جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 100

Celia's heart skipped a beat as she mused, "Fiancee? Why is Yardley openly calling me his fiancee in front of all these reporters and their cameras? He's basically announcing it to the entire country …"His bold gesture touched her, but she quickly ignored the peculiar fluttering sensation in her chest and thought, "I can't let this get to me. Otherwise, I might warm up to him too much, and there's no telling if I'd be able to cut all ties with him after two months."Then, she asked in a subdued voice, "Why are you here?"Yardley tilted his head slightly toward her, allowing his gravelly voice to ring out only in her ears. "I said I'd never let anyone pick on you."In the eyes of others, the two's exchange seemed intimate—romantic even. Celia looked the other way, hiding the blush that crept up her neck.As for Quinn, she found the couple's actions glaring to watch. Many conflicting emotions came to a roaring boil in her stomach as she gnawed on the insides of her cheeks. She h

"What's going on?" Yardley frowned. He had tacitly granted the media permission to release those articles. Thus, nobody could remove them without his approval. Not to mention, the search topic had garnered the highest online traffic in history. No media company would be dumb enough to remove their articles and lose the public's attention now. After briefly mulling over it, Yardley called Yannis into his office and instructed, "Find out who removed those trending articles. I want to know what happened.""Yes, sir." Yannis nodded politely. He had discovered the missing articles just moments ago and found the situation equally odd. After all, he couldn't think of anyone other than Hughes Inc., that could make the city's media outlets wipe out all those top search results and trending articles in such a short period.…Half an hour later, Celia received a text from Anthony.It read, "It's done, Ava."Satisfied, she replied, "I have full confidence that you handled the matter well.""

A sullen pause came from Yardley, who then opened his bedside drawer and took out a cigarette to light it. He held the cigarette between his slender fingers, allowing its smoke to circle them as a tiny crease formed between his eyebrows. Then, he allowed the fiery glow of his cigarette to run its course. Only after it burnt out could he bring himself to speak. "Candy was … She and I got kidnapped when we were children.""Kidnapped?" Celia frowned, recalling the former had asked whether she had gotten kidnapped several times. She often found his question absurd and borderline offensive, but now, she wondered, "Has Yardley mistaken me for Candy? Or is he intentionally regarding me as Candy's replacement to fill up a hole in his chest?"Yardley's gaze ran cold, and even his voice grew softer. "Our captors were targeting me, but Candy happened to pass by and got into trouble because of me. They locked us in a dark log cabin; it was so small that it felt like a room. Just like that, we hu

"What's that supposed to mean?" Shirley demanded in a rage-inflected tone. Her expression changed. How dare Celia mock her in front of everyone again!Celia said coolly, "It means what you think it means.""Don't try to lead everyone astray. The fact remains that you've committed plagiarism!" Shirley bellowed. It was as if she wanted the whole world to know about this. Only a few people knew about the "Flames of Ice" designs. Thanks to Shirley's screaming, the whole secretarial department knew about it. The other employees around them turned to look at Celia doubtfully. After all, Marilyn was a renowned designer, while Celia was nothing but a lowly secretary. Besides, Celia had come from the country. How could she know anything about jewelry design? She must've taken the risk and committed plagiarism to climb the ladder.Despite the questioning looks focused on her, Celia was still cool as a cucumber as she said, "Do you need anything else, Shirley? If not, please return to where yo

"Of course not!" Celia shoved Yardley away and said resolutely, "I already made myself clear when we were at the old Hughes estate. I'm not Candy, nor am I her replacement!"A trace of defeat flashed in Yardley's eyes as he nodded emotionlessly. "Let's head home."At the Charming Creatures Bar, Bruce had invited a few friends for drinks at the bar's private room. Annie followed him there and strode into the private room. "Bruce."He frowned slightly. "What are you doing here?""Why have you been avoiding me for the past few days?" She sat beside him, looking aggrieved. "You haven't been answering my calls, and you're always out when I try to catch you at the hotel.""We've already broken up," he said coldly."Don't do this, Bruce. Are you really gonna be this heartless?" She leaned into him, refusing to accept this. "Have you forgotten how happy we used to be? You said you'd love me for the rest of your life. You can't do this to me!"He pushed her away impatiently. "I'll say th