Annabelle couldn't help but marvel—this guy was too good at acting. There wasn’t even the slightest trace of pretense; it was as if… he was truly expressing his emotions.This felt even more natural than when she had acted alongside Julian.Gradually, she immersed herself in the scene, shedding all ties to reality and fully embracing her character.Today, he was her groom.From this moment on, he would always be by her side.Their lives would be intertwined, sharing joy and sorrow, fortune and hardship…A deep sense of reverence for marriage stirred within Annabelle’s heart.As she looked at the man before her, it was as if Gauge had disappeared, and in his place stood Kendrick.With that thought, her gaze softened with love and joy.He, too, looked at her with immense affection. Slowly, they were drawn toward each other, an invisible force pulling them closer.Gauge’s lips were just about to brush against hers…But at that critical moment, the director’s voice rang out: “Cut!”Both o
According to the script, the second scene revolved around the heroine, played by Anna, who had been cursed. Her body transformed into a mermaid, and in the end, she leaped into the ocean.To avoid frequent touch-ups, the jump itself would be filmed separately from the rest of the sequence.However, Anna's performance in this scene wasn’t quite right.After shooting eight or nine takes, most people thought it was already good enough, but the director remained unsatisfied.Annabelle was now truly experiencing the director’s strict standards, and she was beginning to feel lost.His feedback was that while her expression of panic was on point, there was still something lacking in the emotions.He announced a ten-minute break, giving her time to reset and find the right feeling.Gauge wanted to help, but he knew she needed to work through it on her own. So after handing her a bottle of water, he simply stayed beside her in silence.Annabelle sat on a white chair, staring out at the vast oc
Kendrick’s expression darkened.The thought of how the director had failed to coordinate properly earlier—making his little woman wait idly all morning—still made his blood boil.And now, after stopping the shoot over and over again, the man kept saying her performance was “lacking something” without even explaining what exactly was missing. No wonder she was on the verge of a breakdown.Sure, striving for perfection was fine, but this was too much.Most of all, it made Kendrick’s heart ache for her.Annabelle hesitated before asking weakly, “…Can we really just ignore him?”“I told him to take another break.”She knew Kendrick had the authority to make that call, but they couldn’t just keep delaying forever.As if reading her thoughts, Kendrick said, “It’s fine even if you don’t shoot today. Don’t put so much pressure on yourself.”Annabelle sighed. That was easy for him to say. If she didn’t shoot today, she’d have to do it tomorrow—and what if she still couldn’t find the right feel
**“Of course, I’d be worried!”** Even though Annabelle had never been a mother, just imagining such a situation made her heart ache. **“And what about me? Could you bear to leave me behind?”** Kendrick’s voice was right by her ear, his tone unusually persistent. Imagining a future where she had no choice but to part with him, a deep sorrow welled up in Annabelle’s heart. In this entire world, the only person she had such an intimate bond with was Kendrick. Though they hadn’t been together for long, they had already endured so much—so many trials, yet he had never once let go of her hand. Sometimes, he was like a friend. Sometimes, an older brother. Other times, a teacher. And, in the most precious moments, her closest lover… If she were to leave him forever—one of them on land, the other in the sea—then no matter how enchanting the ocean was, it would be nothing but a vast, lonely abyss. **“Is it really that hard to answer?”** Kendrick asked, sounding a little hurt. **“Would
Kendrick smirked. “If I couldn’t even notice that, then all those nights we’ve slept together would’ve been for nothing.”“……”Here he goes again!Glancing down from the cruise ship, Kendrick suddenly changed the subject. “Are you really sure about jumping from this height later?”Annabelle replied confidently, “I’ve jumped from even higher places before. I’ll just treat it like a diving practice.”Seeing her so sure of herself, Kendrick had no choice but to set aside his worries.“Alright, I should get going now.” Having figured out the issue with her performance, Annabelle didn’t want to delay any further. The sooner they finished filming, the better.“Wait.” Kendrick grabbed her again and pulled her into his arms. “Are you absolutely sure there’s no baby in there?”“There isn’t!”Both the test strips and blood tests had come back negative. Plus, she had been feeling lower back soreness—her usual sign before her period—so there was no way she was pregnant. If she had been, she would
Annabelle quickly turned on the lights, threw on a jacket, and rushed to open the door for Jax.As he stepped inside, he deliberately left the door open to avoid any misunderstandings. The cold, salty scent of rain drifted into the room, sending a chill through Annabelle.She took a quick glance at Jax and noticed that his hair was slightly damp. His expression was unusually serious, lips pressed into a tight line, as if something was making him tense.Had he been outside on the deck or the outer corridor instead of in his cabin?Was he also worried about Kendrick?“Have a seat.”Calming her thoughts, Annabelle led Jax to the living room.Jax sat down on the sofa. “Madam, are you afraid of the thunder?”Annabelle nodded, then shook her head. She went straight to the point. “Why isn’t Kendrick back yet? Do you know what’s going on with him?”“Madam, don’t worry. The Boss will be fine.”“Then why do you look so tense?”Annabelle wasn’t naïve. If Kendrick was truly safe, Jax wouldn’t be
