He stepped into the center of the crowd and spoke calmly, “I intend to buy this painting and give it to my wife, Evelyn White.”Then he looked at me. “I hope she can forgive me. I’ve made countless mistakes… ignored the love she gave me. And now... I’m asking for her forgiveness.”The entire room erupted....I stood still, watching Julian from across the crowd.He looked nothing like the confident, arrogant man I first saw after losing my memory. His face was pale, drawn, his energy completely different like a ghost of who he used to be.His suit was wrinkled, probably from rushing over. Even his hair was messy, unstyled, like he hadn’t touched a comb or gel before leaving.His eyes locked on mine, tuning out the noise around us.I parted my lips but couldn’t bring myself to speak. I turned my gaze away from the heat of his stare.Nicholas stepped in front of me, his eyes full of fury as he glared at Julian. “What the hell is your problem?”Julian pushed through the crowd to face m
In the end, with Sharon’s mediation, the painting was purchased by Julian for forty thousand dollars and then gifted to me. May was kicked out of the auction, restoring the artwork to its fair value. Her chubby face was filled with displeasure, but with Nicholas, Julian, and the quiet Miles all present, she knew better than to throw a tantrum. She left immediately, leaving the painting to Julian. After making the payment, Julian had Sharon pass the painting to me. He left without a word. I saw him glance back at me one last time before walking away. In that look, I saw the same sorrow mirrored in his eyes. Could it be… he loved me too? I felt a hand rested on my shoulder, followed by a warm voice. "Eve, let’s go." I nodded and quietly took his hand. ... At the hospital, I unwrapped the painting. The wave of loneliness and despair it carried hit me like a tide. The scent of blood and crashing waves was so vivid, it felt almost real. I asked the nurse to help
Ian immediately said, “Yes. That land was originally planned for a Grade A office building, but the board never finalized a direction.” Miles took the iPad, glanced at it, and asked casually, “How much did May invest?” Ian replied at once, “Thirty million. She holds about forty percent of the shares.” Miles smiled. “That’s a sizable amount. Call a board meeting for me tomorrow. We’ll finalize the development direction for our plot.” Ian hesitated. “Uh… do you have something in mind, Mr. Wynn?” Miles gave a slight smile. “Let’s go with a high-end SOHO community focused on modern smart-home technology and full automation.” Ian froze. “That’s…” Miles gave him a half-smile. “Just go. I want the board to approve it tomorrow.” Ian nodded quickly and left the hospital in a hurry. Once he was gone, I looked at the seemingly harmless Miles. “With this move, May’s thirty million dollars just went down the drain.” Miles gave a drawn-out “Oh?” and said slowly, “How could that
May sank into her chair, stunned. “How is this possible? This can’t be happening… it’s impossible… all that money…” Suddenly, she grabbed the scrawny man by the collar and yanked him forward. “I don’t care how—you need to pull more funds together. We have to break ground. If we don’t, this project is going to rot unfinished.” The man could only nod. “Alright, alright… I’ll try again.” After all her yelling, May stormed out in a fury. No sooner had she gotten into the car than her phone rang. “May, bad news! A customer just returned a 130-gram gold wedding bangle, claiming it’s been filled with resin. Consumer Affairs has already sent someone to investigate!”May felt a loud buzz explode in her head. She shouted, “Can’t you just handle this yourselves? Pay them off! Triple compensation if you have to—we cannot let this blow up!” “Alright, alright—but May, someone from the Department of Trade and Consumer Affairs just showed up too.”May sat frozen in the car, hands and fe
His voice was thick with congestion, and I couldn’t help but ask, “Julian, what’s wrong with you?” There was a hint of surprise and joy in his voice. “Eve, are you worried about me?” I quickly changed the subject. “I wanted to ask why you released that apology statement.” Julian’s voice dropped low. “Because I messed up. And I felt I owed you an apology.” I sighed. “That’s not necessary. Julian, you don’t have to humble yourself like this.” His voice was soft. “Eve, I truly know I was wrong. I didn’t realize how deeply I hurt you. That day at the beach, when I saw the look in your eyes… my heart shattered.” I cut him off immediately. “Don’t. I don’t want to hear any of that.” A chill ran down my spine because I wasn’t ready to face that dark chapter of my life. Even now, after all this time, just thinking about it made me want to disappear from this world. Julian murmured, “I’m sorry, Eve… I…” Feeling annoyed, I said, “You don’t need to apologize. I don’t want your
The next day, after my usual check-up, Sharon arrived. She brought a lot of health supplements and a few beautiful landscape paintings. With an apologetic tone, she said, “Miss White, I made a horrible mistake at the gallery the other day. It was my poor planning.” Then she took out a box from her bag. “This is for you too. It’s a set of premium freshwater pearls. I thought they’d suit your taste.”I politely declined. “You’re too kind, Miss York. I can accept the supplements, but this gift is too expensive.” She smiled. “Are you still being so polite with me? Do you think of me as an outsider?” I hesitated. I wasn’t sure what kind of relationship Nicholas had with Sharon. I didn’t want him to blame me when he found out I accepted the gift.Sharon noticed my hesitation. Sharp as ever, she caught on right away.With a warm smile, she said, “Oh, it’s really not that complicated. I just felt a connection with you and thought it’d be nice to think of you as a little sister.”I
