ã€ŠIn a Love Nest with the Aloof CEOã€‹


 Chapter 1

    Chapter 1

    ¡°Sir, I only need three hundred thousand. Please¡­¡±

    Skr Jones trembled on her feet in front of the man, with her head hung low.

    Apart from the dim lighting, she was shrouded in darkness.

    Right then, a tall and broad-shouldered figure approached her step by step.

    The man grasped her chin, and panic rose in her when she was met with his icy and intimidating gaze.

    With her heart in her throat, Skr swallowed thickly before continuing, ¡°I know three hundred thousand

    isn¡¯t a small amount, b-but I really need this money.¡±

    When the man heard her say that three hundred thousand wasn¡¯t a small amount, the corners of his lips

    arched into a cold-blooded smile.

    Suddenly, Skr was pulled into his arms,pletely caught off guard.

    And in just mere seconds, the pleasant scent of white sandalwood invaded her senses, almost drowning

    her.

    Immediately afterward, his cold voice sounded above her head and brought her back to the harsh reality.

    ¡°How do you expect me to believe you? Well, you know what they say ¨C talk is cheap¡­¡±

    Though scared out of her wits, Skr suppressed the fear gripping her heart and replied, ¡°Give it a try. If

    you find that I¡¯m lying, I¡¯ll return all the money to you.¡±

    As soon as she said that, a palm, cold as the grave, sped the back of her neck, chilling her to the

    bones. She instinctively thrashed against him, trying to escape, but the man only tightened his other

    hand around her waist even more.

    Hence, she stopped struggling, not daring to move a muscle.

    This was the only way to get the money for her boyfriend, Jeremy¡¯s medical expenses.

    The moment she remained still, the man cupped Skr¡¯s face with his palm as he remarked in a low and

    hoarse voice, ¡°I¡¯m not interested in getting my hands dirty by personally verifying it!¡±

    Right then, the door to the room opened from the outside.

    A blinding sh, followed by the footsteps of what seemed like an army of soldiers, came through the

    door. At that moment, several men in ck suits bombarded that dim room as they strode in a neat

    formation.

    Skr¡¯s eyes widened in shock, and she turned back to look at the man hidden in the shadows. Under

    the dingy lights, she could vaguely discern his chiseled features and the smile ying on his lips, which

    looked impossibly gentle.

    Her lips quivered, and she argued in a shaky voice, ¡°We agreed on one. What¡¯s going on now? Excuse

    me, sir, but you should be honest when doing business! Forget it. The deal is off!¡±

    Feeling slightly irritated, the man waved his hand with a frosty expression on his face. Then Skr, still

    struggling, was forcibly taken away by the men in ck.

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    In the operating room, they secured Skr to the operating table with her dignity in shreds. The freezing

    temperature here made her feel as though she was thrown into an ice-cold cavern.

    Shey on the cold table, groggy andpletely drained of strength, with only her mind wide

    awake.What are t-they going to do to me? I-is this the end? Am I going to die j-just like this?Terror

    coursed through her veins as thoughts ran wild through her mind. Gradually, her breathing grew weak.

    With all the courage she could gather, she whimpered, ¡°Are you going to take my kidney? Or my liver?

    Just so you know¡ªboth aren¡¯t in good condition! The results from my physical examination even stated

    that I have a fatty liver.¡±

    Nevertheless, the two women in white coats did not answer.

    At that moment, Skr felt like crying as shemented silently.Just what did I get myself into?I just

    wanted to make some money, but why is it so hard? Why did some people have it easy, while I¡­

    Her train of thoughts was interrupted when the automated doors of the operating room slid open as

    someone walked in. One of the women wearing a white coat nodded to Tobias Ford.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, she¡¯s all good.¡±

    ¡°Mr. Ford¡­¡±

    Hearing their voices, Skr struggled to sit up, but she had only lifted herself halfway when one doctor

    pushed her back onto the operating table.

    She shuddered as coldness seeped through her skin once again. Under the intense re of the surgical

    lamp, she could finally see the man¡¯s face clearly. His face was cold and aloof,pletely void of

    emotions, just like an ice sculpture, but his eyes shone with authority.

    His piercing gaze made her quake with fear, but to her surprise, his voice was tender when he spoke.

    ¡°Are you ready, Ms. Jones?¡±

    Skr was strung as tight as a bow right then, and her muscles stiffened with trepidation.

    Nevertheless, she closed her eyes in resignation, immediately dredging up the image of her beloved

    fianc¨¦ lying on the hospital bed, looking pale and sickly.

    Only then could she numb herself to her fear.

    She wasn¡¯t betraying Jeremy. All she was doing now was to ensure that she could live with the love of

    her life. Forever.

    ¡­

    Prior to the act, the man sat on the edge of the operating table and ced his arms on both sides of her

    waist while uttering in a low voice, ¡°My name is Tobias Ford. Don¡¯t you ever forget that!¡±

    However, Skr¡¯s mind was in shambles now, and she didn¡¯t even want to be here, let alone know this

    man¡¯s name.

    In fact, she hoped she would never see him again after tonight.

    ¡°Um¡­ Does it have to be here? Even the ward is better than this ce. Otherwise, you¡¯re gonna have to

    pay me more¡­¡± Skr had basically forced out these words through clenched teeth.

    She grabbed Tobias¡¯ arm, shaking slightly.

    ¡°Fine¡­¡± Tobias agreed in a deep and gruff voice.

    He found this girl intriguing because even at a time like this, she still did not forget her goal.

    Then Skr closed her eyes and blocked out all her senses.

    After a long time, the operating room was unusually silent. When the deed was done, Tobias stared

    intently at the girl who had passed out like the dead on the operating table. Her face was still flushed

    from what happened earlier, and her breath still rapid and shallow.

    Ignoring the woman, his gaze quickly shifted to the white cloth covering the operating table.

    That ring red stain resembled a fully bloomed plum blossom standing stark against a nket of snow;

    it was an alluring sight to behold.

    Last night, this girl had lost her virginity to him.

 Chapter 2

    Chapter 2

    Elysium was the most luxurious nightclub in A City, and it operated on a membership system.

    The guests who came here were filthy rich or immensely powerful, each of them having a worth of

    tens of millions.

    Skr had always regarded ces like this with disdain. Never did she think that one day, she would

    willingly stoop so low for the sake of money.

    Being her na?ve self, she really thought that Tobias Ford was a generous man, giving her three million

    when she had only asked for three hundred thousand, which would help her settle her financial

    emergency.

    Thus, when Jeremy told her that the check was forged, her head spun as the world around her

    copsed.

    Indeed, the world was a sinister ce; she had been scammed!

    As for Jeremy¡¯s surgery fee, his family had surprisingly managed to gather sufficient money after that.

    Skr was baffled as to where the Lanes got the money from, since they were the ones who begged her

    to gather the money in the first ce.

    Moreover, her future grandmother-inw even informed her they couldn¡¯t afford Jeremy¡¯s post-surgery

    rehabilitation expenses and needed her help.

    It cost at least one hundred thousand per month. A little nobody like her could barely scrape up one-tenth

    of that amount.

    ¡°Skr, hurry up. Room 301 requested a bottle of Ace of Spades. Go in and serve the drinks,¡± urged the

    manager, Cam Cook, as she nudged Skr¡¯s back.

    Room 301 was the only VIP room in Elysium. The upants were usually business tycoons and

    celebrity politicians.

    Before entering, Cam had specifically told her to turn a blind eye to whatever was happening inside.

    Turn a blind eye? What the heck did she sign me up for? Chills went down her spine the moment she

    heard Cam¡¯s warning.

    At that moment, Skr was d in a white maxi dress and a pair of high-heeled boots of the same color.

    Her face waspletely free of makeup, without even a tinge of rouge on her cheeks.

    Bncing a tray of drinks with one hand, she pressed down on the gilded door handle and entered the

    room, her heart almost at her throat.

    The atmosphere inside the room and that outside was like night and day; it was much quieter. She also

    noticed that all of Elysium¡¯s top beauties were in here.

    ¡°Throwing yourself at me so soon? Are you that eager, prettydy?¡± A frivolous voice sounded from

    above Skr¡¯s head. With her head bowed low, she was so afraid to make eye contact with those inside

    the room that she bumped into someone.

    Moreover, the lighting in the private room was too dim, so she couldn¡¯t see clearly where she was

    heading. She looked up abruptly at the man whom she had run into, noting that he was in his forties and

    had a plump figure. With a pair of gold-rimmed spectacles resting on his nose bridge, he looked like a

    typical government official.

    Widening herrge doe eyes in shock, Skr hurriedly apologized, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, sir. I didn¡¯t see where I was

    going.¡±

    The man broke into a lecherous smile. ¡°Do you think a simple apology will do? Just tell me what you

    want. Don¡¯t use this kind of petty coy tricks on me. I¡¯ve seen more than enough in my lifetime.¡±

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Without another word said, the bespectacled man caught Skr¡¯s wrist and flung her onto the sofa like a

    ragged doll.

    After being manhandled roughly, she frantically propped herself into a sitting position. This ce was full

    of the affluent and influential. She knew she couldn¡¯t afford to offend any of them, so she could only keep

    a tight lid on her anger.

    Amidst the heavy odor of tobo and alcohol, a white sandalwood cologne fragrance tickled her nose,

    bringing back memories of the past.

    Huh? Why does that smell¡­ so familiar?

    This scent was carved into Skr¡¯s mind deeply, so deep that it seared into her soul. Regaining her

    senses, she got up clumsily and straightened her dress.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, we meet again.¡± This deep voice resembled a devil¡¯s whisper reached her ears that instant.

    The man¡ªthe devil himself, Tobias Ford, leaned against the sofa and took out a cigarette from his

    pocket. A flicker of light then followed.

    Skr lifted her gaze to the me¡¯s glow and saw a man with an impossibly handsome face beside her.

    She would recognize him anywhere, even if he were burnt to ashes.

    ¡°Tobias Ford,¡± she said his name through gritted teeth.

    A puff of smoke rose from between his lips, temporarily obscuring his features.

    Tobias looked at Skr with a gentle smile, which surprisingly made him seem very charming and

    approachable. ¡°You still remember my name. It seems like you¡¯re satisfied with me.¡±

    The man, who was rude to Skr, was Benjamin Hayes. When he saw Tobias talking to Skr in a

    hushed tone, his expression changed subtly, and it brought his aggressiveness down a few notches.

    ¡°Oh, so she¡¯s one of yours, Mr. Ford. Sorry about that.¡±

    ¡°Nah¡­ We¡¯re not close. You can take her if you want, Mr. Hayes.¡± A cold glint shed in Tobias¡¯ eyes.

    Hearing that, Benjamin breathed a sigh of relief and leered at Skr. ¡°In that case, I¡¯ll make sure you

    have an unforgettable experience today.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I¡¯m just a promoter. I don¡¯t do anything else besides selling drinks.¡± Skr¡¯s hands balled

    into fists by her sides, betraying her fear.

    Meanwhile, Benjamin¡¯s anger spiked upon being rejected in public. It was an utter humiliation for him.

    Boiling in rage, he pinched Skr¡¯s chin, viciously jerking her head upward as he examined her from top

    to bottom. ¡°Just who do you think you are?¡±

    Immediately, Skr started to tremble, yet she couldn¡¯t tell if it was out of fear or anger, or maybe both.

    The only thing she could feel was the sharp pain in her jaw, which made breathing difficult for her. And

    she didn¡¯t like that, not one bit at all.

    Acting upon instinct, she picked up a bottle on the inky-ck coffee table, thinking to teach this man a

    lesson. I won¡¯t betray Jeremy again.

    But before she could bring the bottle down, someone grabbed her arm and stopped her. Tobias flung her

    arm away and narrowed his eyes, his voice slightly hoarse as he warned, ¡°Don¡¯t ruin everyone¡¯s fun

    here. Get out.¡±

    Skr sighed in relief, opening her eyes to re at Tobias with hatred. ¡°dly, Mr. Ford. Thank you for

    your leniency.¡±

    Noticing the dirty look she was sending him, Tobias¡¯ mouth quirked up slightly, but there was a hint of

    frigidness to it.

    Then he took the bottle from Skr¡¯s hand. There was more than half a bottle of vodka left in it. He

    looked at Skr with a sinister smile on his face as an idea formed in his mind.

    ¡°Don¡¯t rush to thank me. I wasn¡¯t done talking just yet¡­ Finish up this bottle of liquor.¡±

    Skr was taken aback for a moment, but soon her initial surprise vanished. To her, this man was

    nothing but a devil, an indignity she had to carry for the rest of her life, and there was nothing he wasn¡¯t

    capable of doing.

    In order to escape sooner, Skr raised the bottle to her mouth and gulped down its contents. The

    alcohol gushed into her mouth and flowed down her throat, causing a hot burning sensation in her

    stomach.

    Seeing the agonized look on Skr¡¯s face, Tobias draped an arm around her shoulders and leaned over

    to whisper against her ear, ¡°You¡¯re quite a good drinker, Ms. Jones, and it seems like you¡¯re really short

    of money. Tell you what. I¡¯ll give you three hundred thousand for every bottle you drink.¡±

    The alcohol had already hazed Skr¡¯s brain, and she threw all sense of reason out the window, along

    with her manager¡¯s warning to avoid offending anyone here.

    With eyes that were glowing red, she stood on her toes and grabbed the front of Tobias¡¯ freakishly

    unwrinkled shirt with both hands, right in front of everyone.

    Then, she roared furiously, ¡°Tobias Ford, you lied to me about the three hundred thousandst time. Do

    you know how bad you f**ked me up? And now you wanna mess with me again? You crazy son of a

    b*tch!¡±

 Chapter 3

    Chapter 3

    Everyone in the private room was dumbfounded upon witnessing the scene. This crazy woman must be

    courting death.

    Content is ? by N?velDrama.Org.

    At that instant, Tobias grabbed Skr¡¯s arm and took her out of the room.

    However, Skr was so drunk that she kept muttering barely coherent words. ¡°You l-liar. T-That money

    was to save a life!¡±

    Tobias, on the other hand, felt that this woman was vile to the core, using liquid courage to scam him.

    But he wasn¡¯t surprised either. After all, that night in the operating room, she had asked for an increase

    at the veryst minute. I gave her three million instead of the three hundred thousand she requested, but

    she¡¯s still not satisfied!

    She didn¡¯t even waste a minute and came over here! She¡¯s been real busy, I see.

    Along the corridor, when Cam saw Tobias dragging a delirious Skr out of the room, her face

    nched with horror.

    For Tobias, ending someone¡¯s life was as easy as killing an ant. After all, life was worthless in his eyes.

    Thus, she hurried over in panic, knowing what Tobias was capable of. ¡°Mr. Ford, I¡¯m not sure what

    happened, but Skr here is our new recruit. She¡¯s still young and ignorant, so please forgive her.¡±

    Tobias nced coldly at the manager, his lips parting as he spoke, ¡°This has nothing to do with you, so

    get out of the way. I¡¯ll be taking her away right now.¡±

    Nheless, Cam replied tentatively, ¡°She¡¯s only a promoter. Mr. Ford, we have many girls here.

    Please allow me to introduce you to a few of them.¡±

    The moment Tobias spoke, the air seemed to thicken with a sense of oppression. ¡°There¡¯s no such thing

    as ¡®only a promoter¡¯ here. Since she¡¯s an employee here, she should¡¯ve been prepared for this day.¡±

    In the meantime, Skr was sitting unabashedly on the ground as her stomach churned. A few strands

    of her disheveled hair were stuck to her lips as she hugged Tobias¡¯ legs, refusing to let go. ¡°Liar. Isn¡¯t it

    enough that you f**ked me up so bad? Huh?¡±

    Hearing that, Cam eximed in shock, ¡°Are you crazy, Skr? Do you know what you¡¯re saying?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ Adam¡¯s apple bobbed as if he was trying to control himself from doing something.

    Clenching his fists, he said to Cam through gritted teeth, ¡°Bring her purse over. I¡¯m taking her away

    tonight!¡±

    The man was well-aware of the rules in Elysium. It was clearly stated that taking a girl¡¯s purse meant

    taking the girl herself.

    Stupefied, Cam watched Skr being roughly hauled up by Tobias. He then lifted Skr¡¯s chin and

    smiled mockingly at her. ¡°I¡¯ll give you the time to tell me in detail just how exactly I f**ked you up.¡±

    Already gone off into the deep end, Skr red menacingly at Tobias. ¡°I¡¯m not going anywhere with

    you. If you wannae at me, juste at me here, Mister!¡±

    Tobias¡¯ gaze darkened a fraction. ¡°How much money do you want this time? Name your price and stop

    pretending to be innocent.¡±

    Skr met Tobias¡¯ intimidating gaze head-on, slurring when she said, ¡°If I actually liked you, that¡¯ll be

    free of charge! But now? Hah! In your dreams.¡±

    Cam was paralyzed to the spot and didn¡¯t dare to interfere anymore. If she got on Tobias¡¯ bad side, it

    would be the end for Elysium.

    Meanwhile, Tobias¡¯ eyes turned even colder, and there was also a hint of impatience in them. ¡°Do I look

    like a man with good self-control?¡±

    Skr sobered up quite a lot upon hearing this.

    As he pushed open the door of the private room, Skr winced from the stabbing pain in her wrist

    caused by his bone-crushing grip.

    Then he gestured at the men and women in the room. ¡°Out. All of you.¡±

    At his sinct order, everyone scrambled from their seats and scurried off, not daring to stay a second

    longer.

    After that, Tobias ordered his bodyguard, Samuel, to guard the door and stop anyone froming in.

    Within half a minute, Tobias and Skr were the only two people left in the room.

    Freeing her hand from his tight grip, Skr staggered backward. ¡°What are you doing? Were you

    serious?¡±

    Regret filled her immediately, gushing in like waves. Why did I have to say all those things to provoke

    him when I knew he¡¯s capable of doing anything? Skr, you dunce, good job agitating the devil! It¡¯s not

    like you haven¡¯t experienced it before! Memories from that night in the operating room emerged in her

    mind, sending a shiver down her spine as ice spread through her veins.

    Tobias¡¯ gaze fell on Skr¡¯s face. Glimpsing the fear in her eyes and the slight tremble of her lips, he

    could tell that she was afraid.

    Every inch of him screamed danger. When Skr saw his hand move, panic seized her and suffocated

    her.

    There was no room for escape, but she had solemnly vowed never to do it again. Even if her life

    depended on it.

    On that night, she had already been utterly debased.

    Tobias pushed her down onto the coffee table just then. The moment Skr¡¯s back came in contact with

    the cold marble b, using the same trick, she reached out for a bottle to smash it on Tobias¡¯ head.

    Of course, she was no match for him. He clutched her wrist, and just like that, the bottle fell into his hand.

    Skr¡¯s eyes widened upon seeing Tobias holding the bottle, and she screamed in fright.

    Everything happened in a sh. She thought Tobias was going to smash it on her head, but after a long

    time, the impact never came. Instead, the bottle was gently ced beside her, and the weight pressing

    on her body was abruptly gone.

    ¡°Putting up a fight at every turn, I see. You¡¯re bold, I¡¯ll give you that. But just how many lives do you have

    to spare?¡±

    Skr recovered from her shock and met his eyes.

    ¡°If you¡¯re short of money, why don¡¯t youe under my wing? After all, I was still your first, Ms. Jones.¡±

    Tobias looked like apletely different personpared to the brutal and aggressive man just now, as

    his features had softened to exude a gentle aura. Nevertheless, the words that came out of his mouth

    ruined his gentle image.

    He¡¯s still cruel and cold-hearted as always!

    Skr was ashen-faced. ¡°Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Ford, but even if I die poor, I wouldn¡¯t want to

    have the slightest involvement with you.¡±

    At that point, she did not dare to ask for money anymore. All she wished was to get as far away as

    possible, lest the devil im her life.

    Tobias¡¯ lips slowly arched into a smile that was slightly mocking. ¡°Fine. I won¡¯t force you.¡±

    Following that, the man left the room, and Skr waited until she could no longer hear his footsteps

    before exiting. The moment she emerged, Cam, who was still in shock, cried out, ¡°Skr, you almost

    ruined Elysium. Don¡¯t you know who Tobias Ford is?¡±

    Like a deted balloon, Skr said listlessly, ¡°Who he is has nothing to do with me. By the way, can I get

    themission for the sales today, Cam? I need to pay the medical fees at the hospital tomorrow.¡±

    Cam looked at Skr and couldn¡¯t help but think she was the world¡¯s biggest idiot. ¡°I really don¡¯t

    understand you. You haven¡¯t even married into the family, but here you are, struggling to pay for your

    boyfriend¡¯s bills. Once he¡¯s all cured, he¡¯ll dump you for sure. What are you gonna do when that

    happens?¡±

    After the scare caused by Tobias, Skr was already pale with fatigue. She forced a smile and said,

    ¡°That¡¯s impossible. We¡¯ve been together since junior high. A rtionship that long won¡¯t fall apart so

    easily. He said that he¡¯ll marry me once he¡¯s discharged from the hospital-¡±

    Her phone rang at that moment. It was her best friend, Penelope Quinn. She raised her phone, telling

    Cam that she had to answer a call.

    As soon as the call connected, Penelope¡¯s voice was so loud Skr thought she had identally put her

    on speaker. ¡°Skr, I saw Jeremy buying a bag for a girl just now. And it was a Hermes bag! Since when

    is he so rich?¡±

    Surprised, Skr replied, ¡°It can¡¯t be. You must be seeing things. He¡¯s still hospitalized, so how could

    you have seen him buying a bag?¡±

    ¡°For God¡¯s sake, Skr, I have 20/20 vision. I¡¯m telling you¡ªit was him! Besides, do you think I can¡¯t

    recognize Jeremy? He was even wearing his hospital gown underneath his coat. Who else could it be?¡±

    Penelope answered withplete certainty.

 Chapter 4

    Chapter 4

    City North Hospital.

    Skr got off work early in the morning and went to the hospital with barely any sleep. The dark circles

    beneath her eyes were so pronounced that even her foundation did nothing to conceal them.

    After settling the bill for Jeremy, she hurried upstairs. The situation was not as bad as she had thought,

    and the doctor said he could be discharged soon.

    Her life could finally get back on track. If she continued working like a dog, one day, she might very well

    die from exhaustion in her rental house.

    Right then, Jeremy was sitting on the hospital bed, figuring out the functions of his new phone. His

    complexion was much better than before¡ªironically, a stark contrast to the woman walking towards his

    ward. Color had returned to his cheeks, and he even put on some weight.

    When he saw Skre in, he hastily shoved his newly bought phone into the pocket of his hospital

    gown.

    ¡°So, what did you dost night?¡± Skr brought over a thermos which was filled with pot roast that she

    cooked an hour earlier. Then she handed Jeremy a pair of cutlery.

    Her question stunned Jeremy. Quickly digging into the pot roast to hide his guilt, he muttered, ¡°What else

    could I do? Of course I was lying here. Why did you ask?¡±

    Skr wet her pale lips, looking more like a patient than the man on his sickbed. ¡°Huh¡­ Funny story¡ª

    someone saw you buying a Hermes bag for a girl. I knew she was mistaken.¡±

    Afraid that Skr would see through him, Jeremy gave her a tight-lipped smile and said, ¡°Haha¡­

    Hermes? You tter me, baby. I¡¯m not that rich!¡±

    Through the window, the morning sun filtered in and showered his youthful face with a golden glow that

    complemented his bright and gentle smile.

    Skr was dazed for a moment before raising her brows. True. Where would Jeremy get that kind of

    money? She would know that, as he had only given her one bag ever since they started going out.

    To be frank, calling it a ¡°bag¡± was an overstatement. After all, it was made of recycled scraps that were

    duct-taped all over, to which Jeremy imed he bought it from the flea market. Despite that, Skr had

    shared it on her social media, feeling proud of it.

    ¡°Anyway, the doctor said I can go home next week. I didn¡¯t expect to recover so quickly,¡± Jeremy said

    after he finished the entire pot roast.

    Actually, Skr had made two portions because she came here in a hurry and did not have time to eat.

    Upon seeing the thermospletely empty, she simply sighed in resignation.

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Jeremy was always inconsiderate like this. After so many years, Skr had gotten used to it.

    She pushed the stray strands of hair away from her face and said, ¡°That¡¯s great. It¡¯s better to rest at

    home than at the hospital. Wow, I can¡¯t believe we¡¯ve finally ovee this hurdle.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m blue, da-ba-dee da-ba-daa¡­ da-ba-dee da-ba-daa¡­¡±

    All of a sudden, Jeremy

    ¡¯s cell phone ringtone red out from his pocket. His eyes darted toward Skr and got up hastily. ¡°I

    need to use the bathroom.¡±

    However, Skr raised her hand and blocked his path.

    Jeremy looked at her with shifty eyes as guilt rose in him with each dreading second. ¡°Hey, why are you

    blocking me? I need to pee!¡±

    Snapping out of it, Skr put her hand down quickly, ming Tobias for her fraying nerves.

    I¡¯m sure Jeremy would never answer a woman¡¯s call behind my back. We have a solid rtionship, one

    that was built over the years.

    Besides, he has been sick all this while, so there¡¯s no way he could¡¯ve wooed a girl in his state.

    After packing the thermos, Skr heard footsteps just outside the door and looked up to see Jeremy¡¯s

    mother, Pauline Yates.

    She obediently greeted her, her eyes inadvertently looking Pauline over.

    They had only recently seen each other, but there was already an additional gold bracelet circling

    Pauline¡¯s wrist.

    Judging by the looks at it, the bracelet was worth at least twenty thousand.

    Skr casually asked, ¡°Hi, Mrs. Lane, how are you doing? Oh wow, your bracelet is so pretty! Is that

    new?¡±

    Hearing that, Pauline tugged her sleeve to conceal the bracelet. ¡°It¡¯s fake. How can I afford to buy an

    authentic one in our current situation? Skr, who was it you met thest time? It was a fake check.¡±

    Skr had no exnation for her, so she only responded tersely, ¡°Ah, it was April¡¯s Fool, I guess.¡±

    After that, Pauline did not speak anymore, and since they had nothing to talk about, the ward fell into an

    awkward silence.

    Skr had always known that Pauline looked down on her, hoping that her son would find an heiress to

    marry, the kind that could make their lives easier and give them a house with three or more bedrooms.

    She certainly did not want her son to marry a woman who was abandoned by her parents, not to mention

    one who was still sharing rent with someone else.

    Just then, Skr¡¯s phone rang, the ringtone piercing through the awkward atmosphere. She immediately

    picked up the call and was informed to go for an audition.

    With no time to waste, she didn¡¯t wait for Jeremy toe out and informed Pauline, ¡°Mrs. Lane, I have to

    go now. Help me tell Jeremy that I¡¯ve gone for an audition.¡±

    Pauline wore an aloof expression on her face, acting like she did not hear her.

    Nheless, Skr was used to Pauline¡¯s attitude, so she did not take it to heart and left immediately

    after.

    Pauline sighed after Skr and grumbled, ¡°How did my son even fall for you? Audition? It¡¯s probably

    either for a maid or an extra. Hmph!¡±

    Just then, Jeremy came out of the bathroom to find Skr gone and his mother muttering to herself.

    Pauline said with displeasure, ¡°That girl Skr is really an uncouth brat. She doesn¡¯t have any manners,

    always pulling a long face when she sees me. She didn¡¯t find out about the check, did she?¡±

    With a smug smile, Jeremy replied to his mother, ¡°Based on her IQ level, how could she? I¡¯m curious,

    though. Where did she get that check? It¡¯s hard to believe that someone like her could¡¯ve gathered three

    million on her own.¡±

    ¡°Who cares about that¡­¡± Pauline admired the gold bracelet adorning her wrist and advised, ¡°Hold on to

    Skr for now, at least until after you¡¯re discharged. Who knows? Maybe she sought help from her

    family. After all, three million is nothing to her parents.¡±

    Jeremy lifted the nket and slipped back into bed. ¡°Nah, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s from the Joneses. They would

    never acknowledge her as their daughter. I¡¯ve realized that a long time ago.¡±

    Looking towards her son, Pauline smiled, which made the wrinkles on her face more prominent. ¡°As I

    said, I don¡¯t care where she got the money from. After paying for your treatment, there¡¯s still more than

    two million left. I¡¯ll have to quickly find a nice girl for you to marry. I don¡¯t think that you and Skr are a

    good match.¡±

    Jeremy kept silent, giving his consent.

    The day Jeremy was discharged arrived in the blink of an eye.

    Meanwhile, Skr came out of the set to the dazzling sunlight. Beneath its brilliant glow, her fair skin

    seemed to shimmer beautifully. She put on a pair of ck shades that hid half of her small face, then

    hailed a cab to Four Seasons Hotel.

    To celebrate Jeremy¡¯s discharge from the hospital, the Lanes were treating some guests to a meal here,

    spending an average of two thousand per head.

    The fact that the Lanes could afford it here made Skr¡¯s suspicion shoot to the skies.

    They couldn¡¯t even afford Jeremy¡¯s medical fees! So where did they get so much money?

    Skr wandered around the hotel lobby, but when she could not find the private room Jeremy had

    mentioned to her, she was about to call him toe and pick her up.

    Suddenly, a deep male voice came from behind, hitting her like a bucket of cold water.

    ¡°Well, well, look who¡¯s here. It hasn¡¯t even been that long, but here we meet again! This time, are you

    also here as a promoter, Ms. Jones?¡±

    Well, if it isn¡¯t the devil himself¡­ Ah¡­ this is just my luck!Skr could remember this voice even in her

    sleep.

    She turned around and came face to face with Tobias in a suit, looking as domineering as ever, with a

    tender smile that matched his airy tone.

    His smile did nothing to warm her. Instead, a shiver of unease ran down her spine.

    At that moment, there was only one word ying on repeat in Skr¡¯s mind¡ªRun.

 Chapter 5

    Chapter 5

    Skr ran away as if she had just seen a ghost.

    After making sure that she was hidden from Tobias¡¯ sight, she breathed a sigh of relief.

    At the door to the private room, an inhospitable female voice sounded from behind her. ¡°What¡¯s up with

    the shades? You¡¯re just an extra. Do you really think you¡¯re some kind of a big shot?¡±

    Skr turned around when she heard the voice and saw her half-sister, Avery Jones.

    Avery¡¯s lips twitched slightly. ¡°Long time no see, Skr. Why are you dressed so shabbily?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d rather we never see each other again.¡± Skr broke into azy smile.

    Avery raised her brows haughtily. ¡°I¡¯m afraid that will be a problem. You see, Jeremy invited me over for

    dinner, so there will be many more chances for us to meet in the future.¡±

    Skr¡¯s face instantly darkened. Since when did Jeremy and Avery know each other?

    Why didn¡¯t I know about this?

    Pauline and Jeremy came over together just then, the former¡¯s face instantly lighting up with a broad

    smile upon seeing Avery.

    I¡¯ve never seen Mrs. Lane beamed so brightly before. Indeed, Skr was right; she was never lucky

    enough to be at the receiving end of this smile.

    Within a split second, Avery¡¯s initially sardonic smile softened into a cajoling one, and her voice turned

    especially honeyced. ¡°Jeremy, I was talking to my sister. She doesn¡¯t seem too happy that I¡¯m here.

    Should I go back? I wouldn¡¯t want to impose.¡±

    Jeremy¡¯s gaze on Avery was impossibly gentle; he was basically putty in her hands. ¡°Of course you¡¯re

    not imposing. Today¡¯s celebration is also to introduce you to the family. They¡¯re definitely gonna like you.¡±

    At the same time, Skr¡¯s face paled, and she angrily confronted him. ¡°Jeremy, do you know what you¡¯re

    doing? Since when were you this close to her, and why didn¡¯t I know anything about it?¡±

    Jeremy was well aware that she had a taboo against the Joneses, and could not stand the mere mention

    of them.

    Thus, he exined with indifference, ¡°Your sister is my sister. Is there a problem? All my rtives are

    here today, so don¡¯t kick up a fuss with me, Skr.¡±

    ¡°You-! Jeremy Lane!!¡±

    He then gave Skr a look of impatience and threatened. ¡°Let¡¯s eat first. My body isn¡¯t all recovered yet.

    If I fall ill again because of you, you¡¯ll have to bear the consequences.¡±

    Following that, he opened the door to the private room for them to enter.

    However, a mocking smile yed on Avery¡¯s lips.

    After they went in, Avery leaned toward Skr and whispered into her ear, ¡°Sorry for stealing your

    belongings again. Honestly, Skr, what a pathetic life you have, always having to live in my shadow. I¡¯m

    not interested in your boyfriend, by the way. I just thought I¡¯d have a little fun.¡±

    Skr¡¯s entire body trembled as she red daggers at Avery.

    Her mind had gone nk, and she could no longer think straight.

    ¡°You found trash and treated it as treasure, so you have only yourself to me for this. Did you see how

    your boyfriend was fawning over me? Tsk-tsk. Even I feel embarrassed for you.¡± Avery pursed her lips

    and clicked her tongue.

    ¡°You¡­¡± Red with fury, Skr was so furious words failed her.

    Once Avery entered the room, the Lanes naturally flocked over and nudged her toward the center seat.

    All of them knew Avery was the apple of the millionaire, Thomas Jones¡¯ eye.

    Upholding her image, she pretended to be gentle and meek as she greeted the Lanes politely.

    On the contrary, Skr remained standing by the door, without anyone inviting her to join them.

    ¡°Skr, why won¡¯t you have a seat?¡± Avery beckoned Skr over and pointed at the vacant seat next to

    hers.

    Jeremy shot a vexed look at Skr. ¡°She¡¯s just a bumpkin who has hardly seen the world. This is her first

    time eating in such a high-ss hotel, so I bet she¡¯s embarrassed toe in.¡±

    Turning her head over to look at her so-called boyfriend, Skr saw the distasteful look on Jeremy¡¯s

    face, still unable to believe that all of this was real.

    She pulled herself back from the brink of having an emotional meltdown, not wanting to make a fool out

    of herself.

    Then she walked through the door and sat beside Avery.

    ¡°Avery is such a beautiful girl.¡± Pauline liked Avery the more she looked at her.

    Indeed, as expected of the daughter of a wealthy family.

    Skr, on the other hand, has the face of a jinx. No wonder my son fell ill. It was because she hoodooed

    him.

    The Lanes¡¯ rtives were also very hospitable toward Avery, ceaselessly showering her with praises.

    They hadpletely forgotten about Skr¡¯s existence, treating her like an outsider.

    Right across them, Jeremy¡¯s younger sister was staring at Avery¡¯s bracelet with envy. ¡°Avery, your

    bracelet is so pretty. It probably cost a fortune, right?¡±

    Avery took off her bracelet and generously put it on for Jeremy¡¯s sister.

    His sister was absolutely delighted, but did not forget to pass a contemptuous remark. ¡°Skr, that hair

    tie on your wrist is about to snap. You should buy yourself a new one.¡±

    Cupping her chin, Skr shot her a cursory nce and said with a small smile, ¡°And where would I get

    this extra money? I spent it all on your brother¡¯s treatment.¡±

    As soon as she said that, the entire room grew silent.

    Jeremy¡¯s face turned several shades darker.

    But Pauline came to her son¡¯s aid instantly as she countered, ¡°What? Do you feel victimized? With your

    background, do you think anyone else besides our family would want you? My son actually pities you¡­

    It¡¯s not like we forced you to help us; you did it willingly.¡±

    Avery gave a leering look at Skr, but the smile on her face remained charming.

    Seeing how the Lanes were treating her, especially after Pauline¡¯sment, Skr felt a stab of pain in

    her heart.

    They want to get rid of me because I¡¯ve outlived my usefulness.

    Her eyes reddened, but she blinked back her tears and controlled her emotions.

    A shortugh escaped her before she said, ¡°Yes, it¡¯s because I have a sh*tty background and no family

    to rely on that I¡¯m being bullied by all of you. As if that isn¡¯t bad enough, you¡¯re even biting the hand that

    fed you.¡±

    The moment those words escaped her lips, Jeremy¡¯s dignity was trampled to dust.

    It was as though she constantly reminded him that she was his savior.

    Yet Jeremy sneered. ¡°Skr, do you have to make us lose our appetites? Your pettiness is off-putting.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s not like she paid for Jeremy¡¯s surgery. How shameless of her to make all those ims.¡±

    ¡°Jeremy already treats her so well, but she¡¯s still as unappreciative as ever.¡±

    ¡°Some people are just worlds apart. Just look at Avery. How did the two sisters end up being so different

    from each other?¡±

    The Lanes vehemently criticized Skr, not holding back.

    At that time, Skr already had the strong urge to flip the table and create a scene. She had nothing to

    lose, anyway. s, it was too big for her to lift.

    Hence, she decided to p Jeremy. But the moment she raised her hand, he sshed wine all over her.

    ¡°Wake up already and stop making a scene.¡±

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Avery enjoyed the entertaining events that unfurled then, but was somewhat losing interest.

    Stealing her boyfriend isn¡¯t challenging at all.

    All of a sudden, the door opened from the outside, and a young waiter came in with a tray bnced on

    one hand.

    When Jeremy saw the exclusive wine on the tray, he gulped nervously and dered, ¡°We didn¡¯t order

    this wine.¡±

    This bottle of wine cost tens of thousands, which wasn¡¯t a luxury he could afford.

    The waiter smiled courteously and replied, ¡°Good evening, sir. This wine is a gift from Mr. Ford to Ms.

    Skr.¡±

    Tobias Ford? Skr was shocked when she heard that.

    After the waiter ced the wine down, he continued, ¡°Mr. Ford has already footed the bill for the entire

    table. Enjoy your meal, Ms. Skr.¡±

 Chapter 6

    Chapter 6

    As one, the Lanes looked at Skr.

    To them, a poor nobody like her would never be acquainted with someone rich.

    On the other hand, Skr could not figure out Tobias¡¯ intentions.

    In the meantime, Avery grew upset, frowning as she questioned, ¡°Who is Mr. Ford, and why did he give

    you a bottle of wine?¡±

    Skr raised her brows, huffing out augh. ¡°Do you have a problem with that? Did you think I was

    completely friendless? Anyway, I don¡¯t owe you an answer.¡±

    Unsatisfied with her response, Jeremy grabbed Skr¡¯s wrist, his eyes shing with anger. ¡°What kind of

    people did you get involved in? I¡¯m your boyfriend! Why didn¡¯t I know about this?¡±

    Furrowing her brows, Skr flung his hand away and snapped, ¡°Hah! How dare you question me!

    Apparently, there¡¯s much I don¡¯t know about you too!¡±

    ¡°This is different!¡± Jeremy took a deep breath.

    Skr was truly disappointed with him, but she could not muster up the courage to break things off with

    him just yet.

    She needed time to calm down.

    Grabbing her bag, she stood up and announced, ¡°Enjoy your meal. Guess I won¡¯t have to annoy you with

    my presence any longer.¡±

    Seeing that Skr about to leave, no one tried to stop her.

    ¡°I¡¯ll call youter,¡± Jeremy curtly said.

    Not wanting to seem rude, Skr hummed a response.

    Once she stepped out of the room, the dam broke, and tears flowed freely down her cheeks.

    Unable to control herself, she squatted on the ground and cried her heart out.

    Her bestie, Penelope, was right. Faithful men did not exist in this world.

    She had done so much for Jeremy; they were supposed to get married.

    In the end, he brought her sister and humiliated her in front of his entire family.

    Every time, Avery would easily get what she could only dream of getting.

    Today was no different; Avery had looked at her with so much disdain in her eyes, as if she were a mere

    speck of dust beneath her shoes.

    Everything that happened just now was like a knife piercing into her heart, the pain unbearable.

    ¡°Why are you crying every time I see you? Aren¡¯t you a sentimental one,¡± a deep voice came from above

    her.

    Skr raised her head up in mortification, her body instantly tensing up when she saw Tobias.

    ¡°It¡¯s none of your business. Just to be clear, you willingly gave that bottle of wine. I don¡¯t have the money

    to pay you back,¡± she spoke in a trembling voice.

    A vague smile formed on Tobias¡¯ lips. ¡°It¡¯s fine. You could spend a night with me to make up for it.¡±

    Panic surged in Skr¡¯s chest when she heard what he said.

    Her heart clenched in horror, and she wailed even louder just then.

    Nevertheless, Tobias remained impassive. Even a woman¡¯s tears could not evoke a reaction out of him.

    ¡°Mr. Ford¡­¡±

    Avery, who came out of the room, could hardly believe her eyes.

    The man was indeed Tobias Ford¡ªa business tycoon who possessed a fortune that could rival the entire

    nation¡¯s.

    Avery only met Tobias once at a business dinner, but he left a deep impression on her nheless.

    No matter where Tobias was, he could eclipse everything around him in an instant and draw all the

    attention to himself.

    To have the chance to meet him in person, her father had waited for three years before he was eligible to

    attend that business dinner.

    At the dinner, Tobias was apathetic at best toward her father, barely saying a few words to him.

    What¡¯s Skr doing with Tobias Ford? They¡¯re basically apples and oranges.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, do you remember me? Not too long ago, I was at the business¡­¡±

    Tobias remained expressionless as he cut Avery off sharply, ¡°I don¡¯t.¡±

    Skr, who was still crouching at the side, did not want Avery to see her cry because that would be

    disastrous. She had enough humiliation in a day, and to have Avery mocking her would be the straw that

    breaks the camel¡¯s back.

    Clenching her fists, she struggled to stabilize her emotions before wiping away her tears with her

    sleeves.

    Then, she stood up and walked to Tobias¡¯ side.

    ¡°I¡¯m not feeling well today. Can you take me home?¡± Skr naturally linked arms with Tobias.

    She might have looked intimate with him on the outside, but she was, in fact, overwhelmed with fear.

    Tobias furrowed her brows slightly. What is this woman doing?

    First, she sold her body. Then she pretended to be a chaste woman at Elysium. Now, she¡¯s clinging to

    me all of a sudden.

    With eyes the size of ser balls, Avery¡¯s jaw went ck as she pointed at Skr.

    ¡°Skr, do you know Mr. Ford?¡±

    Skr nced at Tobias, noticing the grim look in his eyes, seemingly not too happy with this.

    Steeling herself, she released his arm and inteced their hands right in front of Avery.

    ¡°I guess you can say that we¡¯re quite close¡­¡±

    Grasping Skr¡¯s intentions, he stated nonchntly, ¡°I¡¯ll go get the car.¡±

    Skr clung onto him as if he were herst lifeline, and they left together.

    Before leaving, upon seeing Avery go purple with rage, her pent-up frustrations finally dissipated slightly.

    She seeded in defending herst shred of dignity.

    At the hotel¡¯s entrance, Skr immediately released Tobias¡¯ hand.

    Feeling indebted to him, she said in a timid voice, ¡°You don¡¯t need to send me home. I¡¯ll take the bus.¡±

    Tobias quietly studied this petitedy of many faces before speaking with a hint of contempt in his voice.

    ¡°So you¡¯re discarding me after you used me?¡±

    Skr bit her lower lip, telling herself that this man was trouble, and she should stay as far away from

    him as possible.

    Without answering, she turned to leave.

    But Tobias was too fast for her as he quickly raised his arm to block her.

    Skr closed her eyes, thinking to herself that perhaps going to hell was not such a bad thing since that

    meant she would not need to see this man¡¯s face.

    ¡°I gave you three million, but you still have to take the bus? Have you spent all the money?¡±

    Hearing that, Skr¡¯sshes fluttered slightly. So far, Tobias seemed like an upright man.

    She began to question whether that check was, in fact, real.

    ¡°Where is your car?¡± Skr boldly asked, nning to uncover the truth of the matter today.

    She was hell-bent on finding out the true liar.

    Tobias then motioned for her to follow him, and Skr trailed behind him to the underground car park.

    As soon as they reached the car park, they saw a young couple kissing passionately against the pir

    not too far away.

    They kissed as if they were the only two people in the world, looking like they were only a step away

    from tearing off each other¡¯s clothes and having a go at it right then and there.

    As for the woman, her clothes were already slightly undone, exposing her fair chest.

    Skr was so embarrassed a blush crept up her neck to her cheeks.

    Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org.

    Memories of that night surfaced in her mind. The kiss she and Tobias shared was even more intense

    than this couple¡¯s.

    Tobias had left her gasping for air that night, kissing and biting her so much that she thought if he was

    actually human.

    ¡°Turned on already?¡± The man¡¯s voice was low and sexy.

    Skr nced at the indifferent expression on his face upon hearing what he said.

    This man is nothing but a wolf in sheep¡¯s skin.

    ¡°Perv!¡± Skr snapped.

    Tobias chuckled softly. Even though his smile did not reach his eyes, it was gentle and seemed to melt

    away the frigid aura surrounding him.

    Without hesitation, Skr got into the backseat of Tobias¡¯ ck Maybach.

    But Tobias pointed at the front passenger seat and said, ¡°Sit in the front.¡±

    ¡°Forget it. I prefer sitting in the back.¡± Skr turned him down in a vignt tone.

    Tobias shot her a cold nce through the rearview mirror. ¡°You like sitting in the back? Well, I enjoy

    doing it in the back. I mean, there¡¯s so much more space to get creative. So it¡¯s up to you where you

    wanna sit.¡±

 Chapter 7

    Chapter 7

    Without hesitation, Skr got out of the car and sat in the front.

    She could not help but take a few more nces at Tobias¡¯ hands on the steering wheel.

    His fingers were elegant and slender, and the veins on the back of his hands seemed to symbolize true

    masculinity.

    There was a tinum ring on his ring finger, and it glinted coldly under the light.

    ¡°You¡¯re married?¡± Skr blurted out before she realized it.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Thinking that she might have very well slept with a married man, a deep sense of guilt rose in her chest.

    ¡°I don¡¯t see how that has anything to do with me taking you home.¡± Tobias did not directly answer her

    question.

    Skr mped her mouth shut and bowed her head, fumbling with her seatbelt.

    Instantly, the seatbelt rm started ring noisily in the car as she had not fastened her it yet.

    This was her first time sitting in a luxury car, and her hands seemed to have a mind of their own,

    preventing her from inserting her seat belt.

    Tobias then cast a fleeting nce at a flustered Skr before leaning toward her.

    Not expecting that he would be so close to her, Skr reacted fiercely and shielded her chest with both

    hands.

    She resembled a wounded hedgehog, quivering in fear with its spikes all standing upright.

    Ignoring her, Tobias buckled her seat belt for her, mere inches apart.

    She could even feel his warm breath tickling her and smell the pleasant fragrance of his white

    sandalwood cologne.

    Seeing that she remainedpletely still, Tobias gave a t look.

    ¡°Excuse me, but I won¡¯t take you right under the surveince camera. I¡¯m not that desperate.¡±

    She blushed as red as a tomato. How can this man say such shameless things while keeping a straight

    face?

    Then Skr looked out the car window and lifted her gaze upward, noticing that the surveince camera

    in the car park was directly aimed at them.

    ¡°Anywhere is better than an operating room,¡± she mumbled under her breath.

    She said this in a barely audible voice, so he did not hear her.

    When they were out of the car park, Tobias did not follow the route pointed out by Skr.

    Therefore, she knocked on the window and asked in a terrified voice, ¡°Where are you taking me? This

    isn¡¯t the way back home. Stop the car¡­ If you don¡¯t, I¡¯ll jump out right now.¡±

    His face darkened with impatience at Skr¡¯s threat.

    Why does this woman get so worked up all the time?

    He pressed the control button to unlock the doors and said in a monotonous voice, ¡°Go ahead, I won¡¯t

    stop you. Should I drive faster so that you¡¯ll roll further after jumping out?¡±

    And he did just that.

    Skr watched as the numbers on the speed meter soared to 120 and chickened out at once.

    If I jump now, I¡¯d either die or be crippled forever!

    ¡°Don¡¯t use such a childish method to threaten me. It won¡¯t work.¡± There was a sarcastic undertone in his

    voice.

    Reaching for the grab handle, Skr held it like her whole life depended on it as she was afraid of being

    thrown out.

    After some time, the car pulled to a stop at a nearby gas station.

    Skr sighed in relief just then. He¡¯s just refilling his gas tank.

    Then Tobias went down to the convenience store to buy some water.

    Due to the stress of being in the same car with him, she got down to get some air.

    She was devising a n to pry some specific information from Tobiaster.

    Deep in thought, she meandered around the gas station without looking at where she was going.

    Just then, two little boys were running toward her. Before she could step out of the way, the bucket of

    paint they were carrying sshed onto her body and dirtied her clothes.

    Knowing that they had gotten themselves into trouble, the boys immediately fled without offering any

    apology whatsoever.

    Currently hanging on a thread, Skr was on the verge of breaking down. Does God hate me? I was just

    minding my own business, but somehow a bucket of paint sshed all over me. Just¡­ How?!

    Not to mention, it¡¯s ck paint. Is this some sort of bad omen?

    She stood beside Tobias¡¯ car without any intention to get in.

    When he came out from the convenience store, his eyes narrowed a fraction as he looked at Skr, who

    was now covered in ck paint.

    ¡°I¡¯ll just take a cab back. I don¡¯t have the money topensate you for getting paint all over your seat.¡±

    Skr was aware of that with her current savings. It was a harsh reality that she could not even afford to

    buy a car tire.

    Yet Tobias had already opened the car door. ¡°Just look at the miserable state you¡¯re in. Tell me now,

    which cab driver would take you?¡±

    Without waiting for her response, he snatched up her wrist and practically shoved her into the car.

    As night fell and it started to drizzle. Ayer of mist formed on the car windows.

    The car¡¯s fragrance was overpowered by the smell of the paint covering Skr¡¯s body, making the air

    inside rather suffocating.

    Still possessing somemon sense, Skr rolled down her window to let the smell out.

    As for Tobias, he had already lowered his window and was resting his arm on top of the wet surface.

    The moment Skr parted her lips to ask about the check, Tobias¡¯ phone rang.

    Picking it up, he then proceeded to speak in a foreignnguage, so Skr could not understand what he

    was saying.

    The call ended only when they arrived in Skr¡¯s neighborhood.

    Everything seemed to be perfectly nned as it was too eerily coincidental.

    At the end of the day, they slept with each other before, and it was nowte at night with just the two of

    them in a car.

    Things were still fine while the car was moving, but once it stopped, Skr was afraid that Tobias would

    turn into a beast again and have his way with her right inside this car.

    ¡°I¡¯ll get going now, Mr. Ford!¡± Skr clutched her bag tightly, noting the suggestive situation they were in.

    ¡°Ahem¡­ Ms. Jones, aren¡¯t you going to invite me in for a cup of tea?¡± He asked in his charming baritone

    voice.

 Chapter 8

    Chapter 8

    Skr disregarded him and ran out of the car like her life depended on it.

    Meanwhile, Tobias¡¯ lips arched up slightly when he saw the butt-shaped paint smear that the woman left

    on the leather seat.

    Upon seeing Tobias getting out of the car, she stopped him and exined, ¡°I¡¯m sharing rent with

    someone, and my housemate doesn¡¯t like strangersing over.¡±

    Skr¡¯s rtionship with her housemate, Summer Wand, was just alright.

    Summer worked in a multinationalpany as an ordinary employee, but she acted arrogant regardless

    of that fact.

    Besides, Skr knew Summer looked down on her because every time they talked, there would always

    be a hint of contempt in her words.

    Everything from her clothing to the food she consumed was high-end. They shared the same bathroom,

    so Skr knew she used expensive skincare products as well, and that Summer scorned her for using

    budget products.

    ¡°What does her opinion have to do with me?¡± Tobias brushed past her and walked ahead.

    Skr gnawed on her lip in anxiety and sighed inwardly. Tobias always spoke with undebatable

    dominance.

    As she took out her key to unlock the door, she gave him a warning. ¡°Leave right after you¡¯re done with

    your drink.¡±

    She had a feeling that Summer was going to bark like a rabid dog. Every time she brought Jeremy over,

    Summer would either m her door or make nging noises around the ce.

    The rental house was messy, but it had a girlish touch to it. Even the floor mat at the door was pink with

    cartoons printed on it.

    ¡°You don¡¯t need to change your shoes. We don¡¯t have house slippers your size.¡±

    Skr snapped at him and couldn¡¯t wait for him to leave so that she could be alone. Her crestfallen face

    obviously showed that she was in a terrible mood today, even more so than when she first learned about

    Jeremy¡¯s illness.

    Before going in to get changed, she led Tobias to the living room.

    At the same time, Summer had heard Skr talking to a man from her room.

    Without even standing up from her spot, she shouted through the door, ¡°Are you crazy, Skr? Why did

    you bring that wild man here again?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ gaze gradually darkened, and he flicked his eyes toward Skr.

    ¡°That¡¯s just how she is. You should leave after you¡¯ve finished your drink. It¡¯s not like I have some high-

    end tea to serve you anyway,¡± Skr whispered, and then headed to the kitchen.

    She went straight to the refrigerator and rummaged through it for some time before finding a bottle of

    juice that had expired for more than half a month.

    Then she grabbed it and gave it to Tobias. After that, she went to her bedroom to change her clothes.

    As soon as Skr disappeared into her room, Summer angrily stomped out of hers. ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear

    what I just said? I told you not to bring that wild man home again. If you have a problem with that, you

    can get lost-¡±

    The remaining words were stuck at the back of her throat as her eyesnded on what, or rather, who

    was in front of her. The man had a ck suit worn over a white shirt with its cufflinks unbuttoned, trailing

    down to a pair of sexy ankles, revealed by the gap between his pants and his shoes.

    This sight was enough to fuel a woman¡¯s wildest fantasies.

    The man in front of her was Tobias Ford.

    Summer could not believe her eyes. Her big boss was sitting in the living room of her rental house.

    She covered her mouth in surprise for a good few seconds until Tobias¡¯ cold eyesnded on her.

    ¡°Did you call me a wild man?¡±

    Summer went weak in the knees from fear. All the women at thepany dreamed of getting close to

    their CEO.

    However, she had not expected her dream toe true under such circumstances.

    ¡°M-Mr. Ford, what are you doing here? Are you here to see me?¡±

    At that point, Summer¡¯s imagination already started to run wild, wondering whether, of all thousands of

    employees in thepany, Tobias had fallen in love with her at first sight.

    Nevertheless, he stared impassively at this narcissistic woman and replied tly, ¡°You tter yourself.¡±

    But there are only two women in this house. Don¡¯t tell me¡ªSkr and Tobias Ford? No¡­ it couldn¡¯t

    be! It seemed impossible, no matter how she thought about it.

    Which man would fall for that poor and pathetic woman? Other than that sick guy, of course.

    Content is ? by N?velDrama.Org.

    Even so, Summer did not dare to probe any further as Tobias was known to be cold and distant.

    After a moment of silence, Tobias pointed at the room Summer emerged from and told her. ¡°It¡¯ste. You

    should go in and rest.¡±

    Summer was taken aback. ¡°I¡¯m not tired, Mr. Ford. Would you like some tea? I¡¯ll brew a pot for you.¡±

    When Summer finished her sentence, his gloomy eyes narrowed dangerously, and the atmosphere

    became strangely somber. ¡°I told you to go in. Did I not make myself clear?¡±

    With that, Summer did not dare to dilly-dally further. She could only hide in her room and leave her door

    opened a crack.

    When Skr did note out of her room after such a long time, Tobias became restless.

    She was drenched in paint, but with him waiting outside, she couldn¡¯t take a shower just yet. Thus, she

    decided to have a change of clothes for now.

    She reached behind to unsp her bra and was pulling it out. Halfway through the action, there was a

    squeaking sound as the door opened from the outside.

    Tobias¡¯ hand was still on the door as he looked inside the room with astonishment sprawled across his

    face.

    Although he had seen Skr naked before, her current posture gave off a different vibe.

    She remained in that awkward posture, not knowing if she should pull it out or tuck it back in.

    To make matters worse, she was wearing a childish-looking bra that had strawberries printed all over it.

    Tobias¡¯ brows lifted with amusement as he watched Skr feign calmness while pulling out her bra and

    stuffing it under her pillow.

    Then he walked into her bedroom uninvited and closed the door, gently tugging her into his arms before

    she could back away.

    Skr struggled in his embrace with both elbows pushing against his chest. But even after exhausting all

    of her strength, he remained unmovable.

    Without any lights on, her bedroom was dim with an atmosphere that evoked intimacy. Right then, the

    phone on the bedside table lighted up, illuminating one corner of her room.

    As the phone rang incessantly, Tobias nced at it and noticed the word ¡°Hubby¡± was shing on the

    screen.

 Chapter 9

    Chapter 9

    Skr had forgotten that Jeremy would be calling her at night.

    She looked daggers at Tobias, asking him to let go.

    ¡°You¡¯re married?¡± Tobias lifted her chin in a rough manner. ¡°Did you lie to me when you said it was your

    first time?¡±

    ¡°My husband suffers from erectile dysfunction, okay? Haven¡¯t you already checked me out?¡± Skr

    snapped. ¡°Let¡¯s not forget the fact that you¡¯ve tricked me, shall we?¡±

    Why did I even let him in? How could I forget that he¡¯s a beast?

    The phone on the bedside table kept ringing with the word ¡°Hubby¡± shing up on the screen.

    After a while, Tobias let go of Skr, who then quickly reached for her phone and answered the call.

    Jeremy could be very obsessive sometimes. He wouldn¡¯t give up until she answered her phone.

    ¡°What¡¯s up with you today, Skr? Avery told me you left with a man. Who¡¯s that man, and where are

    you? And what took you so long to pick up your phone?¡±

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    Jeremy bombarded her with a series of questions as soon as the call went through.

    Skr looked up at Tobias, who was standing there like a mountain.

    Flustered, she waved her hand in an attempt to make him leave, but seeing that he remained rooted to

    the spot, she put her finger over her lips, signaling him to not make a sound.

    Seeing how Skr reacted, Tobias¡¯ eyes darkened.

    Why does it feel like we¡¯re having a secret affair? Am I getting in the way of her conversation with her

    husband?

    Thus, Tobias, being who he was, naturally did not listen to Skr.

    Jeremy was there shouting on the other end, thinking that the signal was bad when Tobias suddenly

    went in for a kiss as he cupped Skr¡¯s face in his hands.

    At that moment, she could feel his tongue swirling inside her mouth in an explorative manner, forcing her

    to swallow her words.

    She quickly ended the call, then raised her hand and gave Tobias a stinging p across the face.

    The p was of such great force that her fingernails had left another deep scratch mark on his neck.

    He immediately broke himself away from that kiss, the metallic scent impregnating his mouth.

    ¡°Just because I did it with you once doesn¡¯t mean you can keep touching me,¡± Skr said aggrievedly,

    her eyes misty. ¡°It was a one-shot deal before, so why are you still harassing me?¡±

    Tobias gave Skr a deep look while touching his neck, amused by her words.

    This woman is really something¡­

    All this while, his women had always been submissive, like Skr, during her first time.

    Yet she was also the first person to defy him, and it only served to intrigue him further.

    At this moment, Tobias¡¯ phone rang. He looked at the caller ID, then switched off his phone directly.

    Skr let out a long sigh of relief, seeing that he was about to leave.

    Judging from his reaction, she wondered if it was a call from his fianc¨¦e.

    ¡°I¡¯ll look for you in a few days.¡±

    ¡°What for?¡± Skr was stunned. ¡°So that you can keep screwing me with a fake three million check?¡±

    It wasn¡¯t Tobias¡¯ first time hearing from Skr that the check was fake.

    ¡°I still have a little bit of money,¡± he said. ¡°Besides, the check is real. I won¡¯t let you lose it to me for

    nothing.¡±

    ¡°You swear?¡± Skr jumped off the bed, eager to know the truth.

    ¡°How should I prove it to you? If you¡¯re trying to scam me, you should¡¯vee up with a better way.¡±

    Tobias sounded displeased.

    Skr pursed her lips at that. Guess he only sees me as a woman who would do anything for money.

    It wasn¡¯t until Tobias had left that Summer dared toe out of her room.

    ¡°Do you know who you¡¯ve brought home, Skr?¡± Summer had yet to recover from the shock.

    ¡°A beast,¡± Skr slumped on the couch and muttered unhappily.

    ¡°I don¡¯t care how you brought back Tobias Ford to my house, but he¡¯s getting married soon. Mark my

    words¡ªnot every ugly duckling can turn into a swan,¡± Summer sneered.

    He¡¯s getting married soon? When Skr heard what Summer said, she opened her eyesnguidly. Her

    impression of Tobias was going down the hill.

 Chapter 10

    Chapter 10

    A few days had passed, and Tobias never once showed up.

    However, Skr couldn¡¯t care less about him. She herself was barely about to survive now, having only

    two hundred left in her ount after paying off her rent.

    With no notices to audition from the crew, Skr had been surviving on bread and instant noodles for

    days.

    On this day, Jeremy and his family had returned after a trip to S City.

    Skr had arranged to meet with Jeremy at a coffeehouse in C City.

    Having not seen each other for almost half a month, she almost didn¡¯t recognize him when he showed

    up.

    As though her boyfriend had hit the jackpot, he was using thetest iPhone 12 and was wearing a pair of

    limited edition AJ paired with an Armani suit.

    On top of that, he was even driving an Audi.

    Skr knew the Lanes had been staying in a small house of a meager forty square meters.

    Given their financial status, they couldn¡¯t have afforded a motorcycle, much less an Audi.

    When Skr first started going out with Jeremy, Pauline had been unhappy with her, thinking that she

    wouldn¡¯t be able to help her son.

    Since Jeremy was tall and handsome, his mother had advised him to look for a local partner with a

    decent family background.

    Now that Skr had chosen to believe in Tobias that the check was real, she realized it was Jeremy who

    had deceived her.

    ¡°Why haven¡¯t you been answering my calls?¡± Jeremy demanded, his face flushing a healthy red.

    ¡°That¡¯s why I called you out today, didn¡¯t I? Say, Jeremy, when are you going to return the money you

    owe me?¡± Skr asked drily, propping her face on one hand with a smile that he thought looked cynical.

    ¡°Are you talking to me? I don¡¯t remember owing you anything.¡±

    ¡°Hah, I was stupid enough to believe you.¡± Skrughed at herself. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡¯ve trusted you

    when you told me that the check was fake.¡±

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    Guess the cat is out of the bag now. Jeremy sneered inwardly, then said aloud, ¡°Well, don¡¯t you think it¡¯s

    appropriate that I keep this money to make up for the emotional damage you¡¯ve caused me? After all,

    you cheated on me to get this.¡±

    Following that, he unlocked his phone and clicked into his gallery, showing her the pictures of her when

    she was working at Elysium.

    If it hadn¡¯t been for Avery, he would have still been kept in the dark, not knowing how his girlfriend had

    managed to produce three million in one go.

    ¡°Have you no shame, Jeremy? We¡¯ve been together for over seven years, not seven months, and that¡¯s

    how you¡¯re gonna treat me?¡± Skr asked through gritted teeth. If only she could shootser with her

    eyes, she would have burned Jeremy into ash.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve done you any wrong or I¡¯m breaking up with you,¡± Jeremy sighed, feigning innocence. ¡°I

    can pretend that this never happens¨Cthough I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll marry you.¡±

    Feeling as if she had plunged into an endless abyss from heaven, Skr found herself unable to shed a

    single drop of tear.

    They had already sent out their wedding invitation two months ago.

    ¡°Well, that¡¯s easy for you to say. Pay me back, or I¡¯ll sue you.¡± Skr sshed the remaining coffee in

    her cup on Jeremy¡¯s Armani.

    ¡°What are you going to tell the judge at the court?¡± Jeremy wiped his clothes with a tissue, then folded

    his arms. ¡°That your dirty money has been seized by your boyfriend? Do you have any evidence to prove

    that this check is yours?¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t stomach an insult like that. The only person who could prove that the check was hers was

    Tobias.

    Yet, thinking about Tobias gave her the shivers.

    Great. Could this be any worse?

 Chapter 11

    Chapter 11

    Therefore, Skr had decided to wait for Tobias toe to her first so that she could get him to attest to

    the check.

    However, it had been another week since shest heard from him.

    She had to get back the money. In order to save Jeremy¡¯s life, she had almost risked hers instead.

    Hence, she couldn¡¯t ept the oue. She would rather donate that money than let the Lanes take

    advantage of it.

    Meanwhile, Summer was applying a sheet mask on the couch in the living room when Skr reached

    home.

    ¡°You look like a ghost. Are you still thinking about Tobias Ford?¡± Summer nced up at Skr through

    her sheet mask. ¡°If you are, you¡¯d better stop having your head in the clouds.¡±

    Skr put on a pair of slippers and took out the instant noodles from her bag. She had bought it from the

    convenience store downstairs earlier.

    Given her current financial situation, she couldn¡¯t even afford to eat a proper meal now.

    ¡°Do you get to meet Tobias on usual days?¡± Skr asked in an attempt to fish for information from her

    housemate.

    Summer uttered a snortingugh. ¡°There are thousands of employees in the building. Do you think it¡¯s

    that easy to meet the boss?¡±

    Slurping on her noodles, Skr almost choked on her food when she heard what Summer said.

    Is that what he meant by a little bit of money? If Summer can¡¯t even see him, I doubt I can even step foot

    into the building.

    ¡°Just look at yourself before you even try to meet Tobias Ford,¡± Summer said straightforwardly. ¡°The

    landy is chasing for rent again. You¡¯re gonna have to pack up and leave if you can¡¯t pay on time.¡±

    Skr chose to ignore this. Having been driven into a corner, she could only try her luck tomorrow.

    The next day, Skr took the bus to the central business district.

    Standing before the towering Ford Group building, she felt insignificant and as small as an ant. It was

    even more so when she saw how the employees were elegantly and sophisticatedly dressed, be it men

    or women.

    And that made Skr wonder.

    Why would Tobias behave as such when there are so many prettydies in hispany?

    Skr was deep in thoughts when a car suddenly screeched to a halt. It startled her, making her lost her

    bnce and then falling on the flower bed by the road.

    Greatly shaken, Skr¡¯s eyes rounded at the ck Maserati.

    ¡°You¡¯ve got a death wish, huh? Watch where you¡¯re going!¡± the driver screamed abuse at her after

    winding down the window.

    ¡°You should be the one to watch where you¡¯re going!¡± Skr supported herself to her feet with her elbow,

    which was now bleeding from the fall.

    Quickly, she stretched out her arm to stop the car from leaving.

    Tanya Hanson, sitting in the backseat, wound down the window to get a better look at the woman who

    threw herself in front of the car. ¡°Step away, Louis.¡±

    Content is ? by N?velDrama.Org.

    Louis, the driver, floored the elerator, prompting Skr to skip aside.

    She watched as the Maserati roared away, her hands over her chest. If she had not reacted sooner, she

    would have been crushed by the car.

    Tanya gave Skr a backward nce, her eyes cold and tinged with disdain. ¡°What is Tobias up to these

    days, Louis? He hasn¡¯t been answering my calls,¡± she asked the driver.

