"Then you two have agreed to lie to me!" Timothy saw straight through their plan, and sighed deeply. "You know I won't live for long, so you decided to put on an act with him to avoid having any regrets?""No, Grandpa. You've overthinking it!" Renee protested."I know your personality, Ren. You've always put others before yourself, so it's not surprising that you'd do something like this. As much as I hope you and Stefan will return to the way you both were before, you must forgive him, fall in love with him again, and be content with him first."After advising them, the old man said seriously, "Look into my eyes and tell me you've forgiven him and fallen in love with him again.""I…" Renee unconsciously looked away from his intense gaze as guilt consumed her and glanced at Stefan for assistance. "You should ask him, Grandpa. He is aware of everything.""I knew you wouldn't believe me. Fortunately, I came prepared." Stefan scoffed, then pulled out a document from his pocket and proudly
"Yes. Renee, it's your turn." Stefan's eyes were filled with passion and hope."I…" Renee swallowed her saliva, feeling as though she had been put on the spot. Because of Timothy's statements, she found it difficult to concur with Stefan. If she made a casual commitment and couldn't follow through with it, she'd be cursing Timothy."Ren, you said you got back together with Stefan because you love each other. Isn't it normal for a husband and wife to swear never to leave one other for the rest of their lives? Why are you finding it so difficult?"Timothy frowned. He just wanted them to be happy. "No!" Renee gulped hard, smiled gently, and clasped Stefan's hand, muttering, "I hope that as Stefan's wife, I can always be happy with him for the rest of my life."Stefan was so astonished he choked on his own spit. He stared at Renee, eyes wide in disbelief. He hadn't expected Renee to say those things to him—he expected her to tell a few falsehoods and lie to Timothy."Renee, have you given
When Stefan and Alexander heard this, they were both dumbfounded. Although the atmosphere was lively and humorous, it was also peaceful and heartwarming.Aiden, on the other hand, seemed solemn. He crossed his arms and pouted as if he was angry.Renee and Francine were pleasantly conversing when Renee saw his face and asked, "Adie, what's wrong? Why do you look so unhappy?""Mommy, I think you're being irresponsible.""Huh? What do you mean?" Renee was perplexed, and everyone turned to stare at the little boy.Aiden had kept his displeasure hidden for so long that he finally let everything out. "Weren't you supposed to marry Q? How did you end up marrying Bad Daddy? Did you forget how he used to bully you?"He was afraid Renee would be bullied again."Hahaha. Well, about that..." Renee felt uneasy and didn't want Timothy and the others to discover the act, so she stated, "I was just joking with Mr. Q. How am I going to marry him? He is not your biological father.""It doesn't matter wh
Timothy suspected that Mr. Q was probably a source of contention between Stefan and Renee, so he avoided asking anything else about him.Aiden, on the other hand, was a child. Even though he had tremendous intelligence, he had little understanding of relationships and continued to battle for Mr. Q's justice. "I disagree with you marrying Bad Daddy, Mommy. You should get married to Q—He's a thousand times better than Bad Daddy!"Pouting, the little boy fiercely declared, "If you don't marry Q, I won't acknowledge you anymore!"Timothy was perplexed. He grinned as he affectionately rubbed the boy's head. "Can you explain why you like Q? How is he superior to your father?""Q aced all of my tests. He cooks well, talks kindly, sings well, makes Mommy laugh, and most importantly, he has a house full of unique treasures. If Mommy is upset, she will go inside for a stroll and immediately feel better!""Treasures?""Yes. It's Water Dock's treasure house. Everyone admires and fears him. He's in
Everyone left Renee and Stefan alone at night so they could have some private time together.She wheeled him to his bedroom, and the atmosphere felt loving."You must be tired today… Rest up. I'll go get some rest as well. The servant will arrive later to assist you with cleaning." Renee carefully tucked her hair behind her ear and prepared to leave.Before she could, Stefan gripped her slender wrist and gazed at her intently. "We pretended to be in love for an entire day. Isn't it pointless if you leave now?""Didn't we agree that this is all a ruse? They've fallen asleep, so it's time to call it quits.""But I want it to be real." He softly took her hand and put it on his handsome face. He was like a lion who had let go of his pride to beg for a pat on the back. "You want it to be real, too, right?""I…" She couldn't find the words to reply. His stubble pricked her palm as she stroked his face, and her heart pounded in her chest."Stay. I want us to sleep together… like a married cou
Stefan's back had healed and was stronger than before a week later. His bond with Renee has strengthened rapidly as well. She didn't mind spending more time with him, and they were kissing and touching each other like any other husband and wife.Stefan was happy with their current status and treasured his time with her. The thrill of regaining what he had lost was the greatest gift God could have given him!One morning, the sun was bright outside the window, and the birds were chirping as a breeze swept through the beige-colored drapes. Renee lay in Stefan's warm arms, refusing to move."It's time for you to wake up, sleepy head." His strong arms wrapped around her, and he tapped her nose softly as he murmured, "Today is a special day. I want to take you and the kids to celebrate.""Shh. It's so warm here. I want to sleep." She held him tightly, nuzzling his chest like a contented cat. She loved lying in his arms like this because it made her feel safe. She refused to leave this warm
"That's not right, Francine! Shouldn't you be angry with your daughter-in-law for being so lazy?""I don't see any reason to get angry," said Francine in a considerate tone as she took a sip of her tea. "If the young couple wants to sleep, then let them. It's perfectly natural that they're especially affectionate with each other. I don't see any problem in letting them roll around in bed for a while anyway.""But that's nonsense!" one of Stefan's aunts argued indignantly. "She's a member of a respectable family now, and she should learn to act like it! All of us who married into the Hunts know this! We make sure that we're elegant, dignified, graceful, and courteous at all times—the basic qualities that the wife of an affluent man should…""My daughter-in-law doesn't need any of these qualities," Francine interrupted. "All she needs to do is to spend the rest of her life happily with my son.""You may be able to accept this, Francine, but what about Stefan? Can he endure having suc
The atmosphere in the great hall tensed up immediately. The tension was so thick in the air that it felt like a knife could cut through it.Ever since Stefan faked his death and Jovan colluded with his cronies in an attempt to seize power in Hunt Enterprise, the Hunt family was divided into two warring factions. The first took Alexander's side, while the second took Arthur's side—and from then on, the two cousins then became adversaries.Alexander had a forthright personality, so when he saw Arthur approaching from a distance, he immediately glowered and blurted, "Hmph! I can't believe you have the gall to step into this house! If I'm not mistaken, I don't think my father ever invited you and your wife here today!""Come on, Alex! Why are you treating me like I'm a stranger?"Arthur, cunning as an old fox, wore a wide phony grin on his face as he walked up to Alexander and put his hand on his cousin's shoulder in a fake brotherly gesture."How could I not be here when it's such a
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
"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