"Have you thought it through?" Justin looked at her as she lay in bed. Though she was still wearing clothes, her curvy figure sparked endless imagination in him.Undeniably, Renee was an attractive and smart woman. Her amazing skills were merely one of her charms. Her devastatingly beautiful face and seductive figure were the reasons why so many men fell for her. People generally loved wonderful things, regardless if they were elite men or the average Joe. No one could resist Renee's charm and figure. In short, it was a physical attraction."Yes, I've thought it through." Renee looked up at Justin. He seemed like a familiar stranger to her—familiar because he had always been her soulmate and best friend who shared many interests and the same views. They dreamed of the same thing too: world peace.Justin mirrored her character. She would see herself every time she looked at him. They were a perfect match. Hence, he was a familiar stranger to her. For the first time, she realized
"You can't regret it if I go on." Justin confirmed with Renee again. He knew she was forcing herself, but he needed an answer from her. People might change their minds. For example, Renee knocked him out just now because he was rude. She even tied him up and wouldn't let him touch her at all. But it had only been a few hours. She wasn't on guard against him as she lay in bed and was letting him do whatever he wanted with her. Who knows, she might regret it later if they did sleep with each other. Then, she might hate and leave him… Justin had to get to the bottom of it and get rid of all the risks. He didn't want to be manipulative."Go on. I won't regret it!" Renee gnashed her teeth, insisting on making that breakthrough—as if she could only embrace a new life by overcoming that big obstacle.In a way, Justin was her savior, the one who helped her bid her past goodbye. "I'll keep that in mind regardless if you mean it or not. I'll assume that you're willing," Justin said.
Since Renee and Justin had reached a consensus, their wedding date must be set. The Baldwin family sat at the dining table and kept staring at Renee, who had taken her seat. They couldn't hide their joy."You two are considered married now, so we should hold a wedding soon. It'll be bad for your reputation otherwise. It'll be a great loss for you, too," Austin said; he didn't beat around the bush as he didn't want Renee to make an excuse and turn his suggestion down.Besides, the Baldwin family assumed that she and Justin had enjoyed a great romance that afternoon. They were eager for a baby.Thus, the wedding was an urgent matter. If Renee got pregnant before she married Justin, it would shame the family. Austin didn't want to see that. "Uh…" Renee cautiously sipped some tea while everyone stared eagerly at her. She was gripped with the same anxiety she felt when interrogated. Helpless, she glanced at Justin for help.Justin immediately stood up and complained, "Grandpa, w
His words instantly made everyone upset—or at least, Renee was. Her face darkened as she recalled unpleasant memories. Sophia immediately glared at Jack and snapped, "Why did you bring that up? They're about to get married. It's a happy event for our families! Why must you talk about revenge? It's bad luck!"Everyone knew someone had deliberately targeted and framed the Everheart family back then. Even outsiders couldn't bear to recall that. As the only one who bore all the misery after her family was ruined, Renee must have been very desperate and heartbroken at that time. Ordinary people would never mention that. Unfortunately, Sophia's straightforward husband was a born comedian. He had mentioned that on purpose, infuriating her. "It's okay." Renee flexed her fingers and tried her best to appear at ease. "My heartbreaking past is gone, but I need to help my family make a comeback and avenge my parents. My brother and I have always worked hard for it, so of course I'll be glad
When she heard such aggressive words from Justin, Sophia immediately cleared her throat to stop him from talking. However, Austin had no idea about the relationship between Renee and Water Dock. Instead of stopping, he sounded more indignant."That place is full of inhumane people, but I'm not from Beach City. If that place were here in North City, I would have gotten rid of it! It has harmed so many people…""Oh, Grandpa! Please stop talking!" Justin turned livid. He anxiously got up and tried to remedy the situation. "There are always good and bad people. You can't criticize them like they're the same." "Nonsense!" Austin had been a soldier his whole life and was deeply self-righteous. He added angrily, "I'm not joking! People related to that place better don't come to North City. If they do, I'll kill them and make them repent their sins!" Renee remained calm and indifferent. When Austin got tired from criticizing, she slowly looked up at him."Grandpa Baldwin, you're right
