"Yeah, what do you mean 'almost in our thirties'? Ren and I are forever eighteen, okay?" Leia declared, ready to start a fight with Quinton.Seeing the two girls gang up on him, Quinton immediately gave in and put his hands up in surrender. "Okay, I was wrong. Both of you will always be eighteen, at least to me... No, it's too much. At most, one of you is three and the other is five."Blinking, Leia asked, "Who is three and who is five?" Both Renee and Quinton smiled at each other, and Quinton chuckled. "Isn't it obvious?" Renee groaned, "Ah, now that I think about it… What if someone bullies you during filming?" "Bullies me?" Clenching her fists, Leia said confidently "Hah! They'll be lucky if I don't bully them!" "Good. Don't forget to practice the self-defense skills I taught you." Renee felt like a mother sending her sheltered daughter off to college. "Don't worry, bestie. I'm just going to shoot a show, I'm not going to war. I'll be fine." After chatting with Renee a w
The nurse looked at Renee and smiled. "No. Are you feeling a bit anxious, Miss Everheart?" Heaving a long sigh, Renee said glumly, "Maybe."Margaret came to the hospital with Adie and Abby in the evening. Adie held Renee's hand warmly and stroked her hair the moment he entered the ward. "Mommy, we're done with school for the day. Are you feeling better?" He asked gently."Yes, I'm much better. I'll be leaving the hospital in no time." Renee touched Adie's cheek. The sight of her children eased her pain much better than any medicine.Looking cute in pigtail braids and a pink denim jumper, Abby carefully handed a cherry tomato to Renee. "I grew a cherry tomato plant at the kindergarten, Mommy, and this is the only tomato that grew. I want you to have it; you'll get better after you eat it.""Don't you want to eat it since there's only one, Abby?" Renee stared at the cherry tomato in Abby's hand as if it was a treasure."No, Mommy, I want you to eat the best food there is. I watere
Adie would pass by this large garden every time he came to visit Renee, and he had always wanted to pick some of the colorful flowers in it for Renee. His mother loved beautiful things, and flowers were one of the most beautiful things in the world, so Adie felt that Renee would definitely be happy when she saw them.There were many types of flowers blooming brightly in the garden, including large roses, lush rhododendrons, and bright peonies. It was a beautiful and calming sight, and Adie decided to pick one of each to put into a bouquet for his mother. He walked into the flower shrubs, and the image of him surrounded by fresh flowers looked like a scene from a movie. As he plucked some flowers, he heard a woman's angry voice as she spoke on the phone. "I don't care, we have to put an end to this surgery and stop Owen from coming to the hospital! Is it that hard to make a person disappear? People die in plane crashes and car accidents all the time! Doesn't he like fishing? He can d
The person standing before him was none other than Adie's scumbag daddy.Ugh... but it seemed like he wasn't really a scumbag at all."Why aren't you answering?" Stefan studied Adie intently, then his features relaxed. "Oh, I know. You haven't learned how to talk, have you?"Rolling his eyes, Adie thought, 'Well, there's definitely something wrong with his brain. No wonder he needs surgery. I'm almost five years old, so how can he think that I still can't talk?'"You shouldn't go around alone if you can't talk, or else your parents will be worried..." Stefan reached his hand out to Adie, and ordered softly, "It isn't safe there. Come here." However, Adie glanced at Stefan briefly and ignored him as he bent down and picked up the flowers on the ground."Ah, it seems you're autistic too... You're cute though." Heaving a long sigh, Stefan glanced at Adie compassionately. Although he was usually quite aloof, he had a soft spot for children and furry animals, and would instinctively
"I betrayed her?" Stefan asked in bewilderment, wondering how that statement made sense."Adie!" A voice called out, and Adie turned around to see Justin waving at him."Coming!" Adie grinned when he saw Justin and ran towards him, leaving Stefan standing there in confusion."Didn't your mommy tell you not to talk to bad guys? Stay far away from him." Justin rested a hand on Adie's head and glared at Stefan. He had heard from Renee that Stefan had lost his memories of the twins too, so Stefan had no idea that Adie was his son. Renee had begged Justin to pretend to be Adie and Abby's father to avoid trouble, so Justin purposely tried to sound like he was Adie's father.As expected, Stefan got the wrong idea, and his gaze turned cold as he scoffed, "I would have stayed away from him if I knew that he was Renee's son. It seems like he's just as dangerous as his mother." After that, Stefan shoved his hands into his pockets and left the garden. He didn't want to admit it, but an unexpla
Seeing how Justin was slowly entering his trap, Adie smiled mysteriously but kept Justin guessing. "You should know my mommy well since you like her so much. Why don't you try to guess?""You want me to guess?" Rubbing his chin, Justin nodded contemplatively. "I guess the thing your mommy needs the most is the sincerity of an excellent man like me. It's the reason why I've appeared in her life, because I'm just the thing she needs." "Ugh!" Adie pretended to vomit and complained, "You're so cheesy, Mr. Baldwin; no wonder my mommy doesn't like you. You say you're sincere but isn't that just an empty promise? You should let your actions do the talking.""Haha! You're so young. Do you even know what empty promises are?" "Yes, I do. Empty promises are promises that are never kept while sincerity is the exact opposite." Adie narrowed his eyes at Justin. " Do you want to make empty promises or let your actions speak for you?""Okay, stop beating around the bush. Just tell me what you w
