At the next moment, a minor shareholder busted into the conference room. “I object to Sally and Andrew being the candidates for the CEO position! They don’t qualify!”Andrew was so furious that he jumped from his seat and roared at Hendrix. “It’s bad enough that you came late to the meeting, Hendrix. How dare you claim that I don’t qualify to be one of the candidates the moment you barge in here? Are you saying I’m worse than this gimp here?”On the other hand, Hendrix knew he had to carry out the task Cedric had assigned him. He was already a minor shareholder in the Valentine Group to begin with. He didn’t enjoy much authority, and he wasn’t particularly capable, either. If he added offending Cedric to the list, he was sure he’d suffer a terrible consequence!“Don’t you know why you don’t qualify? Try checking your phone! You physically abused your wife, Shelly, and took Sally to the hotel more than 30 times. This news made the trending topic!“Shelly is accepting interviews
“That’s because I’ve been gathering evidence, but he had eyes on me, watching my every move. It was hard, but I have the evidence now. On top of that, Andrew was spending more time on the Valentines Group. That gives me a chance to slip away from the ‘Lumiere Mansion.’”Shelly said every word confidently, so much so that nobody could tell she was lying a little. In the middle of her speech, tears began dropping.“The internet is circulating news that Andrew took Sally to the hotel. What do you know about this?” Another reporter asked.She nodded. “I know about it. Andrew told me about Sally. However, I had no idea news about them would surface after I revealed my incident.”“Are you saying that you have nothing to do with the evidence on the internet?”“That’s right.” She nodded and responded weepingly, “I’m not that capable, and I certainly don't have the means to get my hands on that evidence. “However, I firmly believe we should always do the right thing. My revelation must’v
Andrew kept cursing in his mind. Shelly was supposed to be an eye candy. He couldn’t believe she chose to set herself on fire just to burn him along! This was more than just stabbing him in the back. He and Sally were at a complete disadvantage in the shareholder meeting because of Shelly’s actions.Sally clenched her fists and said, “There’s nothing between me and Andrew. We’ve done nothing wrong, as all of you will soon find out. As for Andrew and his wife, I’d argue that it’s their private business. How can we just believe in Shelly’s one-sided statements? “We shouldn’t poke our noses into their family affairs. That’s the end of it! We have to press on with the shareholder meeting. Let’s do this the old-fashioned way. The candidate with the most votes will be promoted to CEO!” Now that it came to this, she had to roll the dice. It was sink or swim.Cedric sneered, disdain clear in his eyes. “Going by the number of votes, huh?” His cold voice sent a chill down the other sha
“Why should I care about you, Sally? Are we related in any way?”“Why, you…” She gritted her teeth. She had never expected Andrew to turn his back on her like this. Andrew laughed and took steps toward her. There was nobody around them.“I heard everything earlier. Eddie said he’ll make sure you get nothing out of the divorce. In your little speech, you also did everything you could to distance yourself from me. What makes you think of me now, huh?”She had to put her pride aside and grab his arms.“D-Don’t do this to me. You were so nice to me a few days ago…”“If I had known sleeping with you would bring me this heap of trouble, I wouldn’t have laid a finger on you, Sally. After all, there are a lot of pretty ladies out there, and it’s not like I’d have trouble finding one for myself.” With that, he shook off her hands.“Your gimp of a husband is Cedric’s brother. With someone like Cedric backing him up, there’s no way you’d be able to outmatch him! You’ll have to cut your
Eddie’s heart skipped a beat as he gripped the armrest of his wheelchair nervously. “I got it. Thank you, doctor.” The doctor shook his head as he walked out of the presidential suite. The living area fell into silence and no one knew what to say. After a while, Eddie finally asked, “Cedric, are you leaving soon?” Cedric knew that Lauren was in dire condition. She might not even be able to survive until tomorrow. He knew it was his duty, as her son, to be by her side.“I’ll be back tomorrow night.” Cedric did not want to leave Maia alone as he knew that she must have missed him. “Don’t worry about Mom. I’ll take care of her and inform you if there’s any update on her condition.”“Thank you. I’ll be back soon.”That night, Cedric took a flight back to Prismara City. Unbeknownst to Maia, the man that she was missing dearly was on his way home to her. She was overjoyed when she saw the news about the Fox family. Fischer smiled and passed the good news to her. “Ms. Maia, it
That night, Prismara City continued to snow heavily, while Nordic City’s average temperature lowered rapidly as well. When Lauren walked out of the bedroom, she noticed Eddie seated in the living room going through all the files from work. She dragged her exhausted body toward him. “You’re still going through them?”“Yeah, you had been handling all the work on your own for so many years. It’s time I learn how to take over.” He continued, “I want to show those who had doubted me that even with this body of mine, I can still do better than them.”Lauren knew that he was no longer that same despondent kid. She smiled in relief and asked, “Is this an influence from your brother as well?”“Maybe. After all, my brother is the most capable person I’ve seen in this business industry.” It was an honor to be able to be related to Cedric Larkin.“He knew that his brother would not hesitate to help if needed. It was because of this that he wanted to work harder to make Cedric proud. “I’v