    Louis was Tobias¡¯ personal driver, who was also reluctantly subjected to Tanya¡¯s torture of having to spy

    on Tobias¡¯ every move.

    ¡°Mr. Ford has been really busytely,¡± Louis replied nonchntly.

    ¡°Busy fooling around with women?¡± Tanya scoffed.

    ¡°I¡¯ve yet to discover any woman around Mr. Ford, Ms. Hanson. You¡¯ve juste back from F Nation, so

    I¡¯m sure Mr. Ford will be happy to see you.¡±

    Happy? Tanya snorted inwardly. I wonder what he looks like when he¡¯s happy.

    ¡°Well, look who¡¯s here.¡± A cold voice sounded from behind Skr.

    Holding her wounded arm, Skr quickly turned back, only to see the man¡¯s effortlessly handsome face

    that wasyered with frost.

    Standing behind him was a group of men d in ck, who were staring at her with curious eyes.

    Tobias, on the other hand, was giving her a spective nce as though she hade with an ulterior

    motive.

    ¡°Am I disturbing you?¡± Skr asked in feign calmness.

    ¡°Yes, you are.¡± Tobias¡¯ lips curled into a wicked smirk.

 Chapter 12

    Chapter 12

    Given the choice, Skr wouldn¡¯t see him.

    ¡°Give me three minutes. I¡¯ll leave after saying my piece,¡± she said, putting on a bold face.

    Is she ying hard to get? I¡¯ve seen many women like her. Tobias nced at his watch. ¡°You have two

    minutes and fifty seconds left.¡±

    ¡°I-I can¡¯t talk when there are so many people here,¡± Skr said, scanning the surroundings. ¡°Could you

    at least ask them to leave for a short while?¡±

    ¡°How demanding.¡± Tobias dispersed the crowd with a wave of his hand. Then lifting his wrist again, he

    said curtly, ¡°Thirty seconds.¡±

    ¡°The check you gave me was real. I¡¯ve been cheated, and I can¡¯t just let this slide. Only you can prove

    that the check doesn¡¯t belong to him. Do you understand what I¡¯m saying?¡± Skr exined vaguely in

    one breath.

    ¡°Are you done?¡± Tobias asked tly.

    Skr nodded. ¡°That¡¯s roughly what I¡¯m trying to say in thirty seconds. How about you give me a little

    more time?¡±

    Tobias lit a cigarette. ¡°So, you¡¯re trying to get me to retrieve the check for you?¡±

    Skr nodded again, earnestly this time. As expected of theprehensive ability of a businessman.

    ¡°I am not obliged to help you, nor am I interested to do so. Business is all about making an equivalent

    exchange. So¡­ what can you offer if I were to help you?¡±

    Hearing his reply, Skr¡¯sst piece of hope was shattered in an instant.

    Like her mood, the sky was dark, looking as if it were about to rain.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to bother you, Mr. Ford. Just pretend that I was never here,¡± she said while biting her lips. ¡°I

    don¡¯t think I have anything to offer you.¡±

    Skr simply stopped trying as she knew what it meant to make a deal with the devil. With that, she

    turned around and left, clearly disheartened.

    Looking at Skr¡¯s retreating back, Tobias stood rooted to the spot.

    Content is ? by N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Zion Hotel, presidential suite. Come look for me tonight,¡± he said cidly.

    Skr stopped in her tracks and smirked. Is he for real now? A hotel? Why is he so desperate all the

    time?

    ¡°Goodbye, Mr. Ford,¡± she said and waved goodbye without looking back.

    Tobias couldn¡¯t wrap his head around this woman¡ªgirl, to be exact.

    It was the first time he had ever made such a request, yet he was rejected roundly.

    The girl had made his monotonous life a little better, but other than that, she was of no value.

    Returning to his office, Tobias instructed Flynn, his secretary, to do a background check on Skr.

    ¡°Who¡¯s Skr Jones?¡± Tanya, who had been waiting at the lounge of the office, asked upon overhearing

    Tobias¡¯ words.

    ¡°How did you get in?¡± Tobias asked, his tone as cold as ever.

    Tanya shrugged. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have known that my fianc¨¦ is doing a background check on another woman

    if I hadn¡¯te today.¡±

    He cocked an eyebrow and looked askance at her. ¡°We¡¯ve made it clear not to interfere in each other¡¯s

    life, Tanya. Don¡¯t cross the line.¡±

    Tanya then walked over to him with a hint of a smile hanging on her lips. ¡°Don¡¯t forget how much your

    mother likes me, Tobias,¡± she said, gently fixing his cor. ¡°No one else can marry you but me. So pull

    yourself together; the wedding is around the corner. If you can¡¯t deal with all the other women, I¡¯ll handle

    them for you.¡±

 Chapter 13

    Chapter 13

    After Tanya left, Flynn came back in, holding an envelope.

    Tobias opened the envelope to find Skr¡¯s information and pictures of her when she was still a toddler.

    Skr Jones, a twenty-year-old art university dropout, was much younger than he had imagined.

    She had a boyfriend, Jeremy Lane, who had also dropped out of university due to his illness.

    The ghost of a smile touched the corner of Tobias¡¯ lips as he had roughly pieced the puzzle together. So

    it was for Jeremy¡¯s medical fees that Skr had lost her virginity to me that day.

    How great of her to sacrifice everything for love.

    Her parents had divorced when she was three years old, and in the same year, her mother had been

    imprisoned for murder.

    Her father was the millionaire, Thomas Jones, who had abandoned her after the divorce.

    After that, Skr had been basically living with Meredith, her maternal grandmother, since she was three

    years old. That was until thetter passed away when she was in her third year of high school.

    After Meredith¡¯s death, her uncle and his family had upied the house, leaving her homeless.

    In Tobias¡¯ eyes, Skr¡¯s background stunk. The fact that she was still alive after encountering many

    unfortunate events was a miracle.

    Feeding the documents on Skr into a paper shredder, he looked out into the night sky through the

    window.

    At the same time, Skr had just reached home. However, she realized that the living room was in a

    total mess with her suitcase and personal belongings lying around.

    Karen, thendy, was sitting in the living room with her legs crossed while smoking a cigarette.

    ¡°I¡¯ll definitely pay you the rent in a few days, Karen. I swear,¡± Skr said with a warm smile on her face.

    Karen took a drag on her cigarette. ¡°As if I¡¯ll believe that. Pay up or scram.¡±

    With just a few pennies to her name, Skr couldn¡¯t tell when she could pay her rent.

    Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org.

    ¡°Can you make an exception this time and give me another day?¡± She tried to negotiate. ¡°How am I

    supposed to find a ce to stay at this hour?¡±

    ¡°You can always stay at a hotel,¡± Summer chimed in, raising her brows.

    Skr shot the former a murderous look.

    We¡¯ve been living together for about six months now. Does she not have the slightest bit ofpassion?

    How am I supposed to afford to stay at a hotel?

    ¡°Let¡¯s not be too brazen here, shall we?¡± Karen rolled her eyes. ¡°Why don¡¯t we end this nicely before

    things get nasty.¡±

    Afraid that Karen would go hard on her, Skr could only carry her suitcase downstairs without even

    having the chance to pack up what was left in her room.

    She stood at the entrance, not knowing where to go. There was no ce where she could call home now

    since Meredith had passed away.

    The feeling of loneliness crept into her heart as the cold wind swept over her.

    ¡°Skr.¡± Jeremy¡¯s voice was heard. ¡°Were you expecting me?¡±

    Skr, who thought she was hallucinating, quickly looked back. Jeremy was standing behind her, right

    next to his brand new Audi.

    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± She wore a bewildered expression. ¡°Are you here to return my money?

    Wow, I guess you won¡¯t have to go to hell when you die now.¡±

    As a matter of fact, Jeremy had been calling Avery for days to no avail.

    Hence, he had started to miss Skr, who was always at his beck and call.

    No one had loved him as much as Skr, and frankly, he was a little reluctant to let her go.

    ¡°Did thendy kick you out?¡± he asked in concern, seeing that she was standing at the entrance with

    a big suitcase, looking absentminded. ¡°I¡¯ve rented a house nearby. I can take you in.¡±

    ¡°Oh, just drop the act, will you? You make me sick,¡± Skr said and turned away, seeing that he was

    about to help her with the suitcase. ¡°Isn¡¯t it a little toote for you to y the good guy now? You liar!¡±

    He grabbed her wrist with such strength that showed no sign that he was a severely ill patient. ¡°Baby,

    stop messing with me. You¡¯re nothing without me.¡±

    ¡°Let go of me,¡± Skr said, struggling to break free from his grip. ¡°We¡¯re over. It¡¯s either you return the

    money or wait for mywyer¡¯s letter.¡±

    Ignoring her pleas, Jeremy pulled her into his arms, wanting to force himself on her.

    Skr continued to struggle, feeling disgusted at the thought of getting kissed by him.

    Suddenly, just as their lips were about to touch, a jarring honk of a vehicle was heard.

    A man alighted from the car and put out the cigarette in his hand. It was none other than Tobias, and he

    was ring at Skr with a gaze like that of a predator.

 Chapter 14

    Chapter 14

    In the meantime, Jeremy watched as the stranger approached them, his Audi eclipsed by thetter¡¯s

    ck Maybach.

    The man was tall, and his face was as cold as ice. With a gaze as sharp as the wind in a winter night, his

    aura was too imposing.

    Jeremy thought the man was a casual passer-by until he stopped in front of Skr.

    ¡°Come with me once you¡¯re ready,¡± the man said, his voice silvery.

    Skr¡¯s eyes widened at Tobias. What is he doing here?

    ¡°She¡¯s my girlfriend,¡± Jeremy proimed. ¡°Why does she have to go with you? We¡¯ve been together for

    seven years.¡±

    Sneering, Tobias cast a sidelong nce at Jeremy and thumbed his nose at him.

    Skr was in a quandary. Caught between Jeremy and Tobias, she felt as though there was a ball of

    me burning in her chest.

    But in order to get away from Jeremy, she simplytched onto Tobias¡¯ arms and looked at the former

    ruthlessly. ¡°We¡¯ve broken up, remember? Don¡¯t ever show up in front of me again unless you¡¯re gonna

    return the money. Don¡¯t think that you can run away from this. I¡¯m gonna keep my eyes on you until the

    day you spit it out.¡±

    Her actions had Jeremy bbergasted; never did he expect Skr to move on so soon.

    Given her status, he wondered how she acquainted herself with such a person, who seemed like a big

    shot.

    ¡°You¡¯re doing this on purpose just to upset me, aren¡¯t you? I¡¯m not feeling well, so you can¡¯t do this to

    me.¡± Jeremy clutched at that piece of cloth before his heart, holding on tightly to Skr¡¯s suitcase.

    Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org.

    Right then, she released her grip on Tobias¡¯ arm.

    ¡°Do you have no respect for yourself?¡± Tobias piped up with his piercing cold voice, thinking that she was

    about to run back to Jeremy.

    Unexpectedly, Skr shed a charming smile at Tobias. ¡°I¡¯m not a woman who¡¯d stoop so low.¡±

    Jeremy, simrly, had thought that Skr had gone soft until she pointed at the suitcase and said, ¡°Give

    me back my suitcase.¡±

    The man refused to let go, but when his eyes met Tobias¡¯, his grip loosened unconsciously.

    There was something about thetter¡¯s gaze that made him trembled.

    Taking back her suitcase, Tobias and Skr walked towards the Maybach. Then she heaved the

    suitcase inside the trunk without receiving any help from the former.

    Skr was smart to get into the passenger¡¯s seat this time.

    ¡°You b*tch,¡± Jeremy cursed, kicking the curb as he watched the ck Maybach drove away. ¡°You

    cuckolded me while I was sick. Just you wait.¡±

    ¡°188 Lincoln Avenue, please,¡± Skr said once they exited the neighborhood. ¡°You can stop me by the

    road if it¡¯s inconvenient for you.¡±

    ¡°Your Uncle Wesley probably wouldn¡¯t wee you,¡± Tobias said straightforwardly upon hearing that

    familiar street name.

    Gifted with a photographic memory, he remembered reading from the documents that Flynn had

    gathered about her. Lincoln Avenue was where she had stayed with Meredith, but was now upied by

    her Uncle Wesley and his family.

    Skr gasped in surprise, a chill wafting across her body. ¡°How did you know that¡¯s my uncle¡¯s house?

    Did you do a background check on me?¡±

    ¡°Why not? Who knows if you have an ulterior motive foring to mypany today.¡±

    Skr pinched the bridge of her nose. ¡°Does that mean I should suspect you for having an ulterior

    motive when you show up in front of my house in the middle of the night?¡±

    At that, Tobias¡¯ lips quirked up in a half smile. This girl sure knows how to talk.

 Chapter 15

    Chapter 15

    ¡°You can suspect me.¡± he paused. ¡°In fact, I dide with an ulterior motive-to meet my own sexual

    needs.¡±

    Skr had the urge to curse aloud, but she reined in her temper and said helplessly, ¡°This is a bad time,

    Mr. Ford. I¡¯d suggest you go look for someone else.¡±

    Following that, she deliberately opened her bag to show him the sanitary pads inside.

    Tobias, who was driving, nced at her sideways. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter to me. Besides running a red light

    on the road, I¡¯d also love to experience it on the bed.¡±

    Skr could feel her blood boiling. A rookie like her was definitely no match for someone like Tobias.

    So she employed another strategy byying her cards on the table in hopes to arouse the man¡¯s

    sympathy.

    ¡°I¡¯m penniless and jobless, and I was kicked out by thendy. In short, you¡¯d wish you had stayed

    away from me. I bring bad luck to the people around me, and there will be retribution if you bully a poor

    commoner like me.¡±

    Skr looked at Tobias with such soulful and innocent eyes that made his heart stir.

    ¡°You can follow me,¡± he said in a deep voice. ¡°With me, anything that can be solved with money is not a

    problem.¡±

    Skr retracted her gaze and leaned back on the seat. ¡°I don¡¯t want to.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll send you the address.¡± Tobias took out a key from the armrestpartment and threw it on Skr¡¯s

    lap.

    Without even looking at it, she promptly put it back into the armrestpartment.

    Content is ? by N?velDrama.Org.

    She might be poor, but she had just regained her freedom not long ago.

    Hence, she must be crazy if she were to ept the man¡¯s offer.

    Tobias had behaved like a gentleman this time as he had dropped off Skr at the address as told.

    Once again, Skr would direct him along the way, afraid that he would send her to the wilderness.

    It wasn¡¯t until she had fished for her phone, wanting to give her uncle a call did she realize that the key

    was back in her hands.

    Not wanting to disturb her uncle¡¯s family, Skr dared not knock on the door too loudly and could only

    call them.

    Yet, with no one answering her calls or the door, she eventually slumped down to the ground.

    This was the ce she had lived in since she was young¡ªa ce oveid with memories of her

    childhood.

    Meredith would always express her grievances to her about how her mother was chained and thrown

    into prison. She didn¡¯t know when her mother would be released.

    Her own father was even worse. He could have afforded to raise another child, but he had chosen to

    abandon her thoroughly as though she was never born.

    In the cold dark night, Skr paced up and down in front of the old house, gradually feeling sleepy and

    hungry

    All of a sudden, she was back in her school uniform while heading home after school.

    Meredith was there, waiting for her at the gates, holding a walking stick.

    She ran up to Meredith excitedly. ¡°Grandma, what¡¯s for dinner? I¡¯m starving.¡±

    With a gentle smile on her face, Meredith looked at her amiably. ¡°Grandma has made you your favorite

    spaghetti carbonara.¡±

    Then Skr entered the house but soon realized that Meredith, who was following behind, had suddenly

    disappeared.

    She searched around frantically, and no matter how loud she shouted for her grandmother, there was no

    sign of Meredith.

    ¡°Skr.¡±

    Skr woke up with a start, screaming for her grandmother. As though herst bit of energy had been

    sapped away, she slumped down against the wall. I was dreaming again. But who was it who called me?

    ¡°Skr, when did you get here?¡± Only then did Skr realize that the voice belonged to her Uncle

    Wesley. She got up to her feet and saw that the sun was already up.

    Though the man was her blood rtive, there was no feeling of dependency or familiarity to speak of

    when she saw him.

    Other than the time when he hade to ask for the house, he had never contacted her since then.

    ¡°I came herest night,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯ve called you many times, but you didn¡¯t pick up.¡±

 Chapter 16

    Chapter 16

    With that, Wesley had no choice but to usher Skr inside. However, his face clouded over when he saw

    her pulling a suitcase, and so did her Aunt Sharon¡¯s.

    ¡°Uncle Wesley, Aunt Sharon, can I stay here for a few days? I¡¯ll move out immediately once I get a job.¡±

    Sharon pursed her lips in dissatisfaction. ¡°What¡¯s gotten into you, Skr? You¡¯ve always been a sensible

    child. Can¡¯t you see our situation now?¡±

    Meanwhile, Wesley held his tongue.

    ¡°I won¡¯t bother you for long. I only need three days.¡±

    ¡°Your cousins barely have a room for themselves now,¡± Sharon said. ¡°You don¡¯t wanna interrupt in their

    studies now, do you?¡±

    Before things got out of hand, Wesley had Sharon follow him inside the kitchen before closing the door.

    Through the door came the muffled voice of a woman. ¡°What are you doing? Haven¡¯t you heard? It¡¯s

    easier to invite the devil in than to send him away. Do you seriously believe that she¡¯s gonna leave in

    three days? Besides, why do we have to take her in? It¡¯s not like she doesn¡¯t have a father, or her mother

    is dead.¡±

    ¡°Skr is my niece, after all. My mom told me to look after her before she died. It¡¯s no big deal to take

    her in for a few days. If she doesn¡¯t want to leave by then, I¡¯ll kick her out,¡± Wesley said.

    ¡°No, not even a day.¡±

    ¡°Then what should I tell her?¡±

    Skr stood transfixed on the spot, then smiling dryly, she carried her suitcase and walked away.

    Wesley had sworn to Meredith on her sickbed that he would look after Skr like she was his own

    daughter and take her in to live with them.

    s, that was easier said than done.

    Within days of her death, Wesley¡¯s family of four had forcibly upied the house.

    Skr could still remember how Sharon had presented the property ownership certificate before her a

    week after Meredith¡¯s death.

    Only then did she know Meredith had given the house to Wesley.

    No matter how much Meredith had loved her, she couldn¡¯t deny the fact that her grandmother had

    favored Wesley over her. After all, he was her son, and she was just a maternal granddaughter.

    If only the house was under her name, she would have barged in confidently and moved in.

    But this house belonged to her Uncle Wesley now, and it had nothing to do with her.

    Skr dragged her suitcase along the street, feeling cold inside despite the warm winter sunlight hitting

    on her skin.

    She stopped by the road and sat on her suitcase. After that, she decided to give Linda a call, inquiring if

    they needed an extra so that she could earn a quick three hundred.

    Yet, Linda immediately hung up.

    Sighing, Skr continued to walk along the streets aimlessly, asking around if any of the restaurants had

    any job vacancy, be it a menial position.

    Unanimously, without exception, none of the restaurants were hiring.

    Having been walking from dawn to dusk, Skr was on the brink of losing hope. Yet something didn¡¯t

    feel right.

    Why does everyone seem so eager to chase me away? It¡¯s not like I¡¯m not willing to work for ten per

    hour.

    Clinging on to onest hope, Skr came to the final restaurant, with a man in suit brushing past her as

    soon as she entered.

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Are you hiring, sir? I¡¯m really hard-working,¡± Skr said and went on to promote herself at the checkout

    counter.

    ¡°We can¡¯t recruit you, youngdy,¡± the restaurant owner said eventually, taking pity on her. ¡°You¡¯ve got

    guts, huh? Who knows who you¡¯ve offended. No one on this street will hire you. We¡¯re all trying to make

    a living here.¡±

    Skr suddenly remembered the man who brushed past her, thinking that he looked familiar.

    I think I saw him standing next to Tobias when I went to look for him that day.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Miss, but our restaurants won¡¯t be able to survive if we were to hire you,¡± the owner added,

    feeling sorry for Skr.

 Chapter 17

    Chapter 17

    Why is this man so cruel?

    Skr had thought that Tobias had let her go when he dropped her off at her uncle¡¯s ce.

    It seemed that the man had figured out that her Uncle Wesley and Aunt Sharon wouldn¡¯t take her in, and

    she would eventually have to survive on the streets.

    He could make her lose her job at any minute in this big city.

    Just then, Skr¡¯s phone rang. It was a message from an unknown number: 611 Green Avenue. No.

    201, International Garden.

    Jeremy had always dreamed of buying a vi at International Garden if he ever became a celebrity.

    Thus, Skr didn¡¯t have to know the street name to find the ce since he had brought her there more

    than once.

    Skr replied: You jerk! Are you trying to kill me?

    Tapping away furiously on the keyboard, her eyes were zing in rage.

    Tobias replied: Why would I? Your life is not that worth it.

    Not wanting to be involved with him anymore, Skr simply left him hanging.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was fidgeting with his phone when his assistant, Cameron, came knocking on the

    door.

    ¡°These are the ces Ms. Jones had been to today, Mr. Ford.¡±

    Cameron had been tailing Skr all day, and he couldn¡¯t make head or tail of it.

    Wasting no time, Tobias took the map from Cameron and let out a chuckle.

    This woman sure can walk. She knows what job is good enough for her and didn¡¯t return to Elysium

    despite being driven to a corner.

    Tobias then walked over to the window, staring at the twinkling lights outside.

    This woman must be starving. Well, I guess it proves that she¡¯s not a materialistic woman for working at

    the nightclub back then. Perhaps she really needed the money to save her boyfriend. Haha, such an idiot

    is really a rare specimen.

    ¡°Where is she?¡± he piped up.

    ¡°She¡¯s at a twenty-four-hour convenience store,¡± Cameron said. ¡°She¡¯s ordered an Oden and had been

    sitting inside for three hours. Should I continue to follow her?¡±

    Tobias picked up his coat. ¡°No.¡±

    Heading to his boss¡¯ orders, Cameron nodded and exited the office. Mr. Ford¡¯s wedding is approaching,

    so why is he asking me to tail another woman?

    Cameron was reminded of Tobias¡¯ fianc¨¦e, Tanya Hanson, who had the beauty of a goddess and would

    easily make men fall head over heels for her.

    Although Skr wasn¡¯t too bad herself, she was far beneath Tanya in terms of maturity.

    The bell to the convenience store¡¯s automatic door rang. Skr was sitting at the table by the window,

    job hunting, while charging her phone.

    ¡°Stop searching. No one will dare to hire you,¡± said a cold voice.

    Skr wasn¡¯t surprised as she had grown ustomed to Tobias¡¯ abrupt appearance, as though he had

    installed a tracker on her.

    ¡°All thanks to you for driving me to death,¡± Skr said cidly, her heart growing numb.

    ¡°Don¡¯t make it sound so serious.¡± Tobias sat across from Skr. ¡°Sign this contract, and all your

    problems will be solved.¡±

    Skr epted the contract that smelled of freshly printed ink.

    Partnership agreement. How tactful.

    She skimmed through the contract, then nced up at Tobias with fear and undisguised disgust in her

    eyes.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    It was a servitude contract, in which it was clearly stated that all the employer¡¯s needs should be met.

 Chapter 18

    Chapter 18

    Of all the benefits that she could enjoy, what caught her attention the most was that the employer would

    pay for the employee¡¯s tuition and living expenses for four years of college. A breach of contract would

    require the employee topensate the employer with thirty million for emotional distress.

    ¡°If there¡¯s no problem with it, you can sign on the contract now,¡± Tobias piped up and took out a pen.

    Instead of signing, Skr put down the contract. ¡°What a psycho. Why do I have to sign this contract? I¡¯d

    rather work as a garbage collector than sign this crap.¡±

    ¡°I suppose no one would dare to recycle the garbage you¡¯ve collected,¡± Tobias saidposedly, knowing

    that she would reject him.

    And they said a woman¡¯s heart is vicious. Men can be as vicious as well once they set their minds on

    something.

    Nheless, Tobias was not in a hurry for her to sign the contract. Thus, he leisurely got up to his feet

    and went over to the counter to get a coffee.

    At the same time, Skr thought about the contract long and hard.

    She was aware of her situation now¡ªpenniless and homeless, like a stray.

    If she were to disagree, given the man¡¯s stubbornness, she wouldn¡¯t know how she would be threatened

    by him again.

    There was no escape this time.

    Without much choice, Skr picked up the pen and scribbled her signature on the contract.

    She had thought that would be it. But to her surprise, Tobias picked up the contract and tore it to

    shreds in front of her eyes when he came back.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°I¡¯ll print a new one for you. Your handwriting is too ugly. You even got your name wrong.¡±

    Skr¡¯s little game was ruthlessly exposed.

    At this moment, Tobias¡¯ phone rang. ¡°I gotta go,¡± he said after answering the call.

    ¡°Is your fianc¨¦e checking in on you?¡± Skr mocked. ¡°Are you trying to make me a homewrecker?¡±

    That seemed to take Tobias by surprise as he didn¡¯t expect Skr to be so well-informed about Tanya.

    ¡°It¡¯s a littleplicated, but you¡¯re not a homewrecker as long as I¡¯m still single,¡± Tobias said.

    How she wished for Tanya to discover her sooner so that she could end things with him.

    No sooner had Tobias left than she was picked up by someone to a luxurious vi at International

    Garden.

    The vi wasvishly renovated, which was pretty much expected since it was located at International

    Garden.

    ¡°Nice to meet you, Ms. Jones,¡± a female housekeeper greeted, then ushered her to the second floor.

    ¡°This will be your room from now on, Ms. Jones. Just call me anytime if you need anything.¡±

    Aspared to being homeless, Skr was grateful enough to have a roof above her head.

    She opened her suitcase that contained only a few seasonal clothes and toiletries.

    This was all she had. She simply tidied up a little and hung the clothes in the closet.

    Skr heaved a sigh of relief when she saw the empty closet, reckoning that Tobias probably wouldn¡¯t

    be living with her.

    Feeling lonely and dested, she switched on the TV to have the sound apanying her.

    Since Meredith had passed away, she would usually switch on the TV when she was alone. Though

    most of the time, she wasn¡¯t aware of the contents of the programs.

    She had only wanted to listen to the sound, as though someone was talking into her ears and would

    usually drift off to sleep with the TV still on.

    ¡°May we have Thomas Jones to the stage for the ribbon-cutting ceremony?¡±

    Skr¡¯s heart thumped when she heard Thomas¡¯ name from the TV. Thest time she had met him was

    when she was still in middle school.

    That was when Meredith had told her to reach out to him when she couldn¡¯t afford her school fees for

    high school.

    With the memory fresh in her mind, Skr still remembered that it was pouring that day.

 Chapter 19

    Chapter 19

    Yet when Thomas saw her, he didn¡¯t even let her in as he taunted her at the door. ¡°Just seeing your face

    reminds me of your murderer mother. You two disgust me.¡±

    Thomas then whipped out a stack of cash from his wallet and threw them onto her face. ¡°Take this and

    leave. And don¡¯t you dare show up in front of me ever again.¡±

    It also happened to be Avery¡¯s birthday that day. She was walking out holding a cake just as Skr was

    about to leave.

    ¡°Skr, have some cake before you leave,¡± she said, acting kind.

    But Skr pushed her aside, and the cake fell to the ground. ¡°Why did you do that?¡± Avery whimpered.

    Young Skr was freezing from the cold, yet Thomas did not give a tinker¡¯s damn as he booted her in

    the stomach.

    With the unpleasant memories shing before her eyes, Skr turned off the television.

    Skr and the Joneses were at daggers drawn. Even if she was driven to despair, she had no thoughts

    of seeking Thomas¡¯ help.

    At this moment, she heard a noise downstairs. Recollecting herself, she tiptoed her way to the mouth of

    the stairs.

    The housekeeper, Laura, was helping Tobias with the slippers.

    Son of a gun¡­ Tobias is actually here?

    Skr quickly retreated into her room and locked the door, ying a snoring sound from her phone and

    sting it through the speaker at the door.

    ¡°Where is she?¡± Tobias removed his coat and gave it to Laura.

    ¡°She should be resting upstairs, Mr. Ford. Do you need any supper?¡±

    ¡°No, thanks,¡± he said tersely.

    Laura watched as Tobias went up the stairs. She had been guarding the vi for a long time, but it was

    her first time seeing Tobiasing over at this hour, not to mention bringing home a woman.

    At that moment, Skr had stuck her ear against the wall.

    From the hallway to Skr¡¯s room, Tobias could hear the deafening sound of snoring.

    Hmph, only a pig would snore that loud. Does she think I¡¯m that daft?

    He turned the doorknob, but found that it was locked.

    ¡°I have no time to y games with you.¡±

    Even so, Skr couldn¡¯t hear Tobias clearly through the door.

    ¡°Could you get me the spare key?¡± Tobias said to Laura.

    What¡¯s up with this girl? She just moved in, and she¡¯s shutting out Mr. Ford already?

    Skr, upon hearing someone unlocking the door, quickly jumped into bed and buried herself

    underneath the nket.

    She had totally forgotten about her phone that was still ying the snoring sound on repeat.

    But the sound was soon interrupted by a phone call.

    Tobias picked up her phone on the ground, only to see the word ¡°Hubby¡± shing on the screen. This guy

    again!

    At the same time, Skr wanted to sit up to answer her phone, but her guts told her not to.

    ¡°Hey, your hubby is calling you. Are you sure you don¡¯t want to pick up?¡± His cold voice sounded out in

    the room.

    Skr pretended not to hear anything as she squeezed her eyes shut.

    Seeing that she was continuing her act, Tobias deliberately answered the phone and turned on the

    speaker.

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Skr, where are you? Your clothes are still at my ce. When are you going to pick them up? I¡¯ve

    already washed your underwear.¡±

    Jeremy¡¯s frivolous voice was heard.

    She¡¯s even thrown her underwear at another man¡¯s house? Tobias¡¯s eyes were instantly filled with

    hostility.

    ¡°Skr, are you listening to me?¡± Jeremy asked.

    Sh*t, Jeremy. Are you freaking crazy or something? I don¡¯t remember you being this clingy when we first

    started going out!

 Chapter 20

    Chapter 20

    It was because Jeremy had needed someone to look after him, and Skr had stayed at his ce for a

    few days.

    Skr was still pretending to be asleep while keeping her cool. Heck, she even changed her posture just

    to make it seem convincing.

    ¡°She can¡¯t hear you, Jeremy. She¡¯s sleeping.¡± He spoke into the phone.

    ¡°Who are you? Why are you answering my girlfriend¡¯s phone?¡± Jeremy said with a strained voice.

    Tobias¡¯ lips quirked up. ¡°Stop calling her at this hour. You¡¯re disrupting our sleep,¡± he said. Hanging up

    the phone, he then threw it right in Skr¡¯s face, hitting her right at the bridge of her nose.

    Ow! You b*stard, I won¡¯t let you get away with this!

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    Skr sat up with a groan, rubbing her nose.

    ¡°Even if your hand slipped, do you have to smash the phone right on the bridge of my nose?¡± she gave

    him a death stare.

    Highly amused, Tobias quirked an eyebrow at Skr.

    Looking at her fair and baby-like soft skin, he had to admit that she was beautiful.

    But her gaze was piercing like thousand sharp knives at him.

    ¡°I did that on purpose!¡±

    Ugh, I should have added ¡°no violence¡± into the contract. Skry sprawling on the bed. ¡°You might as

    well just kill me now. I¡¯m done with this life.¡±

    Indeed, Skr didn¡¯t know what was the meaning of her life now.

    Not long ago, she was still dreaming about settling down with Jeremy and giving birth to his child.

    Now that everything had turned into dust, all her hopes had been destroyed.

    ¡°Are you sure?¡± Tobias put on a contemptuous look on his face. ¡°Then why are you here?¡±

    He sat on the side of the bed and closed the distance between them. Skr squirmed back.

    Tobias reached out, draped an arm over her shoulders, and pulled her into his embrace. The damned

    white sandalwood cologne reminded her of that night at the operating room.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a good day for me. But it¡¯s up to you if you want to force yourself on me. I heard it¡¯s bad luck to

    do that with a woman who¡¯s having her period.¡±

    Skr was still hoping that Tobias would give her a break tonight.

    In spite of that, he snuggled his head onto her shoulder, breathing into her neck. ¡°So what?¡±

    Feeling a chill traveling down her spine, Skr swallowed a lump in her throat and emphasized, ¡°It¡¯s the

    second day today, and I¡¯m warning you¨Cit¡¯s pretty heavy.¡±

    She nced up at the clock on the wall. It was already three in the morning.

    What the heck! Why are we even discussing this at this hour?

    ¡°How long more are you going to keep this up?¡± Tobias grabbed her wrist, looking impatient. ¡°Is it so hard

    toply with me? Don¡¯t you wanna do it again after that day?¡±

    Frankly speaking, Skr didn¡¯t want to relive that alien sensation from that night at all. However, she

    dared not shake her head lest she offended Tobias, so she nodded.

    He looked at Skr, who was scared silly in amusement.

    Look at her, all tensed up. Tsk-tsk, you have so much to learn, little girl.

    Tobias didn¡¯t really mean business when he said that. The red blotches on the sheet had proven that

    Skr wasn¡¯t lying.

    He rxed his grip on her hand, and only then did Skr sigh in relief, having avoided a catastrophe.

 Chapter 21

    Chapter 21

    She knew she would have to face him sooner orter, but until then, she wished to stall for time for as

    long as she could.

    Before Tobias, she felt like a fish fresh out of the water, half-dying but struggling to live.

    ¡°I think you might have dirtied the bedsheet¡­¡±

    Skr looked puzzled.

    With Tobias pointing at the sheet, she shifted her gaze and looked down at the white bedsheet that was

    now blotched red.

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    She tried to hide them with her hands, her face flushing a beet red.

    ¡°Does your handse with an automatic purifying function?¡± Tobias teased.

    Oh, how I wish I have that special power. The first thing I¡¯ll do is to purify your damned heart!

    ¡°Please turn around. I¡¯m going to change the bedsheet,¡± Skr said in embarrassment, and Tobias was

    surprisingly cooperative.

    Skr was about to remove the bedsheet when she stood frozen by the bed.

    Wait a minute, why do I have to look after my image in front of him? I might as well present myself

    shabbily so that he¡¯ll get sick of me and stoping over.

    Yes, that¡¯s right. That¡¯s what I should do!

    With that, Skr stered a wicked smile on her face and said, ¡°I think I¡¯ll just let it be, Mr. Ford. It¡¯s a

    little too troublesome. Are you sure you want to join me in bed? There¡¯s blood on it, and it¡¯s on your side

    of the bed, not mine.¡±

    Tobias clenched his jaw in frustration. He looked back and saw that Skr had hopped back into bed

    again.

    ¡°Move. You¡¯re sleeping on that side,¡± he said, furrowing his brows.

    With a man lying beside her and an extra weight on her waist, Skr couldn¡¯t sleep a wink.

    It was five in the morning. The sky wasn¡¯t fully lit, although a beam of light could be seen from afar.

    Tossing around in bed, she turned around and looked sideways at the man beside her.

    Tobias was sound asleep and half-naked, his strong muscles outlining his perfect figure.

    This man beside her surely had the charm of a mature man that no woman could resist while he was

    asleep.

    But awoken, he was a totally different person ¨C a devil, in fact.

    So given his look and wealth, why did he choose me? Or should I say I am only one of his many women

    who he had chosen to sleep with tonight?

    Skr scrambled out of bed, wanting to find something to eat downstairs when she suddenly

    remembered that they had been using the same nketst night.

    She was so used to sleeping alone and hogging the nket to herself that everything felt odd that night.

    asionally, she would even use the nket like a bolster as it was the position that made her feel safe.

    Because of that, Tobias didn¡¯t get to cover himself at all throughout the night, and his half-naked body

    was exposed to the air.

    Skr had wanted to tuck him in, but on second thought, she mumbled, ¡°Forget it, it¡¯s not like you¡¯re

    shivering, anyway.¡±

    In order to cut down on her expenses, Skr had only eaten a portion of oden from the convenience

    store since yesterday.

    Having stayed up all night, she was so hungry that her stomach was growling.

    At that time, it was still too early, so Laura had yet to wake up.

    Thus, Skr put on her coat and found a morning market nearby through the navigation application on

    her phone.

    It took her about half an hour by foot to eventually find a breakfast ce.

    International Garden was a high-end residential area, and one would usually travel by car to get to the

    facilities around the neighborhood.

    Skr ordered four croissants and a cup of soy milk.

    Holding the cup of warm soy milk in her hand and gulping it down, she felt a warm current welling up in

    her stomach.

    How she wished she could stay outside for as long she could.

    Yet, no matter how reluctant she was, she still had to go back to the vi.

 Chapter 22

    Chapter 22

    When Skr walked into the house, she saw Tobias sitting at the long table. The air was thick with

    silence in the living room, and only the sound of newspapers flipping could be heard.

    Unwilling to greet Tobias, Skr nned to go straight upstairs.

    ¡°Stop right there. Where did you go so early in the morning?¡± The man¡¯s deep voice was hearding

    from behind.

    Skr turned around. ¡°I went to have some croissants as I was hungry.¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t buy me some when you went out to have breakfast on your own? How stingy.¡± Tobias put

    down the newspaper and red at her.

    Speechless, Skr said grumpily, ¡°I didn¡¯t know you eat store-bought croissants. I thought the rich

    always eat like, I don¡¯t know, sourdough bread?¡±

    It just so happened that Laura came out of the kitchen with fresh piping hot breakfast on the tray ¨C

    sundried tomatoes, sauteed spinach, turkey bacon, scrambled eggs, and yes, sourdough bread.

    Skr raised her eyebrows. ¡°I¡¯m afraid that you¡¯re not used to eating something as simple as croissants.

    Anyway, I¡¯m going back to sleep. Talk to youter.¡±

    ¡°Why did you let her go out to get breakfast? What¡¯s the point of me hiring you?¡± Tobias chided Laura as

    soon as she came out.

    Laura hurriedly exined, ¡°I didn¡¯t see Ms. Jones when I woke up this morning. I¡¯m sorry, Mr. Ford.¡±

    Skr then chimed in, ¡°I woke up too early, so I went out to eat. Isn¡¯t this very normal? Why the fuss?¡±

    She didn¡¯t understand why Tobias wanted to reproach Laura.

    However, Tobias ignored Skr¡¯s exnation and shot a nce at Laura. ¡°I don¡¯t hire you to sleep in

    here, understand?¡±

    Skr stared at the man with her mouth agape. Crap. What I said just now seems to be adding fuel to

    the fire.

    Looking helpless, Laura nodded her head repeatedly and promised that she would be more mindful of it

    in the future.

    Skr saw for herself how exploitative a capitalist was from Tobias¡¯ behavior, whichckedpassion

    as a human.

    Thinking that he was just being absurd, she couldn¡¯t take it anymore and said angrily, ¡°Do you mean that

    Laura needs to wake up at three o¡¯clock in the morning if I wake up at four?¡±

    ¡°Why not? Is there any problem?¡± Tobias asked.

    ¡°N-No problem, Mr. Ford. I will get up two hours earlier every day,¡± answered Laura hurriedly.

    She then shot a look at Skr, signaling for her to stop talking.

    With that, Skr had no choice but to keep her mouth shut and turn to go upstairs.

    When she returned to the room, she realized that the bedsheet that was soiled by herst night had

    been reced with a new one.

    The quilt on the bed was also neatlyid out without a trace of wrinkles as if no one had ever slept on it.This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    The bed was neat, but Skr did not care and directlyy down on the bed in afortable position.

    Right then, the bedroom door was pushed open from outside, and Tobias appeared before her eyes.

    Even so, she did not bother to get up but continued lying on the bed with the same posture.

    ¡°This is me. I sleep after I¡¯m full. Oh, and I have to tell you the truth ¨C I¡¯mzy, gluttonous, and sloppy.¡±

    Being astute as he was, Tobias could see that Skr did so on purpose in order to make him despise

    her.

    He chuckled and replied, ¡°I don¡¯t need you to do anything anyway. Just be more expressive in bed. I

    don¡¯t want you to be like a dead fish while I¡¯m sleeping with you.¡±

    Just before 10 a.m., he threw a folder on the bed and left.

    After he left, Skr went to take it and open it.

    There was an admission letter from her previous university inside.

    Southwood Film Academy was one of the three famous institutions for film and television production in

    the country. Jeremy used to be a sophomore here.

    Because of Jeremy, Skr got herself into Southwood Film Academy as well.

    After graduating from high school, she spent the entire holiday doing odd jobs to earn her tuition fees.

    Having finally saved enough tuition fees, she started to dream of a happy future with Jeremy, where they

    could be together every day, as well as go to sses, the cafeteria, and the library together.

    When the first semester at the university was about to start, Jeremy called to meet her up at the coffee

    house next to their high school.

    While bawling his eyes out, he said that he had fallen ill and would take a break from studies for a while.

    He also did not know whether he could still continue his studies in the future.

    His family could not afford his medical treatment, so he could only wait on his deathbed. He also told her

    to take good care of herself as his days were numbered.

    After being together for seven years, Skr could not bear to watch him pass at such a young age, so

    she gave him all her tuition fees at that time.

    She didn¡¯t know where she found the courage to help him raise money for his surgery despite being so

    poor herself at the time.

 Chapter 23

    Chapter 23

    Holding the admission letter in her hand, she felt growing hatred for Jeremy upon her shbacks to the

    past.

    She had sacrificed too much for the previous rtionship.

    Meanwhile, Tobias did not break his promise as she got the admission letter the day after she moved in.

    She took a picture of the letter and sent it to Penelope.

    Penelope texted back in mere seconds: What?

    Skr replied back: That¡¯s right. I¡¯m going to university! I¡¯m finally no longer a high school graduate!

    Instantly, Penelope texted: Wait¡­ Didn¡¯t you give all your tuition fees to Jeremy? Where did you get the

    money? From a crowdfunding tform?

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr then responded: I don¡¯t have the audacity to do that and get verbally attacked by those

    benevolent people out there. Anyway, it¡¯s a long story.

    After a few seconds, Penelope replied: Make it short then. Where did you get your tuition fees? Your

    dad?

    Skr texted back: You should definitely stop daydreaming. Anyhow, I¡¯ll tell you in person next time!

    Hearing the notification sound of her phone, Skr ignored it and did not reply to Penelope; it was easier

    for her to tell thetter about it clearly in person.

    Apart from going downstairs for food, Skr spent almost the entire day in the room.

    Laura¡¯s attitude toward her was lukewarm.

    As Tobias was not home, Laura acted like thedy of the house and even invited her best friend over.

    While Skr was going down the stairs to get some water, she heard Lauraining to her best

    friend as they chatted loudly downstairs.

    ¡°It¡¯s nice to be on my own here. Unexpectedly, Mr. Ford brings a woman to live here. Now I have to wait

    on her every day, and I can¡¯t even sleep in. That girl gets up earlier than a chicken.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that Tobias is getting married soon? Is the woman his fianc¨¦e?¡± asked Laura¡¯s friend.

    ¡°How could it be possible? If it were Ms. Hanson, I would be willing to serve her. But this woman is just

    some riffraff.¡±

    ¡°Oh goodness, in that case, if Ms. Hansones after this woman, you must stay far away from them

    and don¡¯t get yourself involved.¡±

    Realizing that she was the subject of their gossip, Skr went downstairs in a leisurely manner and said

    slowly, ¡°Laura, I remember I told you what my name is, so I¡¯m not some riffraff.¡±

    Turning around, Laura saw Skr¡¯s charming face that was wearing a chilling smile.

    Laura¡¯s best friend gave an awkward smile as she said, ¡°Umm, I¡¯ll take my leave now. Talk to you again

    when you¡¯re free.¡±

    Then, she fled the scene surprisingly fast for someone her age.

    Laura and Skr were the only ones left at home, and the former did not know how much Skr had

    heard.

    After that, Skr sat on the sofa while propping her face with her hands, staring at Laura with a broad

    smile.

    Being stared at by her like this sent chills down Laura¡¯s spine.

    Breaking the silence, the older woman cleared her throat and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t talk about you just now. Don¡¯t

    get me wrong.¡±

    Skr raised her eyebrows slightly. ¡°I know you look down on me, but I also look down on you now.

    Hence, it¡¯s best that we stay out of each other¡¯s way. Badmouthing others may cause mouth sores.¡±

    Laura didn¡¯t dare to have a head-on conflict with Skr as thetter was Tobias¡¯ woman now.

    She was afraid that Skr would speak ill of her in front of Tobias, who had always been a rough

    character.

    ¡°So I¡¯m going to make dinner.¡± Laura got up to go to the kitchen.

    Previously, Skr had told Laura that she could cook anything for her as she did not want to burden

    others.

    While Laura did as told by making simple dishes every day using only cabbage, lettuce, and spinach.

    Skr got bored of it but still did not say anything about the nd taste.

    ¡°BBQ ribs, garlic chili prawn pasta, roasted pork loin, chicken Marnd, and also mushroom soup.¡±

    Skr began to tell Laura the food she wanted to eat this time.

    Instead of making what she wanted, Laura protested, ¡°Can you finish so much food? It¡¯s not good to

    have so much meat.¡±

 Chapter 24

    Chapter 24

    Skr blinked at Laura. ¡°Just throw the leftovers away. Mr. Ford is rich anyway, so he won¡¯t criticize me

    for wasting food. You know what? Why don¡¯t I call and ask him?¡±

    Hearing the mention of Tobias, Laura stopped her and replied, ¡°I¡¯ll go and cook now. Don¡¯t call Mr. Ford.

    It¡¯ll only look like I¡¯ve treated you badly.¡±

    ¡°Tobias, what do you think about the wedding dress I chose? Does it look good?¡± As soon as Tobias

    arrived home, Tanya couldn¡¯t wait to ask the helpers at home to bring her wedding dress for Tobias to

    have a look at.

    Tobias was uninterested and did not even give her a perfunctory response.

    At that instant, Tanya froze. ¡°Our wedding is about to take ce, and I¡¯ve also picked a suit for you. I

    want our wedding to be a global sensation.¡±

    At this, Tobias replied scornfully and indifferently, ¡°Suit yourself. It has nothing to do with me anyway. I¡¯m

    tired, so I¡¯m gonna have some rest.¡±

    He then went to the study and asked not to be disturbed.

    Tobias¡¯ mother, udia Stokes, did not get to meet Tobias after learning that he had returned home.

    Holding udia¡¯s arm, Tanya said aggrievedly and sadly, ¡°udia, Tobias¡¯ attitude toward me has

    always been this way. I don¡¯t know what else to do. If he doesn¡¯t like me, I can leave.¡±

    udia patted Tanya on the back of her hand and looked at her lovingly whileforting, ¡°Silly girl, how

    can you say this? Behind his cold exterior, he¡¯s a passionate man. No one deserves to marry him except

    you. If he dares to treat you badly, I¡¯ll be the first to reprimand him.¡±

    That was what Tanya intended. She knew she would hear those reassuring words from udia.

    After all, it was impossible that she would leave.

    Everyone knew that she was Mrs. Ford-to-be, the future wife of the owner of the wealthy Ford Group.

    Thus, Tanya told udia meekly, ¡°Mom, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll definitely be a good wife and a good daughter-in-

    law.¡±

    Delighted at being called ¡°Mom,¡± udia said with a smile, ¡°You¡¯re a sensible girl, Tanya. You can rest

    assured that I¡¯ll support you if Tobias bullies you in the future. I only hope that the two of you can get

    married soon and give me a grandkid.¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about? You look so happy.¡± Tobias¡¯ brother, Sheldon Ford, leaned forward while

    holding an unlit cigarette in his hand.

    ¡°You¡¯re back home finally after disappearing for so many days?¡± udia shot her son a cold look as the

    smile faded from her face.

    Yawning, Sheldon replied, ¡°I was busy. Besides, I¡¯m back here now, aren¡¯t I?¡±

    Tanya had to conceal the look of disgust in her eyes as she had never liked Sheldon, who was frivolous

    and looked like a thug.

    The two brothers were pr opposites of each other, with one being so quiet that he was like an iceberg,

    while the other was so enthusiastically talkative that he was like crickets on a summer night.

    ¡°Tanya, didn¡¯t you go to France? When did youe back?¡± Sheldon asked Tanya enthusiastically.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve juste back not long ago. I got you a souvenir as well,¡± replied Tanya.

    Content is ? by N?velDrama.Org.

    Sheldon had no interest in souvenirs as he massaged his sore neck he got from the hangover and said,

    ¡°I¡¯m going to see Tobias. Just get someone to put the souvenir in my room.¡±

    Tanya nodded her head with a fake smile.

    What kind of tone is this? Is he ordering me around?

    She had made up her mind to never live with this family after marrying Tobias.

    Ever since she was engaged to Tobias, she knew she wanted to have a ce for themselves as the

    others were not important.

    ¡°Get out.¡± As soon as Sheldon pushed the door, Tobias¡¯ cold voice made him jump with fright.

    Looking up, Tobias saw that it was Sheldon, so he threw the document on the table, took off his sses,

    and pinched the bridge of his nose.

 Chapter 25

    Chapter 25

    Tobias didn¡¯t usually wear sses, except during work or driving.

    That was because Sheldon often said that Tobias looked like a well-disguised pervert when he had his

    sses on.

    ¡°Tanya¡¯s downstairs, so why are you still here?¡± Sheldon sat down on the sofa with his legs wide apart.

    ¡°Why should I be there? Topliment on her wedding dress?¡± Tobias replied casually.

    Sheldon deeply sympathized with him.

    He had met a lot of women, so he had long known that Tanya was not all that she portrayed.

    Although she was from a prominent family, the Hanson family was nothingpared to the Ford family.

    Two years ago, udia had a heart attack and fainted on the ground. It was Tanya who saved her life.

    Ever since then, Tanya took the opportunity to butter udia up until thetter grew very fond of her.

    udia wanted Tanya to be her daughter-inw. Tobias objected to it at first, but he was a filial son,

    so he had no choice but topromise in the end.

    Sheldon then proceeded to ask, ¡°Do you know Skr Jones?¡±

    At this, Tobias looked up. ¡°Why do you know this name?¡±

    ¡°While I was having a drink with some friends, Avery told me that she saw you with her sister some time

    ago. She said that Skr has been doing ¡®that kind¡¯ of business when she was in school, charging two

    hundred for one round, so her reputation was terrible. After thinking about it, I don¡¯t think a woman like

    this will be associated with you,¡± replied Sheldon.

    Upon hearing that, Tobias¡¯ originally calm expression turned cold as he warned, ¡°Don¡¯t say these things

    in front of me again.¡±

    Sensing the odd atmosphere in the study, Sheldon drew in a sharp breath. But I didn¡¯t say anything. I

    was just having a chat.

    He pursed his lips and teased, ¡°Her name sounds nice, though. But Avery has crossed the line. How can

    she say something like that?¡±

    Tobias narrowed his eyes. ¡°There are only two things you need to do now ¨C open the door and get out.¡±

    Knowing how serious his brother could get, Seldon got out of the study.

    After that, Sheldon took out his phone and dialed Avery¡¯s phone number.

    Heined, feeling displeased, ¡°My brother doesn¡¯t know your sister at all. He thinks I¡¯m ridiculous.¡±

    ¡°I clearly saw your brother leave with Skr,¡± Avery replied.

    ¡°You were seeing things,¡± concluded Sheldon.

    Avery was at a loss. Was I really?

    But it¡¯s not impossible either. I mean, why would Tobias get involved with someone like Skr anyway?

    It¡¯ll be like degrading himself.

    After hanging up, Sheldon went downstairs while whistling casually.

    Seeing that Tanya was still here, Sheldon asked, ¡°Are you going to spend the night?¡±

    Tanya nced at udia and pretended to be in a dilemma while replying, ¡°Um¡­ I don¡¯t think that¡¯s too

    appropriate. After all, we¡¯re not married yet. Besides, with a reputation like the Fords, I¡¯m afraid that

    rumors would spread like wildfire.¡±

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    Scoffing internally, Sheldon forced a smile. This woman is so full of sh*t. The way she usually looks at

    Tobias was as though she wants to strip him naked.

    udia then decided for Tanya and said, ¡°Why don¡¯t you just move in, Tanya, so that I can also look after

    you.¡±

    ¡°Mom, isn¡¯t this rather inappropriate? I¡¯m afraid Tobias will be upset,¡± said Tanya.

    ¡°I highly doubt that, Just spend the night. The two of you are going to get married soon anyway.¡±

    Tanya nodded with an awkward expression on her face, but deep down, she was happy. Yet, she felt a

    little regretful that the lingerie she wore today was not sexy enough to seduce Tobias and arouse him.

 Chapter 26

    Chapter 26

    Having been with Tobias for so long, she had explicitly hinted countless times that she wanted something

    intimate to happen between them.

    But Tobias would refuse every time, so they had never done anything intimate, not even a hug.

    She had asked him why he didn¡¯t want to touch her on several asions.

    Tobias¡¯ answer was straightforward, ¡°I can¡¯t get it up.¡±

    His words might be able to deceive some innocent young girls, but they were not convincing enough for

    her.

    She already got someone to investigate Tobias and found that he had many sexual partners outside.

    Nheless, she didn¡¯t take these things to heart as she believed that he was just fooling around with

    them. At the end of the day, she would be the one that married Tobias.

    Tanya paced before the door of the study for a long time.

    The butler saw and walked up to her. ¡°Ms. Hanson, Mr. Ford has already gone out, so he¡¯s not in the

    study anymore.¡±

    The look in Tanya¡¯s eyes was filled with anger as she took a deep breath and asked, ¡°Where did he go?

    It¡¯s already sote.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s something we¡¯re not supposed to ask,¡± replied the butler.

    At the same time, Skr heard the ttering sound of iron gates, apanied by the sound of a car

    engine being switched off,ing from the garden.

    Walking to the window, Skr saw Tobias¡¯ tall silhouette in the dark.

    He often makes unexpected appearances, doesn¡¯t he?

    As he gradually approached, Skr felt her heart start to race.

    It happens to be the end of my period today. Is he here because of this?

    Standing in front of the dressing table, she deliberately ruffled her hair to make it messy like a madman¡¯s.

    She then poured half a cup of coffee on her clothes, leaving coffee stains all over her pajamas.

    If she were a man, she would definitely not be interested when she saw such a woman.

    At the same time, Laura was also very busy as she turned off the TV in the living room and quickly

    cleaned the fruit peels on the coffee table.

    When Tobias came in, she had already stood respectfully at the door to greet him.

    Since Skr came, her life had be increasingly difficult as she did not know if Tobias would make a

    surprise attack in the middle of the night.

    When she took care of the vi alone, she had a free and happy life.

    Just then, Skr walked downstairs in her dirty pajamas while also wearing a pair of super nerdy, ck-

    rimmed sses.

    Her skin that was originally fair had now be dark.

    When Tobias saw Skr looking like this, he was obviously stunned.

    Skr scratched her leg and said loudly, ¡°You¡¯re here!¡±

    After which, she let out a guffaw.

    With a slightly indifferent look on his face, Tobias nced at her. ¡°You even dressed up to see me?¡±

    Skr scratched her hair. ¡°This is how I usually look like. I look ugly without makeup on, right?¡±

    ¡°Do you think I¡¯m stupid? Go to the bathroom now and wash yourself up,¡± Tobias instructed.

    Skr looked up at him, nearly losing it.

    Without a choice, she returned to the room slowly, while Tobias followed behind her, like a beast that was

    about to get angry.

    ¡°You have ten minutes. I¡¯ll go in if you don¡¯te out.¡±

    His words shattered Skr¡¯s hope of trying to stall for time.

    Listening to the sound of water running in the bathroom, Tobias nced around the bedroom.

    He saw a notebook that Skr left on the bed. It looked old with the poster of an old movie on the cover.

    Sitting down by the bed, he began to flick through it carelessly.

    Soon after that, he paused at thest page of her notebook, and it seemed like her budget tracker, her

    cursive handwriting beautiful and neat.

    Croissant and soy milk ¨C 10

    Yogurt ¨C 3

    Phone bills ¨C 10

    Loan to ex-ssmate ¨C 38

    Bnce ¨C 253

    The numbers left Tobias speechless.

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Looking at these measly figures, he thought that it was cute. Unconsciously, a faint smile that he hadn¡¯t

    even noticed tugged at his lips right that moment.

 Chapter 27

    Chapter 27

    She earns so much money for her boyfriend, and yet she leads such a frugal life.

    Aftering out of the shower, Skr noticed that Tobias was going through her notebook, so she

    immediately pounced on him.

    ¡°Why are you messing around with my stuff? You have no respect for other people¡¯s privacy, don¡¯t you?¡±

    However, she was no match for Tobias, who was much stronger than she was.

    He put the notebook in his suit pocket and said coldly, ¡°Did you put it there on purpose so that I know

    how short of money you are?¡±

    Skr simply admitted, ¡°Yeah, I did it on purpose. I¡¯m a scheming b*tch.¡±

    At that, she seized every opportunity to make him lose interest in her.

    Only she knew that such a nasty trick was not something she could pull.

    Tobias pulled her into his arms, rolled over, and got on top of her. ¡°You don¡¯t need to record your

    spending in the future. I can give you everything, except a status.¡±

    Hah! How typical.

    At that instant, Tobias had pinned down Skr¡¯s arms and legs. She couldn¡¯t move an inch, so he could

    practically do anything he wanted to her.

    ¡°You¡¯re a jerk, Tobias. Don¡¯t you feel sorry for your fianc¨¦e? You have to have a conscience as a man.¡±

    Tobias bit her neck, as if venting his anger.

    With his thin lips pressed against her ear, he traced the shape of her earlobe with the tip of his tongue.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never been a good person!¡±

    Burning with desire, he kissed all the way from her earlobe to her corbones and even went further

    down¡­

    ¡°No! Let go off me.¡±

    Content is ? by N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr was trembling as if currents were passing through her body.

    When she met Tobias¡¯ eyes, nothing but pure burning desire was staring back at her.

    It plunged her into a whirlwind of memories as she recalled that night. Closing her eyes, she felt her mind

    muddled and every inch of her muscle tense up.

    As tears slipped from the corners of her eyes, Tobias dried her tears with his lips. ¡°Are you that unhappy

    to be with me?¡±

    Skr said nothing. Tobias then rudely tore off her clothes. Along with the sound of fabric tearing apart,

    she came apart at the seams.

    The pain cutting through her body caused her to yelp as she tightly wrapped her arms around Tobias¡¯

    strong back.

    She raked her nails up and down his back, leaving scratch marks.

    He was not gentle this time. Instead, he was like a fierce beast that finally got to taste his delicious prey.

    The light in the room was not turned on, and faint moonlight poured in through the window.

    Their passionate session ended at two in the morning.

    With a nket over her body, Skr buried her face in the pillow in a resentful, hopeless, pitiful manner,

    looking like a damsel who had just been taken advantage of.

    Meanwhile, Tobias leaned against the headboard and smoked, with a look of satisfaction on his usually

    indifferent face.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine after you get used to it in the future. It¡¯ll definitely hurt for the first few times. Just take it

    easy next time.¡±

    There was a smile tugging at his lips. Yet, it was not a warm smile and even carried a trace of

    indifference.

    ¡°What am I? A kept woman? A sex toy?¡± Skr took the pillow away, feeling overwhelmed by

    resentment.

    The void in her heart made her feel terrible.

    ¡°Compared to your poor boyfriend, you will live a morefortable life with me.¡± Tobias exuded the

    inherent arrogance of a mature man.

    Skr¡¯s eyes were still sore and swollen from all of her crying earlier. She had epted her fate.

    Then, she said self-deprecatingly, ¡°I had a lot of dreams when I was a child, but I never thought that

    when I grow up I will be someone else¡¯s mistress, or rather, a sex ve.¡±

    Shey on the bed and turned her back to Tobias. The purplish hickeys on her smooth, bare shoulders

    depicted how aggressive Tobias had been.

 Chapter 28

    Chapter 28

    Tobias pulled the nket up to her chin. ¡°You can see our rtionship in a better light, such as simply

    dating.¡±

    His remarks made Skr even more furious, and she directly pulled the nket over her face. A

    scumbag like Tobias defiles dating.

    How could a person who only wants women for sex has the audacity to say this?

    Skr still couldn¡¯t help but replied harshly, ¡°I don¡¯t date a married man.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be too picky. Don¡¯t forget that we have a contractual rtionship. If you leave me, you¡¯ll end up

    dead. So it¡¯s not up to you to decide if you wanna be with me.¡± Tobias knitted his brows.

    He was talking about dating earlier, sounding so sweet. But now, he was threatening her with her life.

    The change in his attitude was as quick and drastic as that of a woman¡¯s.

    Tobias thought that Skr was still listening to him, but upon hearing the sound of even breathing, he

    found that she had actually fallen asleep.

    He put her hair that was sticking to her lips behind her ears, and then gently tucked her arms under the

    nket.

    After that, he sat quietly on the edge of the bed, looking at her face.

    There was a trace of stubbornness on her childlike face. She was frowning hard even in her sleep.

    After sitting for a while, he put on his clothes, nted a kiss on her forehead, and left the room silently.

    When she got up early in the morning, the pain in her joints reminded her of everything that happened

    last night.

    The huge bedroom was empty. She didn¡¯t know when Tobias left as she did not hear any sound at all.

    As a womanizer, he¡¯s quite busy, isn¡¯t he? Aftering here for sex, he still has to go home to appease

    his fianc¨¦e.

    She saw a ck credit card on the bedside table, and underneath it was a note that read: It has no

    password. You can use it as you like and buy anything you want.

    Picking up the card, Skr found Tobias to be as generous as before as he gave her a ck card.

    She opened the drawer and locked it inside.

    For breakfast, Laura prepared something nd again.

    Skr picked up a piece of lettuce with her fork and said, ¡°Mr. Ford asked you to take good care of me,

    but you do everything for convenience.¡±

    Laura took off her apron. ¡°It¡¯s good enough that there¡¯s food. Food expenses must be spent on a nned

    basis.¡±

    Detecting her tone of displeasure, Skr knew that her moving in had disturbed Laura¡¯s life here and

    that thetter could not wait for the day she would be kicked out of the vi.

    When the time came, the vi would belong to Laura again.

    She only took a few bites before going out in a hurry as it was her first day of film school today.

    It wouldn¡¯t be good for her to bete as a transfer student.

    She did not have any nice clothes or many choices, so she wore a pair of old jeans, a id sweater, and

    a wool coat, without any makeup on her face.

    After she was done getting ready, she took a cab to Southwood Film Academy, where she had been

    many times before to see Jeremy.

    As soon as she arrived at the entrance, she received a call from Tobias.

    ¡°Why are you bringing a suitcase?¡± His deep voice was heard from the other end of the line.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Feeling a chill running down her spine, Skr looked around as she felt like being under surveince.

    ¡°What else should I bring other than a suitcase to report to university? Now that I¡¯m attending a

    university, I should live on campus, shouldn¡¯t I?¡±

    ¡°Look Southeast. I¡¯m in a ck Mercedes-Benz with its hazard lights shing. Get in the car,¡± instructed

    Tobias.

    Skr nced around. ¡°Um¡­ Which direction is Southeast?¡±

    Tobias was bereft of speech.

    Hearing the sound of a car honking, Skr looked over and saw the ck Mercedes-Benz that Tobias

    mentioned.

 Chapter 29

    Chapter 29

    She then walked toward the Mercedes-Benz and knocked on the window.

    The man in the car, Tobias, wound down the window and said calmly, ¡°Get in.¡±

    Skr opened the car door and got into the passenger¡¯s seat.

    As soon as she closed the door, Tobias threw a box of medicine into herp.

    She picked it up and took a look. n B!

    ¡°Morning-after pills, huh? How sweet of you, Mr. Ford.¡±

    Without hesitation, she unboxed it, popped two tablets into her mouth, and washed them down with the

    mineral water left in a bottle in the car.

    The expression on Tobias¡¯ face turned slightly solemn. ¡°You know your stuff, don¡¯t you? Have you taken

    this pill before? ¡°

    ¡°Oh yeah, I take it like my supplement. One pill a day.¡± Skr rolled her eyes at him.

    Tobias pinched her chin, looking intimidating. ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to make this kind of joke in the future. I

    don¡¯t like it.¡±

    Feeling the pain, Skr punched his arm and asked him to stop.

    ¡°The instruction is clearly written on the box. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m illiterate!¡±

    Thinking that this exnation made sense, Tobias let go of her.

    ¡°Apply to live off-campus. You don¡¯t need to stay at the dorms!¡±

    Yet, Skr shook her head and replied, trying to discuss with him, ¡°The university is too far away, and I

    prefer convenience, so just let me live on campus.¡±

    But Tobias said contemptuously, ¡°If it¡¯s too far away, get up early. I don¡¯t think you have the right to

    negotiate with me.¡±

    At that point, Skr wished to disappear on the spot, so she didn¡¯t have to face this man, who had

    started to control her life.

    With a faint smile, Tobias stroked her hair as if he were petting a pet dog. ¡°I don¡¯t need anything from you

    while we¡¯re together, as long as you listen to me.¡±

    Although he spoke in a gentle tone, it still gave Skr goosebumps.

    She attempted to bargain with him, ¡°I am not a puppet, Mr. Ford. I have my own thoughts.¡±

    Tobias raised his eyebrows. ¡°And what are those? Doing stupid things infinitely?¡±

    In Tobias¡¯ opinion, Skr¡¯s life and what she had been through were horrible.

    Not saying another word, Skr opened the door and got out of the car. She found it hard to

    communicate with Tobias as he would not listen to whatever she said.

    He didn¡¯t continue to bother her either. Thus, she could see that he came over just to give her the pills.

    If he didn¡¯te, she would also get it from the pharmacy. Earlier, she was still worried that it would be

    awkward for her to buy it herself.

    While walking across the campus of Southwood Film Academy, she heard someone calling her name.

    It was Jeremy. He ran up to her panting and raised his hand to stop her in her tracks. ¡°I thought I was

    seeing things. It¡¯s really you, Skr. Why did youe here? Are you here for me?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here to ask you for money! When will you return them to me?¡± Skr said angrily.

    ¡°Why are you behaving this way, Skr? Is there nothing else that we can talk about?¡± Jeremy asked

    with a frown.

    Skr nodded her head and mocked, ¡°Yes, there¡¯s really none. To think that you actually have the nerve

    to spend everything like you owned it righteously. Are you not afraid of karma?¡±

    Jeremy, who was in poor health, got annoyed at that.

    With trembling shoulders, he looked at her with disappointment in his eyes. ¡°What happened to you,

    Skr? We haven¡¯t even broken up officially. Did you fall in love with someone else? Who was the man

    the other day?¡±

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    At this, Skr narrowed her eyes slightly. ¡°Yeah, I fell in love with someone else. Is there a problem? I¡¯ve

    already made our breakup very clear! If you think it¡¯s not official enough, we can have a farewell dinner.¡±

    Despite that, Jeremy refused to believe that she would fall for someone else that soon.

