“How about Momo sleep with Daddy?” reasoned Charmine. “Or just with Mommy? Having just two people on the bed will let the air circulate better.” “No! Three of us sleep together! I like sleeping with Daddy and Mommy.” Chris looked at Charmine with his puppy eyes. “Other children’s mommy and daddy are together… Unless, Mommy lied to Momo? Does Mommy not want to become Momo’s Mommy?” His voice turned soft and pitiable at the end. Worried that the boy would find out about her contract with Anthony, Charmine explained, “Of course not. Mommy’s just not used to sleeping at the edge of the bed. Mommy will hug Momo to sleep!” With that, she went to the middle of the bed and faced Chris as she hugged him in her arms. With that, Chris could be used as a shield or could be woken up if Anthony was to do anything to her. Anthony looked at her and turned off the lights. The room fell pitch-black dark, and Chris shut his eyes with content. It did not take long until he fell into dreamland and be
Without a word uttered, Anthony’s hand landed on her shoulder before he made a sharp tug. With one pull, a strand of hair was pulled out from the shirt. “…” It was late at night, and Anthony busied himself with pulling out a strand of hair from her shirt? Also, how could he spot a strand of hair in the dark room? The strand of hair only got longer the more he pulled… Realization dawned on Charmine as she half-whispered, “Stop!” Too late. With a pull, the stitches on one pajama sleeve came off. Not knowing what material the shirt was made of, a small patch was already missing on her chest area as her bralette was revealed! Anthony’s large hand halted; he never expected such a thing to happen either. “My apologies,” he muttered lowly, “I’ll get you another shirt to change into?” “No need.” She would wake up anyway, and it would be too much of a hassle to change into another shirt. She pulled over the blanket to cover herself as she added, “Sleep facing away.” Anthony
This woman always managed to surprise him... Still, what was she doing in the Walkers’ base? Once the hurdles were crossed, Charmine eventually arrived at the main base that was guarded with high walls and hounds on patrol not far away. Her red lips curled into a faint smirk as a medicine pill flew across the air, and the hounds dropped to the floor in mere seconds. Her agile figure crossed and turned over the high fence. Inside the wall was a spacious five thousand-square training field. The Walker gang was known to the public as a martial arts teaching organization. Only a handful of people knew that one could only join their training through connections and eventually become a part of the Walker group. Inside the manor were guards in every hundred meters, though Charmine managed to avoid them all as if she was in a no-man’s land. As she passed by the courtyard, a loud ‘crack’ was heard due to the broken porcelain. Luckily, she quickly jumped onto the trunk and effectively h
The ledger recorded the information from January to December five years ago. Some were of debt-collections, some were of revenge, some were ‘teaching someone a lesson’, while some were on information-spying. The Walkers seemed rather resourceful. As she turned the pages, she eventually reached their July records. Her movement slowed down as a strange uneasiness emerged from within. Anxiously, she saw a line of writing: [13th of February. Client: Veronica Ramos, Hired: Rex Walker, Target: Charmine Jordan, Commission: 50000.] Charmine’s eyes squinted. Rex Walker? The man who ruined her was Rex Walker? Once Charmine turned on her phone and powered up a global-file storage engine, her fingers fluttered as she typed on the screen. Not long after, a man’s profile came out. Rex Walker. Burlington. Primary school education. Illiterate. Multiple rape incidents. The photo showed a man of thick and rough complexion, with his skin dull and dark along with yellowish buck teeth. Cha
[Congratulations to Boss for 10 wins in a row!] Robert frowned in disbelief as he quickly ended his game to enter observer mode. He saw a female sniper that roamed the map that would, from time to time, shift between killing soldiers and slaughter monsters. The female sniper would even shoot at other players for no reason. The shooter was usually the most vulnerable character that could be killed at any time, yet she was able to use the immunization boost to avoid all attacks. She managed to turn dangerous tides into victories and killed all of her enemies. Utterly fascinating! Who knew that a vulnerable shooter could be so dangerous? Moreover, records even showed that the gamer was a female! There was a female gamer with such refined skills?! Robert instantly dropped her a message that read, [Hello. Are you interested to sign with SA? Give us a price.] Robert wanted to sign her in his team so badly, but she did not reply at all. After the game ended, she went right into ano
Charmine slept soundly for a very long time. When she opened her eyes, she was greeted by a luxurious high ceiling. What was she leaning against? She looked back to see that Anthony was laying beside her, and what she was leaning against was his right arm! How did that happen? Was she not playing her game last night? Why was she in Anthony’s arms?! Once he noted that Charmine was awake, Anthony put down his working phone and asked with his deep voice, “Do you feel unwell?” Charmine shook her head in reply when she spotted the time on his phone. It was already six in the evening! She slept till six in the evening of the next day! She sat up and asked, “You stayed here with me the entire day?” “Mhm.” Anthony tried to get up, but when he tried to move his right arm, he realized that he could not move it. A flash of discomfort appeared in his eyes. Looking at his numbed right arm, Charmine instinctively went to massage it as she commented, “Are you crazy? You could’ve pushed
“Five years ago, I was—” “Mommy! Mommy!” Before Charmine could finish, a small figure barged into the room. With a bowl of green soup at hand, Chris ran toward her and handed it to her. “Mommy, this is a soup that Daddy asked them to make for you. It’s a secret recipe, and you won’t have any headache after drinking this.” “Thank you, Little Momo.” Charmine went soft for Chris as she pinched his cheek. Once she accepted the bowl, she slurped the soup without hesitation. Charmine then returned the bowl to Chris. “Mommy and Daddy have things to talk about. Why don’t you go play downstairs first? Mommy will come find you later.” Charmine made up her mind; Anthony would be told everything. Unexpectedly, Chris replied, “Grandpa and Grandma called me earlier, saying that they’re arriving here in half an hour.” Anthony had told Chris to stay downstairs, and if it was not because of the call, the boy would have stayed downstairs. Charmine’s brows furrowed. “What did you say? You
McKenzie merely stood by their sides, her elegant face reddened slightly as she lowered her head in embarrassment. Anthony remained emotionless as he quipped, “Since when are you in charge of choosing my partner?” His cold tone was filled with displeasure. Darryl growled, “How old are you now? You’re almost thirty! What are you waiting for? Is it that you’re still trying to find that woman from five years ago? “Oh Anthony, I know you’re holding a grudge against us, but no matter who it is, nobody could accept a nobody who gave birth to your boy.” Susan pulled on McKenzie and walked forward. “McKenzie is a clean and healthy girl. She doesn’t mind that you’ve got a son and said she’d treat Momo well. What else are you hesitating for? So what if you found the woman from five years ago? How could she compare to McKenzie?” McKenzie looked at Anthony elegantly as her red lips parted, “Anthony, your parents are getting old. Do you really want to see them worrying over you? Also, Mo
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