Patrick's lips curved into a weird smile. He said, "Back then, you managed to escape to Waikiki Beach. Now, where are you going this time?"
Gloria's lips gradually turned pale, and she was still trembling. A slender finger pressed against her trembling lips. Patrick smiled, "Three years ago, you escaped to Waikiki Beach. Now, you want to escape from me by killing yourself?" Gloria didn't say anything, and a cold sweat broke out on her forehead. Patrick was smiling, but his eyes were cold. "Gloria, I'm asking you. Where are you going to escape to this time? Answer me!" Gloria looked away, not daring to meet his red eyes. He suddenly grabbed her chin. "I'm asking you a question! Look at me! Where are you going?" Patrick stared fiercely at Gloria. They were so close to each other, yet he felt she was far away from him. He closed his eyes. "Gloria, well done!" She wanted to escape from him even if she had to die! "IAs time ticked by, Patrick told himself that he could wait. He could spend the rest of his life with Gloria, as long as she said she loved him. "Say you love me." He was getting tougher. Gloria remained silent. Patrick felt a burning pain in his heart. He seemed to have lost something important. Something more important than his life. "Is it that difficult?" He asked with a cold smile. Behind his tough attitude, there was a hidden plea. Gloria did not notice it. In the past, she could say those words happily a thousand times, but now, she felt it was hard to do so. Patrick stared at her, and no one could tell what he was thinking. He was in despair at first, but now he was losing his mind. He believed that she would forgive him. He bent down, pressed his arms beside her, and kissed her passionately. Gloria knew that a storm was coming. A slap sounded. "Bastard!" Gloria said in a hoarse
Kevin nodded and went aside, which forced the woman and the little boy to step into the house. Kevin bowed slightly and closed the door tactfully. "Mazey, have a seat." Patrick looked at the woman and the little boy, who were Alger's lover and illegitimate son. He didn't want Gloria to take the risk, so he found them. Mazey was shocked. She had a feeling that something bad would happen. She had no choice but to bite the bullet. She sat down with her son. Patrick didn't intend to waste time and went straight to the point. He pushed a file bag on the coffee table in front of Mazey. Mazey opened it in confusion, and her face changed greatly the next second. She slammed the file bag on the table and said angrily, "Nonsense! Vince has done the marrow matches for Harry. Gloria also knows about it!" Patrick remained unmoved. "Alger faked Vince's medical reports, right?" "Nonsense! Alpha Patrick, you are slandering us!" Mazey
Gloria had no time to dodge. Because of Damon's slap, half of her face swelled up immediately. She put on a sarcastic smile. "Why are you still laughing? If not for you, how could I injure the pitiful Gabrielle accidentally and kill her?" Damon's tone became even more emotional. Gloria almost burst into tears from laughing. "Did I instigate you or threaten you to kill her? You killed Gabrielle out of selfishness. It's a fact!" Gloria said. "Shut up! I had no choice but to do that! If not for the incident that night, I wouldn't have hurt Gabrielle at all. Only now do I know that she is my biological sister. It is all your fault! You caused the tragedy!" Damon roared hysterically. Someone had swapped the two children deliberately to give the Carter family a warning. Damon didn't know the person had brought his sister back later and misunderstood for so many years. What was worse, he had just figured out the truth. Gloria could not bel
Sitting in the passenger seat, Gloria could no longer keep calm. Her face was ashen, and the pain in her eyes was obvious. She once felt strange about her grandpa's inconsistent behavior. Now, everything could be explained. He cherished her so much, but after all, he chose to support Harry and said that everything in the Carter family belonged to Harry. He said that he was afraid of Gloria being hurt again, so he kept her with him. However, it was just because he was threatened by Alex. He taught her patiently and made her much more outstanding than the girls around her so that she could attract the attention of the heir of the Hammond family. Gloria's mind was a mess. She couldn't tell what was true and what was fake. She had once lived a happy life with her grandpa, yet she couldn't figure out when he was sincere and when he was scheming against her. Perhaps everything was fake. The trees outside the window rushed backward.
