"No way. No one’s gonna recognize me," she replied casually.Marc chuckled, clearly pleased that his trick had worked and that his niece's mood had lightened up again.He shook his head with an amused smile. "Women are all the same. Always using the magic word 'whatever'," he thought. "Don’t they know how confusing that is? Good thing I have my own way of dealing with it."Not long after, the two of them were already inside a small eatery. Cassandra tugged her uncle’s hand, pulling him inside to sit down.The long table was packed with other diners, which made the girl visibly annoyed. She let out a sigh, her expression showing disappointment."Let’s just get it to-go. We don’t have much time," Marc whispered. "I still have a surprise for you."Cassandra turned toward him, her face instantly lighting up with excitement. "A surprise?" she repeated with wide eyes.Marc smirked and nodded."What is it?" she asked eagerly."It’s a secret," Marc whispered with a victorious grin.He was gen
Cassandra looked at her reflection in the mirror again. The latest dress from Sophie Laurent fit her slim body perfectly—it was as if it was made just for her.She adjusted the strands of hair that covered her forehead, then applied a natural shade of lipstick. Pulling the corners of her lips into a small smile, she admired herself.“I’m beautiful, I’m young. Uncle Marc would never choose that old witch over me,” she muttered, trying to boost her confidence.She picked up her phone, turned on the camera, and pouted cutely for a selfie.Smiling, her fingers quickly sent the photo to Marc, with the caption: waiting for bae to come for our candlelight dinner.She was starting to feel anxious as she watched the clock hands move slowly.“Maybe I should just go find him,” she thought.Once again, she turned in front of the mirror. She sprayed her sweet vanilla perfume on her neck and wrists before leaving the room.The apartment hallway was quiet when she passed a stunning woman dressed sex
Marc leaned in, feeling the warm breath brushing against his cheek. He caught a sweet vanilla scent wafting from the girl's neck.Cassandra looked into his dark eyes, which were now much closer. And the warmth of his lips became very real as they pressed gently against hers.Marc’s hand brushed over her soft skin. He let his desire guide him, savoring every beat of emotion running through him.Of course, he couldn’t deny he felt exactly what Cassandra felt—complete when they were together, and hollow when apart.Feelings he’d never experienced before. He was scared that one day, she might disappear again, because he knew how torturous it had been not knowing where she was. It felt like his soul had been completely taken over by her.Suddenly, the girl stopped Marc’s hand as it wandered to the inside of her thigh. It caught him off guard. Cassandra had never refused him before.“I’m on my period, Uncle. We can’t do that for the next few days,” she whispered.Marc flopped back onto the
Marc smiled as he read the caption beneath the photo. “One empty spot beside me.”After going through all the photos, a rather long message popped up on his screen. The man froze as he read each line.“Do you really love her, Uncle?”“Are you really going to marry her?”“Is that how little I mean to you?”“Why does it hurt this much?”“Do you really have to make it official in front of everyone?”“Fine then… congratulations to both of you.”Marc tried calling. But there was no dial tone. His mind spun with worry. After everything that had happened, he was scared—scared something might’ve happened to his niece.That’s when he realized: what he thought was the right move had actually left a wound in Cassandra’s heart.He jumped in his car and sped through the traffic. Only one place came to mind—Riverside Garden Apartments. He hoped with everything he had that she was still there, in her new place.He ran up to the door, breathing hard. He steadied his breath and entered the pin code.I
"Yes! She's my niece," Marc cut in, stepping confidently onto the stage where the show was being broadcasted live.All cameras immediately turned toward him. The man smiled, calm and charming as ever, as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened. Without hesitation, he sat down on an empty seat beside Viona."Of course my fiancée would know my only niece, wouldn’t she?" Marc said with a wide grin, locking eyes with Viona, his smile sharp enough to cut glass.Viona’s expression stiffened. Her body tensed the moment she saw that devilish grin on Marc’s lips. The host, on the other hand, looked like she was trying hard to suppress her shock behind a growing smile."Wow... wow!" the host exclaimed, clapping her hands excitedly. "This is truly a special live stream, folks! A breaking story revealed by none other than Marc Fairmount himself.""Let’s give a round of applause for Mr. Marc Fairmonth, who generously took the time to be with us today!" she continued, raising both her arms