    The Skr I know and love isn¡¯t like this. She most definitely won¡¯t leave me!

 Chapter 30

    Chapter 30

    ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s have dinner tomorrow night and talk everything through,¡± replied Jeremy.

    Skr curled the corners of her lip imperceptibly. ¡°Sure. You¡¯ll decide the time and ce. See you then.¡±

    Seeing that she agreed to it so quickly, Jeremy was delighted.

    He knew that she was a pushover. No matter how much he hurt her, he could always pacify her easily.

    As Skr walked away, he shouted at her, ¡°Outsiders aren¡¯t allowed to enter the campus recently, so you

    should go back first.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not an outsider, Jeremy! I¡¯m a freshman,¡± replied Skr without even looking back.

    Jeremy was stupefied. She¡¯s a freshman? What-? How?

    Didn¡¯t she tear up her admission letter and give up her studies so that I could treat my illness back then?

    He assumed that Skr must have lied because she was afraid that he would look down on her.

    In the meantime, Skr headed towards her first ss, which was a dance studio, and knocked on the

    door.

    Anna, who was the lecturer, and knew that there would be a transfer student today. Hence, she

    scrutinized Skr from head to toe with an aloof expression on her face.

    ¡°You¡¯re good-looking. You don¡¯t have work done before, do you?¡±

    In order to prove that she was au naturel, she purposely scrunched her nose and then pinched it.

    Her nose remained as is, nor was it showing anything odd.

    She was also asked this question when she took the art university entrance examination back then.

    Some people even said that she wore contact lenses because her eyes were uniquely amber.

    More than a dozen students in the ss also looked at her curiously as she stood by the door.

    All the boys could no longer sit still as Skr¡¯s innocent face was simply eye-catching, even though there

    were a lot of beautiful girls in the university.

    Whereas the girls were showing not much enthusiasm toward her.

    One of the students, Lydia Schmidt, made fun of her with the rest, ¡°All the students heree from rich

    families, but look at the neer. What¡¯s she wearing on her feet? Fake Converse?¡±

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    The pretty girl, Shailene Clover, covered her mouth and whispered into Lydia¡¯s ear while keeping her

    eyes on the transfer student, ¡°I heard that she has no money to pay for tuition and would only pay itter.

    The dean only epted her out of goodwill.¡±

    Standing in the dance studio, Skr introduced herself graciously, ¡°My name is Skr Jones, and I¡¯m

    twenty this year.¡±

    Wearing a cold expression, she exuded vigor in her speech. She knew that it was best to keep self-

    introduction short and precise.

    The boys began to apud enthusiastically, while not many of the girls were pping their hands.

    Anna raised her hand to check the time. ¡°Since you don¡¯t have the appropriate attire, that¡¯s it for today.

    The ss is over anyway.¡±

    Earlier on, Skr hade here in a rush, but she was stillte. Luckily, Anna seemed to be a

    reasonable lecturer.

    ¡°Hello, Skr! My name is Harry Reid. Let¡¯s exchange numbers, and I¡¯ll add you into the ss¡¯ group

    chat.¡±

    Skr looked up at the boy who was taking out his phone. He had a neat crew cut with a fine

    countenance and clean appearance.

    After a moment of hesitation, she took out her iPhone 4.

    Harry froze momentarily as he had used the same phone model during junior high. It was a phone so old

    that even his grandfather would refuse to use it due to howggy it was.

    Do people still use this kind of antiques nowadays?

    Skr passed Harry her phone to let him key in his number.

    Harry said half-jokingly, ¡°You¡¯re quite sentimental, Skr, seeing that you like to use an antique phone.¡±

    Skr shrugged as she could not say anything. It wasn¡¯t like she would tell him that she couldn¡¯t afford a

    new phone.

    After they had each other¡¯s numbers, Harry added her into the group chat, and all the boys flooded the

    chat with all kinds of cute emojis to wee her.

    Whereas the girls simply read the chat without sending any messages, except for Lydia, who sent her a

    smiling emoji.

    Skr then replied to her with the same.

    However, the smiling emoji in the chat no longer meant happiness but mockery.

 Chapter 31

    Chapter 31

    Tobias may not understand, but I do.

    Skr subconsciously thought of Tobias, so she quickly rubbed her head to erase the man¡¯s face from

    her mind.

    ¡°Skr, your shoes are so nice. Where did you buy them? I would like to buy one for myself too.¡±

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    Skr lowered her head and nced at her shoes in confusion. ¡°Are you deliberately taunting me?¡±

    She knew the girl who spoke was Lydia as Anna had introduced her to her.

    Seeing how Lydia was unable to hold back her smile, Skr certainly wouldn¡¯t believe that she sincerely

    thought her shoes looked nice.

    Then, Lydia nced at Shailene, who was holding her arm, and the two of them smiled at each other.

    ¡°No, of course. We really like your shoes. Where did you get them?¡±

    ¡°I got them on eBay at an extremely low price. Is there a problem? Are you satisfied with the answer?¡±

    replied Skr.

    She deliberately raised her leg and showed the outsole of her shoe to Lydia right in her face.

    Backing away, Lydia said in embarrassment, ¡°Hey, watch where you¡¯re going with that! How can you be

    so uncivilized?¡±

    When Skr was a child, she was raised like a boy and often got into fights with other kids, so she often

    acted like a tearaway.

    Later, after she met Jeremy, she suppressed her nature and wanted to be a good girl in front of him. She

    even kept her hair long for him as he said that he liked girls with long hair.

    But now, she did not care anymore. She had grown to understand that people often took advantage of

    others¡¯ kind-heartedness.

    Having met all sorts of people before, she put up a facade and replied, her voice bing hypocritically

    gentle, ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry, Lydia. Since you like my shoes so much, I just wanted you to have a closer look at

    them.¡±

    Lydia red at her angrily, but the other students wereing down the stairs, so it was appropriate for

    her to lose her cool on the spot.

    Instead, she walked up to Skr and hissed, without moving her lips, ¡°Don¡¯t be too full of yourself. Just

    look at your pathetic self. No one will back you up even if you¡¯re bullied.¡±

    When Skr was selling drinks at Elysium, she had seen all kinds of cruel people. Moreover, she had a

    Devil by her side now.

    Hence, she knew no fear, except the fear for Tobias.

    Afterward, she walked around the campus and saw many construction workers on an empty plot ofnd

    near the cafeteria. A hoarding was already erected around thend.

    ¡°Did you hear? Tobias Ford, the CEO of Ford Group, has funded a new cafeteria for our university.¡±

    ¡°Oh wow, our dean is quite impressive. I didn¡¯t think that he could ask such a wealthy man to invest in

    the university.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but unfortunately, the top golden bachelor is about to get married.¡±

    Skr overheard the other students talking about the new cafeteria and froze when she heard Tobias¡¯

    name.

    Thinking of the fact that Tobias funded the construction of the cafeteria following her re-admission, Skr

    was not sure if these two things were rted.

    It was simple ¨C she did not think that she was so valuable to Tobias.

    Holding the newly issued meal card, she got herself a beef sandwich and sd at the cafeteria.

    She wanted some meat as Laura always cooked vegetables the whole time she stayed at the vi.

    ¡°Look, look! That¡¯s Avery. Wow, she¡¯s even prettier in person.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s no wonder she¡¯s named the prettiest freshman. I really envy her. Not only does shee from a

    good family and have a pretty face, but I heard that she also has a good personality and always helps

    her friends.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s, after all, the daughter of Thomas Jones, who came here as a speaker a few days ago, still

    looking so handsome despite his old age.¡±

    Skr followed the gaze of the two girls sitting at the table next to her. Then, she saw Avery and Jeremy

    walking into the cafeteria together.

    At that moment, Jeremy had also very gentlemanly helped Avery to hold her Herm¨¨s bag.

 Chapter 32

    Chapter 32

    Skr almost choked on the rubbery piece of beef in her mouth, so she wiped her mouth with her hand.

    ¡°See? I didn¡¯t lie to you. Skr is really here.¡± Jeremy immediately spotted Skr amongst the crowd.

    Avery thought that Jeremy was pulling a trick on her and was just trying to strike up a conversation with

    her. But to her surprise, what he said was true.

    Actually, Jeremy only knew that Skr was in the cafeteria after seeing the photo she shared on her

    social media.

    Avery then reminded Jeremy, ¡°Don¡¯t ever mention that she¡¯s my sister in university. She¡¯s an

    embarrassment.¡±

    Unable to grasp the situation, Jeremy scratched his head. ¡°Isn¡¯t Skr quite pretty too? It¡¯s just that she¡¯s

    not as pleasant.¡±

    Avery sneered coldly. ¡°Pretty? I think you might need some sses. Anyway, go and find out why she is

    here. What kind of university is this? Don¡¯t they have any standards when epting students?¡±

    With a shrug, Jeremy was just as confused as Avery was.

    Skr looked at the two of them whispering from a distance, and inwardlymented her fate of running

    into them.

    I don¡¯t know what¡¯s more pathetic ¨C Jeremy simpering like a fool in front of Avery or me spying on them.

    However, seeing the two of them made Skr¡¯s face cloud over.

    After Avery left, only then did Jeremy dare toe over and talk to Skr.

    It was obvious that Jeremy worshiped Avery like a goddess.

    Unfortunately, Avery was always blowing hot and cold, so Jeremy gradually realized how good his ex-

    girlfriend was.

    ¡°Don¡¯t forget our farewell dinner. Meat fondue tomorrow night.¡±

    Skr picked up her meal tray, preparing to leave. ¡°I don¡¯t have Alzheimer¡¯s, so I remember it clearly!¡±

    ¡°Okay. By the way, Avery wants me to tell you not to tell anyone in university that she¡¯s your sister.¡±

    Suppressing the anger in her heart, Skr took a deep breath and said, ¡°Why do you listen to whatever

    she says? If I had known that the person I was giving my all to save was a dog, I wouldn¡¯t have been so

    stupid that I turned my life into a mess.¡±

    Jeremy looked slightly angered. ¡°Who are you calling a dog? Skr, wasn¡¯t your life a mess, too, even

    before you were with me? With a background like yours, you can¡¯t find anyone other than me to ept

    you.¡±

    The corners of Skr¡¯s mouth twitched slightly as he was right. Before she met him, her life was not any

    better either.

    If she hadn¡¯t been taken in by her grandmother, she would have died on the streets due to the cold or

    hunger long ago.

    She was taken in in the past and was now being kept as a sugar baby.

    ¡°Hey, are you free? I¡¯d like to invite you to dinner!¡± Skr tapped on the bedroom wall nervously.

    In the meeting room, the silence was so heavy that it was suffocating. Holding their breath, everyone

    waited for their CEO to finish his call and continue the meeting.

    ¡°Probably not. Why are you suddenly asking me out for dinner?¡±

    Tobias got up from the head seat and left the meeting room.

    ¡°I just wanna thank you for taking care of me all this while.¡± Skr found that the reason she cooked up

    was so fake that she almost gagged.

    ¡°You have less than two hundred left. Is that enough to treat me to dinner? I¡¯m a picky eater.¡±

    With the phone held between her shoulders and ear, Skr found the ck card Tobias left for her

    earlier. ¡°The card you gave me isn¡¯t fake, right? I could just swipe your card.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll let you know again tomorrow,¡± replied Tobias.

    Before she could answer, he had hung up the phone. Initially, she thought that it was due to a poor signal

    and asked if he could hear her.

    Tobias had overestimated her when he said that she had two hundred left. Truthfully speaking, she had

    already reloaded all her savings onto her meal card.

    She wondered when Lady Luck would shine down on her and give her a supporting role so that she

    could at least fend for herself.

    Provided that Tobias let her go.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    A melodious ringtone of the Titanic theme song broke the silence in the bedroom at midnight.

    Waking up groggily, Skr grabbed the phone and answered it with her eyes still closed.

    ¡°I¡¯m free tomorrow. Send me the location.¡±

 Chapter 33

    Chapter 33

    Scratching her head, Skr replied, clearly annoyed at him waking her up, ¡°Don¡¯t you need to sleep,

    Tobias? Can¡¯t you tell me tomorrow morning?¡±

    The ce where Tobias was very quiet, and Skr could clearly hear the sound of his lighter flicking.

    ¡°No. I don¡¯t like to procrastinate. I need to tell you as soon as I thought of it.¡±

    Frustrated, Skr threw the phone under the pillow. She would die sooner orter if she continued to talk

    to him¡­.

    ¡°Remember this ce, Skr? We oftene here, and I¡¯ve ordered your favorite! Veggies!¡± Jeremy

    looked at Skr with a sincere expression.

    Hearing his words, Skr now truly believed that she was dumb. There were countless signs showing

    her that her rtionship with Jeremy would fail.

    Every time they had meat fondue together, they could only order two tes of the cheapest beef

    because they didn¡¯t have much money.

    She could never bear eating them, whereas Jeremy helped himself without holding back.

    Although it was a meat fondue, she mostly ate vegetables only.

    Flipping through the menu, Skr said without looking up, ¡°My boyfriend is alsoing over today so

    that you can get to know each other. And also to get the money back from you.¡±

    Jeremy¡¯s face took on a ghastly expression. ¡°I didn¡¯t say that I won¡¯t give the money back to you, Skr!

    It¡¯s a shared asset since we¡¯re together. Besides, I don¡¯t believe that you have a new boyfriend; you can¡¯t

    live without me.¡±

    Looking at how confident he was, Skr knew that she had spoiled him too much back then.

    She threw the menu on the table and crossed her arms with an indifferent look in her eyes.

    ¡°When shey on my bedst night, she didn¡¯t say she couldn¡¯t live without you.¡±

    Tobias, who had found Skr, took off his coat and sat in the empty seat beside her, with his arms

    casually resting on the chair.

    He then shot Skr a knowing look.

    At one nce, Jeremy recognized that the man beside Skr was the owner of the Maybach that night.

    Only to his dismay, Skr actually brought a man over.

    With a look of disappointment, Jeremy asked, ¡°When did you know each other?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no point in knowing when we met. We¡¯ve ended up together, as you can see. You¡¯ll be pushing

    your luck if you continue to pester her.¡±

    Tobias gave a faint smile and spoke in a clear and calm manner. Yet his words carried an intimidating

    weight.

    The reason why Skr agreed so readily to have this meal suddenly dawned on Jeremy.

    He mocked, ¡°So you¡¯re here to rub it in my face? Skr, you¡¯re too naive. You¡¯ll definitely regret being

    with such a man like him.¡±

    Tobias actually agreed with him.

    The women who were with him always ended up being dumped. It was just a matter of time.

    Raising her eyebrows, Skr picked up her cutlery and ced a few pieces of meat onto Tobias¡¯ te.

    ¡°I¡¯m not some that I¡¯ll rub it in your face. I was just bringing your creditor over today to ask when you

    will be paying back the money. Just so you know, my boyfriend has a bad temper.¡±

    Meanwhile, Tobias felt that he had been fooled by Skr. He even put off a business dinner for her,

    thinking that this was important.

    But it turned out she was using him.

    Feeling guilty, Jeremy swallowed hard and said, ¡°The money has been spent on my treatment, so I don¡¯t

    have the money to pay you back.¡±

    Through the windows, Skr pointed at the Audi parked in front of the restaurant. ¡°Sell the car, and

    check your transaction history with the bank. Then, return us all the remaining money you get.¡±

    Despite the merciless look in her eyes, she was still a little anxious deep down. She shot Tobias a look to

    get him to say something.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

 Chapter 34

    Chapter 34

    She knew too well that she would not be able to take back her money by herself, considering that

    Jeremy was so shameless.

    Jeremy said embarrassingly, ¡°A used car isn¡¯t worth much. I¡¯m not lying. How about I give you an IOU?¡±

    Skr was overjoyed as she could use the IOU in case they went to court in the future. It was a long

    game.

    ¡°Forget it. Just don¡¯t pester her in the future. I¡¯ll just treat the money as my donation to charity.¡±

    Tobias finally spoke, so loud and clear that it crushed Skr.

    She widened her eyes and looked at him in disbelief. ¡°What are you talking about? I got you to help me

    ask for money, not to give it away.¡±

    Feeling as surprised as she was, Jeremy could not hide his triumphant smile.

    He then said politely, ¡°I¡¯ll leave Skr to you then. You didn¡¯t mention your name, by the by. I can assure

    you that we¡¯ll definitely not see each other in the future.¡±

    Being materialistic as he was, Jeremy chose money over Skr.

    No longer in the mood for food, Tobias announced, ¡°I don¡¯t have any appetite, so I¡¯m leaving.¡±

    He then picked up the coat from the back of the chair, got up, and left.

    Jeremy breathed a long sigh of relief, feeling lucky that he ran into such an idiot.

    Skr ran after Tobias and called his name, but he ignored her.

    Uponing out of the restaurant, she spread her arms and stood in his way to stop him. ¡°Is there

    anything wrong with you? It¡¯s three million. Why did you ask him not to pay back?¡±

    Her perfect n was ruined by him.

    He lit a cigarette and looked at it while saying with a chilling tone, ¡°So you used me like a tool? You¡¯re the

    first to have the nerve to do this to me.¡±

    Skr was anguished. Jeremy must be so happy to have got off so cheap.

    She replied, deliberately trying to provoke Tobias, ¡°You¡¯re such a coward! Are you afraid that Jeremy will

    retaliate against you?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right. I¡¯m so scared, so I don¡¯t want the money anymore.¡± Tobias smirked.

    It rendered Skr speechless as Tobias obviously did not y by the rules and embarrassed her on

    purpose.

    The next day, Jeremy was taken away from the university by a few men in ck and got dragged into a

    ck minivan.

    ¡°Mr. Lane, we meet again,¡± A mean voice of a man was heard, causing him to tremble.

    Tobias, who had always been vengeful, let Jeremy off so easily yesterday merely because he wanted to

    remind Skr not to y games with him.

    More importantly, he didn¡¯t want her to get so much money that easily.

    As someone so cunning, she might just disappear into thin air once she got the money. The contract was

    not enough to tie her down.

    She thought she would surely get her money back, but in the end, she was still just a paper tiger.

    Tobias needed Skr to be impoverished and to only rely on him so that things would still be interesting.

    As for the ck card, it had been bound to his phone number, so he could see every transaction that

    Skr made.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    So far, he had not received any text regarding the card. What good self-control she has.

    ¡°Why did you bring me here? Didn¡¯t you say that I don¡¯t have to return the money yesterday?¡± Jeremy

    wanted to get out of the car but was stopped by the burly men in ck.

    ¡°That was yesterday. But I¡¯ve changed my mind today. It¡¯s all very normal, right?¡± Tobias replied

    nonchntly.

    Jeremy, who initially thought that he had escaped, pleaded bitterly, ¡°Let me go. I¡¯ll definitely not pester

    Skr anymore. I swear to God. Come on. Be reasonable.¡±

 Chapter 35

    Chapter 35

    ¡°Your words mean nothing to me, and I don¡¯t care about your reasoning. I¡¯ve checked your transaction

    history with the bank, and there are 2.3 million left. By the end of the day, I¡¯d like to see them all back in

    my ount,¡± Tobias replied contemptuously in a cold voice.

    Unreconciled to the fact that he would lose the money just like this, Jeremy refused to back down and

    tried to talk Tobias out of it. ¡°I can¡¯t live without this money. Besides, I know you rich people don¡¯t care

    about such a small amount.¡±

    Not wanting to waste more time on this matter, Tobias told his bodyguard, Samuel, ¡°Follow him and

    make sure he returns the money. If I don¡¯t see it back in my ount, he won¡¯t get to see tomorrow.¡±

    Before Jeremy was being taken away, he warned him, ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to tell Skr about this. Your

    parents are still alive, right?¡±

    Upon his question, Jeremy felt chills running down his spine.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    After Jeremy was taken away, Tobias sat in the car and waited for Skr to finish her ss.

    He knew that she must be very mad over what happenedst night.

    In the meantime, Skr saw the text he sent and found his car.

    This man changes cars faster than a woman changes her clothes. It¡¯s clear that he isn¡¯t a faithful man.

    In order to express her displeasure, she closed the car door rudely with a loud thud.

    ¡°I still have toe backter. Why are you here?¡±

    From the look on her face, it was very obvious that she did not want to see him.

    Just then, Tobias took out thetest iPhone model that had not been unboxed from the armrest

    compartment.

    ¡°Change your phone. You¡¯re too slow in replying to a message.¡±

    Skr casually threw the phone into her backpack and replied with a raised eyebrow, ¡°Now that I¡¯ve

    epted it, can I go back to ss?¡±

    ¡°Are you throwing a tantrum because I didn¡¯t help you get back your money?¡± Tobias deliberately asked

    while holding her hand with their fingers entwined.

    Skr shed him a bright smile. ¡°No, surely, I wouldn¡¯t dare. I mustply with all my employer¡¯s

    demands, so of course, I need to ept the phone you give me.¡±

    She sounded aggrieved while wearing an expression that made her look exactly like a flirtatious vixen.

    Tobias turned the corners of his lips up in an imperceptible smile as he found that this woman was more

    interesting than he thought.

    Skr¡¯s phone suddenly rang, so she took it out of her bag to answer it. Upon seeing that it was from

    Westside Prison, she froze.

    ¡°Ms. Jones? Your mother is released on medical parole, but why didn¡¯t any of youe to pick her up?¡±

    Skr tightened her grip on her phone. ¡°I didn¡¯t know about this. When did you contact me? What

    happened to her? Why did she apply for medical parole?¡±

    ¡°Due to some mental problems. We have notified her family members to pick her up a fortnight ago. Is

    Wesley Watts your father?¡±

    Skr was stunned. ¡°He¡¯s my uncle!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on in your family, and I don¡¯t care. Juste and pick her up tomorrow.¡±

    Skr shot Tobias a helpless look. ¡°Please send me to Uncle Wesley¡¯s house.¡±

    ¡°Do you need my help?¡± Tobias nced at her.

    Skr, who was still unsure about the situation, didn¡¯t give a precise reply. ¡°No, I think. Or maybe yes!¡±

    Her ambiguous answer brought a smile to Tobias¡¯ face.

    After they reached Wesley¡¯s house, Skr was about to get off the car when Tobias turned off the car

    engine.

    Not wanting him to follow, Skr said awkwardly, ¡°Can I go in by myself? Aunt Sharon doesn¡¯t like me

    very much. If I bring a man back, she¡¯ll definitely make a fuss again.¡±

 Chapter 36

    Chapter 36

    Being sensitive as she was, Skr was always concerned about how others would feel, even though no

    one cared about how she felt.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    She was about to get out of the car when Tobias grabbed her by the waist. ¡°It¡¯s better to have a man

    around you as you look so weak. Aren¡¯t you afraid of being bullied?¡±

    Better? I¡¯ve seen how things got ¡°better¡±st night with you around me.

    You didn¡¯t y by the rules at all and actually allowed Jeremy to get off so cheap.

    He then leaned closer to her and said with his lips pressing against her ear, ¡°I won¡¯t cause you trouble. I¡¯ll

    go in with you.¡±

    Skr noticed that his hand was moving down her body as he touched her, teasing her like how he

    always did.

    Thus, she had no choice but to agree to him.

    ¡°Who¡¯s this, Skr?¡± Standing in the doorway, Wesley scrutinized the man standing next to his niece.

    ¡°My friend¡­¡± Skr introduced him perfunctorily as she could not say that this man was her sugar

    daddy.

    ¡°Boyfriend,¡± Tobias corrected.

    Skr shot him a look. Evidently, she was ashamed to say that they were a couple.

    Wesley had met Skr¡¯s boyfriend before and knew that he was a tall young man with a gentlemanly

    appearance.

    Whereas the man in front of him now was obviously much older than Skr was even though he was

    good-looking and so much taller than Jeremy.

    Nheless, Wesley let them in and gave them two pairs of old dirty house-slippers.

    Tobias was obviously disgusted by it.

    Seeing that Skr hade back again, Sharon mocked, ¡°Why did you bring another person with you

    when our ce is already so small?¡±

    Tobias gave her a cold look.

    ¡°We won¡¯t stay for long and will leave soon,¡± exined Skr.

    At first nce, Tobias disliked how Sharon looked as her high cheekbones and thin eyebrows gave the

    impression that she was mean-spirited.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me about my mom¡¯s application for medical parole?¡± Skr asked politely without

    being confrontational.

    Sighing, Wesley replied, ¡°What¡¯s the point of telling you? Can you afford her treatment after she¡¯s

    released on medical parole?¡±

    Tobias cast a fleeting nce at Wesley. ¡°Isn¡¯t she your sister? Why can¡¯t you pay for it?¡±

    Meanwhile, Sharon cleaned the chip crumbs that were left on her fingers and said, ¡°Did you seriously

    think we¡¯ve never thought of that before? We¡¯re barely surviving over here! Where would we get the

    money for that? By talking? Huh? Why don¡¯t you tell me, Mr. Smarty-Pants!¡±

    Skr had never expected her uncle and aunt to help either, so she secretly tugged at Tobias¡¯ sleeve,

    trying to stop him from talking.

    Then, she said in a low voice, ¡°I just wanna know how my mom is doing. Someone from the prison called

    me today, but I didn¡¯t get to ask them.¡±

    ¡°Hmph¡­ She¡¯s still as deranged as ever. Listen to me, Skr, don¡¯t let here out. It¡¯ll be a burden.

    It¡¯s not like you can take care of her or even afford her treatment!¡± Wesley replied with a grunt.

    Upon hearing him saying something so mean, Skr could stand it anymore and stood up angrily, her

    eyes slightly reddened. ¡°Uncle Wesley, my mom is your sister. How can you be so cruel?¡±

    Sharon rolled her eyes at her. ¡°Hey! We don¡¯t need this kind of sister. I mean, just look at your mom!

    What did she ever do to contribute to the family?¡±

    If it weren¡¯t for Skr, Tobias would have never known how ignoble people like them were.

    Wrapping his arm around Skr¡¯s shoulders, Tobias said gently, ¡°I told you. You¡¯re just wasting your time

    here. Why must you talk about family ties with an animal?¡±

    His cruel words hit the nail on the head.

 Chapter 37

    Chapter 37

    ¡°Hey, watch it! Who are you calling an animal, huh?¡± Wesley chided him angrily.

    ¡°If you don¡¯t like hearing such a thing, then you shouldn¡¯t do something so revolting.¡± Tobias had a

    chilling look in his eyes as he said that.

    Beforeing over, Skr had nned to talk with Wesley about what to do after her mother was

    released from prison.

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Her mother was her only family now, but Wesley did not like her as she was not close with him. Still, her

    mother was his sister.

    But now, she had seen through it. Wesley wanted nothing to do with them at all.

    She leaned weakly in Tobias¡¯ arms, realizing that it was indeed better to have a man around.

    If she were here all by herself, she would not know how to face it.

    Skr said disappointingly, ¡°Let¡¯s go. Anyway, sorry for disturbing you guys. I won¡¯te over anymore.¡±

    When Tobias noticed the factory uniform worn by Wesley, a mysterious smile appeared on his face. ¡°I

    only hope that one day, you won¡¯t kneel on the ground and beg her.¡±

    Wesley disliked Skr¡¯s new boyfriend whose speech and presence were intimidating.

    He assumed that Tobias must be a middle-level manager as thetter exuded an aura.

    Meanwhile, Sharon replied mockingly, ¡°Beg her? What nonsense are you spouting? Anyway, Skr,

    don¡¯t be upset. Your mother hates you so much, and yet you still treat her like this.¡±

    Skr¡¯s blood boiled when she heard what her aunt had said.

    ¡°How I treat my mom is none of your business. I shouldn¡¯t havee today,¡± she said through her gritted

    teeth.

    Having wasted her timeing here, she felt her heart sank the moment she left the old house.

    In fact, she had been in a bad mood since yesterday.

    Looking at Skr, who appeared as if she had lost her soul, Tobias handed her a cigarette.

    Skr, who didn¡¯t know how to smoke, pushed it away and turned him down.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about your mom¡¯s medical fees. As long as you continue to be with me, I¡¯ll take care of her.¡±

    Skr suddenly broke into a smile. He¡¯s still the same as he¡¯s always been.

    He offers to help, but it alwayses with conditions, leaving me like a puppet with strings forever

    bound to the puppet master.

    Skr asked, ¡°What if we separate?¡±

    ¡°You and I are still inseparable for the time being. Our rtionship canst longer if it bes one that

    serves each other¡¯s needs,¡± asserted Tobias.

    Upon learning that Tobias wanted to maintain their rtionship for a long time, Skr was upset.

    Girls her age were having a rich and colorful life by attending universities and having fun.

    Yet, she still needed to serve her sugar daddy. After being with Tobias, the most exciting part of her life

    was the nightlife on her bed.

    ¡°Deal,¡± She said while leaving a thumbprint on the window of Tobias¡¯ car. ¡°Can you pick up my mother for

    me? I don¡¯t want her to see me.¡±

    Her request surprised Tobias.

    He even wondered if she kept a distance from her mother because thetter was a prisoner.

    After sending Skr back to her campus, he received calls after calls from Tanya.

    He had long cklisted her phone number.

    If she could not take it anymore, she could just get another number to contact him.

    She often bombarded him with persistent calls and texts every few other days.

    When Tobias reached his house feeling exhausted, he was stopped by udia at the door.

    ¡°What have you been up totely, Tobias? You didn¡¯te back for several nights.¡±

    Tobias took off his jacket and handed it to the butler. ¡°I¡¯m not a minor, Mom. Don¡¯t you feel a little

    awkward asking me this?¡±

 Chapter 38

    Chapter 38

    udia replied, feeling disappointed, ¡°It¡¯d be easier if you¡¯re a minor. Tobias, you¡¯ve never made me

    worried about you. I raised both you and your brother by myself. You-¡±

    Having gotten used to the kind of things she was saying, Tobias interrupted her, ¡°I know, Mom. I¡¯ll keep

    that in mind and try my best toe home earlier. It¡¯s gettingte now. You should go to bed.¡±

    He was afraid that udia would talk about that old chestnut and use the family to shackle him once she

    was crossed.

    Back then, his father abandoned the three of them and settled down abroad with his mistress, leaving a

    mountain of debt behind.

    As a mother, udia started from scratch while taking care of him and his brother. Although they were

    not rich, they led a worry-free life.

    When Tobias was only sixteen years old, he started his own business and got incredibly rich so that

    udia would not have to suffer again, and the man who abandoned them would atone for his crimes

    after his return.

    ¡°Alright then, head upstairs. Tanya is waiting for you. I have to say that she¡¯s really a good girl. She never

    comins about you even when you don¡¯te back.¡± udia was extremely satisfied with her

    daughter-inw.

    Every now and then, Tobias had this urge to tell his mother that he did not want to get married.

    But he was afraid that she could not take it due to her heart condition. Thus, this was a choice that he

    could not make for the time being.

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    He pushed open the bedroom door and was instantly greeted by the strong perfume of the woman in the

    room.

    Tanya was wearing a sexy ckce satin lingerie with an alluring pose on the bed.

    Her curves were so voluptuous that women would envy her and men would fall head over heels for her.

    Nheless, Tobias walked towards the bed nonchntly, while Tanyay on her side. She had her

    slender thighs exposed through the slits, and an enchanting and longing look in her eyes.

    As Tobias lifted the nket, she closed her eyes and waited for the man to grace her with his attention.

    Having been with him for so long, she didn¡¯t understand why he didn¡¯t want to touch her.

    This time, she decided to take more initiative.

    Unexpectedly, she felt a weight on her body as Tobias actually threw the nket on her.

    There was nothing more heartbreaking than being rejected after offering oneself to others.

    ¡°Tobias, what the f*ck are you doing? Do you think I¡¯m that dumb to not know you¡¯ve been fooling around

    outside? But why wouldn¡¯t you touch me?¡± Tanya finally lost it and got out of bed as she began to curse.

    There was an obvious look of disgust in Tobias¡¯ eyes. ¡°Who let you in my room? Get out!¡±

    Flying off the handle, Tanya yelled frantically, ¡°No matter what you do to me, you¡¯re my future husband.

    Even if I die, I¡¯ll die as your wife.¡±

    All of a sudden, Tobias¡¯ phone kept vibrating in his pocket, which enraged Tanya even more.

    ¡°Answer it ¨C in front of me,¡± Tanya ordered.

    The look in her eyes and her tone of voice pissed Tobias off.

    He threw the phone directly downstairs before Tanya¡¯s eyes before he said coldly, ¡°Since you don¡¯t want

    to leave, then do whatever you want!¡±

    He left the room while Tanya broke into a wicked grin. ¡°Since Tobias refuses to give me what I want, I¡¯ll

    make sure no one can live an easy life.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t get through to Tobias on the phone, so she guessed it was probably inconvenient for him

    to answer it.

    For someone like her, she should not have disturbed him at this hour.

    Although she did not know when his wedding would be held, she only hoped that he could be a man and

    let her go after he got married. As for her mother¡¯s medical expenses, she could slowly earn it herself.

 Chapter 39

    Chapter 39

    Ever since she was a child, she had understood that there was no one she could rely on. She hoped that

    everything would go smoothly tomorrow even though she did not remind Tobias.

    ¡°Are you heading to the office this early? I¡¯ll go with you.¡± Tanya got up early in the morning and waited

    for him.

    Frowning, Tobias looked at her with a gloomy expression.

    Tanya, on the other hand, added with a bright smile, ¡°Since I¡¯m gonna be Mrs. Ford soon, I have to get

    familiarize myself with thepany¡¯s operations. This is also what Mom wants me to do.¡±

    She used udia¡¯s name again as she knew very well that udia was Tobias¡¯ weakness although he

    seemed tough and stubborn.

    Whenever she was dissatisfied with Tobias, she would go to udia to fan the mes.

    ¡°Tobias, take Tanya with you. As you two are getting married, you should spend more time together.¡±

    udia came downstairs in her pajamas with faint dark circles under her eyes. It was apparent that she

    couldn¡¯t rest well.

    ¡°It¡¯s not convenient,¡± Tobias said coldly and left.

    Tanya, who was ready to go out, looked at him with tears in her eyes.

    ¡°Mom, Tobias treats me like this even when we¡¯re not married yet. What should I do in the future? He

    must be having an affair, Mom. My parents areing soon, so how should I exin to them?¡±

    She cried aggrievedly, making people feel sorry for her.

    Seeing how Tobias had treated Tanya, udia was so furious that she clutched her chest, and one of

    the maids hurriedly handed her the medicine.

    She popped two tablets into her mouth. Only then did her breathing return to normal.

    ¡°Don¡¯t cry, Tanya. I¡¯ll definitely help you out. Not anyone can just marry into our family.¡±

    Meanwhile, Sheldon was having a sandwich as he watched the scene before him, feeling like he was

    watching a sad drama.

    He also did not know why udia liked Tanya so much to a point that she treated Tobias like he was not

    her biological son.

    Unable to stand it, he said, ¡°My dear future sister-inw, my mom has a heart condition, but you¡¯re

    bawling in front of her so early in the morning. What are you up to?¡±

    Tanya wished that she could tear Sheldon¡¯s mouth into pieces right there and then.

    Holding herself back, she gave Sheldon an innocent look. ¡°Something went into my eyes. I¡¯m so sorry,

    Mom, I didn¡¯t want to cry. It¡¯s my fault for causing you trouble early in the morning.¡±

    The more understanding Tanya was, the more udia felt sorry for her as she thought of her as a good

    woman.

    Shooting daggers at Sheldon, she chided, ¡°Why don¡¯t you think before you speak? Finish up your

    breakfast quickly and go about your business. And get out of my sight.¡±

    After being made to eat dirt, Sheldon shrugged. He had a task from Tobias today, which was to go to the

    prison to pick someone up.

    He stuffed all the remaining half of the sandwich into his mouth as he needed to shut his mouth, for fear

    that he would mock Tanya again.

    At the same time, Skr was restless all morning.

    She did not know if Tobias would go to the prison or if he had already forgotten her request.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    After all, he was an unpredictable man whom she could not fathom at all.

    Thus, she now regretted not picking her mother up in person.

    She would not have asked Tobias for help if she weren¡¯t worried that her mother would be triggered and

    be mentally unstable again upon seeing her.

    When she went to visit her in prisonst time, her mother, Miranda, seemed to have lost it. Miranda said

    that she shouldn¡¯t have given birth to Skr in the first ce and ended up getting her whole life ruined.

    Not only that, but she also told Skr that she would not have lived so miserably if it weren¡¯t for her

    daughter.

    At that, Skr stopped thinking about it.

    As everyone¡¯s phone was locked away in the locker during the physique lesson, she sneaked out under

    the pretext of going to the washroom so that she could call Tobias.

 Chapter 40

    Chapter 40

    Coincidentally, she ran into Avery, who was also taking a physique lesson in the ssroom next door,

    with two girls trailing after her.

    ¡°Avery, your ne is so beautiful. It must be very expensive, right? It looks so good on you,¡± one of

    the girls said with envy.

    Picking up the pendant on the ne, Avery raised her eyebrows slightly and replied, ¡°It¡¯s okay, I

    guess. My dad likes to buy me nes and always buys me gifts whenever he goes on a business

    trip.¡±

    ¡°You have a great dad who pampers you so much. Unlike my family. My dad favors my younger brother

    more, so most of the good stuff belongs to my him instead.¡±

    Avery smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯m his only daughter, so of course, he has to pamper me. My brothersin

    as they feel like they¡¯re adopted, and I¡¯m his only biological kid¡±

    When she spoke, she held her head high proudly like a princess.

    She even gave Skr a sidelong nce when they brushed past each other as she spoke.

    Obviously, she deliberately directed her words at Skr.

    Nevertheless, Skr was expressionless and calm when she heard that Thomas pampered Avery so

    much.

    She had never experienced any kind of fatherly love, nor had she ever been showered with love and

    attention from both her parents anyway.

    She was already numb from all their ill-treatment anyway.

    Her grandmother was all she had during every festive season back then.

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    When Wesley brought his family over for dinner, she envied her cousins as they had their parents by

    their side and were showered with gifts and candies.

    Afterward, she gradually lost her expectations as the Joneses¡¯ existence no longer meant anything to

    her.

    When she went on to get her phone, Avery called out to her after asking the two girls to buy her some

    drinks.

    ¡°Did Jeremy ask you not to tell anyone about our rtionship?¡±

    Skr forced a smile. ¡°Ah, you know what ¨C it just so happens that I, simrly, didn¡¯t want people to know

    that I have a very rich and bratty sister. So don¡¯t you worry. I¡¯m nothingpared to you.¡±

    Avery enjoyed Skr¡¯s sarcasticpliment and approached her after seeing that there was no one

    around.

    Instantly, Skr took a few steps back in disgust.

    ¡°You seem to be afraid of me. That¡¯s great. If you behave well, I¡¯m ready to forgive you. In fact, I could

    even invite you back for dinner and let Dad see you if I¡¯m in a better mood,¡± Avery could not help but

    snigger as she mocked.

    Skr rolled her eyes. It was a pity that Avery was not an actress as she was so good at being dramatic.

    Not bother to waste another second talking to Avery, Skr took her phone out of her locker. She wanted

    to contact Tobias as she did not hear from him all morning.

    She wanted to know if he had picked her mother up.

    ¡°Have you picked up my mom? Is she at the hospital?¡± Skr picked at the wall anxiously with her nails.

    ¡°I¡¯m in a meeting. I¡¯ll contact youter,¡± Tobias replied in a deep voice.

    Skr tightened her grip on her phone. Without asking further, she said in a cold tone, ¡°Alright. I¡¯m

    hanging up.¡±

    What does he mean by that?

    Without further ado, she decided to go there in person while getting herself mentally prepared to be

    grabbed in a chokehold by Miranda.

    Meanwhile, Avery hid in the dark and secretly overheard Skr mentioning her mother. This b*tch really

    has the nerve toe out.

    She immediately texted her mother.

    Now that Miranda was released from prison, it was time to settle some old scores.

    Aftering out of the conference room, Tobias immediately called Skr, but she did not answer her

    phone.

    At the same time, Skr had already reached the prison but was told that someone had already picked

    her mother up.

    ¡°Who was it?¡± asked Skr.

 Chapter 41

    Chapter 41

    ¡°How would I know? In any case, it had to be a family member of yours. It was a fancy car.¡±

    A fancy car? It must¡¯ve been Tobias, then.

    I don¡¯t know anyone else who drives a fancy car apart from him. Or could it have been Jeremy? Oh,

    dream on. As if that b*stard would do anything for anyone but himself.

    Skr whipped out her phone only while making her way back home and found several missed calls

    from Tobias.

    She then called him back only to hear an especially disgruntled voice. ¡°You just got a new phone, but it

    still takes you that long to answer it?¡±

    ¡°I silenced it and kept it in my purse,¡± Skr exined. ¡°I¡¯ve just checked it. Where¡¯s my mother?¡±

    Tobias sounded slightly taunting. ¡°What¡¯s the point in you knowing? It¡¯s not like you want to see her.¡±

    He¡¯s keeping me on my toes even up till now? Skr couldn¡¯t take it. ¡°I want to see her. She¡¯s still my

    mother, after all, so please tell me where she is. Where have you taken her?¡±

    Delighted to hear Skr using the word ¡°please,¡± Tobias gave her the hospital address.

    ¡°You should think this through, though. She¡¯s not in her best mental state at the moment.¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± Skr responded half-heartedly and hung up before Tobias had even finished.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    You¡¯re heartless.

    Spotting an ATM by the roadside, she took out the ck card Tobias had given her and withdrew a

    thousand in cash. Then, she dropped by a fruit stall and bought a fruit basket.

    Memories of her past were so vague that the young woman didn¡¯t know what her own mother enjoyed

    eating.

    At the same time, Tobias stared at the notification of a one-thousand cash withdrawal on his phone and

    smirked.

    Skr was possibly the thriftiest woman he had ever met. She had only used one thousand despite

    having kept the card for so many days.

    After that, Skr carried the fruit basket to Haywest Hospital and obtained Miranda¡¯s ward number from

    the psychiatric department¡¯s receptionist.

    At the door to Miranda¡¯s ward, a young, handsome, and gentle-looking man, who was dressed

    fashionably, stood there waiting.

    The man¡¯s eyes seemed oddly familiar to Skr as though they had once met.

    ¡°Hey there, prettydy. You must¡¯ve gotten the wrong room.¡± The man stopped Skr just as she ced

    her hand on the door handle.

    Skr nced at the ward number, making sure she wasn¡¯t mistaken.

    ¡°Nope, my mom¡¯s just been hospitalized. This is her ward.¡±

    Sheldon eyed the woman before him with curiosity. Why would Tobias be interested in a girl whose

    mother just came out of prison?

    Still, Sheldon refused to let Skr in. He merely leaned against the door frame with a seemingly innocent

    smile.

    ¡°You can head in, but tell me, what¡¯s going on between you and my brother?¡±

    ¡°Your brother?¡± Skr gazed at the young man in surprise.

    Oh, it¡¯s no wonder their eyes look so alike! Although this guy looks a little softer.

    Sheldon nodded. ¡°Yup. My dear older brother¡¯s the one who made me pick her up from prison first thing

    in the morning. My name¡¯s Sheldon.¡±

    The man extended a hand toward Skr, and she shook it. ¡°I¡¯m Skr Jones ¨C a friend of your

    brother¡¯s.¡±

    Upon hearing Skr¡¯s name, Sheldon thought back to what Avery had asked him that day.

    This caused him to freeze up momentarily. What is my brother doing with such a trashy woman?

    Compared to Tanya, he despised schoolgirls who sold their bodies to men. Aren¡¯t you taking the

    phrase ¡°robbing the cradle¡± a little too far, Tobias?

    Sheldon suddenly became aloof, and his smile vanished. ¡°Your mother¡¯s been sedated, so she¡¯s fast

    asleep. Go on in.¡±

    Skr noticed the change in Sheldon¡¯s behavior upon hearing her name. He now looked at her as

    though she was an eyesore.

 Chapter 42

    Chapter 42

    Even so, Skr couldn¡¯t be bothered to care. She lightly pushed the door open, only to instantly hear a

    roaring from afar.

    ¡°You¡¯ve got some serious nerve bringing your mother here, Skr!¡±

    Skr hurriedly shut the door to prevent Miranda from hearing the voice in the hallway.

    N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    What a lively day it was, having her father and his current wife, Irene Ziegler, suddenly show up today.

    Skr was bewildered. How did they know Mom¡¯s been brought here? Did they sniff her out like dogs?

    Seeing them again made her unable to control her emotions, but she masked her true feelings well and

    met their gazes casually.

    ¡°She¡¯s just finished her sentence, so she¡¯s getting treated at the hospital. Why can¡¯t I bring her here?¡±

    Thomas red at her. ¡°You¡¯ve be so brazen after we haven¡¯t seen each other for years. You even

    took your mother to Haywest Hospital. How do you intend to pay the bills? Are you going toe crying

    for my help when yound yourself in debt?¡±

    Skr smiled faintly. ¡°What use is there calling for you? I begged for your help when my grandma was

    dying, but did you give me a single cent back then?¡±

    Irene held onto Thomas¡¯ arm in grief. ¡°This daughter of yours is getting real clever, Honey. She even

    managed to get a prisoner on death row released. If it weren¡¯t for her mother, my sister would¡¯ve still

    been alive by now. Miranda¡¯s a murderer who should die behind bars.¡±

    In an excessive act of self-defense, Miranda had identally killed Irene¡¯s sister back then.

    Skr could still recall how she had juste home from school when Miranda was being taken away

    by the police.

    She could never forget that sight. The neighbors had surrounded the young girl, gazing at her pitifully.

    Some even seemed rather gleeful.

    Skr raised an eyebrow. ¡°Oh, please. I¡¯m not that capable. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m the one setting thew here.

    They told me to go fetch her, so I did. What¡¯s wrong with that?¡±

    Sheldon sat on the long bench, spectating the family drama that was now taking ce in front of his very

    eyes.

    This girl sure has some guts to talk to her father like that.

    He nced at the person-in-charge inside the ward.

    Meanwhile, Miranda had been sedated and was probably in dreand at this very moment.

    ¡°You wench! I won¡¯t pay a single cent for the hospital bills. Your sister told me you¡¯ve been working as a

    nightclub hostess. That¡¯s disgusting! You¡¯re as despicable as your mother ¨C a disgrace to the Joneses!¡±

    Thomas raged.

    Skr¡¯s smirk was full of sarcasm. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have resorted to that if I had a choice, to begin with. Quit

    running your mouth, Thomas. You don¡¯t have the right to.¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Thomas swung an arm at Skr.

    But the young woman grabbed his wrist before he couldy a finger on her.

    There was no way she would let Thomas strike her again.

    Infuriated, Thomas yanked his hand away. ¡°Stop your mother¡¯s treatment at once, or I¡¯ll give you both

    hell for the rest of your lives.¡±

    Skr thought she had grown ustomed to this man¡¯s harsh words. Yet, histest threats caused her

    chest to tighten in pain.

    ¡°Am I interfering with your family matters?¡± A tall man slowly emerged within Skr¡¯s line of sight.

    The smile on Tobias¡¯ face remained faint, but at the same time, bone-chilling and frosty.

    Thomas and Irene turned, whereas Sheldon immediately stood up as though he had been electrified.

    Thomas watched as Tobias¡¯ eyes met Irene¡¯s. The older couple waspletely bewildered as to why

    Tobias was here. Thomas, in particr, looked, especially tense.

 Chapter 43

    Chapter 43

    Then, Tobias walked toward them before cing an arm on Skr¡¯s shoulder very naturally and pulling

    her into an embrace. ¡°I¡¯m not sure if I heard you clearly, but did you just say you wanted to give my

    girlfriend hell for the rest of her life? Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s a little too cruel of you, Mr. Jones?¡±

    Skr suddenly felt her nose tingle as an unfamiliar emotion began to build up within her.

    At this moment, she felt like a wandering boat that had finally found a port where she could dock. The

    strangest thing was that it was this devil who made her feel this way.

    Thomas waspletely dumbfounded. Skr is¡­ Tobias Ford¡¯s girlfriend? The Tobias Ford? Am I

    dreaming?

    Sheldon was even more taken aback. His gaze instantly fell on Skr. As far as I know, this is the first

    time he¡¯s ever called a woman his girlfriend.

    As Thomas remained in a daze, Tobias stared at him with his cier eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯m talking to you. Should I take silence as eptance?¡±

    Thomas took a deep breath and suppressed his fear. ¡°You¡¯ve got it wrong, Mr. Ford. I never said that.¡±

    Skr frowned slightly. To her, Thomas had always been a hot-tempered and heartless man who had no

    qualms crossing any big shot.

    Yet, he was now cowering before Tobias in fear and even trembled while speaking.

    Skr grew increasingly curious. Who on earth is Tobias, and how powerful is Ford Group?

    With a crease of her brows, Skr leaned into Tobias¡¯ arms. ¡°I don¡¯t want to see him anymore. Can you

    tell him to leave?¡±

    Thomas¡¯ expression took aplete turn, and he gazed at Skr with nothing but affection. ¡°Come

    home and have dinner with us sometime. I¡¯ll prepare all your favorite dishes.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t understand how Thomas could put on an act so skillfully to the point that it was disgusting.

    Not wanting to see that face any longer, she walked to the end of the hallway and opened the window to

    get some air. The look on her face was as though she had put on an imprable mask that concealed

    all signs of sorrow.

    I won¡¯t let anyone take me down again.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to see your mother?¡± Tobias ced a hand on Skr¡¯s waist from behind.

    Skr turned and heaved a sigh of relief upon realizing that Thomas and Irene had left.

    Had Tobias not been here, that couple truly could have been able to put a halt to her mother¡¯s treatment.

    Skr shook her head. ¡°Thanks for getting me out of that situation. I won¡¯t be seeing her, though. I¡¯ve

    already taken a peek at her through the window, and she¡¯s sleeping. She might get too worked up if she

    wakes up and sees me.¡±

    Thanks to all of today¡¯s events, Skr truly felt awful.

    Tobias took off his coat and draped them over her shoulders. ¡°The wind¡¯s really cold. If you¡¯re not going

    to see her, you should head back.¡±

    With a stagger, Sheldon leaned against the wall and pinched his thigh. Is this a dream?

    He actually gave her his coat? Hell¡¯s going to break loose if anyone at home finds out about this!

    Sheldon felt sorry for Tobias. Mom¡¯s been threatening him to marry Tanya. What¡¯s going to happen now

    that he has a girlfriend?

    After that, Skr followed Tobias into the car.

    But the moment they got in, the man pressed her down against the leather seat.

    Tobias gazed at Skr as she tried to open the car window. Is this guy nuts?

    He¡¯s acting like this even when the driver¡¯s in here too!

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I say I¡¯d take care of this? Why did you insist oning over yourself? Do you think I¡¯m ying

    around with you?¡± Tobias growled as he held the woman by her jaw.

    Skr struggled relentlessly beneath him to no avail.

    ¡°She¡¯s my mother! Why can¡¯t I see her?¡± she insisted, notprehending why Tobias was mad.

    This man is way too unpredictable!

 Chapter 44

    Chapter 44

    Tobias gazed at her sternly. ¡°You were afraid I¡¯d go back on my word and end up not taking your mother

    here, weren¡¯t you? That¡¯s why you came here to verify things. You said you didn¡¯t want to see her, but

    here you are anyway.¡±

    Skr closed her eyes. This guy¡¯s way too sharp! He knows exactly what I¡¯m thinking.

    N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    ¡°But how can I trust you? It¡¯s not like we¡¯re that close or in an actual rtionship.¡±

    Tobias let go of her and returned to his seat. Amidst his frosty presence, he silently cautioned himself to

    remain clearheaded.

    ¡°Not that close? How many times have we done it with each other? You told me all this, and I promised

    to help you, so stop doubting me.¡±

    Skr nced out the window, feeling helpless and anguished. Deep down, she was so insecure that

    she couldn¡¯t trust anyone.

    Upon returning to International Garden, Skr prepared to close the door, thinking that Tobias wasn¡¯t

    going to stay the night.

    She had also figured out his routine; the man woulde every three days for official duties.

    ¡°What are you doing? I haven¡¯t entered yet.¡± Tobias held out his arm, and Skr nearly closed the door

    on him.

    The woman cast Tobias a nce. ¡°But I thought you wouldn¡¯t be staying tonight. I have to wake up early

    tomorrow for a school trip, so I can¡¯t stay up toote.¡±

    Yet, Tobias paid no heed to her words.

    He walked to the living room and took off his necktie. ¡°I don¡¯t have the energy to spend the whole night in

    bed with you either. You, on the other hand, seem rather enthusiastic about your school trip tomorrow.¡±

    Skr removed the coat Tobias had given her and tossed it on the couch. ¡°I¡¯d only look anti-social if I

    don¡¯t take part in school activities. Besides, you should head back, Mr. Ford. Your fianc¨¦e¡¯s probably

    waiting for you.¡±

    Tobias narrowed his eyes. This woman seemed more capable of ruining the atmosphere than he was.

    ¡°You¡¯ve been mentioning my fianc¨¦e pretty oftentely. Does she bother you?¡±

    Skr shrugged. ¡°Who am I to feel bothered? I¡¯m well aware of my ce and the transactional

    rtionship that we share.¡±

    For some reason, Tobias felt slightly crestfallen. Such a feeling wasn¡¯t something he ever wanted.

    The man had no idea why he was furious at Skr.

    He pulled her into his arms and spoke above her head in his deep voice. ¡°I¡¯ve said it before, and I¡¯ll say it

    again. For now, I can give you anything apart from giving you a status. All you have to do is obey and

    trust me, and I¡¯ll never mistreat you.¡±

    Skr was no fool. Having clearly remembered Tobias¡¯ previous terms, she noticed the subtle changes

    he had just made.

    He used to promise her that he could give her anything she wanted, apart from making her officially his.

    Yet, this exception had now be temporary.

    Nevertheless, Skr obediently shed him a smile. ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll be a good girl. I want everything apart

    from being a title.¡±

    Being under his care, she had obeyed him. What kind of life have I gotten myself into?

    First, she had to sell herself for Jeremy.

    And now, she had to fawn over Tobias for the sake of her mother¡¯s treatment expenses.

    The woman couldn¡¯t help but feel disappointed. Will I ever have a chance to start over?

    Tobias, on the other hand, was rather displeased to hear Skr¡¯s remarks so calmly.

    It was obvious that this woman wasn¡¯t into him at all. She had practically been forced into serving him.

    While at the hospital, Skr hardly ate anything, yet Laura had taken the day off. But even if thetter

    didn¡¯t, she couldn¡¯t really be counted on.

    Tobias headed upstairs to get changed.

    Meanwhile, Skr went to the kitchen, finding herself a small pot and taking a pack of instant noodles

    out of the refrigerator.

    She stood in front of the stove, watching as the water inside the pot began to boil.

    Her head was filled with the scene of Tobias rescuing her from her sticky situation earlier today.

    At that very moment, Skr actually felt as though she finally had a reliable man to lean on, but Tobias

    was quick to snap her out of her fantasies.

 Chapter 45

    Chapter 45

    Tobias finished taking his shower when a fragrant aroma wafted over from the coffee table in the living

    room.

    In the meantime, Skr sat on the carpeted floor with a huge ss bowl on the table.

    Then, using a fork, she unhesitatingly proceeded to slurp her noodles.

    Such a sight was eye-opening to Tobias. All this while, none of the women who dined with him had ever

    eaten this way.

    They always said they were full after a few bites of sd or dared not even open their mouths.

    Yet, Skr nearly had her entire face in the bowl.

    Watching Tobias stare at her as though she were a freak, Skr got up and headed into the kitchen.

    Then, she swiftly grabbed another fork, walked over to Tobias¡¯ side, and handed it to him. ¡°I can give you

    some of my food if that¡¯s what you want. There are two eggs in here, and the fork is clean. I haven¡¯t used

    it.¡±

    Skr emphasized thest sentence. She knew Tobias was a germaphobe, so there was no way he

    would use someone else¡¯s fork.

    It would be a struggle for someone like him to enjoy shared dishes. He surely wouldn¡¯t be able to

    withstand having to taste another person¡¯s spit.

    To her surprise, Tobias grabbed the fork and casually tossed it into Skr¡¯s bowl. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter even

    if you¡¯ve used the fork. It¡¯s not like I haven¡¯t kissed you everywhere.¡±

    He spoke nonchntly, but his words made Skr flush a deep red all the way to her ears.

    She touched her face and silently reminded herself to calm down.

    ¡°If you want to eat, you should be eating at the dining table. What¡¯s with your weird habit of eating at a

    coffee table?¡± Tobias remarked, like a grown adult lecturing a child.

    Having a strong desire to stay out of trouble, Skr hurriedly carried her bowl of noodles to the dining

    table.

    She began to wonder if Tobias was a Virgo. Why is he so nitpicky?

    Yet, the man wasn¡¯t this particr in bed. He would always kiss and bite on her.

    Why does he have a problem with me eating at the coffee table? Isn¡¯t this what youngsters do? Or

    should I stand up and eat instead?

    Shouldn¡¯t it be fine as long as I¡¯m not eating while lying in bed?

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Still, Skr proceeded to eat at the dining table and no longer tried to ask Tobias if he wanted some too.

    She calmly slurped on her noodles even as she heard Tobias¡¯ phone ring non-stop.

    Skr pointed to her lips, meaning to ask Tobias if she needed to be quiet. It would be a disaster if the

    man¡¯s fianc¨¦e called and found out that there was another woman next to him.

    However, Tobias ignored her, indicating that it didn¡¯t matter what she did or didn¡¯t do.

    He then turned off his phone and tossed it on the couch.

    The next day, Skr woke up to find that Tobias had left, although she didn¡¯t know when.

    She casually opened her drawer and took out a morning-after pill that she had bought prior.

    It was said that this pill was harmful to a woman¡¯s body and should not be taken more than three times a

    year.

    Skr frowned as she counted silently in her head. This is¡­ the third time.

    She then remembered how Tobias had asked her if she wanted a childst night while they were both

    drenched in sweat. If you have my child, everything will be solved.

    Skr shuddered as she recalled his words.

    How dumb would I be to have his child? Wouldn¡¯t the child only end up being cooped up inside the vi

    with me? They won¡¯t even get to be a legitimate child!

    Then, I¡¯d just end up being a single mother and raise the child on my own.

    Upon hearing the doorbell rang, Laura pretended not to hear anything.

    She was a totally different person whenever Tobias wasn¡¯t around ¨C aplete sluggard.

    Skr put on her pink, fluffy indoor slippers and headed downstairs to answer the door, thinking that

    Tobias hade back for something he had forgotten.

    ¡°Hello, Ms. Jones. I¡¯m Tobias¡¯ mother, udia Stokes. Can Ie in?¡±

 Chapter 46

    Chapter 46

    Skr stood at the door, dumbstruck.

    Standing before her was a woman dressed in an elegant dress full of exquisite embroideries. Thedy

    didn¡¯t look her age, which was a clear sign that she maintained herself well.

    ¡°Come on in.¡± Skr hurriedly tied her own messy hair into a ponytail.

    ¡°Has Tobias just left?¡± asked udia.

    Skr nodded before immediately shaking her head. ¡°I don¡¯t know where he is.¡±

    A dark gleam shed in udia¡¯s eyes. This girl doesn¡¯t even bat an eyelid when she lies.

    ¡°You look young, Ms. Jones. Are you below twenty-five?¡± udia eyed the young woman from head to

    toe.

    Skr pursed her lips. ¡°I just turned twenty this year.¡±

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    udia beamed as her eyes dazzled. ¡°Tobias is over ten years older than you, Ms. Jones. You¡¯re

    practically still a kid; why would you do such unchaste things? He doesn¡¯t have time to y childish

    games with you.¡±

    The older woman spoke gently, and there was even a warm smile on her face.

    Yet, Skr felt as though she had just been stabbed by a thousand knives.

    Should I tell her about all the wonderful deeds her son has done to me, then?

    Despite that, she dared not tell the truth. Her mother¡¯s treatment depended on Tobias, and considering

    how vengeful this man could be, there was no way he would easily forgive her if she were to reveal his

    actions.

    Knowing this, Skr gave in. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t ruin his family, and I¡¯m more than willing to back out.¡±

    She spoke with a wless smile on her face.

    Then, Laura came over with some tea, not forgetting to spare Skr a smug nce as though she had

    been anticipating this day since forever.

    Skr readily nced back at Laura.

    ¡°I¡¯ve gone through your background, Ms. Jones, so I hope you¡¯ll listen to what I have to say. It won¡¯t be

    easy for someone with your background to even marry into a normal family, so what makes you think you

    can remain by my son¡¯s side? I¡¯ve seen plenty of young girls like you.¡±

    This wasn¡¯t the first time someone had brought up Skr¡¯s origins.

    ¡°In that case, you can tell Tobias not toe over anymore,¡± Skr replied calmly with a smile. ¡°I won¡¯t

    force myself into a world I don¡¯t belong in.¡±

    udia was rather surprised to see Skr remain this collected. She¡¯s a tough nut to crack. It seems like

    I have to crank up my game.

    With that, she took out a wedding invitation card with a fewrge, gilded words printed on it.

    The Matrimony of Tobias Ford and Tanya Hanson

    Even their wedding invitation cards have been made.

    Skr opened the invitation and looked at the date. It¡¯s in two weeks!

    udia smirked coldly. ¡°Don¡¯t tell Tobias I¡¯ve been here. I sincerely hope thatst night will have been

    the veryst time he sees you.¡±

    Skr raised an exquisite brow and put on an innocent face. ¡°Well, I guess I won¡¯t be seeing you off,

    udia. I do hope this is thest time you¡¯ll ever see me too.¡±

    ¡°I hope so too. You¡¯re a smart girl, so I don¡¯t have to say too many nasty things to you. After all, I¡¯m his

    mother, so I should have a say in who he ends up with.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but pity Tobias. What a terrifying mother he has.

    As udia left, the young woman picked up the invitation card, and her lips curled into a frosty smile.

    What a scumbag you are, Tobias, continuing to see me when you¡¯re about to get married in just half a

    month.

    At the same time, Tanya had remained in the car all the while, waiting for udia toe back out of

    the vi.

    Tears immediately spilled over the sides of her eyes as udia entered the car. ¡°Tobias has been

    spending a lot of time with this womantely, Mom. She keeps texting mete at night to provoke and

    humiliate me. She wants me to let her have Tobias.¡±

    She knew that udia had always despised fickle and unfaithful men.

 Chapter 47

    Chapter 47

    Years ago, udia¡¯s own husband had abandoned her and her two children for another woman.

    Yet, she had never expected that her son would behave the same way.

    udia huffed disdainfully. ¡°I just met the girl, and I¡¯ve told her everything I needed to tell her. She looks

    exactly like a vixen.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m worried that she won¡¯t listen even after you¡¯ve talked to her. She might still cling to Tobias,

    threatening to rob me of all my happiness.¡±

    udia¡¯s heart skipped a beat. ¡°How horrid could this girl be? You¡¯re too kind, Tanya. But with me

    around, no one will get to walk all over you.¡±

    Upon hearing what udia said, Tanya smiled to herself knowingly. She had recently found that Tobias

    had been especially close to the younger woman.

    Instead ofing home at night, he would sleep over at International Garden.

    Of course, there was no way Tanya could ept this, but now wasn¡¯t the time to strike personally yet.

    Thankfully, she had the backing of this ¡°foolish granny¡± who would always take a bullet for her.

    Tanya gazed out the window insidiously as the thought of Tobias having flings with another woman

    crossed her mind.

    How she wished to tear that woman¡¯s face into shreds. She had never felt this much wrath in her lifetime.

    Back then, Tanya had drugged udia, causing thetter to have a heart attack. But thanks to Tanya¡¯s

    splendid acting, she was now being regarded as udia¡¯s savior.

    Just when I thought I¡¯d finally get to marry Tobias, this other woman gets in my way.

    At that moment, Jeremy had returned the two million sum to the ount Tobias provided.

    Tobias then opened a new ount under Skr¡¯s name and transferred all of the money inside,

    although now was not the time to give it to her.

    He subconsciously nced at his phone.

    This young woman, Skr, was quite an obedient one. She would never voluntarily contact him unless

    she needed to ask for something.

    Tobias tapped on his phone rhythmically with his slender fingers, seemingly deep in thought.

    The man was increasingly beginning to feel off. All this while, he had his life under control, but Skr

    seemed to have disrupted it.

    After udia left, Skr immediately took a cab to campus and gathered among the other students.

    They were about to head to the beach for a trip, and there would also be a bonfire party at night.

    This was Skr¡¯s first time taking part in her campus¡¯ co-curricr activities apart from sports day

    previously.

    It wasn¡¯t that she didn¡¯t like socializing with others; she just couldn¡¯t bear to use the retirement money her

    grandmother had given her for such pleasures.

    The rented bus had long arrived at the school entrance. Skr kept her head down on her phone,

    waiting to board the vehicle.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    She was about to embark on a three-day trip, which meant she didn¡¯t have to see Tobias for the next

    three days. Yet, the disappointment she felt made her wonder if she had gone insane.

    Suddenly, the crowd began to rave about Avery¡¯s Mercedes-Benz motorhome.

    A motorhome like that would cost at least several million.

    Under everyone¡¯s envious gazes, Avery entered her personal vehicle.

    She wasn¡¯t used to taking a bus, so the lecturers actually made an exception for her.

    After all, Thomas had invested huge amounts in the campus.

    ¡°Come take the motorhome too, Skr,¡± Thomas said amicably after spotting Skr in the crowd.

    What¡¯s with that expression and attitude? Is he really the same man who kicked me out years ago?

    Avery turned glum. ¡°Dad! Why are you inviting Skr? There¡¯s not enough room for her.¡±

    While speaking, she hastily nced around, afraid of anyone finding out how she and Skr were

    rted.

    Yet, Thomas had already ced a hand on Skr¡¯s shoulder.

    Despite being her father, the man had never treated her so affectionately.

    Skr smiled skeptically. ¡°It¡¯s fine. I don¡¯t want to dirty your motorhome and end up having to pay for it.¡±

    Avery turned and boarded the luxury vehicle, silently furious at Thomas.

    She had no idea why her father would ask Skr to join them in the same car.

 Chapter 48

    Chapter 48

    Thank God that girl knows her ce. She doesn¡¯t deserve to sit here.

    Skr entered the bus, using her earphones to cancel all the noise surrounding her.

    She was a transfer student, so she didn¡¯t have friends or even anyone to talk to during sses.

    This isn¡¯t the university life I was looking forward to. Sheesh¡­ What a bore.

    Despite everyone sharing the same bus, their chat group was now abuzz. Lydia had taken screenshots

    of a university¡¯s forum thread and sent them to the group.

    Right before that, Skr was kicked out of the group.

