“Are you overthinking things again, Charmine?” Anthony’s husky, magnetic voice was evidently displeased. As they were just a breath away, Charmine could clearly feel his crisp and cold breath fanning her face, and her heart skipped a beat. She scooted away, attempting to pull away from him, but Anthony’s arm hooked around her waist tightly and gave her no chance to escape. She then reasoned, “I’m not overthinking; I’m just looking at the fact. “If we’re both more rational in this situation, we really have no need to be together. Even if we’re together, we should at least keep it low, especially in the hospital where Annabel is around. We should avoid this. “After all, Chris’ life depends on Annabel’s pregnancy, and Annabel did have it real bad. If she’s affected and is unable to conceive, Momo will be done for…!” Anthony could detect Charmine’s worry, and he kept his hand around her waist as he lowly spoke, “Letting Annabel become a surrogate mother is merely letting her
The man had glasses on and donned a white shirt. He looked gentle. The woman, meanwhile, had a luxurious jacket on, and it gave her the image of a lavish person. It was Derek and Yvette. She knew about these two; they fought for power over the Bailey family against Anthony. If they found out about her and Anthony, Senior and Madam Bailey might find out. As her situation with Anthony was already difficult, things would get messier if the Baileys were involved. Charmine moved further back into the car and put on her sunglasses. Outside the car, a teacher brought down Chris and Coco. When Chris saw Anthony standing by the gate, he walked toward him unwillingly without even smiling. Coco, meanwhile, launched toward her parents. “Daddy! Mommy!” “My sweet Coco, let Mommy give you a hug.” Yvette hoisted Coco into her arms as she lovingly pinched her chubby and pouty cheeks. Coco pecked Yvette’s face. “I love Mommy! I really love my Mommy! Thank you Mommy for coming to
However, Anthony acted as if he did not understand her signal. He placed his hand on the window button and looked up at Charmine. “Anything wrong, my lady?” “Stop joking around at such a time! You know what to do!” hissed Charmine, half-yelling and half-whispering to Anthony. Anthony’s lips curled into a half-smile. “I don’t understand what my lady means! The air is stuffy, and I want to open the window for some fresh air.” “Anthony Bailey!” Charmine almost yelled at him through gritted teeth. This man was doing this on purpose! Chris reminded her, “Mommy, Daddy finds it hard to breathe from time to time. Sometimes, all he needs is CPR!” CPR? This child…! However, Anthony’s eyes landed on her as if he was waiting. Charmine was speechless. They were joining forces to threaten her! They were cheating! Meanwhile, Derek who was outside the car knocked again. “Brother, I just need to speak to you about something. Do you have to do this?” His tone was sounding impati
That night, Chris made Charmine sleep with Anthony. Anthony had always thought Chris was a nuisance in his progressing relationship with Charmine… Who would have thought the boy would turn out to be a stellar middle-man? He put his hand around Charmine’s waist and fell into a deep slumber. Anthony woke up later that same midnight as he saw Charmine asleep by her laptop, seemingly to have worked on something before she dozed off. There was a design diagram displayed on the still-on laptop. Frowning, he got out of bed and walked over to carry Charmine back to bed. Too tired with everything that happened that day, Charmine was out like a light. Anthony gently covered her up with a blanket. Thinking of how much Charmine had worked and struggled, he then walked out of the room and closed the door behind him. Late at night, he dialed Nial’s number. Nial was sleeping soundly when he heard his phone ringing urgently. Dazed and baffled, he answered the call to hear Anthony’
Westfield, inside the chief’s house... Max sat at the center of the house, signing a document before pushing it to Westfield’s Chief Warren Lucas. Warren had 20 other people by his side, each reluctant and hesitant. Max played around with his ring with meteorite inlay as he spoke, “Sign it. Even if you don’t sign it now, more people would come here and give you more headache as it develops. That evil woman, Charmine Jordan is preparing to attack you all with her evil tactics. “Furthermore, nobody else would be like me, giving you fifty percent of the land’s shares, and you’re also provided with land at a strategic location. We can always recreate Westfield detail by detail.” Everyone’s eyes narrowed—Max had a point. Usually whenever someone came for them, they would only offer money, but Max was willing to give them shares. 50% of shares implied that even after they moved out from here, this land would still belong to them. Max bought another land outside of the city an
Charmine met his eyes and answered honestly, “Of course it’s real. I know the reason you all stayed here for so long isn’t to mark up the price, and it’s not that you all want more money. You just want to preserve the last heritage area in Burlington. “I understand your sentiment, and I understand where you’re all coming from. The Jordan Group used to be the No.1 development group in the country, and we have the duty to make our country proud!” Most of the tall towers all around the country were built in a European-esque manner. Only some attraction spots still preserved the heritage buildings. Burlington was a country of rich culture and history, How could its tradition be drowned with the tides of time? On the right top corner of the painting, a line of words was written, [Our aim is to bring back the glory of Burlington.] As the residents realized how much effort and conviction Charmine had to bring back Burlington’s glory, coupled with that painting of hers, their eyes w
Westfield was located at the heart of Burlington, and a few buildings of Jordan Group stood erect in this land. Due to the Jordan Group’s scandal, many properties were left unsold. If Max could own this land, he could establish control over the Jordan Group with his newfound authority, blocking them from rising again. With that in mind, Max shot Charmine a sharp glare. “I’m giving you a chance to leave. As long as you get out of my sight with your design diagram, I’ll let you go easy and pretend as if nothing happened today. Otherwise, well, I’ll have to beat some sense into you!” His words were filled with threat. All of the residents were so terrified that they huddled together anxiously. However… “Excuse me, but the person who should get lost is you!” Charmine stated seemingly unperturbed. Her eyes flashing with a glint of deadliness. With a mere wave of her hand... Tap, tap, tap! Hundreds of men rushed in from the outside, dressed cleanly with agent suits and bul
Max left Westfield and returned to a hotel, seething with rage. Waverly was sitting by the window, leaning on the window that overlooked Burlington. Her eyes were dark and nostalgic. When she heard the door unlocking, she composed her thoughts and asked, “Back so soon, Brother? Have you signed the Westfield contract?” “I failed. That woman, Charmine, was able to design an ancient-styled tower, and the bunch was persuaded on the spot. Seeing her capability, it seems rather hard to plot against the Jordan Group.” Max’s tone dripped with fury. Waverly frowned. Was Charmine that capable? However, after a moment, she looked at Max and comforted him gently, “Brother, don’t worry—this is only a start. It’s a minor setback, is all. We can make it up from the others, and I believe you’ll be able to make a name in Burlington and take over the Jordan Group.” Her voice was gentle and beautiful, one that eased a person’s mind. “Thank you, Waverly. I’ll work hard for you.” Suddenly,
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