“According to the report, you aren’t pregnant, Miss Lynd,” the doctor said.Tina could feel the invisible weight crushing her heart being lifted. “Really? That’s great!”She balled her fists together in triumph, feeling quite relieved.The doctor choked on his words upon seeing her reaction. In his line of work, he had witnessed a lot of patients who would do everything just to be able to conceive. It was his first time seeing someone who was happy about not being pregnant.Meanwhile, Samuel felt a mixture of emotions swelling in his heart as well. It was a great thing that Tina wasn’t pregnant with his child.He didn’t know why, but he was reminded by the scene where Tina had caressed her stomach. A pang of disappointment followed suit.“Miss Lynd. You may not be pregnant, but you still need to rest a lot. Your anemia is on the severe side. You need to maintain a good sleep schedule by waking up and sleeping early. Your diet should consist of more meat, eggs, and milk. Also, ple
Tina didn’t mind the arrangement. Regardless of who wanted to monitor her, be it Samuel or Cindy, she would leave the Langford family once two months were up.“Sure. It’s up to you to make those arrangements, Miss Young.”Tina walked out of the hospital, only to see a car parked in front of her. The bodyguard, who got out of the car, greeted her respectfully. “Hello, Miss Lynd. I’m Victor Miller, your bodyguard. I’ll be at your service from now on.”Soon, Tina got into the car and returned to the mansion.In the ward, Madam Langford was lecturing Samuel with a stern look.“Samuel. Now that Tina’s your woman, you need to be responsible for her, alright?”“Yes, I understand,” he replied.“I know Cindy saved you in the past, and that you’ve been treating her like your little sister because of that. However, I don’t think she views you the same way,” Madam Langford continued.The elderly woman wasn’t blind. She could see through Cindy’s intentions.All this time, she had been pret
“That’s impossible, right?” Tina asked, dumfounded.Samuel hated her guts, so why would he take her to the banquet?Victor couldn’t be bothered to explain anything to her. Instead, he handed her a banquet invitation. “Miss Lynd, this is the invitation to the banquet. Please keep it safe at all times. I'll guard the door.”It was obvious he didn’t want to be around Tina at all.Tina, however, didn’t mind the bodyguard’s behavior. She glanced at the invitation in her hands, noticing that the date was set for the next weekend.She had no idea why Samuel wanted her to be at the banquet. However, she was confident that he definitely had no intentions of letting her stay with him throughout the entire night. She was most likely attending the banquet as an invisible extra.The designers of the studio were very experienced. After an in-depth analysis of Tina’s body type, they quickly found a gown for her to wear.When Tina exited the fitting room, she had an awkward look on her face.A
All of a sudden, loud commotion exploded from outside the designer studio.“Miss, only VIPs are allowed to enter the studio,” a voice reprimanded.“What do you mean by that?! I’m here to look for someone! Hey, Tina! Don’t you dare hide there without making a sound! I saw you entering this place! Come out if you dare!”“How dare you not keep in contact with us? We’re your family! This is way over the line, Tina!”Ellen and Pearl’s shrieks drifted from outside the studio.“I’m so sorry, Miss Lynd. Two women decided to show up and start a ruckus outside. Don’t worry, we’ll dispatch someone to remove them from our premises immediately,” one of the designers said apologetically to Tina.Tina frowned immediately. “I know them. Let them in.”She wanted to know what Ellen and Pearl were up to this time.Ellen and Pearl were soon permitted entry into the studio. The moment they saw the piles of expensive gowns, their eyes lit up immediately before envy took over.“Wow, Tina. Aren’t you
The moment she finished speaking, Tina spun on her heel and left.Just then, the staff member, who was done packing up the gown for Tina, showed up. She asked in surprise, “Miss Lynd, your gown is ready… Huh? Where did she go?”Pearl snatched the gown from the staff member’s hands rudely. Smug, she sneered, “It’s fine. She’s not going to the banquet, so this gown’s now mine!”Tina left the designer studio with the intention to inform Sylvia of the good news.Victor, who was supposed to be guarding the door, was nowhere to be found. A while later, he finally reappeared.“Where did you go just now?” Tina asked curiously.“There’s no need for me to report my private matters to you, is there, Miss Lynd?” Victor replied rudely. His gaze then swept Tina from head to toe. “Where’s your gown, Miss Lynd?”Tina decided to let Victor have a taste of his own medicine. “There’s no need for me to report my private matters to you, right?”“You…” Disgust and disdain filled Victor’s eyes. It wa
Eight years old…?John made some quick calculations in his head. He immediately deduced that Tina and Coco were about the same age.His heart started pumping wildly. Doe-like eyes stared at Tina intently as he asked, “Miss Lynd, I’d like to know if you have any birthmarks on your body.”That question caught Tina off guard. She was stunned for a moment. “Huh?”Seeing as she was confused, John hurriedly explained, “Please don’t misunderstand me, Miss Lynd. It’s just that when I first saw you, I had a feeling that you look exactly like my long-lost sister. Her name’s Coco Carter, and she’s your age. Most importantly, she was born with a birthmark.”A trace of hope lingered in his grim tone.However, Tina shook her head. “Mr. Carter… I don’t have any birthmarks on my body.”It was true that she didn’t have any birthmarks at all. However, there were a few scars on her waist that refused to fade away no matter what. According to the doctor, those scars were remnants of the time she go
Tina didn’t hesitate to accept the invitation with a nod. “Sure thing!”“Good. I’ll pick you up on that day. Are you going home now? Do you need a ride?” John asked.“There’s no need for that. I didn’t come here on my own.” Tina waved the offer away. “By the way, I haven’t returned your jacket yet…”“You don’t have to worry about that. On the day of the banquet, I’ll pick you up. You can always return the jacket to me by then,” John said kindly.Tina then set a meeting time with John before waving him goodbye. She walked all the way to the hospital’s exit, feeling as if she was still stuck in a trance.Victor asked coldly, “Miss Lynd, is there anywhere else you’d like to go?”“Nope. Let’s go home,” Tina replied.The moment she returned to the mansion and entered her room, a notification sound blared from her phone. It was a text message from John, asking if she had already reached home safely.At that moment, Tina finally realized what exactly happened to her.Good heavens, sh
John lifted a curious eyebrow in response. “Did you just call me Mr. Carter? Shouldn’t you be calling me something else?” Tina blushed in embarrassment and hurriedly amended her words. “Right. John.”Happiness was evident in John’s eyes upon hearing Tina calling his name. He might have only met her a few times in the past, but destiny tended to work wonders. He even had a feeling that Tina was the younger sister whom he had taken care of since they were young.“Let’s go,” he said. “I’ll take you somewhere you change into new clothes.”Tina finally realized that she didn’t know where they were going. “Um… Where are we going, by the way?” she asked.“We’re attending the banquet hosted by the Langfords,” John replied.Tina was shocked to hear the answer. She had just given her spot to Pearl, but she never expected that she had the chance to attend the banquet again.Then again, John was Samuel’s collaboration partner. It was common courtesy to invite him to the banquet the latter