    Lydia: Our ss is a hot topic now. University girl bes a sugar daddy and homewrecker? Check out

    these pictures! Don¡¯t they look familiar to you guys?

    Shailene: Isn¡¯t that Skr? Well, I¡¯m not surprised. You boys must be devastated to see how trashy your

    innocent goddess actually is. She was faking it all this while.

    Harry: These are fake, aren¡¯t they? Why would Skr still be using an iPhone 4 if she¡¯s a sugar baby?

    Colin: LOL, she¡¯s already upgraded to an iPhone 12. Getting screwed around at this age? That¡¯s

    disgusting.

    Lydia: The medical records say she has a severe case of syphilis. Whoever shares a room with her

    tonight is going to get infected.

    On the other hand, Skr had been taking a nap and had woken up only when they arrived at North

    Beach. She had no idea that her ssmates had been gossiping about her all this while.

    Everyone seemed to cast nces at her when she alighted the bus.

    She took a tiny mirror out of her purse. Is there something on my face?

    Seeing people stare at her and whisper among themselves gave her a bad feeling.

    The university had booked a three-star hotel as amodation. There were many vacation hotels in this

    area.

    Right next to their three-star amodation was King Hotel.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr just found out that King Hotel was a six-star hotel under Ford Group, but it wasn¡¯t open to the

    public.

    Only employees were allowed to stay there, and it smelled like nothing but cash just from its magnificent

    exterior.

    Mr. Duggan, the instructor in charge of the trip, began to assign students to their respective rooms and

    have them put their luggage away.

    Skr heard her name being called. She was to share a room with Lynn Holley.

    As she took her room¡¯s key card from Mr. Duggan, Lynn, who was always known for being soft-spoken,

    suddenly came forward.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to share a room with Skr, Mr. Duggan. She has a contagious disease.¡±

    Skr¡¯s lips twitched. I have a contagious disease that I myself had no idea about?

    Some ssmates burst intoughter upon hearing Lynn¡¯sint.

    Some even teased her. ¡°Thanks for sharing a room with Skr, Lynn! You just saved everyone else from

    having to do that.¡±

    Lynn covered her eyes with the back of her hand and began to cry, her shoulders trembling.

    At that instant, Skr felt utterly embarrassed. Have I done something wrong?

    She even lifted her arms to sniff herself, but all she smelled was a mild fragrant scent. I don¡¯t stink at all!

    So why are they treating me like a gue?

    Still, she asked Lynn courteously, ¡°May I ask why you didn¡¯t want to share a room with me?¡±

    Lynn looked up with tears in her eyes. ¡°Because you¡¯re filthy. You have an STD!¡±

    Mr. Duggan immediately cleared his throat, feeling awkward to learn about his students¡¯ private matters.

    Skr cursed internally. Who the f*ck¡¯s been spreading such bullsh*t? If I did have an STD, Tobias would

    kill me!

    It¡¯s true that I¡¯ve been doing it more often these days, but it¡¯s not like I¡¯ve been sleeping with more than

    one guy!

    A look of despair shed in her eyes. ¡°You don¡¯t have to share a room with me if you don¡¯t want to, but

    why are you ndering me like that? I don¡¯t have any disease.¡±

    Lynn lookedpletely distraught and began to negotiate with Skr. ¡°Let me off, please. I don¡¯t want to

    be in the same room as you. We¡¯re not the same. I haven¡¯t had a boyfriend yet.¡±

    Not wanting to dwell on this matter any longer, Skr turned to Mr. Duggan. ¡°Can I change rooms?¡±

    Mr. Duggan pped his hands to get all the girls¡¯ attention. ¡°Any girls here willing to share a room with

    Skr?¡±

 Chapter 49

    Chapter 49

    Everyone fell silent.

    Suddenly, Lydia came forward. ¡°Why do we girls have to deal with this, Mr. Duggan? None of us wants to

    share a room with her.¡±

    Even Skr¡¯s heart of steel was increasingly unable to handle the dreaded feeling of being treated like

    an outcast.

    In the meantime, Mr. Duggan was in a bind.

    ¡°Can I have my own room, then?¡± asked Skr.

    Mr. Duggan gave it a thought. ¡°We don¡¯t have that many rooms. There is, however, an empty slot in the

    men¡¯smercial room. Why don¡¯t you take that?¡±

    Skr¡¯s face instantly darkened.

    Am I not human? Why am I being treated this way?

    Then, Harry stepped forward. ¡°I¡¯ll share a room with Skr, Mr. Duggan.¡±

    Everyone stared at Harry, dumbstruck and believing he was taking one for the team.

    Skr was at a loss for what to do.

    Well, in any case, Mr. Duggan will be right next door. Harry can¡¯t do anything unruly to me.

    Thus, she agreed. ¡°I¡¯ll share a room with Harry, then. Lynn can have her own room.¡±

    With that, Lynn clutched her chest in relief as though she had just evaded a bullet.

    Skr had identally touched her hand a while ago, and thetter couldn¡¯t wait to disinfect herself.

    Skr didn¡¯t have much of a choice. If I don¡¯t share a room with Harry tonight, I won¡¯t have anywhere

    else to sleep.

    After putting her belongings down, she unlocked the room door and felt relieved upon realizing there

    were two separate beds.

    During their buffet dinner, Skr sat alone in a corner. She had only grabbed some shrimp omelet, spicy

    chicken, and a serving of vegetables.

    Meanwhile, all the other students were busy taking selfies andughing their hearts away.

    They would also steal a few obscure nces at Skr from time to time.

    Skr felt destepared to all the liveliness around her.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Then, Harry came over with his food and sat across Skr. He tried to strike up a conversation with her

    but couldn¡¯t seem to do so for some reason.

    Ultimately, it was Skr who spoke up first. ¡°Thanks for what you did back there. You were kind enough

    to spare me a bed. I wouldn¡¯t havee if I knew this would happen. I didn¡¯t think everyone hated me

    this much.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that you¡¯ve ever pissed them off or anything. Have you not seen the campus school forums?¡±

    Harry felt so sorry for her that he couldn¡¯t help but bring this up.

    Indeed, Skr knew nothing. She didn¡¯t even know how the other students knew her or the fact that they

    had been looking at her pictures.

    Pictures of her kissing someone had spread across many chat groups by now.

    Skr shook her head. ¡°What forum? I know nothing about such things. Is there some big news? Well, I

    don¡¯t really care anyway.¡±

    Ever since she learned that Avery was voted as the ¡°goddess who only appears once every three

    thousand years,¡± Skr no longer wanted anything to do with the forums. She figured that Avery had

    bought all those votes for herself.

    Avery didn¡¯t look particrly ugly, but she certainly was no national beauty, let alone a once-every-three-

    thousand-years kind of beauty.

    Not daring to get straight to the point, Harry picked up his te and left, but not before advising, ¡°You

    should take a look anyway. There are lots of stories about you.¡±

    With that, Skr whipped out her phone and opened the school forums. Lo and behold, the very first

    thread was about her.

    Freshman student Skr Jones seduces a married man and works as a sugar baby! Are her morals that

    loose, or is the temptation of money too much for her to handle?

    Skr read every single word on the headline.

    Before even tapping into the thread, she felt her head spin upon noticing it contained thousands of

    comments.

    The young woman had never expected to be the talk of the town in such a way.

 Chapter 50

    Chapter 50

    Skr knew that her dark secret with Tobias would one daye to light and that she couldn¡¯t hide it

    forever.

    As she opened the thread, her pupils immediately constricted, and her fingers turned pale from holding

    her phone so tightly.

    ¡°F*ck! Who the hell did this?¡± she muttered.

    The man in the photo wasn¡¯t even Tobias; it was a balding, greasy-looking old man who had a beer belly

    as huge as that of a woman who about to give birth.

    And in the photo, Skr was shown to be kissing this man. I¡¯ve never even met him!

    There were even screenshots of some sort of chat history, and the woman¡¯s profile picture belonged to

    her.

    The conversation was filled with messages more provocative and steamy than what one woulde

    across in adult novels.

    Then, Skr scrolled to the bottom of the thread. There was a medical report stating she had an STD.

    With that, Skr finally figured it out. It¡¯s no wonder they¡¯ve been avoiding me like the gue.

    In thements, there are people who asked for her contact.

    Some asked how much she charged. Some even imed to be rich and offered to be her sugar daddy.

    Skr had no idea who could have been so horrendous as to Photoshop her pictures and upload them

    to the forums.

    The youngdy suddenly felt thankful that she had experienced her fair share of tough circumstances in

    the past. Otherwise, she probably would have wanted to die at this very moment.

    Skr immediately sent the thread link to Penelope, who spent every single day coding.

    Skr: Help me, Penelope! I need the IP address to this thread.

    Penelope: Holy sh*t, Skr. What the f*ck is this! What¡¯s wrong with you? You kissed an old man? Aren¡¯t

    you only into hot guys?

    Skr: Of course, I didn¡¯t, you dumba**! Help me find out who did all this to me!

    Penelope: The picture¡¯s obviously been Photoshopped. Give me a moment. A rookie like me needs

    some time.

    Skr: Okay. I¡¯m already viral anyway, so it doesn¡¯t really matter if you take your time.

    Skr put her phone back into her pocket and decided to head back to her room for some rest.

    On her way there, she bumped into Lydia and several other girls, all of whom had malicious smiles on

    their faces.

    Don¡¯t get worked up, Skr. You¡¯ll get tumors easily if you do. You can¡¯t afford to have cancer.

    Skr silently repeated these few sentences in her heart.

    ¡°Hold it right there, Skr,¡± Lydia called out haughtily.

    Skr put the te she was about to toss into the recycling bin back on the table and turned to the

    group ofdies with a frown.

    These girls were all Lydia¡¯s bootlickers, and Shailene was their leader.

    It was well-known that Lydia¡¯s father was a famous director, so many tried to butter the girl up.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid I¡¯d infect you?¡± Skr had azy but cocky look on her face.

    Such a look gave the girls an impression that Skr had a disease worth everyone¡¯s praise and envy.

    ¡°You should apologize to us since you¡¯ve humiliated the entire ss.¡± As the ss president, Lydia felt

    like she now had a huge burden on her shoulders due to everything that had transpired.

    Skr scoffed, ¡°Was I the one who posted the thread? I¡¯m a victim too, for God¡¯s sake! Why should I

    have to apologize to you? Don¡¯t you find that weird?¡±

    Just then, Shailene stepped forward and remarked mockingly, ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have done such things if

    you didn¡¯t want to be exposed, then. I still can¡¯t believe it. You actually slept with a geezer? Didn¡¯t you

    feel disgusted seeing all those liver spots when he got naked?¡±

    Skr raised an eyebrowzily. ¡°Oh wow, you actually sound rather experienced. Have you ever

    watched an old man strip himself naked?¡±

    Hearing her taunts, Shailene raised an arm in embarrassment and fury. ¡°You jinx! You should¡¯ve never

    joined our ss, you shameless homewrecker!¡±

    The word ¡°homewrecker¡± made Skr turn numb.

    Was I even given a choice?

    I¡¯ve never wanted to do such a thing. All I wanted was to study hard and make an earnest living.

 Chapter 51

    Chapter 51

    She had been abandoned by her ex-boyfriend, and now, she was being treated like a mistress by

    Tobias. Why does life have to be so hard? I just want to live like a normal girl.

    As Skr spaced out, Shailenended a hard p across her face.

    Skr clutched her burning cheek. With rage boiling in her eyes, she pounced onto Shailene. ¡°You¡¯re

    f*cking mad, Shailene! What was that for?¡±

    She grabbed Shailene by the cor, her eyes filled with killer instincts.

    Yet, she suffered serious injuries while her opponents remained unscathed.

    Skr spat a mouthful of blood on the floor. Her lip was now bleeding aftering into contact with her

    teeth, and there were a few slits on her arms. Blood seeped out of one of those wounds.

    The young woman also lost a few strands of hair. The stress she had been in recently made her more

    prone to hair loss.

    She had even named every strand of her hair.

    Unfortunately, Jenny, Linda, Jackie, and so on were now in between Lydia¡¯s fingers.

    The five girls ganged up on Skr, and it was clearly a losing battle for thetter.

    Right then, Mr. Duggan arrived just as Skr picked up a chair.

    Then, he called them to the beach. The evening breeze brushed against their faces, and the air carried a

    hint of saltiness and humidity.All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    ¡°Getting into a fight at a hotel? Do you have no shame?¡± Mr. Duggan¡¯s brows creased as he took a puff

    of his cigarette.

    The smoke wafted over to Lydia, causing her to cover her nose.

    Seeing that, Mr. Duggan immediately put out his cigarette and tossed it onto the sand.

    ¡°Skr started it,¡± the five girls said in unison while pointing at Skr.

    At that very moment, Skr felt her phone vibrating, and she took it out. It was Tobias. Unable to pick up

    right now, she rejected the call.

    This only infuriated Mr. Duggan. ¡°What¡¯s with that attitude, Skr? You¡¯re ying with your phone even

    at this time?¡±

    Lydia stifled augh. ¡°It¡¯s probably the geezer calling her.¡±

    Then, she let out an exaggerated cry. ¡°Oh, no! Your old man won¡¯t get back at us, will he? We¡¯re in

    trouble! What should we do?¡±

    Skr shot her a re. ¡°You¡¯re not too bad-looking, but it¡¯s unfortunate you were born with a mouth.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s enough, Skr. You¡¯ll be punished when we get back. You¡¯d better stop hitting your ssmates.

    Can you even pay the price if you hurt them?¡±

    Skr showed the clueless man her arms. ¡°They¡¯re the ones who ganged up on me! Why should I be

    punished?¡±

    Even so, Mr. Duggan dared not take any action against Lydia, whose father was one of the most

    established directors in the entertainment industry.

    On the other hand, Skr was a transfer student who had been given a spot through connections. She

    certainly didn¡¯t have much of a reputation.

    Mr. Duggan pointed at her. ¡°Judging from your character, they must have had a reason to hit you.¡±

    The five other girlsughed gloatingly.

    Skr gazed at the nest of snakes before her. Despite feeling upset deep down, her outer appearance

    remained cold and defiant.

    ¡°Fine. I guess I deserved it. Even if I were to get beaten to death one day, I¡¯d still be the one being

    punished.¡±

    Skr turned, only to be called by Mr. Duggan to remain standing at the beach as punishment.

    Even so, Skr couldn¡¯t be bothered to listen to him.

    ¡°Just you wait, Skr Jones!¡± the livid instructor yelled. ¡°You¡¯ll be getting a serious demerit, and not even

    the gods will be able to save you then!¡±

    Skr returned to her room. Seeing Harry there too, she wearily said hi to him.

    Harry rummaged through his luggage and handed Skr a few band-aids.

    ¡°You actually brought band-aids with you? You¡¯re more thorough than some girls are. Thanks, Harry,¡±

    Skr remarked with a smile.

    Then, Harry took out a bottle of iodine and some cotton swabs. ¡°Don¡¯t get on Lydia¡¯s and Shailene¡¯s bad

    side. Lydia¡¯s dad is a famous director, and Shailene¡¯s dad is a manager in Ford Group. You¡¯ve heard of

    Ford Group, haven¡¯t you? I¡¯m sure everyone knows them.¡±

 Chapter 52

    Chapter 52

    Skr smirked disdainfully. ¡°It¡¯s no wonder they get to pick on anyone they want. I¡¯ve never even pissed

    them off.¡±

    ¡°Maybe you¡¯re just too pretty,¡± Harry responded half-jokingly. ¡°Some girls tend to be mean to those who

    are prettier than them.¡±

    Skr stuck a band-aid on her arm. There were scratch marks on her neck too, but she felt bad using up

    too many of Harry¡¯s band-aids and returned the rest to him.

    It waste into the night now. Skr gazed out the window, feeling like she still had something else to

    take care of.

    Suddenly, it crossed her mind. Her phone was in silent mode, and Tobias had given her a call earlier.

    She took out her phone and found two missed calls from Tobias.

    At that, Skr hurriedly returned the call so as to not anger him.

    It took a long while for the man to answer his phone.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you pick up?¡± That was the first thing Skr heard Tobias say.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    ¡°I was busy. Did you need something from me?¡± Skr asked while gazing at the scars on her neck

    through a mirror.

    ¡°Hey, Skr, are you going to use the shower yet, or should I go first?¡± Harry walked out of the bathroom

    and asked in a loud and clear tone.

    At that very moment, Skr just wanted to die. She waved her hand in a panic, signaling Harry to shut

    up.

    Then, she let out a few coughs to hide her guilt. ¡°The TV¡¯s a little too loud. Let me lower the volume.¡±

    ¡°The female lead of a TV series happens to have the same name as you do?¡± Tobias¡¯ voice was the

    coldest it could ever be by now.

    Still, Skr put on a calm act. ¡°Really? I didn¡¯t hear it. You must have misheard.¡±

    ¡°I heard everything loud and clear. Where are you? Are you sleeping around with another man?¡±

    Sweat began to drip down Skr¡¯s forehead. Why do I have such sh*t luck?

    She could already imagine the look on Tobias¡¯ face. The man probably wanted to kill her now.

    ¡°There weren¡¯t enough rooms, so I¡¯ve been assigned to share one with a guy from my ss. Don¡¯t get

    the wrong idea.¡±

    Skr tried her best to exin herself, but in truth, even she would have a hard time believing herself if

    she didn¡¯t know any better.

    In fact, the young woman wanted to tell Tobias that she had a man in her room ¨C a handsome one at

    that.

    But she wasn¡¯t ready to die yet.

    ¡°Do you think I¡¯d believe that? Have you no shame, Skr Jones?¡± The way Tobias spoke could instantly

    send chills down one¡¯s spine.

    Seeing how unusually pale Skr looked, Harry wanted to ask if she needed help. Yet, thedy merely

    covered his mouth, reminding him to stay quiet.

    ¡°Well, there¡¯s nothing I can do if you don¡¯t believe me. You can alwayse over and see for yourself.

    Anyway, my phone¡¯s about to die. See ya.¡±

    With that, Skr hurriedly ended the call, feeling terrified to her bones. She couldn¡¯t take it anymore. It

    felt as though Tobias could murder her even through the phone.

    Tobias pursed his lips upon hearing the cold beeping noise from over the line. Despite his eyes looking

    like a pair of ciers, the man was now boiling with anger while also feeling slightly pained.

    The sounds ofughter filled his ears as he walked out of the study. Tanya¡¯s parents hade and were

    busy chatting away downstairs.

    Seeing Tobias finallye down, udia waved at him. ¡°Come over, Tobias. Your parents-inw haven¡¯t

    seen you in a while.¡±

    Tobias merely shot them a cold nce and said to udia, ¡°I¡¯m heading out. I have something to take

    care of.¡±

    ¡°What could you be doing outside at this hour?¡± udia grumbled. ¡°Your inws flew more than ten

    hours just toe back.¡±

    Tanya held Tobias by the arm, sounding rather unhappy. ¡°No matter how busy work gets, there¡¯s nothing

    more important than family.¡±

    Despite that, Tobias removed his arm from her grasp and remarked indifferently, ¡°You can manage even

    without me around.¡±

    With that, the man left, and a cold glint shed in Tanya¡¯s narrowed eyes.

 Chapter 53

    Chapter 53

    udia tried to ease the awkward situation. ¡°Tobias has way too much to handle at work. Don¡¯t mind

    him.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t even spare Nathan any proper eye contact.

    Yet, no matter how grim he felt about this, Nathan still had to put on an act and beam at udia. ¡°Don¡¯t

    worry about us. We¡¯ll be back for a while anyway. Let¡¯s not disrupt Tobias¡¯ ns.¡±

    Hiding her emotions well, Tanya chimed in gently, ¡°He¡¯s always like that when he gets busy. Anyway, I

    believe you¡¯re all hungry now. Let¡¯s eat.¡±

    Truthfully, Tanya couldn¡¯t enjoy her meal at all. She was instead consumed by thoughts about Tobias

    meeting that other woman.

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    I wonder what he¡¯d think if he sees what I uploaded earlier today.

    It¡¯s no fun screwing that woman over with just one move. I¡¯m going to take my time tormenting her.

    Nathan and Gillian called Tanya over to the guest room they were staying in at short notice.

    Finally, the man could unleash all his wrath. ¡°What¡¯s going on, Tanya? It doesn¡¯t matter how Tobias treats

    us, but why is he so cold toward you as well? He doesn¡¯t give a damn about our family!¡±

    Tanya folded her arms and gazed at Nathan, her eyes filled with mockery. ¡°Why should they ever give a

    damn about us? Our family business means nothing to them. Do you think you¡¯d ever get to be part

    of their family if I hadn¡¯t saved udia?¡±

    Nathan¡¯s heart turned cold. ¡°Are you saying I¡¯m not capable enough as your father and that I¡¯m dragging

    you down?¡±

    Tanya smirked. ¡°Is that not how it is? I¡¯d never get a chance to marry into the Fords if I had only

    depended on you.¡±

    With his own daughter trampling all over his ego, Nathan was instantly filled with rage.

    On the other hand, Gillian was on Tanya¡¯s side.

    She proceeded to chastise Nathan¡¯s ipetence too.

    Despite being a real estate magnate, Nathan was well aware of how insignificant he waspared to

    Ford Group.

    Still, he couldn¡¯t help but feel extremely resentful toward this mother-daughter duo.

    Gillian turned to her daughter, feeling heartbroken. ¡°How will you ever find happiness if Tobias keeps

    treating you this way, Tanya?¡±

    Tanya merely scoffed at the mention of happiness. ¡°Tobias is a man who has no feelings whatsoever. All

    I wanted was to be hiswful wife. I¡¯m sure I can get a rock like him to open up to me as time passes.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing we can do to help you. Take care of yourself,¡± Nathan muttered in annoyance.

    Tanyaughed gloatingly. ¡°It¡¯s not like you¡¯ve ever had a hand in giving me what I have today anyway. Do

    your best to tter the Fords now that you¡¯re here. Spend lots of time with udia and tell her nothing

    but good things about me. If she ever asks, tell her I¡¯ve never had a boyfriend and that I¡¯m an old-

    fashioned girl. Don¡¯t ever tell her my birthdate.¡±

    Gillian patted her own chest. ¡°You know how good I am at this. But what¡¯s with your birthday?¡±

    Tanya merely rolled her eyes and replied impatiently, ¡°Don¡¯t ask too much. Just do as I say.¡±

    This was a secret that only Tanya knew.

    udia was a firm believer in numerology and geomancy. Even Tobias strongly believed in such things

    too.

    Way before this, Tanya had gotten someone to measure herpatibility with Tobias, and the two were

    not suited for each other.

    The numerologist had even told her not to force something that wasn¡¯t meant to be.

    Yet, the woman was adamant about changing her fate, so she had given udia a fake birthdate.

    Naturally, Tanya was eventually revealed to be a perfect match for Tobias.

    This made udia even more delighted, and she approved of Tanya as her daughter-inw.

    Upon walking out of the guest room, Tanya gave Tobias a call. The man never picked up, thus causing

    the smile on her lips to vanish.

 Chapter 54

    Chapter 54

    You can y around with women if that¡¯s what you want, Tobias. But you should be well aware of who

    your actual wife is.

    She was determined to get rid of every single obstacle in her way.

    ¡°Are you hungry?¡± With a cup of instant noodles in his hand, Harry walked over to Skr, who was sitting

    crossed-legged on her bed reading.

    Skr took the noodles from Harry but gave them back after some thought.

    Her throat was in so much pain that even swallowing her own saliva felt like torture, what more to say

    eating something.

    The anger she felt only made her throat swell up too.

    Even she didn¡¯t know why she was furious. Was it because of the thread or those girls? Or was it

    because of Tobias?

    None of these were any less bothersome or trivial than the other.

    Suddenly, a knock came on the door. Skr and Harry figured it was room service.

    With that, Harry walked to the door and said loudly, ¡°We don¡¯t need any room service. We¡¯re about to

    sleep.¡±

    The knocking only grew louder.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr, who was just about to send Penelope a text, found this increasingly strange.

    Why does the knocking sound more like someone who¡¯s after revenge rather than room service?

    Feeling vexed, Harry opened the door only to find several police officers standing before him.

    He was petrified.

    ¡°We¡¯ve received a report that someone¡¯s engaging in prostitution. Come with us.¡±

    Skr was dumbfounded to hear this.

    She put on her slippers and walked to the door, exining, ¡°There must be a mistake. We¡¯re on an

    excursion.¡±

    The leading officer rolled his eyes, sounding especially impatient. ¡°A guy and a girl sharing a room during

    an excursion? Don¡¯t give me that nonsense. You¡¯reing with us to have your statements recorded.¡±

    Harry was so flustered that his legs turned to jelly. Then, he gazed at Skr.

    The young woman merely put on her coat and looked no different from usual. ¡°I¡¯ve done nothing wrong,

    and I believe the police will never wrongfully punish the innocent.¡±

    She had a hunch as to who had reported them. It has to be those girls.

    They¡¯re so wicked that they¡¯re beyond saving.

    As the two were taken away by the police, Harry began to regret looking out for Skr.

    She really is a jinx ¨C no, the gue itself!

    Thus, he didn¡¯t speak to Skr throughout the rest of the trip.

    Upon arriving at the police station, Skr noticed many women in skimpy outfits holding their heads and

    kneeling against the wall.

    Captain Link pointed to where they were. ¡°Go kneel over there.¡±

    Skr refused. ¡°Why should I? I did nothing wrong.¡±

    Captain Link scoffed, ¡°That¡¯s what eight out of the ten women here said too. You¡¯re so young; why would

    you resort to earning a living this way?¡±

    A grim-looking Harry was brought into the interrogation room first.

    As Skr remained uncooperative, a few officers proceeded to pin her against the wall with such force

    that she felt like her bones could break.

    Right next to her was a young woman with ck stockings and an afro. ¡°Hey, girl! Where are you based?

    I¡¯ve never seen you before,¡± she whispered.

    Skr chose not to respond. She merely took a deep breath. So much for the trip. Here I was, thinking to

    be less anti-social. Hah! At the rate we¡¯re going, I¡¯d rather stay at home forever!

    Feeling cold, tired, and hungry, it was soon her turn to be brought into the interrogation room.

    With a brightmp shining directly onto her face, a few stern-looking officers sat in front of her. ¡°You¡¯ll be

    fined three thousand and detained for fifteen days.¡±

    What? I¡¯m getting convicted before even being asked any questions!

    ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything wrong! Why do I have to be detained? You didn¡¯t even write anything down!¡± she

    demanded in frustration.

    The leading female officer¡¯s voice sounded much more shrill than the men¡¯s. ¡°Young women these days

    sure are shameless, acting all pitiful after doing such despicable things. If my daughter ever grows up to

    be like you, I¡¯d break her legs without even thinking twice.¡±

 Chapter 55

    Chapter 55

    Skr let out a coldugh. ¡°I did nothing wrong. You can¡¯t detain me, and I won¡¯t pay the fine.¡±

    At this very moment, someone entered the interrogation room and muttered a few words to the officers.

    With a sudden change in their expressions, they hurriedly left the room.

    Skr remained seated on the chair with no one attending to her.

    She didn¡¯t even have any water to soothe her dry throat.

    As the hallway outside the interrogation room bustled with noise, Skr shut her eyes in distress. The

    light was so ring that it hurt.

    The door opened about ten minutester, and the three officers from earlier walked back in, but their

    attitudes had changedpletely.

    ¡°Someone is here to see you,¡± the female officer said with a wide smile.

    Then, Tobias¡¯ taunting voice could be heard. ¡°You sure are something, going from your trip to the police

    station all in a day.¡±

    Skr gazed at him in shock. ¡°What are you doing here? How did you know where I was?¡±

    Never mind. That¡¯s a stupid question. She immediately regretted asking.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Tobias had everything in the palm of his hand, and finding someone would be a piece of cake for him.

    There was no one he couldn¡¯t find ¨C unless he didn¡¯t want to, of course.

    Seeing Tobias show up caused a mix of emotions to swirl within Skr.

    With a sniffle, she unleashed all the indignation she felt and squeezed out as many tears as she could.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been wrongly used. They brought me here without even getting their facts straight. I¡¯m cold,

    hungry, and tired. What have I done wrong? Have I harmed or stolen from anyone, huh?¡±

    Skr broke out into a sob as tears streamed down her face.

    She was now using everything she had learned during acting sses on Tobias.

    Meanwhile, the police officers standing outside the door felt like they were dealing with a bomb that could

    detonate at any moment.

    They looked utterly despaired while discussing among themselves, and the atmosphere had grown

    tense.

    ¡°Tobias Ford¡¯s here for her? We¡¯re screwed now. How could we have captured his own people?¡±

    ¡°The director has already called. We¡¯re about to be punished severely and get a full-blown lecture.¡±

    ¡°Punished? We may not even get to keep our jobs! That girl is a jinx!¡±

    Tobias ran his coarse fingers across Skr¡¯s face. They were now wet from her tears.

    ¡°Don¡¯t force yourself to cry if you can¡¯t do it. You deserve to be cold and hungry,¡± the man remarked with

    a sneer.

    Skr sniffled again. ¡°Did youe here just to watch me make a fool of myself? I guess you¡¯re happy

    now, then. You can leave whenever now that you¡¯ve seen enough.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ gaze darkened. Like hell I¡¯m here to watch you suffer.

    Do you think I¡¯d spend a few hoursing all the way to North Beach just to watch you turn yourself into

    aughing stock? As if I have the time for that.

    With only the two of them inside the interrogation room, Skr got up to leave with Tobias.

    Despite telling the man to leave, her actions spoke louder and more honestly.

    ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± Tobias gazed at the handcuffed woman.

    Skr was puzzled. ¡°Aren¡¯t you here to get me out?¡±

    She began to panic. Tobias was always so unpredictable that she could never tell what he was thinking.

    When Skr just saw the man earlier, she thought he hade to save her from her predicament. Yet,

    he was behaving this way now.

    He could actually p any crime on me and get me locked up for as long as I want.

    Tobias leaned toward Skr¡¯s face until their noses touched, and he gazed deeply into her eyes.

    ¡°Why should I get you out of here when you¡¯ve done something so disgusting? Do you take me as

    someone who¡¯d be interested in a piece of trash?¡±

 Chapter 56

    Chapter 56

    Skr gazed back into Tobias¡¯ eyes, showing no intention to back down. ¡°I said I¡¯ve been wrongly

    used. I haven¡¯t done anything wrong. Why would I sell myself out anyway? It¡¯s not like I¡¯m that

    insatiable or that the ck card you gave me isn¡¯t enough! I¡¯m no saint, but you should stop judging

    others based on your own preconceptions!¡±

    Tobias lifted Skr¡¯s chin. The woman had such a firm look in her eyes, perfectly concealing her nerves.

    ¡°You act all high and mighty in front of me, but why couldn¡¯t you say anything to the cops? All you did

    was feign innocence.¡±

    The way he grabbed Skr¡¯s chin hurt so much that she began to grip his arm tightly.

    With that, Tobias let go of her and left the interrogation room.

    Skr called out to the man, only to watch him leave. She then slouched over the table.

    At one point, the woman thought a Prince Charming was about to save her from this mess.

    s, she forgot that Tobias was far from a Prince Charming; he was a wolf that devoured everything

    without even leaving any bones behind.

    A few minutester, Skr was taken out of the interrogation room. Her hands instantly felt lighter after

    having her cuffs removed.

    Tobias stood at the end of the hallway not far from her, and next to him was an elderly, white-haired man

    dressed in a police chief¡¯s uniform.

    The man continuously bowed his head, while Tobias looked haughty as usual.

    Standing afar, Skr couldn¡¯t hear what they were talking about.

    Then, the female officer, who had talked about breaking her own daughter¡¯s legs, called out to Skr.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry about what I said earlier, Ms. Jones. I went too far. Don¡¯t take it to heart, okay? Please tell Mr.

    Ford to let us off. We can¡¯t afford to lose our jobs.¡±

    Skr furrowed her brows. Once again, she had experienced a taste of Tobias¡¯ power over thew and

    authorities.

    Even the female officer who had behaved so arrogantly before this was now apologizing to her.

    Still, Skr had no mercy to spare. ¡°Well, that¡¯s your problem. You cops are supposed to fight for justice,

    but instead, you used me of things I never did. You deserve to lose your jobs.¡±

    The female office burst into tears. How could this girl be so cruel? She has no sympathy at all.

    It was already past midnight by the time Skr and Tobias walked out of the police station. They weren¡¯t

    far from the sea, so the night breeze was especially chilly.

    Tobias took off his ck windbreaker jacket and tossed it toward Skr.

    Thetter failed to catch it, thus causing it to fall to the ground.

    Seeing the jackete into contact with the soil on the ground, Skr hurriedly bent over to pick it up

    before dusting the dirt off it.

    She looked rather unusual wearing the outerwear of a man of Tobias¡¯ height but instantly felt much

    warmer thanks to it.N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    Instead of feeling cold, her stomach began to growl now. The young woman was so famished that she

    could even smell seafood in the air.

    Harry, who had also been released, was still furious over tonight¡¯s events. He spotted Skr leaving with

    a man in a ck suit and entering a Maybach.

    Despite not catching a glimpse of the man¡¯s face, Harry saw his figure clearly. The man was tall and

    broad, and he had short hair.

    He¡¯s definitely not the old man in the thread.

    How many men does that girl even have, then?

    Inside the car, Skr¡¯s heart raced as though she hadmitted a crime.

    ¡°I¡¯ll return your jacket after washing it,¡± she finally said, breaking the silence. ¡°But I can give it back to you

    now if you¡¯re cold.¡±

    ¡°It can¡¯t be washed.¡±

    Skr felt the jacket¡¯s fabric. ¡°Why not? It¡¯s not like it¡¯s made of paper. Well, I can have it dry cleaned.¡±

    Tobias raised an eyebrow slightly. ¡°It costs thousands to clean this windbreaker.¡±

    Hearing that, Skr immediately took the jacket off and shoved it into Tobias¡¯ hands. ¡°You fraud.¡±

    Just as Skr turned, Tobias caught sight of the red mark on her neck, and the smile on his face

    instantly vanished.

 Chapter 57

    Chapter 57

    Tobias¡¯ eyes turned so frosty that Skr couldn¡¯t help but shudder.

    What¡¯s with this guy? His mood changes like the weather!

    Suddenly feeling the air around them be thinner, she carefully gazed at Tobias.

    The man swiftly held her by the neck. ¡°You¡¯re actually screwing other guys behind my back, huh?¡±

    Skr¡¯s eyes turned bloodshot. Unable to breathe, she stared straight into Tobias¡¯ pupils.

    As the man let go, she let out a few coughs and panted wildly.

    ¡°What the hell did you do that for? It¡¯s not what you think! I was wed by someone! You¡¯re a grown

    adult, and you can¡¯t even tell the difference between a scratch and a hickey?¡±

    In a fit of rage, she chastised Tobias forshing out at her without knowing the truth.

    Tobias ced a hand on Skr¡¯s neck once again, but thetter instinctively moved away, having

    already been traumatized by what he just did.

    The man¡¯s dangerous eyes narrowed. The mark on Skr¡¯s neck looked way too vague under the car¡¯s

    dim lighting.

    ¡°Take me back. It¡¯s alreadyte, and I want to sleep.¡± Skr felt agonized.

    She realized how unlucky she always was. Nothing good ever happens to me.

    Just when I finally decided to have fun during an excursion, this happens.

    At this point, all Skr wanted to do was to hide in a dark corner where no one would bother her.

    ¡°Take you back? So you can sleep with your male ssmate and get caught?¡± Tobias¡¯s voice sounded

    more chilly than the night breeze.

    ¡°Should I sleep in the streets, then? I don¡¯t want to freeze to death! Or how about you let me sleep in

    your car tonight?¡±

    Tobias told the chauffeur to head to King Hotel.

    ¡°That hotel is closed to the public. It¡¯s only for staff members,¡± Skr remarked upon realizing where they

    were going.

    Tobias cast her a nce. ¡°So you¡¯re saying even the boss isn¡¯t allowed to stay there?¡±

    Realization instantly dawned on Skr. She had forgotten who Tobias was.

    Everything felt like a dream to her now. Why would someone like him be involved with me, of all women?

    He could get any girl he wants with just a snap of his fingers.

    Upon arriving at the hotel, Tobias finally took a good look at Skr¡¯s neck under the dazzling lights. It

    was indeed a scratch mark.

    The manager showed up at the lobby to personally wee the CEO on histe-night arrival.

    Every other staff member on duty did the same, greeting him with reverence.

    This was a sight Skr had never seen before. She kept her head low, deliberately maintaining a

    distance from Tobias.

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Everyone knew Tobias had a fianc¨¦e, yet here he was showing up at a hotelte at night.

    Who was Skr to indecently crawl into the CEO¡¯s bed?

    Tobias didn¡¯te here often. Whenever he did, though, it would be to apany udia, and they

    would use the presidential suite on the top floor.

    With the ring of the elevator, Skr felt her chest tighten. All she wanted was a ce to sleep tonight.

    She didn¡¯t want toe to a hotel with Tobias under everyone¡¯s odd gazes.

    After a long night, it was already early morning by the time they arrived upstairs.

    Skr took off her coat and nced around. The ce looked far more extravagant than she had

    thought.

    I still have a little bit of money. These words that Tobias had once said echoed in her mind.

    Skr¡¯s arm was revealed to be full of red scratch marks. Not only that, but her lip was wounded, and

    the corner of her eye was slightly bruised.

    Tobias held the woman¡¯s arm, causing her to use her other hand to pull her sleeve down and cover the

    scratch marks.

    Being ganged up on was nothing to be proud of.

    Even so, Tobias had already seen her wounds. His tone turned gentle andforting to the ears.

    But if one were to listen carefully, the man still sounded extremely frigid. ¡°What happened? Did you get

    into a fight?¡±

 Chapter 58

    Chapter 58

    ¡°I guess I kicked their asses back there. Then again, it¡¯s not like they were that hard to deal with,¡± Skr

    said.

    Tobias beheld the girl¡¯s pint-size frame intently and listened to her bravado withoutment.

    ¡°Who¡¯s been picking on you? You could just tell me.¡±

    Be it a few simple words, they meant the world to her.

    Because no one else said anything like that to her. Ever.

    All the other kids heckled her and called her mother a murderer when she was little.

    Her grandmother taught her that poor children could not afford to pick fights with anyone. Endure it. Take

    the high road. That was what she would always say.

    And whenever she needed someone to have her back when she got older, Jeremy was nowhere to be

    found.

    Skr shook her head. ¡°I can take care of this myself!¡±

    She reminded herself that she should not harbor such expectations from someone like Tobias.

    And so, she left it at that.

    Neither was he going to make her, as he had his own ways of finding out.

    Her belly then proposed to change the subject. She held a hand to it when it started growling too loudly.

    Tobias picked up the phone and called for room service. He ended the call with a specific request. ¡°We¡¯ll

    have something healthier.¡±

    Half the contents of the bottled water were emptied to help stave off her hunger pangs.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like healthy,¡± she said.

    Her pte leaned towards savory. Even Laura¡¯s home cooking was deemed a tad too light.

    In fact, hot sauce was an indispensable staple for her in almost everything.

    Tobias went for the first-aid kit from which he acquired and passed along the iodine tincture. ¡°A lighter

    pte will help with the healing.¡±

    Skr nced down at the wound on her arm and did not think it warranted a trip to the hospital. She

    reckoned that it would be fine before long.

    Their orders were tabled fairly quickly. To her, the nt-based cuisine was more aesthetic than

    appetizing.

    But beggars could never be choosers. Hence, she picked up the cutlery anyway.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Did you choose to bunk with a guy on purpose?¡± Tobias¡¯s question was not helping.

    ¡°There¡¯s a rumor spreading in the campus¡¯ forum. The girls in ss are shunning me because they

    believe that I might have something contagious.¡±

    She then dolefully thrust out her phone towards him to prove her case.

    His reaction to the post was unexpectedly mild.

    Not quite what she had hoped for, but her disappointment was fleeting.

    She almost forgot that whatever was between Tobias and herself was just a game.

    His detachment, as such, was more than appropriate.

    ¡°So like, who¡¯s this guy to you?¡±

    She picked up the fork to shovel in another mouthful of sd. ¡°Never met him! I don¡¯t know who posted

    that, cause I¡¯ve never taken that photo.¡±

    Tobias remained a picture of calm. ¡°Did you try finding out?¡±

    That reminded her that she had yet to check in with Penelope regarding the IP tracing.

    Penelope: I¡¯m too much of a noob to be able to nail down this champ. So sorry, babe.

    Skr tapped away and sent back an ¡°Ok¡± emoji.

    She exhaled before she turned back to Tobias. ¡°I can¡¯t identify the culprit. Do you think the hackers from

    yourpany might be able to help?¡±

 Chapter 59

    Chapter 59

    ¡°You¡¯re supposed to be the one satisfying my whims, not the other way round. This wasn¡¯t part of the

    deal,¡± Tobias said.

    Skr lowered her head in silence.

    Truth be told, she thought she might be pushing her luck with him here.

    ¡°Let¡¯s just forget it. It doesn¡¯t matter who¡¯s behind that keyboard, seeing how messed up everything

    already is.¡±

    Unbeknownst to her, he had already sent the link to the IT department, as he could tell at a nce that

    the photograph was doctored. He was curious to know who could have done something so sinister and

    why.

    After that, he pulled her into his arms and took in the lightness of her scent. ¡°Try to stay out of trouble,

    yeah? An old man like myself can¡¯t be running around cleaning up after you.¡±

    The young woman looked at him. Her eyes widened at how his tone could have graduated from cold to

    warm, then affectionate.

    She held her head close and nodded quietly.

    Trouble always found its way to her, whether she wanted it or not.

    When Tobias stepped out of the shower, Skr was sprawled out on the bed. Her chest rose and fell

    subtly.

    He leaned over and tucked the girl in, all the while marveling at how she could lull herself to sleep

    practically anywhere.

    The wound on her arm still looked raw, and the iodine tincture had been ced at the side untouched.

    Tobias dabbed the swab with the tincture and rubbed it over her arm with the lightest of touches.

    His movement was slow and deliberate while he constantly monitored her expression.

    As Skr mbered groggily out of bed the next day, she noticed the yellowish stain upon her wound.

    She figured that it must have been his handiwork, as it seemed improbable that she could have done

    that in her sleep.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was still asleep despite it being close to roll call. As Skr got dressed, she noticed

    that his phone was on the carpet.

    It was only when she picked it up that she realized that he was still using an Android model from several

    years ago.

    She did not take him for the nostalgic type.

    Unlike him, though, she was stuck with her old phone previously due to her finances.

    The disy on his phone awoke to show notifications for a dozen missed calls. All of them from Tanya.

    That weighed heavily on Skr¡¯s conscience. She felt like she had hurt the woman and was single-

    handedly destroying the life thetter was trying to build together with him.

    She went as far as to imagine that they might be getting married because Tanya was with a child.

    Perhaps it was not convenient for an expectant woman to get into that kind of stuff with him at the

    moment. So maybe that was why she was roped in.

    That very thought gave her goosebumps.

    When she extended her hand to ce the phone on the side table, she was intercepted at the wrist. His

    half-awakened inflection was low and husky. ¡°Do you find my phone that fascinating?¡±

    The mobile device fell some ways and onto the bed when her grip loosened unexpectedly. ¡°Your fianc¨¦e

    had called many times. She must be worried sick since you hadn¡¯t been home all night.¡±

    ¡°How considerate of you. Would you be so kind as to call her back on my behalf and tell her that I¡¯m with

    you?¡± he said.

    Skr blinked silently and tentatively. What the hell is he talking about? Is this guy even serious?

    ¡°I really feel for her. Like me, she has given so much for so very little in return.¡±

    Tobias got up from the bed and calmly adjusted his cuffs. ¡°Unlike her, you still found a way to be

    empathetic in spite of your circumstances. You should know that not everyone is deserving of it.¡±

    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

 Chapter 60

    Chapter 60

    The young woman did not understand their problems. As a matter of fact, she would rather not know.

    This man was like a poppy ¨C captivating, sedate, but deadly.

    With that, she chose not to speak.

    ¡°I¡¯ll stay here with you until the three days are up.¡± When he called out, she stopped at the door and

    looked over her shoulders towards him.

    ¡°You need to prepare for your wedding, so don¡¯t let me hold you up,¡± she said.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need to hear your unsolicited opinion,¡± the man replied.

    Skr was afraid of how she would cope without his tyranny when he finally decided to boot her aside.

    Hence, she chose restraint.

    Nearly everyone knew what happened by the time she went back to the hotel.

    It was hard not to, considering the manner by which Harry and herself were taken into custodyst night.

    The news got more exaggerated the more they spread. It was even said they were buck naked when

    they were taken away.

    Even Avery from the ss next door got wind of it.

    Meanwhile, Harry was pretty shaken up and looked like a shell of his former self overnight.

    When Skr found him, it was just him on a rock, staring quietly out at the ocean.

    She came up from the side and extended the newly purchased bottle of water towards him.

    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m really sorry about yesterday.¡±

    Her eyes lighted up when he received the peace offering from her.

    In the next second, she heard it ssh upon the crashing waves.

    ¡°I knew I shouldn¡¯t have agreed to share a room with you. Do you think a bottle of water is going to make

    up for it?¡±

    N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect things to turn out this way. I¡¯ll go exin to everyone.¡±

    ¡°Who do you think is going to believe anything thates out of your mouth, huh?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing else I can do if you don¡¯t trust me. I can only say that I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°Besides, why are you messing around with all those different guys? You¡¯re still so young. Would it kill

    you to go without money?¡±

    That lodged a lump in her throat, but nheless, she eked out a smile. ¡°You may be right, but who

    wouldn¡¯t want to go on living?¡±

    Then, Skr turned to head back to their hotel room. It was time to pack up and leave. Harry was in

    enough trouble as it was.

    She doubted anyone would notice her absence at the bonfire partyter.

    At lunch, the entire ss congregated around Shailene Clover, whose father was a department manager

    at Ford Group.

    ¡°You know, guys, my dad pulled a few strings to get me a room at King Hotel because he was worried

    that I might not be used to the rooms here.¡±

    The others cast looks of envy her way. The King Hotel, which was a stone¡¯s throw away, was an absolute

    dreampared to the three-star dump they were in.

    Lydia ced a hand on Shailene¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Do you think your dad could get me in there too?¡±

    ¡°You know I¡¯d always look out for my girls. You can move in with me after the bonfire party. I heard that

    they have a spa, enzyme bath and stuff.¡±

    Lydia was not at all pleased about Shailene taking the spotlight off of herself but was willing to overlook

    that in exchange for better amodations.

    Her expectations were for all the selfies and TikTok videos she nned to shoot and tag at King Hotel to

    trend.

    After all, the exclusivity of the ce would take the luster off even the socialites and their Bulgaris.

 Chapter 61

    Chapter 61

    At the same time, Harry secretly tailed Skr as he wanted to prove that there was nothing going on

    between them.

    Everyone had their own take on the fiasco. As much as he tried to exin that she went off with another

    man, no one was sold on it.

    At that moment, Skr had run to the beach upon receiving Tobias¡¯s call. There, he stood tall with his

    strapping shoulders and poised back towards her.

    The sand fell from the pebble as she took aim at him with it.

    She had wanted to pick up a bigger one but did not have the guts for it.

    When he turned, the breeze sweeping across the water ruffled her hair, which flitted and whipped along

    as though beholden to its will. The woman was so lithe that a single gust threatened to bowl her over.

    The only part he found satisfactory about her body was her bosom. It had the right amount of suppleness

    and fitted amply inside his hand.

    ¡°So this is your idea of a field trip? Hanging around the beach? Fishing?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s still the bonfire party after dark, with lots of hot school girls. But they are all properdies, so you

    shouldn¡¯t get any funny ideas.¡±

    She still thought of him as a yer who used and discarded women.

    Talking rtionships with him were like sending a moth to a me.This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    His eyes narrowed. ¡°Surely you are not taking me for a dog that humps every leg I see? I¡¯m not

    unprincipled, if you must know.¡±

    She put a hand to her forehead. Anyone had the right to say that unabashedly, except him.

    Their first encounter inside an operating theater had no emotional basis. They had just been acquainted

    then. If that did not count as unprincipled, she would not know what did.

    She was wearing a white shirt on top of a ck camisole. The fiery intensity of her nail polish matched

    the ret of her lipstick. Her tresses reached down and spilled over her shoulders.

    In that getup, Skr looked like a pinup straight out of a movie poster from the eighties.

    When he saw that she had so little on, he brought her close and used his body to warm her.

    He did not dislike that she put a face on, as it did not bother him.

    ¡°I know a good spot. Lots of trees with little traffic. Shall we meet there tonight?¡± His hand was already

    cruising along her thin cks straps seeking out his favorite haunts.

    ¡°Don¡¯t. Someone¡¯s going to see us¡­ My reputation already stinks so bad that I¡¯m probably never getting

    married.¡±

    His teasing touch had left her weak at the knees, as it always did. She hated when that happened.

    ¡°With me around, what have you got to worry about? Tonight at eight. I¡¯ll see you there.¡±

    The dreadful man was so serious on the surface that he was hard to get close to.

    But underneath, he could get pretty crazy.

    ¡°I. Don¡¯t. F*ck. In. Public. Aren¡¯t you worried that the boars might get you?¡±

    ¡°I was thinking about paying homage to nature. Whoever said we are going to f*ck in public? You cheeky

    little girl!

    She coughed while her face ran red to the ears.

    Someone else watched from a distance as Skr frolicked with the man fromst night. As they kissed

    and hugged, he also saw how Tobias¡¯s hands never left her rear.

    Harry had that all on a video which he posted to the ss¡¯s chat group as proof that he was not her

    boyfriend.

    Just like that, Skr Jones had once again be the eye of the storm.

 Chapter 62

    Chapter 62

    Shailene: We can¡¯t see his face! His height and frame look like he might be someone from campus

    security.

    Harry: Don¡¯t know, don¡¯t care. Just don¡¯t drag me into it.

    Lydia: Could she take so many at a time?

    Harry: I heard that they are going to meet in the forested area at eight tonight. To. F*ck.

    Skr needed to go back and show her face for a while because she was already on the instructor¡¯s bad

    side.

    Before she left, Tobias threw her his coat. ¡°There won¡¯t be anyone to take care of you if you¡¯re sick.¡±

    She draped it over her arm. As she had already beenbeled a slut, she did not want to confirm that by

    going back wearing a man¡¯s coat.

    Without looking back, she said, ¡°The universe provides. Warm water is my panacea.¡±

    She had not gone very far before she remembered something important.

    ¡°Does the King Hotel allow for family?¡±

    ¡°Theoretically, no. My mother primarilyes here for short stretches just to rest and recuperate.¡±

    She recalled his mother, who had visited at her ce previously.

    From the way udia carried herself, Skr could tell she must have been an impressible character in

    her youth.

    The young woman then shrugged. ¡°There¡¯s a b*tch from ss who said that her father¡¯s going to put her

    up in your mother¡¯s room, along with her friends.¡±

    She thought to throw in thatst bit just for some extra pizzazz.

    The sting from the w marks on her arms still had her seething.

    She had enough of being the boiling frog. Someone else¡¯s gonna get it this time, and it¡¯s not going to be

    me!

    The man was smart; hence, he had a good grasp of what she was thinking.

    For one, his mother never stayed in the same room.

    To him, tapping on connections to gain upancy was not something out of the ordinary either.

    Thus, this request was not something he would have entertained on any other day.

    But since she had already asked, he decided to make an exception. ¡°Alright. What¡¯s her name?¡±

    Her eyes burned. ¡°Shailene Clover.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m on it. Remember tonight. Don¡¯t bete.¡±

    She had not the vaguest idea what he meant earlier about paying homage to nature. Was he going to

    prance around naked under the full moon?

    Skr was summoned by the instructor the minute she stepped in. ¡°You seem to be quite easy about

    your newfound notoriety, youngdy.¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m not! Whatever was said on the forums simply isn¡¯t true.¡±

    As soon as she said that, Mr. Duggan put a phone in her face. Since Skr was excluded from the ss

    chat group, her heart sank when she saw the video.

    Harry must have switched camps long before he sold out.

    Everything about that tititing recording was obvious, save for the faces of Tobias and herself.

    Her lips twitched. ¡°My boyfriend and I were just kissing and cuddling. Isn¡¯t that what couples normally

    do?¡±

    The instructor¡¯s eyes darkened as he shook his head in disapproval. ¡°You¡¯re hopeless. If you are so

    desperate, you might as well get out and go get yourself knocked up.¡±

    Hearing that from an educator left the young woman bbergasted.

 Chapter 63

    Chapter 63

    It was eight, and Skr was making her way toward the location mentioned earlier while cussing.

    The trees, the shrubs, and the darkness all looked the same to her. With her poor sense of direction, she

    reckoned she might not be able to get out if she lost herself inside.

    She would be damned if some bear had decided to show up halfway and pick her up for its supper.

    So in Tobias¡¯s honor, the girl mentally exhausted every colorful expression in her library of expletives.

    Then, she received a call.

    He told her that he would take her, and they would wait outside King Hotel together for her ssmates.

    After that, she went on to quietly rescind what she said about him.

    In the thick of night, the music that red in the distance from where the bonfire party was held reached

    her ears.

    This merriment and revelry had no ce for her.

    She pulled thepels of Tobias¡¯ coat closer as she trudged through the dark towards the rendezvous

    point.

    Tobias leaned by the side of the entrance. He had one hand on his hip and another on a lighted

    cigarette.

    Tapping at the watch on his wrist impatiently, he finally saw hering.

    She took her ce beside him. ¡°Are you sure we aren¡¯t doing anything highly embarrassing? We are in

    the middle of nowhere.¡±

    ¡°Look, if you really want me to do something to you, just say so. It¡¯s a bit chilly out here, but I¡¯m game if

    you are.¡±

    Skr blushed and averted her gaze while ignoring him.

    She was not going to provide him with any more ammunition to shoot herself in the foot with.

    The girl stumbled a few times on the unlit path. And more than a few times her eyes darted to the left and

    to the right to check if there were any hungry beasts staring back.

    N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    ¡°Do you have night blindness?¡±

    She picked up her pace. ¡°Healthy people like me don¡¯t really get to suffer from diseases of affluence.¡±

    He turned around and held her hand. There was a spot of coolness inside her palm.

    Her fingers lifted to reveal a jade pendant encrusted in gold. She lifted her eyes to him and furrowed.

    ¡°Your sign makes you prone to encountering the supernatural. Hang on to this for good luck.¡±

    Skr shuddered to think that he even knew her sign.

    Compared to any ghost, this seemingly omniscient man scared her even more.

    When she saw the ne¡¯s exquisite workmanship and the rity of the jade within, a thought struck

    her.

    It would not be a bad idea to pawn off the item, pay for her mother¡¯s treatment and then take her far

    away from here.

    Good riddance to studies and the future.

    Where her reputation was at right now, it would only get worse for her should she ever be famous.

    She knew the ck card Tobias gave her must be tied to his phone number.

    Thus, if she were to withdraw a significant sum, it would not elude the wily old fox¡¯s attention.

    Should she upset him, she might be pped with anotherbel of scammer. Ironically, this time, it might

    be her own turn to go behind bars.

    A gift, however, was a different story. She had the right to decide what to do with it.

    ¡°Just a small trinket. It isn¡¯t worth much.¡±

    That did much to burst her bubble as the bestid ns went to waste.

    Meanwhile, Tobias thought that the crestfallen look on her face looked rather endearing under the murky

    moonlight.

    Besides, he was definitely not telling her that he acquired the antique ne from Hendricks Auction

    House in a bid that started from twenty-eight million.

    The man was not interested to know whether it could actually ward off evil. At the end of the day, he just

    wanted to give it to her.

 Chapter 64

    Chapter 64

    The ends of the gold chain were clipped together before Tobias could try to help her put it on.

    The girl was quick; that spoke to her independence.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    After he spent much time with her, he had learned that she was the hands-on type.

    Were it up to any other woman, they would have coquettishlymented about how much they liked it

    and asked for their suitor to put it on for them.

    Tobias held her hand anew as the cawing of a murder of crows spiraled overhead. The path grew more

    foreboding the more they advanced.

    There was hardly any warmth emanating from his palm.

    When they finally came to halt before a spot where a standing statue was prominently featured, Skr

    swallowed hard. Oh God, I knew it! I knew this was all too good to be true ¨C he¡¯s going to kill me here!

    ¡°You are not going to conduct a blood sacrifice, are you?¡±

    He looked straight at her without speaking.

    Then his lips curled into a smile. ¡°Whoops.¡±

    Skr¡¯s legs stiffened and refused to move when her subconscious mind screamed for them to run. Her

    face trembled in her hands as she dreaded to look upon the man¡¯s face.

    ¡°It¡¯s no wonder you won¡¯t leave me alone. Killing is against thew. Have a heart, Tobias, and let me go.¡±

    ¡°¡®Thew¡¯ are just two words for someone like me who has already known the blood of countless

    innocents with my hands.¡±

    A childlike whimper was elicited from between her paralyzed lips.

    That led him to finally understand what drew him to her.

    ¡°Please. I don¡¯t want to die.¡± At this moment, the sky opened up and cast its bloodless light upon the

    earth. Skr was now able to see Tobias¡¯s hardened face illuminated in its entirety.

    He came close and ran his fingers through her hair. ¡°You are always talking about ending it all. But you

    are obviously not ready for it!¡±

    Admittedly, he was right.

    As she was gripped by her fear and terror, she saw him retrieve two sticks of candles which he lighted up

    using a me drew from a spark wheel lighter.

    She held her nose against the rising white fumes in case they were an incapacitating agent.

    He then raised the candles between his hands and bowed to the statue before he nted them at its

    feet.

    ¡°This is the guardian of this mountain. My mother¡¯s really into this stuff, and we used to visit every year¡­

    You didn¡¯t really believe that I was going to kill you, did you?¡±

    Skr¡¯s mouth was agape. And there she was. Petrified, and begging for her dear life.

    She kicked herself for misinterpreting apletely innocuous activity and getting all worked up for

    nothing.

    After all that, she patted down her own chest as her heart was still throttling. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you just say so?

    Did you think that was funny?¡±

    He wrapped his hands around her from behind in a reassuring embrace. ¡°It was alright, I guess. You

    squawked like a quail, just like my baby brother.¡±

    At the same time, the rustling of leaves and branches disturbed the stillness of the forest.

    Still fidgety, Skr exchanged nces with Tobias. ¡°Did you bring along bodyguards?¡±

    He shook his head slightly. ¡°Why do you ask?¡±

    Footsteps from a distance drew closer and closer.

    Harry emerged at the head of the pack with the rest of the ss in tow. The lure of the bonfire party

    apparently paled inparison to the promise of a raunchy live stream.

    Someone had even brought along a high-definition camera.

    The dozen over powerful beams of white swept seemingly at random before invariablying to rest

    upon Tobias and Skr.

    To avoid their blinding re, Skr buried her face in Tobias¡¯s chest.

 Chapter 65

    Chapter 65

    The veins on Tobias¡¯ temples raised and throbbed.

    There were some audible groans of disappointment when the neers saw that the couple was both

    properly dressed.

    The good looks of the man stood in prity with the awfulness of his expression.

    Has it not started? Did we show up too early?

    Tobias relinquished his grip on Skr. ¡°Who the hell are you lot? Turn off your shlights!¡±

    He disliked the way the light left his sensitive eyes unbearably dry and reddish.

    ¡°Uh, we¡¯re just passing through¡­¡± Harry said.

    ¡°They are all my ssmates. Let¡¯s just forget it.¡±

    Despite that, Tobias was not to be persuaded.

    He stormed up to Harry and snatched his torchlight from him. ¡°Didn¡¯t anyone tell you that it¡¯s rude to

    shine your light on someone else like that?¡±

    Unwilling to appeared cowed, Harry retorted, ¡°It¡¯s too dark to see the way. Then again, what are you two

    doing in the bushes at this hour?¡±

    Tobias¡¯s face scrunched into a terrible scowl. ¡°Whatever I do with my girl is my business. Who are you to

    demand that I exin myself?¡±

    The reaction from those gathered was immediate. They did not think Skr really had a boyfriend.

    At that instant, they started to wonder how the photo of her with the old man posted on the forum even

    came about.

    Shailene, who was amongst the group, thought she might have seen Skr¡¯s boyfriend somewhere

    before. She just could not remember exactly where.

    Skr thought the more others knew about the rtionship between Tobias and herself, the more

    complicated things could get.

    ¡°There are mosquitoes everywhere, and they¡¯re killing me. Come on, let¡¯s head back.¡±

    Given the coldness of the night, Tobias thought that hers was a terrible excuse.

    Perhaps it was his intimidating presence that convinced the students to turn their torches off.

    ¡°Don¡¯t mind us. We¡¯re leaving,¡± Harry said.

    Having led the others on a wild goose chase, he had now put himself in a spot.

    ¡°Just like that? Aren¡¯t you going to apologize?¡±

    Left without a choice, Harry grudgingly offered one up under his breath.

    Tobias raised the torch he took from Harry and hurled it onto the ground with force. The anger in his eyes

    had yet to dissipate.

    ¡°I¡¯ll let this slide, for now. If any of you followed us here on purpose, you¡¯d better pray that I don¡¯t find

    out.¡±

    Harry¡¯s lips tightened while he averted his gaze.

    As Skr followed Tobias out, she caught a glimpse of Harry¡¯s ashen face and thought he had iting

    to him.

    With this, she considered both of them to be even.

    As she had anticipated that she could not return to that room with Harry, she had her things moved back

    to King Hotel beforehand.

    This would be yet another night she shared a bed with Tobias.

    When there was only the posse of students left, Shailene took a swing at the grass beneath her feet.

    ¡°Coming all this way, for this? They don¡¯t even have their clothes off. What a bummer.¡±

    Lydia, on the other hand, fronted Harry with arms akimbo. ¡°Your intel better be good next time.¡±

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    She then put a hand to her chin. ¡°Skr¡¯s boyfriend is pretty good-looking. He¡¯s at least one ny, and

    with those features, he could be of mixed parentage.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s no wonder she needs money so badly. She has herself a boy-toy to feed! Shame about that face,

    though,¡± Shailene sneered.

    When they got back to King Hotel, Tobias stepped to the side to field a call while Skr sat quietly on the

    couch in the lobby.

    She initially sat with legs crossed before she put them down after feeling a little self-conscious.

    ¡°Come on in, babe.¡± Skr eyes widened when she heard Shailene¡¯s voice.

 Chapter 66

    Chapter 66

    When she saw Shailene and Lydia stroll in hand in hand, her brows furrowed.

    ¡°Hmm, why are you here? This ce isn¡¯t open to just anyone¡­ especially not those who can¡¯t afford it,¡±

    Shailene said.

    ¡°I¡¯m a guest, so I¡¯ll be staying for free! But your dad is allowed to put you up here?¡± Skr replied.

    Lydia rolled her eyes. ¡°You¡¯re just envious that Shailene has a great dad. I heard that you¡¯re an orphan?

    Aww, that¡¯s so sad!¡±

    Just looking at the two girls had Skr gaging; she found them to be extremely repugnant.

    After Tobias ended the call, he rejoined Skr and looked at the duo standing opposite them.

    He reckoned that one of them must be Shailene.

    Shailene was astonished. ¡°How is it that you are here as well? King Hotel is not open to the public.¡±

    Tobias reached into his breast pocket and produced a name card which he ced into the girl¡¯s hand

    before he put an arm around Skr¡¯s waist.

    The girl¡¯s hand trembled. ¡°You¡­ You¡¯re Tobias Ford?¡±

    Lydia looked just as shell-shocked.

    They could scarcely believe how the man they called Skr¡¯s boy-toy turned out to be Tobias Ford.

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    And to have him introduce Skr as his girlfriend absolutely blew their mind.

    Shailene threw the name card onto the floor in disbelief. ¡°Don¡¯t think that you could try to fool us with that

    fake name card. Why would Tobias Ford be here? My dad says that he only visits once a year.¡±

    ¡°Your dad¡¯s Yann Clover, right? As of this afternoon, your father is out of a job. If he asks, tell him that it

    was because you, his daughter, hurt my girlfriend.¡±

    He then looked towards the lobby manager. ¡°Why did you let them in?¡±

    The man understood him immediately. ¡°We are sorry, Miss, the hotel does not host outside guests. We

    may have to ask you both to leave.¡±

    The two girls were dumbfounded.

    Shailene remained skeptical. Her father had clearly told her that everything had been arranged.

    ¡°My father is Yann Clover. All of you should know who he is.¡±

    The manager maintained his genial tone. ¡°Mr. Ford has requested that you exit the premises, so please

    allow me to show you out.¡±

    She looked at the backs of the couple walking away from them.

    ¡°Is that man really is Tobias Ford?¡±

    ¡°Miss,¡± said the manager tly as he gestured towards the exit.

    When Shailene and Lydia were shooed out from the hotel, the former promptly called home to get her

    father to help.

    To her surprise, it was her mother who picked up on the other end. ¡°Your Dad had been informed by the

    human resource department that he had been dismissed¡­ I don¡¯t think he¡¯s in the mood to dabble in

    your affairs.¡±

    ¡°Next time, could you not say that I¡¯m your girlfriend?¡± Skr toweled her wet hair as she walked out. Her

    body carried the scent of the shower cream as the steam on her skin rose faintly into the air before it

    disappeared.

    He was by the window and proceeded to stub out his cigarette when she approached. ¡°Then what should

    I be calling you instead? My lover?¡±

    ¡°You should try to avoid scrutiny since you are about to be someone else¡¯s husband.¡±

    ¡°Why do you need to keep reminding me of this? Does it really bother you?¡±

    Skr thought that was obvious. After all, she never wanted to get mixed up with a married man.

    If she were given any other choice, she would have not gone down this path.

    The young woman ced down the towel and went to sit by the window. She let the billowy air from

    outside wash through her senses.

 Chapter 67

    Chapter 67

    ¡°Everyone at your wedding will know about us, and they will look upon me with pity and ridicule. I

    wouldn¡¯t want the ignominy of being known as the one who has been dumped.¡±

    Tobias paused with lips pursed. ¡°I understand.¡±

    Upon that, Skr heaved a sigh of relief. That went better than she thought it would.

    Her subliminal despondence did not go unnoticed.

    All of a sudden, she was swept up in a cradle and brought to the bed. Then almost half of his body mass

    melded unto her.

    His lips were soft and gentle, as were the familiar moans they elicited from hers when they caressed

    upon her skin.

    Guilt was the word when she wholeheartedly surrendered her flesh to this cursed addiction.

    She allowed her bathrobe to be loosened and parted so she might tremble at his touch.

    His long and slender digits were about to deepen her pleasure when their primal symphony was rudely

    interrupted.

    Bang! Wood was smashed against concrete.

    Someone had the door to the room violently thrown open.

    Tobias was momentarily stunned. Skr¡¯s hands remained hooked tightly around his nape for just as

    long.

