LOGIN"Lincoln may not care about controlling the Zephyr family himself, but Nathan can inherit it someday. In the end, that still gives Lincoln what he wants. As long as Nathan remains the heir, I'll keep running the Zephyr family and building it up for him. Lincoln gets all the benefits without having to do a thing."Amelia found the whole thing deeply unsettling. She couldn't believe Gerald and Lincoln had been planning this for years.No wonder.No wonder Gerald had always been so fond of Nathan.Even after it came out that Nathan wasn't biologically related to the Zephyr family, Gerald didn't seem nearly as angry as everyone expected.Everything involving Christopher was part of the act.Christopher said, "So you don't need to worry about Nathan. Lincoln isn't going to mistreat his own son. But if a man like him is willing to use even his own child as leverage, there probably isn't anything he wouldn't exploit."Amelia had no idea what to say. The whole thing felt almost impossib
"So we're really just going to leave Nathan alone and stop caring what happens to him?"Deep down, Amelia had never been able to bring herself to do that.No matter how difficult Nathan was, he was still a child. Now that he was with someone like Lincoln, with no way of knowing what might happen to him, she couldn't help worrying.Christopher remained calm. He had clearly thought this through a long time ago."Some kids need firm boundaries from an early age," he said."If normal discipline hasn't gotten through to him, and a few words from someone else are enough to turn him against us and make him lose sight of what's right and wrong, then what we've been doing clearly isn't working."Even if he behaves when we're around, that doesn't mean the underlying problems are gone. They'll still come out when no one's there to keep him in check."He's had everything handed to him his whole life and has never really had to struggle for anything. He already has some serious character iss
"Come in." Christopher's voice came from inside, calm and distant.Even through the door, Amelia could already picture the cool expression on his face.She opened the door and walked in. Christopher was sitting behind his desk, going over a stack of documents.She asked casually, "Were you busy just now?"Christopher looked up at her. He set down his pen and leaned back slightly in his chair. "No. Samantha just left." His tone was completely matter-of-fact."You two seem pretty close."Christopher held her gaze. "There's nothing going on between us."After a brief pause, he added, "Samantha is Navitech's representative. She was only here to discuss a possible partnership on the 07 project. That's it."Amelia hesitated.He rarely went out of his way to explain himself like this.She phrased the question that way on purpose, never expecting him to give her such a direct explanation.The truth was, Christopher had always understood what was going on. Back then, he simply let
Shane went still.He clearly hadn't expected that from Jessica."Ms. Reid, don't joke about something like this."For years, he had stayed by her side as her bodyguard and nothing more, always careful to keep a professional distance and never cross that line.Jessica let out a cold laugh. She stepped closer. The belt of her robe loosened a little more, exposing the graceful line of her collarbones."So I guess you don't actually do everything I ask."After all these years, she thought he might at least hesitate. That she might see some sign that she affected him.Instead, all she saw in his eyes was restraint and distance, as if she were a stranger asking something completely unreasonable."Get out."Her voice was ice-cold.Shane lowered his gaze. He didn't turn around or try to explain himself. He simply walked out and quietly closed the door behind him.The second the door clicked shut, Jessica grabbed the front of her robe and pulled it tight, drawing a sharp, angry breat
Jessica had never stopped to consider that Shane had a life of his own, or that one day, he might actually choose to leave.Shane turned to look at her, his gaze unusually heavy."Ms. Reid, I'm only your bodyguard. Protecting you is my job." His voice was steady, though a slight roughness had crept into it. "Even after I'm engaged, if you ever need me, I'll still come whenever you call. My life is yours."Jessica took a slow breath.Looking at him, she suddenly felt completely helpless.How was that not a confession?And yet somehow, it wasn't.Shane had always made her feel completely safe. She knew that when he said his life was hers, he meant every word.But that was as far as he would ever go. She knew that no matter what she said, he wasn't going to change his mind.Silence settled over the car.Jessica leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes. She didn't want to look at him anymore, and she didn't have the energy to keep arguing.A tightness sat heavy in her che
Knowing her father had arranged the whole thing only made it harder for Jessica to accept.Christopher studied her downcast expression, realization slowly settling in. After a moment, he said, "If you don't want Shane to leave, maybe you should do something about it.""Do something about it?" Jessica let out a bitter laugh. "My dad doesn't change his mind once he's made it up. Besides, Shane agreed to the engagement himself. What am I supposed to fight for?"Shane treated her with all the care and devotion of someone who loved her. And yet when it mattered, he drew a clear line between them.The living room fell silent again.Neither of them knew how long they sat there.Eventually, Jessica stood and packed up her medical bag. "I'm leaving the medication here. Take it exactly as prescribed, and come in for your follow-up next week. Try not to let yourself get worked up like this again. I don't want another emergency call."Christopher nodded but said nothing.Jessica turned tow
Nicole and Nathan were the only ones important to Christopher.The school rules were nothing but a joke in his eyes.Amelia wondered how a man could be so ruthless and heartless.He was autocratic in giving her just two options.She either chose to accept or reject his compensation, but either w
The window at the driver's seat wound down.Nigel's head peeked out from the car, and he urged her with a frown, "Hurry up. We're running late."Amelia halted in her footsteps.The car wasn't parked very far away, but she caught a cold recently and didn't want to be exposed to the rain.She furr
Caleb arched a brow. "Why not? Especially if there are benefits to gain."He was a businessman, and profit was key.Luke surveyed Caleb from head to toe. "Nova Nine's capital injection this time will never bring them success. They don't even have a complete production chain. Investing in their p
"Mom, who is it?"Nathan walked out with a toy aeroplane in hand. His face fell the moment he saw that it was Amelia.He had to apologize to Evelyn earlier today, and was humiliated in front of his whole school! Was she here to laugh at him?"Get out!" Nathan shoved Amelia hard. "We don't welco







