LOGINA brief silence settled over the line.Then Eloise spoke through gritted teeth. "Why? Don't tell me you can't handle one woman, not with everything you have behind you."She's Julian's weakness. She's the Huttons' weakness. Get hold of her and you have both of them by the throat. Wiping the slate clean for me and Victor would be nothing for you. One decision. That's all it takes."Eloise was done with this life. Done with every day of it. Back when she still had a place in the Sterling household, even after Julian stripped her of real power, people had kept their heads down around her.Now they crossed the street when they saw her coming. Some did not even wait until she was out of earshot before the mockery began."Things are different now," Jeremiah said. "One wrong step, and I won't just lose DK. I'll lose everything."The Huttons and Julian were almost certainly turning over every stone in search of him."I have to be careful. I need to wait for the right moment.""There is
The words were perfectly polite, but Sydney caught the edge beneath them at once.Julian didn't believe a single word Jeremiah had said. Neither did Sydney. It was all a little too convenient.The Huttons had gotten to the bottom of everything just the night before, and early this morning, Jeremiah had called to personally retract the statements he had made the day before.Then again, whether it was Diana or Raymond, neither would have left something like this to an outsider. At most, they would have used someone from their own inner circle. There was no way Jeremiah could have known about her dealings with the Huttons yesterday.Sydney studied him, uncertain.Jeremiah pushed himself up with his cane and looked faintly pained. "Mr. Sterling, Dr. Wilson, I truly am sorry. My old friend may simply have been mistaken. We go back many years, and I have no wish to cause him trouble."His movements and tone felt entirely natural.Sydney searched for something she could hold onto and f
Sydney said the word "fiancé" with ease, as if they had been together for years and it was the most ordinary thing in the world.When Julian heard it, something scratched lightly at his heart, like an unbearable itch. The corners of his mouth lifted before he realized it.The butler noticed nothing unusual, but he understood that the man standing beside Sydney was no ordinary person. They were in no position to offend him."Of course." He stepped aside at once and led them upstairs.The moment Sydney entered Jeremiah's bedroom and saw him on the bed, she frowned.His complexion had dulled. He looked noticeably worse than the day before.Jeremiah had not lied. His condition had indeed worsened.The butler assumed he was asleep and spoke to wake him. "Sir, Dr. Wilson is here."Only then did Jeremiah stir. Looking weak, he turned toward Sydney and began to push himself up, scolding the butler as he did so. "If Dr. Wilson was here, why didn't you come upstairs and tell me to go dow
By the time Sydney reached the clinic entrance, Peter had already pulled the car around.The moment he saw her, he jumped out, hurried over, and opened the door with a grin. "Miss, I figured you'd be out about now.""Thanks, Peter." Sydney smiled, and for a moment it felt like the old days when she was still in school.Back then, Peter could time her exit almost exactly. He would pull up right at the gate, so she had as little walking as possible.The only difference was that, in those days, Julian had always been waiting for her in the back seat. Now they both had too many things to do.Before the thought could settle, she turned toward the open rear door and met a pair of dark eyes.She froze.The man spoke first. "Do they make people stand around after work at your clinic?"His tone was as sharp as ever. He had clearly come to pick her up.Sydney let it pass. She smiled, slid into the car, and asked deliberately, "What are you doing here?"Julian glanced at her. He knew ex
Sydney paused. After a brief beat, she headed toward the consultation room and asked, puzzled, "What exactly feels wrong?"There should not have been any problem. He had acupuncture yesterday, and she had already adjusted his prescription.But Jeremiah's voice sounded weak and drained. It did not seem fake."Yes." He sounded short of breath. After a pause, he continued, "When I got up this morning, my chest felt tight. I've had trouble breathing ever since."Sydney considered this for a moment. "Alright. Lie on your side as much as you can for now. I'll come over as soon as I'm done here at the clinic. If it gets worse before then, call an ambulance right away."She had examined him yesterday, so she had a clear sense of his condition. Difficulty breathing could occur if things worsened.Still, he had just had acupuncture yesterday, and now this had happened today. She could not help worrying that something had gone wrong.Jeremiah let out a breath of relief. "Alright. I'll wait
By the time it ended, Sydney was drenched, as if she had just been pulled from the water. Sweat clung to her skin as she lay face down on the pillow, too exhausted to move.Julian took out a wet wipe and carefully cleaned her. "Do you want to wash up?""No." Sydney refused at once.Lately, every time they finished, Julian carried her into the bathroom and patiently helped her bathe. Tonight, she was not going. This unreliable man had a terrible habit of turning a bath into something else entirely.Right now, she only wanted to sleep.Her eyes were naturally soft. With tears still clinging to the corners, she looked especially disarming.Julian swallowed and forced down the heat rising in him. He carried Sydney to the sofa, changed the rumpled bedding, then lifted her back into bed."Go to sleep," he said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "I'm going to shower."Sydney's eyelids felt too heavy to lift. She answered vaguely, "Mm. Go."…The next day, Sydney, who usually woke on
At that thought, Penelope nearly lost her mind with hatred for Sydney. Why was that wretched woman always surrounded by powerful people ready to defend her?First Julian, then Caleb, and now the entire Hutton family—all of them were protecting her as if she were some priceless treasure.If Sydney
Julian's chest tightened. He stared at her. "So everything I say just goes in one ear and out the other, huh?"He had already made himself clear, He wasn't against being a father, even to another man's child. So why did it feel as if she hadn't heard a word?Sydney was about to answer when the car
The dining room fell silent. No one spoke. Though unwilling, Megan closed her mouth. She had not expected even someone as aloof and unsociable as Diana to take Sydney's side.Across the table, Raymond let out a short laugh, clearly entertained by the tension. "Father, did you hear that? Diana just
For a moment, the air around the dinner table froze.Sydney knew exactly what he meant, but uncertainty churned inside her. She instinctively looked up.Under the warm glow of the chandelier, Julian's sharp features seemed even more defined—stern, cool, distant, as if carved from stone.She almos