    ¡°That¡¯s gone far enough, Tobias.¡± udia¡¯s bellow reverberated around the presidential suite.

    Skr was shuddering when Tobias quick hands wrapped theforter over her to shield her.

    Only her face was left visible when she shrunk beneath the sheets.

    ¡°Mom, why does it have to be so hard? When will I ever be free of this little vixen?¡± Tanya sobbed as she

    buried a tearful face into udia¡¯s shoulders.

    Skr¡¯s heart was racing so fast that it threatened to expunge itself from her orifices.

    ¡°Please. I can exin!¡± said the girl within the sheets.

    She then fell silent upon realizing how futile that would be.

    No amount of whitewashing was going to justify this sort of travesty.

    Her mind then began to postte all the different scenarios that would befall a mistress in an encounter

    with the man¡¯s wife ¨C Getting her hair pulled; stripped; her teeth kicked in by a bunch of hired thugs.

    At one point, she was dying to have his fianc¨¦e discover their affair so that he might leave her to her

    peace.

    In hindsight, she wished otherwise because now she was dead scared.

    Skr was meeting her counterpart for the first time. Tanya was not merely stunning; she was unreal.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you know we are to be married? How could you!¡± The wetness of Tanya¡¯s eyes soaked the fabric

    on udia¡¯s shoulder.

    Even so, Tobias gnashed his teeth in annoyance. ¡°Did you have to make such a fuss about it?¡±

    udia¡¯s hand swiped across her son¡¯s cheeks before she held it to her own chest. Her trembling lips

    were bluish with rage.

    ¡°You¡¯re going toe home with me this instant. Should you refuse to cut all ties with this woman and do

    what¡¯s right by Tanya, I will disown you.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s talk this overter. Just don¡¯t frighten her.¡± Tobias responded.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    His words sent the older woman over the edge. Her bloodshot eyes burned at the girl cowering in bed.

    As much as Skr wanted to step out, her own nakedness dissuaded her. She needed a hole in which to

    bury her shame.

    ¡°When are you going to stop tormenting me? Will you be happier if I was dead? Didn¡¯t you say that you

    love me? That you aren¡¯t serious about these women? That this is only because I can¡¯t satisfy you

    because of my pregnancy? Come home, and don¡¯t make mother mad anymore.¡±

    udia¡¯s face dropped when she heard that.

    The older woman had been praying and hoping for Tanya to add to the family. Her own son had crossed

    the line this time.

    For a man to fool around while his wife was with a child, one p would never be enough.

 Chapter 68

    Chapter 68

    Tanya¡¯s improvised monologue left Tobias unimpressed.

    To think she had the gall to im that she was with his child when he had never even touched her.

    He was about to grill Tanya when udia clutched at her chest again. Her bowed face contorted as her

    lungs gasped for air.

    Immediately, Tobias dialed for emergency services while he propped his mother up. He feared her

    preexisting condition might be acting up at this very moment.

    Skr only stepped out to pick up the bathrobe on the floor when the room was emptied.

    In his hurry, Tobias had left behind his phone and his watch.

    The timepiece imprinted his warmth upon her hands.

    It ticked crisply by the minute and seconds when held close. Should she not be happy?

    His fianc¨¦e had finally caught up, and the climax was spectacr.

    But why did Tanya¡¯s words felt like a stab in her chest?

    When Skr arose to regard the scenes outside the window, her mood sank.

    Tanya was conceiving, and the child was his. Even if she needed to survive, and even if her mother

    needed funds for her recovery, she could not be so selfish as to persist in wrangling on with him.

    If it was gratification that he sought, women were the balm he did notck.

    Skr went to get dressed when her eyes fell upon the unsealed box of Okamoto Zero Ones.

    That must be what Tobias had nned to use.

    Scoffing, she then condemned it to the bin.

    With her luggage at her feet, she passed his watch and phone along to the front desk.

    ¡°Mr. Ford might be back for these.¡±

    The manner by which the bonny receptionist regarded her was equal parts quizzical and contempt.

    The sun had not risen when Skr came out. Thus, rejoining the other students was not an option. She

    waited for hours by the roadside before the bus took her back to the city.

    Then, she made a withdrawal of five-thousand with the ck card the following morning.

    Laura was hosting her friends at the International Garden as she usually did.

    Yet, Skr went upstairs without exchanging pleasantries. After she tore up the contract, his card and

    the ne he gifted took over their ce inside the locked drawer.

    It took some deliberation before she decided to leave Tobias a note.

    I¡¯m leaving. Borrowed five thousand from you. I will find my own way to raise the money for my mother¡¯s

    medical expenses. Please help me to cover for one month at the time being. May fortune always favor

    the good.

    Back at the hospital, the doctor came by the ward to run some checks on udia. She was fine but was

    cautioned against agitation.

    Though Tobias felt more assured after a brief chat with him, his other set of emotions was set to ignite.N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    When he called Tanya to him, his eyes were severe, and his fuse was short.

    ¡°What were you thinking? Dragging my mother through the night to North Beach andnding her in a

    hospital?

    Tanya¡¯s eyes and nostrils reddened when she was confronted.

    ¡°Your mother insisted on hiring an investigator, but I tried to stop her. You have to believe me.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve got a nerve. To think you would lie about something as serious as pregnancy. I¡¯ve never been in

    your pants. We both know this.¡±

    The woman rested a hand over her abdomen. ¡°You were drunk that night, remember? I¡¯ve only just found

    out too. It really is ours.¡±

    A massive mitt shot up and took her by surprise. She felt the hardness of the wall behind as the fingers

    clenched around her throat. ¡°You¡¯re lucky that I don¡¯t hit women. I¡¯m well aware of what I did or didn¡¯t do.

    And how do I know that, you ask? It¡¯s because you disgust me.¡±

 Chapter 69

    Chapter 69

    With her improving dramatics chops, he could imagine how much effort she must have devoted towards

    honing her craft around udia.

    As Tanya watched him depart, the anguish on her face faded to nothing. Tobias was an astute one.

    Therefore, she was beginning to rue her decision, as now, she had to fret about where she might be able

    to find herself a baby.

    N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    The receptionist informed Tobias that Skr had already checked out. His cellphone and watch were

    returned to him in a zipper bag. Anyone else who came across this might have taken it for a

    bequeathment if they did not know better.

    When he got back to the vi, the wardrobe doors were wide open. Everypartment he checked

    turned up empty.

    His lips twitched as he stuck a hand in his pocket. ¡°Scurried off like a mouse, she did.¡±

    May fortune favor the good.

    Thest line on the note she left by the side table creased between his fingers. The man was no good

    person, and he was not ready for their transactional rtionship to end.

    More urately, he was not tired of her youthful body. He was not usually into girls her age, but to him,

    she was a novelty. The thought of letting her off so easily was a little disconcerting.

    Twenty-year-old like her straddled maturity and adolescence. A nk canvas such as Skr deserved

    an artist like him. It would be a pity should she end up in the hands of another.

    The man was confident that she woulde back to him, even though she was a bit of a handful. He

    liked women who were pliant and submissive, being never one for the thrill of the chase.

    He had called several times but without sess, as his number had been cklisted. It was just as well

    that she was so thorough, since bombarding someone over the phone was not amongst his inclinations

    either.

    Unable to reach her, he could only wait until tomorrow to try to find her on campus. He figured that it

    should not be difficult to locate her, as it was not a big city. With the means she had at her disposal, the

    little sparrow would not be able to fly out of his grasp.

    When he exited the International Garden by himself, he was a little morose. His thoughts came to

    Sheldon, and he wondered which nightspot that hedonist was at.

    Sheldon tottered out of the nightclub towards his older brother when thetter came calling. Thed

    reeked of alcohol, and his upper body swayed unsteadily as though he could not find his feet.

    Just looking at that decadent appearance of his made Tobias want to send the rascal¡¯s soul down to be

    reforged in the fires of theher realms.

    To get him to sober up, he took Sheldon to the tea room. Unlike his older brother, who had a ir for the

    refined, Sheldon was neverfortable in this cultivated setting no matter how many times they had

    visited it together. He much preferred the candor of an inebriated stupor.

    ¡°Regarding the issue between Tanya and myself, if you could spend more time with Mom and talk to

    her¡­¡±

    Sheldon tossed back his cup and took the tea in a single gulp. He now understood why Tobias sought

    him out of his own volition. ¡°Whatever it is that you are thinking, don¡¯t. If I were to open my mouth, Mom¡¯s

    going to kick me out of the house for sure. Marriage is going to happen only once anyway, so like, why

    not just get it over with? It¡¯s not like Tanya could control you afterward. Bring back a mistress or two, or

    whatever. She won¡¯t be able to do a damn thing about it.¡±

    The corner of Tobias¡¯ lips lifted. ¡°Just get it over with? I know what I want for myself. Would you like to be

    tied down by any woman yourself? To be shackled by the chains of marriage?¡±

    Sheldon chuckled as he thought his older brother was trying to fob him off. There was no way Tanya

    Hanson would be able to control Tobias, pregnant or otherwise.

    It was clear to him that that woman was ying herst hand and going all-in against Tobias. He was

    intrigued to see how she would be able to wrap this show up.

    Sensing a storm brewing, there was no way he was going to fish in these turbid waters.

 Chapter 70

    Chapter 70

    Sheldon reminded him, ¡°I would advise you to hold your horses. It¡¯s not the time to cancel your

    engagement as Mom is still too weak. Is it because somedy is desperately giving you pressure?¡±

    Leaning into his chair, Tobias ignored his question. He then remarked with his eyes closed, ¡°I knew it. It¡¯s

    a waste of time to get you to do anything. Keep a close eye on Tanya. She seems to be up to no good as

    she caused many outrageous incidents recently.¡±

    Sheldon was jolted by how brutally honest his brother was.

    Meanwhile, Skr returned to school with her luggage in tow. When she checked the calls she blocked,

    there were three from Tobias. He adhered to his rule of not calling more than three times if the recipient

    failed to pick up.

    If he blocked her, it would simply be redundant.

    Afterpleting the administrative procedures for her amodation, Skr looked forward to her new

    dormmates. The moment she opened the dormitory door, she was dumbfounded when she saw Avery.

    Avery too was caught by surprise. Rolling her eyes at Skr, her gaze was filled with disdain.

    She reminded everyone with a smirk, ¡°Going forward, all of you should lock up your valuables. I can¡¯t

    believe the management decided to squeeze one more in here without seeking our opinions.¡±

    Ignoring her, Skr put down her luggage. As her phone lit up, she brought it out to check. When she

    saw that it was Tobias, she was so nervous that her hands perspired slightly.

    Tobias: I¡¯lle visit you tomorrow. See ya.

    Under the dim moonlight, Skr looked out the window. She was so nervous that her heart pounded

    furiously. It was as if Tobias had put a GPS tracker on her and haunted her like a lingering spirit.

    It seemed he was enjoying himself and not tired of ying this game.

    Wendy asked, ¡°Avery, do you want to have something together at the cafeteria?¡±

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Avery yawned. ¡°I don¡¯t feel like it. Why don¡¯t you help me get something instead? Besides, you¡¯re being

    mean for not inviting Skr along.¡±

    Avery squinted her eyes and stole a knowing nce at Skr.

    Meanwhile, Skr had packed her things and headed towards the cafeteria alone.

    After her meal, she had to work part-time at the school¡¯s cafe. Hence, she had no time to argue with

    Avery.

    After Skr left, another dormmate, Yasmin, asked, ¡°Avery, do you hate Skr? Why are you asking us

    to avoid her and forbidding us from talking to her?¡±

    Avery replied with a gentle smile, ¡°She is an old ssmate of mine and we go way back. Her reputation

    is in tatters so decent girls like us better stay away from her.¡±

    Yasmin pursed her lips. However, she didn¡¯t dare protest.

    She felt Skr was someone decent because she was mostly quiet and considerate of others. She

    constantly tried not to be a bother.

    Coincidentally, it was mealtime and the cafeteria was packed.

    To save money, Skr ordered some soup with bread.

    ¡°Soup with bread? It seems your days have been miserable since you left me.¡±

    Skr looked up and saw Tobias sitting opposite her. A week had passed since theyst saw each other.

    He seemed to have lost weight. Plus, the stubble on his face simply reinforced his haggard look.

    And yet, he appeared in the cafeteria in all his glory.

    Skr scanned her wary eyes around. ¡°Why did youe here for? This is a school.¡±

    Tobias pushed a te of steak over to her. ¡°How long do you want to avoid me? Not only did you change

    your phone number, but you also even moved away.¡±

    ¡°We are over. Just let me go. I don¡¯t want to do something against my conscience.¡±

    Skr¡¯s words smack of helplessness. She decided to pull herself away from the brink and not allow

    herself to indulge further.

    She was worried that she would fall for Tobias if they continued their so-called rtionship.

 Chapter 71

    Chapter 71

    To be in a rtionship with a married man wasn¡¯t something that felt natural to her.

    Meanwhile, she noticed that many people were staring at Tobias.

    Although the film academy did notck handsome guys and prettydies, Tobias¡¯ looks could easily put

    many guys to shame.

    He inly replied, ¡°Against your conscience? Why do you say that? We¡¯re not harming anyone by being

    together. Besides, I kind of like you too.¡±

    Skr ignored Tobias¡¯ first confession in his entire life.

    She put down her fork and asserted in a low voice, ¡°I don¡¯t want to be involved in your marriage.

    Furthermore, you are going to be a father soon. I hope I have made it clear enough.¡±

    Tobias realized then that Skr had believed what Tanya said. Thetter had told Skr he was going to

    marry her because she was pregnant.

    With his arms folded, he stared at Skr¡¯s pained expression quietly.

    ¡°Give me some time to deal with all these problems and provide you with an exnation. Whatever

    happened that day will not be repeated.¡±

    Skr shook her head and decided to be honest with Tobias. ¡°I still have a long road ahead of me. How

    long can I afford to wait? You¡¯re rich and powerful, so you can afford to do whatever you please.

    However, I¡¯m not the same. I want to return to living an ordinary life. You don¡¯t have to exin yourself to

    me. Just go home and exin it to your wife.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ expression darkened. ¡°That¡¯s not what was written in the contract. Have you forgotten who gave

    you everything you have now? Leaving me is not going to be as easy as returning a card or a ne.¡±

    As if Tobias were strangling her again, Skr felt like she could hardly breathe.

    ¡°At most, I¡¯ll stop studying. It doesn¡¯t matter if you condemn me or even sue me for breaking the

    contract.¡±

    Skr¡¯s destructive attitude infuriated Tobias further.

    When she saw Tobias had nothing further to say, Skr left with her food. She didn¡¯t even touch the

    steak he bought her.

    Tobias stared at the steak that was already cold. She didn¡¯t even notice I¡¯ve prepared this for her on

    purpose¡­

    Before he came, Tobias made a trip to the restaurant which he had visited with Skr.

    N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    He still remembered that she loved the steak there and bought it for her on purpose.

    Before she left, Skr bought a smoothie with her cafeteria card. As thedy preparing it wasn¡¯t in a

    good mood, she identally added too much sugar.

    It was so sweet that it caused her tooth to ache.

    Meanwhile, Tobias followed her but kept his distance.

    Despite being thirty, Tobias was as dashing as ever. Even thedy working at the cafeteria couldn¡¯t help

    but steal a nce at him.

    Skr hated the feeling of being watched.

    When she checked the bnce on her card, there were only six eighty left, and it caught Tobias¡¯

    attention.

    Just when Skr was poking a straw into her smoothie, Tobias used the opportunity to pick the card out

    from her pocket. ¡°What are you doing with my card? I still have to use it tomorrow.¡±

    Ignoring her, Tobias found a ce to reload the card and asked, ¡°What is the maximum I can put into the

    card?¡±

    Tobias had seen the few students queuing in front of him load their cards with two hundred, which he felt

    was too little.

    The staff replied in a mechanical tone, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    However, the staff¡¯s robotic expression changed drastically when Tobias wanted to load a hundred

    thousand in it.

    After working in the cafeteria for so many years, it was her first time encountering someone who wanted

    to deposit so much into the card.

    What sort of family is this?

    After reloading her card, Tobias put it back into Skr¡¯s pocket. ¡°Even when I¡¯m not around, you

    shouldn¡¯t live so miserably. Treat yourself better.¡±

    Skr stared at Tobias for a while. ¡°Why are you being so nice to me? But then again, this is probably

    normal for you. After all, money is just a number to you.¡±

 Chapter 72

    Chapter 72

    Tobias coldly retorted, ¡°I¡¯m disappointed at how ungrateful you are.¡±

    It was obvious to Skr that she had worn out his patience.

    After she left the cafeteria, Tobias continued to follow her, leaving one meter between them.

    They stopped at the new cafeteria building, which just had its foundationsid.

    Skr remembered that it was Tobias that funded the building.

    She asked him, ¡°Did you promise the principal to donate this building to the school as a condition for my

    admission?¡±

    Tobias smiled smugly. ¡°That¡¯s right. Your school fees are¡­ expensive.¡±

    Skr finally verified the ims. I¡¯ve owed Tobias too much. How could I ever repay him in this lifetime?

    However, what Tobias withheld from Skr was that the principal had no right to demand anything from

    him.

    Even if he wanted to enroll a dog, the principal wouldn¡¯t even dare refuse him.

    Actually, he donated the building on his own ord. But, he used it as a sneaky lie to shackle her even

    further.

    Skr scratched her head. ¡°Since I can never repay you, I will not try to do so. You can take it as a show

    of goodwill to the poor.¡±

    Tobias frowned. He had assumed Skr would be touched but didn¡¯t expect her to use it as an excuse to

    default on her debt.

    He inly remarked, ¡°Money is indeed not important to me. But how are you going to return my stolen

    heart?¡±

    Skr pretended not to hear him as she put on her earphones.

    By the time Skr ended work at the cafe, it was almost time for her curfew. Hence, she quickly ran back

    to her dormitory.

    When she arrived at the entrance, a dark shadow loomed upon her.

    Before she had the chance to scream, someone covered her mouth from behind.

    She only managed to calm herself down when she caught a whiff of the familiar white sandalwood

    scent. Tobias is still here.

    Under the dim light of the streemp, Tobias let go of Skr¡¯s mouth and ced his hands around her

    waist, pulling her into his embrace. ¡°I came a long way to your school. Unfortunately, my car has broken

    down. Not only do I not have a ce to stay, but I also lost my wallet and cards. Tonight, only you can

    take me in.¡±

    Skr elbowed Tobias¡¯ chest but felt like she had hit a concrete wall. He didn¡¯t feel the pain at all.

    Skr seethed as she replied, ¡°You can pay with your phone.¡±

    Tobias countered, ¡°I don¡¯t know how to because I have not done it before.¡±

    After letting Skr go, he showed her his phone to prove that he was telling the truth.

    Skr took his phone to check and realized he didn¡¯t have any payment apps installed.N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    She felt as if she was dreaming. The filthy rich Tobias was pretending to be as poor as her.

    Just before she returned his phone, she saw an unread message from Tanya.

    It read: Mom is asking you toe home earlier. She is waiting for you.

    Skr stuffed his phone back at him. ¡°I don¡¯t care about you. You can call your driver and get him to pick

    you up.¡±

    After he switched off his phone, Tobias threw it in the garbage bin in a nonchnt manner. ¡°I¡¯ve lost my

    phone now. What am I to do?¡±

    However, Skr had turned away and was about to leave as it was two more minutes to her curfew.

    She saw thedy in charge of the dormitory walking toward the main gate with a key in her hands.

    Skr called out, ¡°Wait, I¡¯m still not in yet!¡±

    Tobias stepped in front of her to block her way. ¡°If you don¡¯t take me in, I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll have to sit

    downstairs the whole night. It will be extremely embarrassing.¡±

    Skr was incensed at how a cold person could do something so irresponsible.

    Meanwhile, she watched with widened eyes as thedy in charge of the dormitory locked the main gate.

    Now, even she couldn¡¯t get back in.

    Taking a deep breath, Skr exined, ¡°I have spent all my money on the dormitory fee and food. I only

    have a hundred with me now so I can¡¯t take you in either.¡±

    Tobias replied calmly, ¡°I¡¯m not particr about where I stay. I¡¯m fine as long as there¡¯s a bed.¡±

 Chapter 73

    Chapter 73

    When Skr realized that Tobias was still shamelessly sticking to her, she felt like bursting into tears.

    Without a choice, she led Tobias out of school. Since she had barely any money left, they could only

    afford a budget hotel near the school.

    Lucky for them, such hotels were abundant nearby.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    Since Tobias had imed that he wasn¡¯t particr, she led him around the small alleyways before

    arriving in front of a hotel with a red sign.

    The neon sign at the entrance was broken while the ss door looked smudgy. Furthermore, the whole

    ce was covered in dust.

    Tobias held onto Skr¡¯s wrist and gave her a suspicious look.

    ¡°Baby, are you sure you want to stay here?¡±

    Skr looked at the price on the neon sign. ¡°Sixty for a night. I don¡¯t think you canin as my

    budget previously was only thirty.¡±

    Tobias had not imagined that one day he would be in such dire circumstances together with Skr.

    The moment they opened the door, a moldy smell filled their noses, causing Tobias to retch.

    The owner shot them a disinterested nce and quipped, ¡°Show me your ID.¡±

    After Tobias handed over his, Skr gave him a suspicious look. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you lost your wallet

    and cards? Why do you still have your ID?¡±

    Tobias repeated her words, ¡°Didn¡¯t you just mention card and wallet yourself?¡±

    Skr was speechless. All she wanted was to do was quickly settle the pampered Tobias in. After that,

    she nned to spend the night at a cybercaf¨¦.

    After the owner checked both their IDs, he collected payment from Skr for the room.

    Tobias was finishing off whatever little money she had left.

    The owner mocked, ¡°Miss, your boyfriend is so much older than you. How can he expect you to pay for

    the room?¡±

    Skr retorted, ¡°He ims that he lost his wallet but who knows if it¡¯s true.¡±

    The owner nced at him with disdain. Although he is handsome, he is a real miser to not pay for the

    room.

    Despite being thirty, he can only afford toe here with his young girlfriend. What a failure.

    But somehow, he does look like a boss.

    Tobias red at the nosy owner and snapped, ¡°You should mind your own business.¡±

    The owner was jolted by Tobias¡¯ angry gaze. He is really quick to temper. Only good-for-nothings will

    have a bad-tempered!

    Afterpleting the registration, Tobias waited for Skr to go up with him. He even asked the owner for

    a roll of toilet paper.

    Anyone in the industry would know what was going to happen that night.

    ¡°You stay here while I¡¯m going off. Tomorrow, you will have to figure out how to go home yourself.¡±

    Feeling that she had done what was required of her, Skr prepared to leave.

    Frowning, Tobias snorted, ¡°I¡¯m scared to stay here alone.¡±

    Skr felt as if she had heard the funniest joke in the world. Tobias iming that he is afraid!

    When they were at Elysium, Cam told her that Tobias could kill someone as if he was squashing an

    ant. How can one whose hands are stained with blood pretend to be a coward?

    Skr retorted, ¡°I¡¯m scared when I¡¯m with you.¡±

    In his heart, the owner sympathized with Skr. Men do have a lot of ways to cheat little girls like her.

    Just when she opened the door to leave, she heard Tobias call out her name. However, she didn¡¯t look

    back.

    ¡°Your mom¡¯s medical fees are due tomorrow!¡±

    His words struck a nerve with Skr. She stopped in her tracks and had no strength to take another

    step.

    Seething, she turned around and followed Tobias up the narrow and rickety staircase.

    After Tobias entered the room, she stopped at the door with her arms folded. She eximed defiantly,

    ¡°I¡¯ve already told you that I will ept your help for one more month. After that, I will think of a way to

    pay for my mom¡¯s medical fees.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ expression recovered its usual frostiness. ¡°Are you rejecting me? Even if you said it, it doesn¡¯t

    mean that I ept. Furthermore, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m a good person anyway.¡±

 Chapter 74

    Chapter 74

    Skr replied, ¡°You really know yourself well. I have turned over a new leaf. Please let me go.¡±

    Tobias picked up the DVD on the bed. He was impressed to find little touches like that in such a ce.

    He sniggered, ¡°Just apany me one more night.¡±

    Tobias was filled with disgust as he scanned his surroundings. The supposedly white sheets were

    already yellowish while the wall was still equipped with an incandescentmp. The light it emitted was

    ufortably ring.

    In fact, the wall had turned yellowish from the prolonged exposure to cigarette smoke. This was

    tormenting for a hygiene freak like him.

    Skr refused. ¡°If there¡¯s a first time, there definitely will be a second. Tobias, can you stop bullying me?

    How long do you still want to torment me for?¡±

    Tobias threw the pornographic DVD towards Skr¡¯s and remarked gently, ¡°If you learn all the

    techniques inside, I¡¯ll consider letting you off.¡±

    It was useless to reason with a gangster.

    Skr binned the disc and scowled, ¡°Can you stop thinking about that all the time? Why can¡¯t you think

    of something more positive?¡±

    Amused, Tobias looked at her longingly, ¡°You don¡¯t understand how my life works. Other than being with

    you, there¡¯s no time for me to be rxed.¡±

    Skr wasn¡¯t interested in his life. Who am I to him? I¡¯m nothing but his toy.

    Our lives are not meant to ovep anyway.

    ¡°I¡¯m going back as I still have to go to school tomorrow. That¡¯s my only way out and I need the money.

    Perhaps when I be a superstar one day, I can even pay you back for breaking the contract.¡±

    Skr¡¯s hand was already on the doorknob when Tobias coldly asserted, ¡°I can give you all the money

    you need as long as you can wait for me. I promise you that I¡¯m not going to get married.¡±

    Skr ignored his words. She didn¡¯t want to y any part in him abandoning his wife and child.

    Besides, Tobias made it sound too easy when he promised that he wasn¡¯t going to get married.

    ¡°Your mom¡¯s medical fees.¡±

    Since he couldn¡¯t change her mind any other way, he had to resort to leveraging on her weakness.

    However, Skr was filled with resolve and left without looking back. Even if she had to make money

    selling liquor, she preferred doing that over being ensnared further.

    She regretted wavering earlier and following Tobias into the room.

    Tobias didn¡¯t expect Skr to leave abruptly. He now realized how firm she was in resisting his

    advances.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    Worried that it was unsafe for her to walk the streets at night, he followed her downstairs.

    The owner gave both of them a curious look. Are they already done?

    I didn¡¯t expect someone that looks masculine to onlyst such a short time.

    Never judge a book by its cover, I suppose.

    Tobias¡¯ fearsome re put a stop to the owner¡¯s ridiculous thoughts.

    The owner quickly pretended to be busy and typed at theputer although its screen was off.

    After they left the hotel, Skr¡¯s suppressed temper exploded when Tobias continued following her. In

    the middle of the deserted street, she roared, ¡°Can you stop tormenting me already? I won¡¯t mind if you

    are single but not under the current circumstance.¡±

    With his pride hurt by Skr¡¯s outburst, he retorted, ¡°I don¡¯t have time to waste with you. I have made

    myself clear and it¡¯s up to you whether you choose to listen. You don¡¯t have to scream at me in public.¡±

    In truth, Skr didn¡¯t understand why Tobias wanted her to wait for a non-existent conclusion.

    She knew that someone ordinary like her would never be married into a prominent family, let alone the

    foremost among them.

 Chapter 75

    Chapter 75

    Tobias watched her forlorn figure as she left. Her steps were heavy and filled with sadness.

    At that moment, he regretted losing his temper toward her.

    After Skr found a cybercaf¨¦, she paid for the whole night and bought some snacks. When she

    checked her message groups, everyone had gone offline.

    ¡°Hey pretty, are you spending the night alone? Why don¡¯t I see your boyfriend?¡±

    Someone had unplugged her headset from behind her ears. A man who had dyed his whole head pink

    was grinning widely at her.

    Skr rolled her eyes at him. ¡°My boyfriend will be here soon.¡±

    Pink Hair turned on theputer beside Skr while his friends were all sitting on a different row.

    Skr checked the time on theputer and saw that it was three in the morning. It was the most

    painful time of dawn. The keyboard was oily while the headset was mind-numbingly tight. The ce was

    filled with smoke and the temperature cold.

    She then thought about her grandma. If only Grandma was still around, I would be snuggling up inside

    my nketfortably.

    Now, she had no home to return to, just like a stray.

    N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    Pink Hair was banging on the keyboard violently as if he wanted to destroy it. Furthermore, he was

    cursing incessantly with a cigarette in his mouth.

    When Skr sneaked a peek at the game he was ying, she saw it was ¡°Battle of the Century.¡± It was

    an extremely popr game recently which Jeremy also liked to y.

    The game does not have a limit on reloading credits.

    No one had expected such a popr game to be produced by the Ford Group.

    In recent years, Tobias had been extending his reach in the business world. He was able to secure a

    monopolistic position in many industries.

    When a CEO of this caliber didn¡¯t know how to use a payment app and requested her to emte a porn

    movie, it simply felt surreal.

    Most of the time, Skr felt her interactions with Tobias were no different than a dream.

    ¡°Hey babe, why isn¡¯t your boyfriend here yet? Is he giving me a chance to be yours?¡±

    After putting out his cigarette and throwing the butt on the floor, Pink Hair smiled at Skr.

    ¡°Babe, it¡¯s so boring surfing the alone. Why don¡¯t I take you out to relieve your stress?¡±

    ¡°Our boss here is a handsome man. He even has a tattoo on his arm.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s so boring watching movies on aputer. It¡¯s a lot morefortable to do it in the hotel.¡±

    Pink Hair¡¯sckeys surrounded Skr. There were about four to five of them.

    Skr watched them warily and tried to scare them, ¡°My boyfriend is a police officer. He ising to see

    me after he finishes his shift.¡±

    Pink Hair spat on the floor. ¡°Who do you think you¡¯re threatening? Do we look like we¡¯re afraid of cops?¡±

    Realizing she was in danger, Skr screamed for the cafe supervisor.

    However, the supervisor turned a blind eye to them as he didn¡¯t dare offend the hooligans. Nevertheless,

    he reminded them, ¡°Hey guys, please take her outside. I can¡¯t afford to have anything happen here.¡±

    Pink Hair smirked as he saluted the supervisor. Then, he mischievously remarked, ¡°Look, even he

    doesn¡¯t want you here. Why don¡¯t youe with us?¡±

    Clenching her phone tightly, Skr didn¡¯t move an inch from her seat. ¡°If you continue to harass me, I will

    call the police.¡±

    Under such dangerous circumstances, Skr didn¡¯t think of the police. Instead, she thought of Tobias.

    When she encountered any trouble in the past, she never expected Jeremy to help her. Therefore, she

    had to resolve everything herself.

    Meanwhile, Pink Hair snatched her phone from her hands. ¡°You¡¯re just seducing men by being alone in a

    cybercaf¨¦ at this hour. Babe,e with me. I will shower you with a lot of money, so much that you won¡¯t

    even believe it.¡±

    To demonstrate his financial prowess, Pink Hair pulled down his cor. He exposed the thick gold chain

    he was wearing.

    He even pulled out a cigar from his pocket and lit it.

    One of hisckeys suggested, ¡°It¡¯s rare for our boss to approach a girl, so you should consider yourself

    lucky. Instead, you¡¯re still ying hard to get.¡±

    Fear began to overwhelm her when Skr realized she was all alone. No one in the cybercaf¨¦ was going

    to help her.

    Ever since she was young, she knew that it was a bad idea to offend hoodlums like that. When they fight,

    they have no regard for their own lives at all.

    Skr dered, ¡°I have AIDS.¡±

 Chapter 76

    Chapter 76

    Pink Hair and hisckeys burst intoughter. When he lifted Skr¡¯s chin, she was disgusted by his filthy

    hands.

    ¡°I happen to love those who are sick.¡±

    The next moment, Skr viciously bit into Pink Hair¡¯s arm.

    The sudden pain caused him to let go of her by reflex. He roared, ¡°B*tch! Looks like you want to do

    things the hard way.¡±

    As Skr didn¡¯t want to be a sitting duck, she grabbed her bag and fled.

    However, her speed and stamina were no match for the bunch of men. The moment she reached the

    exit, someone grabbed onto her hand and twisted it behind her back.

    Suddenly, the lights of a car pierced through the darkness from afar. It was so ring it almost blinded

    everyone.

    A ck Maybach screeched to a stop at the entrance of the cybercaf¨¦.

    Two men in ck suits alighted from the car as the window of the front passenger seat wound down

    slowly.

    When Skr saw the Maybach, she assumed it was Tobias. However, when she got a clear view of the

    man¡¯s face, she realized it was his brother, Sheldon.

    Meanwhile, Pink Hair and hisckeys were stunned and wavered at what they saw.

    After Sheldon got out of the car, he shot a re at the hoodlums and waved his hand. ¡°Take them away.¡±

    At that moment, Pink Hair and his men, who were acting arrogantly just seconds ago, were escorted

    away by the two men in suits. They were all hauled into a van at the back.

    Initially, they had wanted to fight back. But when they saw one of the men in suits hold up a gun, most of

    them were frightened into submission.

    However, when Pink Hair tried to run, he was shot straight in the thigh.

    As it was Skr¡¯s first time encountering a situation that involved guns, she quickly covered her ears the

    moment the gunshot rang out.

    Sheldon approached Skr. ¡°Ms. Jones, don¡¯t be afraid. They¡¯re just a bunch of small-time hooligans.¡±

    Skr took a deep breath. ¡°Why are you here?¡±

    He was reeking of alcohol.

    ¡°On my way here, I thought about the same question too. I happened to be drinking nearby and was

    asked by Tobias toe.¡±

    Sheldon sounded mncholic as he was disappointed his dawn drinking session was disrupted.

    He came at once the moment his brother called.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Tobias?¡± Skr asked.

    Sheldon shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m unable to answer that.¡±

    Nevertheless, Skr was grateful to Sheldon. If he hade a moment toote, she couldn¡¯t imagine

    what would have happened.

    Sheldon took a look at the time. ¡°It¡¯s going to be five soon. Tobias asked me to send you back to school.

    He said that the dormitory opens at six, am I right?¡±

    Suddenly, Skr remembered Tobias had nothing on him. She quickly suggested, ¡°Your brother doesn¡¯t

    have any money on him and has lost his wallet and cards. I¡¯m fine now, so you better go look for him.¡±

    Sheldon now understood why his brother, who rarely cared for girls, was exceptionally concerned about

    this one.

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    He wasn¡¯t sure if she was really innocent or just acting that way. But she looked like a decent girl and

    was foolish in an adorable manner.

    What surprised him was that Tobias actually used such ame excuse to trick a girl.

    ¡°He is at a nearby hotel owned by ourpany. All he needs to do is to show his face.¡±

    At that moment, Skr felt as if she was an idiot. She wondered if Tobias enjoyed toying with her,

    treating her like a distraction.

    As she followed Sheldon into the car, she sat at the back as Tobias was not around.

    ¡°Thank you for today. Where are you taking them?¡± Skr asked curiously.

    Sheldon replied, ¡°I¡¯m not really sure. The bodyguards belong to my brother and their methods are known

    to be cruel.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t believe everything that happened tonight was a coincidence. ¡°How did you know I was in

    trouble? Did you install some sort of tracker on me?¡±

 Chapter 77

    Chapter 77

    When Sheldon saw Skr checking her bag for a tracker, he put her mind at ease. ¡°Tobias isn¡¯t that

    ridiculous. He was worried about you staying out alone. Hence, he asked me toe over as I

    happened to be nearby. When I asked him why he didn¡¯te himself, he didn¡¯t answer me.¡±

    Skr recalled the angry words she had for Tobias just now. She yelled at him to stay away and not

    torment her further.

    After Sheldon told her everything he knew, Skr realized the brothers¡¯ characters were at opposite

    ends of the spectrum.

    Sheldon liked to talk while Tobias was a man of few words. However, whenever he spoke, it would be to

    devastating effect.

    After dropping her off at the school entrance, Sheldon asked curiously, ¡°What is your rtionship with

    Tobias now? I have never seen him so serious about a woman before.¡±

    As dawn broke, the sky began to brighten gradually. The morning air was exceptionally crisp and was

    moistened by the fresh morning dew.

    In the face of Sheldon¡¯s nosy gaze, Skr chuckled. ¡°There¡¯s no rtionship to speak of. We aren¡¯t even

    friends.¡±

    Sheldon shrugged his shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s a fact that both of you are a couple. Or else, Tobias wouldn¡¯t be

    friends with a girl your age. You¡¯re just too young. What would you even have inmon to talk about?¡±

    Skr never saw herself as someone young. Whenever she did a test, the results always showed that

    she had the mentality of a middle-aged woman.

    Sheldon escorted Skr to the ground floor of her dorm. He considered his duty done only after the

    dorm manager opened the door to let Skr in.

    If not for Skr, he would probably be sleeping till the next morning after being wasted from drinking.

    Despite being so sleepy that his eyes burned, Sheldon still needed to report to Tobias at the hotel.

    When he arrived, he took the elevator directly to the presidential suite.

    Upon entering, he couldn¡¯t believe his eyes. Tobias was already working as someone had delivered

    some documents over at unbelievable speed.

    Yawning, Sheldon teased him, ¡°Tobias, aren¡¯t you tired?¡±

    Tobias massaged his forehead as he looked visibly exhausted. He had dyed a lot of his work because

    of Skr.

    His work required his personal attention and therefore he was unable to escape.

    ¡°Is she safely back?¡± Tobias raised his gaze coldly.

    Seizing the opportunity to take credit, Sheldon described everything that happened in detail.

    He even added, ¡°If not for me, Skr would have been taken away by the group of hooligans.¡±

    Tobias asked, ¡°Where are they now?¡±

    To which Sheldon replied, ¡°In the car. I don¡¯t know what to do with them, so I decided to ask you.¡±

    He added, ¡°Skr was at the cybercaf¨¦¡¯s entrance when the pink-haired guy twisted her hand behind her

    back. Despite being weak, she was still struggling vehemently.¡±

    Tobias threw down his pen as tension filled the room.

    In the underground basement, Tobias ordered his bodyguards to bring the hoodlums out of the van.

    Pink Hair¡¯s leg was still bleeding and his face had lost all color from the pain.

    He pleaded in agony, ¡°Please let me go. I¡¯m going to die of pain.¡±

    Tobias looked at Pink Hair with disdain while his tone was bone-chilling. ¡°How dare you demand anything

    of me?¡±

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    Terrified of Tobias¡¯ fearsome gaze, Pink Hair begged, ¡°Dear Sir, please forgive us as we were only trying

    to pick up a girl. Next time, we won¡¯t dare do it again.¡±

    When Tobias raised his hand, his bodyguard responded immediately by cing a gun in it.

    ¡°Unfortunately, there isn¡¯t a next time.¡±

    With a pull of the trigger, the bulletnded in Pink Hair¡¯s heart.

 Chapter 78

    Chapter 78

    As Pink Hair copsed to the ground, the rest of hisckeys peed in their pants. They dropped to their

    knees and groveled at Tobias¡¯ feet, begging for mercy.

    However, Tobias wasn¡¯t moved as he removed the bullets from the gun. After that, he chucked the gun

    onto the ground.

    He ordered Samuel, his bodyguard, ¡°Call the police and tell them there was a fight in the car park

    involving a gun. One had died.¡±

    Samuel knew what to do. Before he left, Tobias gave Pink Hair¡¯s corpse a final nce and remarked,

    ¡°Next time, don¡¯t try to be a gangster. You really suck at it.¡±

    Meanwhile, Sheldon gulped and swallowed the fear he felt. He didn¡¯t understand why Tobias had to be

    so ruthless.

    Tobias was definitely someone that was capable of annihting his enemies.

    After that, Sheldon apanied Tobias for breakfast. Both of them didn¡¯t get to sleep the whole night.

    Tobias was in a worse condition than Sheldon, who was having a hangover. He had forgotten thest

    time he had a good night¡¯s sleep.

    ¡°Tobias, why didn¡¯t you gost night instead? It would have been the perfect opportunity for you to

    rescue a damsel in distress. Wouldn¡¯t it be great?¡± Sheldon was chewing on a fried egg as he waited for

    a response.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have to,¡± Tobias quipped.

    He did want to go to her but Skr had warned him to stay away.

    In his heart, he hoped that she only meantst night and that it didn¡¯t include today.

    Suddenly, Sheldon¡¯s phone rang and it was udia who called.

    He cleared his throat. ¡°Mom, why are you calling me so early in the morning?¡±

    udia asked, ¡°Is your brother with you?¡±

    Tobias signaled to Sheldon with his eyes who understood immediately. His brother needed him to lie.

    ¡°No, he¡¯s not here. Perhaps he is busy.¡±

    However, udia wasn¡¯t convinced. Before she ended the call, she even instructed Sheldon to look for

    Tobias. She wanted him to inform Tobias that there was something urgent at home and he needed to

    return.

    After Sheldon put down his phone, he gave Tobias, who was enjoying his breakfast slowly, a sympathetic

    look.

    ¡°Tobias, Mom wants you to go home. Tanya must have been making a fuss.¡±

    Tobias took out a white bottle from his pocket and poured two pills out.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going home. I¡¯m exhausted.¡±

    Sheldon knew that Tobias had a habit of taking sleeping pills as his mental condition had deteriorated to

    a serious extent.

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    However, there was nothing much he could do despite wanting to help. He med himself for not being

    capable enough to share Tobias¡¯ workload in thepany.

    He asked, ¡°Tobias, is the wedding going to be held as scheduled?¡±

    Tobias was silent.

    As Skr didn¡¯t take leave from the dormitory, her absencest night caused her to be punished.

    Furthermore, her name was even put on the notice board.

    She had tired herself out overnight. It was even more exhausting than making love with Tobias.

    As there were no sses in the morning, she stayed back in the dorm and slept.

    Coincidentally, Avery returned to the room and made a call. She even talked loudly on purpose.

    ¡°Dad, it really isn¡¯t cold here. You don¡¯t have to worry that I¡¯ll catch a cold. I¡¯ll being home on Friday

    night so I hope you will cook a pot roast for me. Also, there¡¯s a dress I like and it costs a hundred

    thousand. Please transfer me the money for it.¡±

    Skr turned her body to a morefortable position and continued sleeping.

    ¡°What? You received an invitation for Tobias¡¯ wedding? It seems someone has failed to seduce him. She

    really is shameless to think that she canpete with Tanya.¡±

    The moment Skr heard Tobias¡¯ name, she became wide awake.

    Not wanting to stay in the dorm any longer, she got out of bed and climbed down her bunk.

    Avery had ended the call and looked toward Skr gleefully. ¡°Skr, Tobias¡¯ wedding is next week. Do

    you want to go together? I may consider taking someone with me.¡±

    Skr declined coldly, ¡°There¡¯s no need. I don¡¯t know him that well. Also, can¡¯t you lower your voice on

    the phone while I¡¯m sleeping?¡±

    Avery¡¯s smile faded away. ¡°I want you to know your ce and stop dreaming about being Cindere.

    Don¡¯t think you can act so arrogantly just because you know Tobias. Does he even bother about you

    now?¡±

 Chapter 79

    Chapter 79

    As the dorm door opened, Yasmin entered. ¡°Skr, there¡¯s someone here to see you and seems to be

    arguing with the dorm manager.¡±

    Skr quickly went downstairs with Avery following behind.

    When they saw Sheldon, Avery snorted thinking that Yasmin made a mistake.

    Avery assumed Sheldon was here for her. After all, she confessed her feelings to him the previous night

    and was still waiting for his answer.

    She didn¡¯t expect him to agree so quickly and to visit her in school.

    Smiling gleefully, Avery walked up to him. ¡°You should have just called me instead and I¡¯ll go see you.

    There¡¯s no need for you toe all the way here.¡±

    Skr was confused at her words. Though, she felt it was normal for Sheldon and Avery to know each

    other.

    After all, the rich do socialize within the same circle.

    Seeing that, Skr too suspected that Yasmin had heard wrongly and Sheldon was there for Avery.

    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.

    ¡°I¡¯m not here for you. My brother asked me to pass something to Skr. I¡¯m just a messenger.¡± To prove

    what he said was true, he even raised the bag of stuff that he brought.

    Avery was dumbfounded. At that moment, she felt as if she had been pped in public and was utterly

    humiliated.

    As Sheldon waved at Skr, he handed her the shopping bag he brought.

    ¡°Tobias got me to pass them for you. It¡¯s really hard for me to get in the female dorm.¡±

    Receiving the bag, Skr asked, ¡°What¡¯s inside?¡±

    Sheldon scratched his head. ¡°You keep asking me questions that I can¡¯t answer. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s

    inside either. You will find out when you open itter.¡±

    Avery was extremely upset that Tobias was still keeping in touch with Skr. In fact, he even got Sheldon

    to pass her stuff.

    For Avery, seeing Sheldon alone was a difficult endeavor.

    After giving it some thought, Skr declined. ¡°You should take them back. I don¡¯t want them.¡±

    Sheldon recoiled in horror. ¡°No, don¡¯t do this to me. Tobias told me not to return if you didn¡¯t ept it.¡±

    Just as he spoke, Sheldon quickly ran off so that Skr didn¡¯t have the opportunity to return the item.

    When Skr returned to the dorm, Avery followed her as if she was the former¡¯s tail.

    When she opened the exquisite box and saw what was inside, she blushed immediately.

    It was a set of lingerie with a card beside it.

    It read: I¡¯lle to see you tonight as I think we need to have a proper talk.

    Avery snatched the card from Skr¡¯s hand and questioned angrily, ¡°What¡¯s your rtionship with

    Tobias? Why is he sending you such clothing?¡±

    Skr quickly covered the box as her face burned red.

    ¡°Why should I exin myself to you? Whatever he presents me is none of your business.¡±

    Unable to ept the truth, Avery forbade Skr and Tobias from having a rtionship.

    Despicable people like her only deserve to be together with scumbags like Jeremy.

    She sneered, ¡°There¡¯s a mirror in the dorm. Why don¡¯t you look yourself in it? Do you know who Tanya

    is? You don¡¯t evene close toparing yourself to her.¡±

    Skr rebutted coldly, ¡°I don¡¯t need you to remind me. Look at how anxious you are. What are you afraid

    of? Afraid that I¡¯ll one-up you?¡±

    Avery scoffed, ¡°Do you think you even can?¡±

    Skr threw the box onto the table as she decided not to meet him. She simply reminded herself to

    endure it for one more week.

    Tobias will likely stop after he is married. Everything will just feel like a dream after that.

    In the evening, when Skr went to work at the cafe, as usual, Avery stole the box from the table. She

    changed into it in thedies and admired her own slender body.

    Wearing the ckce lingerie, she got in the ck Porsche that was meant to pick up Skr.

    The driver told her, ¡°Ms. Jones, Mr. Ford is busy so he can¡¯t make it himself. He wants you to wait at the

    hotel for him.¡±

    Avery replied submissively, ¡°I understand.¡±

 Chapter 80

    Chapter 80

    Back at the dorm, when Skr noticed the box was gone, she thought she had put it in the wardrobe by

    mistake.

    After searching the whole wardrobe, she still couldn¡¯t find it. Hence, she was surprised that someone

    actually took it.

    Yasmin asked, ¡°Skr, what are you looking for?¡±

    Skr was stunned when Yasmin took the initiative to talk to her. All this while, she was ostracized in the

    dorm and hence found it a pleasant surprise.

    She was well aware of the reason for it. Avery must have forbidden everyone from talking to her.

    Avery was respected in school simply because of her family background and was just as annoying as

    their ss monitor, Lydia.

    Skr closed her wardrobe and locked it. ¡°The box on my table is gone.¡±

    After a slight hesitation, Yasmin walked towards Skr¡¯s side and whispered, ¡°Avery took it. Today at the

    school entrance, she was picked up by a ck car. Don¡¯t tell anyone I told you about this.¡±

    Skr nodded despite being distracted. She was definitely not going to betray Yasmin¡¯s good intentions.

    N?velDrama.Org owns this.

    She now felt a sense of dread as she wondered if Avery was daring enough to attend the appointment.

    She quickly gave Tobias a call but he didn¡¯t pick up.

    At that moment, her imagination began to run wild. Is Tobias not picking up because he slept with Avery?

    The more she thought about it, the more anxious she became. If Avery ended up with Tobias, she would

    definitely leverage his influence to torment Skr.

    Hence, Skr shuddered when she imagined how difficult her life would be when that happened.

    When Avery arrived at the presidential suite, she took off her clothes in the bathroom and put on a

    bathrobe.

    As she loosely tied the string on the robe, she felt as if she had butterflies in her stomach.

    To her, Tobias was a lot more desirablepared to Sheldon.

    From the first time she saw him, she had fantasized about how it would feel like sleeping with him.

    Also, she couldn¡¯t care less about the fact that Tobias was getting married.

    She didn¡¯t believe that Tobias was a person who would stay faithful after marriage.

    Even if she were just his mistress, others would still ingratiate themselves with her. Her family business

    would also expand as a result.

    When she heard the door open, Avery tousled her hair as her heart pounded furiously.

    ¡°Tobias, don¡¯t invite me for dinners like that next time. I really have no interest in running a business.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s simply my fault for indulging you too much. Now, all you do is race cars and womanize, instead of

    fulfilling your responsibilities.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve turned over a new leaf recently. So don¡¯t use me without any basis.¡±

    When she heard both their voice, Avery was dumbfounded. Why is Sheldon here?

    The moment the door opened, Avery wanted to run, but both of them already saw a figure in a bathrobe.

    ¡°Stop!¡± Hearing themand, Avery stopped in her tracks barefooted. She didn¡¯t dare to turn around.

    Sheldon assumed it was Skr and that she had changed into her bathrobe. She really knows what¡¯s

    she¡¯s doing by cutting to the chase.

    ¡°Tobias, I¡¯m leaving first and won¡¯t get in the way of your romantic night.¡±

    When she heard Sheldon was about to leave, Avery heaved a sigh of relief.

    ¡°Turn around.¡± A cold voice rang out in Avery¡¯s ears.

    As Sheldon was there, Avery didn¡¯t dare speak nor turn around as she wanted to avoid the awkward

    situation.

    ¡°I told you to turn your head around and face me.¡± Tobias loosened his tie as his voice grew solemn.

    Avery had no choice but to brace herself and turn.

    As she forgot that her bathrobe was loosely tied, the string slipped off, causing the whole robe to fall onto

    the floor.

    Sheldon was stunned to see that it was Avery.

    I don¡¯t think Tobias is that adventurous to take both sisters on at the same time.

 Chapter 81

    Chapter 81

    The lingerie was extremely sexy. The parts that were supposed to cover the crucial areas were made of

    semi-transparent ck chiffon fabric. Hence, it was no different from wearing nothing.

    After sneaking a few more nces, Sheldon was impressed by Avery¡¯s figure.

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    However, Tobias had encountered all sorts of situations before and wasn¡¯t even bothered. Even if she

    had nothing on, he wouldn¡¯t even bat an eyelid.

    He questioned her coldly, ¡°Why are you here? Where¡¯s Skr?¡±

    Avery wasn¡¯t in a hurry to put her bathrobe back on. ¡°She asked me toe as she hasn¡¯t returned from

    seeing her boyfriend.¡±

    Sheldon pre-emptively defended himself, ¡°I personally handed the box to Skr. I don¡¯t know what

    happened after that.¡±

    Avery looked at Tobias with admiration. Raising her gaze at him, she exined with an innocent tone,

    ¡°Skr was worried that you would be angry. Hence, she sent me to apany you.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ gaze turned frosty.

    He had nned to have a proper talk with Skr tonight, to the extent that he left the dinner mid-way as

    he was worried Skr waited for too long.

    And yet, he was greeted by the sight of Avery standing in front of him while wearing the lingerie he gave

    Skr.

    ¡°Why did she ask you to apany me for? To f*ck?¡± Tobias sat on the sofa and crossed his legs.

    Avery quickly shook her head. ¡°She didn¡¯t say that. All she did was ask me to change ande here. I

    had no choice but toe as I was worried she would be angry. I know this isn¡¯t right but I wasn¡¯t given

    a choice.¡±

    Tobias sneered, ¡°I wonder since when did both of you be so close?¡±

    The tone he used when speaking with Avery was frosty as ever. There wasn¡¯t any gentleness at all.

    As the cleaner had forgotten to switch the climate control to maintain a set temperature, the presidential

    suite ended up being very cold.

    Given that Avery was only wearing a piece of lingerie, goosebumps appeared all over her body while her

    legs began to shiver.

    When Sheldon saw how cold Avery was, he wanted to help her put on a robe. After all, they were still

    drinking buddies.

    ¡°Don¡¯t move. Since she likes to wear it, just let her be.¡±

    Upon hearing Tobias¡¯ words, Sheldon¡¯s fear for his brother caused him to put down the bathrobe.

    The scene in front of her wasn¡¯t how Avery imagined it. She didn¡¯t expect to mess it up.

    As Avery continued to shiver from the cold, Tobias turned the temperature on the climate control further

    down.

    ¡°Tell me, what really happened?¡± Tobias sat on the sofa as he sipped on his hot coffee.

    Lowering her head, Avery¡¯s eyes reddened as she bit her lip. ¡°Skr asked me toe but I told her I

    shouldn¡¯t. However, she still forced me to see you. She said if I didn¡¯t do this, she will not forgive me.¡±

    Listening in silence, Tobias found itughable.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you always the one to bully her? Now you are saying you fear her? Are you an idiot or do you

    think I¡¯m gullible?¡±

    Despite the calm tone, his words still sent a shiver down Avery¡¯s spine.

    ¡°She said that as your girlfriend, she didn¡¯t dare upset you. No matter how outrageous it may be, I will

    still have to endure it.¡±

    As Sheldon listened on beside them, he felt sorry for Avery. Despite her beauty, he realized she didn¡¯t

    come with brains.

    Her lies might have worked on kids, but he was surprised that she dared to tell them to his brother.

    Meanwhile, Avery was so cold that her hands were hugging her shoulders while her legs fidgeted to

    keep warm.

    Tobias smiled smugly. ¡°Since I have allowed you to speak, why don¡¯t we get Skr here and ask her if

    you are lying.¡±

    When Avery nced at the grandfather clock and realized the dorm was closed, she knew that Tobias

    wouldn¡¯t be able to verify her words tonight.

 Chapter 82

    Chapter 82

    Tobias called Susan toe in.

    Susan Yeager was Tobias¡¯ long-time secretary.

    Sometimes, even Sheldon had to show her some respect. Behind her, he would even call her the She-

    devil.

    The moment Susan entered, she immediately saw a girl in lingerie standing in front of Tobias.

    Avery lowered her head as she didn¡¯t want anyone to see her face.

    ¡°Go to the school and pick up Skr as fast as you can.¡±

    Upon hearing Tobias¡¯ instructions, Susan nodded and left immediately.

    Avery didn¡¯t realize Tobias was being serious and she thought that he was scaring her.

    ¡°The dorm is closed so no one can enter.¡± Avery tried to struggle till the very end.

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Susan ignored her.

    Just like a machine, she could only hear Tobias¡¯ instructions and block off whatever others said.

    After Susan left, Avery asked meekly, ¡°Mr. Ford, I¡¯m really cold. Can I put on some clothes?¡±

    Sheldon remained silent and didn¡¯t help her.

    Smiling smugly, Tobias replied, ¡°Why do you need to wear any? I find the temperature just perfect.¡±

    When Susan arrived at the dorm entrance, the doors were tightly shut.

    After knocking a few times, the dorm manager yawned while walking out in her woolen outfit.

    She rudely eximed, ¡°Do you know what time it is? You¡¯re disturbing others from resting! The dorm is

    closed so you can¡¯te in!¡±

    Susan replied, ¡°I¡¯m here to pick up someone and I¡¯ll leave right away once I find her.¡±

    The dorm manager was worried and replied in an exasperated tone, ¡°The school isn¡¯t your house. You

    can¡¯t juste and go as you like.¡±

    Susan quickly made a call and put her phone to the dorm manager¡¯s ears. When she heard it was the

    principal, she opened the gate at once.

    Heading up to the third floor, Susan arrived at Skr¡¯s dorm and asked, ¡°Who is Skr?¡±

    Getting down from her bed, Skr raised her eyebrows at the stylishly dressed woman in her trench

    coat.

    ¡°Mr. Ford wants you to go over. The car is already waiting at the school entrance. You should get

    changed.¡±

    Skr gave the gorgeousdy a wary look. ¡°Who are you? I have never seen you before.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Susan, Mr. Ford¡¯s secretary. If I¡¯m unable to pick you up, I¡¯ll have to wait here till I do.¡±

    The apple never falls far from the tree. In this instance, it was between an employee and her boss.

    Somehow she felt Susan and Tobias had simrly aggressive characters.

    Meanwhile, Carmen, who was on the next bunk began to feel annoyed. She pestered, ¡°Skr, it¡¯s

    bedtime. Can you let us sleep in peace?¡±

    Worried that she would disturb the others, Skr had no choice but to pack and leave with Susan.

    Along the journey there, Susan didn¡¯t say a word to Skr. She was so cold that she felt just like a block

    of ice. Both of them didn¡¯t even exchange nces.

    When they arrived at the hotel, Skr was stunned the moment she entered. Avery was wearing the

    sexy lingerie that was supposedly hers.

    The room was as cold as an igloo and Avery couldn¡¯t help but shiver.

    When Tobias saw that Skr was here, he turned the thermostat back up. Grabbing a nket, he flung it

    in Skr¡¯s direction.

    Catching the nket, Skr would have used it to cover Avery if she still had a soft spot for her.

    However, she didn¡¯t. Instead, she put it on the sofa and didn¡¯t cover herself.

    She scrutinized Avery from head to toe and saw that she was almost naked in her outfit.

    ¡°Have you slept with each other?¡± Skr asked.

    Tobias raised his eyebrow. ¡°What do you think?¡±

    How would I know? I have only just arrived!

    Avery was never so humiliated in front of Skr before. Biting her lip, she cursed vehemently in her

    heart.

    Tobias never showed Avery any respect at all. She was now all red like a cooked lobster.

 Chapter 83

    Chapter 83

    Tobias nced at Avery from the corner of his eye and inly remarked, ¡°Your sister imed that you

    went on a date and gave her the clothes. Furthermore, you asked her toe and apany me. Is

    that what happened?¡±

    Avery pleaded with Skr with her eyes, hoping that she would help confirm the lie.

    Skr shrugged her shoulders. ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything. Besides, I¡¯m not a pimp. Why would I arrange

    ladies for you?¡±

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    Avery¡¯s expression changed drastically. If looks could kill, Skr would probably be dead.

    Avery sobbed, ¡°Skr, how can you do this to me? You¡¯re denying everything you¡¯ve said to me?¡±

    Skr watched as Avery continued with her act. Even her fake cries sounded more coquettish than sad.

    In front of everyone, Tobias put his hands around Skr¡¯s waist and moved his lips close to her ear. ¡°Go

    ahead and tell the truth. There¡¯s no need to hold back in front of me.¡±

    Skr shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t know what happened. I put the box on the table and when I returned, it

    was gone.¡±

    Avery¡¯s face turned pale as Skr didn¡¯t even help her one bit. To her, it was the ultimate betrayal.

    She swore that she would never leave Skr in peace till the day she died.

    Tobias stared at the ashen-faced Avery. ¡°Ms. Jones, stealing is not right.¡±

    Biting her lip, Avery replied meekly, ¡°I didn¡¯t steal it. It¡¯s all just a misunderstanding. I¡¯ll pay for the

    clothes.¡±

    Tobias turned to Skr and asked, ¡°How do you think I should handle this?¡±

    The animosity between Skr and Avery had reached the point of no return.

    Skr clearly remembered how over the years, Avery would cause trouble for her at every turn.

    As they stared into each other eyes, she could see how pitiful Avery looked.

    ¡°Let her go.¡± Even Skr didn¡¯t expect herself to say those words.

    When the time came for her to be firm, she wavered.

    She was clear that if something happened to Avery, Thomas would never forgive her.

    It was also impossible for Tobias to protect her forever. When things went back to the way they were, she

    would be a nobody.

    She knew she shouldn¡¯t go too far as now wasn¡¯t the time for revenge.

    As if she had received a pardon, Avery thought that she had escaped what would be Hell of Earth, given

    how ruthless Tobias was.

    She prepared to head to the washroom to get changed.

    Tobias called out to her in a deep voice. ¡°You really look good in it. Since you like it so much, you should

    wear it back to your dorm and let everyone admire how pretty you are.¡±

    Sheldon gave Avery a sympathetic look. ¡°Just go. If you wait any longer, you might not even get to keep

    what you¡¯re wearing.¡±

    As Avery emerged at the hotel entrance in her sexy lingerie, it attracted a lot of onlookers.

    In fact, a lot of them were teasing her with wolf whistles. Some even brought out their phones to take

    pictures.

    Meanwhile, only Skr and Tobias were left in the room.

    When Skr looked at the time, she knew she was locked out of the dorm again for the night.

    ¡°Why are you so easily bullied? I gave you the dagger to stab your enemy but you couldn¡¯t even keep it

    in your hand.¡± Tobias gave her a pensive look.

    From how she treated Avery, Tobias could see that deep down, she was really weak.

    From a rational point of view, Skr and he were not reallypatible. Hence, their rtionship wouldn¡¯t

    last long.

    If he were really going to be with Skr, she would need to strengthen her mental fortitude as she would

    have to face innumerable problems.

    ¡°You don¡¯t understand. Sometimes, I really don¡¯t have a choice.¡± Skr shuddered in the face of Tobias¡¯

    mockery.

    Tobias didn¡¯t look surprised as he put a hand in his pocket. ¡°If I were you, I would definitely not let her go.

    She has been forcing you into submission for so many years. Why don¡¯t you vent your frustrations for

    once? You have to seize the opportunity when ites.¡±

    Skr frowned with a solemn expression. ¡°Of course I would want to vent if I had the power to do so. But

    now, I¡¯m finding it hard to even make ends meet, let alone seeking revenge. I can¡¯t just rely on you

    forever.¡±

 Chapter 84

    Chapter 84

    When Skr wanted to leave, Tobias blocked the exit and locked the door. ¡°Just stay here for the night.

    Or else, you might not be as lucky the next time you meet a bunch of hoodlums.¡±

    Recalling Pink Hair, Skr asked Tobias, ¡°Where did the few of them go? The police station?¡±

    Tobias replied with a tone devoid of emotion, ¡°They¡¯re dead.¡±

    Skr thought Tobias was kidding. ¡°It¡¯s not funny at all. Why would they be dead? It¡¯s not like they

    committed armed robbery.¡±

    Tobias held onto Skr¡¯s wrist and pulled her into his arms. Tightening his embrace, he whispered,

    ¡°Youngdy, the world isn¡¯t as perfect as you imagine it to be. Since they made a mistake, they had to

    pay the price. Forgiveness is for the weak.¡±

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    Skr still didn¡¯t believe him. Although Tobias was ruthless, she didn¡¯t think he would actually take

    someone¡¯s life. Is he trying to teach me about life?

    When they heard a knock on the door, Skr¡¯s heart sank. The images from the other day shed

    across her mind. She didn¡¯t want to be caught in bed with him again.

    As Tobias let go of Skr to open the door, she found a ce to hide. If she could choose a superpower

    then, it would be the power of invisibility.

    When she saw that it was Sheldon who entered, she heaved a sigh of relief.

    However, Tobias was upset at being disturbed. ¡°Why are you here at this hour? Spit it out quickly.¡±

    When Sheldon saw that Skr was still around, he pulled Tobias aside. ¡°Avery¡¯s father is here and wants

    to see Skr. He¡¯s waiting at the hotel entrance and throwing a temper tantrum. However, he is just

    ranting at Skr and doesn¡¯t dare scold you.¡±

    ¡°No, she¡¯s not free.¡± Tobias decided on Skr¡¯s behalf.

    ¡°He said that he will not leave until Skres down. Furthermore, he looks extremely agitated. After

    all, he is known for coddling Avery and feels indignant about how she has been humiliated.¡±

    Tobias sneered, ¡°If he wants to wait then just let him do so.¡±

    Before he left, Sheldon shot a nce at Skr and wondered what Tobias had said to her.

    Skr was spaced out and looked just like a frightened bunny.

    Sitting on the sofa, Skr held onto her phone with her sweaty palms. ¡°If you¡¯re busy, I won¡¯t bother you

    any further. Just give me a room and I¡¯ll head back to school first thing in the morning.¡±

    Tobias smirked in response. ¡°Isn¡¯t there more than enough space for you to sleep here? Besides, I

    already told you that we need to have a proper talk. We haven¡¯t even started yet.¡±

    Skr put her hand to her forehead as she began to have a splitting headache.

    She was going to be absent from the dorm without reason and her name would be put up on the notice

    board again. It seemed like her name would stay there forever.

    She grumbled, ¡°What¡¯s there to talk about? Isn¡¯t it the same old topic? I can give you the answer straight

    up. I don¡¯t want to be a mistress. Neither do I want to steal someone¡¯s husband nor someone¡¯s father.¡±

    Maintaining hisposure, Tobias persuaded, ¡°Would you actually be more patient with me if I were

    someone else? Firstly, I will do my best to annul my engagement. After all, it was never my intention to

    get married. Also, Tanya isn¡¯t carrying my child as I never touched her. After all this, I hope you have a

    better understanding of what¡¯s going on.¡±

    He wanted to clear all the doubts Skr had.

    Skr looked up and gazed deeply into Tobias¡¯ eyes. She replied meekly, ¡°Even if you canceled your

    engagement, what are we doing together? I have no intention of being in a rtionship that has no end

    goal.¡±

    Skr was still conservative to her bone. To her, it was irresponsible to be in a rtionship that didn¡¯t

    end up in marriage.

 Chapter 85

    Chapter 85

    She didn¡¯t believe Tobias¡¯ words.

    Tanya is his fianc¨¦e. Given how strong his sex drive is, how is it possible that he hasn¡¯t slept with her.

    Does he think I¡¯m a three-year-old?

    Tobias sat down beside Skr and lifted her chin to kiss her. He bit her lower lip as if to punish her.

    ¡°There are risks in love. Feelings alone cannot guarantee a happy family. It also depends on how a

    couple interacts in the long run. Would you believe me if I said I¡¯ll marry you?¡±

    Skr could feel how different a mature man was from a young boy.

    Tobias was calm, wise, and strong.

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    When she was in a rtionship with Jeremy, she had forgotten how many times he said he wanted to

    marry her.

    In the end, it was all just empty talk.

    Tobias¡¯ gentle kiss caused Skr to have butterflies in her stomach. She quickly averted her eyes from

    his predatory gaze. ¡°Both of us are not at that stage yet. You¡¯ll take the bed while I sleep on the sofa.¡±

    Tobias coolly recovered his gaze. Every time he made love with Skr, it felt just like she was forced to

    do it. Never once did she respond willingly.

    Standing up, he left the room with his hand in his pocket.

