the back of the venue. Who would hear her? Moreover, her running away from the mastiff only made it speed up. It revealed its claws and scratched at Kelly’s back with brute force. Rip! A loud tear of cloth was heard. Gown torn at the back, Kelly suffered a long bleeding wound that extended to her buttock! “Argh!” She painfully cried out in a hoarse voice. Too bad for her, the mastiff picked up the scent of blood and aimed for Kelly again! Kelly ran for her life as she s
She glowered at Charmine’s retreating form. “Charmine, you’re a b*tch! Stand there! If you keep walking, I’ll sue you! You made the mastiff attack me, made me fall into the sewage tank, and deliberately hurt me! I’ll make sure you end up in jail!” Charmine then stopped dead in her tracks as she fished out her phone and started typing. Kelly looked at her, her face less furious as she continued to threaten her, “What, are you afraid now? Starting to call for help? I’ll tell you what: Call someone for help right now, or I’ll sue you!” “By all means, go ahead! It can even make the headline! Still, such a great video clip won’t have anywhere to be posted. It’d be a pity, don’t you think?” Charmine said calmly as she showed her screen to Kelly. Instantly, Kelly saw herself inside the sewage tank: The disgusting sewage up to her neck and chin; her hands gripped onto the metal bar tightly; her face and head tainted with sewage. Worse still, she was growling at Charmine with a hideous
Pulled up at last, Kelly laid on the ground, exhausted and overridden with a repugnant smell. Suddenly, Kelly got onto her feet and ran straight for Charmine. “Charmine! I’m going to destroy you! You’ll pay for everything!” She had murderous intent, and it could be seen with her stance. The deep wound she suffered inflicted by the mastiff—the gash that ran down her back—had to be treated in the hospital. This meant she would not be able to attend the Night of Glory, but if she did not show up, they would give her awards to someone else! How could she just stand and watch Charmine attending in such a beautiful gown? No way! She wanted to attack Charmine and damage her face! Meanwhile, the unfazed Charmine had her phone at hand as she merely watched Kelly running for her. “Bring it on. If you’re to hurt a strand of my hair, I’ll send this clip and recording right away! Everyone will see how you, Kelly Milan, tried to attack me with the mastiff but ended up falling into the sewage t
Everyone looked over at the direction pointed by the paparazzi, and they saw Charmine strutting along the red carpet in her red gown toward them. She had fixed her mess from earlier while her gown was dustless and spotless, seemingly perfect. Her gown’s perfect off-shoulder design revealed her collar bones, and the tight cloth wrapped around her long and slim arms. The lower end of the sleeves flared up in a trumpet shape, and it went as far as three meters long on the ground! The long sleeves and gown were embroidered with a golden phoenix. The refined embroidery skill made the phoenix come to life, as if it could come out of the gown anytime and rise up into the sky. The combination of red and gold was a bold statement; the golden lining glowed under the spotlight as it captivated everyone’s eyes instantly. Tiffany clenched her fists tightly as she watched the woman on the television. Why was she there, without a single scratch on her? How could it have happened? At the v
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