A long sigh escaped Renee. Rather than contempt, she sympathized with Quinton deeply. "I'm his sister. I can't treat him like a stranger. All I can do is gradually help him lead a normal life and guide him to atone for his sins. I feel sad for his past."Silence filled the air. No one said anything, at a loss for words. They couldn't be callous and say as they liked. Now that Austin had learned of this, no one could be sure if his righteous and stubborn personality would make him stop Renee and Justin's marriage.After all, Austin was a very strict person. He had been honorable his whole life. He couldn't allow a wicked man's sister to be a part of his family. Justin, anxious, hurriedly echoed Renee's words. "Yes, her brother has changed a lot. Now, he's doing decent work. His pawnshop only deals with rare items instead of indecent ones. I've spent some time with him. He's a reasonable guy, not at all as wicked as the rumors make out. At most… He's just got a bad temper."Ju
Renee's words turned the air cold.Justin stopped walking and looked at her, his gaze ice. He demanded, "You want to end it here? What do you mean?" Renee was filled with guilt. She avoided Justin's fierce gaze and tried to make the topic less stressful. "I mean… Let's end everything here.""Hmph!" Justin snorted, unable to hide his disappointment. He found it unfair. "It's just a small thing, but you want to give up so easily. Is our relationship that fragile?""I just don't want to make things difficult for you." Renee heaved a long sigh, overwhelmed with emotions.She belonged to the dark and was fine with her gloomy side, but she didn't want to pull Justin into the darkness. She felt that ending things with him as soon as possible was the right choice.After all, she could never treat Quinton as a stranger for the sake of her happiness. If she had to choose between the two, she could only choose Quinton. She was all he had."No, I don't think so…" Justin frowned, despondent
Renee woke up early the next day. After she was done washing up, a servant arrived and asked her to head to Austin's study."Okay, I'll go now." For an unknown reason, Renee felt worried. Although the Baldwin family had let bygones be bygones and treated her as their own, she still felt inexplicably uneasy.She had witnessed Austin's wrath and knew how dangerous her current situation was. Her words or expressions might infuriate Austin. If so, she would be doomed forever. During the conversation the day before, she noticed that Austin was bothered by Quinton's background. He sounded like he wanted to eliminate that trouble. Renee understood why Austin wanted to meet her alone. He definitely wanted to criticize Quinton and make her express herself properly. While she was walking toward Austin's study, Renee wondered whether she should contact Justin. After all, she told him yesterday that they should face any issue together. However, though she was holding her phone, she c
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
"This is your welcome ceremony. This hand-drum dance is to help eliminate bad luck." Leia held Renee's arm, satisfied with her arrangement. She said happily, "Listen to their song! It's a great song!""Is there a song?" Renee frowned; she felt that Leia was always doing bizarre things. She wondered how Leia could come up with such a preposterous welcome ceremony."Mm, listen carefully! It's English. You can understand it." At that point, Leia said to the Zambawi people, "Put on your microphone. And sing louder."The Zambawi people gave their cooperation. They used their typical Zambawi singing to sing the English song. While listening to the song, Renee found it very familiar. "The flowers will bloom in spring, and the birds are free. I'm still waiting, waiting for my love to come back. Hurry home!""Isn't that Spring Flowers by Curtis Harrett?" Renee finally recalled what song it was. It was a song with a happy beat. It could make people happy. The Zambawi people made th
"I don't know, either. All I ever remember from when I was young is that I led a very painful life. I once tried my best to make the Garcia family accept me. I did all the dirty and tiring jobs. I went out to work at an early age to get money for them. I also did all the house chores. "But my foster parents were never nice to me. They would always beat me up or scold me. My elder foster brother also saw me as an eyesore. He always tried to get me killed…" Quinton calmly described his past. He no longer seemed to be in pain. All that was left in him was numbness, as if he were talking about someone else.However, Renee was always in pain whenever she heard him talk about his past. She felt like she had returned to his past with him and experienced those painful things. It was normal for her to feel that way because they were twins. A lot of their thoughts and feelings were synchronized. "I suddenly recalled that I would inexplicably become gloomy many times when I was young. I
"I'm sorry." When Renee heard that from Quinton, she realized the conflict between him and Stefan had yet to be resolved. It was temporarily put aside because of her. She occasionally saw him and Stefan talk to each other and drink together, but they merely put on a show to ease her mind. Their hatred for each other hadn't been eliminated. Instead, it was growing secretly. If Renee were Quinton, she might never forgive the person who had snatched away her beloved and seized her identity. That person even ruined her face."Why did you say sorry to me? It's the resentment between him and me. It has nothing to do with you. Plus, I didn't know he was my brother-in-law then. If I knew, I wouldn't have fought him." When Quinton recalled those affairs, he realized that people were nothing but the sport of fate. If there had been no resentment between him and Stefan, Renee might not have broken up with Stefan. Their families might even get closer. "Stop bringing up the past. It's
