The serving staff frowned. They had reserved the place in Max’s favor. If he decided to not officiate the reservation that was happening in two days, who would reserve it? If they had a day of no reservations, they would lose up to ten million. He would lose his commission! He instantly instructed the guards, “Come, and ask Ms. Jordan to leave!” These guards had been serving all kinds of moguls of all industries. To someone like Charmine with only some money, they did not take her seriously. They instantly walked toward Charmine to ask her to leave, pushing her as one of them said, “Hurry, please leave. Don’t be so shameless. This isn’t a place for someone like you to be at.” Charmine did not expect them to be physical. They were hotel staff workers; did they just touch her? Pushed with such force, she staggered and almost slipped...when she suddenly fell into a warm embrace. She turned back to see that it was William. Holding her in his arms, William instantly let he
As they were all in shock, William continued, “Furthermore, even if she has an attitude, she’s my friend. I’ll only let her have the reservation.” His tone was gentle yet arrogant. Max’s expression darkened instantly. William was that protective over Charmine, so much so that he would only let Charmine have the slot? Max scoffed, “Mr. Peterson, things must be fair. Are you sure this is how you’re treating your client?” “My apologies, but I’ve made up my mind. Please leave.” William looked him in the eye, not once budging from his stance. Max clenched her fists tightly. Damn William! He was a well-known businessman himself, yet William treated him with such an attitude? Alas, Max had close relations with the people from the association. Kansas focused on scientific development as well. William’s words were powerful. Max had to hold it in. After staring at Charmine with anger, he walked away. Charmine took out her phone and captured the image of Max leaving the flo
If they could not win Charmine location-wise, they could only… Thinking of something, Max’s eyes lit up as he said to Waverly, “What about this: I’ll ask them to move over all of the newly-bred White Camellia flowers for the decoration in two days.” When Waverly heard that, her frown eased slightly. “Alright. Thank you, brother.” She smiled. The White Camellia was a mysterious flower that only existed in mythology. Rumors had it that there were only leaves with no petals. It was a very rare species. Kansas had attempted to breed this flower and succeeded. If they could use the White Camellia as decorations, they would make Charmine lose! Max sighed in relief—he managed to make his woman happy. He took out his phone as he was about to make the arrangement, but he just so happened to see the news that read, [Shocking! Max D’Cruz Shamelessly Kicked Out of Skyview Tower!] It took only a while before the article made it to the hot-list. The comment section was full of negati
Charmine was unable to react on time as Anthony carried her and tossed her to the bed. Plopped onto the soft, large bed, she watched as Anthony removed his clothes. She understood instantly. “Anthony, what did you hear today? Did someone tell you about William again?” “I gave you a chance to speak, so you don’t have to explain anymore,” spoke Anthony as he unbuttoned his white shirt. He had respected her wishes all this while, yet it seemed that the longer he waited, the more likely it was for her to run away with someone else. Charmine felt the tense aura that came from his being. As if sensing what he was about to do, she sat up right away. “Don’t mess things up, Anthony—I haven’t even had the time to tell you about what happened today. I was going to tell you after returning the favor to him.” “So what you’re saying is that if I didn’t find out, you never planned on telling me?” As he spoke, Anthony tossed his shirt to the hanger by the side and went right on top of
The document detailed a rather challenging research topic; it was about how to increase the working speed of a chip. Charmine thought Anthony was just a president of a company, but who would have thought he knew about technology as well? Charmine frowned. “What are you doing?” “Don’t ask, go to bed,” replied Anthony before he focused once more on the document. Instead of going away to bed as told, she went to the sofa by the side and rested. She took a blanket and draped it over herself and waited. After Anthony had fixed the documents, he sent it to William. Attached to the document, he typed, [Thank you for helping my lady today. I’ve helped you with the document, so you don’t owe each other anything.] Charmine’s lips twitched as she sat on the sofa not too far from him. This man sacrificed minutes of sleep just for this! Meanwhile... When William noticed Charmine was sending him a document, he grew excited and racked his mind on how to reply to her. He could r
Waverly thought of her plan and asked them to make another news. [Shocking! Waverly’s Birthday Banquet Decorated In White Camellias!] Included were a few photos of the flowers. There were White Camellia flowers everywhere on the venue’s rooftop. The flowers were placed one next to another as they sprouted from the long, dewy tendrils, curling to one another as they did. Though small and delicate, the flowers were white like snow; it gave off a profound sense of sacredness. Countless white flowers adorned the venue and were like stars that embellished the green branches. They were beautiful, dreamy, refreshing, and surreal. The photos, once exposed to the masses, struck everyone in awe. [Is this the White Camellias that bloom every 3000 years?] [Kansas managed to breed the White Camellias? And they’d use them on Waverly’s birthday banquet? How luxurious!] [Argh! Waverly is so amazing! I want to cry with envy!] [We’re from the Aerotech National Academy of Sciences!
Although he believed in Charmine’s capability, he could not take any risk. He had to hang up and go to the company.... Inside the office, Senior Bailey sat on the sofa with his eyes closed. He tapped his walking stick to the ground from time to time, the staff embroidered with a handcrafted dragon head at the hilt. In came Anthony as he sat opposite to the elder. “What do you want to do?” he asked dully. Senior Bailey finally opened his eyes, and not beating around the bush, said, “Tomorrow is Waverly’s birthday banquet. You need to be with her all the way.” “Have you forgotten that Charmine saves Grandma’s life? I’ve told you all about my relationship with Waverly,” Anthony bit back coldly, and his displeasure showed on his face. “Charmine saved your Grandma, and it’s fair we will thank her for it,” said Senior Bailey. “We’ve prepared a handsome gift for her tomorrow. Thinking of being with Charmine, on the other hand? Forget about it!” His tone was very determined as he
Chris took out a card from his tiny bag for Charmine. “Mommy, hurry up and prepare for it. Tomorrow is your birthday, and you got to look pretty!” When Charmine received the card, she saw that it was a private reservation ticket at Bling Spa. Bling Spa was an exclusive spa owned by the Bailey Corporation. From facials to spas, haircuts, foot massages, and body massages—they had everything. For her, Anthony had made her a private booking for the entire space. She vaguely understood that Anthony was helping her to be stunning tomorrow. With what he usually did, he must have gone to prepare her a surprise. It did seem she had not taken a breather for quite a while. Since she still had to compete with Waverly the following day, it was time for her to relax. She said to Chris, “If I’m going today, what about you? Would you like to come with me?” “Nah, I want to stay home today and guard our house,” Chris quickly turned it down. He had a hidden agenda, in truth: Knowing Anth
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