I hadn’t expected Nicholas to reject Sharon because he was worried she might treat me badly one day. My eyes burned with emotion. “Nick… she wouldn’t.” He shot me a look. “Wouldn’t? You’re such a softie. You’d probably thank someone for pushing you around. You’ve got no eye for people. But I know what I’m doing. I’m not picking just anyone to be your sister-in-law.” Then he started piling all the best dishes onto my plate, urging me to hurry up and eat. A few minutes later, Miles walked in with a sleek, elegant food box in hand. Nicholas gave him a look. “About time you showed up—we’re already halfway through.” Miles placed the box beside me with a small smile. “I had this soup made specially for Eve. It’s for after the meal.” Nicholas finished eating in a few quick bites and said, “Don’t try to smooth things over for Sharon. That woman plays too many games.” Miles replied coolly, “You’re well into your thirties and still don’t have a girlfriend.” Nicholas rolled his
Sharon looked at the three of us and asked, “Are you two ganging up on Eve?” Nicholas frowned. “We’re not.” She glanced at me. “Then why is she crying like that?” No one answered. None of us knew how to explain it. Nicholas turned to her. “Just try to comfort her, don’t ask too much.” Sharon nodded. Then Nicholas and Miles stepped out of the room. ... I saw them out in the hallway, lighting cigarettes and talking with their backs to me. Sharon studied my expression carefully. “Are you upset because of Julian?” I looked down and stayed silent. She sighed. “He really did seem sincere yesterday when he apologized. For someone like him to say something like that in public… it wasn’t easy.” I wiped my eyes. “I don’t want to talk about him.” Sharon understood and nodded. “Alright, then let’s change the subject. How’s your leg? It’s healing well, right? What do you plan to do once you’re better?” I froze. I’d never even thought about that. “I guess… go back to
I let out a breath of relief. "Good. I guess I’ll stop taking baths from now on. Who knew something so relaxing could nearly kill me?"I tried to lighten the mood with a joke, but neither Miles nor Joseph smiled.Forcing a small grin, I added, "Just… don’t tell my brother, okay?"Miles gave a warm smile. "I won’t."Joseph glanced at him, then said, "I’ve checked everything—she’s fine. Just be careful not to catch a cold."Miles walked him out.When he returned to the room, I was already sitting up against the headboard, my expression uneasy.The mattress dipped slightly beside me as Miles sat down. He looked at me gently. "Eve, what’s wrong?"My voice was low. "Miles... I had a dream about Julian."Miles let out a quiet breath. "That’s normal. I was worried it might be something worse."I shook my head, a flicker of panic rising in my eyes. "But I’ve never dreamed about him since the memory loss. And this time… I saw the first time I met him."My hands trembled slightly. "I shouldn’t r
Warm water swirled gently around me, and the weight of exhaustion began to pull me under.Sleep crept in, soft and heavy....“Eve, come on! I heard the campus heartthrob’s here today!”I looked up, my vision blurry.Where was I?Dolly’s face appeared in front of me, lit with excitement. “Hurry! If we’re late, we won’t get a good view. The club’s short on people, so they brought in the heartthrob to help out. Come on, everyone’s rushing over.”I reached out and grabbed her arm. “No, I’m not going.”She gave me a puzzled look. “Why not? That’s Julian Moore! He’s literally the most popular guy on campus. He’s good looking and comes from a wealthy family.”Something caught in my throat. I wanted to speak but couldn’t get the words out.Dolly, getting impatient, tugged at my hand and started dragging me forward.There were people everywhere, too many to count.Eventually, we arrived at the small rehearsal theater.I looked around in confusion. There were crowds all around, but no one I re
But what did she say?Julian’s grip tightened around the charm, his fingers curling into it as pain filled his eyes...."Julian, I know there’s nothing I can do for you… Just keep this charm. They say the priest there is the real deal. You’re not supposed to throw it away once it’s been blessed.""Julian, I don’t care if you ever become rich or powerful. I just want you to be safe."That foolish woman had clutched the charm in her hands, smiling at him with such innocence and blind faith....The knot dug into his palm, sharp enough to hurt. Julian opened his hand, then closed it tightly around it again.Chloe, who had been rambling on, finally noticed something was off.She caught sight of the charm in his hand and scoffed. "What is that? It looks so tacky."She reached over, trying to take a closer look.Julian quickly slipped it into the inside pocket of his suit jacket.Chloe’s eyes narrowed. "Did she give you that?"He started the car, his voice flat. "No. I got it myself. Some p
