However, those ladies were not as healthy as Grandma May. Despite being old, she often traveled by plane to pick wife candidates for her grandsons. ‘We’re unfilial,’ Dylan thought. If his nana had not given them the task, he would have gotten married after he turned thirty-five years old instead of twenty-eight. Although he was envious of Zachary and Serenity’s happy marriage, he preferred freedom and being unrestrained. Grandma May had most likely guessed their thinking and knew they would only wed after hitting thirty. Therefore, she tasked them with pursuing their wives. “Nana can stay in shape by dancing. Besides, her dancing at home won’t disturb anyone.”Zachary was aware that Grandma May had learned dancing from the old ladies in group dancing sessions. The elderly had always led a carefree life, unrestrained by their status or identity. As her grandsons, they simply wished for her happiness and supported anything she did that brought her joy. “Why were you lookin
Zachary asked, “What is Nana’s take on the matter?” “Nana told me to verify it myself. She’s washing her hands off it.” Dylan murmured, “I’m starting to question whether I’m really her grandson. Is she trying to push me to become the first guy in the family to get divorced?“I bet Nana’s itching to beat someone with her cane. We’ve been very well-behaved, so she doesn’t have an excuse to discipline us. She would have a legit reason to beat me up by turning me into a cheater.” Zachary burst into laughter. He said with a smile, “Nana would make you feel sorry you ever said that.” “I’m not wrong.” “Can’t you combine Nana’s choice for you with the woman in your dreams?” “How can I do that? They are two different people. They don’t even look the same,” Dylan mumbled. Zachary replied, “Special effects makeup is a thing now. Cheryl, who married into the Johnsons, specializes in that. You might want to look into it. While you’re at it, you could consider a hyper-realistic mask too
Zachary went upstairs. He pushed the bedroom door and walked in to hear Serenity gagging in the bathroom. Today was no exception. As soon as Serenity woke up, she had to go and throw up in the bathroom. “Seren.” Zachary rushed over and approached Serenity from behind. He gave her gentle rubs on the back while feeling sorry for her. “Your morning sickness is happening every day. The baby’s not letting you rest.” The child might be a naughty one. “Pregnancy is a different experience for everyone. A difficult one with morning sickness does not dictate a child's personality.”Serenity stood up for her unborn child. After puking, Serenity washed her hands while Zachary grabbed a tissue to wipe her mouth. “I wish I could bear the morning sickness for you.” “If you can do that, you might as well take over the whole pregnancy and save us women from childbirth.” Zachary was speechless. He helped Serenity out of the bathroom and sat her down on the bedroom sofa. He then pour
Minutes later, Serenity changed her clothes and went downstairs with Zachary, hand in hand. Dylan and Grandma May were having breakfast in the dining room. As the couple entered the space, he stopped eating and rose to his feet. “Hi, Serenity.” “Morning.” Serenity was used to the respect she got from Zachary’s cousins and brothers. She knew that they respected her because of Zachary. She gestured for Dylan to sit down. “Nana,” Serenity greeted. Grandma May lovingly asked, “Do you feel better today?” “Same as always. I wonder if things will be better in a month.” “They will.” Grandma May looked at Zachary. Her grandson must feel bad about Serenity’s persistent morning sickness. “Seren, Zachary got up early and made you breakfast. Thanks to you, I get breakfast too.” Grandma May smiled. “Don’t make it as though I’m a bad grandson, Nana. We will always cook for you if you ask,” Zachary refuted. Dylan complained to Serenity, “Look at Zachary. He’s so petty. He d
Snapping out of his thoughts, Sam answered, “I’ll bring the car around, ma’am.” “Go on. I won’t be back for dinner. I’ll return tomorrow. Let Zachary know when he comes back,” Grandma May urged. “Got it, ma’am.” She was always out and about, so Sam was used to it. Grandma May did not have to pack to go home. Out she walked with only her phone.Sam had a car brought to the driveway. She wanted to drive, but Sam was not going to have it. Even though Grandma May was in good health, she was getting old. Sam could not afford her getting into accidents on the road. Moreover, Grandma May loved the adrenaline rush of speeding. Zachary and the rest of the family had warned Sam and his team that under no circumstances could Grandma May drive. “Alright. I just can’t wait to get home. I won’t fight you on this. I won’t drive.” Since Grandma May could not argue over Sam, she relented. The household helper was stubborn when it came to her safety, and it was under Zachary’s orders