“Who was that guy?” Rexy asked, sliding into the seat just vacated by the man Marc had just spoken to.Marc brushed the question off with a flick of his hand, like swatting away a fly.A soft chime sounded from his phone. He glanced at the screen — a notification. One of his cards had just been used. A slow smile crept across his lips as he locked the screen again.“You’re acting weird,” Rexy muttered, studying him. “You meet a mysterious guy, then smile at a piece of plastic like it’s your soulmate. Something’s off in that brain of yours.”“Is it a crime to be happy?” Marc replied with a smirk, clearly amused.“You have no right to be happy if you know what’s coming,” Rexy said, crossing one leg over the other with deliberate grace.“I moved my niece out of my apartment. Got her a nicer place, something more comfortable.” Marc took a long sip from his coffee.“But you didn’t even try to talk to Viona? Didn’t try to fix things between you?” Rexy shot back.“She wouldn’t listen. Both C
“So … I win the bet this time, right?” Marc flashed a sly smile.“Ugh, that’s cheating! Uncle, that was way too unfair!” Cassandra whined, crossing her arms. “Why would you even order a mega-sized cola in an ice-cold room like that?!”“Hey, a bet’s a bet. Any trick’s allowed,” Marc shrugged, amused. “You could’ve done anything to make me cave first, y’know.”He chuckled softly as he closed the door behind Cassandra, who walked in with a huff.“So, what now? Gonna cuddle me all night like you promised?” he teased.Cassandra rolled her eyes dramatically. She strode over to the sofa by the massive glass window and plopped down with a theatrical sigh.“No way. This whole thing was rigged. That means the bet’s off,” she declared stubbornly.Marc sat down beside her, a soft smile tugging at his lips.“Thanks.”The unexpected gratitude made her glance sideways at him.“Thanks? For what?”“For tonight,” he murmured, his eyes locking onto hers with warmth. “You being here… it made me feel happ
Staring out at the rooftops of the neighborhood from her apartment balcony made Cassandra annoyed. Her lips were still pouting when Marc handed her the keys to her new place.“We’re going to fill this place with everything you need. Tomorrow, you can use my card to shop for all your stuff.”Cassandra didn’t say a word. She crossed her arms over her chest. She felt uneasy about living alone — this was her first time doing so.“What’s wrong?” Marc asked, noticing the change in his niece’s expression.“I’m scared to live alone,” she replied softly. “Even though I’m used to being alone, at least I was still at home before.”“Sandra, didn’t I promise I’d come anytime you call? Plus, it’s not like our apartments are far apart.”Cassandra sighed. She wasn’t feeling excited at all. It’s true—their apartments were just on different floors. That was one of the reasons she agreed to buy this place, even though it wasn’t as big as Marc’s.“Alright, stop sulking. You need to eat to recharge,” he t
"Mona Salimar!" Marc said, tapping his fingers on a photo in the yearbook in front of him. His attention was entirely focused on the black-and-white portrait photos lined up on the page."So... now you suspect that your brother isn’t Cassandra’s biological father?" Rexy asked. "I think what he said back then was just something blurted out in the heat of the moment.""I'm still not sure," Marc admitted. "Usually, things said in anger hold some truth."Rexy got up from his chair and walked to the large window behind Marc’s desk. "Think about it. Why would Irfan raise Cassandra if she wasn’t his biological daughter? Why not send her to an orphanage instead?""But the fact is, Irfan raised her alone without Marini, his wife," Rexy continued. "Despite his busy schedule, he still took care of her until she grew up."Marc kept tapping his pen on the same face in the yearbook, looking unconvinced despite all the logical points Rexy laid out.The book he found in his brother’s study felt like