Sonny nodded but still repeated, “Dunc won't stop liking me.”However, the part about Mom not having enough time for him was true, as was the case for the past few months. Since she had not had the time for him, he had been living with Aunt Ser and Uncle Zak.After a brief silence, Hank said softly, “If your mom and Duncan have another baby, they’ll favor their own child, and they might not love you as much.”“That won't happen, Dad, it won’t happen! Mom said that even if she has a baby with Dunc, she will still love me the most. Aunt Ser also said the same thing.” Sonny immediately refuted his father's words.“I’m just saying it might—it won’t necessarily end up that way. Anyway, remember to stay close to your Aunt Serenity, she won’t be biased.”Serenity was purely just an aunt, and all of Liberty’s children would be her nieces and nephews regardless. She would probably be able to treat everyone equally. However, if Liberty and Duncan had another child in the future, they might
Hank knew the last time Olivia had taken money from him to give to his sister, Chelsea, she went out to eat with her husband, children, and in-laws, without even inviting their parents. When she saw Serenity was dining at the same restaurant, she wanted Serenity to pay for her party’s meal.Serenity refused, so Chelsea called Olivia and asked for money to cover the expense. Did his sister have no money? No—she did have money. In the past, their parents' pension and the allowance he gave them were all used to support his sister's family. Chelsea and her husband saved the entirety of their incomes and probably had up to several million in savings. He used to earn a lot and did not care about money, but now that he was relying on ride-hailing hires to make a living, times had gotten tough, and he had started to care more about money. Although he was very touched that Chelsea saved him and even got hurt in the process when Jessica attacked him back then, it did not mean she could keep t
“Bye, Sonny.” “Bye, Dad.” Sonny waved his little hand. Hank turned around and walked back to his car. He first apologized to his customer for the long wait, then got into the car and quickly drove away. Soon, Zachary and Serenity, along with their bodyguards, got into the car that had come to pick them up. After the car started moving, Serenity gently smoothed a hand over Sonny’s hair as he sulked in Zachary's arms. “Aunt Ser.” Sonny reached out his arms, wanting to be held by Serenity. Serenity took him from Zachary and held him close. “Why are you unhappy, Sonny? Did your dad say something to you again?” Sometimes, Serenity did not like letting her nephew visit Hank because Hank was jealous of Liberty and Duncan, and often spoke ill of Duncan in front of Sonny. However, Sonny and Duncan had developed a strong father-son-like bond, and whenever Hank badmouthed Duncan, it upset Sonny. “Aunt Ser, after Mom and Dunc get married, will they have a little sibling for me?” Son
Hank rarely took the initiative to help take care of Sonny. Back then, Liberty would be cooking in the kitchen and the father-and-son pair would be in the living room. If Sonny wanted some water, Hank would not get him a glass of water. Instead, he would have Liberty come out of the kitchen to feed Sonny water. What kind of father he was!Now that Liberty and Duncan had finally made their relationship public and were about to get married, Hank suddenly wanted to show off his “fatherly love”, worrying that Sonny might end up neglected. He kept saying those ridiculous things in front of Sonny, affecting the child’s mood and making him afraid of losing his mother’s love. How could Serenity not be angry? It was just that in front of Sonny, she did not want to curse anyone.“Aunt Ser.” Sonny snuggled up to Serenity’s chest. “Aunt Ser, I love you and Mommy the most.”Serenity hugged him tightly. “I love you the most too.”“Dad asked me if Mom and Dunc are getting married. Dad is worried
“You don’t have to, then. C’mere, I’ll hug you.” Zachary, concerned that his wife might be tired, took Sonny into his arms. He started chatting with the child, trying to cheer him up. Seeing Zachary patiently making Sonny laugh and answering every question seriously, no matter how small, Serenity looked at her husband with eyes full of affection and gratitude. She must have saved the world in her past life or something to get to marry Zachary in this lifetime. As she watched, Serenity felt her eyelids growing heavier and felt sleepy. Before she realized it, she had drifted off to sleep. When she woke up, she was already back at Wildridge Manor in the room she shared with Zachary. The room was quiet, so Sonny was probably not there, and neither was Zachary. Serenity sat up, noticing her phone on the nightstand. She reached for it and checked the time. It was already two in the afternoon. She had slept that long. After waking up, she felt hungry again. As her belly grew, her app
“One year should be enough time. Us York men are all outstanding and irresistibly charming.” Zachary lumped himself in with the compliment while praising his younger brother. He believed his charm was boundless and, truthfully, it was. Serenity turned to look at him with a smile. “Yes, yes, you York men are all incredibly charming. Actually, though, what’s most attractive is your family culture. The men in your family dote on their wives and are completely devoted in their relationships.”They had a good family culture, had good character, and were utterly devoted to their partners—these were all incredibly attractive. Any family with daughters of marriageable age would wish for their daughters to marry into the York family; not for wealth, but for the devoted love of the York men.“What about Sonny?” “He’s already gone off to have fun with Rowan. I don’t know if they’re going wild somewhere in the manor or down by the foot of the hill, but with Rowan watching over him, there’s
“You’re awake, Seren.”Grandma May gestured at Serenity to come to her. Even if she did not call Serenity over, Serenity would always accompany Grandma May and Tania whenever she saw them sitting in the living area. “Nana, Mom.”Serenity greeted them, then Julian and Quinn. Julian returned her greeting with a nod, while Quinn smiled and said, “It’s been a while, Serenity.”She looked toward Serenity’s baby bump. She asked, “When’s your due date?”“Around May.”Quinn calculated the time mentally. She replied, “A few more months left then.”Her gaze lingered on Serenity’s bump. She looked hesitant to say something. Serenity sat beside Grandma May. Since Serenity, Grandma May, and Tania had already taken the three-seater sofa, Zachary had no choice but to take the single-seater. “You can be honest with us, Ms. Crawford.”Serenity sensed Quinn’s desire to speak up. She reassured Quinn gently not to worry about her getting mad. Everyone looked toward Quinn. Quinn felt
Serenity burst out laughing. Quinn could not hold her laughter in either. Julian wanted to laugh but stopped himself because he did not want Grandma May “getting revenge” on him. Tania did not back down from her mother-in-law’s glare. Instead, she got more confident. “It’s useless glaring at me, Mom. I didn’t say anything wrong. You just didn’t have the chance to favor girls over boys. If you had a daughter or a granddaughter, you definitely would’ve shown favoritism.”Since Grandma May did not have a girl to dote on, she had no choice but to love her sons and grandsons. Grandma May swatted Tania lightly. She complained, “That’s because you all only gave birth to sons. Aren’t daughters more adorable? I wish you all could’ve had a daughter.“Look at how cute Chloe is. I have the urge to kidnap her back whenever I see her. Liz is even treating me like a thief now. She’s afraid that I’d steal her great-granddaughter away. She even has a daughter.”Grandma May was envious of Eliza
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