"Huh?" Renee looked confused. "Benefactor, please come in." Adie beckoned Justin in with a finger and said seriously, "I've already discussed it with Mr. Baldwin, Mommy. He'll give you money instead of making you empty promises from now on. Just give him a figure, and you won't have to work so hard anymore.""What?" Renee's jaw dropped, and she stared at Adie in disbelief. What had the little troublemaker done now?However, Justin walked to Renee's bed and nodded sincerely. "Adie's right—I've never really done anything for you. Please let me do something for you now by giving you money, after all... it's pretty much the only thing I have."Renee massaged her aching temples and grumbled, "Stop being unreasonable.""No, I'm being serious. I want to give you money." Justin wanted to show Renee how deep his feelings for her were. He would have banked the money directly into her account if he could. Helpless, Renee said to Justin, "Don't take Adie's nonsense seriously. Plus, I have
Justin only said that because he had noticed bad things happening to his family ever since he started cooperating with the Everhearts. Most of them were attacks on their finances, like Justin's business partner abruptly withdrawing their funds, one of their factories catching fire, and the higher-ups finding fault with him for no reason. However, there had also been physical attacks directed at Justin and Quinton.Quinton found a man-made bomb under his car the day before, and Justin realized that his car brakes had been tampered with when he started his car. Quinton hadn't told Renee about all this because he didn't want her to worry, but Justin felt that she should be aware of just how serious the situation was."That's why I think someone might have caused your fall!" Justin said urgently.Renee clenched her fists and inhaled deeply. "Okay, I'll be careful. Quinton and I just got some time off, and there are already people getting restless." "So, what's your plan now? Do you
Justin smiled and described the children's experiences, acting like a stepfather. When he talked about the children, he made it sound like they were his biological children. Stefan didn't look so good. He felt that the glass of wine was getting bitter."Well, I'm sure kids will find everything new and exciting when they go to a new place. But they'll get bored with it when time passes. They'll love their real home better." Stefan had wanted to act relaxed and casual, but he could not stop himself from refuting when he heard Justin's provocative words. "Mm?" Leia sat beside Liam and leaned against his arm, and whispered, "What are they doing? This is weird. Are they going to fight?""It's just a competition between men. They won't get into a fight." Liam kept eating and watching the fun. He merely found it amusing. As expected, Renee was greatly admired. Although she remained silent, she would always be in the limelight. Liam was amused to see people like Stefan or Justin
"How dare you!"Stefan's words instantly made Leia speechless. She had wanted to rebuke him, but he snatched the chance from her and struck her dumb.In short, he was an utter scumbag.After a moment, Leia finally managed to comment, "How shameless!" Justin had kept silent all the while. He looked at Stefan with a scrutinizing and mocking gaze. "Mr. Hunt, I admire your honesty and self-awareness. If that's the case, let's stop being reserved and have fun together!""Yes, let's have fun together. I'm shameless, too!" Liam joined in the effort to mock Stefan. He swayed his glass of wine and faked a smile. "I've known her a long time, so of course I know what shameless things Mr. Hunt has done. I think I'd better grab this chance to tell you all of them since everyone is here today."Standing at the door, Renee was worried that Liam might say more indecent things. She hurriedly stopped him. "Pipe down, Liam!" "Got it." Liam shrugged helplessly but obeyed her.Although he yea
"Do you want to leave?" Stefan saw Renee. He was calm, indifferent, and distant. His behavior stung Renee. Renee could easily recall their lovey-dovey memories. They had both risked their lives for each other and vowed to be together forever. They had two children, too. Yet, they ended up as strangers.Although Renee was heartbroken, she became competitive. She smoothed her hair and said in a similarly cold manner, "I'm going to the washroom." "Okay." Stefan did not have anything to say. He nodded and walked past Renee before heading to the dining table. "Hmph! I didn't expect you to come so boldly," Quinton sneered.At the sight of Stefan, Quinton subconsciously clenched his fists, acting like he was about to fight Stefan. On the surface, he wouldn't act aggressively because he knew Renee would stop him. "It's not easy for the few great families to get together. It's good and meaningful for us. If I refused to come, it would make me seem heartless."Stefan kept his co