“Mother, she went missing three years ago. I searched for her for years, and I found out that she had passed away. I saw her body with my own eyes. She was unrecognizable. I could only identify her from the three moles that she has on her wrist.” Eddie’s eyes turned red as he struggled to hold back his tears. Lauren could only sigh sadly, as she could tell that her son loved Amanda. Eddie took a deep breath and gathered his emotions before continuing, “I chose to marry Sally because Amanda told me to take good care of her sister. At the time, Sally was just a trainee at your company. Moreover, she had also saved me in that car accident.“So, I used it as an excuse to marry her. To fulfill Amanda’s wish.” “Silly boy.” Lauren’s heart ached for her son. No matter how successful or capable her sons were, they were all madly loyal to the women they loved. Even though she was worried, there was nothing she could do. “I understand now. I won’t ask you any more questions. All I wa
Maia coughed lightly as she did so. Cedric was quite a difficult man to please. “Alright, I’m done.”“Are you trying to fool me again?” Cedric embraced her tightly.Maia shook her head. “You’re the one who wanted me to change it. How could I fool you again?” Maia whined in dissatisfaction. Looking at her unhappy face, Cedric could finally understand why Starlight Entertainment was one of the top entertainment companies in the industry. Even the CEO’s acting skills were amazing. He pinched her chin lightly and told her. “My flight is in three hours.”Maia was surprised by his words as she held his hand tightly. “Why are you leaving again? Didn’t you just come back? Where are you going?” “I’m going back to Nordic City.”“Why? Did something happen again?” Cedric glanced at her worried face as he pointed at the caller ID on her phone. “Don’t you want to add more to it?”Maia’s gaze followed what he was pointing at. She quickly took her phone and changed the ID to ‘My Dearest
Amanda came to sit next to Maia as she said, “I’m glad you’ve noticed this as well. Lauren is usually quite into the drama that she’s watching on TV. Today’s episode was a sad one, so I was wondering why she was still so happy watching it.” Lauren smiled back at them and replied, “I’m just really happy. I’ve never thought that I’d be able to see my eldest son again and that he has such a kind and beautiful wife by his side. “Eddie was also able to find his loved one, and I was lucky enough to be a grandmother. I never thought that I’d be able to go on a family trip with all my sons.” She started to tear up.“Lauren, don’t cry,” Maia said as she handed Lauren a handkerchief to dry her tears. Lauren wiped her tears as she smiled and nodded. “Don’t worry about me. I’m just being dramatic.” She looked around and asked, “Where’s Cedric? Is he with Eddie?”Maia nodded. “Yeah. This new project is a bit of a hassle, so he went over to try to help.” Lauren sighed, “Eddie’s father an
Cedric just smiled when he saw Maia’s worried reaction. “You sure you’ll keep your promise?” Maia tugged the blanket closer to herself and nodded. Maia would not dare to say no. If Cedric decided to do as he had said, she would just end up in bed the whole morning. “We can register our marriage anytime. You mean it?” She knew that Cedric was just baiting her, but she had no choice. She did not know what he would do next. When she glanced at his handsome face, her heart could not help but skip a beat. Just then, Cedric took out two pieces of paper from the bedside drawer. Maia was taken aback as she saw the document. They were marriage registration forms, and they were already filled in. “T-This was a setup! You’ve already had this all planned out from the beginning!” Maia scanned through the forms and was surprised to see that the only section left empty was the signature. Maia did not know when Cedric had started to prepare all this, but it looked like it had been a whil
Cedric glanced at Baz and asked, “How does it feel to miss someone so much?”Baz’s smile froze as he shook his head quickly. “Now, I can finally understand why you hate being separated from Ms. Maia.”Cedric just looked at Baz coldly. Baz quickly added when he noticed Cedric’s glare, “I’m just saying that you love your wife very much, and that man who’s like you would definitely understand.”“That’s a fact,” Cedric replied as he turned around and walked back into the bedroom. Baz immediately stopped him as he asked. “Mr. Cedric, why don’t you tell Ms. Maia the real reason why you’re so against calling Ms. Lauren your mother? Why didn’t you tell her the scars on your back were inflicted by Ms. Rita?” It was a horrible and unimaginable part of his childhood. “I don’t want to frighten her.”“But it’s difficult for you as well, Mr. Cedric. Calling Ms. Lauren your mother brings back horrible memories for you too.” “It doesn’t matter. I’ll do anything for her.” Cedric replied as he