Julian looked at me, confused.I took a deep breath. "Julian, stop. I know why you're apologizing. You're doing this for Chloe’s child, right? You just don’t want things to get ugly."He lowered his head, then gave a small nod. "Yes, that’s part of it... but I really…"I cut him off quickly. "Don’t. Goodbye, Mr. Moore."Without looking back, I turned and got into the car.Miles noticed something was off the moment he saw my face. "What did he say?"I steadied myself. "He wants to settle everything privately. He doesn’t want it to go to court."Miles glanced toward Julian’s lonely figure in the distance, his eyes flickering."You okay?" he asked.I shook my head. "I’m fine."He paused, then handed me a tissue. "If it hurts, just cry."I looked at him, my eyes dry. "I can’t cry. But why do I still feel so awful?"His gaze softened. "Julian's pulling all this to protect his pride because of Chloe’s child, isn’t he?"I drew in a shaky breath. "Yeah. He apologized, but in the end, it’s still
Julian's expression darkened as he stared at me. "Evelyn, I thought you said you loved me? And yet here you are with Miles already—what, were you two sneaking around while we were together?"Without thinking, I slapped him.He grabbed my wrist, sneering coldly. "Did I strike a nerve?"I laughed in anger. "I shouldn’t have let Miles in the car earlier. If I hadn’t, the one slapping you right now would’ve been him."Julian let go of my hand and said coolly, "Enough nonsense. Evelyn, dragging this to court would just be a spectacle. After five years of marriage, I don’t want things to end like this."Was he trying to reconcile?I forced down my fury and asked, "What do you have in mind?"Julian hesitated, his gaze complicated. "I’ll return everything that belongs to you... just give me some time."I was stunned.I hadn’t expected Julian, who always seemed so tough, to willingly give up fighting and hand over what I deserved.I went quiet. "Alright. How much time do you need?"Julian tugged
Julian blurted out, “What?!”Then, snapping out of his shock, his face twisted with fury. “Miles Wynn, what the hell do you mean by that?!”Miles smiled, calm and unbothered. “Nothing more than the truth.”Julian’s voice rose, livid. “Truth? This is nothing but one of your dirty tricks!”Miles raised a brow, pretending to be confused. “Dirty? Hmm. I’d actually call it a fresh idea.”Julian’s already dark expression grew stormier.Chloe stood beside him, jaw clenched, eyes locked on us with thinly veiled rage. Suddenly, she cut in sharply, “But wasn’t it Miss White who transferred the 1.2 million to Elmwood?”Dolly stepped forward without missing a beat. “That money was loaned to Eve by me. Got a problem with that?”That shut them both up.I felt a wave of satisfaction rise in my chest. But I also knew Julian wasn’t going to let this slide so easily.Sure enough, he turned to me, eyes cold. “Eve, this is going to court anyway. You can spin the story however you want. We’ll see what the
The moment I saw that elegant, refined face, so striking it felt almost divine, every bit of the frustration I’d buried surged to the surface.Without a second thought, I rushed into his arms. “Miles!”Warmth enveloped me, and the familiar clean scent of pine wrapped around my senses. My eyes stung instantly.Miles lowered his head, chuckling softly. “What’s wrong? You look like a little bunny with those red eyes.”Feeling embarrassed, I gave his chest a light smack. “Why are you here?”He studied my face carefully, then gently brushed his fingers across my cheek. “I heard someone was picking on my darling, so I came running.”That warmth spread through my chest, overflowing, making it hard to hold back tears.He leaned down, his voice low in my ear. “Don’t cry, silly girl.”Then he straightened and looked around the room.His gaze passed over Sarah and Dolly, finally landing on Julian.Julian instinctively straightened his back.He stepped forward, voice laced with sarcasm. “What brin
I turned to Sarah with an apologetic expression. “I’m sorry, Miss Care. It seems I’m not in a position to work with your company until I sort out my personal matters.”Sarah shook her head regretfully. “Please don’t apologize. Our company is moving forward with expansion this year. We’ve already allocated the available investment slots. If you decide not to invest… we’ll have to open the opportunity to others.”She gave me a sympathetic look. “I’m sorry, Miss White. But once this window closes, there will be no further opportunity.”I offered a bitter smile and nodded. “I understand.”Dolly was so angry, she could barely hold back a choked sob. “That shameless bastard… absolutely shameless!”I squeezed her hand, silently telling her it was time to go.Julian stepped in front of us, blocking the way. His expression was conflicted, and when he spoke, his voice was softer than I’d ever heard it.“Eve, maybe we can talk this through.”“Julian, you… you’re still not done?” Chloe’s voice r
The moment I heard those words, a rush of blood surged to my head.My ears rang, and that all-too-familiar wave of dizziness came crashing back.I barely registered Dolly's voice rising in fury. “Julian Moore, do you have no shame? You really dare say that was marital property?! Eve paid for it herself! You… you're absolutely disgusting!”I could barely stay on my feet, the world tilting around me.“Dolly… I…” I whispered weakly.She quickly caught me and helped me sit down.I took a few deep breaths to steady myself, then looked up at Julian. And for a split second, though maybe it was the dizziness playing tricks on me, I thought I saw a flicker of concern flash through his eyes.Sarah noticed something was off and immediately stepped in. “Miss White, don’t worry. We can take this slowly.”I fought to calm my pounding heart and spoke, voice steady but cold. “What exactly is it that you want, Mr. Moore?”Julian hesitated for a moment, but soon the polished businessman returned to his