Having said that, Renee lowered her head, about to leave. She didn't even have the time to bother about Adie and Abby, and told Quinton to take them home later. Her strange behavior filled Quinton with displeasure. He blocked Renee and said solemnly, "Are you afraid? Do you want to run away? People might think that you're guilty and have cheated on your husband!""No, I'm not!" Renee refuted him loudly, then explained seriously, "I'm busy. I need to handle something right away. Plus, I'm not guilty. I did nothing wrong. There's no reason for me to feel guilty." Quinton went straight to the point. "What are you afraid of since you know you're not guilty? Why do you want to run away? He should be afraid instead!""I told you. I'm not afraid of him. I'm just…" "What?" Quinton crossed his arms and looked at Renee coldly. He wanted to get to the bottom of it.Renee came up with a ridiculous yet normal excuse. "I… I recalled that the dessert shop that I want to head to is about to
Jovan called Stefan to sound the latter out. Anyway, it would be convenient for Stefan to rush over since they were both at the same spot. "I'll be right there," Stefan said. Then, he hung up.For a moment, silence washed over everyone, as if something terrible was about to happen.After taking in the new information, Leia said indignantly, "What's going on? Why does he want to come? Isn't he too shameless? How dare he come?" Although everything wasn't discussed openly, everyone knew why Stefan and Renee broke up all of a sudden, despite how lovey-dovey they were. The reason was that Stefan had cheated on Renee.Even if the adultery was faked, it was still the cause of their breakup. If Stefan were shameful or guilty, he wouldn't have agreed to come. He was going to face Renee there with their friends and family around. Certainly, it was embarrassing. "Hmph! Why not? He impersonated me, seized my business, and snatched away my woman. Plus, he led a steady life, got married
Jovan's words made the atmosphere quiet and bizarre. "Are you out of your mind, Jovan? It's already very annoying to have someone like you here. Do you have to get another annoying guy?" Leia frowned, crossing her arms. She kept scolding him.Initially, the atmosphere was considered harmonious. It was still considered fine even if there was an annoying person like Jovan. Unexpectedly, he wanted to call another, more terrible person to come here. Things would certainly go wrong. "Ms. Osborne, you're famous for talking harshly, too. You're just like me. I love it." However, Jovan was not mad at all. He grinned while waiting for Stefan to answer the call. Generally, Stefan would not answer Jovan's call. Surprisingly, he picked it up that time."What's the matter?" Jovan purposely put it on speaker mode. Stefan sounded aloof and emotionless.Jovan sounded wicked as he calmly asked Stefan, "Do you want to join a gathering, Stefan?""I'm going to hang up if you don't say anythi
In the past, Jovan had always regarded Stefan as a coward. Stefan couldn't forget about Renee, but he kept pushing Renee to another man. It seemed like Justin was more responsible, considerate, and gentle. Of course, Renee would lead a very happy, steady, and comfortable life with such a man. At the very least, Jovan felt that he could not be that meticulous and considerate. He would only drive Renee mad just to get her attention. "Hmph! Are you trying to humiliate me or yourself?" Justin didn't find that a compliment. Instead, it sounded like smockery. Jovan made it sound like Justin was a nice guy, but would not be picked by Renee. Usually, people like that had to suffer and would not end up well."I'm praising you." Jovan was helpless because of his reputation as the villain. Although he had said a lot of annoying things, he did want to compliment Justin. His love was probably as deep as Justin's, but his and Stefan's ways of loving Renee were much inferior to Justin's.
"That's unnecessary." Justin stood in front of Renee, his face cold. He said firmly, "She's unwell and can't have wine." "Is she unwell? I didn't see that." Jovan sized Renee up before he sized Justin up. Then, he sneered, "And who are you to her? You can't stop her from having wine.""It's none of your business who I am to her. I said she can't have wine." Justin always kept peace with others, but at that moment, he was dominant. He didn't always want to control Renee, but she had drunk a lot of wine that day. It might have hurt her belly. Hence, he felt it better for her to abstain from wine lately. However, Jovan was unaware of that affair. He simply found Justin purposely showing his ownership over Renee, which disgusted him."Waiter, get her a glass of milk. She only wants that," Justin instructed a waiter, showing his consideration for Renee. "It's okay. I can have a little wine. Plus, I'm rather good at drinking. It's not easy for everyone to get together tonight. I do
They danced for around ten minutes. Renee danced to the song heartily. Her initial gloomy mood also improved.Renee drank some water and took a few deep breaths. Then, she sincerely praised Leia, "Alright. Your welcome ceremony is bizarre, but it helped relieve my stress. I like it very much!"She could tell that Leia had painstakingly prepared that gift for her. After all, it was not easy to ask the Zambawi people from primitive tribes to sing an English song. "I'm glad you like it. I did this because I wanted you to relax and stop taking things seriously. You need to stop being so hard on yourself and get rid of all the pressure!" Leia said honestly. The Zambawi hand-drum dance came with the charms of a primitive dance. Its goal was to set people free. Of course, it was suitable for Renee to relieve her stress."Yeah, your stress is relieved. From now on, you'll start afresh. This is for you. I'm sure it'll be one of your happy memories." Liam handed the previous Polaroid to