Julian gleefully said hello to all the kids, then invited them to have a buffet breakfast at the hotel café. Since the kids had been staying at Wiltspoon Hotel for a few days now, they were familiar with the place. They walked ahead in droves, knowing where to get breakfast. Julian and Quinn followed behind the kids. Seeing the children happy, Quinn said with a smile, “I envy them. They are a lot happier than I was when I was a kid. I competed frequently at their age. My father wouldn’t take me anywhere for fun. “The best I got was a free trip to the park after the competitions. I would get ice cream there too. I had to go straight home after though.” Now, Quinn would pay out of her pocket to give the kids a fun experience. Of course, she was enjoying it too. It was a rare trip, and she wanted to make the most out of it for herself. “You’re a great coach. Your students respect you.” Julian complimented, “Your sacrifices won’t go unnoticed. Your students will remember
“Don’t worry. I will promote your family gym after I learn from you. I won’t do anything to break the law.” Julian, who was a good fighter, pretended like he was a defenseless man. He showed his interest in joining the Crawfords’ gym. That way, he could be with Quinn every day and she was bound to fall in love with him. Only Quinn could make him feel like a man again. He was determined to keep her for himself, and not lose her to someone else.Quinn tilted her head and looked at Julian. While walking, she said with a smile, “You’re a little old, so training can take time. If you’re interested in building strength and nothing else, you can ask my dad or my brother if they would accept you as a student.” Julian asked, “You’re not going to teach me?” “I usually teach kids. My dad teaches the adults. As I’ve told you, late learners usually take up self-defense for fitness. My dad can teach you the basics. “The basics go a long way. You always work behind the desk. You will fee
By then, the kids had grabbed their favorites and sat down to eat at two tables. Quinn was a foodie, and the local cuisine was right up her alley. She grabbed two plates and loaded them with food. Since there was no vacant seat with the kids, she sat at a nearby table. She put her plates down and went to grab a plate for fruits and another for dessert. She also poured herself a cup of coffee.Julian had grabbed a lot of food too. Quinn would not enjoy her meal unless Julian did too. She might even try to be ladylike and stay hungry next time.Julian wanted to give his future wife everything even though they were not married yet. He could not possibly let her go hungry. After grabbing the food, Quinn sat down and realized that she might have taken too much to eat. However, she stopped feeling embarrassed when she saw the amount of food Julian took from the buffet. Quinn was not the only one who could eat. Her students were big eaters too. It must be due to all the exercis
Zachary, afraid that his wife might refuse to spend time with him at his office in the future, emphasized that he was not busy today.He had already cleared his morning schedule because he needed to accompany his beloved wife for her prenatal checkup.His secretary was well aware of Serenity’s checkup dates. Whenever he saw Serenity turn up at the office with his boss, his secretary would quietly adjust his schedule.Sometimes, on the day of the Serenity’s checkup, his secretary would not schedule any appointments for Zachary at all.Even if appointments were scheduled, Zachary would request they be canceled or rescheduled.Now, in Zachary’s eyes, his wife’s matters were the most important.With Alex now able to share the workload, Zachary felt that he, as the eldest of his generation who had shouldered the bulk of the burden for so many years, deserved a break.Plus, there was the elite team the company had trained; if not now, then when would they be put to use?Everyone was
Tony turned around and left.Only after hearing the door close did Carrie dare to open her eyes.She had woken up while Tony and his son were on the phone, but she did not dare move, fearing that Tony might suspect her of eavesdropping.Just now, when that old lecher stood by the bed looking at her, there was definitely a murderous glint in his eyes. She could feel it.Sooner or later, he would kill her.Carrie was filled with panic. She wanted to escape but was afraid she would not succeed. No one was there to help her.For a moment, Carrie even considered running to Camryn to confess everything, but she quickly dismissed the thought. The reason she ended up in this situation was entirely due to Camryn.She and Camryn were sworn enemies. Their conflict would not end until one of them was dead. However, even if she died, she would drag Camryn down with her.-Meanwhile, in the CEO's office at York Corporation, Zachary, seated at his desk, kept glancing up at his pregnant wife.
