Arianne said to her in a harsh tone, “I wouldn’t interfere in your matters if you hadn’t brought your argument to my doorstep. Now that you’ve done it, how could I not interfere? Who would dare to bully you when you’ve got so much demeanor on you? Obviously, you’ve been the one who’s been bullying us. You’ve already taken all the glory for yourself; what else could you possibly want?”At that point, the girl began to feel that Brian would not bother with her, so she might as well stop herself from making matters worse. The girl named her price. “$45,000—I’ll leave when I receive this amount, or otherwise, there won’t be peace for anybody. I wouldn’t be sent to prison even if you tried, since it’s just a lovers’ quarrel.”Arianne saw that the lights in her bedroom on the second floor had turned on and was afraid that Mark would cause an even bigger scene. She coldly said, “I don’t wish to make matters worse, so leave now! He hasn’t even touched you. He has even paid for your living ex
Brian had been tortured into looking down on himself, which was a pitiful sight to see. “What are you thinking? You deserve a lot better. It’s she who doesn’t deserve you. Stop overthinking things. Your resignation is out of the question. Mark would never agree to it. Why don’t you rest a few days? Treat it as a vacation and come back to work when you’re feeling better. There are a lot of fish in the sea. When you meet the right person next time, I will fulfill my promise and give you the house and car that I mentioned. Cheer up.”Brian was emotionally down in the dumps. He was even dragging his feet when he left the Tremont Estate.Mark teased Arianne when he went downstairs for dinner and said, “Are you so passionate about doing this kind of stuff because you’re too idle? Wouldn’t it be better to just get the guards to send her to the police station?”Arianne glared at him. “Why are you being like this? Isn’t this Brian’s matter? He’s been of service to you for so many years now;
Sylvain was half-suspicious. “Fine, I’ll buy your cr*p. Who knew that you could do it that way?Arianne giggled. She went to the company cafeteria with Sylvain during her lunch break. Tremont Enterprises’ cafeteria hall was quite imposing; there were all sorts of dishes available—self-service. She could have whatever she wanted and it was free. No one needed to pay for food that tasted even better than a restaurant outside, so most employees chose to eat in the cafeteria.When Arianne and Sylvain sat and ate together, they were crowded around by a group of women. “Sylvain, you’re pretty close to our Madam CEO.”“Stop bullsh*tting, we’re just getting along,” Sylvain replied bitterly. “We’ve known each other for a while now. What if Mr. Tremont hears this? Are you trying to get me fired?”The women peered carefully at Arianne’s face. If Arianne should seem remotely displeased, they would stop tactfully. However, Arianne did not. She was still smiling, so their jokes became bolder. Ar
Arianne shook her head. “The work isn’t tiring, eating is. I don’t even dare waste a piece of fried chicken that I’m too stuffed to eat. I’m so bloated. You’re horrid, docking $15 every time someone wastes food. Three more times, and I can buy a new lipstick.”Mark smiled and stroked her hair. “You silly goose. Can’t you throw it away in secret? Can I really punish you? You’re the exception. Everyone else has to pay.”Arianne stared at him in disbelief. “We agreed to be professional. Didn’t we agree to no nepotism? Were you joking around? You’re playing favorites…”Sylvain returned just then and placed the drinks that he had brought in front of Arianne. “Mr. Tremont.”Mark immediately reverted to his serious exterior, straightened up, and said, “Mm.” Then, he walked away.Arianne’s heart was filled with glee. This guy was getting good. Working in his company really was the best decision.That night, everyone gathered at Jackson’s house for dinner. Arianne went back to the Tremont
Jackson laughed. “Tiffie, maybe we should hurry it up and have a second baby? Who knows, maybe it’ll be a daughter this time?” he said, half-jokingly.Tiffany rolled her eyes at him. “I don’t mind, but would you take care of it? You’d throw the baby to your mom right after it’s born. You might be fine with that, but I’m not.”Just as she had spoken, Tiffany suddenly turned to the side, covered her mouth, and made a retching noise. “Jackson, did you clean the fish properly? The fishy smell is strong.”Just then, all eyes turned toward her. Jackson’s face was filled with disbelief. “I was just joking. You’re not really pregnant, are you? Don’t you trust my cooking skills? I cleaned the fish very thoroughly…”Tiffany stared at the grilled fish on the table, lost it, and bolted to the washroom. Arianne immediately knew that she was pregnant when she saw this. “I don’t think you can run from this. She’s pregnant again. You’re pretty awesome, Jackson. Very spot on.”Jackson didn’t answe
“Don’t be angry, that’s not what I mean,” he said helplessly. “I just think that you’ve just had a baby not too long ago and I’m worried that your body won’t be able to take it. If you insist on keeping in, we’ll transfer to the best hospital and have another examination. As long as we can confirm that your health won’t be affected, we’ll keep it. I’m not mean to the kid, and it’s not that I don’t like kids. Don’t make assumptions.”Tiffany felt much better. “I want to keep this baby. It’s here anyway. It’d be heartbreaking to get rid of it. I’m exhausted today, so let’s do the check up tomorrow.”Jackson nodded, then drove to the West Residence. Knowing that Tiffany was pregnant again, Summer took Plato away. Taking care of their kid was now Summer’s favorite pastime.Summer’s dog, Little Bean, dashed towards the pair, wagging its tail when they arrived. Its position in the family had been on decline ever since Plato’s arrival.“Tiffie, are you… keeping the baby?” Summer asked as
At dinner, Mark raised his glass towards Jackson in a Schadenfreude manner. “Congrats, you’re going to be a dad again.”Jackson rolled his eyes at him. “Stop it. Is your vasectomy something to be proud of? I’m going to get a vasectomy tomorrow, so that I won’t have any more kids. I can’t take any more.”Only then did Tiffany arrive at a realization. “Why didn’t I think of that? Mark’s had a vasectomy, so you should have done it too. Besides, there’s no use in leaving it.”Jackson stared at her as if she were an idiot. “A vasectomy only prevents you from having kids. You don’t turn into an eunuch. How the heck does your brain work?”When Mary joined the dinner table, the younger ones curtailed their conversation topics. Henry had been a butler at the Tremont Estate for most of his life, so he rarely joined them at the table. This was a form of etiquette for Henry. Arianne hoped that Henry would let loose one day, just like Mark. Unfortunately, he was set in his ways.Suddenly, Aria
Zoey broke into a grin. “All thanks to your guidance, brother dear! Aren’t you just the luckiest to have someone as good as Mark as your brother-in-law, Harv?”Harvey lowered his head, visibly embarrassed. He hated it when his parents went into buttery-flattery-mode. He was also deeply ashamed of the things his parents had done. Somehow, they always managed to find the most shameless things to make him feel burned.As it was a festive day today; Mary and Henry joined the Tremonts and Wynns for lunch. It started as good as one could hope until Harris raised his glass ostensibly to toast in Mark’s name. “I would like to thank you for taking care of my son Harv so well. We didn’t even know he was working under you until I read his payroll and saw your esteemed company’s name on it! Come, let us drink to that!”Arianne worried that Mark’s past grudges with them would spur him into ignoring Harris out of spite, but her worry turned into relief when her husband raised his glass cooperativ