His words were so serious and convincing that even I almost believed him.He was truly a master of manipulation. It was no wonder the old me could never let him go.But it didn't matter. I was no longer the same person, and he could no longer manipulate me.The room fell silent.The crowd's emotions were complicated. They had thought they were merely aligning with Irvin's intentions by putting me down and holding Julianne in high regard.But now, they found themselves chastised by the very person they sought to please.It was… a lot to process.Julianne's face darkened ominously, so much so that words failed to describe her expression. Yet she gathered herself and smiled warmly at me in the blink of an eye."Millie, do you believe me now? There's nothing between me and Irvin. You just worry too much."Her words painted me as the crazy, paranoid woman again.But I wasn't the same anymore. Her provocation wouldn't rattle me.I replied with a smile, "Oh, don't blame me for worr
Grandma hadn't felt this liberated in years!Dad's face darkened as he scolded, "Mom, how can you say that? Lianne is so devoted to you. She's your granddaughter too!"Grandma scoffed. "I have only one granddaughter, and I love her very much. Unlike you fools, I'm not blind. I love my own flesh and blood, not someone else's child!"For a moment, Mom and Dad's faces turned into a colorful display of emotions.Even though Irvin defended Julianne, the guests no longer saw them the same way. No one dared to voice their thoughts, but in their hearts, they had labeled the pair as a cheating couple.After Grandma announced she would transfer her 20% shares to Jeremy and officially appointed him as the head of Quillcrest Pharmaceuticals, I retreated to a quiet corner for some peace.While I'd finally vented my frustrations and shut down the ridicule, the pitying looks people gave me were equally uncomfortable.I reached for a glass of orange juice and wanted to take a sip when I heard J
But in the end, Irvin's urgency wasn't for me.Without a second thought, he swam straight to Julianne, cradled her, and made his way to the edge. He didn't even glance in my direction. Not once.I couldn't understand it.Why, when I'd already forgotten him and let go of my love, did it still hurt so much?The pond was deep. Jeremy had insisted on it because he loved deep-water swimming.The depth overwhelmed me as I sank lower, struggling to find something to hold on to, but there was nothing. As I drifted deeper, I heard Julianne's voice, soft and frantic."Irvin, save Millie! Hurry!"Then came his cold, detached reply. "Leave her. She can swim. She'll be fine."I was drowning in fear and panic, barely able to breathe. But his words made my mind go blank.Right, I could swim!Back in college, I had even won a national swimming championship. How could I have forgotten? How could I lose all sense of reason and succumb to fear the moment I hit the water?I fought to remember a
Before Irvin could start, I coughed up a few mouthfuls of water and slowly regained consciousness.Seeing me awake, Irvin snapped angrily, "What's wrong with you? Must you throw your life away just to prove a point?"In the past, whenever Irvin berated me like this, I would either yell back even angrier than him or lower my head in fear and admit I was wrong.But this time around, I didn't shout or apologize. I didn't ask him to hold me, either.Instead, I stared at him coldly. The chill made Irvin feel uneasy, even afraid. Instinctively, he wanted to embrace me, but I avoided his touch.I grabbed onto the arm of the man beside him and asked him to take me to the hospital.Irvin froze, stunned. He couldn't believe that the woman who supposedly loved him more than anyone else was choosing to rely on a stranger over him.He wondered what was wrong with me. Why was I acting so incomprehensibly? What had caused me to change so drastically?Irvin took a large step forward, intending
Professor Green was elegant and refined. He smiled politely and replied, "Mr. Sawyer, there's no need to be so courteous. Ms. Quill has already thanked me."Irvin frowned. Men had a keen sensitivity to their territory, and Irvin instinctively disliked Professor Green, even though the latter had just saved me, his wife."If you ever need anything, feel free to come to me. Now, I'll be taking my wife with me," said Irvin while pulling me into an embrace so tight that I couldn't even struggle out of it.Professor Green noticed my discomfort and frowned. "You're making her uncomfortable. She's still very weak."Irvin's grim face darkened further at Professor Green's words. However, he loosened his grip on me slightly and glared at Professor Green without any of his earlier gratitude."Mr. Green, I'm grateful for you saving my wife. Whatever you need, I'll do my best to fulfill it. But you don't have to concern yourself with her anymore."The possessiveness in his voice would've made
I felt repulsed whenever I looked at Irvin and Julianne. I didn't want to disgust myself any further by continuing to think about them.Irvin knew he was wrong for what happened yesterday, so he didn't get as angry this time."Emi, I know what I did yesterday wasn't right, but look, you're fine now. You know Lianne's always been weak. Who knows what could have happened if I'd waited longer to take her to the hospital?"Yesterday, I even publicly swore there's nothing between us, and you'll always be my wife. So, can't you just stop making a scene? Lianne's situation is urgent. Let my assistant take you home."With that, he turned and walked away, not giving me the chance to say anything.Watching him rush off, I frowned in disgust.One second, he was so possessive of me, and the next second, he ran off to take care of his lover. It was ridiculous to think he had claimed nothing was going on between them!I really wanted a peaceful divorce. However, with Irvin's hypocrisy and nau