Patrick chased after Gloria and hugged her. "Don't be afraid. It's me, Patrick." Gloria seemed to be in shock and struggled with both her hands and feet. "Let go! I want to go back! Let go! Don't touch me! I want to go back!" "Alright, let's go back. I'll take you back." Patrick picked Gloria. "I'll take you back now. It's alright. Let's go home." Gloria shook her head desperately. "Let go of me. I want to go back!" "Okay, I know. I will take you back now. Gloria, be good." Patrick walked to the police and said, "My wife was frightened and unstable. I have to take her away first. When she calms down, I will take her to make a statement." Hank drove over. Patrick held Gloria tightly and got into the car. Perhaps because Gloria had used up her strength, she fainted. In the apartment, Sean was packing up his medical kit. "It's fine. She just fainted. But she is quite weak. When she wakes up, she should pay attention to he
Sean listened quietly. As an outsider, he felt sorry for Patrick. Patrick said he knew he was wrong, which meant that he was on the verge of desperation. "If so, we would have kids by now, and they would be at the age of attending school." Patrick looked into the distance. Sean felt as if Patrick's words were boiling oil that was poured onto his heart, upsetting him inexplicably. "Let's have a drink." "No. She will get hungry when she wakes up." After saying that, Patrick stood up and took out some vegetables from the fridge. "I'll make some soup. She has a delicate stomach." Just as he placed the vegetables on the counter, he suddenly paused, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw the stuffed trash can. After looking at it for a while, Patrick squatted down and took things out of the trash can one by one. Sean looked at Patrick, who was quietly washing the couple's mugs behind the sink, and sighed silently that fate always
The sound of keys turning came from outside the door. Gloria quickly packed everything up, wiped his tears, and turned to walk out of the bedroom. Patrick walked to the bar counter with a shopping bag in his hands. "The beef is so good today. I picked some and brought you breakfast. Gloria, go wash up and sit down to eat." As he spoke, he placed the bag next to the sink, which was filled with many kinds of food. Patrick rolled up his sleeves in front of the sink and started to wash the vegetables. Gloria's hands were hanging by her side, behind her back. She clenched her fists so hard that the nails sank deep into her tender palms. She raised her head only to see that outside the balcony, the windows had already been equipped with bars, enveloping the large room. There was wind blowing, but she felt suffocating. Gloria did as she was told silently. He asked her to go wash up and then have breakfast. She went to wash up and then sat
Patrick paused. The next second, he reached out to cover her eyes and then kissed the back of his hand over them. "You mean a lot to me," he said silently. "Gloria, don't think about running away again. For the rest of your life, you're bound to be with me. You can't get away without my permission." He had already lost his mind. He felt bad for her, yet such a feeling was surpassed by his longing to keep her with him. After everything was over, she said, "I hate you." He closed his eyes. When he opened them, he suppressed the pain in them and said, pretending that he didn't care, "Whatever." He thought, 'You can hate me. Even though you want to hate me, I'm the only one you are going to hate. I don't care about anything else, as long as I'm the only one in your world. You may choose to love me or hate me as you want.' It was just that the moment she said she hated him, he felt his heartache killing him. The day of Harr
Luana fought with all her might, her slender hands clawing at Cline's arms.Her nails bit through his skin, drawing blood, yet he held on relentlessly."Cline!" Luana roared in fury, finally dropping her Dorothy act and staring him down as Luana.Hearing his name from her lips, Cline's eyes reddened further. "You finally admit it..."Luana sneered. "So what if I do?"Cline froze, his bloodshot eyes slowly meeting hers.Her face was an icy mask, devoid of emotion, filled only with contempt.This cold Luana left him at a loss.As he opened his mouth to speak, Luana turned her head, her calm eyes reflecting Cline's pale face."Did you really mean it when you said you loved me?""Yes..." Cline's heart leaped at the chance to connect, and he nodded eagerly, about to confess a decade-old truth.But Luana cut him off, her voice ice-cold, "If you loved me, why wouldn't you wait until our contract ended before break
"Does it hurt?" Luana silently asked herself.Once, she had known pain—excruciating, soul-crushing agony that had left her curled on a cold floor, voiceless and desperate.It had been a pain that stripped away all hope in this man before her, eroding her very will to live. It had been so severe that even in her final moments, when she'd longed for a glimpse of him, he'd refused even a phone call.That pain was no mere physical wound. It was a despair that seeped into her very being.It was after enduring such torment that she had finally seen Cline for what he truly was—a man utterly ruthless toward her.Yet now, here he was, holding her and asking if she hurt. The irony was bitter, almost laughable.With a cold, expressionless face, she said, "The five minutes are up. Let me go."But Cline, who had finally held the person he'd obsessed over, had no intention of releasing her so easily.He held her tight and said, "
