"Mom, I want to show them that I won't be so easily defeated and that I can get up where I fall! Don't worry, I'm not foolish enough to only attend the engagement without causing any trouble of my own," Summer said to Amelia confidently.Influenced by Summer's confidence, Amelia finally smiled.Summer took a taxi to Oceanic Hotel where Simone and Hank's engagement party was held. It was a five-star hotel. A massive poster of Hank and Simone's faces plastered in the main hall caught her attention once she entered the hotel.Hank's chiseled features and Simone's petite face that was full of smiles were squashed up. Their eyes showed happiness and affection. They seemed to be flaunting their happiness to the world.Summer looked away and expressionlessly read the sign next to the poster. The sign read: "The engagement party is on the 21st floor in the Luxury Ballroom!"Summer lifted the skirt of her dress lightly up as she flashed a bitter smile. The Youngs were desperate to flaunt

The guests who were all seated around Summer were all quite esteemed, and one of them was even an old business partner of Charter Corporation. As such, she caught his attention by staring at Simone intensely.Right now, Charter Corporation was nothing, so the business partner didn't need to bother keeping up appearances with the Charters anymore. The man was just about to make a snide comment to Summer when he was silenced by the frosty glare that the man seated beside her shot him.That glare made him extremely uncomfortable. And so, he decided not to say anything in the end and simply looked away, holding his breath.Now that both Hank and Simone had entered the ballroom, the host sang a few more praises for the new couple before finally handing the microphone over to both of them. The host then signaled for them to greet the guests.This was the moment Summer had been waiting for. Right as the hall went silent as everyone looked toward the stage in anticipation of what the new coupl

The world seemed frozen the moment Summer laid eyes on the man. Just from his profile, she could tell that he was the most handsome man she'd ever seen.Through the haziness of her tears, his distinct eyebrows and chiseled features made him look otherworldly. His eyes were deep and unreadable, yet bright enough to make it feel like he could illuminate her world. At first glance, the man looked just her type. However, she could also feel that the man was rather uptight.The man's gaze was fixed on Summer. Lips pursed, he rubbed her shoulders comfortingly.It took Summer a few moments to get her wits back and realize that something wasn't right. Just as she was about to say something, Richard spoke first."Mr. Quigley! I'm so sorry, I didn't know that you were attending my daughter's engagement party," he said, sounding surprised and excited. "Simone, you should've told me you invited him! Mr. Quigley—"A cold glare stopped him in the middle of his sentence. His expression froze i

Town hall? Summer wondered if she was having another hallucination.He'd just proposed not two minutes ago, and now he was bringing her to the town hall. What in the world was going on?Before she could say anything, James leaned in closer to her. His dark eyes stared deep into hers as his warm breath ghosted across her face. He smiled lightly.Shit, this was too close. Was he trying to take advantage of her?Instinctively, she tried to turn away and gaze out of the window, her ears burning. Then, she felt something tighten across her body before a click sounded—it turned out that James was just putting on her seatbelt for her."Next time, put on your seatbelt yourself!""Uh, thanks." Despite thanking him, Summer pursed her lips to stop herself from blurting out her real thoughts. She'd never asked him for help with her seatbelt in the first place. Why was he being such a smartass?James saw her embarrassed expression. He opened his mouth to say something but changed his mind at

Summer trailed off, unable to finish her sentence. She glanced up at James.He caught her gaze. Tilting his head, he waited for her to continue. Summer couldn't help but recall her first impression of him. He was truly uptight and inflexible, and it annoyed her.Summer took a few moments to gather her wits and reassess the situation. Once she was less flustered, she said slowly, "I have a few questions, Mr. Quigley."That came out a little awkward. She paused and thought for a moment. "You don't have to say anything, you can just nod or shake your head. Is that okay?""It's alright, I don't mind answering your questions," James said. He nodded solemnly to emphasize his point.Summer was amazed by his naivete. She couldn't quite believe that he was as daft as that, but she couldn't deny that the innocence looked cute on him. He was cute, handsome, and very much her cup of tea …She quickly shook her head to get rid of her stray thoughts.What was wrong with her? She shouldn