My gaze darkened. "Mr. Walker.""Yes, Mrs. Sawyer?"Although his tone was respectful, the contempt in his eyes displeased me."You're fired. I'll have HR arrange compensation for you. Go pack your things and leave."I should feel lucky that even though I had made the mistake of leaving the academic path I loved for Irvin, I hadn't completely lost my mind.After investing everything into Irvin, I didn't walk away empty-handed. When the company became publicly listed, I secured shares second only to Irvin's.As the second-largest shareholder of the company, I had the authority to fire someone.In my journal, I had recorded numerous instances where Mr. Walker had humiliated me, and I was certain that a third of my emotional pain came from him.He was an employee who not only failed to respect the boss but actively belittled and manipulated me. Keeping him around would be absurd.Mr. Walker's eyes widened in shock. "What?""You heard me. You're fired.""Mrs. Sawyer, did you hit
While waiting for the test results, I couldn't help but ask about Mr. Holland. Back when I decided to drop out of school and venture into business, the disappointment in his eyes haunted me to this day, making me too afraid to contact him even after all these years.All I've ever dared to do was send occasional holiday greetings in the group chats we were both in.Mr. Holland had really put all his heart into teaching me back then. He was already established in the industry, so he didn't need to take on graduate students anymore, but he made an exception just for me. He was the second person in the world to treat me well, aside from Grandma.However, I dropped out after being accepted into the graduate program with him as my mentor. The only reason I did that was to take care of Irwin, as he was too busy to do so himself when he first started his company. Back then, he often had stomach issues, so I wanted to be there for him.My memories were coming back to me now. I remembered ho
The flight attendant knocked on the entrance to the suite to signal her arrival and served our meal. Then, she left swiftly.William and I were eating and discussing our AI chip factory when his face suddenly turned red. He couldn't say a word.The moment I saw that, I immediately realized what was happening and rushed over to him.I moved behind him, wrapped my arms around his abdomen, and clenched my fists. With my palm facing upward, I tightened my arms and pressed my left fist forcefully into his upper abdomen again and again, until he finally spat out the seed of a fruit.He had accidentally swallowed the seed while eating dried fruit, and it had gotten stuck in his throat.William stared at the seed he'd just coughed up, looking flustered. A man like him, who was so strong and composed, had choked while eating. He couldn't believe it had actually happened.Especially in front of me!William, who was usually composed no matter the circumstances, now had a face flushed wit
William handed me a glass of champagne and said, "I heard Grace gave you a hard time again at the airport lounge."I hummed in response, confirming it. At the mention of Grace, a thought struck me, and I turned to him. "Mr. Ashford, many of your company's products seem to compete directly with the Hardwells'."Although most of my focus had been on research, I did know a little about the business world. After all, I had a company myself. "Yes, why?" William raised an eyebrow at me."If you're planning to enter the mainland market, wouldn't the Hardwells be your biggest competitor?" I asked.Upon hearing that, William's dark eyes lit up with interest. "Are you trying to join forces with me against the Hardwells?"I knew that I couldn't hide my intentions from someone like William, so I answered honestly, "I'm just thinking ahead. I wanted to see if you had similar plans. If so, maybe we could work together in the future."Going against the Hardwells alone was definitely impossi
At the same time, the same video was also delivered to Noah's grandfather, Mr. Hull Senior."This is the woman Noah's interested in? He refused a marriage alliance with Ms. Charter because of her?" Mr. Hull Senior questioned incredulously.His butler, who had been by his side for decades, lowered his head respectfully and answered, "Yes."Mr. Hull Senior scoffed. "What kind of judgment does he have? It's no wonder he doesn't measure up to his uncle."Noah might be excellent, but at his age, William had already built up the Ashfords into the wealthiest family in Redwood. In terms of cunning or any other aspect, he was still far behind William.The loyal butler remained silent as he respectfully stood off to the side."If anyone else was still left in this family, I'd never even consider passing it to Noah!" Mr. Hull Senior exclaimed, pounding his cane hard against the floor.The Hulls had built their fortune from casinos. Their business had shady beginnings, which meant they also