    When she heard the door close, Skr felt as if all the tension in her body was finally released.

    After Tobias left, she got up from the sofa andy on the soft fluffy bed. She felt as if she was being

    cuddled in a cloud. The luxurious bed in the presidential suite was a lot morefortable than her dorm

    bunk.

    Lying on the bed, she could still smell Tobias¡¯ scent¡ª the faint fragrance of white sandalwood.

    By the bed, there was a blue document folder. When Skr flipped through it, she realized she had no

    idea what was written as they were filled withplicated business terms.

    Sniggering at herself, she realized Avery was right. How could someone like her deserve to be with

    Tobias? Eventually, she would have to be grounded in reality.

    While she was sleeping, Skr felt as if she had difficulty breathing. When she opened her eyes, she

    caught the intense smell of white sandalwood. A dark figure was pressing himself on top of her.

    Why is Tobias suddenly back? Didn¡¯t he leave earlier?

    Cupping her face in his hands, he kissed her passionately without giving her space to breathe.

    No matter how she struggled, Tobias didn¡¯t let go.

    Only after her top was removed and her chest was exposed to the cold air did her senses match her

    actions. The next moment, she bit down on Tobias¡¯ tongue and felt his weight shift away from her body.

    He recoiled in pain and turned on the bedsidemp.

    Just like a spring, Skr bounced up to a seated position but her shoulder hit him in the jaw

    coincidentally. However, she quickly grabbed her bra and covered her breasts with it.

    Skr could see his eyes were red as he red at her. But, she wasn¡¯t sure if it was from pain or anger.

    Tobias closed his eyes and braced himself for a whole three minutes before the pain on his tongue

    subsided.

    During that short moment, Skr knew that it was best for her to keep her mouth shut.

    ¡°When will you start acquiescing and reciprocate my advances? Or do you need to find another sick

    boyfriend so that I can procure your services again?¡± Tobias was exasperated while the redness in his

    eyes hadn¡¯t fully subsided.

    Tobias struck a nerve when he mentioned the humiliating incident. She red at him, ¡°Can you not bring

    up that stupid matter ever again?¡±

    Just as she spoke, Tobias caught her by the neck and nted his lips on hers.

    It was a shallow kiss as his lips were hurt from just now. When she tasted blood in her mouth, Skr

    realized that she had bitten him too hard.

    Skr had failed to escape from Tobias¡¯ clutches again.

    She was now trapped.

 Chapter 86

    Chapter 86

    He knew how to tease and navigate all her sensitive spots.

    Compared to how experienced Tobias was, Skr was a novice and didn¡¯t stand a chance against him.

    Realizing Tobias was still asleep, Skr wanted to sneak out before he woke up. Just when she was

    about to leave, she noticed a box of medication next to the bed.

    When she saw it was Estazm, she checked the prescription out of curiosity. It was used for treating

    insomnia and weakened mental conditions.

    In fact, Skr wondered if Tobias prepared it for her so that it would make it easier for him. After all, he

    was capable of anything.

    When she walked out of the elevator into the lobby, Skr saw Thomas. Both father and daughter

    exchanged nces.

    ¡°I have been waiting for you the whole night.¡± Thomas¡¯ tone was filled with frustration.

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    ¡°Why are you waiting for me?¡± Skr sat down opposite Thomas, who had a gloomy look on his face.

    All this while, she was the one who had to wait for him and would be scolded in the end.

    Skr still remembered the time when Meredith, her grandma, told her to ask Thomas for money. She

    needed it for her school fees. Thomas threw two hundred on the ground then.

    ¡°Last night, Avery came home crying. She said that you bullied her and tore off all her clothing. Skr,

    how can you be so cruel? Just because you have Tobias watching your back, do you think you can do

    anything you please? Including hurting your own family?¡±

    Skrughed wryly at Thomas¡¯ response. Avery really is Dad¡¯s favorite. She will always run crying to

    Dad at the first sign of trouble.

    Skr didn¡¯t feel she did anything wrongst night. Whatever happened was all Avery¡¯s own doing.

    Skr was disgusted by the pained look Thomas had when he described how Avery was mistreated.

    She smirked. ¡°Is that why you have waited the whole night? Just so that you can use me of this?

    Family? Since when did you be my family?¡±

    Tobias scolded, ¡°You have to apologize to your sister as she has never been humiliated to his extent.

    Don¡¯t think just because you have Tobias behind you, you can act with impunity. Why don¡¯t you ask

    yourself if he can watch over you forever?¡±

    Thomas had the same expression as Avery when he said the same words as she did.

    Skr snorted. They¡¯re father and daughter after all. After spending so much time together, she really

    takes after him.

    When she heard that he wanted her to apologize, Skr¡¯s expression darkened. She refused, ¡°No matter

    what I do, you always feel that it¡¯s my fault. Avery has done so many things to me over the years. Since

    when did you ever ask her to apologize to me?¡±

    Thomas leaned against the sofa and raised his eyebrows in disbelief. ¡°Unlike you, Avery is kind. Don¡¯t go

    spouting nonsense like that. She grew up by my side and I know my own daughter very well.¡±

    At that moment, Skr wanted to change her surname so that she could have a clean break from

    Thomas.

    Look at this. A kind father praising his favorite daughter in front of the daughter he abandoned.

    Deep in her heart, she realized she was still pathetically yearning for her father¡¯s love and concern.

    All this while, she never cried from Tobias¡¯ pressure and the nder of others.

    But now, she could feel the burn in her eyes. Feeling her tears were going to fall, she took a forceful

    breath to suck it in.

    Suddenly, she caught the faint scent of white sandalwood and found it to be inexplicably calming.

    When Tobias approached them, he held onto Skr¡¯s clenched fist. All the pent-up emotions within her

    were suddenly relieved.

    The next moment, he stroked her chin lightly as he looked at her reddened eyes. ¡°What¡¯s the big deal?

    Why are you going to cry again?¡±

    When Thomas saw Tobias had joined them, he adjusted his posture straight and stood up. ¡°Hello, Mr.

    Ford. I¡¯m chatting with my daughter about some family matters.¡±

    Thomas could only seethe inwardly at Tobias and vent his frustrations on Skr.

 Chapter 87

    Chapter 87

    If it were any other person that bullied his daughter, Thomas would have moved mountains just to teach

    him a lesson.

    Tobias was calm as he looked inly at Thomas. ¡°The discussion doesn¡¯t sound amicable to me.¡±

    When he saw how miserable Skr looked as she bit her lip, he couldn¡¯t help but pity her.

    Thomas quickly exined, ¡°Skr is someone emotional. I don¡¯t know what I have said to upset her.¡±

    Despite his reluctance, Thomas still had to hide his feelings. Furthermore, he knew Skr wouldn¡¯t say

    much to Tobias too. Nevertheless, he wasn¡¯t going to let the matter slide that easily.

    After regaining herposure, Skr¡¯s crying expression had changed into a smiling face. ¡°Mr. Jones,

    since you know you will upset me when you say the wrong thing, please don¡¯t ever appear in front of me

    again. After all, we don¡¯t know each other well.¡±

    Thomas suppressed his anger. ¡°Skr, you¡­ Don¡¯t regret it. I¡¯m still your father in the end. Mr. Ford

    won¡¯t likedies that don¡¯t acknowledge their family. I have always taught you to be kind.¡±

    Thomas said all those in front of Tobias on purpose.

    Skr¡¯s smile slightly froze. She could only remember the neighbor¡¯s childrenughing at her for not

    having any parents to educate her. And yet, Thomas could still shamelessly im that he had taught her

    life¡¯s lessons.

    If one really learned from Thomas, one would act no differently from an animal.

    Not willing to see the animosity between father and daughter escte further, Tobias turned his attention

    to Thomas. ¡°I know you are here to ask about Avery and you don¡¯t have to feel bad about that. There¡¯s

    no need for you to lecture Skr as someone else will do it. Instead, you should have a heart-to-heart

    talk with your other daughter. Ask her who taught her to appear in my room in the middle of the night in

    sexy lingerie.¡±

    Shocked, Thomas was visibly agitated, ¡°My daughter won¡¯t do such a thing.¡±

    Tobias squinted his eyes and responded sharply, ¡°Are you saying that I¡¯m lying?¡±

    Thomas was again speechless. He mumbled to himself, ¡°Avery is a good girl. She must have been set

    up by someone else.¡±

    Tobias ran out of patience and ushered Thomas to leave.

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    Meanwhile, Skr still felt troubled when standing beside Tobias. The whole time they were there, Tobias

    didn¡¯t let go of her hand.

    ¡°Thank you for helping me again.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ eyes shed with mncholy. As he lifted Skr¡¯s chin with his fingers, he stroked it gently.

    When he saw that she no longer looked like crying, he replied softly, ¡°There¡¯s no need to thank me. After

    all, this had nothing to do with you. There¡¯s no need to cry for those that don¡¯t matter to us as it will just

    be a waste of tears.¡±

    Skr raised her gaze and smiled. ¡°You probably don¡¯t know what it feels like to be abandoned. I feel the

    same devastating pain in my heart every time I see him.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ expression darkened. ¡°How can I not know? You make me feel that way every time I see you. I

    feel as if you will leave me anytime. Things always seem to end before they even start.¡±

    Stumped by Tobias¡¯ words, she chuckled softly. ¡°Mr. Ford, you tter me. I don¡¯t have such power over

    you.¡±

    Tobias snorted before letting out a gentle smile. ¡°You are a real problem for me. I never had the patience

    for women nor bothered to interact much with them. But, I must admit my feelings for you are

    complicated. You should head back to school now. Only time will give me an answer.¡±

 Chapter 88

    Chapter 88

    Skr had always thought that Tobias was the ultimate scumbag.

    But now, she gradually realized that he was extremely rational. Time will tell for her too but she didn¡¯t

    dare to hope for anything.

    ¡°Skr, wait¡­¡± Tobias stopped her.

    When he called out to her, she turned around. The first thing that came to her mind was that he regretted

    his words and wanted her to go back to the bedroom again.

    ¡°Take the card and don¡¯t be stubborn. You need to eat after all. Buy some nice clothes so that you don¡¯t

    waste the prime of your youth.¡± Tobias took out the ck card that Skr had previously left behind.

    Skr was charmed and felt as if Tobias was like a drug. Once she was hooked, she would be unable to

    resist.

    Nheless, she was still alert enough to know what came after the rush was death.

    Tobias was still wearing the ring on his finger and the bling it emitted was especially ring.

    She replied with a grin, ¡°I don¡¯t need that. The cafeteria card has a lot of money inside. More than

    enough to keep me filled. Besides, it isn¡¯t a big deal to be poor when we¡¯re young. It doesn¡¯t mean we¡¯ll

    be poor forever. Who knows I¡¯ll be a superstar someday.¡±

    When Tobias realized her gaze was on his finger, he raised it and took off the ring in front of her. ¡°This

    isn¡¯t a wedding ring. It¡¯s a lucky charm I¡¯ve been wearing for many years. I believe in that sort of thing.¡±

    Skr recovered her gaze calmly. ¡°You don¡¯t have to exin to me.¡±

    At that moment, Tobias¡¯ gaze turned cold as he grunted in acknowledgment.

    Tobias watched as Skr left. Ain¡¯t men strange? They only go after those that are hard to get.

    After Skr left, he too left the hotel at the same time.

    On his phone, there were more than ten missed calls. They were all from udia.

    He suspected that Tanya was actually using his mother¡¯s phone.

    As the wedding was getting closer, Tanya began to grow impatient.

    Ever since Avery came backst night, she cried non-stop underneath the nket.

    As for Thomas, he was infuriated after leaving the hotel.

    When Irene saw how angry Thomas was, she asked, ¡°Why were you out the whole night? Did you see

    that stupid Skr? She is getting more daring by the day, to the extent she dared to bully Avery.¡±

    Thomas looked exhausted. ¡°So what if I saw her? She has no fear now that she is close to Tobias. When

    I asked her to apologize, she simply ignored me.¡±

    Irene felt extremely disgusted.

    She grumbled, ¡°Is my daughter going to suffer in vain? Are we worthless in their eyes? My sister was

    killed by Miranda for nothing. Now, my daughter was bullied by Skr.¡±

    ¡°What do you want me to do? Go head to head with Tobias? That¡¯s just suicide,¡± Thomas replied

    helplessly.

    Thomas was well aware of how powerful Tobias was. Even if he went all out, it would barely harm a hair

    on him.

    He had never felt like a coward in his life before until he met Tobias.

    Squinting her eyes, Irene¡¯s expression was solemn. ¡°Tobias is going to get married soon so what is he

    doing all this for? Do you need to tell his fianc¨¦e about it? We may be powerless against Skr, but not

    Tanya.¡±

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    Thomas thought Irene¡¯s suggestion was foolish. How can Tanya not be aware of Skr¡¯s presence?

    In high society, this was amon urrence. The wife had to turn a blind eye to the husband keeping

    a mistress.

    After all, the Hansons¡¯ family business over thest two years heavily relied on Tobias.

 Chapter 89

    Chapter 89

    When they heard amotion upstairs, Thomas and Irene looked up at the same time.

    Avery was hurling things around in the bedroom. Thomas hated himself and swore to get Skr to

    apologize to Avery.

    He just couldn¡¯t ept the humiliation quietly.

    Meanwhile, when Skr realized her name was not on the notice board for staying out, she heaved a

    sigh of relief.

    During acting ss, Skr watched intently as the teacher taught Shailene how to express herself

    through her gaze.

    However, Shailene just couldn¡¯t do what was required of her despite the repeated guidance of the

    teacher.

    Shailene looked haggard recently.

    In contrast to the time when she proudly dered herself as the prettiest in ss, she looked vastly

    different then.

    After ss ended, Skr went to thedies to check her face in the mirror. As she picked a crying role

    earlier, her eyes were already swollen from crying too much.

    But then again, it may have been caused by her vtile mood after seeing Thomas.

    The role came at the perfect time as she managed to cry out all the tears she held back in the morning.

    When the teacher praised her for her realistic acting, she was grateful for her luck.

    After venting all her frustration from the long crying session, Skr¡¯s mood improved significantly.

    Shailene had turned on the tap and was freshening her makeup amidst the sound of running water.

    She snuck a few nces at Skr and felt like saying something a couple of times.

    Finally, she still couldn¡¯t say it out loud despite being mentally prepared.

    She wanted to ask Skr why did she get Tobias to fire her father.

    Her father had worked for the Ford Group for many years and didn¡¯t deserve it.

    He was fired just because Skr said a few words.

    Dissatisfied, her father went to the office to make a fuss, as if he were experiencing a bout of depression.

    She too was puzzled as to why Tobias was together with Skr.

    She was a poor girl that needed to work part-time in the cafe for extra ie.

    When Skr left the washroom, she had a habit of putting on her earphones. That way, she could keep

    herself isted from all the noise.

    As the song she was listening to was interrupted by the ring of her phone, Skr answered without

    checking who the caller was.

    She heard Wesley¡¯s gruff voice over the line. ¡°Skr,e to my house for dinner tomorrow. It¡¯s my

    treat.¡±

    Thest time they met, she had an argument with her uncle over her mother. Yet, that day, he was

    inviting her for dinner.

    Hence, Skr wondered if he was setting a trap for her.

    ¡°I¡¯m on a diet so I don¡¯t have an appetite.¡±

    When Skr declined his invitation, he sounded as if he was prepared for it. He replied with a smile,

    ¡°Come over to my ce as we need to talk about your mother. After all, we need to discuss it as a

    family.¡±

    After hesitating for ten seconds, Skr agreed. ¡°I¡¯ll try my best to make it.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Wesley grunted in acknowledgment. ¡°Come over at nine in the evening tomorrow. I have a big surprise

    for you. I¡¯m sure you will be delighted to see it.¡±

    Skr wasn¡¯t hopeful about what the surprise was. She was happy enough as long as Wesley didn¡¯t give

    her a shock.

    She remembered what Grandma had said. Mom loved her brother since young but she was disappointed

    on his attitude on the day she left prison.

    Meanwhile, Skr arrived early at the old house empty-handed. She didn¡¯t bring any gifts at all.

    When she visited Wesley¡¯s home previously, she used to buy some fruits. However, Sharon used her

    of being stingy.

    Instead of being insulted for buying something, she would rather not buy anything at all.

    Just when she entered Wesley¡¯s house, she realized there were still guests around.

 Chapter 90

    Chapter 90

    She was stunned when a middle-ageddy of fifty years old scrutinized her from head to toe.

    As if she was buying stock, thedy nodded at Skr before checking out her face then her butt.

    ¡°She looks alright. Her hips aren¡¯t too small, so should be quite fertile.¡±

    At that moment, Sharon happened to walk out of the house. She chuckled in reply, ¡°Lily, I told you that

    my niece is a beauty. Furthermore, she¡¯s a student at the Southwood Film Academy. Next time, you

    might even have a star in your family.¡±

    Feeling ufortable at being discussed openly, Skr shot a nce at Wesley.

    Wesley was all smiles. ¡°Lily, if you¡¯re happy with what you see, you should seize the opportunity and set

    a date.¡±

    Skr¡¯s expression darkened. ¡°What are you talking about? What do you mean by setting a date?¡±

    At that moment, the door to the washroom opened. A guy in thick sses and a checkered shirt stepped

    out. He looked as if he was already balding.

    He stared stiffly at Skr when he saw her.

    Lily quickly tugged at her son¡¯s sleeve. ¡°Setting a date for your wedding, of course. I have already

    negotiated the dowry of three hundred thousand to be paid to your family. My son is a government

    servant and has fully paid for his house in cash. Once married, he ns to get a car. He¡¯s a real catch,

    you know.¡±

    Skr red at Wesley and his wife. She gritted her teeth and reprimanded, ¡°What gives you the right to

    decide for me? Aren¡¯t we supposed to talk about my mom? And now you have sold me off?¡±

    Sharon rolled her eyes at Skr. ¡°Lily has exined to you how good their family is. We¡¯re doing this for

    your own good. The boyfriend you brought homest time doesn¡¯t look decent and is so much older than

    you. It means he¡¯s not serious. You should find someone who is more reliable.¡±

    Wesley agreed. ¡°Your aunt is right. The wedding date has been set and the hotel has also been booked.

    Why does a girl need to study so much? In the end, doesn¡¯t she just end up being a mother and a

    housewife?¡±

    When Wesley and Sharon pushed the idea, Skr grew nervous as she felt something was wrong.

    They were desperately trying to marry her off for that three hundred thousand in dowry. The figure set off

    rm bells in her head.

    When she sold her body to Tobias, she had also asked for the same amount. What¡¯s up with me and

    three hundred thousand?

    Skr looked at Lily, ¡°Who asked you toe over?¡±

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Lily was stunned at being questioned as she didn¡¯t realize how obvious she made it out to be.

    If not for Tanya, she wouldn¡¯t even dream that something this wonderful was possible.

    She had been a maid for the Hansons for many years. Suddenly, Tanya suggested that she wanted to

    find her son a bride and offered to pay for the dowry and wedding expenses.

    As long as the bride was someone named Skr.

    When she arrived, Lily thought that it would be an old and ugly woman. However, she was surprised at

    how gorgeous Skr was.

    Lily replied connivingly, ¡°No one asked me to do this. When my son saw your picture, it was love at first

    sight. As his mother, it¡¯s my duty to make this happen for him.¡±

    Sharon added, ¡°Skr, three hundred thousand for the dowry is a lot of money. You should be satisfied

    with it. Furthermore, the hotel booked for the wedding is also a grand one. Look at how well your future

    mother-inw treats you.¡±

    Wesley passed Skr a copy of the wedding invitation. Everything was proceeding at lightning speed.

    It felt as if her wedding would just go ahead without her agreement.

    Tearing the invitation card to pieces, Skr¡¯s eyes were filled with rage. ¡°All of you are crazy to bully me

    this way. Wesley, I¡¯m your niece for goodness sake, not your enemy.¡±

    The atmosphere was tense.

    Wesley continued to reason with Skr. ¡°The dowry is three hundred thousand and I will give you half of

    it. It¡¯s enough for your mom¡¯s medical fees.¡±

    Skr tried to calm herself down when she realized this was how hypocritical her rtives were.

 Chapter 91

    Chapter 91

    As the male lead of this hoo-ha, the man who had horn-rimmed sses, broke the silence, asking

    sincerely, ¡°Skr, I¡¯m Jackson. Have you forgotten about me?¡±

    Lily¡¯s eyes gleamed in excitement as she eximed, ¡°What? Does that mean both of you are

    acquainted? Great! Fate must have brought you guys together again!¡±

    Skr started sizing Jackson up after she heard his name. After racking her brain, she finally recalled

    the identity of the man in front of them.

    Jackson was her ssmate who had always taken a seat by her side back in their junior high school

    days. She once received a confession letter from him during their senior high school days.

    It had been so many years, yet he hadn¡¯t changed a single bit. He still had the same geeky look.

    During their school days, students were arranged into different sses based on their family

    backgrounds. Since they were both from a rtively normal background, they were treated as outcasts

    of the school and dispatched to a rtively subpar ss.

    She could vividly recall the tough condition of Jackson¡¯s family back in the day. Yet, he seemed different

    aspared to thest time they met. He was dressed upvishly as though he was from a well-off

    family.

    The confused Skr replied indifferently, ¡°I guess I do.¡±

    Jackson responded with a goofy smile and indicated his intention to engage in a conversation with Skr

    in private.

    The rest of the party thought things would work out between them just fine because they caught a

    glimpse of Jackson¡¯s smile.

    Sharon couldn¡¯t suppress her joy anymore as she started nning the distribution of the wealth she

    would soon acquire.

    Three hundred thousand! I¡¯ll never give Skr a hundred fifty thousand! If worsees to worst, I¡¯ll give

    her thirty thousand and chase her off!

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    As long as I get my hands on the three hundred thousand, I won¡¯t have to wrack my brain to collect the

    fees for my sons¡¯ education anymore!

    Jackson went after Skr with his head hanging low.

    In the end, Skr stopped by an ice cream store and got herself a serving of ice cream and a bottle of

    soda.

    She had a sweet tooth¡ªafter getting her cravings fixed, she would be in a great mood.

    Jackson dared not look at Skr in the eyes, but he mustered his courage and said, ¡°Skr, you have

    always been a gorgeous woman ever since our high school days.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re quite a capable man as well. I¡¯m still trying to get myself a degree, yet you¡¯re already involved in

    the corporate world. How did you manage to be ahead of our peers?¡±

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t take my mother¡¯s words seriously because she¡¯s just kidding. I have quit school after

    senior high because of my despairing results. Due to the family¡¯s condition, I couldn¡¯t afford to further my

    study anymore.¡±

    The mother and son duo¡¯s words were contradicting as Jackson had stated the exact opposite of Lily.

    Skr pursed her lips and frowned because she had her fair share of doubts. ¡°How can you not afford to

    further your studies when your mother has saved up the money for your wedding?¡±

    The geeky man shook his head. ¡°I have no idea, Skr. Out of the blue, she told me she would get me a

    wife. I didn¡¯t expect it would be you!¡±

    He took a deep breath and mustered his courage to look at Skr in the eyes, confessing the affection

    he had for her, ¡°I-I can¡¯t believe fate has brought us together once again. Skr, will you marry me? I

    have a crush on you since our junior high days! Don¡¯t worry! You¡¯ll be the happiest woman on this

    net after we get married!¡±

    Goosebumps sprang up all over Skr¡¯s bare arm when she heard Jackson¡¯s confession. She felt

    ufortable and couldn¡¯t wait to leave him.

    She turned him down without a second thought. ¡°I won¡¯t get married to you, Jackson! Pull yourself

    together! I have been set up!¡±

    Jackson adjusted his sses and assured Skr, ¡°I¡¯ll take good care of you for the rest of our lives! Trust

    me! You¡¯ll be the happiest woman on this!¡±

    Tobias¡¯ words are so much more reliable aspared to this fancy promise. Instead of this seemingly

    empty promise, the uncertain future Tobias has mentioned seems far more achievable.

    Skr had no intention to carry on with the absurd conversation they had. After she footed the bill, she

    departed and left the man behind, running away from him as fast as she could.

    Jackson repeated Skr¡¯s name, yet she didn¡¯t bother to stop at all.

    The dejected man returned to Wesley and shrugged his shoulders helplessly, indicating the oue of

    the blind date. Lily asked, ¡°Where¡¯s Skr?¡±

    Jackson sniffled and told his mother, ¡°She said she would never marry me! Mom, I¡¯m serious about

    Skr! I have a crush on her ever since our junior high days! Are you sure she¡¯s going to marry me?¡±

 Chapter 92

    Chapter 92

    Lily had made up her mind by then. She wouldn¡¯t allow Skr to escape since her son had a crush on

    him.

    The irritated woman asked Wesley, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with your niece? Why don¡¯t you go around and ask

    others if they have received three hundred thousand as dowry nowadays? Things are different. These

    days, thedies are the ones who have topensate the men if they want to get married!¡±

    Wesley couldn¡¯t make up his mind. He looked at Sharon in the eyes and asked for her opinion.

    Sharon assured Lily, ¡°She¡¯s such an ungrateful brat! No matter what it takes, we¡¯ll make sure Skr gets

    married to Jackson! I¡¯ll drop by her school and get her leaves approved on her behalf tomorrow. We¡¯ll

    make sure she shows up during the wedding ceremony.¡±

    Jackson looked at the invitation card to the wedding ceremony and got pumped up all of a sudden. He

    thought luck was on his side because he could finally spend the rest of his life with the woman of his

    dreams.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Meanwhile, Skr, who had returned, had a bad feeling about it because someone showed up out of

    nowhere and proposed.

    She confronted Jackson, yet, he didn¡¯t seem to have an idea of what was going on as well.

    Soon, Skr received countless calls from Wesley after she returned to the dormitory. As she couldn¡¯t

    take it anymore, she decided to block her uncle¡¯s contact.

    Finally, she learned about her uncle and his family¡¯s true colors. They were a shameless bunch that

    would forsake her for their sakes. If it weren¡¯t due to her grandmother, she would have severed ties with

    them without any hesitation.

    Wesley was herte grandmother¡¯s favorite child. She didn¡¯t want to disappoint her beloved

    grandmother. Thus, she had to tolerate the absurd request that had been brought up by her so-called

    uncle.

    The next day, the moment Skr walked out of the dormitory, she caught a glimpse of Jackson at the

    hall downstairs, surveying the surroundings.

    The horn-rimmed sses he had put on made him stand out amongst the bunch of good-looking young

    men and women in the university. He had sessfully grabbed the attention of the passerby with his

    geeky look.

    ¡°Where does this losere from? Is he waiting for his girlfriend?¡± Skr heard a fewdies discussing

    and teasing about the geeky man opposite their dormitory.

    Jackson shouted, ¡°S-Skr!¡±

    She pretended as though she didn¡¯t hear him. Jackson was not deterred by this but instead, he shouted

    her name repeatedly from across the street.

    He waved because he was afraid she might have missed him. ¡°H-Hey, Skr! I-I¡¯m over here!¡±

    Skr had no choice but to approach the geeky man because she was afraid he wouldn¡¯t stop calling

    her name. As expected, she was greeted by the odd looks of the crowd.

    She didn¡¯t have anything against Jackson¡¯s look since there wasn¡¯t anything much he could do about it¡ª

    he was born with it.

    However, she didn¡¯t want to be affiliated with Jackson at all. Apart from being ordinary friends, it would be

    impossible for them to take their rtionship to the next level.

    ¡°Why are you here?¡± Skr asked indifferently.

    Jackson unzipped his jacket and showed her the croissant and the cup of coffee he had brought along

    with him with his signature goofy smile. ¡°I made my way out at five o¡¯clock in the morning and dropped by

    our favorite pastry shop that was nearby our senior high school to get you your favorite croissant! I have

    been keeping it inside my jacket to ensure it¡¯s still warm when you wake up!¡±

    She was taken by surprise because he was spot on. The croissant from that particr store was her

    favorite.

    With that being said, she didn¡¯t expect he would keep that in mind after all these years and go to great

    lengths to get it for her.

    Despite being touched deep down, she wasn¡¯t in the mood to savor her favorite croissant. She stated

    callously, ¡°You should return to where youe from. I have sses to attend. Also, you better stop

    showing up on the campus! It¡¯s way too far from your home!¡±

    Jackson flushed and said, ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about me because I¡¯m not tired at all. I have obtained

    my mother¡¯s consent. She¡¯ll allow you to finish your course after we get married. In the future, I¡¯ll get your

    breakfast ready and drop you off at the university every day.¡±

    Skr felt a chill running down her spine because she couldn¡¯t believe they had everything sorted out on

    her behalf, including a future blueprint for them both.

    Have I not made myself clear? I¡¯m pretty sure we¡¯re conversing using the samenguage, aren¡¯t we?

    ¡°Skr, is this your boyfriend? He¡¯s such a handsome man!¡± The voice of Carmen, Skr¡¯s roommate,

    could be heard from behind her.

    Yasmin lugged Carmen away and told her to get going already instead of poking her nose into other¡¯s

    businesses.

 Chapter 93

    Chapter 93

    The entrance of the dormitory wasn¡¯t the best location to have the conversation. Therefore, Skr

    calmed herself and warned Jackson, ¡°You should forget about it because there¡¯s no way I¡¯m going to get

    married to you! If you insist on behaving as such, I¡¯m afraid we¡¯re not going to be friends as well!¡±

    She returned Jackson the croissant he had brought her after she made herself clear.

    Jackson lowered his gaze and replied in an aggrieved manner, ¡°I heard about your past rtionship from

    your aunt. You had a boyfriend, and despite his condition, you stayed by his side through thick and thin. I

    know you¡¯re a greatdy who will never let me down. Isn¡¯t that what a rtionship is all about¡ªspending

    time with your loved ones and taking care of one another?

    Skr was at a loss for words to rebuke the geeky young man¡¯s reply because he hadpletely

    missed the point of her words.

    She found it difficult tomunicate with Jackson because they weren¡¯t on the same channel. He paid

    no heed to her words and focused on delivering his one-sided message.

    Frustrated, Skr walked away in an attempt to shrug Jackson off, yet he wouldn¡¯t stay away from her as

    though he was a brand new familiar she had just summoned after leveling up in some fantasy RPG

    game.

    She didn¡¯t appreciate this so-called familiar of hers at all.

    On her way to Aldwych Building, she encountered Jeremy at the entrance.

    Although they were university mates, never would she expect to run into him because their campus was

    a gigantic one. Running into him was thest thing she had on her to-do list.

    She noticed he had reverted to square one and wasn¡¯t the dashing man he used to be when he was

    discharged from the hospital¡ªhe stopped dressing up and dolling himself properly.

    The set of outfits he had put on was the usual one he had.

    Skr wanted to stay away from Jeremy as far as she could. She quickly walked over to her ssroom

    as usual. However, he got in her way and stopped her by cing his arm on the wall.

    As Jackson got ahead of Skr to defend her righteously, Jeremy started teasing her.

    ¡°What do we have here? Have you been dumped again? Is this your new boyfriend? Have you gotten

    into a rtionship with whoever you¡¯re able to get your hands on after running out of luck?¡±

    Skr¡¯s eyshes trembled unwittingly, but she put on a strong front and replied indifferently, ¡°Oh? Who

    are you to judge? No matter how desperate I am, I will never return to you anymore.¡±

    Meanwhile, Jackson held his chest high and announced, ¡°Hey, I¡¯m Skr¡¯s boyfriend! You should mind

    your words and refrain from badmouthing her!¡±

    Jeremy was confused. He thought Skr had forsaken Tobias after a few days and gotten into a new

    rtionship with another chubby-looking geek. She was merely a step away from bing a member of

    the upper echelon.

    However, he thought Jackson and Skr were a pair made in heaven due to their matching look.

    Jeremy ridiculed the duo, ¡°You know what? Both of you are such great matches for one another! It¡¯s like

    the dwarf and the ugly duckling!¡±

    He leaned over and whispered, ¡°Have you forgotten my warning? Your life will end up miserably if you

    get into a rtionship with a man of suchplicated background? I guess I wasn¡¯t wrong at all! You

    should have listened to me! If you did, you wouldn¡¯t have settled for less with such a dwarf!

    Congrattions! I guess this is the best out of the worst possible oues, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Skr smirked in return and rebuked, ¡°So what if he¡¯s a dwarf? A dwarf is better than a jerk!¡±

    She turned to enter the building after her words without looking back, leaving Jeremy and Jackson at the

    entrance.

    Jeremy found Skr hrious and pathetic. He thought Tobias had abandoned her after he had had

    enough of an ordinary woman. He misperceived she had gotten into a rtionship with Jackson because

    she had run out of options.

    After Skr got off her ss, she couldn¡¯t believe her eyes because Jackson was still around, waiting for

    her outside of the ssroom.

    She felt a chill running down her spine and dashed off in another direction to stay away from him.

    What the hell is wrong with him? He¡¯s even more dedicated than Tobias¡¯ bodyguards!

    ¡­

    In the meantime, Tobias, who had returned, found the so-called invitation card to Skr and Jackson¡¯s

    wedding ceremony on his table in the study room.

    His pupils constricted while he frowned and walked down the stairs with the invitation card.

    Along with Tanya and her parents, udia joined the family of three for a cup of tea, catching up with

    one another casually.

 Chapter 94

    Chapter 94

    Judging by the look of udia, she seemed to be thrilled as she was in a conversation with the family of

    three.

    On the other hand, Tobias showed up out of nowhere and brought the joyful asion to a halt as he cast

    the wedding invitation on the coffee table and confronted in a callous tone.

    ¡°Who the hell put this on my table?¡±

    Tanya went dead silent in anticipation of udia¡¯s defense.

    udia put on a stern front and replied, ¡°It was me. What about it?¡±

    Nathan took over the invitation card. He was confused because it belonged to another couple when he

    thought it belonged to Tobias and udia.

    What¡¯s wrong with Tobias? Why has he gotten worked up over someone else¡¯s wedding

    ceremony? Tanya¡¯s parents were confused because they couldn¡¯t grasp the situation.

    ¡°Can you show my parents the respect they deserve as your seniors?¡± Tanya brought herself up and

    confronted Tobias.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Whose wedding ceremony are you guys talking about?¡± The confused Gillian asked

    concernedly.

    udia couldn¡¯t hold it back anymore when she knew what Tanya had to go through to tolerate her son¡¯s

    unreasonable behavior.

    She started recalling the days she spent tolerating her husband as he turned his back against her and

    had an affair with another woman behind her back.

    Tobias didn¡¯t expect Tanya and his mother would be able to pull off such a dramatic feat within two days.

    They had the invitation card to Skr¡¯s wedding ceremony ready.

    In other words, they had gotten her into a rtionship with another man because they wanted her to get

    out of his sight.

    ¡°The wedding ceremony will have to be called off¡­¡± Tobias made himself clear that there wasn¡¯t any

    room for discussion.

    His mother got anxious and raised her volume, directing another rhetorical question at him. ¡°Why are you

    getting in others¡¯ way when they are going to get married soon? How do you know they don¡¯t have a

    thing for one another?¡±

    Tobias neglected his mother and turned around, looking at Tanya in the eyes as he enunciated his reply,

    ¡°Have I not made myself clear? The wedding ceremony I¡¯m calling off is ours!¡±

    Tanya couldn¡¯t believe her ears because Tobias had the audacity to announce it in front of the seniors of

    their families.

    Part of her initial n was to sever ties between Skr and Tobias by getting Skr engaged to

    someone else.

    However, her n had backfired. She regretted rushing things through, but she wasn¡¯t about to give up

    just yet.

    Nathan and Gillian stared at Tobias in disbelief because the wedding ceremony between their daughter

    and the man in front of them was just around the corner.

    They were shocked to learn Tobias had changed his mind when their daughter was pregnant with his

    child.

    udia mmed the coffee table and warned her son, ¡°Tobias, have you forgotten the fact Tanya was

    the one who had saved me? Are you going to forsake your child? Have you no shame at all? Are you

    going to repeat the shameless feats of your father?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ nightmare hade true. He didn¡¯t want to provoke udia any further because he was afraid

    she would be rushed to the hospital again.

    He had been tolerating all sorts of demands ever since she was discharged, yet she seemed to know no

    boundaries. He couldn¡¯t live a single day peacefully at all.

    Tobias¡¯ irritation was written all over his face, yet they had the guts to bring up the existence of the so-

    called child in front of him when he was certain he didn¡¯t have any intimate session with Tanya.

    ¡°I believe she¡¯s the only one who¡¯s aware if she has been telling the truth all along! Why don¡¯t we head

    over to the hospital and see if she¡¯s pregnant?¡±

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    Torrents of grief streamed down Tanya¡¯s cheeks as she covered her tummy and started crying as if she

    had been wrongfully med.

    Nheless, she had everything prepared because she had been anticipating this. ¡°Fine! Let¡¯s head

    over to the hospital!¡±

    Truth be told, udia had her fair share of doubts because she had never heard of such things from

    Tanya untiltely. She was afraid it was a lie from Tanya to be part of the Fords.

    Since things had ended up as such, she got the chauffeur to get the cars ready and insisted on tagging

    along to the hospital.

    After they reached the hospital, Tanya went through a series of diagnoses. Actually, she had long gotten

    in touch with the doctor from the said hospital.

    It was a piece of cake for her to disguise her pregnancy. In fact, as long as Tanya won udia over by

    deceiving her, she was pretty sure she could get married to Tobias because he would never forsake his

    mother¡¯s health for Skr.

    After all, his mother had raised him and his brother single-handedly over the years. He wouldn¡¯t have

    allowed a trivial woman¡¯s presence to affect their rtionship after the things his mother had sacrificed

    for him and his brother.

 Chapter 95

    Chapter 95

    Half an hourter, when the doctor returned with the blood test result and the ultrasound report, Tanya

    and the doctor exchanged nces and smiled.

    Immediately after she retrieved the so-called reports, she showed them to udia ahead of others.

    udia¡¯s eyes started brimming with tears. How precious is this baby! I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m bing a

    grandma soon!

    She handed it over to her son immediately, yet Tobias frowned and sneered because he was certain it

    was another one of Tanya¡¯s many tricks.

    I can¡¯t deny the fact she¡¯s quite a capable woman, huh? God knows the source of the so-called child in

    her tummy!

    Tanya¡¯s heart skipped a beat when she detected Tobias¡¯ nce. It was evident he had his doubts over

    the authenticity of the reports.

    ¡°Tobias, what have you got to say for yourself? You should bear the consequences of your action like a

    man!¡± udia reprimanded her son in front of others.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was frustrated at her mother¡¯s inability to move on from the past.

    ¡°Are you going to trust me if I tell you I have never done it?¡± Tobias threw the reports into the dustbin

    because he had enough of the forged reports.

    All of a sudden, Gillian started sniffling and rebutted to defend her daughter, ¡°Mr. Ford, are you going to

    abandon my daughter when she¡¯s pregnant with your child? Do you know what¡¯s awaiting her in the

    future?¡±

    ¡°You know what? I don¡¯t really care,¡± Tobias replied nonchntly because it was none of his business.

    udia leaned against the bench to support herself as her heart started racing once more. She peered

    straight into her son¡¯s eyes and warned him, ¡°Tobias, if you insist on calling off the wedding ceremony,

    don¡¯t consider me as your mother anymore in the future!¡±

    Tanya finally achieved her goal. No matter how impregnable Tobias was, he couldn¡¯t get rid of her if she

    had control over his mother.

    Tobias disliked being threatened by others the most, but udia would lose her cool whenever Tanya

    was involved in the picture.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, I think it¡¯s time for you to take a breather and collect your thoughts. I¡¯ll move out and

    stay elsewhere for the time being. We¡¯ll talk again once you regain your sanity.¡±

    Tanya thought she was merely a step away from achieving her goal, but she was wrong. Tobias didn¡¯t

    even budge and made the call without a second thought due to the invitation card to Skr¡¯s wedding

    ceremony.

    As she got anxious, she leaned over and asked, ¡°Mom, are you not feeling well?¡±

    What¡¯s wrong with her? She¡¯s supposed to have a heart attack, isn¡¯t she?

    To everyone¡¯s surprise, udia returned the favor and warned Tobias, ¡°Fine! Get out of my sight at once!

    Stop showing up in front of me unless you have regained your senses!¡±

    Tanya couldn¡¯t wait for udia to pass out in front of Tobias, but she behaved the exact opposite and

    showed no signs of passing out at all.

    ¡°Mom, how are we going to carry on with the wedding ceremony when Tobias has left? What should we

    do?¡±

    By then, Tobias had long departed without showing any signs of remorse.

    udia panted heavily because her son¡¯s decision infuriated her. She took a deep breath and assured

    Tanya, ¡°For the time being, we¡¯ll have to dy the wedding ceremony and have you take good care of

    yourself and the child. You¡¯re the one and only daughter-inw of the Fords. Although Tobias has been

    seduced by that b*tch, I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll eventually make his way back to us when he has enough of her.¡±

    Tanya looked a little bemused due to udia¡¯s reply. If they were to dy the wedding ceremony, the

    fact she wasn¡¯t pregnant would be uncovered by others soon.

    The actual wedding ceremony was merely two days away, yet her n waspletely ruined, and she

    had to y the role of his fianc¨¦e once again.

    The frustrated Tanya had but one wish. She wanted Skr and the son of the maid to get married as

    soon as possible.

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    On the other hand, Sheldon, who had always been a rebel, got in touch with his brother and reprimanded

    him, ¡°Tobias, you have gone overboard again. Mom threw a tantrum the moment she reached home a

    few minutes ago. We had to get the doctor over to check on her condition.¡±

    Tobias instructed Sheldon, ¡°Please keep an eye on mom because it¡¯s only a matter of time before things

    turn out as such. When she links everything together and asks Tanya to leave, we¡¯ll pretend as though

    nothing has ever happened.¡±

    His brother frowned and found Tanya disgusting because she insisted on interfering with others¡¯ lives

    when she was the uninvited guest in the picture.

 Chapter 96

    Chapter 96

    Ever since Tanya showed up, she had turned our peaceful lives upside down. She seemed to have

    brainwashed Mom and deceived her into believing she was the best daughter-inw and the perfect one

    for Tobias.

    I can¡¯t believe she has the capability to chase Tobias away from home while she gets to enjoy the perks

    of being one of the Fords. Why does Tobias seem to be the son-inw of the family instead?

    Has she no shame at all? How dare she proims herself as Tobias¡¯ fianc¨¦e when the wedding

    ceremony is dyed?

    His brother was in a tight spot¡ªas long as he returned to the family, he would have to carry on with the

    wedding ceremony since Tanya was Tobias¡¯ so-called fianc¨¦e.

    If their mother hadn¡¯t been deceived by Tanya and yed along with her, Tobias could easily get rid of

    Tanya and save them a lot of trouble.

    After Tobias hung up the call, he departed and made his way to Skr¡¯s university.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Although it was a rtively long route, he had gotten familiar with the route to Skr¡¯s university and no

    longer required the assistance of a GPS. Truth be told, Tobias, who had always fancied young women,

    didn¡¯t expect he would end up in a rtionship with a university student.

    When he was about to reach, he called Skr twice, to which she did not pick up. He thought Skr¡¯s

    phone was nothing more than an essory to her.

    Is she in the middle of preparation for her wedding ceremony? Once the particr thought crossed her

    mind, his expression darkened.

    When he saw the invitation card on his table in his study room, he knew udia wasn¡¯t the one behind

    the entire incident.

    He had faith in his mother. Despite having a different opinion regarding his wedding ceremony, she would

    never resort to such a despicable measure. To be precise, such thoughts wouldn¡¯t have crossed her

    mind in the first ce. The only suspect he could think of was none other than Tanya, who resorted to all

    sorts of petty tricks all this while.

    It had been three days since Jackson started showing up at Skr¡¯s dormitory every morning, without

    fail, no matter what.

    The geek behaved as though something was wrong with his mind. Skr had made herself clear over

    and over again, yet he wouldn¡¯t stay away from her.

    Despite Skr¡¯s harsh remarks, Jackson asserted determinedly, ¡°Skr, I¡¯ll take good care of you

    because you¡¯re my wife! It¡¯s part of my many duties as your husband to take care of you!¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t figure out who gave Jackson the audacity to announce such an inappropriate remark that

    sounded as though she had no choice but to get married to him.

    After she got off her ss, Skr finally noticed there were two missed calls from Tobias.

    The name seemed oddly familiar. They had a great time in bed just some time ago.

    However, ever since thest session they had, he had stopped showing up in front of her.

    Skr checked on the date and noticed the man¡¯s wedding ceremony would be carried out within twenty-

    four hours. Thus, she thought he was getting everything ready for the event.

    She thought that was the end of their rtionship and decided to stay away from him because beautiful

    things would neverst¡ªit was time to return to her mundane life.

    Jackson had shown up with a cup of coffee and a croissant in between his arms again. Once Skr

    showed up downstairs, he rushed over and handed them over to her.

    The chubby geek panted heavily after he sprinted across the streets to reach Skr.

    Skr waspletely speechless by the man¡¯s determination. She had never once savored the things

    he had bought her, yet he would show up in front of her every day without fail.

    Carmen, who had just returned from the cafeteria, ridiculed Skr once again, ¡°Skr, I¡¯m so jealous of

    you because you have such a lovely boyfriend who will show up and deliver your breakfast to you every

    day. I guess he has to work hard since he isn¡¯t a match for others in terms of look.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t bear the sarcastic remark from Carmen. She replied with a vicious smirk, ¡°Oh? What

    does this have to do with you? Haven¡¯t you had your breakfast?¡±

    ¡°What? Am I not allowed to express my feelings? Do you know there are quite a few budget motels

    avable around the campus? I think they¡¯re currently having a promotion or something of sorts. Why

    don¡¯t you guys check it out and give it a try?¡±

    Jackson thought it was a genuine offer from Carmen. He scratched his head and asked, ¡°Really? Are

    there any terms and conditions? Should we bring along our student identification card?¡±

    ¡°Sure! Why don¡¯t you head over and check it out on your own?¡± Carmen chuckled and started teasing

    Jackson.

    ¡°Ny percent discount! How does that sound?¡± Skr replied petntly.

    Jackson¡¯s eyes gleamed with excitement. ¡°That sounds like a great deal! Shall we give it a try, Skr?¡±

 Chapter 97

    Chapter 97

    Skr yelled at Jackson in frustration, ¡°Have you nomon sense at all? Can you please stay away

    from me? Get out of my sight at once and stop interrupting my life!¡±

    Suddenly, she reached for her phone because she received a notification. Jackson craned over, asking

    curiously in an attempt to take a peek at her phone, ¡°Who is it? What is it about?¡±

    Skr pushed Jackson¡¯s chubby cheeks away because he was merely a few inches away from her

    screen.

    Tobias: I¡¯ll drop by the university in the evening.

    Every time Skr received a text from Tobias, she felt as though she was a secret agent because

    Tobias¡¯ text was like a series of morse codes that would require decipherment. Most of the time, he

    wouldn¡¯t bother to punctuate his text, leading to further confusion.

    Skr swiftly swiped her fingers across the keypads and drafted her reply within a few seconds.

    Skr: I¡¯ll be joining my friends for dinner tonight. I won¡¯t be around because we¡¯ll be away for a karaoke

    session after our meal.

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    She wasn¡¯t lying because she would be hanging out with her course mates, singing to their hearts¡¯

    content after their meal tonight.

    Initially, she didn¡¯t want to take part in it, but since everyone else had indicated their will to join the

    activities, she had no choice but to go along with the majority.

    Jackson¡¯s goofy smile was nowhere to be seen as his expression changed into a gloomy one. ¡°Are you

    going out tonight? Who is it? Make sure you behave yourself and remember your role as my wife, okay?¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t believe her ears and almost pass out because of the absurdity of the geek¡¯s statement.

    She secretly warned herself to stay away from geeks in the future unless she enjoyed being annoyed.

    She proceeded to reply with a bright grin sarcastically, ¡°Who else could it be apart from my boyfriend?

    Am I not allowed to go out on a date with my boyfriend?¡±

    The geek had his doubts. He denoted, ¡°I know you don¡¯t have a boyfriend. Apart from that, I¡¯m pretty

    sure no one else will get into a rtionship with you if they¡¯re aware your mother is a murderer. My

    mother is the only open-minded one who¡¯s able to ept you as a member of our family.¡±

    Skr had a hard time catching her breath when she heard Jackson¡¯s statement. She would never allow

    others to address her mother in such a demeaning manner.

    She red at him and warned, ¡°You better keep your mouth shut and stay away from me! If you insist on

    following me, I¡¯ll lodge a report and get the police officers to throw you behind bars!¡±

    He got anxious all of a sudden because Skr was punching in the numbers as they spoke. ¡°Calm

    down, Skr! I¡¯ll leave immediately. However, I¡¯ll be back to pick you up after your activities. It¡¯s

    dangerous for you to walk home alone at night.¡±

    As soon as Jackson departed, Skr, who had yet to regain herposure, received another call from

    Tobias.

    The moment she picked up the call, she heard the indifferent and callous tone of the man, stating as

    though he was delivering his instructions. ¡°I¡¯m waiting for you at the entrance of the university. I want you

    to get over within ten minutes.¡±

    She replied, ¡°That¡¯s impossible! I¡¯m still in my dormitory! If you want me to get there within ten minutes,

    why don¡¯t you get me a pair of wings?¡±

    Tobias was harsh with his choice of words, but he replied in a gentle tone, ¡°Oh? I can¡¯t get you a pair of

    wings, but I can give you the best time of your life soon. You should cut the small talk and get going

    already. Stop wasting my time.¡±

    By the time Skr attempted to rebuke the man once more, she could only hear the ambient noise from

    her phone because he had hung up the call.

    Judging by the tone and the noise she heard, she thought Tobias was in the middle of driving. Therefore,

    if she turned him down and insisted on staying in the dorm, she knew he would barge into the dormitory

    and drag her out against her will.

    She decided to save her the trouble of being embarrassed in front of others again. After she made up her

    mind, she sprinted in the direction of the entrance.

    Once she reached the entrance of the university, the panting woman saw Tobias. She could barely catch

    her breath because she had been running all the way.

    Frowning, Tobias checked on his watch and announced, ¡°You¡¯re three minuteste.¡±

    Skr resisted her urge to roll her eyes in front of Tobias. Oh, God! Please punish me if I have sinned,

    but please stop sending Tobias my way!

    She took a deep breath and rebuked, ¡°Excuse me? I have been running all the way here! Do you really

    think I can fly?¡±

    Tobias reached over and ran his fingers through her unkempt hair, asserting with a smile, ¡°Didn¡¯t you

    need my help to install a pair of wings? Let¡¯s see if we can deal with it tonight.¡±

    As she was conscious of the meaning behind Tobias¡¯ words, she took a few steps back to keep her

    distance. To conceal the fact she was anxious, she cleared her throat and put on a calm front.

    Tobias heard it and stubbed out the barely smoked cigarette after he heaved one final smoke out of his

    mouth.

 Chapter 98

    Chapter 98

    After that, he pressed the key and unlocked his car, leaning over to retrieve a certain item that was

    covered in a white stic bag, throwing it in Skr¡¯s direction after he found it.

    Skr tried to take it over, yet she could barely reach the mysterious item. In the end, it fell to the

    ground.

    Tobias despised Skr and said, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you? Can¡¯t you even hold a lightweight item?¡±

    The moment she bent over to pick it up, she raised her head and responded with a confused look

    because it was a set of cold churros. ¡°What is this about? Do you want me to heat it for you?¡±

    ¡°Excuse me? Is that how you¡¯re supposed to express your gratitude when I have bought it for you? I

    passed by the shop and noticed there was quite a long queue outside the store, and a majority of them

    were females. I thought you would like it and decided to get it for you.¡±

    Skr recalled the croissant and coffee Jackson would buy her every day when she lowered her head

    and looked at the cold churros.

    To keep the food warm, Jackson would keep them inside his jacket. However, Tobias handed over a

    pack of cold churros to her. Thetter didn¡¯t see anything wrong with it.

    She finally figured out why women tend to get married to an honest-looking geek instead of a handsome

    hunk. It was the little things that mattered at the end of the day.

    She was no longer the woman who couldn¡¯t live without a man anymore. In fact, she decided to stay

    away from men to avoid being vulnerable and hurt all over again.

    Skr picked it up and handed it over to Tobias. ¡°I don¡¯t enjoy eating cold food because I¡¯m going to

    have an upset stomach.¡±

    ¡°Are young women nowadays such fragile ones? If that¡¯s the case, feel free to get rid of it and throw it

    into the dustbin over there.¡±

    She cast it in Tobias¡¯ direction as though he was the dustbin instead. After he grabbed the pack of

    churros, he frowned because he was displeased by her response.

    Skr got into the car immediately because she was afraid her course mates would catch her with

    another man. However, as soon as she entered the car, she could smell a faint fragrance that was left

    behind by another woman.

    Meanwhile, Tobias grasped the air freshener he had with him and cast a skeptical gaze at Skr. ¡°I have

    never encountered any woman who has despised perfume to such an extent. Since you¡¯re not a fan of

    perfume, why don¡¯t you give this air freshener a try? If you like it, feel free to take it away with you and

    sprinkle it all over your body.¡±

    As they exchanged nces, Skr started contemting the things he had in his mind, wondering if he

    was up to no good again when she caught a glimpse of his abysmal pair of eyes.

    After she heard his sarcastic remarks, she took the air freshener over and put it back. She turned around

    and looked out the window to avoid his gaze because she had had enough of him.

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    Tobias dropped by the fast-food retail chain that was nearby the university. Skr showed him the way to

    their destination and noticed the nearby motels had all sorts of ongoing promotions.

    It turned out Carmen wasn¡¯t lying because most of the promotions were avable during the weekdays¡ª

    the days where the motels would rarely have any customers.

    Tobias finally found a parking lot to park the car after going for rounds at McDonald¡¯s. Meanwhile, Skr

    had headed into the store and got herself a cup of coke.

    When Tobias made his way into the store, Skr had her cheek on her palm, sipping the cup of coke

    using the straw. He noticed the gorgeous woman with a glistering pair of eyes and wless facial

    features had grabbed the attention of the men in the store.

    Despite her ethereal beauty, it wasn¡¯t enough to charm and intrigue Tobias, who had been in countless

    rtionships with different types of women before, to the point of losing himself.

    He took a seat opposite her and found the design of the seat odd due to the limited space¡ªTobias

    couldn¡¯t even sit upright.

    Skr bit the straw with all her might as though she held a grudge against the innocent straw.

    ¡°Where¡¯s mine? Have you forgotten about me?¡± Tobias asked nonchntly because it wasn¡¯t a big deal

    he should be fussing over.

 Chapter 99

    Chapter 99

    She took a peek at him and exined, ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure what your cravings were¡ªI didn¡¯t want to ce the

    wrong order because I can¡¯t afford to waste my money.¡±

    If it weren¡¯t because of Skr, Tobias would never show up at a fast-food retail chain. He asked the

    waiter over to take his orders because he didn¡¯t feel like getting into the long queue.

    ¡°What brings you to me today? Do you need someone to get rid of your physiological needs again?¡±

    Since they were no longer on the campus, Skr didn¡¯t bother to hold back and paid no heed to her

    choices of words anymore.

    She pretended as though she was fine, but she was on pins and needles whenever she was around him.

    Nevertheless, she had learned her lesson and figured a method to control her emotions.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it the same for you? After all, it had been quite a few days since west met.¡± Tobias brought up an

    embarrassing topic casually and made it sound as if it was nothing worth making a fuss out of it.

    Even though Skr could barely remain calm when she heard his out blunt reply, she tried her best to

    suppress her emotion and asked, ¡°Why are you here when you¡¯re getting married tomorrow? I have

    sinned and vited the tenmandments over and over again. Do you want to put me on an express

    ride to hell? Why don¡¯t you return to your loved ones if that¡¯s what you¡¯re here for?¡±

    ¡°Can you stop chasing me away? Are you afraid of me?¡± he replied indifferently because he felt slightly

    helpless as well.

    Skr pursed her lips because she was at a loss for better words to reply to his query¡ªhe was spot on,

    yet she couldn¡¯t possibly blurt out the things she had in her mind.

    She avoided his gaze and enjoyed her ss of coke that was full of ice, chomping the ice as though she

    had forgotten the things she told Tobias about half an hour ago.

    ¡°Who will you be going out on a date with tonight?¡± Tobias peered straight into her eyes as he queried. It

    sounded as though he was trying to interrogate her.

    ¡°Actually, there are quite a few handsome young men involved. I¡¯ll think about it when I feel like itter

    on.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you heading out with your soon-to-be husband? Speaking of which, I should congratte you on

    getting everything sorted out within the span of a few days. You¡¯re unbelievably swift.¡±

    Skr was taken aback by his words, but she knew it would be impossible to keep him in the darks. To

    be blunt, he was the reason she had to go through the series of misfortunes over the past few days.

    She narrowed her eyes and asked, ¡°Are you the one who has sent him to propose to my aunt and uncle?

    Why does the dowry have to be three hundred thousand? Are you trying to gloat over my misfortune?¡±

    Smirking, Tobias cast a contemptuous gaze at Skr, indicating he was looking down upon her. ¡°Are you

    serious? Three hundred thousand is all it takes to win your uncle and aunt over? I wasn¡¯t the one behind

    this, though. Can you make use of the brain you have been blessed with? Why would I show up in front

    of you if I¡¯m trying to get rid of you?¡±

    Skr¡¯s eyshes quivered because she found his words logical. She received a text from her course

    mate out of the blue. It was a text that urged her to submit the contribution fees for the activities that

    would be held soon.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Each of them was required to contribute a hundred. She gritted her teeth and transferred the required

    sum within a few minutes. After she was done, she got up from her seat and said, ¡°I have to return to the

    campus, Mr. Ford. Since you¡¯re getting married tomorrow, I believe we won¡¯t get to see one another that

    frequently in the future. I don¡¯t have anything for you to celebrate the joyous asion. Why don¡¯t you

    take this cup of coke as your wedding gift from me? It¡¯s all I have to offer.¡±

    She felt awful deep down after saying her piece. In anticipation of his response, she nced at him.

    He finished her cup of coke using the straw that was crippled and assured her, ¡°Actually, we¡¯ll be seeing

    each other quite frequently from today onwards. For instance, we¡¯ll be spending a night in bed together

    tonight. Give me a call after you¡¯re done. I¡¯ll drop by and pick you up, but please be hurry because I can¡¯t

    stay upte since I¡¯m no longer young.¡±

    Skr lost herself, staring at Tobias as he finished her cup of coke because she was confused by his

    words.

    She thought Tobias would definitely be one of the tops in showbiz and put others to shame due to his

    outstanding look if he were involved in the industry.

 Chapter 100

    Chapter 100

    Skr didn¡¯t return to the campus. Instead, she headed over to the ce where they would have their

    dinner together. On her way to the eatery, she felt ufortable due to her sore throat.

    After she reached the ce, she walked into the private dining suite and noticed everyone had already

    arrived.

    The only avable seat was right next to Lydia. Skr had no choice but to brace herself and took a seat

    next to Lydia.

    When Lydia saw Skr, she recalled the incident that had urred the other day¡ªthe most capable and

    exceptional CEO of Ford Group showed up at the hotel by Skr¡¯s side in the middle of the night.

    Shailene¡¯s father was terminated a few dayster while most of the users on the forum were banished.

    Lydia was clueless about the identity of Skr¡¯s backing¡ªshe was afraid Skr was affiliated with some

    mysterious, powerful figures.

    Lately, she heard the word of a geek that showed up by Skr¡¯s side, insisting on getting married to her.

    She decided to stay away from Skr because she didn¡¯t want to get herself involved in any nasty

    situation due to theplicated background of Skr.

    After Skr took a seat, she noticed she had received several text messages from Jackson.

    Hey, I¡¯ll drop by and pick you up. Don¡¯t drink more than you should if you can¡¯t hold your drink.

    How many males and females are there?

    Why aren¡¯t you replying to my message? Is it because of the limited signals?

    Are you angry?

    I have been keeping something to myself all this while because I couldn¡¯t bring myself to talk about it with

    you. Are you still a virgin, Skr? Don¡¯t worry! Even if you aren¡¯t, I don¡¯t mind at all!¡±

    Skr took a deep breath and resisted the urge to smash her phone into pieces.

    She had blocked Jackson¡¯s contact number, yet he got himself another contact number and started

    annoying her once again.

    Did Jackson sign up for a flirting lesson with some love gurus? Is he trying to win me over through text

    messages? Is he aware he won¡¯t be achieving his goal?

    ¡°Daryl Williams will visit the campus and cast the actress for histest movie, Yours Truly, that will be

    produced soon! I heard countless female celebrities had given the role a try, yet the director had turned

    them down because something didn¡¯t feel right.¡±

    As the daughter of a fellow director, Lydia had ess to more insider news aspared to her fellow

    course mates.

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    All the while, Skr ced her cheek on her hand and listened to the gossips. Daryl Williams was a

    globally renowned director who was known for being a strict man. She thought she wouldn¡¯t even have

    the chance to join the audition for the movie.

    The ones who could get cast by Daryl Williams would get a smooth sailing throughout their entire career

    in showbiz.

    Someone voiced out their opinion and denoted, ¡°I think Avery from the next ss matches the

    description and criteria that have been listed for the role of the female protagonist since she has such a

    gorgeous appearance that most female protagonists require.¡±

    Skr felt ufortable whenever she heard of Avery because she knew her sister was but a

    pretentious woman.

    Although Avery had always shown up in front of others with the image of a kind and easy-going woman,

    she was theplete opposite when no one was around her.

    Lindsey looked in the direction of Skr and rebuked, ¡°I think Skr looks better than Avery!¡±

    No one was aware of Avery and Skr¡¯s rtionship¡ªnone of them managed to rule out the possibility

    of them being half-siblings.

    Skr had always been the diva amongst the male in their ss.

    The males enjoyed being around the iconic figure of the ss, but none of them had any intention of

    getting into a rtionship with Skr due to her bad reputation. None of them would risk their reputation

    to satisfy their lust.

    Skr replied with a smirk, ¡°Oh! I don¡¯t think I¡¯m a match for Avery in terms of look!¡±

    Usually, her course mates would start ridiculing her, but since Lydia didn¡¯t take the lead, none of them

    dared pick on Skr.

    Throughout the meal, Skr didn¡¯t really savor the dishes that were served because her course mates

    had finished the delicacies before she could get any of them.

    ¡°Skr, are you getting married soon?¡± Starling poked her nose into Skr¡¯s business, grinning because

    she couldn¡¯t suppress her joy as she had gotten her hands on such shocking news.

    Skr shook her head with a confused look and asked in return, ¡°Huh? What are you talking about? I

    have never heard of such an incident! I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be getting married anytime soon since I¡¯m merely

    twenty-year-old.¡±

    Starling cast a skeptical gaze at Skr because she could vividly recall the conversation she heard when

    she was at the entrance of the dormitory the other day.

    In fact, she couldn¡¯t forget the look of the odd-looking young man that had intimidated her. Despite being

    a young man, he was almostpletely bald and had a set of old-fashioned outfits on.

    ¡°Are you trying to lie to me? I have seen your fianc¨¦! There¡¯s nothing wrong with getting married young

    since you have reached the legal age to get married.¡±

 Chapter 101

    Chapter 101

    Raising her eyebrows, Skrughed immodestly in response to all the inquisitive nces directing at

    her. ¡°It can be annoying at times when you have too many admirers as scandals can easily spread if

    you¡¯re not careful.¡±

    Skr was determined in denying it, which put a damper on Starling¡¯s excitement.

    After the dinner, they had reserved a private room at the karaoke. Skr was the first to leave the

    restaurant to get some air and let the smell of meat fondue on her clothes dissipate.

    Her ssmates were all waiting for their car at the entrance. Groups of four of them would search online

    for a cab ride and whoever managed to book one would pay.

    Most of the students studying in the film academy had a well-off background and someone as penniless

    as Skr was a rare sight.

    Lydia even called her personal driver!

    ¡°Skr, hop on!¡± Skr heard someone calling her name aloud. The sissy-like voice was very

    distinguishable.

    Soon, Jackson, who was riding a scooter, stopped abruptly in front of her with an emergency brake,

    giving her a fright.

    Jackson took off his helmet and carried it in his hand while he shot a look at Skr coolly.

    ¡°Get on now, I¡¯m sending you home. It¡¯s fully charged.¡±

    All Skr¡¯s ssmates turned to look in their direction. Jackson raised his hand and waved at them

    when he sensed some gazes directing at him.

    Skr replied helplessly, ¡°Haven¡¯t I made it very clear to you over the phone? What do you want? I¡¯m

    going to the karaoke now. You go home first.¡±

    Jackson grimaced upon hearing that. ¡°I won¡¯t let you go there. That¡¯s somewhere bad girls go.¡±

    ¡°Whoops, your boyfriend sure is strict!¡± Lydia couldn¡¯t help but start teasing Skr. The sardonic smile on

    her face was unmistakable.

    Skr drew in a long breath. What the heck is this? Everything was perfectly fine and now I¡¯m involved

    with Jackson.

    In the distance, a white Mercedes-Benz was slowly approaching them and finally came to a stop at the

    roadside.

    Tobias got off the car and immediately, there were shes of excitement and surprise across all of

    Skr¡¯s female ssmates¡¯ eyes.

    The man walking toward Skr had a towering stature and a distant yet resolute temperament. The

    bespoke suit on him was perceptibly exorbitant and his nobility was simply observable.

    Such a fine man was actually looking for Skr.

    Some of them recognized that this was the man in the forested area with Skr that night.

    Starling remembered what Skr just said. ¡±Having too many admirers can be annoying.¡±

    Skr was very embarrassed. She would never consider herself lucky for such a fluke in romance.

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    ¡°It ended so early? It looks like I¡¯mte.¡± Tobias was speaking very softly and his tone was distinctly low.

    Jackson had no idea what was happening. Looking at the man in front who was a head taller than him,

    he asked, ¡°What are you picking up my fianc¨¦e for?¡±

    As he heard the word ¡°fianc¨¦e¡±, Tobias¡¯ lips curled up into a vaguely scornful curve. So this is the

    Jackson on the invitation card.

    Is Tanya trying to demean Skr or disgust me by arranging such a marriage for her?

    ¡°What are you waiting for? Get in the car.¡± Tobias¡¯ tone turned a little impatient.

    Calming herself down, Skr decided to get on Jackson¡¯s scooter. Tobias will be getting married

    tomorrow and it¡¯s gettingte already so what else am I getting involved with him for?

    Humping for another round before we part with each other?

    Taking the helmet Jackson handed over to her, Skr put it on and said to him, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Skr¡¯s choice stunned all her on-looking ssmates. Is she actually choosing tough on a scooter

    instead of crying in a Mercedes-Benz?

