Arianne lowered her head in silence. She did not agree with the old woman’s advice. Mark’s feelings for her may not necessarily be good luck; it felt more like misfortune. The old woman was only saying this because she was unaware of what had happened in the past. If she knew, she probably wouldn’t advise her to look ahead. Mark was the one behind all of her grievances. How could he not?Suddenly, the car jolted. The old woman’s temper immediately flared, “Hey, driver, watch it! Don’t kill us with your shaky driving! What are you doing? You’re such a bad driver!”A Tremont family bodyguard was behind the wheel. He apologized profusely after being scolded by Tabitha, “I’m sorry, I’ll be more careful…”“It’s fine,” Arianne said helplessly, “Just drive a little slower. It’s no rush.”Not long after, the car stopped in front of the address that Zoey had given Tabitha. Zoey’s residence in the capital wasn’t too far from the Tremont Estate, almost as if it was done on purpose. Of course, the
Zoey and her husband were very attentive. One hastily helped Tabitha along while the other carried her bags. Zoey watched as Arianne left and asked, “Mother, did Arianne send you here? Why won’t she come inside and have a seat? Does she hate us for living in such a small space?”The old woman wore a sunken expression on her face as she answered, “Yes, it is beneath her. I don’t want to be snubbed, even with your good intentions. Don’t embarrass me.”Hearing this, Zoey’s husband felt that something wasn’t right, “Mother, we’re all family; it’s not like we can’t talk. Where did that come from? It’ll be the new year soon. We’ll be doing business in the capital, so we plan on staying here for a while. The kids will be on their winter holidays soon, so the whole family will be here. We might as well spend the new year in our niece’s big mansion.”Zoey agreed, “That’s right. The more the merrier.”The old woman smirked, “Don’t call her your niece like you’re on friendly terms. I can’t afford
The old woman was so angry that her face turned ashen, “Your brother has been dead for many years, yet you still insist on sucking the blood out of him. Is he some kind of bloody meal to you? Are you even human? If I’d known about this, I would have chosen to have only one child for the rest of my life, instead of taking in a heartless thing like you! I might as well have raised a dog!”Zoey saw nothing wrong in her actions. In her point of view, she was the one who had suffered the most injustice. She burst into tears, “So you’ve finally said it. You’ve never treated me like your own child. You only adopted me so that someone would take care of your corpse for you, isn’t that right? That’s a business deal, not love! You think that I’m heartless, that I’m cruel. But you’re the meanest old woman! If my big brother hadn’t had any children, I admit that I’d have to take care of you, but he has Arianne. Why can’t I recount this debt? Let’s take ten thousand steps back and say that it would
Tiffany guffawed so hard in Schadenfreude that she could almost be mistaken as having a seizure. “Oh my god! Oh. My. God. So you’ve lost your personal agency now? Come on, bae, you’re the one with the crowned jewel in your tummy! You’re the boss now, not him! You could lynch Mark to death, and he still wouldn’t be able to harm a single hair on your head in defense, get it? You gotta’ be ruthless right now, like right frickin’ now, cause’ you aren’t getting that chance anymore. Don’t you know that a woman is at the height of power during her pregnancy? So hell yeah, be a tyrant, sis! Once that child’s born, you ain’t never getting that power back!” she reminded. “Now, if you manage to obtain his ‘permission,’ tell me, and I’ll ring up Tanya. We’ll have hotpot together at night! We’ll get the spicy one, and you can have the non-spicy broth. I mean, I heard that food that is too spicy could harm an expecting mother.”Just mentioning hotpot made Arianne swallow her saliva. Few things in li
Ultimately, the final deal was Mark approving Arianne’s hotpot hangout with the compromise that he tagged along. He did not particularly like hotpots, but he joined in as Arianne’s companion anyway.With a tack-on bodyguard she did not want, Arianne felt as though she was put on a leash, and her excitement naturally plummeted. But when she reached the destination and saw Tiffany mirroring her expression, she perked up — Tiffany was not exactly given the liberty to party hard either, for Jackson was with her.Finally, Tanya brought Eric — who was probably looking for a place to spend his free time — along, and the ensemble was complete.Since they disembarked, Mark’s hand had never once left its protective position on Arianne’s waist, making one wonder if he would gingerly place the girl right in the center of his palm if he could help it. That was not all; he punctuated between every few steps with a “The floor is slippery, please be careful.”Arianne relied on his directions so much t
Arianne’s eyes darted to Mark for a millisecond before she lowered her head and focused on her food. Thoughts ebbed in her mind like ripples.Once again, Mark terrified her with his abnormal perceptiveness. It was as though his eyes always bore through her skull, allowing him to read every thought that took form in her mind.With his “assistance,” Arianne had the most fulfilling meal she ever had since becoming pregnant. For some reason, she was exceptionally voracious today. When the dinner was nearing an end, Tiffany dragged Arianne and Tanya to the washroom.She could not wait a moment longer before japing, “God, I thought Mark was gonna offer his companionship to the bathroom! Just look at that ‘I-must-be-alert-at-all-times!’ butler mode he’s been in throughout the entire hangout; I almost believe he’s been replaced by someone else! Real talk, though: watching him right now reminds me of the way Will treated you back then.”This would be the first time Tiffany ever ruled one of M
With a frown, Arianne pulled Tiffany beside her and answered on her friend’s behalf, “That thing with Ethan has been over for so long, Angel… And for a good reason, too; Tiffany is way out of that bastard’s league. As a matter of fact, she was just recently engaged with Jackson West — which, judging from your voracious consumption of news, I’m sure the name rings a bell, doesn’t it? Had you reconnect with Tiffany sooner, she would definitely invite you to the engagement party too.”Truthfully, before Arianne spoke, her presence had escaped Angel. But now, her attention turned the spotlight on the person most famously known as Mark Tremont’s woman. Angel was well-aware of her story — again, it was all through the news.She sized Arianne up for a while before replying in a suspect tone, “Oh, no! I missed the engagement party; what a pity! Curious, isn’t it? Both you and Tiffany ended up marrying someone who aren’t the ones you loved in the beginning, once again proving that nothing in th
“If that’s the case, then it’s in your best interest to regard him as dead,” Arianne said, straightening Tiffany's collar. “No use dwelling in the past. All that matters now is your happy life with Jackson; everything else is lost to the sands of time. More importantly, your future will never be tainted by that douchebag’s presence ever again. He can’t hurt you anymore.”It was at this moment that the door to the next cubicle creaked open, revealing Tanya gingerly walking out. “U-um, I…! I mean to say…” she stammered. “I didn’t hear a thing! I mean… Um, I’m sorry I overheard some things?”Tiffany placed her hand on her forehead. “Oops, almost forgot about you. You hid for so long; I almost thought you got stuck on the toilet bowl or something. Think nothing to it, really; if you overheard it, you overheard it. Who was I with, who was she with — who the eff gives a damn? Anyway, let’s go. If we don’t come outta here any sooner, Mr. Tremont’s gonna FBI-bust in!”Tanya nodded in silent ap