Arianne was rendered speechless for a moment. “...You’re doubting me just like Tiffie. Alright, we’re here. You can pull up now.”She waited for the car to stop then left in a hurry after thanking Ethan.Ethan watched through his dark eyes as her figure left. It seemed like Tiffany hadn’t told her about their breakup...When it was about time to get off work for the day, Arianne received a whining text from Tiffany. ‘It’s too difficult to find a job! Not only that, it’s raining so much today. It’s annoying!’Arianne was almost done with her work at this time, so she replied to her text. ‘You have Ethan to support you, what’s there to worry about? You used to help him out, now it’s his turn to return the favor. Since he has a good job now and is driving a car that costs nearly a hundred thousand dollars, you can live a decent life. Just take your time in searching for a job.’After the text was sent out, Tiffany didn’t reply for some time. Arianne found that strange. After a long t
By the time Arianne came out, Mark was already sitting at the dining table. He was in his light gray loungewear with slightly damp hair. She could smell the after-bath fragrance on his body. Regardless of circumstances, Mark always paid attention to his bearing and manners. He kept his posture straight all the time and never seemed to relax, even for a moment.Since Arianne didn’t know what to say, she decided not to say anything at all.There were two plates of big prawns for dinner tonight. When Mary served up dishes, she purposely placed the prawns in front of Arianne. Arianne unceremoniously began to peel the prawn shells and feasted on them. On the other hand, Mark gracefully brought the small bowl to his lips and slowly sipped on the soup.He failed to see how someone with such a good appetite was suffering from gastritis and was starting to heavily suspect that there was something wrong with her.Arianne noticed his stare, then forced herself to ask, “What’s wrong?”Mark av
Arianne wondered to herself. Didn’t Mark sleep in their room last night? Why did he come out of the study room early in the morning? He looked like… he just woke up. Did he get out of the room and go to the study room in the middle of the night?She naturally couldn’t comprehend Mark’s behavior, but since she knew better than to get herself into trouble, she left without even having breakfast.Mary came out of the kitchen with a bowl of millet porridge, but Arianne was no longer in sight. “Where is she?” she wondered out aloud.As soon as her voice fell, she caught a glimpse of Mark who was coming down the stairs. The sour look on his face instantly muted her.Arianne couldn’t focus on her work the entire morning. She had never expected herself to feel weak and dizzy just from not having breakfast. Her morning sickness felt even more intense than usual when she was hungry.When it was almost lunch break, she received a call from Tiffany. “Ari, I’m downstairs of your office. Come d
Speaking up to this point, she stopped because she really didn’t want to talk about Helen.Tiffany kept her mouth shut too. After all, they were both in depressing situations. Talking about it would just make them feel worse.Then, a sudden thought hit her and she took out a letter from her bag. “Ari, this is for you. I don’t know why it was sent to my place. I’m surprised that there are still people writing letters in this day and age. Isn’t it more convenient to use a phone? Who is it? How did he know where I live or even that we know each other…?”Arianne was very puzzled too. She opened the letter and stared at it. There were only a few lines of crooked handwriting on the letter. It took her a lot of effort to make out every word. As soon as she did, she felt blood rushing to the top of her head. She couldn’t even hear Tiffany calling her anymore.“Ari? Ari? What does it say?” Tiffany’s curiosity was aroused as she urged Arianne to tell her.Arianne snapped back to her senses
Arianne’s mind was in a mess. She momentarily lost the ability to make any decision. All she could think about was investigating whatever happened that year. “This… Let’s not talk about that yet. I have to do a complete investigation of the matter concerning my father. I’ll have a good look at this letter tonight after work. I’ll pay a visit to the address on this letter and see this “Mr. Sloane” this weekend. Perhaps everything will be clear then. “Tiffany nodded. “That’s a good idea too. Get this sorted out first, don’t think of anything else for now. You have a little one in your belly now. Don’t go alone, I’ll come with you. I don’t think this address is anywhere in the city. I’ll worry if you go alone.”Arianne returned to the office after her meal but couldn’t concentrate on work. Every word in that letter provoked her emotions. She was sorely tempted to immediately uncover whatever happened that year. Who was this “Mr. Sloane” in the letter? How could he have possibly known a
After confirming that crabs were not completely off limits, but should only be eaten in moderation, she relaxed. She had been particularly interested in seafood as of late.At the dinner table, Arianne ate two crab legs and stopped eating any more crabs. Instead, she focused on eating other dishes.“Is the taste not to your liking, Madam?” Mary asked when she saw this.Arianne shook her head, “No, they’re delicious.”Mary frowned, “Based on the amount of prawns you’ve previously had, this crab shouldn’t be enough for you. You should have some more…” Mark did not like seafood, so if Arianne didn’t eat them, they would be thrown away. Mary was both hardworking and thrifty in running their household, so her heart ached at the thought of waste.Arianne glanced at Mark and awkwardly explained, “I don’t really feel like eating today…”This was the only excuse she had to fumble through the situation. Hence, she was too afraid of asking for a second helping and was only half full.After
Arianne trembled in fright, causing some soup in the bowl to spill out, scalding her. She gritted her teeth and rushed towards the coffee table in the dining room, which was much closer. Then, she put down the bowl. Of course, that meant that she put it in front of Mark. The soup splattered into every direction. The disgust on his face was obvious.She summoned her courage and pulled out a few pieces of paper towels. Then she wiped the soup clean under his watchful gaze. “What are you doing back so early?”Mark paused, got up and headed upstairs. “It’s 1AM.”Arianne bit her lips and did not reply. Her scalded hand was in great pain. To her, his return was simply too early. She had initially believed that he wouldn't be coming back at all… After her meal, she washed everything clean then walked around the living room for a while before heading back to the room.Mark was dressed in house clothes and was sitting in front of the French windows with a cigarette in between his fingers.
”Hello, vice chairman.”Tiffany spiritedly turned her head towards the door, following the uniformed direction of gazes from everyone in the office.As a newcomer, it was required of her to give her superiors a good impression. However, when her eyes landed on Jackson’s frivolous expression, she wanted to die. “What kind of vice chairman is he?” she asked someone next to her, muffling her voice.“The boss’s son. Our vice chairman. He manages the entire company. The old chairman is now an arm-flinging shopkeeper. Bright Incorporated is the West family’s head office…”Tiffany couldn’t hear the rest of whatever her colleague had said, nor was she in the mood to listen anyway. She never thought that she’d end up in Jackson’s grasp. She had fully intended on leaving a good impression on her superior, but it seemed like there was no need for it now. After everything she’s been through, it was obvious to her that Jackson West did not have a good impression of her. It would be impossible t