“I heard from Duncan that he and Liberty plan to register their marriage after Christmas and only hold a wedding once Liberty has more free time. Derek and I’ve been preparing gifts for them and picking a date.” The gifting would have to wait until Liberty was back in Wiltspoon to receive them. Now, she was so busy that even her son had been left to Serenity to help take care of. Ever since she left for Jensburg, she had not been back to Wiltspoon. It was always Duncan bringing Sonny to Jensburg to visit. Naturally, their wedding would not be held that soon.“Liberty was even thinking of not holding a wedding, saying that it doesn’t matter because it’s her second marriage. That won’t do. We can’t deprive her of anything. Not only do we have to hold a wedding, we have to hold an extravagant one for her.” Corey did not want to deprive both Liberty and her son of a celebration.Of her four sons, when the first three got married, they each held grand weddings. Now that it was her youn
Audrey and Serenity exchanged a glance.“If nobody has any objections, Seren and I can rest assured, then. It wasn’t easy for Liberty and Duncan to come this far and we should support them no matter their choices.” Audrey smiled and added, “I heard from Liberty that she’ll be registering her marriage with Duncan first, maybe before Christmas, maybe after. She’s just so busy, she’ll only be able to get back on Christmas Day itself. She’s got no time for anything else when she’s swarmed. Even Sonny isn’t going to visit her for his winter break. He said he wanted to visit FC Manor instead.”Corey laughed. “I know. I was even thinking of Sonny staying with me during the winter break so that Seren could go to work undisturbed. The closer it gets to the holidays, the busier it gets. Seren’s vegetable farms must provide huge amounts of fresh produce every day, don't they?”Serenity hummed in agreement. “We’re almost unable to keep up with the demand.”“That’s a good thing! It means your b
After marrying Zachary, he prepared even more snacks for her, especially after she got pregnant. Zachary always worried that she and their baby were going hungry and would check if there were enough snacks in her car every day.He grew increasingly attentive and considerate toward her, but at the same time, more naggy. Still, she enjoyed having the attention of a handsome man and felt a tingly warmth in her heart. Out of anyone she could have married, she married Zachary. She really had married the right person.“Why don’t we get two boxes to go? It’ll take some time for us to reach Wildridge Manor from the city.” The three of them were worried Serenity would get hungry on the way there.After a moment of thought, she gave in and went with their suggestion, mainly to put them at ease. On their way out, the quartet bumped into Carrie in her guise as Mrs. Longbottom. With her were the two Longbottom family bodyguards, as always.“Mrs. York.” When Carrie spotted Serenity, she greeted
“Okay. I’ll treat you to a meal another day.”Carrie stood by the door with a smile and watched as Serenity and the rest left. Then, she went in and reappeared outside again not long after. Her entry into the place was simply for show. Carrie went there because Mr. Longbottom had received information that a tycoon had arrived in Wiltspoon and was related to the powerful families of Wiltspoon. He also heard that Serenity and Audrey were meeting Corey there, so he arranged for Carrie to rush over. Ignoring the weak state of her body that had not recovered from her recent abortion, Carrie put on her mask and went over with two bodyguards. However, she was still a step behind. Serenity and her group were already leaving. After getting into the car, Carrie called Mr. Longbottom. When he picked up, she said, “I couldn’t find out who the tycoon is, Mr. Longbottom. Serenity and the rest just happened to be leaving when I arrived. I didn’t dare to pry for information as Audrey and
Since Duncan was Zachary’s best friend, Liberty could meet him often as she was Zachary’s sister-in-law. Carrie did not know what Liberty had done to seduce Duncan. He was determined to marry her. Corey had objected to their relationship in the beginning. It was said that her ideal daughter-in-law had been an elite lady called Lily Harmon. Duncan had met Lily. She ultimately lost to Liberty after pursuing Duncan for some time.Not only that, Duncan even got into an accident because he wanted to be with Liberty. After the accident, Derek and Corey gave in and accepted their son’s relationship with Liberty. Carrie was annoyed by the entire situation.Jealousy burned in her heart when she heard the gossip after getting out of prison. Before her parents got into trouble, her mother had wished for her to marry into the York family. Paige said the Yorks were the wealthiest of all and that the Newman family’s assets were not worth mentioning compared to the Yorks’. Nevertheles
After a moment of silence, Mr. Longbottom said, “That’s a good idea. I’ll get someone to look for a woman with a figure and voice like yours. I’ll also make a few more hyper-realistic masks modeled after your features. The woman can pretend to be ‘Carrie’ and show up when you do.”“We just have to clear Serenity and Camryn’s suspicions of me,” said Carrie. She did not want the fake Carrie to appear before herself frequently. It would feel as if she was being used. “Don’t worry. I’ll arrange everything.”Mr. Longbottom knew what Carrie was thinking. “I’ve got nothing else. Go back and have a good rest. Your body belongs to you. You should take care of yourself.”Mr. Longbottom still needed Carrie as a pawn for a long time. He did not want her to be weakened from the abortion and become utterly useless to him. “If a pawn loses its purpose, it’ll probably meet its end soon.”Mr. Longbottom added in a gentle tone. Despite his soft voice, Carrie felt chills down her spine
Carrie was traumatized by the dogs chasing after and biting her last time. She dared not even drive closer to the house once she spotted them. She parked her car far away and could not get out. Carrie took her phone and called Trenton. He did not answer right away but called her back several minutes later. “Where the hell were you, Trenton? Didn’t you bring your phone? You didn’t answer my call just now. Am I not your sister anymore?“You must’ve been busy pleasing that blind sister of yours. I guess you’re living a comfortable life from sucking up to her since she’s so successful now.”Carrie started scolding Trenton before he could say a word. “I’m working. I couldn’t answer the phone. I only called you back after hiding in the bathroom,” explained Trenton. The siblings would always fight regardless of whether they were on a call or meeting each other in person. Carrie scolded him every time. “Work? Where are you working? I told you that Camryn would seize all Mom and
Despite being close to home, Carrie dared not step inside. Her resentment toward Camryn deepened again. She also thought of her parents, who had transferred their assets to Trenton. Since he was still studying, he had left Camryn in charge of the family’s businesses. Therefore, Carrie resented her parents as well.“I’ll make you all kneel before me and lick my shoes one day.”Although her words were vicious, she still dared not drive closer to the villa. In the end, she turned around and left. She drove to Spring Blossoms, but Camryn was not there either. The two employees of the store refused to tell her where Camryn was. Carrie had the urge to smash the store yet had no guts to do so. Camryn would not let her off the hook. “If she isn’t here, I shall create a scene at Wildridge Manor.”Carrie exited the flower store and drove to Wildridge Manor. She knew the York family would not change their opinion of Camryn because of the ruckus she made. However, if she did n
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