When Aurora stepped outside, her vision momentarily darkened.And in that instant, everything made sense—Ian's hesitation and his half-finished warnings.Joseph had gone all out.Acting subtle clearly wasn’t in his vocabulary.The scene was chaos. Reporters crowded the entrance of Walton Corporation, cameras slung over shoulders and lenses pointed straight at the doors. Joseph had even set up a life-sized cutout of her beside a massive banner.The banner read: Aurora Walton, General Manager of Walton Corporation, I’ll love you forever. All I want is a lifetime with you.There were balloons, flowers, and a blaring sound system playing some cheesy love song.To be fair, if this were a genuine confession of love, the setup could’ve been considered romantic and even touching.Unfortunately, the woman being confessed to was Aurora.And coming from Joseph, all of it felt more like harassment than affection. It was nauseating.Her disgust toward him ran deep, and now, every move he made on
Crystal had already worked out a mental blueprint on how she was going to "discipline" Aurora once she married into the family.Meanwhile, Aurora was in her office, handling corporate matters, when she suddenly sneezed. A wave of irritation stirred in her chest.Something felt off—an uneasiness she couldn’t shake, like something was about to happen.She gave her head a light shake, trying to clear the clutter in her mind. There was no point getting distracted by meaningless thoughts. They only dragged down her mood.Right now, her head was filled with one thing—expanding projects and growing Walton Corporation.She didn’t want to think about anything else.Steadying herself, she refocused on the project documents in front of her.But before long, her temples started to throb. That sense of unease only intensified.What on earth was going on?Unable to concentrate anymore, she stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling windows, gazing out at the traffic below.Only then did a sliver
"I promised your father I’d keep an eye on you at home. Don’t even think about stepping out.""Mom, I really do have something important to take care of," Joseph explained anxiously.He knew Melvin had been watching him closely these past few days, but if they kept locking him in like this, he’d lose his chance. That woman was out there making a fortune, and he couldn’t even get a cent of it. And that wasn’t even the worst of it—what if another man started sniffing around Aurora?The thought alone made his stomach twist.Crystal, however, remained calm. "And what exactly is so important outside? Your father made it very clear. I’m to keep you inside, and you’d better behave."Hearing his mother’s firm tone, Joseph hesitated. But Tessa’s phone call was still ringing in his ears.He clenched his fists. He had to get out today, no matter what.Left with no other choice, Joseph decided to tell Crystal what he’d learned."Mom, do you know Aurora Walton?"He pulled up information on Walto
Tessa let out a soft chuckle. “Now that’s more like it. You really are a straightforward man, Joseph.“It’s nothing much, really. I just wanted to let you know that Aurora’s doing incredibly well these days. Her career’s taken off, and the money’s rolling in faster than ever.”“What’s that supposed to mean?” Joseph had been lazily sprawled out on his bed, but the moment he heard those words, he shot upright. His eyes lit up.“Exactly what it sounds like,” Tessa replied, clearly amused. “What’s the matter? Didn’t you know your ex is practically printing money these days?“Don’t tell me she kept all of that from you—her background, her skills? Hiding everything from the man she was supposedly in love with? Tsk, tsk…”She spoke slowly, deliberately, each word hitting its mark.With every sentence, Joseph’s fingers curled tighter into fists, his chest rising and falling with sharp breaths.So, she really had kept things from him. The woman who stood quietly at his side had been hiding
One of the executives discreetly mentioned to Aurora that if this project was executed well, their boss might consider further collaboration down the line.Aurora’s eyes lit up. “Mr. Warden, are you serious?”He nodded confidently, clearly impressed by her. “Absolutely. Opportunities go to those who are prepared. If it were anyone else, I wouldn’t be saying this.”Aurora instantly understood what he was getting at—this project wasn’t just important; it was a potential game-changer.She nodded. “Got it. I’ll make sure to keep this one firmly in my hands.”Everyone there had full confidence in Aurora’s abilities, so there was no need to say more.Her career was blazing forward.Meanwhile, Tessa had been watching everything unfold from the shadows. Seeing Aurora thrive like this, how could she possibly stay content?Her thoughts drifted to Joseph, who had stopped her at the company’s entrance not long ago.That man could very well be her way in.Tessa’s red lips curled into a sly smile.
Grace also began to feel that Aurora was being a little disrespectful.She turned to comfort Tessa. “It’s nothing, don’t overthink it. Your sister has her own plans.”Aurora nearly rolled her eyes at her comment.She didn’t feel like explaining anything anymore. After all, her goals were entirely different from Tessa’s.“Madam Grace, I’ll go see off the management team from Vanguard,” Aurora said calmly, her expression indifferent. When she looked at Tessa, it was with the same disinterest one might show a clown putting on a cheap performance.The moment she mentioned “Vanguard,” Grace’s tone shifted again.“Alright, go ahead. You don’t need to worry about anything at Walton Corporation. Just focus on your responsibilities.”Hearing that, Tessa instantly realized the message behind her mother’s words—it was directed at her like a subtle jab.Her fists slowly clenched. Clearly, staying passive wouldn’t get her anywhere. If she didn’t fight for something, there would be no space for
Grace’s smile never faded in the face of so much praise. Hearing the compliments from the people of Vanguard Group about Aurora gave her a sense of pride. After all, Aurora was her daughter—her upbringing and education were naturally reflected in that.With that in mind, Grace responded warmly to every kind word, not missing a single one.“Oh, Mr. Ben, you’re being far too kind. "She’s still young and needs more experience.”“No, no, she’s not nearly as good as you say.”“Yes, she’s ambitious and driven. Without that, no matter how much we try to push her forward, it wouldn’t have made a difference.”Grace never repeated herself, coming up with a different response for each compliment directed at Aurora. All of this was to lay a solid foundation for the Walton Corporation’s future success.Tessa was also at the company today. She stood off to the side, silently watching everything unfold, her hand tightening around her crocodile-skin purse. If not for her fresh manicure, her nail
The dark cloud that had lingered on Lucas’ face completely vanished the moment he saw Aurora. If anyone were to look closely, they could even spot the faint curve of a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.He stood quietly at the edge of the bed, eyes soft as he gazed at her peaceful profile. Warmth spread through his chest like sunlight after rain.“Aurora, don’t leave me... okay?” he whispered.He reached out, gently tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, revealing her delicate features in full. The affection in his eyes grew, slow and steady.In that still, quiet moment, they simply leaned into each other—close, warm, and entirely at peace.The next morning.Aurora slowly blinked awake, stretching with a soft yawn. As her right arm reached up, it bumped into something.She turned her head with a frown and was immediately hit with a full-on beauty assault.Lucas’ handsome face was inches from hers, calm and serene in sleep.Just as she registered what she was seeing, h
Lucas’ voice dropped, cold and steady. “So where is Aurora? I didn’t see her leave when I got here. Think carefully, where did she go?”Megan muttered under her breath, “It’s because you’re here. Even if she were around, she wouldn't show up.”Lucas’ chest tightened at that. “Why doesn’t she want to see me?”Megan avoided his eyes. “I don’t know. That’s between the two of you. You’ll have to ask her yourself.”With that, she turned to leave.This time, Lucas didn’t stop her. He just let her go, but not without a parting warning. “Next time you drag your cousin-in-law to a place like this, you’d better be ready for the consequences.”Megan flinched at his words, her back stiffening. Aurora was the one who invited her!Now she was getting scolded like it was all her fault.The more she thought about it, the more wronged she felt. But for the sake of sisterhood, she swallowed it all. If being the scapegoat meant protecting Aurora, she could live with that.She gave a half-hearted nod,