 Chapter 102

    Chapter 102

    Just as Skr was ready to straddle her feet, her arm was grabbed by Tobias and she could feel her

    bone about to fracture in his grip.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    She was going to scream in pain when she was thrown off bnce and bumped straight into Tobias¡¯

    embrace. His sturdy chest almost crushed her nose.

    Tobias lowered his head and his voice came very lowly from above Skr. ¡°Try moving another step and

    I¡¯ll cripple you.¡±

    Skr could feel the murderous hint in the air.

    It was obvious that he was exasperated.

    Jackson got down from his scooter and looked at them. With an aggrieved expression, he asked Skr,

    ¡°Haven¡¯t we agreed on this? Howe there¡¯s another man now? My family has paid you three hundred

    thousand. Are you scamming us?¡±

    Tobias took a brief nce at the simple-hearted Jackson, fished out his phone, and handed it to him.

    ¡°Enter your card number here and I¡¯ll transfer the money to you.¡±

    ¡°Our rtionship can¡¯t be bought off with money.¡± Jackson grabbed the phone and thrust it against the

    ground.

    Skr was taken aback by Jackson¡¯s reaction and was a little anxious at the same time. It was a great

    surprise for her to find out that such a na?ve and cowardly man like Jackson actually had a manly side as

    well.

    When they were studying together back then, he was always bullied by the other male ssmates, and

    never once did he counter their attack, be it physical or verbal.

    By degrees, Tobias¡¯ eyes were lit with hostility and his tone was bitingly cold. ¡°What an ingrate!¡±

    As he finished his words, Skr was quick to take the initiative to wrap her arms around his waist while

    she leaned her head against his chest and spoke fawningly, ¡°I¡¯ll go with you. Don¡¯t trouble him.¡±

    Regardless, Jackson was her former ssmate. Skr was truly afraid that Tobias would finish him off.

    Tobias¡¯ face looked like hell and his wrath had even spread on to Skr. ¡°Get in the car and go back with

    me. This matter will be resolved tomorrow.¡±

    Though frightened by the intimidating vibe wafting from the man in front of him, Jackson continued to

    beseech Skr. ¡°Skr, please don¡¯t leave with him. Don¡¯t go breaking my heart. I really like you. I love

    you to the bones and I can¡¯t live without you.¡±

    At that moment, Skr really wished to find some tapes to seal Jackson¡¯s mouth.

    Listening to those words uttered by Jackson, Tobias¡¯ outburst dissipated. He raised the corner of his lips

    into a yful curve and said to Skr, ¡°Look how you¡¯ve broken his heart.¡±

    Skr looked into Tobias¡¯ eyes which were glowing in a mystifying glint. He stared at Skr and Jackson

    as though he was watching a si.

    Even his tone was displeasing.

    She turned around and got into the car in a ruthless manner without giving Jackson another look. But the

    reason she did so was also to save him.

    Following that, Tobias got in the car as well and looked at Skr who was sullen.

    Giving her a quick gaze, he asked, ¡°Feeling bad, huh? It has only been a few days and you¡¯ve already

    developed an affection for him?¡±

    Tucking her hair behind her ears, Skr uttered, ¡°Where are you bringing me? I have only three hours

    left before the dormitory is locked.¡±

    Tobiasy his arms on the leather seatback of the passenger seat casually. ¡°Alright then. let¡¯s just drive

    around for the next three hours. I¡¯ll apany you to Wesley¡¯s house tomorrow to call off your wedding.

    I¡¯ll make whoever had taken the money turn their pockets out.¡±

    Skr frowned while looking at him. ¡°You should be very busy tomorrow. How can you have time to

    meddle in my business?¡±

    Tobias replied very simply, ¡°I had a quarrel with my family. The wedding is canceled. Whoever interested

    can get married to her himself. It has nothing to do with me.¡±

    Thoughts were running wild in Skr¡¯s mind upon hearing that. She felt a twinge in her heart and she

    started, ¡°You can¡¯t be doing this because of me, right? If it¡¯s¡ª¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re thinking too much. There¡¯s nothing to do with you. I¡¯m just not into marriage,¡± Tobias cut Skr

    off.

    Skr mused with self-deprecation that she was too heedless about herself. How could Tobias resort to

    this because of me? That question of mine only showed how thick-skinned I am.

    Tobias drove around leisurely without a destination and he even decelerated deliberately.

    Skr had been observing the time attentively. Every half an hour, she would remind Tobias that it wasn¡¯t

    the route to her school.

    However, her kind reminder was automatically ignored by Tobias every time.

    Eventually, the car was driven to a familiar residential area¡ª International Garden.

 Chapter 103

    Chapter 103

    A month ago, she escaped from this ce and even shredded the contract between herself and Tobias.

    And now she had returned to this ce again. It was as though everything had started all over again.

    Skr refused to get out of the car. She held on tightly to the grab handle above with all her might.

    Tobias was taking off his suit unhurriedly and in an instance, the glint in his eyes grew dim. ¡°You don¡¯t

    need to get out of the car. Anyhow, we can do it anywhere. It¡¯s just a little bit ufortable in the car

    and your knees can easily get hit.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Skr was staring at Tobias vigntly all the while and she watched as he unbuttoned his shirt lento.

    Slowly, his well-built chest showed up and Skr was in a daze looking at it.

    She raised her arm and pressed it against Tobias¡¯ hands which were unfastening the fourth button on his

    shirt. ¡°I¡¯m not feeling well and I won¡¯t be able to satisfy your needs tonight. If you¡¯re looking for someone

    to content your desire, women should be thest thing you¡¯d ever be short of, right?¡±

    Skr¡¯s throat was terribly sore and she had been feeling giddy and light-headed since afternoon.

    With her current condition, if she still had to entertain this man, it would probably appear on the headline

    the next day: Young Girl Died in the Bed of the Rich. What incredible news.

    With a cid expression, Tobias was examining the veracity of Skr¡¯s words. Then, he noticed

    something off with her face. It was flushed like a cooked shrimp.

    He raised his hand and put it on Skr¡¯s forehead. It was blistering.

    ¡°Get off the car with me now.¡±

    Skr felt like crying. ¡°Man, look at my condition right now. Are you trying to kill me?¡±

    She looked at Tobias with an irritated face as though she was looking at some jackass.

    ¡°Don¡¯t die in my car even so. It¡¯ll depreciate¡­¡± Skr¡¯s expression made Tobias chuckle softly. At that

    moment, his eyes were loaded with glee.

    Skr was dragged out of the car by Tobias without even a wee bit of pity and tenderness.

    Standing at the door, Skr was wondering what expression Laura would put on when she saw her. She

    was probably thest person Laura ever wanted to see.

    Upon hearing the sound at the door where the passcode was being keyed in, Laura was rmed as if

    her biggest enemy hade after her. With no time to tidy up the mess on the coffee table and the

    crumbs of chips scattering on the floor, she quickly brushed off the specks of snacks remains on her

    palms.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, Ms. Jones, you¡¯re back.¡± She stood nervously at the door.

    Tobias noticed the mess in the living room immediately. Taking just a nce at it, he remained silent.

    Still staggering, Skr sat down on the sofa right after stepping in and even before her shoes were taken

    off.

    Watching the sickly condition of Skr, Tobias sat down beside her and tenderly pushed her head over

    to himself, letting her lean against his chest.

    ¡°You¡¯re having a fever. Come, I¡¯ll get you to the hospital.¡±

    Skr clung to Tobias like a ko bear and flinched at what he said. ¡°No, I¡¯m not going. I¡¯m scared of the

    pain.¡±

    What pain is there about going to the hospital? We¡¯re not even talking about injection. Tobias pecked

    lightly on Skr¡¯s feverish forehead.

    With such condition, she still went for a fondue dinner. I really can¡¯tprehend how delicious a meat

    fondue is that she likes it so much.

    Ever since her grandma passed away, Skr had always just endured and carried on with what she had

    to do every time she fell sick. No one was concerned about her and Jeremy would only ask her to drink

    warm water.

    She wasn¡¯t nning to go to the hospital this time either.

    In a trance-like state, Skr suddenly remembered there was once when she had had a fever for a few

    days and finally, she couldn¡¯t bear it any longer and prepared to go to the hospital.

    It was in the middle of the night and she couldn¡¯t hail any cab by the roadside. Hence, she waited in the

    wintry breeze for half an hour.

    Her temperature rose so high that her feet turned wobbly and she couldn¡¯t even standstill. Nevertheless,

    she registered and waited in line to see the doctor all by herself.

    The doctor prescribed an injection and some antipyretic medication for her.

    However, after Wesley moved in, her residency status was altered and there was not even an address

    for her to register permanently, which left her with no ess to public health benefits.

    She had to pay for her own medical costs. It was three hundred and thirty and she didn¡¯t have enough

    money to pay so she had to ask Jeremy for help.

    Nevertheless, Jeremy transferred only fifty to her. In the end, she went home and suffered through till she

    recovered on her own.

 Chapter 104

    Chapter 104

    Scenes from the past shed across her mind and tears welled up in her eyes. She couldn¡¯t understand

    what was in her mind then that she didn¡¯t see through the man earlier.

    She had no one to depend on. Isted and helpless, she had only herself.

    Looking at Skr who was tearing up with her reddened eyes in his arms, Tobias thought it was because

    she was feeling exceedingly ufortable or afraid of getting an injection.

    Tobias, who was iron-hearted, despised seeing women cry. However, the way Skr was holding back

    her tears touched the softest spot in his heart.

    ¡°I¡¯ll send you to the hospital and tell the doctor not to give you an injection. How about that?¡±

    Skr looked up at Tobias. In that instance, the usually aloof and distant face of his was kindling a gentle

    glow.

    Laura, who was watching from the side, rolled her eyes in secret. No wonder Tobias¡¯ wedding has been

    postponed.

    Ms. Hanson is such a pretty youngdy with an affluent upbringing, a highly educated background, and a

    cordial and elegant character. She has all the traits that a mature woman possesses; how enviable is

    that?

    Yet, for some reason, men like this kind of pretentious little girl and there is no exception with Tobias. It¡¯s

    such a shame.

    It¡¯s just some minor illness but look at the way she¡¯s fawning. Seriously? She¡¯s not even one of those

    over-coddled heiresses from some prominent family.

    Laura was mocking Skr secretly. Dirt-poor maiden but with a princess-like fragile body.

    Skr nodded eventually. She was feeling very unwell throughout her body. All her joints were aching

    and it wasn¡¯t even this bad when she was having the meat fondue.

    It was probably the result of having sweated profusely andter blustered by the cool breeze.

    On the way to the hospital, Skr wasn¡¯t seated in the passenger seat but wasin in the backseat.

    Coating her was a warm orange Herm¨¨s nket with a faint scent of the car fragrance on it.

    It was a nket Tobias found in the trunk of his car and Skr was covering herself with it very

    meticulously lest any part of it unraveled again.

    When they reached the hospital, it was already past midnight. Skr waited on the bench while Tobias

    was ready to line up for registration and payment.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have health insurance,¡± Skr stressed as usual.

    She had no medical card and therefore, she could only use the temporarily filled-out booklet provided at

    the reception counter.

    Tobias replied nonchntly, ¡°Well, it happens that I don¡¯t have one either.¡±

    Skr closed her eyes. Tobias can probably buy any hospital at will. That¡¯s the harsh reality¡ª the

    destitute can¡¯t afford medical insurance and the rich aren¡¯t even bothered about such things.

    She took out her identity card from her pocket and handed it over to Tobias.

    Tobias took a nce at Skr¡¯s picture on her identity card. She was probably only sixteen or seventeen

    years old when the picture was taken, which looked much younger than she was at the moment.

    Tobias filled out Skr¡¯s name and identity card number on the booklet and at the age column, he

    penned down habitually: Thirty-five!

    On second thought, he realized he made a mistake so he stroke it off and wrote ¡°twenty¡± on it.

    He couldn¡¯t avoid the fact that he was fifteen years older than Skr. This age gap was rather huge.

    Sometimes Tobias¡¯ logical sense would keep telling him that he was only utilizing his own time to y a

    game with this little girl.

    In his eyes, Skr was just an inexperienced and na?ve young girl.

    After registration and payment was made, the nurse took her temperature and the reading was thirty-

    nine. She was having a fever.

    Downstairs, before they went up to the clinic, Skr caught Tobias by his hand from behind to stop him.

    Tobias looked at her in puzzlement. ¡°I have already registered for you. Are you still afraid?¡±

    Skr shook her head and reminded Tobias, ¡°There¡¯s a high chance of being infected at the clinics. Why

    don¡¯t you wear a mask? The convenience store in the hospital should be selling them.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Tobias was very surprised indeed. Since when does Skr start to care about me? She was the person

    who would only order a cup of coke for herself.

    He shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s okay. Let me go with you.¡±

    Tobias went into the consultation room together with Skr. Since it wasn¡¯t the Obstetrics and

    Gynecology Department, men were allowed.

 Chapter 105

    Chapter 105

    Skr sat feebly on the small round stool and almost didn¡¯t have the strength to open her eyes.

    The doctor auscultated her lungs and examined her throat. Then, he prescribed a routine blood test for

    her.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Upon hearing the words ¡°blood test¡±, Skr grimaced and gave Tobias a look, asking for his help.

    Skr had experienced finger-prick blood tests before and it was even more painful than taking an

    injection. The minute the needle pricked into your flesh, it would be terribly excruciating.

    Tobias patted Skr¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Let¡¯s go now. We still need to wait another thirty minutes for the blood

    test resultter. If we dawdle some more, the sky would turn bright soon. Come on, be a good girl,

    alright?¡±

    Listening to his coaxing in a deep and husky voice, especially the words ¡°good girl¡±, Skr could feel the

    ticklish sensation in her ears.

    As though possessed, she nodded unwittingly.

    Skr¡¯s phone was lying in the pocket of her pants and when she sat down for the blood test, it dug into

    her thigh, making her ufortable. So, she took it out and handed it over to Tobias.

    Tobias took the phone and it was a peculiarly abrupt sight to see its pinkish casing in his palm.

    Skr closed her eyes as she was afraid to see the syringe needle. Her timid expression made Tobias

    chuckle softly.

    This woman can be extremely bullheaded at times and yet she¡¯s so skittish at this very second. It was

    unfathomable for him what was so scary about such a tiny affliction.

    As the needle pricked into her finger, she cried out in anguish. It was so agonizing as though she had

    been ripped apart.

    Tobias helped to press the cotton on her finger to stop the bleeding. Skr was particrly weak at the

    moment and she had just been through a round of great ¡°torture¡±.

    She rested her head on Tobias¡¯ shoulder.

    While they waited for the blood test result, Skr¡¯s phone which was still in Tobias¡¯ palm started ringing.

    A series of numbers without a name appeared on the screen.

    Following that were a few text messages that popped up.

    Skr, what¡¯s your rtionship with that man? Don¡¯t lie to me. I¡¯m serious about our marriage.

    Reply me, will you?

    Did you change your mind because of money? Wasn¡¯t the three hundred thousand I gave to you

    enough?

    I¡¯ll go to Wesley¡¯s house tomorrow.

    Looking at these series of text messages, the gaze in Tobias¡¯ eyes deepened. And I thought I¡¯m already

    annoying and demanding enough.

    Who could have expected this kind of pestering? Regardless, there was no way Tobias would be sending

    her text messages non-stop as this man did. His affection was not so intense and insane.

    Skr opened her eyes and asked with a rather hoarse voice, ¡°Who is sending me texts at this hour?¡±

    Tobias quietly put the phone into the pocket of his trousers and answered nonchntly, ¡°Don¡¯t bother

    about it. It¡¯s just some spam texts.¡±

    The result of the blood test was finally released¨C it was inmmation. After collecting the medication,

    Tobias and Skr left the hospital.

    Skr was experiencing a terrible headache, making her feel as though her head would explode any

    second. In the meantime, she was utterly strained and drained of all strength. Her entire body was

    awfully exhausted.

    ¡°My head hurts so much. Am I going to die?¡± Skr rubbed her own temples as she endured the agony.

    Tobias who was driving turned around and shot a gaze at her. ¡°I have headaches very often and there¡¯s

    no other way. Hang in there till it¡¯s over and you¡¯ll be okay.¡±

    In fact, Skr was hoping to get some constion from Tobias.

    However, it turned out that his way offorting others was too peculiar and even more useless than

    ¡°drink more warm water¡±.

    Tobias didn¡¯t tell Skr that he suffered from severe spondylopathy which often caused nerve

    compression. Therefore, experiencing a headache wasmonce for him and no amount of

    painkillers could help.

    When they reached home, it was already dawn. The sky barely brightened up and light rays could be

    vaguely seen.

    Tobias opened the car door and asked, ¡°Are you able to walk?¡±

    Skr answered with a nod. ¡°I can still manage.¡±

    Tobias looked at her face which was grimacing in agony until her features were all stitched together with

    her eyes tightly shut.

    Skr got off the car and before she knew it, her feet lifted off the ground as Tobias had carried her up

    on his shoulder like he was carrying a stack of heavy loads. It was no way near the romantic approach of

    being carried in a prince charming¡¯s arms.

    It was at that moment that Skr felt like she was a gunnysack with fifty kilograms of potatoes inside.

    Laura had already turned in and Tobias carried Skr to the bedroom and put her down in bed.

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    Chapter 106

    Seeing that Skr hadn¡¯t taken off her coat, the germophobic Tobias couldn¡¯t help but started, ¡°I¡¯ll help

    you take off your coat. It¡¯s just too dirtying back from the hospital in it. It must be full of bacteria by

    now.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t want to move at all. Shey in the bed like a dried and worn-out sponge with her hand

    tugging tightly at the quilt as she shook her head.

    With much difficulty, Tobias suppressed his impulse to drag Skr up to change her clothes. Then, he

    turned around to open the wardrobe instead but found it empty within.

    He suddenly remembered that when Skr moved out, she packed everything and left nothing behind.

    She had so few clothes that she couldn¡¯t bear to leave any of them here and once she left, she had no

    n of returning.

    ¡°Don¡¯t sleep just yet. I¡¯ll go prepare the medicine. Take them before you sleep.¡± Tobias took the

    medication out and read the instructions carefully.

    Skr shook her head and answered, ¡°I don¡¯t want to take them. It¡¯s awful, Meredith.¡±

    As she was half-awake, she mistook the person who was taking care of her when she was sick as

    Meredith.

    Tobias paused briefly in his tracks and then left to get some warm water for her to be taken together with

    the medicine.

    When he returned to the room. Skr was already curled up in the quilt, with only her puny yet pale face

    showing underneath. Nevertheless, she was still strikingly beautiful.

    ¡°Be a good girl and take the medicine.¡± He put the ss on the bedside.

    Then, he lifted Skr¡¯s shoulder up effortlessly and let her lean in his arms. He could feel her skin still

    burning.

    Taking the ss and cing it near Skr¡¯s lips, he said, ¡°After you take this medicine, I need to go to

    bed as well. I still have some business to attend to before noon.¡±

    Again, his deep and soft voice coaxing her gently was exceedingly pleasing to the ears. Tobias, who

    hadn¡¯t slept for over three nights was a little exhausted as well.

    He noticed that sometimes, he could get some good and peaceful nights of sleep around Skr. There

    were certain days when he even doubted if Skr had drugged him.

    Skr was now immune to Tobias¡¯ rare tenderness, and she shook her head. ¡°It¡¯s too bitter and hard to

    swallow. I¡¯ll take itter.¡±

    It suddenly dawned on Tobias. What am I doing here? Coaxing a child? He despised troublesome

    women. But here he was, putting up with Skr so patiently.

    Frowning as he looked at Skr¡¯s sickly pale face, which was the result of her fever and yet, she was still

    as spoiled as a child, he ordered, ¡°Take it.¡±

    Skr ignored him totally.

    Tobias took the ss and take in a mouthful. Then, his other hand pinched on her jaw and made her

    take the medicine together with the warm water.

    Skr, who was almost asleep, opened her eyes instantly as her mouth was filled with the taste of the

    medicine. She looked like she was going to throw up and before she knew it, Tobias sealed her lips with

    his.

    When their lips parted, Skr started retching.

    It was definitely the most bitter kiss she had ever had.

    Yet, her face was lifted by Tobias and hemanded, ¡°Swallow it. How can you recover if you don¡¯t take

    the medicine?¡±

    With a long face, Skr swallowed the medicine with some difficulty.

    Looking at Skr¡¯s pitiable post-medication face, he kissed her lips and said softly, ¡°Sleep for a while

    and you¡¯ll be okay. I¡¯ll be apanying you here.¡±

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    There was still a bitter taste in Tobias¡¯ mouth. Their kiss just then was so deep that he could feel the wild

    longinging from his heated crotch.

    Taking in a long breath, the yearning in his eyes deepened and he was struggling forcibly to repress his

    desire.

    It was the next day¡¯s afternoon when Skr woke up. Her clothes were soaked in sweat and her

    temperature had returned to normal. She had been perspiring profusely.

    Her hair was squishily sticking on her face and there were a few strands of them on her lips.

    She patted softly on her head which was still aching and got off the bed. Her steps were still giddy as

    though she was stepping on cotton and her heels felt weak.

    Coming down from the second floor, she saw Tobias talking to the phone with a stern face in the living

    room, with one hand on his hip.

    The buttons on his shirt were loosely fastened and his sleeves were crumpled up to his elbow. The

    perfect and sleek curves of his muscr arms outlined the vigor of men.

    Skr couldn¡¯t help taking a few more nces at him. He¡¯s clearly aging but still so incredibly sexy. Men

    in their thirties never failed to charm women.

 Chapter 107

    Chapter 107

    Tobias was the perfect illustration of the charm time bestowed on men. He was like a vintage wine which,

    without having the need to taste and only by whiffing, made one hopelessly tipsy.

    Skr mocked herself. I¡¯m indeed a shallow woman who judges a man by his looks and worse, I¡¯m

    admiring him as if I¡¯m appreciating a piece of artwork!

    After getting to know that Tobias would not get married, the greed within her mind started surfacing and

    creating some indeterminate ripples even though she knew all too well that one would be beyond

    redemption for falling in love with such a man.

    Tobias could feel the gaze from behind him so he turned around and found Skr.

    Her face was still as white as a sheet. However, she looked much energized and the usual she who liked

    to talk back to him had returned.

    Tobias hung up the call even before his secretary finished reporting to him.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you sleep more? You need more rest to recuperate.¡±

    Skr put on a bright smile on her pallid face. ¡°Do you also rest when you¡¯re sick?¡±

    With his eyebrows furrowed, Tobias answered cidly, ¡°I can¡¯t remember. I think so.¡±

    A faint smile appeared on Skr¡¯s face. How can anyone forget something like this?

    Tobias reached out and put his palm on Skr¡¯s forehead. It was cool.

    ¡°That¡¯s one of the perks of being youthful ¡ª a speedy recovery. I¡¯m going out. You rest well at home and

    don¡¯t need to hurry back to school. I¡¯ve applied for sick leave for you.¡±

    There was tenderness in Skr¡¯s eyes. She could still remember clearly what happenedst night.

    Rubbing her eyes, she asked in an innocent tone, ¡°Where are you going?¡±

    Tobias raised his arm and run it down Skr¡¯s cheek gently. This little girl has improved. She has even

    learned to ask about his whereabouts!

    ¡°I¡¯m going to thepany and then to Wesley¡¯s.¡±

    With a brief gaze at Tobias, Skr yawned and then replied, ¡°Forget it. I¡¯ll ask for the money myself. Just

    proceed with your business.¡±

    Tobias snorted. Skr can be overly confident sometimes. If she has this ability, she wouldn¡¯t have been

    pestered by others.

    ¡°Why are you treating me so well?¡± Skr called out to Tobias who was preparing to leave.

    After a brief pause, Tobias eventually smiled and replied, ¡°I have a sudden impulse to get into a romantic

    rtionship. I¡¯ve never had one before!¡±

    Skr only regarded it as some made-up story. He even has a fianc¨¦e! How could he have not been in

    any romantic rtionship before?

    He must have never really loved any woman and only learned to lead them straight to his bed. And she

    was one of them.

    Skr received a notice for an audition. Daryl Williams would being to her school for casting.

    She didn¡¯t quite believe that such a fortune woulde her way.N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    ¡°How long will you be staying over here?¡± Holding the mop, Laura was looking at her indifferently.

    Skr put away her phone and leaned back on the sofa as she yawned. ¡°Who knows? Why? Have I

    been an impediment for you to bring your friends over and have fun? You can treat me as if I don¡¯t exist

    though.¡±

    Laura¡¯s real intention was exposed. She didn¡¯t want to entertain some unidentified woman with an

    unknown background either.

    If I have the chance to meet Ms. Hanson, I would be sure to list all the despicable deedsmitted by

    this woman.

    How can a wicked home wreckerpare to the legitimate fianc¨¦e of Tobias?

    Tobias did not return for lunch. Looking at the oatmeal on the table, Skr threw the spoon into her bowl,

    sttering the oatmeal all over the table.

    She had not much of an appetite. She had a sore throat and everything felt tasteless in her mouth. She

    didn¡¯t want to eat something so nd.

    Laura squinted at her and said, ¡°This is specially made for a patient like you. Sick people should eat

    unseasoned food.¡±

    Skr asked her, ¡°Is there any canned food? I want to eat something like that. When I was sick in the

    past, my grandma used to buy me tins of peach slices.¡±

    Laura answered impatiently, ¡°No. Mr. Ford asked me to take care of you and serve you personally so I¡¯m

    not supposed to leave. If you want to eat it so much, you can order food delivery.¡±

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    Chapter 108

    Skr would save herself from the trouble of arguing with Laura. As it was already past noon, she

    wondered about the progress with what Tobias was doing.

    She was a little worried. Hence, in the end, she took her coat from the sofa and hailed a cab to Wesley¡¯s

    house.

    As soon as she stepped in, Skr heard Sharon¡¯s crying. She whimpered as she said, ¡°My daughter is

    only twenty years old. Her life would be ruined if she is married to such a scumbag.¡±

    Wesley agreed and said, ¡°We didn¡¯t ept this three hundred thousand at will. Skr¡¯s opinion was

    sought and she agreed to it.¡±

    Tobias sat on the sofa like a host and looked at the couple shedding their tears indifferently.

    Seeing as Skr came in, Sharon finally stopped crying. She looked at Skr as though she had just

    seen her lifesaver.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    ¡°Skr, you¡¯ve finallye. Quick, go and talk to Mr. Ford. He wants Eva to marry Jackson. How can

    that be?¡±

    Skr turned to look at Tobias with amazement. He seems to know our background very well. He¡¯s even

    aware that I have a cousin, Eva.

    Talking about this cousin of hers, she was only younger than Skr by a few months. Yet, she had been

    Skr¡¯s nightmare since young.

    Eva had always been that child that everyone couldn¡¯t stop praising. She had been performing very well

    academically since young. In addition, she was very pretty. Therefore, everyone in the neighborhood

    liked her very much.

    After high school, she was admitted to one of the renowned universities and Meredith always talked

    about how promising a youth Eva was and how well Uncle Wesley and Aunt Sharon had raised their

    child.

    Sharon was crying so hard that even her eyes turned misty. Never would she have thought that such a

    good marriage arrangement would turn out this way.

    The man brought home by Skr was actually Tobias. No one would have expected Skr, who usually

    looked dispirited, to have such great capabilities.

    Neither did they ever dream of a titan like Tobias visiting such an ordinary family as theirs.

    Skr turned to Tobias with an inquisitive look.

    However, Tobias turned to face the couple with a calm expression. ¡°Aren¡¯t you two extremely satisfied

    with this marriage arrangement? Then, isn¡¯t it good that I¡¯m making your wishe true? It¡¯s okay if you

    don¡¯t agree with this marriage. I¡¯ve heard that the productivity at the factory where the both of you have

    worked isn¡¯t satisfactory. Maybe it¡¯s time toy off a batch of workers.¡±

    There was only one word popping up in Skr¡¯s mind right then¡ª sinister.

    Tobias was threatening Wesley and Sharon. He knew all too well what it meant to them to beid off by a

    state-owned enterprise and he was trying to cut off their financial resources.

    Wesley looked like he would be kneeling down before Tobias any second then. He was sighing and

    looking at Skr with his pleading eyes, signaling her to speak for them.

    Skr took the opportunity to state her condition. ¡°You return the three hundred thousand to the Zimmer

    family and I have no other requests.¡±

    Both Sharon and Wesley were reluctant about the money so none of them spoke in a while.

    Tobias lit up a cigarette unhurriedly. Then, he ced it between his lips and exhaled a long puff of

    smoke.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay if you don¡¯t want to return the money. It¡¯s not a huge sum after all. Call your daughter back and

    focus on preparing for the wedding in the meantime. I¡¯ll get someone to guard your house in this period

    until the wedding day.¡±

    Skr stared at Tobias¡¯ Adam¡¯s apple, which was moving up and down, and she was at a loss for

    words. This man can cause chills to run down others¡¯ spines by just sitting there in his mostposed

    and cid face.

    This move of Tobias is brilliant and entirely ruthless. He¡¯s making them opt between their jobs and their

    daughter.

    If Eva doesn¡¯t get married to Jackson, their entire family will be living on air.

    ¡°Skr, I¡¯m your uncle. Is this how youe against me?¡±

    Skr raised her eyebrows and replied, ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything though. Uncle Wesley, wasn¡¯t it you who

    said that getting married to Jackson Zimmer is a blessing? I¡¯m only opening up this great opportunity to

    someone else.¡±

    She was well aware that her Uncle Wesley would never really agree on this.

    Tobias looked at Skr from a distance and found that she had recovered pretty well. Not even a wee bit

    of her looked like that overly pampered girl lying in his armsst night.

    Sharon took out a passbook from the wardrobe. Even her hands were trembling which just showed how

    unwilling she was to return the money.

    ¡°Three hundred thousand is only dirt in your eyes. Why must you trouble some poor people like us?¡±

    The burning cigarette¡¯s end was reflected as a tiny red spot in Tobias¡¯ eyes as he chuckled softly,

    ¡°Poverty and ignorance are corrted.¡±

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    Chapter 109

    Tobias added with disdain, ¡°You¡¯re quick to sell Skr for barely three hundred thousand. Why haven¡¯t

    you ever thought about improving your rtionship with her? The perks you might have gotten now that

    Skr is together with me should exceed far beyond three hundred thousand, don¡¯t you understand?¡±

    Realization suddenly dawned on them. Wesley and Sharon could never be more regretful in their life.

    The wealth Tobias possessed could even rival that of a nation and he was a known spendthrift. Thus,

    what he could give to Skr was unquestionably greater since rich men like him would easily spend

    millions just for a wristwatch.

    Then, in front of Skr, Sharon made a call to Lily to cancel the wedding and return all the money to her.

    Even from this side of the phone, Lily¡¯s loud and irritable voice could be heard clearly. ¡°What¡¯s going on?

    My son has since locked himself up in his room after returning homest night. Isn¡¯t it toote for you to

    mention canceling the wedding now?¡±

    Wesley grabbed the phone and spoke aggressively, ¡°Cancel means cancel! That¡¯s for the well-being of

    my niece.¡±

    Skr was relieved. Meeting Tobias¡¯ eyes, she realized with him around, any difficult situation could be

    easily solved and she would never have to endure it alone.

    Coming out of Wesley¡¯s house, Tobias took her in his arms and his deep voice came from beside her ear.

    ¡°I can unravel all kinds of mess for you so just rx and stay by my side. I don¡¯t require much from you

    as long as you behave and listen to me.¡±

    Skr asked in response, ¡°What kind of a rtionship is this?¡±

    Tobias replied gently, ¡°You can treat me as your boyfriend. It¡¯s up to you how you want to treat it.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I can¡¯t answer you for now. I was already preparing to spend the rest of my life alone.¡±

    Skr was at a loss.

    Tobias gave her a faint smile. ¡°How old are you? You sounded like someone who has seen through the

    temporality of life. Anyway, there is certainly some progress since you¡¯re not so firm on your stance

    anymore. That leaves me with some hope.¡±

    Tobias could surely meet up to all women¡¯s fantasies about men. He was good-looking, mature, wealthy,

    assertive and possessed the charisma that a mellow man should have.

    Skr was clear about the fact that Tobias couldn¡¯t give her the sense of security she needed. He was

    just like a sweet dream that one had to wake up from eventually.

    You can never really get into a circle where you don¡¯t belong. At the end of the day, you¡¯re only shaming

    yourself and making it difficult for others.

    Tobias said that he was starving so Skr followed him to the shopping mall nearby.

    The assets and properties of Ford Group were everywhere in the city. Even a shopping mall they found

    at random was owned by Ford Group.

    When they passed by the gship store of Herm¨¨s, Skr didn¡¯t even care to take a nce inside.

    Her reaction intrigued Tobias.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it the case that all women like bags? Don¡¯t you want to go in and have a look?¡±

    Skr looked at her reflection on the ss and mocked at herself, ¡°With my financial status, even if I

    carried Herm¨¨s, people would regard it as some counterfeit products so why should I waste the money?

    I might as well just buy a counterfeit one.¡±

    Tobias could somehow understand Skr¡¯s consumption view. Different upbringing would contribute to

    the different consumption views of individuals.

    She might still be clueless about the extent of satisfaction he could provide her. To Tobias, money was

    merely a number.

    All the women who had been together with him would barge into Herm¨¨s store as soon as they saw it.

    And then, very subtly, they would express how much they liked the bags or other products within.

    He took Skr¡¯s hand and sped his fingers tightly around hers. ¡°You¡¯re always carrying this backpack

    around wherever you go. Others would probably think that I¡¯m dating a high school girl, and that makes

    me look so much older.¡±

    Skr held on tightly to the backpack in her hands. It was actually a present from Jeremy.

    There was a discount at the Nike store back then and it cost less than two hundred. It was the most

    expensive bag she had ever had till then.

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    It was Skr¡¯s first time entering a luxury retail store. In the past, even if she passed by, she wouldn¡¯t

    even dare to stop a little longer at the door.

    Just as they stepped in, Tobias¡¯ phone started ringing. He pointed towards the store¡¯s exit and told Skr

    that he needed to answer a call.

    Skr nodded and with that, Tobias left, leaving her alone in the Herm¨¨s store.

 Chapter 110

    Chapter 110

    Standing amidst the plethora of luxury goods, Skr felt like a fish out of water, fully aware of how

    underdressed she was at the moment.

    Suddenly, a high-pitched voice came from the distance. ¡°Skr? Oh wow, it¡¯s really you.¡±

    Her heart practically stopped when she saw who the voice belonged to. ¡°Hey, you there? Did you forget

    me? I¡¯m Erica.¡± Thedy waved, stering a seemingly cordial smile on her face.

    Of course I remember you, Erica Fox. Skr¡¯s face instantly darkened as a wave of unpleasant

    memories came flooding back.

    Erica was Skr¡¯s high school ssmate. But far from being chummy buddies, Skr avoided Erica like

    the gue. Her disdain for the girl was simple ¨C Erica was an egocentric school bully who thought that

    she could do anything she wanted just because she had a rich boyfriend and a pretty face.

    If any girl offended her, she swore to make life hellish for the person. Unfortunately, Skr happened to

    be one of those girls.

    The incident began when Skr was rushing for ss, only to bump into Erica by ident.

    Consequently, thetter girl¡¯s coffee spilled everywhere. ¡°Jeez. Do you have no eyes? Clean this mess

    up, now! With your mouth, that is.¡± The steadfast Skr refused to submit to the threat.

    A fight thus ensued, and the result was a two-month hospitalization bill for the outnumbered Skr. Erica

    had her gang with her, while the poor victim had no one.

    Her grandmother confronted the school management, hoping to get some form of justice for the piteous

    grandchild. Unfortunately, they merely turned a blind eye to the issue. That was when Skr decided

    once and for all that she was going to work hard and be sessful in the future, so that she did not have

    to suffer from such indignance anymore.

    ¡°No reply. Tsk. Rude as ever.¡± Erica¡¯s annoyance brought Skr back to reality.

    Thedy grimaced internally. Of all people I can meet¡­ Why must it be her? Skr had absolutely no

    intention to greet her ex-ssmate.

    As she was unable to elicit any reaction from Skr, Erica turned to her boyfriend instead. Skr

    recognized the man to be the same boyfriend Erica was dating since high school. ¡°This is Skr Jones.

    We were high school ssmates, and she went to the Southwood Film Academy after we graduated.¡±

    Then, with a scoff, she continued, ¡°Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s hrious? Someone with no money or

    background trying to make it big in the entertainment industry, daydreaming about buying a Herm¨¨s¡­ I

    really pity her grandmother. It¡¯s not easy for her to raise such a foolish grandchild.¡±

    Yup, this person hasn¡¯t changed a single bit. Skr began plotting a thousand ways to leave this

    conversation, but Erica¡¯s boyfriend gave a response that stopped her.

    The spindly, but otherwise handsome man eyed her from head and toe andplimented, ¡°I guess the

    saying is true ¨C the arts academies are where all the beautifuldies gather¡­ ¡°

    Skr inadvertently felt ttered, though the man¡¯s indecorous eyes lingered on her body for longer than

    she liked. On the other hand, his girlfriend was evidently trying her best not tobust in public.

    Erica had always regarded Skr as a maniptive vixen who only knew how to bewitch men with her

    good looks. Now that her boyfriend had joined in on the udits, she could not help but feeltled.

    ¡°What use is there for beauty if she¡¯s penniless!¡± Then, turning to Skr, she sneered, ¡°I doubt you can

    afford anything in this ce. I can¡¯t believe you had the confidence to even walk into this store in the first

    ce.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Skr had long been immune to such attacks. Equably, she replied, ¡°Is there a problem with window

    shopping? I don¡¯t recall it being illegal¡­ Unless you own the store and prohibit customers from doing

    so?¡±

    In terms of verbal sparring, Erica was no match for Skr. She hissed, deciding to humiliate Skr

    another way. Turning to her boyfriend, she purred, ¡°Babe, can you get me that Herm¨¨s bag over there?

    I¡¯ve been eyeing it for a really long time.¡±

    Without qualms, her boyfriend fished out his stacked wallet and pulled out his tinum card. However,

    he then unted his card deliberately before Skr, even winking at her at some point to get her

    attention.

    This made Erica even more livid. The more riled up she was, the more cruel her words became.

    ¡°As you can see, Skr Jones, this store is better suited for people like us. As for you, maybe try

    dressing better the next time before fooling your way into stores like these. This store¡¯s owner may be

    kind enough not to evict you, but you can¡¯t say the same for the others.¡±

    Skr¡¯s cool demeanor finally cracked.

    Pointing at the Herm¨¨s handbag the man was holding, she bellowed, ¡°You haven¡¯t paid for that right? I

    want it!¡±

    He paused, skepticism and displeasure written all over his face. ¡°Um, do you know how much this

    costs?¡±

    From the side came Erica¡¯s unrestrainedughter. ¡°Dude, you¡¯re going to go bankrupt.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, sure thing.¡± Skr rolled her eyes and proceeded to retrieve the ck card that Tobias gave her.

    Passing it to the cashier, she ordered with the utmostposure, ¡°Get this wrapped up for me.¡±

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    Chapter 111

    Erica was dumbfounded. It took some time before she could utter a word. ¡°T-That¡¯s fake, right?¡±

    The sound of printed receipts rendered her mind nk once again.

    ¡°I-I¡­ I bet that card is stolen. Aren¡¯t you afraid of the police knocking on your door?¡±

    Skr merely returned an unaffected smile. ¡°ndering someone is also a criminal offence, you know.¡±

    At this moment, Tobias returned to the scene after his call ended. When he saw Skr at the cashier, he

    was overjoyed. She finally knows how to pamper herself.

    Draping his arms over her shoulder, Tobias asked, ¡°You¡¯re only getting this?¡± Then, tilting his head, he

    looked at the two other people who seemed to be with Erica with curious but guarded eyes.

    Erica gulped nervously as his gazended on her.

    Wait¡­ Isn¡¯t her boyfriend Jeremy? Who¡¯s this new person?

    In the past, there was a running joke in the ss that Skr would most definitely be a widow

    before anyone else. But judging from the sight, Erica realized how outdated she had been about Skr¡¯s

    life.

    At the side, her boyfriend was visibly shaken. He even dropped his wallet as his hands were trembling

    uncontrobly.

    Meeting Tobias¡¯ eyes, he stuttered meekly, ¡°N-Nice to meet you, Mr. Ford. I-I¡¯m¡­ ¡°

    ¡°You¡¯re Wace Boyd¡¯s son, right?¡±

    The man nodded frantically. ¡°Yes! And I¡­ ¡° His voice trailed off as Tobias walked away heedlessly,

    clearly not interested in continuing the conversation. He joined Skr, who was now at the other side of

    the store instead.

    ¡°Erica, who exactly is your friend?¡±

    Erica frowned at how nervous her boyfriend looked. ¡°She¡¯s just a nobody. Why do you look so shaken

    up? It¡¯s like you saw a ghost or something.¡±

    The man sighed wryly. ¡°I saw something worse than a ghost.¡±

    While they slowly recovered theirposure, the couple at the other side of the store was in a world of

    their own, browsing through other handbags.

    Skr was still in disbelief of having spent so much money in one go, while Tobias was casually

    retrieving whichever handbag thedy looked mildly interested in and passing it to her.

    ¡°T-That¡¯s too much! My two arms can¡¯t handle so many bags,¡± Skr protested.

    ¡°Just hold on to them. Let me teach you the proper way to spend your money,¡± he instructed light-

    heartedly as he passed her another limited-edition handbag.

    The proper way to spend money¡­ Skr was overwhelmed by the amount of luxury goods she was

    holding.

    Since she was young, Skr learnt the importance of being thrifty. Meredith would often reiterate how

    she had no money for retirement, and that they could barely make ends meet. And thus, Skr had

    known the need to cut down on her expenses for survival at an early age.

    Across the store, Erica watched on, green with envy. She had to go to great lengths to make her

    boyfriend pay for a Herm¨¨s bag. And yet, there Skr was, having unlimited handbags at her disposal.

    She had always considered herself a winner in everything. Losing to Skr was a first, and it was a bitter

    defeat she had trouble epting.

    After some time, the couple finallypleted their haul and headed over to the cashier. ¡°That will be

    three hundred and twenty million. Would you like to sign up for a membership card so that you can

    umte the points from this transaction?¡±

    The cashier beamed as she handled the purchases, knowing full well that this single transaction was

    sufficient to cover their annual sales target.

    Conversely, Skr went pale upon hearing the total price. That is enough money to buy a house.

    Meanwhile, the person paying did not bat an eye at all. Suavely taking over the pen, Tobias signed his

    name on the merchant receipt and scribbled an address on his own receipt. ¡°It¡¯s alright, I don¡¯t need the

    membership card. But do help me wrap all these up and send them over to this location.¡±

    At this point, Erica could no longer contain her burning curiosity. Letting go of her boyfriend¡¯s hand, she

    strode over and faked a polite grin. ¡°Skr, since when did you get a new boyfriend? I never knew about

    it.¡±

    At this close proximity, Erica could smell Tobias¡¯ expensive cologne. It was hypnotizing, to say the least.

    Skr felt Tobias¡¯ gaze on her as she answered, ¡°I have no obligation to update you about my life.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

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    Chapter 112

    Erica simply wanted to know how Skr found herself such a wealthy backing. She did not expect the

    latter to be so cold to her.

    In the end, Skr left with Tobias without answering her question, leaving her in immense exasperation.

    Meanwhile, her boyfriend heaved a sigh of relief.

    ¡°I must say¡­ Your friend is pretty skillful to have that man wrapped around her fingers.¡±

    Erica¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°You know that guy? No wonder you behaved so strangely just now. Who is he?

    He seems filthy rich, being able to buy those handbags like he¡¯s buying groceries at the market.¡± As she

    said so, she could not help but notice her boyfriend¡¯s inferiority inparison. His wealth came nowhere

    close to the man Skr was with.

    ¡°Wait, you didn¡¯t recognize him? That was Tobias Ford! People like him spend money like water.¡±

    Erica let out an audible gasp. ¡°T-Tobias Ford? You¡¯re telling me that Skr Jones is dating Tobias Ford,

    the CEO?¡±

    While thedy remained rooted to the spot in shock, Tobias and Skr had already made their way to

    the other end of the mall. Passing by the Chanel store, Tobias promptly dragged thedy in, insistent on

    a wardrobe makeover.

    He could not bear seeing her natural beauty be trampled by her in-looking clothes.

    Skr did not want to enter the outlet initially, but she was no match for the man¡¯s physical strength.

    Helplessly looking around, she eventually walked over to a sleek Chanel-brand outerwear. Skr had no

    intention of buying it, but still took a look at the price tag. It was a habit inculcated in her since childhood.

    Tobias took this as a sign of her liking the product. Without a word, he removed it from the racks and

    handed it over to a nearby staff, despite Skr¡¯s protests. Then, urging her to look at the other clothes in

    the store, Tobias began to pile the shopping cart once again.

    While Tobias was handling the transaction, thedy became gloomy at the side. Money had always been

    a luxury while growing up, thus she felt extremely ufortable at the mindless splurging that was

    happening.

    As sauntered towards the mall¡¯s elevator, Skr¡¯s dour expression piqued the man¡¯s concern. ¡°Hey, most

    ladies I know would be in raptures by now. Aren¡¯t you happy after doing so much shopping?¡±

    Skr shook her head. ¡°This way of spending money just doesn¡¯t sit right with me. I don¡¯t think we

    should be- ¡°

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Tobias pulled her into a semi-embrace, partly to free up the walkway for other customers to exit the lift,

    and partly to shut her up.

    ¡°Listen here. I grew up in a penurious family. My mother scrimped and saved every penny for my brother

    and I, and never took care of herself. In the end, her sacrifices were for nothing. My father had an affair

    and they got a divorce. He even insisted for the mistress to be present when they signed the papers.

    Thus, the moral of the story is that you should never show mercy on your spouse¡¯s wallet. Just spend

    whatever you want and treat yourself right.¡±

    He had never revealed this to anyone else. Skr was his first listener.

    Unfortunately, thedy¡¯s takeaway was vastly different from what he intended. Choosing to focus on the

    affair aspect, she jibed indirectly, ¡°I see that you¡¯ve taken after your father a little.¡±

    Till today, she remembered how she and Tobias met. Truth to be told, if the man had a change of heart

    all of a sudden one day, she would not be surprised.

    Tobias made no reply for a moment, making her slightly apprehensive. But luckily, he did not seem to

    mind her snide remark in the end.

    Instead, he confessed, ¡°Honestly, I know I can be a jerk. I admit that I feel happy around you, and that

    you upy so much of my heart that I don¡¯t have room to amodate otherdies for now. But

    whether this remains true in the future is entirely up to your performance.¡±

    Nice, a ssic jacka*s indeed.

    The conversation then ended there. Tobias did not wish to borate further.

    The pair took the lift to the top floor, though they had no particr destination in mind. Skr, who had

    just recovered from a night of fever and endured miles of walking from the shopping trip, desperately

    needed a break.

    Before them was the cinemas. There was arge poster that hung at the entrance, promoting a locally-

    produced horror movie that received rave reviews recently.

    On it, ady dressed in white stood ominously with only half her face shown.

    It was rare for a local horror film to take the box office by storm, signaling how well-produced it was.

    Apparently, the movie was so scary that someone passed away from a heart attack during the movie.

    ¡°Tobias, what about I treat you to a movie?¡±

 Chapter 113

    Chapter 113

    ¡°Movie? That¡¯s an interesting suggestion. I¡¯ve never watched a movie before, actually. In fact, I have

    never been to the cinemas,¡± Tobias admitted.

    Skr¡¯s eyes widened in surprise. ¡°You¡¯re telling me that you own several cinemas, but have never

    watched a movie yourself? Don¡¯t try to fool me.¡±

    Tobias shrugged off her exmation.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have the time,pany, or interest to watch one.¡±

    Nopany? If you wanted to watch any movie, including those explicit ones, I bet a flock ofdies will

    make themselves avable to be with you in an instant.

    But going back to the main topic, Skr conceded after seeing how disinterested Tobias looked. ¡°I¡¯ll just

    catch it when it¡¯s uploaded online. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Tobias observed her silently, noting how thedy appeared significantly more enthusiastic about

    watching a film than getting herself new handbags and clothes. He also noticed how her gaze parted

    from the movie poster with great reluctance.

    After a moment¡¯s hesitation, he said, ¡°Maybe we should watch that movie instead. Suits your age better.¡±

    Skr followed the direction of his pointed finger.

    He was gesturing to a kids¡¯ movie.

    Skr sighed at his childishness. ¡°Forget it. Let¡¯s go. Horror movies don¡¯t appeal to everyone, and I

    understand that.¡±

    Tobias pulled her back. ¡°Are you sure you want to watch the horror movie? What if I get a heart attack

    during the film? You do know that I¡¯m getting old, and that my heart can fail me anytime, right?¡±

    Old? You¡¯re only thirty!

    But thedy made no actual reply. She merely stood there with tentative anticipation, hoping that the

    man would change his mind. Eventually, Tobias could not resist her pleading look and gave in.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go get the tickets. Wait over here.¡±

    Seated at the lounge area, Skr pulled the hem of his shirt, holding him back. ¡°I¡¯ve already said that

    this is my treat.¡± Then, she pulled out a brand new note ceremoniously and handed it over to him.

    The note was part of her hard-earned part-time wages.

    The man kept the note in his pocket, but paid using money from his own wallet instead. Instead, Skr

    watched the man at the ticket counter with amusement.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Does he not know how to use mobile payment? He really needs to keep up with the times¡­ Skr

    chuckled to herself.

    When Tobias returned, he caught sight of a couple seated near Skr.

    ¡°Honey, I want popcorn,¡± said thedy.

    Her partner pinched her cheek affectionately. ¡°What vor do you want?¡±

    ¡°They only have the original vor here. Oh by the way, I¡¯m scared of horror movies, so you need to hold

    me tightlyter on, alright?¡±

    The conversation prompted Tobias to take a look at Skr. Thedy seemed nonchnt, or even

    unaware of the sight happening before her. He sighed internally. Oh, the disparity. Why can¡¯t she be

    more forting like that?

    The couple¡¯s exchange also reminded Tobias of something else ¨C they did not have any drinks or snacks

    for the movie. Instinctively, he went off and got thergest popcorn box and two cans of soft drink.

    Before heading into the movie hall, Tobias asked once again, ¡°Are you sure about this?¡± In response,

    Skr merely taunted, ¡°What? You¡¯re already feeling the jitters?¡±

    Tobias chuckled. ¡°Oh please. Fear is not in my dictionary.¡±

    It was not an exaggeration. The man had offended too many people, but still lived fine in the end. As a

    result, he been s¨¦ about things like vengeful ghosts and monsters. I¡¯d be dead by now if they can

    actually harm me.

    When they entered the screening hall, Tobias immediately realized his mistake ¨C he had booked the front

    row seats. It was a greatly wasted opportunity to do certain things amidst the pitch ck environment.

 Chapter 114

    Chapter 114

    ¡°Tobias¡­ Tobias¡­ ¡° he called out to his brother.

    Skr saw that Sheldon had a young and prettydy with him who looked like a typical social medial

    influencer. Even though she was quite pretty, it was obvious that she had undergone stic surgery.

    Sheldon¡¯s eyes were twinkling as if he had discovered something interesting.

    There were clouds of depression looming at home everyday. udia was waiting eagerly for her son to

    return home and Tanya also wailed and wept in front of her endlessly.

    If they saw that his brother was still in the mood to go on a movie date with a woman, they would

    definitely hit the roof.

    ¡°Hey,¡± Tobias acknowledged coldly. He was not particrly happy to bump into Sheldon and hence,

    could not be bothered to say anything else.

    The influencer lookalike had heart shapes in her eyes and was stoked to see Tobias. She almost wanted

    to take a picture of the man so that she could brag to her friends that she was acquainted with him.

    Sheldon waved to Skr casually while Tobias looked for their seats before leaning in and whispering

    next to her ears, ¡°Ms. Jones seems to know the right moves. Watching a horror movie with a guy gives

    you to perfect opportunity to throw yourself into his arms.¡±

    A blush spread across Skr¡¯s cheeks as she replied softly, ¡°That didn¡¯t even cross my mind. Besides, I

    won¡¯t have to use that tactic on your brother.¡±

    ¡°Ha!¡± Sheldon dismissed Skr¡¯s words with a snort. He did not believe that his brother would initiate a

    move on any woman.

    As there were some empty seats in the theater, even though Sheldon bought seats at the back, he

    insisted on sitting together with Tobias and Skr.

    The moment he sat down, Tobias spoke with mild irritation in his deep voice, ¡°Go sit elsewhere and don¡¯t

    disturb me.¡±

    Sheldon stood up reluctantly, feeling hurt to be rejected by his own brother.

    ¡°We can all sit together. The more the merrier anyway,¡± Skr spoke.

    She made the suggestion as she wasn¡¯t sure if Tobias would suddenly feel horny in the midst of the

    movie and make a move on her.

    No matter what, with Sheldon around, Tobias would definitely try to behave as he needed to maintain his

    image of a mighty, aloof and celibate CEO.

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    Tobias looked at Skr intently and said, ¡°Keep quiet.¡±

    Skr sat down sulkily and pouted. ¡°Do you have to be so fierce?¡±

    Sheldon let out a sigh which was full of grievances. His brother had merely spoken in a slightly louder

    voice and Skr had already found that fierce.

    Compared to the treatment he had endured all those years, his brother was already being very gentle.

    After Sheldon and the influencer lookalike went back to their own seats at the back of the theater, the

    woman asked curiously, ¡°Is she your brother¡¯s fianc¨¦e? She looks really young!¡±

    Sheldon replied in annoyance, ¡°Why did you ask? Is that any of your business? Just concentrate on

    watching the movie.¡±

    The influencer lookalike stopped talking, afraid that she would further irritate Sheldon.

    Her position was not secured yet and Sheldon might dispose of her anytime. She did not want to lose

    such a golden opportunity so soon.

    The movie started shortly after. Tobias was carrying a huge bucket of popcorn and his hands were full.

    ¡°Want some?¡± Tobias pushed the popcorn bucket towards Skr.

    Skr took a few popcorn and tossed them into her mouth. She had a horrified expression on her face

    as she stared at the woman in white who had just appeared on the screen.

    It didn¡¯t help that the movie sound effects helped to amplify the scary ambience and Skr was already

    starting to break out in cold sweat. She turned to look at Tobias, who was expressionless and sitting

    upright.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you scared?¡±

    Tobias replied coldly, ¡°What¡¯s there to be scared of? If you¡¯re scared you can close your eyes.¡±

    Suddenly, when a woman who was bleeding from her ears, eyes, mouth and nostrils appeared on the

    screen, Skr and the couple seated one row behind them screamed.

    The guy from the couple immediately pulled the girl into his arms andforted her gently, ¡°Babe, don¡¯t

    be scared, I¡¯m here. I¡¯ll scold her for scaring you, alright?¡±

    The girl buried her face in the guy¡¯s chest and replied coquettishly, ¡°Darling, I¡¯m so scared. You have to

    hug me tightly and cover my eyes when ites to the scary parts yeah?¡±

    Tobias lifted his arm and asked, ¡°Do you also want to lean here for a while?¡±

 Chapter 115

    Chapter 115

    Tobias raised the armrest between him and Skr so that the woman could lean on him.

    Skr continued to munch on popcorn while staring intently at the screen with her eyes filled with terror.

    When the movie reached the most exciting part, both the imagery and the sound effects were at their

    climax as well.

    Just then, Tobias¡¯ phone rang. As he had forgotten to put his phone on silent mode, Skr got such a

    huge shock that her heart had almost stopped beating.

    ¡°I need to take a call outside. Will you be OK on your own?¡±

    Skr shook her head and looked at Tobias with her big and watery eyes, appearing just like a damsel in

    distress.

    ¡°I¡¯m quite scared. What should I do if the ghost suddenly crawls out of the screen?¡±

    It was easy for one¡¯s mind to run wild when watching a horror film. Skr could already imagine a

    woman dressed in white sitting at Tobias¡¯ seat and smiling at her with blood oozing out from her ears,

    eyes, mouth and nostrils.

    In the end, Skr did not seed in keeping Tobias with her; he still left the theater to answer the call.

    Shortly after, Sheldon appeared and sat down next to Skr.

    ¡°My brother told me to keep youpany for a while. He needs to pick up a call.¡±

    Skr turned around and took a nce behind. Tobias was rather ¡®thoughtful¡¯ to get Sheldon to

    apany her. After all, Sheldon was also watching the movie with his girlfriend. It just didn¡¯t seem

    appropriate for him to leave his femalepanion alone.

    ¡°He had already answered at least five calls when we were on our way here!¡± Skr estimated.

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Sheldon could tell that Skr wasining even though she herself might not be aware of it and

    exined, ¡°My brother is a busy man. You can¡¯t even imagine how busy he is. To get him to watch a

    movie with you is, in fact, even harder than striking lottery.¡±

    Skr felt that Sheldon was definitely exaggerating. She had spent the entire day with Tobias and apart

    from answering phone calls, he had not done anything else.

    When Tobias returned to the theater after finishing his call, the movie had already ended.

    Since they had already bumped into each other, Sheldon had to make use of the chance to get a free

    meal from Tobias and was waiting for him outside the theatre so that they could go for dinner together.

    Tobias asked Skr, ¡°What do you feel like having for dinner?¡±

    As Skr had not fully recovered yet, she did not have much of an appetite or any cravings. ¡°Anything

    will do,¡± she replied.

    Sheldon chimed in the conversation, saying, ¡°Men are all afraid to hear that.¡±

    The influencer lookalike said softly, ¡°I feel like eating Japanese cuisine. I know of a good Japanese

    restaurant nearby which I frequent.¡±

    Only then did Tobias shoot a nce at the woman and asked his brother, ¡°Girlfriend?¡±

    Sheldon answered rather ambiguously, ¡°You can say so. Meet my girlfriend, Hry.¡±

    Hry looked at Sheldon reluctantly as it seemed like the man was still not willing to proudly admit their

    rtionship.

    She extended her hand towards Tobias. With a gentle and warm smile, she said, ¡°Nice to meet you, Mr.

    Ford. I¡¯m Hry.¡±

    Tobias had no intention to shake hands with Hry and was behaving in an extremely cold manner. He

    had already lost count of the number of women Sheldon had and they all looked the same.

    Hry¡¯s hand froze in midair awkwardly and she did not know if she should put it down or continue

    holding it there.

    Just then, Skr came to Hry¡¯s rescue. She took Hry¡¯s hand and said, ¡°I¡¯m Skr.¡±

    After that, Hry could finally put down her hand and smiled at Skr.

    After a while, they reached the Japanese restaurant rmended by Hry. The ce was decorated

    with a Japanese style and looked minimalistic yet luxurious.

    When the waiter brought them the menu, Tobias passed it directly to Skr. Even though there were two

    other people at the table, Tobias had no intention to ask for their preferences as to what they would like

    to order.

    Hry could clearly feel Tobias¡¯ disrespect and disdain towards her.

    As Skr browsed through the menu, she noticed that even a cup of water cost more than ten, not to

    mention the main dishes.

    The only Japanese cuisine she ever had was the handroll sold outside her schoolst time.

    Skr held on to the menu and had no idea what to order at all. She was screaming silently in her heart,

    ¡°I¡¯m such a country bumpkin. I don¡¯t even know how to order from the menu!¡±

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    Chapter 116

    Running out of patience, Sheldon urged Skr, ¡°Skr, why are you so indecisive? I¡¯m famished!¡±

    Skr closed the menu and passed it back to Tobias. ¡°Since you¡¯re the one treating, you should order

    instead.¡±

    Tobias then tossed the menu to Hry.

    Even though Hry told Sheldon that she frequented restaurants like that, she had actually only been to

    the restaurant once. During that one time she dined there with her friends, they were shocked by how

    expensive the meal was when they saw the bill.

    As such, since there was someone else treating, Hry did not intend to stand on ceremony and had her

    mind set on ordering the most expensive items on the menu.

    The wagyu beef alone already cost more than a thousand per te. In addition to the red wine ordered,

    the bill was expected to be at least three hundred thousand.

    To Tobias and Sheldon, that wasn¡¯t a big deal and that fact alone fortified Skr¡¯s belief that she was a

    world apart from them. She felt that her presence was a mismatch with the high-ss restaurant. Unlike

    the heirs and heiresses from wealthy families, Skr had not grown up worry-free in a loving

    environment with people doting on her.

    Before all the dishes were served, Hry already couldn¡¯t wait to take pictures. With a cheeky grin, she

    said, ¡°Let me take some pictures first.¡±

    She had already thought of the captions which she was going to put on her social media together with

    the photos.

    Skr, who had just picked up her utensils, quickly put them back down so that Hry could take photos.

    There was a hint of impatience in Tobias¡¯ deep-set dark eyes as the other three of them waited.

    After Hry finished taking pictures, she said smilingly, ¡°This is one of my favorite restaurants. Their chef

    is really good and was even featured on a previous issue of Michelin Guide. Ms. Jones, what do you

    usually like to eat?¡±

    Skr looked at Hry with a confused expression as the woman¡¯s sudden question caught her by

    surprise.

    What should I answer? Tater tots? In addition to tater tots, Skr usually only ate simple food such as

    sandwiches, pastas or takeaways. She couldn¡¯t even bring herself to order extra food in her takeaway.

    ¡°Oh, I eat anything. I¡¯m not that particr with food,¡± Skr responded vaguely.

    Hry was rather surprised at Skr¡¯s answer and eximed, ¡°Us girls should have more ss when

    choosing the food we consume and can¡¯t be too casual about it. My friends and I dine here quite often.

    Ms. Jones, maybe you and I can hang out together next time too. We can go shopping and eat some

    good food.¡±

    Skr smiled awkwardly and replied, ¡°Sure, we can find a time to do that.¡±

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    She couldn¡¯t understand why Hry had to keep emphasizing that she frequented the restaurant. Was

    she trying to show off? Either that or she was just trying very hard to hide something shecked.

    Realizing that Skr had not lifted her utensils, Tobias asked affectionately, ¡°Do you not like the food

    here? We can go elsewhere if you wanna eat something else.¡±

    Skr took a sip of her red wine and answered, ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because I just recovered that I don¡¯t have

    much of an appetite.¡±

    If Skr had not brought it up, Tobias had already almost forgotten how much Skr suffered the night

    before.

    The man ced a hand on Skr¡¯s forehead to make sure that she wasn¡¯t running a fever and was d

    that she wasn¡¯t.

    Just then, a clicking sound of the camera was heard and Hry smiled sheepishly. She had forgotten to

    switch her phone to silent mode again.

    The woman had already snapped more than ten photos of that bottle of red wine.

    Tobias and Skr had both barely eaten. Most of the dishes were gobbled up by Sheldon and Hry

    shortly after they were served and there wasn¡¯t even a single drop of red wine left in the bottle.

    A waiter, who was dressed in a kimono, walked towards their table with a point-of-sale terminal and said,

    ¡°Sir, your total bill would be three hundred and twenty thousand.¡±

    Skr gasped in shock when she heard the amount.

    The day spent with Tobias was indeed eye-opening for her. It seemed like money to him was nothing.

    She immediately regretted not eating much at a meal that cost three hundred over thousand. Why did

    she restrain herself?

    Hry fought to foot the bill, knowing very well that Tobias would never let her pay.

    ¡°Let me get it! Mr. Ford, let this be my treat.¡± Hry pretended to reach for her credit card.

    Sheldon stayed out of the situation, waiting for the woman to admit defeat.

    He could already tell that Tobias was getting impatient and it was obvious that his brother did not

    approve of this new girlfriend of his.

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    Chapter 117

    ¡°OK, go ahead and pay then,¡± Tobias replied nonchntly.

    Hry froze on the spot as that was theplete opposite of what she had expected.

    Having no other choice, she swiped her credit card but was notified that her credit limit had exceeded.

    Hry was so embarrassed and at aplete loss that she wished she could dig a hole and bury herself

    in it right then.

    Feeling annoyed with his girlfriend, Sheldon said, ¡°Stop making a fool out of yourself. Aren¡¯t you aware of

    your limits? There¡¯s no need to be a show-off.¡±

    Sheldon felt that Hry was such an embarrassment. At that instant, he suddenly understood why his

    brother would fall for a woman like Skr.

    Skr was demure and did not speak unnecessarily. With her pleasant-looking face and her low-profile

    personality, she was definitely not the sort who would invite any trouble even though she might not stand

    out.

    In the end, it was still Tobias who foot the bill and Skr followed him into his car after they left the

    restaurant.

    ¡°I need to go back to school today as I have an audition tomorrow.¡± Skr took out her makeup mirror to

    check how she looked and realized that she was still looking very pale.

    Tobias looked at her thoughtfully and said, ¡°You didn¡¯t apany mest night and you¡¯re thinking of

    going back to school? How about me then?¡±

    Skr blinked her eyes, feeling puzzled. ¡°What do you mean how about you?¡±

    There was a hint of fatigue on the woman¡¯s pretty face and in addition to her paleplexion, she

    looked rather pitiful.

    Tobias fixed his gaze on Skr and grabbed her hand, cing it on the bulge in his pants.

    Feeling the intensified pressure at the man¡¯s crotch, a blush spread across Skr¡¯s cheeks immediately

    as she said, ¡°I don¡¯t want to pass my cold virus to you. Let¡¯s just skip tonight.¡±

    ¡°The fastest way to recover from a cold is to pass it to someone.¡± Tobias wasn¡¯t bothered by it at all and

    kissed the woman¡¯s lips after saying that.

    Tobias traced his lips all the way from Skr¡¯s mouth to her neck and was proceeding further

    downwards. The man smelt like white sandalwood and with him just inches away from her, Skr could

    feel his breath on her skin.

    Tobias slowly moved his hands towards Skr¡¯s chest and unzipped her jacket, before sliding his hands

    underneath her shirt.

    Skr shivered as she suddenly felt the man¡¯s cold fingers on her bare skin. Just then, someone

    knocked on the car window and Tobias had no choice but to stop his actions reluctantly.

    He had a grim expression on his face as he took a deep breath, feeling annoyed to be interrupted.

    After Tobias rolled down the car windows, Sheldon poked his head in and was beaming widely.

    ¡°Tobias, what are you guys doing in the car? Why are you not driving off?¡±

    Tobias had a murderous glint in his eyes right then, as if he couldn¡¯t wait to skin Sheldon alive. ¡°Is it any

    of your business? I¡¯m not even blocking your way.¡±

    When Sheldon noticed that Skr was tidying her hair and pulling up the zip on her jacket, his eyes

    widened.

    He couldn¡¯t believe that his brother was someone who would make out with a woman in the car. Even he

    himself had not done that before.

    Sheldon felt awkward at once that he had ruined his brother¡¯s n. No wonder he had such a cold

    expression on his face. If it wasn¡¯t for his interruption, those two people might have already took things a

    step further.

