After Corey left with Sonny, Duncan asked Serenity, “Did your sister really ask you to come see me when she left? How is she? Have I become too sensitive, and emotional, and affected her?“Serenity, do you think I’m being unreasonable? I’m almost thirty-seven years old and acting like a child.”The more Duncan spoke, the more self-blaming he became.He felt genuinely unreasonable this time.“Duncan, Liberty really worries about you. It’s just that she had a tight schedule, so she couldn’t make it here. She repeatedly asked me and Zachary to come and comfort you. Sonny is very honest. Don’t you believe what he said?“Duncan, I’m not afraid of you getting angry or feeling vulnerable. But this time, you are genuinely being unreasonable. Look at the way you’ve shut yourself in this room for a day without eating or drinking. You’ve not only caused my sister to worry before she left but also Mrs. Lewis. I’m sure you don’t feel good about it either.“It’s not just about you being unwell
“Alright, I’ll go downstairs by myself. No need to help me.”Duncan’s mood had gone from a snowstorm to a clear sky.Quite a drastic change, ha-ha.He grabbed the sofa armrest and stood up on his own, taking a step before sitting back down in his wheelchair.Zachary said, “I won’t help you, you’re on your own.”Despite saying that, he steered the wheelchair in the right direction before letting Duncan take control.The three of them left the room together, heading toward the elevator.“You take the elevator down, Serenity and I will take the stairs.”Duncan nodded, “As you wish. I still need to use it for now.”Once he could walk like a normal person, the elevator at home would get a break.As Duncan entered the elevator, Zachary pulled Serenity toward the stairs and said, “Duncan cares too much about Liberty, that’s why he couldn’t help but get lost in his thoughts.”“I hope he gets better soon. Actually, Liberty has accepted him from the bottom of her heart. It’s not her pr
At Jensburg Airport, Kevin was waiting for Liberty’s arrival.He dared not defy Zachary’s orders, though he would have still fetched Liberty from the airport even if Zachary had not entrusted him with the task. She was Serenity’s sister and Sonny’s mother after all, and that made her family.Kevin occasionally checked his watch.The sky was getting dark, and Liberty only arrived when night fell. She turned off airplane mode on her phone once she landed and sent a voice note to Serenity, “Seren, I just landed in Jensburg. I’ll be getting off the plane soon. I’ll call you back once I’m at Fortress Hotel.”Liberty would be staying at Fortress Hotel during her trip, the same one she stayed with Audrey for her last trip to Jensburg.Audrey had told her to keep a lookout for houses to purchase. It would be much more convenient to live in her own place instead of the hotel all the time. Audrey asked her to choose a nice house and even offered to pay for it. The house Liberty currentl
Kevin led the way with Liberty’s luggage in hand. As he walked, he said, “I reserved a private room at the hotel and ordered some food beforehand. We can dig in as soon as we get there.”The renovation works on the house he bought at Lake Edge were not done yet, so he could not host Liberty there. Besides, Liberty would not want to stay at his private villa. Therefore, he arranged rooms for Liberty and her bodyguards at Fortress Hotel. “Thanks, Kevin.”“No problem. It’s no trouble at all. Let me know if you run into any difficulties here. I’ll definitely help you as long as it’s within my capabilities. If I can’t handle it, I’ll think of a way to get someone else to help you.”Liberty smiled. “I’m here to survey the market. I may need you to provide me with some suggestions.”“That won’t be an issue. Ask away.”The scene of Kevin walking out of the airport with Liberty and the rest had been captured by paparazzi secretly. It was news to the entertainment journalists. Kevin
After thinking about it, Hayden decided to only tell Kevin about the “scandal” after he returned. She had already told her secretary to handle it anyway. The news would be removed soon. Kevin’s secretary dealt with the matter as soon as he learned about it. The news disappeared within minutes of its publication. Back in Wiltspoon, Serenity, Zachary, and Sonny had dinner with the Lewises. Once she got news of Liberty’s safe arrival, Serenity relayed the information to Duncan. She said, “She’ll contact you once she reaches the hotel.”Duncan, who was in the wheelchair pushed by Zachary, smiled and said, “I know. She sent me a message.”Serenity replied, “That’s great. You two have to sort things out. Sonny, come down and take a walk. You shouldn’t let Duncan hold you all the time.”“It’s okay. I like having Sonny in my arms.”Duncan had promised that he would treat Sonny as his own. Nevertheless, Sonny got off Duncan’s lap. He said, “Aunt Ser, you told me walking after ea
Serenity got tired after walking around for some time, so Zachary brought her and Sonny back to the villa where he lived during his bachelor days. As their holiday was coming to an end and they would resume their work life, they decided not to stay in Wildridge Manor anymore for convenience. Once they entered the door, they heard Grandma May’s booming voice. Zachary and Serenity exchanged glances. They did not think she would be here. “Great-Nana.”Sonny was excited to see Grandma May. He ditched his aunt and uncle, running toward Grandma May immediately. The old lady waited for Sonny with open arms. “Zachary, Serenity.”Dylan was in the house too. The booming voice they heard earlier was Grandma May scolding Dylan. It seemed like he had angered her somehow. After greeting Grandma May, Zachary and Serenity sat and asked Dylan, “Did you anger Nana? We heard her from outside.”Dylan looked helpless and aggrieved. Zachary immediately knew what the issue was. He pa