Cline held tight to her arm, as if he'd never let go unless Luana gave him a chance to speak.Luana, brows furrowed, sighed and relented, "Five minutes, right here."Cline's cold gaze shifted to Dorian, who shot him a glare before turning to Luana."Five minutes, then home," Dorian warned.Luana nodded meekly, "Okay."Only after Dorian strode into the villa did Luana turn to Cline, her voice cool and impatient."Well?"In Dorian's presence, Luana had been the picture of obedience, just as she used to be with him.Now, though, Cline saw a change in her—calm, distant, and edged with impatience.This new version of Luana only deepened the ache in his chest.He longed to reach out, to brush his fingers against her face, but as his hand rose, she flinched violently, stepping back as if struck.Luana stared at Cline's right hand, her pupils suddenly clouded with fear, as if the ghosts of past trauma had res
Luana nodded in agreement and turned toward the stairs.But after just two steps, she froze, her fingers brushing the banister.Slowly, she turned back, her voice hesitant. "Clarissa, I came back as Dorothy... What about Gehrmann?"Clarissa had guessed that Luana had returned as her sister Dorothy the moment she heard Dorian call her by that name.Clarissa's smile was warm, reassuring. "I won't say a word to him or Cline. Your secret's safe."Relief flickered in Luana's eyes. "Thank you," she whispered, the word soft as a feather.As Luana walked away, Clarissa watched her retreating figure, worry knotting her brow."Is this luck or a curse?" she thought, "Leaving Cline only to be trapped by Dorian."At the car, Luana opened the passenger door and slid in."Home at ten seems early," she ventured, her tone tentative.Dorian glanced over, his indifference palpable. "Make it eight, then."Luana's lips twitched
Clarissa watched Luana's fingers tighten around the phone until her knuckles whitened. "When I first saw those messages flooding in, I tried luring him out myself—posed as you, planned to bring the cops. But instead of catching a creep, I got..."She trailed off, the memory of the man in the café still prickling her nerves.A man as cold and heartless as Cline—why would he cling to memories of Luana like this?"Anyway," she shrugged, "he never showed. Guess some ghosts stay buried."Luana's voice was a whisper. "These things... they should've been my fight. Not yours."Clarissa cut her off, "If it were me in this mess, you'd do the same. So quit with the thanks already."Luana nodded meekly, her lashes drooping as she glanced back at the phone screen.The mystery gnawed at her—Mr. Night's messages reeked of obsession, yet he hid in plain sight. Why?She couldn't fathom it, and frankly, didn't care
"I had no choice but to pull a dumb move—I seduced Gehrmann and took Naomi's spot as his bedwarmer," Clarissa said flatly, her voice echoing off the brick walls."I thought I could use him to get back at Cline. Turns out I was dumber than a bag of hammers—Gehrmann wouldn't lift a finger against Cline for any woman." She kicked at a pebble, watching it skitter into the shadows. "By the time I figured that out, he wouldn't let me walk away."Clarissa shifted her weight, catching Luana's profile in the dim light."But don't you worry, Luana. I ain't falling for Gehrmann's charm. This world's got exactly one good man left—Albion. And he's six feet under."So, I won't be that girl anymore—the one who pours her heart out for every little kindness, even when it's not worth it."Mentioning Albion again made Luana's eyes dim as if the light behind them had been switched off.She lowered her lashes, hiding the sorrow pooling th
Third Person's POVLuana tightly embraced Clarissa, hoping to alleviate her pain.Clarissa, however, patted her back with a smile and said, "It's alright. After finding out the truth, I was devastated for a while, but then I pulled myself together. I installed surveillance cameras and recorded every moment of their infidelity, which I sent to my lawyer."I won the lawsuit, but I couldn't get the house back. I could only recover the mortgage payments, the money I spent on him, and compensation for emotional distress..."However, what I didn't expect was that someone would expose Albert's bigamy online, ruining his reputation. His company fired him, and no other major firms would hire him. As far as I know, his current salary isn't even enough to cover the mortgage. Plus, his mother has cancer, which is why he keeps begging at my door."Clarissa's voice turned cold as she continued, "He thinks I'm still the naive woman I once was, that if he kneels a
Clarissa took a deep breath, opened the bedside table, and took out a marriage certificate, handing it to Luana."You two weren't entirely meant to miss each other. At least he kept his promise from when you were young and married you."Seeing the marriage certificate, Luana's eyes welled up.She reached out and slowly unfolded it...Name: LuanaName: AlbionBeside them was a composite photo of the two, dressed in white shirts, with a red background, their faces beaming with happiness.When Luana was eighteen, she had asked Albion, "When are you going to marry me?"Albion, engrossed in a book at the time, looked up and playfully tapped her nose with his pen, saying, "When I'm capable of giving you happiness."Luana pouted, dissatisfied, "But when will that be?"Albion held up his book and replied, "After I've mastered all this knowledge and become someone worthy, then I'll marry you."Luana rested her chin
Last time, it was her negligence that failed to keep Albion by her side. This time, she was determined to do everything in her power to protect Luana.Clarissa raised her hand and gently patted Luana's shoulder, hoping to offer some warmth.Time ticked by, and they remained in the same position until a man in a gray suit approached.Clarissa looked up at him, noticing his gaze fixed on Luana, and her tension grew.Before she could inquire about his identity, the man stepped forward and gently pushed Luana's head with his slender fingers."It's ten o'clock. It's time to go home..."Luana, recognizing Dorian's voice, didn't lift her head, her lifeless eyes fixed on the floor.Dorian frowned at her silence, then bent down slightly and spoke patiently, "Dorothy, come home with me."Luana raised her weary head and said, "I don't want to go home today..."She wanted to stay and support Clarissa, to quietly live for herself for