Lowering her head, Grace forcibly suppressed the murderous impulse rising in her chest. When she lifted it back up, her gaze was utterly apologetic."I'm truly sorry, Ms. Quill. My friend really did misunderstand you. Tim actually dropped me off earlier—that was why he was here," she said.Then, she turned to Lisa and said, "There's really nothing going on between Ms. Quill and Tim, Lisa. Tim was just dropping me off earlier. "When I went to the restroom, he happened to run into Ms. Quill. And because she was his brother's ex-wife, they exchanged greetings. That's all it was, so you jumped to the wrong conclusion."Plus, Ms. Quill is the one who cured Tim's legs, so we Hardwells owe her a great debt. She's definitely not a homewrecker! So, if you ever call her that again or anything of the sort, our friendship will be over!"Catching the message in Grace's gaze, Lisa immediately put on a sincere expression and apologized to me. "I'm so sorry, Ms. Quill, for completely misundersta
"Well? Say something!" the woman yelled. "If he wasn't Timothy, and you're not a homewrecker, then who was he? Can't say it, can you? Since you can't, it just proves you're a homewrecker!"You're just a social-climbing snake! You saw that the Hardwells were wealthier, so you used your dead ex-husband's likeness with Timothy as an excuse to try and latch onto them! You're so outrageous and vile!"I had never been insulted or cursed like this in my entire life. But I also didn't know how to fight back. This was yet another trouble Irvin had brought upon me, and the thought of this only made me resent him even more.Hearing the certainty in the woman's tone, the people around us began casting strange glances in my direction. After all, I hadn't said anything to defend myself, either.Just then, Grace walked over, looking regal and elegant."Stop it, Lisa. Ms. Quill isn't a homewrecker. Back then, she was just still in too much grief over the death of her ex-husband and mistook Tim fo
Irvin waited for the little boy to pick up his ball and waddle away.Then, he looked at me and said, "Let me take you to the airport first, Emi. Then, as promised, I won't appear in front of you unless absolutely necessary. We'll leave everything up to time and let it wear down the feelings we're clinging to."Things can change quickly, after all. So, why don't we just set aside what we can't solve right now? And who knows—maybe some time later, we'll both be able to work through these feelings again."I knew someone as stubborn as Irvin wouldn't let go of his fixation on getting back together with me over a simple plea. And since it really was time for me to leave for the airport, I didn't argue with him any further."There's no need for you to take me—my driver is already waiting," I said.With that, I walked past him and got into my car. However, Irvin didn't leave. Instead, he followed behind my car the entire way.The sheer size of the Hardwells' affairs kept Irvin incredibl
Irvin stared at me, feeling lost. He didn't know how to answer my question—and I wasn't alone in my feelings.Sometimes, his memories and emotions would resurface in the middle of the night, and he would jolt awake. And when this happened, he also couldn't help but ask himself the same thing. How could he have done all those things to me?Irvin wanted to understand it himself too. Were his actions born out of habit?Because of all the misunderstandings and hatred between us, he wanted me to suffer as much as he did. So, Irvin had gotten used to abusing me emotionally and hurting me. He had also gotten used to treating me as unimportant.And then, it had eventually become a habit for him."I always felt Julianne was the one you truly loved," I said. "You always had an excuse for her actions, regardless of what she did. I continued, "Plus, you always pampered her, always softened toward her, and always wanted to help her. You never once doubted her, and you still accepted her, eve
If only…If only Irvin had hurt me a little less. Then, I would've forgiven him and gotten back together with him without hesitation. That was how much I loved him and how much I desired to grow old with him.However, time and time again, he had deeply stabbed me in the heart. So, despite my desire to love Irvin, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't bring myself to let go of that pain.Irvin smiled softly at me when he spotted me stepping out."I'll take you to the airport," he offered.Collecting my thoughts, I said, "No need. Didn't we agree back then to avoid seeing each other as much as possible until you can fully drop the guise of being Timothy Hardwell?""Yes, and I will do my best to stay away from you. But today is an exception," Irvin answered.I couldn't help feeling a flicker of irritation as I stared at him. I didn't want to see him because I no longer wanted to feel conflicted toward him."I didn't need you to fly all the way here from Lestoria just to send
Grace handed her phone to Agatha."Noah Ashford's grandfather wants him to marry the Charters' daughter to form an alliance between the families. Ms. Charter is also quite fond of him, but he absolutely refuses to marry her. Right now, both Noah's grandfather and the Charters are very displeased with his refusal," she explained.Then, she asked, "If we let them know the reason behind Noah's refusal, what do you think these powerful people will do, Agatha?"Agatha hardly paid attention to external affairs since Timothy's passing. So, she didn't even know who Noah was.Seeing her frown, Grace quickly realized she didn't recognize Noah's name."Noah Ashford is William Ashford's nephew. He is also the only grandson of Mr. Griffin Hull, the sole patriarch of the Hull family. Currently, Noah is the sole heir to both the Hulls and Redwood's Ashfords," Grace explained.Agatha recognized the two families. "Now, that's an impressive background."The Hardwells could rival the Ashfords, but