After thinking about it, Emma said, “Come in.”She turned around to enter her room and Ava followed suit. Once the door was closed, Emma whispered to Ava, “We can join hands to chase Celine out. I have the urge to rip her apart whenever I see her now. Unfortunately, even though Mom’s angry at her, she still loves her very much.“After all, Mom and Dad had raised Celine with lots of love. They didn’t know Celine wasn’t their daughter.”“Do you have a plan, Emma? As long as Mom becomes disappointed in Celine and hates her, Celine will no longer be the Fisher family’s daughter. It’ll be better if she loses everything and struggles in Jensburg.”Emma and Ava were not exactly saints. Indeed Celine had helped her brothers and offended her sisters-in-law, but they were also plotting to make Celine lose everything she had. Emma said, “I have a plan. Hear me out and let me know what you think. We can execute it right away if you find it doable.”“Go on.”Emma said in a low voice, “Why
Those people were stingy as well. They would take everything and sweep the house clean at every visit. Luckily, Belinda did not seem to like them a lot. Those thieves dared not visit without her permission. Otherwise, Emma would have gone crazy if she had to interact with them often. “Do you have a way to obtain the aphrodisiac, Emma?”Ava grew angry upon the mention of her husband’s affair and Hunter and Celine’s biased judgments, so she made up her mind to work with Emma to frame Celine and have her kicked out of the family.Their husbands had no hope of becoming a patriarch anyway. Since it was so, they would take Caroline’s side and give her a hand by chasing Celine away. In the event Caroline had a score to settle with them in the future, they hoped she would have mercy on them after having helped her now. “That’s easy. I know some people. We should get Ellie to join in our plan. I believe we’ll be able to handle Celine with the three of us working together.”“Should
Lilian often messed with the medicinal herbs her master cultivated, which led to her being chased and scolded by him.It seemed her son had inherited her restless nature.“How’s Sonny been lately?”Liberty had been on edge these past few days because Caroline had been preparing to lure her three brothers into a trap and had not had time to call her son.“Same as usual, but it seems like things have soured again with the Browns.”Serenity added, “Sonny still answers when Hank calls him, but he doesn’t seem happy when his grandparents visit. He doesn’t like going to the Browns’ place, and he doesn’t want to take their calls either.“Hank’s mother and sister are truly incorrigible. They must have been badmouthing you and Duncan in front of Sonny again, which is why he’s upset with them.”During the holidays, Sonny had stayed with the Browns for a few days and started to warm up to them.However, who would have thought that the mother and daughter would start spouting nonsense in f
Once the baby was born, he would apply the knowledge he had learned over the past few months to care for the baby. He was determined to be a competent and responsible father.Serenity released her arms from around him and shifted to her side.Zachary let go, too, allowing her to turn.Then, she planted countless gentle kisses on his face.“Babe, with you here, the baby and I will be just fine. Don’t worry too much,” Serenity comforted softly after kissing him.“You are my rock. If even you are nervous, I’ll start feeling anxious too, and that won’t be good.”Hearing this, Zachary immediately said, “Seren, don’t worry. I’ll protect both of you. Alright, I won’t be so nervous anymore.”He gently touched her rounded belly again. “Lil’ Bun should be a calm kid. He’s not that mischievous.”He felt that the baby’s movements were not too intense.Serenity wanted to tell him that there were times when the baby kicked more vigorously, but she decided against it, knowing it would only m
“Just hit the gym a few more times. Lately, you’ve been spending less time there.”Every day after work, he would come home and orbit around her. As a result, he had less time to work out.It was normal to gain a few pounds eating well and exercising less. Did he really think he could eat anything without gaining weight?The reason he could maintain a model-like physique before was that he exercised daily.“Ow.” Serenity suddenly cried out in pain.This startled Zachary so much that he nearly jumped up, asking anxiously, “Is it stomach pain? Are you going into labor? Let’s go to the hospital right away.”He was about to pick her up, but Serenity stopped him by pressing his hand.“Don’t be so nervous, Zachary. It's not time yet. It’s not happening so soon. It’s just the baby kicking again. His kicks are getting stronger.”As she entered the later stages of pregnancy, the little one inside her was growing stronger. Sometimes, a couple of kicks from the baby could actually hurt.
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