During these days, Renee was under pressure because of her affairs. She had no chance to ask Quinton about it. Now, the long flight gave them a chance to have a deep conversation. They could talk about their woes and seek consolation."Me?" Quinton lowered his head and shook his head helplessly. "I'm still the same old me. Nothing is troubling me. I've been busy with Carmine Pawnshop. I have no time to think about other stuff.""You have no time?" Renee touched her chin and smiled naughtily. "Then, you must have been dwelling on other stuff. Let me guess… Is it the thing between you and Joanne?" "Stop asking so much." Quinton did not deny it but refused to talk much about that. "It looks like I made the right guess. You fell out with Joanne, didn't you?" Renee knew Quinton well. Generally, his work would not affect his mood. The only person who could affect his mood was Joanne, who shared a complicated relationship with him. Before Renee left Beach City, she had created a l
After a long while, Quinton turned around. He looked at Renee, who was across from him, and heaved a long sigh."We're about to go home soon. Why do you look this gloomy? What's wrong…? Are you reluctant to part with this place?" Quinton said. "No, I'm not." Renee poured herself a glass of orange juice and sipped it. She frowned and dwelled on it before she said, "I feel empty inside. I don't know if I made the right choice.""Empty?" Quinton asked curiously."I think I've said goodbye to a steady life since I decided to leave. Maybe I'll keep on wandering from now on," Renee said melancholically. The reason why she chose to give it a try with Justin because she was tired. She was exhausted from leading a wandering life and wanted to settle down with someone. Others could not give her the sense of security like Justin. When she saw him, she inexplicably wanted a home. At that time, she thought she could forget about everything and start a new life with him. Unexpectedly, she
Adie was still a child, but he acted like a smart person and could see through a lot of things. He could guess why Austin took them to the Baldwin residence. He had also heard the servants of the Baldwin family rebuking Renee in secret. After combining various situations, he learned about what had happened between Renee and Justin. Despite everything, Justin could forgive Renee under such circumstances. He also treated Adie and Abby nicely. It proved that he was a very compassionate man. A small regret gripped Adie. He wondered why Renee didn't date Justin right from the start. If Renee were with such a kind man, she might be very happy. She wouldn't have to suffer through so many hardships either. "No, you don't know me. I always sweat the small stuff."Justin was displeased since Adie had claimed that he was a good guy, like Renee had. He heaved a long sigh and said, "But it's useless even if I sweat the small stuff, so I stop trying. It all comes down to fate. We can't forc
Renee turned and found Jovan unscathed. Relief washed over her. She said grumpily, "It's none of your business!""Tsk! How cruel!" Jovan clutched his chest and pretended to be in deep pain. At the same time, he teased, "I know. Your soulmate is better. I'm so jealous of him, though he's still a fallback guy.""Go to hell, Jovan!" Jovan's nasty words drove Renee mad. She grabbed a piece of napkin, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it at his face. "If I knew you'd talk so badly, I wouldn't be bothered to save you. Maybe you'll get reborn in Ulria. Then, you have to watch your tongue!""Hey! Yeah, I was wrong. You don't have to curse me like that!" Jovan raised his hands to surrender, but felt quite moved. He poured himself a glass of milk and devotedly toasted to her. "Thank you for caring about me and trying your best to save me. I'll toast to you. And you can do whatever you want.""You're so childish." Renee rolled her eyes and was amused.Justin was quite jealous to see them
"What's that?" Justin frowned and said with disdain, "That's something to fool naive women like you. Only lovestruck fools will believe that." As a materialistic person, he never believed in things like horoscopes and fortune-telling. At most, they were mixed with some psychology. They weren't trustworthy at all.If Renee wanted to use those things to talk about their relationships and destinies, it would seem very childish. "Don't be so extreme. Those things are real and logical." Renee acted like an experienced salesperson and gradually eliminated Justin's prejudice. She said patiently, "If you believe those things, they can guide you and help you to see things through. If not, you can use them to kill time. Just try to get to know them. Isn't that nice?"Finally, Justin was convinced. He had some milk and asked her leisurely, "Fine. Tell me what kind of relationship we have based on those things." "I learned that our relationship is a declining friendship based on our birt