LOGINAfter parking the car, Henry called Jerry.When Jerry picked up, his voice sounded puzzled. "Weren't you supposed to be seeing your lady? What happened?"Henry got straight to the point. "Jerry, I have some questions I'd like to ask you."Jerry heard it in his voice. "Give me an address. I'll come right now."Henry gave him the address of a quiet bar. By the time Jerry arrived, Henry had already downed several bottles of beer alone.Jerry didn't hold back. "If I were you, I'd be even more shameless than that Henderson guy."Henry picked up his glass and drank it all in one go. He slammed the glass down on the table, then slapped himself. "But I can't do that. I can't be as shameless as Quentin."Jerry didn't mince words. "Then you deserve to be miserable."Henry let out a self-mocking laugh. "Maybe. Someone like me is destined to be alone forever."Jerry had had enough. "There are tons of women chasing after you. Any one of them is better than Talia. Why are you so fixated on
Henry felt numb inside, but he forced himself to examine Talia's wound.When he finished, he kept his head down and adjusted her pants. "The wound's mostly healed. Give it a bit more time, and you'll be fine."Talia leaned forward to fix her pants herself, but Henry held her ankle fast. Only when he'd finished straightening the fabric did he reluctantly release her.He still didn't look up. He picked up his umbrella from the ground and opened it over Talia.Without meeting her eyes, he pressed the handle into her hand. "It's cold in the snow. Don't let yourself freeze. Keep your leg warm too, or frostbite will slow your recovery."The moment Talia took the umbrella, their eyes met briefly. That was when she saw his eyes were red from crying."Henry..." Talia didn't know what to say. She could only call his name helplessly.He acted as if nothing was wrong. "I'm here."Talia couldn't bring herself to ask anything. "We should head back now."Henry straightened quickly. "Let me w
At a food stall, Quentin leaned down and asked, "Talia, want some churros?"Talia shook her head. "No, I'm good."He asked again. "How about fries?"Talia still declined. "I'll pass."Undeterred, Quentin tried again at a bakery. "Want to check it out?"Talia saw the little cakes and suddenly felt tempted. Before she could say yes, Quentin was already pushing her toward the bakery.It surprised her. Quentin seemed able to read her mind.Maybe that was what a good partner meant—someone who could read her with just a glance.Inside the bakery, the array of cakes dazzled her. Everything she saw looked tempting and delicious. She found herself at a loss.Quentin saw through her hesitation. He picked up the tongs and a plate, then selected one of each cake.Talia watched him pile more and more onto the plate. "Quentin, two or three is enough. I can't eat all that."Quentin didn't listen. He kept adding little cakes to the plate while telling her, "If you want to try them, then try
Standing at the entrance to the concert hall, watching the crowds come and go, Christian gradually lost himself in thought.Nancy had shone so brilliantly on stage moments ago, and he couldn't help but be moved. Perhaps their being together was the best ending after all. Yet even as he thought this, his heart remained hollow.He stood at the entrance, smoking one cigarette after another until the smoke made his eyes water. Only then did he hear a gentle voice nearby say, "Chris."Christian instinctively turned to look.Nancy stood not far from him. She hadn't removed her stage makeup, and it still sat flawlessly on her skin. She was already beautiful, and the makeup made her stunning.She wore a light pink coat over a black dress underneath. Though the color was pink, it didn't look childish at all. Instead, it made her look demure and sweet. Standing there, she was hard to look away from.Christian dropped his cigarette. When he spoke, his voice was hoarse. "All done?"Nancy no
The kiss came so suddenly that neither Talia nor Christian had time to react.Quentin straightened up and turned to face Christian, licking his lips as if savoring the taste, his eyes full of satisfaction. "So what do you think now, Mr. Lane?"Quentin made no attempt to hide the blatant provocation in his gaze. Christian clenched his fist and stepped forward, ready to throw a punch.But Quentin stepped forward to meet him, looking Christian straight in the eye with a commanding presence. "Only weak men resort to violence. Have you already forgotten what you said to Talia? What you did to her?"Christian's hand hung in midair, never landing on Quentin.Quentin pressed forward. "Talia became like this because of your own actions, didn't she?"Christian fell silent.After a long moment, he turned to look at Talia. "Think this through carefully. If you decide to return, there's still room to salvage our relationship."Quentin moved to block Talia, using his body to shield her from
Christian sat in the back seat, handling work, the digital tablet's glow illuminating his face. His expression looked serious.When he heard Lionel's voice, he looked up, then turned to look where Lionel was pointing. Through the car window, he immediately spotted Talia and Quentin by the roadside.Quentin crouched beside the wheelchair, holding Talia's hands and warming them with his breath. Every so often, he reached up to smooth her windblown hair.Christian's grip on the device tightened.Lionel hadn't realized the severity of the situation. When Christian didn't respond, he asked again, "Is that Mrs. Lane?"Christian didn't sound angry when he replied, "Yes."But before Lionel could ask anything else, Christian added abruptly, "Though she doesn't deserve that title anymore."The words carried clear dissatisfaction and a hint of anger. Yet, Christian's expression showed little emotion.Lionel assumed Christian wasn't upset. Without thinking, he said, "I've known Mrs. Lane a
Willow thought for a moment before replying, "Send me a text every ten minutes. If I don't reply, call the police."Talia was deeply worried but had no choice but to agree. "Okay."The two chatted for a while longer before ending the video call.At 5:00 pm, Willow sent Talia a text. "I'm heading
Quentin held Talia tight, letting her vent all her pent-up emotions in his arms.He tucked her head against his chest and rested his chin on top of her hair. His eyes and heart were filled with nothing but an overwhelming ache for her.He didn't ask what had happened. At that moment, just being th
So at that time, Julian never truly valued Talia's kindness. He had even dismissed it as mere flattery.But whether it was flattery or not, the fact remained that she had treated him well.Julian was momentarily speechless. He turned to Christian and asked, "Chris, are you just going to let her ru
Without waiting for instructions on how to take them, Willow swallowed both emergency contraceptive pills at once. After swallowing, she grabbed the water glass by the bed and gulped down two large mouthfuls.Setting down the glass, she looked at Talia in terror. "Talia, I didn't taste anything. Di