“You should have gotten rid of them all back then and cultivated a network of people loyal only to you.” Manny felt that his father should not have spared those people in the first place.Tony said, “There were too many of them, all relatives and friends with the same goal as us. We couldn’t eliminate them all at once.”Back then, he had incited everyone to join him in wiping out the entire main family, sparing neither the elderly nor the children.It was because they were all from the collateral branches, jealous of the main family’s long-standing control, and shared a common goal that his conspiracy succeeded.He had also spent over a decade waiting for the right opportunity.Who would have thought that even after wiping out the main family, he still could not obtain the family seal, token, or totem? Without these, he could not become the true head of the family and could only act as a proxy. Many of the connections loyal to the head remained inaccessible.Moreover, much of the
It was his father. Manny composed himself and picked up Tony’s call as he walked toward his car.“Hey, Pops.”“How’s it going, Manny? Has there been any progress?”Tony was still in Carrie’s room at the moment, but had gotten up and walked to the balcony to call his son.Carrie was still fast asleep, though her face was set in a frown. She was obviously discomfited.Tony had pestered her for the majority of last night, so it would be weird if she did not feel any discomfort.Despite her begging, Tony would not let her go. He even forcefully drugged her to make her mess around with him while out of it. He was simply an old pervert.Before she passed out, she cursed him in her heart. However, she knew that Tony only treated her so roughly because she was just his mistress—a tool for him to vent his frustrations on.If she really was his wife, he definitely would not treat her like this.In the past, she had ambitions of taking Mrs. Longbottom’s place and becoming the real missus
Tati also finished her plate of pastries.She followed Isabella out.“Isa, you’re always so busy and exhausted. If you’re feeling even a little unwell, you should have a good rest. Stay home for the day. I can handle the work you have on hand. It’s the same either way.”Tati wanted Isabella to take the day off so Isabella could spend some time with Austin and nurture their relationship.However, Isabella still declined Tati’s kind offer.She said, “Not today. There’s an important meeting today, and I have two important clients to meet. I’m fine, really. Don’t worry. From now on, I won’t touch alcohol.”Given her current status and position, no one would dare to force her to drink during social engagements.Many people also knew that Isabella would not drink outside her home, fearing that she might fall victim to someone’s schemes.However, Isabella would occasionally make an exception. When she was in a good mood, she would have a couple of drinks.Hearing this, Tati stopped t
Austin still smiled gently and said, “It’s all thanks to Ms. Isabella’s guidance.”He felt that he had indeed improved a lot.Grandma May really understood him well. The wife she picked for him could actually help improve his culinary skills.“After eating the sweets, I feel much better.” Tati picked up another piece of pastry and ate it.Austin quietly retreated, not wanting to disturb their conversation and also to avoid overhearing their private matters.“Just ignore him. Are you really going to skip work because of him?”Isabella added calmly to Tati, “If you let him provoke you, he’ll only cling to you even more. If you act like he doesn’t exist and don’t respond no matter what he does, he’ll naturally give up once he sees that you’re completely unresponsive.”Tati said, “I’m afraid that he’ll go and bother Edith and Eleanor if he doesn’t get anywhere with me. They don’t have the same resolve as we do.”She, therefore, decided to bear the brunt of it.“Every time I see hi
Austin replied, “Both Mr. Louis and Mr. Phillip woke up very early, especially Mr. Phillip. He gets up earlier than Mr. Louis every morning. It’s really hard on him, getting up so early in such cold weather.”Sometimes, he himself felt like staying in bed a little longer, reluctant to leave the warm comfort of his blankets.Even after the New Year, Satbury remained quite cold. In contrast, over in Wiltspoon, the temperatures had begun to reach a high of over seventy degrees Fahrenheit in the daytime, with nighttime lows around fifty degrees.The two provinces and cities were simply incomparable. The temperatures in Wiltspoon were just so very comfortable for Satbury locals.Isabella smiled and said, “Phillip is just afraid he’ll get here too late and that you’ll assume he’s not coming over for breakfast, then not prepare any for him. He's such a little foodie.”The house was never short of snacks for the little ones. In fact, any goodies were always reserved for them first.Yet,
Even when she attended banquets, she would show up in formal clothing. Isabella did not remember the last time she wore a dress. Perhaps it was when she was in third grade. In fact, she liked wearing pretty princessy dresses when she was young. Her mother had told her that.As Isabella was the first child and extremely adorable, Delphine had dolled her up like a princess. Her pretty dresses filled the closet. Her parents, aunts, uncles, and relatives would always gift her many beautiful dresses. As she grew up, perhaps when she was in fourth grade, she stopped wearing dresses. Regardless of who gave her new pieces, she would refuse to wear them and give them to her cousins instead. After everyone realized she disliked dresses, they gradually stopped giving her them. Delphine had asked Isabella why she disliked wearing dresses. Isabella reasoned that she could not walk quickly enough while wearing one. She valued speed and efficiency. Delphine said she had alway
While the private chefs Ms. Isabella had hired in the past were respectful, they were leaning toward flattery instead of sincere dedication, like how Austin was toward Ms. Isabella.Dominic was experienced. He could sense that Ms. Isabella treated Austin differently. She was also a special existence to Austin. It was normal for young people to be attracted to each other. Initially, Dominic wanted to advise Austin not to even think about dating Ms. Isabella. However, upon discovering that Austin was a young master of a wealthy family, he decided not to interfere. Dominic was glad that he did nothing.Austin returned to the house. Instead of heading straight to the kitchen, he went upstairs. He stopped outside of Isabella’s room and knocked on the door lightly. No response came from within the room. Perhaps Austin was too soft when he knocked. He knocked on the door again with more force and asked, “Are you up yet, Ms. Isabella? It’s time to have breakfast.”Isabella w