The more Annabelle thought about it, the more terrified she became. She immediately said to Jax, “Go find him right now. Don’t worry about me. If you’re really concerned, I’ll have Gauge stay with me.”Jax blinked, hesitating for a moment.If he left Madam with Mr. Murphy, wouldn’t the Boss kill him when he found out?That was his love rival…Seeing Jax remain silent, Annabelle was on the verge of losing her patience. “You’re his security advisor. Ensuring his safety is your duty! And Gauge is my good friend. You know his character—don’t you trust him?”Jax hesitated.To be fair, Gauge was indeed an upright person. Even though the Boss had his reservations about him, when he learned that Gauge had given up an important competition to join the film shoot, he secretly helped him secure a rescheduled match.While the Boss claimed he did it to prevent Madam from feeling indebted to Gauge in the future, deep down, it showed that he still trusted him to some extent.Jax glanced at the clock
"Let me do it."As he spoke, Gauge took the glass of water from Anna's hand, poured her a cup, and handed it to her.Annabelle held the warm glass, apologetically saying, "Sorry for disturbing your rest.""It’s fine," Gauge replied as he poured himself a cup of water.To help her complete the shoot, he had traveled over six thousand kilometers. Staying up all night wasn’t a big deal.He glanced at her pale face and said, "I’m glad you thought of me in such a situation."Annabelle tried to smile, but it didn’t quite come through."There’s filming tomorrow. I’ll tidy up the bed. You should get some sleep in the bedroom," she suggested as she prepared to walk to the room.Gauge patted her shoulder. "No need. You sleep in the bed. If I get tired, I can make do on the sofa."Besides, he couldn’t sleep anyway. The sudden turn of events had erased any trace of drowsiness.He also worried that something might happen while he slept. After all, Jax had warned him not to leave the room even half
"Tomorrow, go buy Anna's car." The young master's voice was thick with the haze of alcohol."The one that exploded?""Yes."A flicker of confusion rose in Seraphina's heart. "Is young master planning to investigate the method behind the explosion?"The car had already been towed away by the police, and the official conclusion was: damage to the fuel line had caused a fuel leak, which eventually led to the fire and explosion.Coincidentally, Ms. Sanchez’s car had a flat tire the day before. The police suspected that the blowout might have damaged the undercarriage, which then caused the fuel line issue.But Seraphina knew very well—those were just superficial explanations.In reality, it was the opponent’s skillful method that had left no trace, no loophole for the police to detect.She and Sid had looked into it thoroughly, even going so far as to inspect all of the young master’s vehicles for safety risks, afraid that the enemy might target him next.But while Seraphina had thought s
Annabelle pressed her lips together. “Kendrick, I’m already yours—body and soul. Why are you still jealous every day? Do you really not trust me that much?”Their relationship was already intimate, but they rarely spoke like this.The room was very quiet, with only the faint sound of water trickling from the fish tank outside. It was this silence that made Annabelle open up to him.She wished Kendrick would do the same—open up his heart to her. Why was it that, even after all they’d been through, he still seemed afraid she’d leave? As if the whole world of men were lining up to take her from him.Kendrick stared at her for a long moment, then kissed the corner of her lips. “I trust you. But that young master of yours… he’s not so trustworthy.”Annabelle knew. That young master carried a lot of secrets. Maybe that was exactly what made Kendrick wary.But… how could she ease Kendrick’s heart?Before she could think of a solution, her stomach growled.Slightly embarrassed, she buried her
“I meant nutritional supplements,” Kendrick said, amused, “Anna, are you always thinking about tonics for my kidneys?”“I…”Annabelle sighed. Ever since being with Kendrick, she had somehow started developing a mind full of those kinds of thoughts…—In the kitchen, Marvin finally found the half-eaten plate of strawberries in the microwave.He held it up and glared at Linda. “Don’t you know the state your body’s in? And you still dare to eat strawberries?”Linda pouted, her eyes turning red. “I’m already dying anyway. Can’t I enjoy just a little something? You won’t even let me eat one strawberry—how unjust if I die like this!”“Then don’t die!” Marvin roared.Linda looked up at him, stunned.After a few seconds, he took a deep breath. “I’ve been doing everything I can to keep you alive, and you just keep destroying your own body. Do you think that’s fair to me as your friend?”Linda didn’t reply, lowering her head to stare at her toes.“I just… got tempted. Couldn’t resist…” Her voic