“Is that true?” Gigi asked her grandmother.Lauren nodded and said, “Of course it is. Has grandma ever lied to you?”“Wow! Grandma, what was Daddy like when he was a kid?” Gigi was excited. She was not sleepy anymore as she pestered Lauren to tell her more. “Whenever I brought him to attend events, he would always cry. I still remember he had wet his pants once in kindergarten.” Gigi covered her mouth and giggled happily. Amanda laughed and looked at Eddie. “Did you really wet your pants?”Eddie palmed his forehead and told his mother, “Stop embarrassing me in front of my daughter, Mom.” Lauren just smiled happily back at her son. At the same time, Maia tugged on the hem of Cedric’s shirt and questioned cheekily, “Did you wet your pants when you were a kid?” Cedric drew her into his arms in response and threatened, “Maia, it seems like you won’t be able to go to bed tonight.” “I’m not afraid of your empty threats,” Maia replied. “Are you sure about that?”Maia nod
It was hard to believe he’d change his mind out of nowhere. She blinked and gawked at him. She almost forgot to breathe because of the sheer shock. Her face turned red from it, too. “Hey, breathe.” Cedric frowned. He realized her eyes were widening and her cheeks were completely reddened. Then, her lungs worked, and she started drawing breath again. She gripped the hem of his shirt instinctively. “Hmm?” Cocking his brow, he looked at her casually while taking her hands in his. “Do you want to know why I changed my mind?”She nodded immediately. Needless to say, she wanted to spring that question on him, but she wondered if she should. On the other hand, he merely chuckled and didn’t say anything. All he did was fix a deep, passionate stare at her. His eyes were filled with love and affection when he did it. Realizing that he wasn’t going to talk, she was bewildered. “W-Why aren’t you saying anything?”His grin widened at what she said. Reaching out, he pinched her fair ch
Taking his hands, she rested her fair cheeks on his palm.“Is there another reason you did it?” She asked. “I had someone plant something in the painting.”“What do you mean?” She pressed.“A wire.”Then, it hit her. “D-Does this mean you knew Fidelia would buy the painting at all costs?”“Mm-hmm.” He nodded.Pursing her lips, she said, “I guess it tracks. After all, Fidelia will surely buy anything you donate to Nordic College. She loves you so much that she peeled an entire bowl of prawns for you.”“Do peeling prawns mean she loves me?” He cocked his brow.She nodded instinctively.“Well, then. Do you know how much I love you now?”Maia was initially pondering something, but she was scattered the moment she heard what he said!Her face turned red. She couldn’t decide if she should nod or shake her head now. The only thing she could do now was change the topic. “Wait a minute. I just asked Gigi to bid on it. Did I almost mess up your plan?” Her brows were furrowed. She
“Maia!” Amanda called out to her and hastened over. “D-Did you just say I was already on trending search?”“Mm-hmm.” Nodding, she handed her phone to Amanda. Amanda saw the search topic ‘Amanda Tate Burst Out Laughing.’ and was rooted to the spot.“H-How’s this already up there?”Maia chuckled. “There are so many people in the dining hall. There’s no way you can keep it from spreading on the internet for long. Even Gigi and Eddie got on the trending search. They were right behind you. “Valentines Group has also started working on the public relations angle. I browsed the internet and didn’t find any overly vicious remarks either. None of the marketing accounts were trying to stir up trouble either. All of Gigi’s pictures were censored as well. So, there’s nothing to be worried about here.”Amanda let out a sigh of relief at what she said. “It’s a good thing that no one attacked Gigi on the internet. Otherwise, I’m going to start chasing them with a machete that’s one foot long!
“Why, you!” Fidelia took the glass of fruit juice from the table and spilled it all over him!The sticky juices clung to his cheeks for a second before rolling down them.“Listen up, plastic face! It doesn’t matter if I can’t lay a finger on Maia because Cedric loves and protects her. It isn’t your place to make fun of me! Who do you think you are, Neilson? “You’re nothing more than my family’s lap dog. Look at how stiff your face is. You’ve wasted a perfectly good glass of fruit juice!”Staring at him angrily, Fidelia warned him nastily. She was so gripped with rage that her chest was rising and falling hastily. Then, she gritted her teeth and threw the empty glass at him.Catching the glass midair, he lowered his head. “You make a fine point, Ms. Fidelia.” Wiping the fruit juice from his cheeks, he apologized again. “Please calm down, Ms. Fidelia. You have to look at where we are now. It’d be wise not to make Mr. Thomas mad again.”“Are you seriously warning me again? Who do
Maia made up a reason so Amanda could take Gigi away. Amanda nodded, carried her daughter, and left the scene. All Gigi did was speak the truth, but Fidelia’s face grew grim and shot the three-year-old girl a terrible look. It was clear that Fidelia might do something outrageous to Gigi again if she didn’t divert her attention from the little girl. After all, Fidelia didn’t care about the consequences of her actions at all!So, she looked at Fidelia and said, “I’m not sure why you kept trying to win my husband’s heart, but I’ve been sitting here the whole time. Are you ignoring me on purpose? Or, are you so arrogant that you care only about Cedric and nobody else?”Fidelia immediately shifted her gaze to Maia. Glaring at her, she directed all of her anger and frustration at Maia. “What are you trying to say, Maia? My dad saved Cedric’s life. So, is there anything wrong with me peeling the shrimp for him? What’s the problem if I try to win his heart? What does it have to do with