Karter turned to Yaacob, clearly confused. "Her? Who's this 'her' you're talking about?" he asked, but a sudden thought struck him like lightning. "Oh, you mean Nancy? Her situation's not looking good at all! Word is, her old agency's suing her, and she's bogged down by a huge debt. She'll be going to jail if she can't cough up the money." Yaacob's dark eyes narrowed. "It's like someone's out to get her. No one dared to help her after she fell out with the influential Shaw family. If she doesn't get through this, her life might as well be over," Karter said. "What about the Lawson family? Aren't they going to take care of her?" Yaacob inquired even though he already knew the answer. Karter's eyes widened with surprise. "Yaacob, I didn't know you were aware of the Lawson Group, considering you've been abroad for so long! The Lawson family is considered wealthy here, I guess. But I'll tell you a secret. Nancy's not related to them by blood. She was taken in by Mr. Lawson, and s
"Isn't that Nancy, the Queen of Showbiz? I never thought I'd see her in a bar of all places!" "She used to be so lofty and pristine," his companion chimed in, glee dancing in his eyes. "What's become of her now? All alone, drinking away her sorrows since being tossed aside by Spencer? Poor little thing." Nancy's head swam, the words reaching her ears in a mix of confused buzzing. The voices were like flies, droning on and making her headache worse. She had no desire to respond. The two men, however, were far from done, their voices growing more enthusiastic with every jab. "Nancy, the great beauty! Heard you're up to your neck in legal trouble lately, begging for money from anyone you can find. Long ago, you wouldn't even dine with me for a million. Look at you now!" One of them peered at the empty bottles on Nancy's table and clicked his tongue. "Tsk, tsk... So many drinks. Can you even afford to pay for all this?" "Mr. Wells, why not be charitable and invite her for dinner?
"Ouch!" Nancy's head struck against the leather seat so hard that she was shaken out of her drunken stupor. She rubbed her eyes and finally realized that she was no longer inside the bar, but sprawled across the backseat of a luxurious MPV. The door was wide open, and the night air buffeted relentlessly against her face, easing the tension from her throbbing head. "What are you doing standing there?" She sat up, glancing at Yaacob. "Are you going to send me home? Can you just get in already? The wind's getting crazy." With that, she reached out to close the door herself. Her fingers barely even brushed the handle when Yaacob grabbed hold of her hand. "So, you're finally sober. Go sit in the front!" His husky voice sent chills down her spine. "Why didn't you put me there in the first place?" Nancy shot him a rather disgruntled look. Despite that, she still slid out of the backseat and got into the front passenger seat. She could not help but feel that Yaacob was not in a g
She was broke and powerless, and would no doubt be picked on by everyone else above her in the food chain. Not to mention that she had turned Mr. Wells down just now despite his clear declaration of love toward her. There was no doubt that he would hold a grudge against her over this, and she would be in a lot of trouble should she show up again. However, at the same time, she was reluctant to admit defeat. She continued clinging onto the seatbelt in silence, mulling her options while secretly cursing at Yaacob. However, Yaacob was not as heartless as he appeared to be. Although she did not say anything, Nancy could tell that he was not taking her back to the bar, and had instead taken a different route. After about twenty minutes, she finally asked him, "Where are you taking me?" Yaacob ignored her. Another round of awkward silence as the two stubbornly refused to speak to each other. Finally, Yaacob stopped the car. She realized they were at the beach when she felt
"Have you thought this through?" Yaacob asked. "Yes," Nancy replied in feigned confidence. "Don't you worry. I promise to fulfill my duties as a wife, and I'll try to nurture our relationship too." "What about our sex life?" Yaacob did not seem at all concerned about the emotional aspects of this marriage. "Well, I'll do my best to fulfill you, provided that I am able to," she replied. "Sounds good!" Yaacob was pleased to hear this. "Shall we go to the courthouse then?" "What? Are we doing this now?" Nancy was surprised by how eager he seemed to be. "Since we're already on the same page, why not? Weren't you desperate to marry me?" Nancy could not help but wonder what tricks this man had up his sleeve. He seemed far more desperate to get married than she did, but every time they conversed, he would twist it in a way to make it seem like the other way round. Not only that, but he would always make her feel like she did not deserve him. "Uhm… Technically, you're right, but
"I'm a businessman!" Yaacob's answer was exactly what she expected. Nancy pursed her lips and tried to probe more. "Well, what about that friend of yours? Who is he? How did he even get his hands on such a valuable plot of land anyway?" "He's a businessman too." Nancy was speechless. "Come, let's go have a look." With that, he pulled the door open and tried to coax her out of the car. To his surprise, Nancy said rather hesitantly, "Uhm… Maybe next time? I think it's best we do this after we're officially married. Besides, I didn't bring any of my stuff with me, so I can't spend the night." Although she tried to make it sound as nonchalant as possible, one could easily decipher the meaning behind her guarded tone. After all, one did not need to be a genius to figure out what a man's invitation to spend the night entailed. Yaacob glanced at Nancy, who was already surreptitiously inching further away from him. He decided not to push her. He shut the door, got back into the
"If spending my money makes you feel bad, feel free to make up for it in another way," Yaacob added. Nancy's ears began to ring as her cheeks flushed red. Nancy could not believe that she, a former actress who did not even bat an eye when faced with thousands of fans staring up at her, would blush at something this man said! Thankfully, it was nighttime, and no one could see her face under the dim streetlights. Nancy tucked the bag close to her chest and took a small step backward. "Well, I'll be off now." "Hey, I want you to get dressed up tomorrow." "What?" "I'll come pick you up. We're having lunch with my friends." "Is this… Are you letting me meet your friends?" Nancy asked. "I guess so." That was strange. One would usually meet their fiance's parents first, not their friends. On second thought, their engagement itself was already a strange affair, so she was in no position to judge. Truth be told, she was a little relieved that she would not be meeting Yaa
The overly expensive car stuck out like a sore thumb in Nancy's rundown neighborhood, but Yaacob did not seem at all interested in explaining further to her. "I just felt like driving it today!" As he said that, he tapped his cigarette and gave Nancy a once-over through the car window. His stare was so penetrating that she felt as though she was standing bare-naked in front of him. She lowered her head, clearly uncomfortable, and started tugging at her dress. "How do I look?" "Like you've put in some effort." Yaacob nodded in rigid approval. The truth was, any woman longed to hear praises of "you look very beautiful" from their male partner when asked how they looked. Therefore, Nancy could not help but feel a little annoyed at Yaacob's stiff response, as though he was reluctant to admit she looked nice. However, before she could say anything, he got out of the car, put out his cigarette, and circled over to the passenger side to open her door. At least he was still a gentl