So the two of them went up together to the walk-in closet on the third floor. Technically, Annabelle's own closet was in the next room, but she still followed him in.Once inside, Kendrick began changing clothes, unbuttoning his shirt as he took the lead in speaking.“If there's something you want to ask me, go ahead.”Annabelle looked a bit awkward—nothing ever got past this sly fox.“You two… were talking about pimping someone out?”Kendrick raised an eyebrow. “You heard that?”“Just one sentence. And something about Linda. But I swear I didn’t mean to eavesdrop.”Kendrick replied, “Help me pick out an outfit and I’ll tell you.”So Anna began choosing his clothes while Kendrick gave her a brief rundown of Linda’s situation.As he talked, Annabelle stopped flipping through the wardrobe altogether and just stood there listening intently.By the end of it, Annabelle was stunned, her mouth hanging open in disbelief—and admiration for Linda.That girl really had guts. She had always see
Kendrick and Marvin’s chopsticks reached for the same dumpling at the same time.The two of them were at it again.Annabelle rubbed her forehead, got up, and went into the kitchen. She came back with two small plates and divided the dumplings from the main plate into two smaller ones, placing them in front of the two brothers.Now with one plate per person, there was no reason to argue.Marvin ate his dumplings while watching Kendrick and Annabelle sitting across from him.She reached for a glass of water, and before her hand even got there, Kendrick had already handed it to her.When Kendrick wanted a specific dish, she would quietly move it to his side without him even asking.Watching their effortless chemistry, Marvin realized he no longer felt as upset as he used to.He seemed to have gotten used to it.Used to seeing Anna sitting beside Kendrick.Used to her distance from him.That passion he had once vowed to pursue for a lifetime—at some point, it just didn’t burn so brightly
When Marvin walked into the living room, Annabelle was still lying on the sofa, plucking petals off a flower, trying to decide whether or not to have a baby dumpling.Because she was lying on her stomach and wearing a fitted outfit, her curves were quite noticeable.Kendrick immediately stepped in front of Marvin, not wanting him to get any wild ideas from seeing Anna like this.He cleared his throat and called out, “Anna.”Without looking back, Annabelle huffed, “I haven’t fully forgiven you yet. You’d better not talk to me.”Kendrick: “…”Marvin let out a soft chuckle and gave Kendrick a look that clearly said: So, now you know what it feels like.Kendrick’s face darkened slightly as he glanced at Marvin’s shoes. “Change into slippers at the door.”Marvin didn’t argue and backed up to the entryway to switch shoes.Kendrick then entered the living room and sat on the sofa, casually resting a hand on Anna’s back.She immediately turned and glared at him.“Marvin’s here. He wants to se
Kendrick clearly hadn't realized what she was about to say and asked, “Grandpa came to the hospital too?”“He’s probably here for orthopedics,” Annabelle replied blandly.Kendrick nodded. “Grandpa has an old leg injury. He does come in for regular consultations.”He paused for a moment. “So why are you mad at me after seeing Grandpa?”Annabelle looked into his eyes. “Grandpa didn’t see me just now, but I overheard his conversation with a friend.”She glanced at him after she finished speaking.Sure enough, Kendrick's pupils contracted slightly.Even though he tried to hide it well, it didn’t escape her notice.That was the guilty look!“Oh? And what did you hear?” Kendrick kept his tone light.Seeing that he was still pretending, Annabelle frowned and stared at him. “Grandpa isn’t terminally ill, is he?”Kendrick sighed and gave a wry smile. “Didn’t think you'd find out so soon.”“Was this your idea, or Grandpa’s?”“Of course it was the old man’s idea,” Kendrick immediately sold out h
Grandpa’s friend asked, “Hey Gregory, why are you looking up this illness if there’s nothing wrong? You’ve been having headaches or something?”“No, of course not! I’m doing perfectly fine. Do I look like someone who’s sick?”The old gentleman studied him for a moment. “You don’t.”“I just needed some information on that illness, so I looked into it a bit. Anyway, we’re getting older. It doesn’t hurt to stay informed…”…As Grandpa Gregory continued chatting, he and his friend walked away from the hallway corner and didn’t head toward Annabelle.She remained quietly seated, her thoughts a tangled mess.It was possible that Grandpa had just concealed his condition from his friend.But judging from his energy and glow, he didn’t seem ill at all. He even said he played golf a few days ago.Things were clear now—Grandpa Gregory wasn’t sick. He’d faked an illness just to push her and Kendrick to have a child sooner.Knowing Grandpa was healthy let Annabelle finally breathe a sigh of relief
Just then, Anna gently took his hand and gave it a little shake, pulling Kendrick out of his thoughts.“He got hurt because of me, and yes, I was really worried and felt guilty. But it wasn’t the kind of concern you’re thinking of. That kind of worry, the one that comes from the heart—I’ve only ever felt that way for you… Do you understand now?”The little woman looked up at him, as if scared he’d misunderstand.Kendrick’s heart softened in an instant. He kissed her on the forehead and said, “Alright, let’s not talk about that anymore.”Then he led her over to the seats by the hallway.Her waist was injured—standing would only tire her out, and there was no rush to get the X-ray done. After the explosion and fire yesterday, she was clearly terrified and needed comforting.“Does your waist still hurt badly?” he asked.Anna nodded, but quickly added seriously, “I didn’t let him treat me!”Kendrick sighed, pulled her into his arms, and gently stroked her hair. “Silly girl, I never blamed