If that was the case, she had committed a grave mistake. Arianne became extremely conscience-stricken.Mary slapped her own thigh. “Right, sir hasn’t done anything for his birthday for so many years, I’ve almost forgotten too! Look at this memory of mine, I should’ve reminded Ari earlier!”Arianne stood up weakly. “Never mind. It’s okay. I’ll go look for him.”She made it sound casual but inside, she was at a loss. She did not even have the courage to enter the study room.She made tea and brought it to the study room. Knocking on the door, Mark Tremont’s furious voice came from the inside, “Get lost!”Arianne knew that she must not back down now and braced herself to go in and open the door. “I didn’t know that it was your birthday today…”“Get out!” Mark Tremont threw the book in his hand to the floor, his wrath felt like the deadly winter.Arianne bent down to pick it up but saw Mark Tremont leaving like a gust of wind.She had a premonition that she would not know the next time he
A photo fell from a book unexpectedly. Curious, Arianne picked it up. It was the day she moved into the Tremont Estate when she was eight years old. She was holding Mark Tremont’s hand.Having seen the photo in the newspaper, she had never seen an individual photograph as such. Why did Mark Tremont have it? Had he… intentionally kept it?Arianne denied this belief promptly. He had probably kept it without much thought at the time and had already forgotten where he placed it. The book that held the photo was an old one and not of his preferred genre. He must not have flipped through it for many years.It was another sleepless night.Mark Tremont headed for the Nightlight bar after leaving the estate. Jackson West and Eric Nathaniel arrived soon after and asked for several bargirls to boost the mood.Expensive liquors were spread out on their booth table. Jackson West was the most familiar with places like this, as among the three of them he was the prime example of a rich family’s profl
Smelling the stinging perfume scent, Mark Tremont instinctively pushed her away in repulsion. Both his gaze and tone were extremely icy. “Stay away!”The whole booth was dead silent, only saved by the bar’s blaring music.Aery Kinsey was startled, teary-eyed and shaken, as it was also her first time to see this side of Mark Tremont. “Mark darling… why are you so mean to me? I’m just concerned…”The bargirls beside them did not dare make even a sound. The entire city knew that Mark Tremont was gentle and flawless, the epitome of perfection, as he was always amiable to everyone and anything.Jackson West and Eric Nathaniel, however, were not the least bit surprised. Having known each other for over a decade, they probably understood each other better than themselves.Worried that a scandal would break out if someone were to make a fuss, both men hoisted Mark Tremont up. “Let’s go back?”“I don’t want to see her…” Mark Tremont mumbled faintly.“Then where do you want to go? Eric will send
Arianne spotted Mark seated next to Aery. She also noticed that Aery's arm was coiled around Mark's. “I'm his wife. It's my responsibility to determine where he goes and to consider his safety.”The word “wife” put a hateful look on Aery's face. “You…! He’s already made it clear, he doesn’t want to go!”Out of pretense, Eric disembarked from the car and helped Mark down. “Stop causing trouble, Aery. A member of his family has arrived. Let Mark go.”Aery, still unresigned, grabbed Mark's arm. “Mark’s already said that he doesn’t want to see her. Quit fooling around, Eric!”Arianne didn't give two hoots about whether Mark returned home or not, but she also refused to back down at the prospect of him following Aery. Before she could speak up, Mark suddenly shook Aery off and demandingly said, “Ari… Come here!”There was no doubt that he was speaking to Arianne.This was the first time Arianne ever heard him call her by that name, so she was a little absent-minded. After a momenta
Arianne instinctively wanted to escape, but she was afraid of provoking him into a drunken rage. Hence, she simply gritted her teeth and stayed still, praying that he would soon fall asleep…The more she hoped for one thing, the more it happened otherwise. Not only did he continue his excursion, but he also seemed to have gotten addicted to it and became annoyed with her clothes getting in the way. His hand changed direction and slipped in through her collar!She held her breath, her cheeks now burning as if they were on fire. Finally, unable to endure it any longer, she murmured carefully, “Mark…”He heard her voice. “Mmhmm…?”“You should get an early night’s rest… Go to sleep…” She was too afraid to say anything else. She even made sure to watch her tone.He shifted closer so that they were eye to eye and stared at her through his drunken, blurry vision. “Don’t you want to leave? I’m giving you a chance…”Then, he flipped over and climbed on top of her, tearing open her pajamas
Before Arianne could respond, the secretary snatched the sketches from her hand and sent them into Mark’s office. Just as she was deciding on whether to barge in to see him, the secretary returned. “Mr. Tremont says that whatever you’ve given him is rubbish. These are his exact words.”Arianne did not expect this outcome. The boss of Glide Design, the company she was working in, was Eric. Most designers from their department were profoundly qualified. Based on these two conditions, the odds of an overall veto shouldn’t have been too high.Noticing the skepticism in her eyes, the secretary shrugged helplessly. “Mr. Tremont has personally reviewed the sketches. You don’t have much time now. You’d better rush as much as you can. Mr. Tremont won’t be lenient just because your boss is Mr. Nathaniel. He simply can’t be lenient in these matters.”Arianne summoned her courage, cut past the secretary, and stormed in. “Mark Tremont! I need to speak with you!”The secretary hurried after her.
Arianne was getting increasingly curious over how that aviation incident happened. Knowing her father, he would never pilot under inebriation. Her father had always been a highly competent captain and was a good, responsible father. Always!Suddenly, they were interrupted by the secretary’s voice from outside the office, “Mr. Tremont, a Mr. John Lane has asked to see you. We’ve tried to make him leave, but he has refused. He’s caused an unsightly ruckus in front of the office.”John Lane was none other than Tiffany’s father.“Mark, please let him come and speak… I’m begging you…” Arianne pleaded.Mark gritted his teeth and released her. “Let him in!” he snapped.Before she could relax, he splashed a bucket of cold water over her hopes when he smirked and said, “Just because I’ve agreed to see him, doesn’t mean that I’ll help him! Won’t this uncertainty crush all of his hopes?”He looked extremely terrifying in this state… Destroying a man’s hopes at a time like this was equivalen
Before she could find her footing, Mark said, “Take those horrible sketches back and tell Eric Nathaniel to draw new ones for me.”The corners of her mouth twitched. He was certainly quick in changing his expressions…“Are they really… that bad?” she asked, suspicious.He glanced at her. “What, do you think I have the spare time to make things difficult for you on purpose?”“The new year holidays are in three days,” she said, mildly dejected, “We won’t be able to finish this in time, even if the entire department works through the night…”“That’s your problem,” Mark replied, unfazed.She didn’t have the nerve to object. He had promised to be magnanimous to the Lane family, this had already made her feel as if the dark clouds in the sky had dissipated and the sun was shining brightly again. Why would she have the guts to oppose him? “Then… I’ll be on my way. Don’t be angry. Come home when you’re supposed to. I’ll be doing overtime at the office over the next few days, so you’ll be