    To ease the tension, Sheldon quickly spoke, ¡°Mom hasn¡¯t been feeling welltely. You should make a trip

    back home. You can¡¯t stay in a stalemate like this forever right?¡±

    A glint of mncholy shed across Tobias¡¯ eyes as he gave a slight nod and replied, ¡°Got it. Take care

    of mom for me. I¡¯ll find a chance to go visit.¡±

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    Sheldon left right after he got his point across so that his brother would have some time left to continue

    whatever he was doing.

    However, Tobias was no longer in the mood for that. He nced at Skr and said, ¡°I¡¯ll let you off today!

    I¡¯ll just send you to school now.¡±

    Skr heaved a sigh of relief instantly but she couldn¡¯t help but feel a little disappointed. A part of her

    wished they had done the deed.

    She had to admit that she was already getting addicted to the pleasure she felt while having sex but

    even more so, she found that she had gotten physically attached to Tobias.

    When they were nearing Skr¡¯s school, Tobias parked his car in an alley two kilometers away from the

    schoolpound.

    It was alreadyte at night and they could clearly hear the sound of cats caterwauling even though they

    were inside the car.

    Those cries were bone-chilling and sent shivers down Skr¡¯s spine.

    ¡°Why are the cats shrieking? Are they hungry?¡± the woman asked.

    ¡°They are moaning,¡± Tobias replied.

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    Chapter 118

    At that instant, Skr really felt like giving herself a p on her face for asking that question.

    Tobias rolled down his car windows and lit a cigarette. Blurred by the bright spark as well as the smoke

    from his cigarette, the man¡¯s expression was unfathomable.

    ¡°Even the cats¡¯ moan sound nicer than yours. You should learn from them.¡± Tobias inhaled deeply before

    slowing blowing out smoke rings.

    Skr always held herself back when they were in the bedroom and did not dare to make any sounds. It

    was immensely torturing for her to suppress herself with Tobias¡¯ vigorous movements inside her.

    Feeling indignant at the feedback given by Tobias, Skr said, ¡°You can look for a woman who moans

    well then, I¡¯m leaving now.¡± She intended to bid farewell to the man right there.

    Tobias grabbed Skr¡¯s hand, refusing to her let leave. With a hoarse voice, he said in an intimate tone,

    ¡°Your curfew is at eleven, so that gives us half an hour more. Even though we won¡¯t have time to get

    down to serious business, shouldn¡¯t you stillfort me a little?¡±

    Skr closed her eyes and gave Tobias a peck on his cheeks.

    ¡°Just that?¡± Tobias was hardly satisfied with what he had gotten.

    Skr then nted a kiss on his lips and could taste a faint mixture of mint and tobo.

    With a subtle smile on his face, Tobias asked coolly, ¡°Baby, do you want to suck on a lollipop?¡±

    Skr pinched her throat and replied, ¡°Not today. I¡¯m having a sore throat.¡±

    The way Tobias called her ¡®Baby¡¯ was so gentle that she almost melted.

    Skr¡¯s reply was so sincere and innocent that Tobias was sure she didn¡¯t understand his implied

    meaning.

    That was the downside of being with someone inexperienced. Most of the time, he had to state explicitly

    what it was that he was referring to as the woman would not be able to catch subtle hints.

    ¡°What if I insist that you suck on a lollipop?¡± Tobias suddenly seemed like a different person with a

    dangerous and icy look in his eyes.

    Skr finally understood what Tobias meant when she saw him unbuckling his belt. It was so quiet inside

    the car that the only sound was thating from the metal buckles on his belt.

    Skr swallowed a lump in her throat and looked extremely flustered.

    ¡°It seems like you can¡¯t wait to taste it?¡± Tobias had a teasing smile on his face while he slid his fingers

    towards the corner of Skr¡¯s lips.

    The woman already had one hand on the door as she said, ¡°Tobias, can you control yourself? I¡¯m still

    feeling unwell.¡±

    Tobias enjoyed watching Skr¡¯s panicky expression as she looked just like a cute little kitten in shock.

    After wearing his belt properly again, he said, ¡°I¡¯ll send you back now. Text me when you get into your

    room.¡±

    Skr was dumbfounded as she stared at Tobias. He was obviously making fun of her.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Does he really enjoy scaring me that much?

    Before Skr went upstairs, Tobias called out to her and said, ¡°I¡¯ll be quite busy for a while. Take good

    care of yourself during this period.¡±

    After that, Skr turned around and left without even saying goodbye to Tobias.

    When she returned to her room, she saw that Avery was back as well and knew that it had to be for the

    audition the next day.

    Skr had assumed that Avery would be more mindful after her previous experience but the second she

    entered the room, Avery stretched out an arm and stopped her. ¡°I heard that you¡¯re getting married? Did

    you just go on a date with your geeky boyfriend?¡±

    When Avery got back to the dormitory, she heard rumors that Skr was hitting it off well with a man

    named Jackson, who looked rather geeky and not too bright.

    As for Tobias, Avery did not believe that Skr wouldst long with that man as he was out of her

    league.

    Skr walked past Avery and put down her bag, before slumping down into the chair,pletely drained

    of energy. Cocking her brows, she smiled mirthlessly and said, ¡°Do you want to put on your best lingerie

    to seduce my fianc¨¦ at midnight just like you didst time? You can have him if you like.¡±

    Color immediately drained from Avery¡¯s face. She couldn¡¯t believe that Skr had exposed her in front of

    their other roommates.

    Pointing her finger at Skr, she warned, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare falsely use me.¡±

    Just then, Skr received a notification on her phone. After ncing at her screen, she noticed that

    Tobias had sent her a message and intended to reply to a whileter.

    With a wry smile on her face, Skr said, ¡°How is that a false usation? I still have the video in my

    phone. If you can¡¯t remember, I can help to jog your memory.¡±

 Chapter 119

    Chapter 119

    Anger stirred within Avery as she red furiously at Skr. ¡°You are just like your mom. Both of you are

    insidious and vicious. It¡¯s obviously a gic issue. With a murderer as a mom, you can¡¯t be any good

    either.¡±

    After Avery disclosed Skr¡¯s background, the other two girls in the dormitory immediately distanced

    themselves from Skr.

    Even Yasmin, who was on good talking terms with Skr, had an unnatural expression on her face.

    However, the fact was that Skr herself was not sure what had happened back then.

    She only knew that since young, she had always beenbelled as a murderer¡¯s daughter by both

    neighbors and ssmates.

    In her final year of high school, when everyone were sharing their dreams, she casually mentioned to her

    desk buddy that her dream was to join the army and somehow, word was spread to their teacher.

    In front of the whole ss, the teacher told her to forget about joining the army as they conducted

    stringent background checks. Also, she should not even think of bing a civil servant as the

    recruitment department would assess the past three generations of her family to make sure their

    backgrounds were proper and it was impossible for a murderer¡¯s daughter to venture into any of those

    areas.

    As such, Skr understood since a young age what it meant by everyone hitting a man who was down

    and that the defenseless would always get targeted.

    However, Skr had never med Miranda for that. Since she could not choose her family background,

    she could only ept it.

    The next day, Daryl arrived at the school for the selection of the female lead for his new film. The

    auditions were held at the school hall.

    Avery was the most popr candidate for the role as shown by the results of an online poll in the

    school¡¯s forum. As such, the moment she appeared in the hall, all the boys offstage started cheering and

    pping.

    Avery had been a goddess in the eyes of all the boys in school since her first day there.

    The assistant director was also strongly rmending Avery to Daryl. ¡°That girl seems like a good

    match for our role. She looks fresh and pretty. Besides, she is also one of the top scorers in her faculty.¡±

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Daryl looked at Avery andmented in dissatisfaction, ¡°Both her nose bridge and cheekbones are too

    high. No doubt she¡¯s quite attractive, but she has a mean look which wouldn¡¯t sit well with audiences.¡±

    Since the assistant director had been bribed by Avery, he had to continue singing her praises. ¡°Director,

    don¡¯t you think she has a very distinguishable look that people would remember? I also heard that her

    acting skills are very polished.¡±

    Daryl couldn¡¯t be bothered to listen to the assistant director spouting nonsense. He had already

    auditioned tens of candidates but couldn¡¯t seem to find anyone he was happy with. It seemed like he

    would be leaving empty-handed.

    If he couldn¡¯t find anyone suitable from the Southwood Film Academy, he was thinking of opening up the

    auditions to people who were not trained in acting.

    The scene which Avery had chosen was that of Nancy, the lead female character, confessing her love to

    Zac after knowing that he was going back to the city soon. The scene was set at the suburbs and Nancy

    wanted to convince Zac to stay.

    Avery slipped into her role very quickly and memorized her lines well. She managed toplete the

    scene in one take while giving a natural and astounding performance.

    At the end of her audition, the assistant director had even given her a standing ovation, pping his

    hands excitedly.

    However, Daryl, who was the one making the decision, remained expressionless as that was not the

    female lead he had in mind.

    Even though Avery was undeniably a beauty, she wasn¡¯t the kind of beauty he was looking for. Besides,

    there were plenty of good-looking actresses in the entertainment industry, so being pretty wasn¡¯t a big

    deal.

    ¡°Our female lead needs to have short hair. Your hair is too long,¡± Darylmented.

    Avery touched her waist-length hair subconsciously and replied, ¡°I can wear a wig right? Director, I¡¯m

    flexible with the arrangement. We can discuss thister.¡±

    Daryl was rather irritated with the girl¡¯s reply.

    While he was scanning the audience casually, a pretty face suddenly caught his attention.

    The director squinted to take a more focused look at the girl, who was looking down at her phone. She

    was indeed extremely pretty and had such a fairplexion that with the spotlights in the hall casting

    down on her, the other girls around her paled so much inparison.

    That was what a ¡°distinguishable look¡± meant to Daryl. It should only take one nce to catch one¡¯s

    attention.

    Avery remained on stage and was full of confidence. Since Daryl was already talking to her about the

    lead female character¡¯s hairstyle, that would mean that he was already close to confirming her as the

    female lead.

    Bing the female lead in Daryl¡¯s film was the perfect gateway to entering the entertainment industry.

 Chapter 120

    Chapter 120

    Daryl turned on the microphone and spoke, ¡°Can the thirteenth girl from the right sitting at the third row

    pleasee on stage?¡±

    There was a suddenmotion among the audience and the students seated at the third row were

    especially excited.

    However, Skr was still concentrated on looking at her phone and did not even look up!

    She remembered she was supposed to be thest one to audition and did not expect that the director

    would specifically ask for her.

    ¡°Hey, I think it¡¯s you,¡± the student next to Skr nudged her and only then did she react. She immediately

    stood up and rushed up on stage.

    After Daryl got to take a closer look at the girl, the frosty look on his face gradually dissipated and was

    reced by a look of anticipation.

    He got Skr to perform the same scene as the one Avery did earlier on and also got her to change into

    a tracksuit which was worn in the seventies.

    Skr got changed quickly and Daryl sized her up with a hand on his chin before saying to the assistant

    director, ¡°Look, she fits in perfectly into that era and that is the distinguishable look we are looking for.

    She feels exactly like the lead female character in the original story, looking so pure, innocent and fair.

    She looks even more alluring when she smiles.¡±

    Skr waspletely immersed into the scene and had put all her emotions in it, especially during the

    ending scene where she took a pause in the midst of her sobs, giving it the perfect finishing touch. The

    way she looked with tears glistening in her eyes was extremely attractive.

    Even until after the scene ended, Skr was still trying to hold back her tears.

    Daryl said, ¡°The lead female character has short hair. Your hair is a little too long.¡±

    That was the samement he had given to Avery.

    ¡°I can cut it shorter. To be honest, I don¡¯t really like to have long hair too as it¡¯s too troublesome to wash it

    during winter,¡± Skr answered.

    The corners of Daryl¡¯s lips curled up into a satisfied smile as he stood up from his seat and walked

    towards Skr. When she did her self-introduction, she had mentioned that she was twenty years old.

    Perhaps due to her young age, on a closer look, Daryl noticed that she had such goodplexion that

    no pores could be spotted on her face even under the bright lights.

    Skr¡¯s features were beautifully sculpted. She had long, softly-angled brows and a nose that was

    slightly upturned at the perfect angle. She looked exquisite and different from the typical pretty faces that

    the industry currently had.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you a chance to shine. Don¡¯t disappoint me.¡±

    Daryl¡¯s words were like a dynamite which sent the hall into chaos. No one had expected that after a half-

    year long search, Daryl would end up choosing Skr, a freshman, as the female lead for his new film.

    Even Skr herself could not believe her luck.

    However, the person who was most affected by that decision was Avery. She was casting a fierce and

    vicious gaze at Skr, who had instantly be the center of attention. Avery was so upset that she

    could feel her heart trembling in anger.

    The news of Skrnding the female lead role in Daryl¡¯s new film had be the hottest topic of

    discussion in school.

    If everything went smoothly, Skr wouldn¡¯t have to wait until graduation to enter the entertainment

    industry.

    When Jeremy heard the news in his dormitory, he punched the metal cab next to him.

    After their breakup, Skr¡¯s life seemed to take a turn for the better and was doing increasingly well. He

    wondered if those years they spent together even meant anything to the girl.

    Skr informed Penelope of the good news at once. She had also wanted to tell Tobias about it but

    dropped the idea after some thought as she assumed that he wouldn¡¯t be too interested in her life.

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    Besides, he seemed to have disappeared into thin air once again.

    Skr was about to go with the film crew to the suburbs in N Province.

    She had just realized that it had been almost a month since shest heard from Tobias and she wasn¡¯t

    even sure if she should inform him of her departure.

    Tobias¡¯ words during their previous meeting were still clear in her mind. He said that they would be

    meeting often in the days toe.

    So that¡¯s what he meant by meeting often. There was not even a single text or call. The man seemed to

    have fallen off the face of Earth.

    During her break, Skr went back to International Garden to retrieve her belongings. When Laura saw

    her, she looked as though an unwee guest had turned up.

    However, she only had that expression for a split second before an unfathomable smile appeared on her

    face.

    ¡°Is Mr. Ford around?¡± Skr asked while standing at the door.

    ¡°Laura, who¡¯s that?¡± Before Laura answered, Skr heard a gentle and sweet voiceing from inside

    the vi.

    Secondster, a youngdy appeared behind Laura and was looking at Skr with a puzzled look in her

    pretty eyes.

    Skr tried to suppress the bitterness which was creating chaos in her heart and said, ¡°Sorry, I think I

    knocked on the wrong door.¡±

 Chapter 121

    Chapter 121

    Skr felt like she was the most pathetic person in the entire world, still hoping for something she could

    never have.

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    Although she clearly knew that Tobias might leave her any time, she felt as though her heart had been

    gouged by a knife every time she saw him with another woman.

    Despite that, she still came to bid Tobias goodbye, which wasughable since he was most probably

    having a good time with that woman upstairs and avoiding her.

    She was going to meet Penelope at the dessert shop in their school. It had been a long time since they

    last met. Upon seeing her, Penelope gave her a tight hug.

    ¡°Why have you lost so much weight? Are you on a diet for the role you are ying?¡± Penelope said as

    she looked at Skr with sympathy. Thetter¡¯s limbs were so thin that she seemed like she could be

    blown away by a gust of wind.

    Skr took a mouthful of mango pomelo sago and let out a sigh. ¡°The director told me to put on some

    weight before filming. But I can¡¯t gain any no matter how much I eat.¡±

    Hearing that, Penelope pinched her bby tummy. This is so unfair. If only I can give five kilograms of my

    body fat to Skr.

    Noticing that Skr was in a daze, Penelope asked, ¡°Are you still thinking about Jeremy? I told you that

    he¡¯s not good for you. That guy is unreliable.¡±

    In truth, it had been a long time since Jeremyst crossed Skr¡¯s mind. She forced a smile and said, ¡°I

    have already let it go. At least I gave my all when I was with him. Although the ending wasn¡¯t what I

    expected, I am d that I backed out before it¡¯s toote.¡±

    Skr felt like she was losing her mind. She was talking about Jeremy, but her head was filled with

    thoughts of Tobias. It seemed absurd that she was indignant about getting dumped when she did not

    even realize that Tobias had such an important ce in her heart.

    Suddenly, she recalled the words Jeremy had told her before¡ªthat she would regret being with such a

    complicated person.

    Meanwhile, Penelope stared at Skr suspiciously. It was obvious that thetter was not in good

    condition. In fact, she looked like she was lovesick. When Penelope was talking to her, her mind seemed

    to be elsewhere.

    ¡°When you told me you wanted to get married to Jeremy, I was so pissed off. Why would a beautifuldy

    like you get married so soon and be at the beck and call of his family? If you marry him, he will surely clip

    your wings when you be famous one day.¡±

    Unwilling to talk about that person, Skr turned her attention to a couple outside the window. When she

    saw the guy crouching on the floor to help his girlfriend tie her shoce, she couldn¡¯t help but feel

    envious. She had never harbored high expectations in her rtionships.

    All she wanted was for the other party to reciprocate her sincerity toward him and treat her well.

    She asked Penelope, ¡°Let¡¯s say, a man asked you to be his girlfriend and you refused, but both of you

    got along very well and you acquiesced to the rtionship. Then, for some unknown reason, this man

    stopped contacting you. What would you do if you were in this situation?¡±

    Penelope looked at Skr doubtfully as her instincts told her that there was something fishy going on.

    ¡°Skr, please don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re talking about yourself.¡±

    Skr nodded in dismay. ¡°I guess you could say so.¡±

    If it weren¡¯t for her years of friendship with Penelope, she would not even dare to tell thetter her secret.

    She was just d that there was someone for her to talk to.

    Abruptly, Skr mmed the table in rage. ¡°F*ck, tell me who he is! I will hunt him down if it¡¯s thest I

    do. How dare he bully you! Did you sleep with him?¡±

 Chapter 122

    Chapter 122

    Hearing Penelope¡¯s brazen words, her face turned red. ¡°Yes, but he never gave me any promises. He

    has a fianc¨¦e too. I am so confused right now. Should I go talk to him?¡± she said calmly.

    Penelope was rendered speechless. Although Skr was her best friend, she said bluntly, ¡°Skr, how

    could you do this? Why are you messing with a man who has a fianc¨¦e? You are not this kind of person.

    Is he loaded?¡±

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Even though Skr had expected Penelope to react this way, she still felt ashamed of herself when her

    friend said those words to her face.

    After all, Tanya and Tobias¡¯ wedding was merely postponed, not canceled. In fact, Skr also heard that

    Tanya was staying with the Ford family.

    She pursed her lips as she tried to calm herself. If this situation continued on, she would definitely break

    down soon.

    ¡°He is quite rich, but that has never been my concern. It¡¯s just that I found myself starting to feel an

    attachment to him.¡±

    Penelope believed what she said. In her opinion, Skr was not a materialistic woman. Hence, the only

    possible exnation was that she was fooled by that man.

    Penelope remarked indignantly, ¡°You need to have a clean break with that guy. Considering that he is still

    messing around when he has a fianc¨¦e, he is no doubt an unscrupulous person. Besides, he has not

    contacted you in such a long time. It means that he doesn¡¯t even care about you. Skr, just forget about

    this vile man! If you want, I can even teach him a lesson on your behalf.¡±

    Penelope had always been a daring person and was practically fearless. At times, Skr really envied

    her strong character, unlike herself who was always submissive.

    Penelope clenched her teeth. ¡°Skr, keep your head clear and focus on your career. When you¡¯re

    famous, you can get any man you want. It¡¯s only degrading to be with a jerk like him.¡±

    Suddenly, Skr¡¯s phone vibrated on the table. When she saw the caller ID, her face turned pale as her

    eyelids trembled.

    With her sharp eyes, Penelope noticed that the phone screen disyed the name ¡°Devil.¡± Upon seeing

    the name, she was certain that it was that man who was calling. Judging from Skr¡¯s hesitant

    expression, it was obvious that she wanted to answer the phone.

    She had lost contact with Tobias for a month. Hence, his sudden appearance took Skr by surprise.

    Naturally, she had the strong urge to ask him what he had been up to, but what right did she have to do

    that?

    While she hesitated with the phone in her hand, Penelope snatched it over.

    Unfortunately, Skr failed to stop Penelope in time, and thetter smashed the green button to connect

    the call. The next instant, she bellowed into the phone, ¡°Why are you calling Skr? I am warning you.

    Do not disturb her anymore! How dare you mess around with her when you¡¯re marrying another woman

    soon? Skr is a simple-minded girl. That¡¯s why she was deceived by you, scumbag!¡±

    Penelope attacked him ruthlessly like a machine gun. Her tone was harsh and unforgiving.

    When she had finally finishedshing out at him, she pursed her lips and swallowed the lump in her

    throat.

    However, the other side of the line waspletely quiet. Just when Penelope thought there was an

    issue with the signal, a deep voice came from the phone. She couldn¡¯t help but shudder at the menacing

    voice.

    He answered indifferently in a husky voice, ¡°Are you done? I need to talk to Skr.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s not here. She has a date with her boyfriend. Don¡¯t disturb her again,¡± Penelope warned sternly

    before she hung up the call.

 Chapter 123

    Chapter 123

    Skr was awed by Penelope¡¯s guts as she was pretty sure that Tobias had never been scolded this

    badly before.

    She¡¯s good at making stuff up. What¡¯s with the new boyfriend?

    Penelope then returned the phone to her andughed while she said, ¡°If he ever harasses you again,

    just let me know. I will help you.¡±

    Skr took another mouthful of the mango pomelo sago as she lifted her head curiously. ¡°What did he

    say? I could only hear you rambling.¡±

    ¡°Nothing much. He sounded very impatient,¡± Penelope said after giving it some thought.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr¡¯s heart started pounding. Deep down, she was starting to regret letting Penelope answer the call.

    What had been done could not be undone. Despite that, she couldn¡¯t help but wonder why Tobias looked

    for her again. Could it be that he already knew she was back in International Garden?

    Not long after, Skr¡¯s phone rang again. Unsurprisingly, it was another call from Tobias.

    Instantly, Penelope became worked up as she said furiously, ¡°How dare he call again? Skr, let me

    answer the call.¡±

    However, Skr stopped her from grabbing the phone as she rejected the call. ¡°There¡¯s no need to

    answer it. Just let it be. We were never meant to be together anyway. I only have myself to me since I

    took this rtionship seriously, even though he was clearly toying with me. I was such a buffoon.¡±

    Penelope felt sorry for Skr. ¡°You had just broken up with Jeremy not long ago, and herees

    another jerk who seems even worse than him. Do you want to get a reading from a fortune-teller? To find

    out the reason for your difficult love life.¡±

    Skr shook her head. As a pessimist, she was reluctant to go for fortune telling because she was afraid

    that she would end up getting a bad reading.

    It was not just her rtionships that were difficult but every other aspect of her life too.

    It was only recently that she started having better luck. She was finally given an opportunity by Daryl

    Williams and got invited to join his cast. This was her chance to rise to fame, so she swore to herself that

    she would do her best to make a name for herself.

    Penelope drank up a whole ss of coconut water. But it was not enough to quench her thirst. She was

    practically screaming down the phone at Tobias.

    In fact, she felt worse seeing Skr heartbroken than when she herself broke up.

    Penelope and Skr had been neighbors previously, staying in the same residential area.

    At that time, the others were not willing to hang out with Skr because her mother was a murderer, and

    some of the kids even threw stones at her. For that reason, Skr fought with the other kids almost

    every single day. Eventually, everyone kept a distance from her.

    The only person who did not shun her was Penelope. Growing up together, both of them were so close

    that they even shared the same pair of pants.

    Right then, Penelope and Skr decided that it was time to leave as they had to do some shopping at

    the mall. Skr was going to film in the suburbs, but without an assistant or a manager, she did not even

    know what to prepare.

    Before leaving the dessert shop, Penelope eximed all of a sudden, ¡°Look, Skr! Isn¡¯t that man good-

    looking?¡±

    As Skr nced in the direction of Penelope¡¯s line of sight, she saw Tobias in a tapered ck suit that

    showed off his well-built and towering figure. The yellow lighting in the dessert shop and the neon lights

    outside illuminated his face and entuated his features, making him look stunning.

    That was quite typical of Tobias. Regardless of whether his identity was exposed or not, he would

    overshadow everything around him in an instant and draw all the attention to himself.

    The sudden appearance of Tobias made Skr suspect that he had installed a tracking device on her.

    This is not fair at all. Not only can he find me as he pleases, but he also disappears for as long as he

    wants and then reappears out of the blue.

 Chapter 124

    Chapter 124

    Penelope gaped at Tobias in amazement as he took a seat beside Skr.

    Dumbfounded, she stared at him with her brows furrowed and uttered, ¡°Are you trying to hit on her?¡±

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    From her voice, Tobias could tell that she was the one who gave him an earful on the phone just

    now. What a brazen youngdy.

    ¡°We¡¯re very familiar with each other, so there¡¯s no need for that.¡±

    Skr and Tobias were seated so close together that the aroma of his signature white sandalwood

    cologne was all that permeated her nostrils, and she could even hear his breathing. Their proximity made

    her so nervous that sweat trickled down her palms.

    The admiration in Penelope¡¯s gaze vanished when she recognized Tobias¡¯s voice. Her attitude toward

    him took a drastic change as she began to chide him, ¡°The person who called Skr earlier on was you,

    right? No wonder she was fooled by you. Look at you sauntering around toying with women¡¯s feelings by

    leveraging your good looks. Despicable.¡±

    Skr hurriedly interrupted her, ¡°Penelope, please stop talking. Let¡¯s leave.¡±

    She was fearful that Penelope¡¯s brashness would infuriate Tobias.

    Unperturbed by her sudden lecture, Tobias remained expressionless as he spoke, ¡°Please make yourself

    clear. How am I toying with women¡¯s feelings?¡±

    Penelope scoffed, ¡°You still won¡¯t admit it? Skr¡¯s only twenty, and yet you were so eager to take

    advantage of her. You must be several years older than her. Please, do yourself a favor and avoid

    harassing the young maidens of our country. Shame on you for robbing the cradle.¡±

    Tobias pressed his lips into a thin line. Beingbeled as someone who robbed the cradle irked him. It

    was a grave insult to his character.

    He nced at Skr and asked calmly, ¡°Is that so? Tell me, how exactly did I take advantage of you?¡±

    Skr did not miss the hint of menace in his tone. In order to avoid aggravating the situation, she hastily

    said, ¡°This is not the time to talk about that. I¡¯m going shopping with Penelope. You can stay here.¡±

    With that, she hurriedly stood up to escape. However, Tobias reached out to grasp her wrist. ¡°I just

    arrived, and you¡¯re already leaving. In a rush to meet your boyfriend?¡±

    At the side, Penelope was watching the exchange unfold. She noticed that the way he looked at Skr

    was rather impassive. There was no inkling of affection in his gaze.

    She felt indignant for Skr and wondered what it was that she saw in him.

    Skr closed her eyes and took a deep breath. ¡°I¡¯ll go with you. There¡¯re some things that I want to

    rify.¡±

    After Tobias released his firm grip on her wrist, she shook her hand to relieve the pressure he caused.

    Then she turned to Penelope and mumbled, ¡°You should go home. I¡¯lle to visit soon, alright?¡±

    Penelope was reluctant to leave Skr alone, so she attempted to persuade her, ¡°Skr, don¡¯t leave

    with him all by yourself. Did you not see the news? There are people out there who turn to murder after

    their rtionships turn awry. What if you leave and never return?¡±

    Tobias raised an eyebrow. ¡°What a wild imagination you have. If you¡¯re so worried about her, why don¡¯t

    youe along? It won¡¯t be that much moreborious to kill another person.¡±

    His intimidating remark made Penelope shudder. How did Skr even meet this person? He¡¯s merciless.

    Determined not going to desert Skr and leave her all alone with him, she stood in front of Skr like a

    mother hen protecting its offspring and gave Tobias a stern warning, ¡°You can¡¯t take Skr away. If you

    do, I¡¯ll call the cops and tell them that you kidnapped her.¡±

    Upon seeing this, Skr hurriedly intervened. ¡°Penelope, calm down. Let¡¯s not cause a ruckus here.

    Don¡¯t worry. He won¡¯t be doing anything bad to me. I¡¯ll go with him by myself, okay? I have some things I

    have to rify by today.¡±

 Chapter 125

    Chapter 125

    Penelope was still worried that she was walking straight into the lion¡¯s den. What¡¯s there to discuss with a

    guy like him? Unless she¡¯s giving him a second chance? That¡¯s too foolish of her! Men like him are

    masters of deceit. Skr¡¯s still innocent, and there¡¯s no telling what would happen to her if she blindly fell

    for his sweet nothings. Besides, he seems like an opulent elite. She definitely needs to be wary of this

    man.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Hence, Penelope stood at the door, refusing to budge even an inch. She was adamant about not letting

    the two leave together.

    Tobias looked at Skr¡¯s friend as though she was a fool. Gosh. Where is this lunatic from? She¡¯s too

    difficult to deal with.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We¡¯ll leave after our conversation. I¡¯ll give you a call once I¡¯m back in the hostel. Is that

    okay?¡± Skr promised in an attempt to coax Penelope.

    Realizing that she was being put in a tight spot, Penelope began to waver. Finally, she let go of Skr¡¯s

    hand and reminded her, ¡°Be careful! Make sure to go to ces full of people. If there¡¯s anything wrong,

    call the cops immediately!¡±

    While speaking, she sneakily slipped the anti-rape device she brought along into Skr¡¯s bag.

    Skr nodded. Penelope watches way too many thriller movies. All that¡¯s in her mind is rted to crime.

    If Tobias Ford really wanted to murder me, he wouldn¡¯t care less about the witnesses.

    She then left with Tobias. It had been a month since theyst saw each other. As she thought about how

    distant they grew, she did not even hear the car behind her honk. In a swift movement, Tobias pulled her

    into his arms to let the white sedan behind them through.

    ¡°Could you watch where you¡¯re going? You¡¯re bound to get into an ident if you keep acting like this.¡±

    He was visibly annoyed when he scolded her. Just the thought of her crossing the road alone worried

    him.

    Since he did not drive, Skr followed closely behind him as they walked. When they arrived at the

    hotel¡¯s entrance, Skr bulged her eyes at him. ¡°Are you trying to get me into bed again? We¡¯ve just

    met. How wicked of you.¡±

    Tobias stared at her nkly. ¡°Is there a problem?¡±

    ¡°What do you take me for? Someone at your beck and call to fulfill your sexual desires? Then after

    you¡¯ve had your way with me, you¡¯ll just throw me aside as usual. Well, I guess the purpose of my

    existence is to be trampled on by you.¡± Her words were dripping with sarcasm as she vented her

    frustration at him with a pale face.

    Tobias was confounded. Why is she throwing a tantrum? I¡¯ve just returned from Rome, and the first thing

    I did uponnding was to meet her. Didn¡¯t we get along well just before I left?

    But now she¡¯s looking at me like I¡¯m an eyesore and rejecting my advances.

    ¡°If you really think that way, what can I do? Just don¡¯t throw a fit.¡±

    All of a sudden, he grabbed Skr¡¯s hand. As he dragged her into the hotel, a searing pain coursed

    through her body.

    When they reached the lobby, the manager dutifully handed the room card to Tobias with both hands. He

    nced at the pair inquisitively. Why does thisdy look so unwilling? Doesn¡¯t she know how lucky she

    is? So many other women would kill to climb into bed with him.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to call the cops if you keep doing this,¡± Skr muttered in a feeble attempt to threaten Tobias.

    She was well aware that nobody had the ability to restrict him and that her remark barely made a

    difference to him.

    Upon arriving at the room, Tobias flung her hand away. ¡°Come on in. I thought you had something to say

    to me.¡±

    Suppressing her anger, Skr obediently followed him into the room. The first thing that caught her

    attention was the whiff of incense that filled the room. The room was dim, making it difficult for her to

    make out Tobias¡¯ expression.

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    Skr remained frozen in her spot while Tobias headed straight for the bed. He sat down and removed

    his suit jacket while staring at his phone.

    ¡°Why¡¯re you losing your temper at me? I don¡¯t recall offending you.¡± Tobias was the first to break the

    silence.

    Skr felt an indescribable mncholy. ¡°I have to make this clear today. What sort of rtionship do we

    have?¡± questioned Skr.

    The lines between both of them were far too blurred. Skr had once fantasized about being in a

    rtionship with Tobias, yet he disappointed her repeatedly. He gave her false hopes again and again,

    only to let reality break her heart every single time, plunging her into despair.

    She could not deny the fact that he was indifferent toward her. It was apparent that he barely made an

    effort to close the gap between them.

    Above all, Tobias only needed her body to satisfy him in bed. Her heart ached further at the thought of

    him allowing some other woman to reside in the International Garden.

    Tears began to well up in her eyes.

    Looking at her pitiful and teary eyes, Tobias began to adopt a more gentle attitude. ¡°What sort of

    rtionship do you think we have? Didn¡¯t I say this before? You¡¯re my girlfriend. Hasn¡¯t that been made

    clear enough? Or do you feel that I haven¡¯t been worthy enough as a boyfriend?¡±

    Skr sniffled as she struggled to stifle her tears. If she shed tears in front of Tobias, he would probably

    make a snide remark and criticize her for crying so easily.

    She kept her gaze on the floor as shemented, ¡°Do couples behave this way? You only look for me

    when you need me. When you don¡¯t, you seem to disappear from the face of the earth without a trace. I

    hardly receive any messages from you.¡±

    Tobias¡¯s brows furrowed. The fatigue was evident in his visage. ¡°Are you ming me for not contacting

    you? Well, I¡¯m an extremely busy person. I won¡¯t always have the time to take care of you. Skr, if you

    want to be in a rtionship with me, you have to keep up with my pace. I won¡¯t be like your ex-

    boyfriends. My whole life can¡¯t revolve around you, and I can¡¯t possibly ask about your wellbeing through

    texts all the time. You¡¯re not a teenager anymore, so you shouldn¡¯t be maintaining your rtionship with

    childish ways.¡±

    With the nonchnce in his tone, it was obvious that he didn¡¯t see any problem with his attitude.

    Skr gradually understood that being in a rtionship with a sessful man like him was no easy

    feat. It¡¯s like giving a porcupine a hug. If I want to get close to him, I have to brace myself for injuries.

    ¡°I can see why you have no time for me. With the time spent on other women, how would you have the

    capacity to deal with me? I recently went to International Garden and saw yourtest conquest there,¡±

    hissed Skr, who was oblivious to the notes of jealousy in her tone.

    Tobias knitted his brows. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re babbling about. In the first ce, I bought that vi for

    you. Besides, I¡¯ve been in Rome the past month and only just returned,¡± he rasped.

    Skr stiffened at this revtion. ¡°But I really saw a woman staying in there.¡±

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Tobias looked up to scrutinize her. When their eyes met, he realized that she was indeed confused. ¡°I¡¯m

    not sure who that was either. So¡­ Is that jealousy I¡¯m sensing?¡±

    ¡°I am jealous! I¡¯ve had enough of this undefined rtionship. Tobias Ford, since you¡¯re not able to give

    me the slightest sense of security, there¡¯s no need for me to give a d*mn about you either. I¡¯d rather live a

    happy single life than get tormented by you.¡±

    Those words did not sound foreign to Tobias. Sense of security? What¡¯s that? He was clueless as well.

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    Tobias stood behind Skr. Suddenly, his low and deep voice sounded above her head. ¡°A sense of

    security doesn¡¯t have toe from others. Remember, you can¡¯t rely on anyone in the world except

    yourself. Once you¡¯re strong enough, you¡¯ll feel secure.¡±

    Skr¡¯s body tensed up. The closer Tobias was to her, the more anxious she became.

    She found herself unable to rebuke his argument while she was overwhelmed by that familiar scent of

    his.

    The light and refreshing white sandalwood cologne he had on masked the smell of tobo and ignited

    her desire.

    Tobias circled his arms around her waist firmly and inhaled the faint scent of her shampoo. ¡°Let¡¯s make a

    trip back. I want to see who¡¯s staying there so you can stop imagining things and cease the usations

    about my nonexistent mistress.¡±

    With that, the force around her waist vanished. Skr shot him a suspicious look. Does he really not

    know? Or is he pretending not to know?

    As they made their way to International Garden, nervousness began to hit Skr. She was apprehensive

    about approaching the property and confronting the woman who resided in it.

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    A million thoughts crossed her mind. Maybe she¡¯s an ex-lover of Tobias? Perhaps International Garden

    was where she used to live?

    When they arrived at International Garden, Laura saw Tobias and Skr return at the same time.

    She respectfully waited at the entrance to assist them with changing their footwear, but the pair couldn¡¯t

    be bothered about it. Skr was more concerned with rifying the issue as soon as possible so that

    she could return to school without dy. Besides, she had to prepare for her trip to N Province.

    She even wondered if Daryl had forgotten about her.

    ¡°Tobias, how did you know I¡¯m back? I called you several times, but there was no answer. Then I heard

    that you were in Rome for business.¡±

    A sweet female voice echoed in the house. When Zoey Stewart saw Tobias with a woman in tow, the

    smile on her face evaporated.

    Laura had warned her that Tobias brought a woman home previously, but she was unconvinced.

    Skr blinked her eyes in shock. She knew that Tobias had a younger brother, but she didn¡¯t expect him

    to have a sister as well. Unless she¡¯s an illegitimate child? I guess you¡¯d never know what kind of secrets

    the affluent families are hiding.

    But this woman bore no resemnces to Tobias.

    When Tobias saw Zoey, there was barely any change in his expression. ¡°Why are you staying here? You

    didn¡¯t even inform me. When did you return?¡±

    Zoey¡¯s eyes never left the woman beside Tobias. Her piercing gaze told Skr that she was unwee.

    ¡°This has always been my abode! I¡¯m just returning home. What¡¯s wrong with that?¡± She shot Tobias a

    pitiful look.

    Fearful that Skr may develop the wrong idea, he introduced Zoey to her. ¡°This is Zoey Steward, my

    friend¡¯s younger sister.¡±

    Skr gave Zoey a light nod and a polite smile. She decided to turn a blind eye to thetter¡¯s unfriendly

    demeanor. I can¡¯t possibly ask her why she¡¯s ring at me on our first meeting¡­

    Upon hearing the words ¡°friend¡¯s younger sister,¡± Zoey lowered her head dejectedly. Then, she

    murmured, ¡°And this is? I¡¯ve never seen her before, and she doesn¡¯t look like Tanya.¡±

    Skr remained silent and waited for Tobias to introduce her.

    She was unclear on what their rtionship was. Referring to them as lovers would be an overstatement.

    ¡°This is my girlfriend, Skr.¡± His tone was low and domineering, lifting Skr¡¯s spirits.

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    Zoey¡¯s beautiful eyes narrowed ever so slightly. She felt as though her heart was crushed into pieces.

    That was the first time in the years she had known Tobias where he introduced a woman as his girlfriend.

    He had never even publicly acknowledged his rtionship with Tanya and had always remained aloof

    about it.

    When Tanya Hanson bullied her, Tobias did his best to defend her and outrightly sided with her.

    The memory of Tanya fuming was still fresh in Zoey¡¯s mind.

    Laura walked over to serve them drinks. She first poured some for Tobias, then Zoey. When she.

    reached Skr, she asked, ¡°Is this alright for you?¡±

    Skr frowned. ¡°Yes, this is fine.¡±

    Zoey took a seat on the couch as sorrow began to engulf her. Disappointment was an emotion she was

    familiar with when it came to Tobias.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    When she first heard of Tobias¡¯s engagement, she was broken-hearted.

    She was unable to ept the fact that the man she had pined for all these years was going to marry

    someone else. Despite the fact that their rtionship remained stagnant for years because Tobias only

    regarded her as a sister, she still hoped for more.

    No matter how hard she tried to fight for his love, nothing could alter the reality. All she could do was

    head to Italy to heal her wounds. When she caught wind that his engagement was called off, she was

    over the moon and immediately bought tickets to return home.

    All these years, she had been unwilling to give up. To her, as long as she put in the effort, sparks were

    bound to fly between the two of them. She even made a wild guess that the abrupt canction of the

    engagement was because of her.

    s, she was proven wrong. Tobias had abandoned his fianc¨¦e for a new conquest.

    ¡°Tobias, I want to stay here for a period of time. I¡¯m not going home! You won¡¯t mind, right?¡± Zoey asked.

    Tobias frowned slightly and replied, ¡°Everywhere else is fine. Why are you adamant about staying here?¡±

    Putting on an innocent and piteous look, she stared at Tobias with teary eyes and responded, ¡°I¡¯m used

    to staying here. I don¡¯t want to move. Or are you nning to stay here with your girlfriend?¡±

    Skr then chimed in with a bright smile on her face. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t stay here often. But I don¡¯t

    have the right to make the decision.¡±

    Zoey studied her carefully from top to toe.

    Her delicate features and wless face entuated her beauty. Every smile she shed was enchanting

    and alluring. Even Zoey was impressed by her exceptional looks.

    Then she took a peek at Tobias, whose face was still expressionless.

    ¡°Do what you want. I¡¯ll leave this ce to you. Anyway, I¡¯m going to send Skr somewhere near her

    school.¡± Fishing out his keys from his pocket, he tossed them to Zoey.

    As she reached out to receive the keys, she felt dismayed. After shooting Skr a death stare, she

    red at their intertwined hands. Is she doing this on purpose to spite me?

    Upon leaving International Garden, Skr promptly let go of Tobias¡¯s hand.

    He raised his hand and smirked. ¡°How realistic of you. You were holding onto my hand so tightly.¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­ Sister? Thankfully, I¡¯ve been staying in school. I didn¡¯t know I was staying in someone else¡¯s

    house.¡±

    Tobias lifted an eyebrow. He disliked having to exin himself, but something about Skr¡¯s manner told

    him that she was going to get the wrong idea if he did not rify the matter.

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    ¡°Zoey is my friend¡¯s younger sister. I¡¯ve been taking care of her since her brother passed on a few years

    back. We were rather close, so he requested for me to look after her. Is this exnation clear enough for

    you?¡±

    That sounded like an old trick in the book to Skr. However, she knew she would seem petty if she

    continued to dwell on this matter, so she forced out a smile. ¡°I think she likes you. Her gaze seemed

    suspicious,¡±mented Skr.

    She was a Scorpio, and they were known to possess strong intuitions on top of being meticulous.

    Tobias replied coldly, ¡°Look, kid. There are many women out there who are infatuated with me. Does that

    mean I have to be their lover? I can¡¯t dictate how others feel. All I can do is control my own

    feelings.¡±

    Being referred to as a kid irked Skr. How is it possible that no woman can resist his charms? Being in

    a rtionship with him means that I¡¯m bound to torment myself over the possibility of him cheating.

    Moreover, he¡¯s the kind of guy who won¡¯t even bother to update you on his whereabouts or send you

    sweet nothings every minute.

    Skr didn¡¯t bother probing further. The only thing she could do was to deal with the problem when it

    actually urred.

    Instead of returning to the hotel with Skr, Tobias hailed a cab to send her back to school.

    At the entrance of the school, Skr bid him farewell. ¡°Don¡¯t bother sending me. It¡¯s a long journey from

    here.¡±

    He ced his hand on her shoulder and kissed her cheek. ¡°I¡¯ll apany you. What if you run into a

    lusting young man and he drags you into the bushes?¡±

    That sent a chill down her spine as she knew that he was not spouting nonsense.

    When she first entered the school, she had heard of an incident where a senior who was jogging was

    dragged into the bushes. She was then raped and murdered. Unfortunately, the culprit got away scot-

    free and remained atrge. Whenever the incident came up in conversations, students would be

    consumed by fear.

    ¡°You¡¯ve heard of that incident too? I didn¡¯t expect that,¡± Skr teased.

    He frowned slightly and replied, ¡°The victim was my brother¡¯s ex-girlfriend. We offered a handsome sum

    to catch the killer but to no avail. So it¡¯d be better for you to be wary. I¡¯ve installed a GPS system in your

    phone as well.¡±

    She was taken aback. I didn¡¯t expect Sheldon to have such a past. I guess he isn¡¯t that sentimental after

    all. His girlfriend has just passed on and he¡¯s already gotten himself a new one.

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    Tobias kept Skrpany until they reached her doorstep. All of a sudden, a dark figure jumped out

    and startled Skr. Her instinctive reaction was to dive into Tobias¡¯s arms, to which he responded by

    holding her firmly.

    When she realized it was Jackson, she heaved a sigh of relief. He hadn¡¯t shown up in a while, but his

    incessant text messages were enough to irritate Skr.

    ¡°No wonder you called off the wedding. It¡¯s true that you have someone else.¡± Hoping to reconcile with

    Skr, Jackson had been waiting since five o¡¯clock with arge bouquet of fresh flowers in his hands.

    However, never did he expect to witness her holding hands with another man who even gave her a peck.

    Tobias resisted the urge to scoff at the fool who held a bouquet of flowers in his hands. That¡¯s sost

    century. I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s still out here giving girls roses.

    Skr responded, ¡°I never nned to marry you. It has always been your wishful thinking. We¡¯ve already

    returned your family the money. What more do you want?¡±

    Although her tone was gentle, she was actually doing her best to suppress her fury. She could hardly

    contain the urge to expose Jackson and his misdeeds.

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    Jackson had it all nned out, right down to their children¡¯s names. Hence, he was unable to fathom the

    reason why Skr would do him injustice, considering his immense love for her.

    I have been very forgiving toward her. I¡¯ve even epted the fact that she had a boyfriend previously,

    but now there¡¯s another man? Is she that lonely?

    As Tobias looked on silently, he decided to leave it to Skr to settle her conflicts with this fool who

    seemed to be riled up.

    Infuriated, Jackson began to chastise Skr, ¡°I¡¯ve apologized so many times. Yet, not only did you ignore

    my texts, but you also rejected my calls. Skr, who gave you the right to treat me like that? Just

    because you know I¡¯m fond of you, you bully me like this?¡±

    His words reminded Tobias of Skr. Young people these days¡­ Why are they so obsessed with replies

    to text messages?

    Skr was incensed to hear his usations. Fury shed in her eyes as she snapped, ¡°You¡¯re too

    shameless. How dare you send me nudes? Does it excite you to send explicit photographs to me every

    night?¡±

    Tobias¡¯s expression darkened upon hearing that.

    Jackson, on the other hand, saw nothing wrong with that. ¡°I just wanted to show you my body. Skr, I¡¯m

    really muscr all over. If you marry me, not only will I give you happiness, but I can also satisfy you in

    bed.¡±

    The blood drained from her face. Jackson must be insane to have said all that.

    She pursed her lips and clenched her teeth. ¡°You are a goddamn pervert!¡±

    The more she thought about those photographs, the more revolted she felt.

    What was originally a deadpan expression on Tobias¡¯ face morphed into a frightening look. He reached

    out and grabbed Jackson¡¯s cor. With an icy-cold voice, he yelled, ¡°Who gave you the guts to do such a

    despicable thing? It¡¯s impossible between you and Skr. Just continue dreaming.¡±

    Jackson¡¯s breathing became constricted. ¡°You¡¯re going to pay for stealing my woman. Skr¡¯s mine.¡± He

    coughed as he attempted to speak.

    Skr had never imagined that there would be men fighting over her. After all, it never crossed her mind

    that she was attractive. Besides, she was sure that people were bound to steer clear of her once they

    knew about her background.

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    Without any mercy, Tobias aimed for Jackson¡¯s groin and gave it a mighty kick. Jackson¡¯s face

    immediately turned ghastly pale, and he let out a loud howl while clutching onto his crotch.

    The thought of Skr looking at those pictures infuriated Tobias. He felt as though she had been taken

    advantage of.

    As he raised his hand to deal Jackson another heavy blow, Skr rushed forward to shield Jackson.

    ¡°Stop hitting him. I don¡¯t think he would be able to endure it,¡± uttered Skr. Deep down, she began to

    regret letting Tobias send her back.

    Should anything bad happen to Jackson, she would not be able to bear the consequences.

    However, Tobias disregarded her words. With a stony look on his face, he sneered, ¡°Move aside. Why?

    Are you feeling sorry for him?¡±

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    Chapter 131

    Skr whispered to him, ¡°That¡¯s enough now. He¡¯s actually quite pitiful, you know? He was always

    bullied back in school. He didn¡¯t really do anything wrong other than being a tad stubborn. He¡¯ll realize

    his mistake soon enough.¡±

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    Tobias retorted coldly, ¡°Are you saying that I¡¯m the one at fault? So I should just let my woman be

    subjected to such revolting photos in the middle of the night?¡±

    Skr grumbled silently. Why is he getting so worked up over this? It¡¯s not like I looked at them on

    purpose.

    After receiving that kick, Jackson seemed like he was on the verge of death. Until now, the agonizing

    pain in his groin had not diminished one bit.

    He was no longer raring for a fight. Instead, he began to y the victim to garner sympathy. ¡°I don¡¯t know

    what I did wrong. Am I wrong to like you, Skr? All I want is to be there for you.¡±

    He staggered onto his feet and picked up the stic bag which had been thrown to the ground just now,

    then took out arge metal box from it.

    After that, he opened the metal box, revealing the hand-folded paper cranes and stars inside it, which

    were the results of his time and effort. There was also a handmade wool bag that he nned to give to

    Skr for her birthday.

    Jackson looked immensely aggrieved when he said, ¡°I made these for you, Skr. Everything I want to

    say to you is written in them.¡±

    Skr lowered her gaze to the contents of the box. He must¡¯ve poured a lot of heart into folding these.

    There¡¯re so many of them.

    At that thought, her heart softened. Jackson was right. He¡¯s not the one at fault. After all, he was dragged

    into this from the start.

    Tobias stuffed his right hand into his pocket, his handsome face frosting over as the corners of his mouth

    tightened. Then, he spoke in a voice that matched the unfeeling look on his face, ¡°Wasting your time on

    meaningless things. Serves you right for ending up this way.¡±

    Jackson cried as he aired his grievances, choking on his own tears and sobbing harder when Skr

    looked at him.

    Skr took out a pack of tissues from her bag, but as soon as she extended it toward Jackson, Tobias¡¯

    ominous voice scared her into withdrawing her hand. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare. Put your hand down.¡±

    Biting her lip, she nced at him before persuading him nicely, ¡°Just let him go. He¡¯s really pitiful, and it¡¯s

    all my fault that I didn¡¯t make it clear enough thest time.¡±

    Ignoring her words, Tobias approached Jackson, towering over him in height as he emanated an

    intimidating aura.

    Immediately, Jackson hugged the box to his chest tightly.

    Tobias took a lighter out of his trouser pocket and flicked it, the sound exceptionally crisp in the quiet

    night.

    Looking at the flickering me, a sneer formed on Tobias¡¯ lips right before he threw his zippo lighter into

    the box.

    In an instant, Jackson¡¯s efforts were engulfed in mes. He threw the box to the ground in fright, his hand

    almost being scorched by the fire just now.

    Skr took a few steps backward in shock as she stared at the mes licking the sides of the metal box.

    Tobias grinned mockingly. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you have strong feelings for her? If you pick up the box

    again, I¡¯ll give her to you.¡±

    Jackson cowered in response. ¡°You already lit the box on fire. How am I supposed to pick it up? Aren¡¯t

    you deliberating making things difficult for me?¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t even endure a little pain? Do you think a few words are enough to prove your feelings?¡±

    Tobias patted Skr¡¯s bum affectionately and said, ¡°Go back first. Tell me once you¡¯re upstairs.¡±

    But Skr could not help but worry. She peered at Tobias anxiously, afraid that he would do something

    reckless.

    Sensing her hesitation, Tobias reassured her, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t do anything to him.¡±

    At that, Skr breathed a sigh of relief and turned to go upstairs. She did not look back once, trusting

    Tobias to keep his word. Besides, she did not have a choice anyway because she knew that it was

    useless no matter what she said to Jackson. It was as though her words could not get through to him, or

    perhaps he was merely ying dumb.

    Jackson stared after Skr¡¯s retreating form with a crestfallen look on his face. Watching his efforts

    literally go up in mes, he roared angrily, ¡°All you have is money. Do you think money can buy you love?

    It¡¯s obvious that your feelings for Skr aren¡¯t genuine because there¡¯s no love in your eyes when you

    look at her.¡±

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    Chapter 132

    Tobias felt exasperated, wondering when he had been reduced to a state where he had to discuss about

    love with this trash. With a haughty expression, he ordered in a disdainful tone, ¡°You can leave now and

    stop harassing my girlfriend. If I catch you doing it again, you might very well be the one burning.¡±

    Jackson was so petrified that goosebumps covered his whole body. Reluctant to give up on Skr, he

    expressed his devotion, ¡°I will wait until Skr epts me. The two of you won¡¯tst long.¡±

    Tobias looked at him with amusement and chuckled. ¡°You should look in the mirror before going after a

    woman. Don¡¯t overestimate yourself. Even if I¡¯m no longer with her one day, her body and soul will still

    belong to me.¡±

    Meanwhile, Avery stood in front of her bedroom window with zing eyes. Tobias sent Skr back. This

    means they¡¯re still together.

    When Skr saw Avery standing by the window, she guessed that she had already seen Tobias.

    Upon hearing the door creak, Avery turned around but stayed silent for quite some time. Aftering to

    terms with reality, she forced herself to smile at Skr. ¡°Skr, you¡¯re back. Have you packed your

    luggage?¡±

    Skr was slightly stunned since Avery had never spoken to her in such a gentle tone after so many

    years of knowing each other.

    She asked ndly, ¡°What do you want? Since when did you care so much about me?¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    No matter how reluctant Avery was, she had no choice but to be nice to Skr for the meantime as per

    her father¡¯s orders. Thepany had an abandoned project. If it were not resumed, they would face

    bankruptcy. The only one who could help them now was Skr.

    Avery put her ego aside and smiled gently. ¡°It was all my faultst time. I always felt like you were going

    to take my father away from me. I admit that I was young and ignorant. Dad heard that you¡¯re going to

    film soon, so he wants you over for dinner tomorrow. He¡¯s going to prepare your favorite food.¡±

    However, Skr refused tly, not wanting to be involved with the Joneses whatsoever. With a curl of her

    lips, she replied, ¡°Forget it. I grew up eating cheap food. I¡¯m not used to thevish lifestyle all of you

    have.¡±

    Avery already expected such a response from Skr. She blinked innocently as she exined, ¡°Your

    mother will also be there tomorrow. Dad visited her at the hospital today. She¡¯s recovering well and will

    be discharged soon. The meal tomorrow is also to celebrate your mother¡¯s recovery.¡±

    Ever since Miranda was hospitalized, Skr had only seen her once, but even that one time was when

    she was sedated.

    Skr was terrified of Miranda. She could still remember the day she visited her mother in prison when

    she was thirteen years old. Miranda had screamed hysterically at her, ¡°Why did I give birth to a daughter

    like you? You ruined everything for me!¡±

    Miranda even told Skr to get out of her sight and nevere again. That visit had greatly traumatized

    her until this day.

    To this day, Skr still could not understand why Miranda hated her so much. She had even asked her

    grandmother about it before.

    But her grandmother had only given her a piece of advice. No matter what, she¡¯s still your mother and

    the person who gave you life, so you must never give up.

    Even at that moment, Skr could still clearly remember her grandmother¡¯s words and her own promise

    to never abandon Miranda if she were released one day.

    Skr did not immediately agree to Avery¡¯s request. Instead, she ran to the corridor and called Tobias.

    The call was only picked up after a long time.

    ¡°Why are you calling me thiste? Miss me already?¡± His voice was deep and husky as usual, but it was

    laced with a hint of sleepiness.

    ¡°It¡¯s about my mother. Is she still at the hospital?¡± Skr¡¯s hand tightened around her phone as she

    awaited Tobias¡¯ answer.

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    ¡°I don¡¯t know. The hospital didn¡¯t call me. The payment is still ongoing though. Why are you asking me

    this all of a sudden? Do you want to see your mother?¡± Tobias asked in a leisurely tone.

    Right then, Skr came to a sudden realization. How could Tobias possibly know? He¡¯s only responsible

    for providing the money, nothing more and nothing less. I was overthinking it.

    He isn¡¯t obligated to keep track of my mom¡¯s condition.

    Nevertheless, she told Tobias about Thomas¡¯ invitation, then asked him for his opinion. She was grateful

    that she finally had someone to share her problems with instead of flying blind like before.

    ¡°Don¡¯t go. Just do your part.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ reply made Skr feel uneasy. ¡°But if I don¡¯t go, will Thomas do anything bad to my mom? She¡¯d

    be all alone there. Besides, she killed Irene¡¯s sister back then, so Irene definitely still bears a grudge

    against her.¡±

    ¡°Who¡¯s Irene?¡± Tobias asked in confusion.

    Skr¡¯s mouth tightened. ¡°My stepmother.¡±

    Tobias sighed in understanding. ¡°What¡¯s the point in you going? Do you want to get bullied together with

    your mother? Anyway, Thomas won¡¯t be too hard on you. Besides, I doubt your mother will go. Just use

    your head and think.¡±

    Skr felt unsettled as she weighed her choices. The trap at her uncle¡¯s house the other day had made

    her see everything in a different light. This time, she wasn¡¯t sure what the Joneses would be hiding up

    their sleeves either.

    In the end, she decided to go for the dinner. She was mentally prepared to be choked if Miranda went

    berserk upon seeing her.

    People tended to feel the most helpless and vulnerable in the middle of the night. At times, Skr

    bemoaned her fate as being alive seemed like an exhausting feat to her.

    While other children were loved by their parents, she was abandoned by her father and hated by her

    mother.

    I must have been a sinful and wicked person in my previous life. That¡¯s why I¡¯m paying off a debt that

    does not seem to have an end to it.

    When Skr told Tobias her decision to go tomorrow, he did not stop her because the choice was hers to

    make. Instead, he merely said gently, ¡°I can¡¯t apany you there, so be careful. You can find me at the

    company when it¡¯s over.¡±

    Skr was slightly taken aback. Since when could both of us be together in the open? There¡¯s no way

    I¡¯m going to hispany.

    Early the next morning, Skr followed Avery and got into a Mercedes-Benz.

    Avery was so pampered that even at university, her driver would wait for her by the gates every day,

    always at her service. Apart from that, she had a cleaner to clean her dorm every day and take care of

    her daily necessities.

    Both of them were Thomas¡¯ daughters, but they were treated so differently. In the beginning, Skr still

    felt slightly envious, but she was already indifferent to it now.

    ¡°Skr, I¡¯ve never gotten the chance to apologize. I was immaturest time, so I hope you can find it in

    your heart to forgive me.¡± In the car, Avery looked at Skr with an imploring gaze.

    Despite that, Skr did not buy Avery¡¯s sudden change in attitude, neither did she believe thetter had

    abruptly grown a conscience.

    Skr put on a better show than Avery as she looked at her calmly with a tender smile. ¡°Of course I

    forgive you.¡±

    Avery went rigid as she cursed inwardly. If Thomas hadn¡¯t promised to buy her a Maserati, she would not

    have agreed to grovel to her sister.

    Feigning innocence, she leaned over to hug Skr, saying in a honeyced voice, ¡°You¡¯re the best,

    Skr. We will always be family, and nothing can evere between us. Dad has been meaning to take

    you back into the family, but he was afraid you¡¯d reject him, so he hasn¡¯t brought it up.¡±

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 Chapter 134

    Chapter 134

    Upon hearing that, a slightly strained smile crept onto Skr¡¯s face. Naturally, she did not buy Avery¡¯s

    words. In fact, she knew that Thomas probably wished she never existed.

    With reluctance, Skr got out of the car at the residential area entrance that only seemed to bring back

    bad memories.

    She took in a deep breath when she thought about the possibility of Miranda throwing a crazy tantrum.

    After Avery knocked on the door, a servant came over to answer it.

    The servant immediately took Avery¡¯s ssic LV bag from her hands while giving Skr, the abandoned

    daughter, a once-over. Indifference was written all over the face of the servant, who did not even offer

    her a pair of indoor slippers from the shoe rack. Instead, she merely gave her some shoe covers.

    Her eyes were filled with disdain as she sized Skr up.

    Having worked for the Joneses for many years, the servant had long since heard that Thomas had

    another child who grew up in the streets and was an unruly girl without discipline.

    Meanwhile, Avery¡¯s face beamed with excitement as she called out, ¡°Dad, I¡¯m back. Is the food ready?

    I¡¯m starving.¡±

    Hearing that, Thomas came out of the kitchen with an apron wrapped around his waist and gazed at

    Avery adoringly. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s ready. I was just waiting for you toe home. I cooked some honeyed pork

    ribs and BBQ beef ribs.¡±

    Right after saying that, Thomas realized his mistake and quickly corrected, ¡°I mean, I was waiting for the

    two of you.¡±

    Skr disliked Thomas¡¯ pretentious behavior because she was aware that her presence was unwanted

    in this house.

    ¡°Where¡¯s my mom? You said she¡¯d be here,¡± Skr asked.

    Thomas shot a puzzled gaze at Avery.

    Avery hastily exined with a tinge of guilt, ¡°Dad asked the doctor about it. Unfortunately, your mother¡¯s

    condition isn¡¯t very stable, so she can¡¯te out for the time being.¡±

    At that instant, Skr finally agreed with Tobias¡¯ words.

    He often called her foolish and told her to use her brain. But she was refused to heed his advice and

    thought that he was just being judgmental.

    However, it was toote now as she had walked into Avery¡¯s trap.

    Since she was already here, she decided to make the most out of it and find out what this family was up

    to because it was quite unlikely for people to change overnight.

    Irene came downstairs in an emerald, green dress, looking youthful and vibrant for her age. Her curvy

    body was not in the least bit inferior to women younger than her, making it difficult to guess her true age.

    A person¡¯s first reaction was usually genuine. When Skr collided gazes with Irene, thetter¡¯s eyes

    shed with a hint of resentment.

    ¡°You¡¯re here. It¡¯ste already. The whole family has been waiting for a long time,¡± Irene spoke in a

    monotonous voice.

    The man beside her, who also shared the same animosity, was Hayden Jones, Thomas¡¯ son.

    Although Skr had not seen him in many years, she remembered that he had always regarded her with

    contempt.

    Hayden was older than Skr. Before Thomas and Miranda divorced, Hayden was still the illegitimate

    son of Thomas and Irene.

    Skr¡¯s grandmother had said that this was another reason her mother hated her so much. She med

    Skr for Thomas divorcing her and marrying another woman.

    She believed that if she had given birth to a son, Thomas would never have divorced her for Irene. That

    was why Miranda preferred boys over girls and saw her daughter as a liability ever since.

    Thomas waved Hayden over and chided, ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to wee your sister, Hayden?¡±

    However, the arrogant Hayden did not even spare Skr a nce. ¡°She¡¯s not my sister. I only have one

    sister, and that¡¯s Avery. Both of you being in the same space should be interesting to watch.¡±

    Skr was not eager to have him as her brother either, even though they shared the same father.

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    On the other hand, Avery was secretly gloating. Her brother had always pampered her since young. She

    couldn¡¯t understand what her father was thinking, trying to get him to acknowledge Skr as his sister.

    To ease the tension hovering in the air, Thomas urged everyone to take their seats at the dining table. He

    had personally prepared the food today and had been busy in the kitchen since this morning.

    Everything he cooked was basically Avery and Hayden¡¯s favorite food.

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    Skr seemed to remember Avery telling her that Thomas was going to cook her favorite food, so she

    scanned the food served on the table.

    None of these are my favorite food. It had been years since shest shared a meal with Thomas.

    She pulled out a chair and sat down next to Irene, who looked at her as if she were a thorn in her side.

    When Irene caught a whiff of Skr¡¯s perfume, the sneer of her face was apparent. ¡°Since when did you

    start using perfume? Have your standards be higher after being with a rich man?¡±

    Skr raised her brows. ¡°I¡¯m about to film soon. I need to have a little ss, don¡¯t you think? Besides, it¡¯s

    only perfume. There¡¯s no need to kick up a fuss about it, is there?¡±

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    Thomas cleared his throat, reminding Irene to keep her thoughts to herself as they had more pressing

    matters at hand.

    Now that they seeded in getting Skr here, they had to seize the opportunity to ask her for Tobias¡¯

    help.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t congratted you yet. I heard that you¡¯re going to start filming. For a freshman, that¡¯s very

    impressive, which is more than I can say for Avery.¡±

    Avery was extremely upset that Thomas wasplimenting Skr at the expense of her pride. In spite

    of that, she had to endure it for the sake of her dream sports car.

    On the other hand, Skr was very modest. ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I only passed the first round of auditions. There

    are still many uncertainties.¡±

    ¡°How are things between you and Mr. Ford? Good, I presume?¡± Thomas finally broached the topic.

    ¡°Fine. We¡¯re just friends,¡± Skr replied.

    Hayden sneered, ¡°Dumped so soon? Dad, I told you it was a mistake calling her over. She can¡¯t even

    help us.¡±

    Thomas red at Hayden, but thetter didn¡¯t think he said anything wrong. Dad is blinded by his

    desperation to save the business, so much so that he turned to Skr for help. But what the hell can she

    do to help?

    Skr smiled with amusement. ¡°You tricked me intoing here because you need Tobias¡¯ help? In that

    case, I¡¯ll have to disappoint you because contrary to your belief, I¡¯m not that close to him.¡±

    Thomas really couldn¡¯t tell whether Skr was speaking the truth or not.

    ¡°Skr, I genuinely want us to be closer. We¡¯ve been estranged for so many years. Give me a chance to

    make it up to you. I owe you so much as your father, too much.¡±

    Thomas gazed at Skr with benevolence gleaming in his eyes. He even offered her a smile, which was

    a first for her.

    Even though Skr had always craved parental love, she wasn¡¯t moved by his words at all. Her heart

    had long since been shattered and could no longer be pieced back together.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need to make up for anything, but if you insist, then the best way is to leave me alone,¡± she

    said nonchntly as she remained obstinate.

    Thomas knew that something like this couldn¡¯t be rushed either. Now that she was with Tobias, he

    regretted not realizing Skr¡¯s potential back then. Even if Tobias were only fooling around, Skr would

    undoubtedly be known among his usual crowd.

    Forced to suppress her irritation and cooperate with Thomas, Irene ced her ss heavily on the table

    to vent her frustration.

    Skr didn¡¯t have an appetite even though Thomas had prepared a scrumptious meal. Hence, she

    picked up her bag and prepared to leave. ¡°Enjoy your meal. I¡¯ve said what I wanted to say. I¡¯ll be leaving

    now.¡±

    Seeing that Skr was leaving already, Thomas panicked and finally blurted out, ¡°Can you help me just

    this once? I need to meet Tobias. Ourpany is facing a problem, and Tobias is the only one who can

    solve it. If you don¡¯t help me, I might end up getting entangled in awsuit. I¡¯m still your father, Skr.

    You can¡¯t turn your back on me.¡±

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    Indeed, Thomas did not disappoint Skr. At the end of the day, he only called her here because he

    needed her help.

    ¡°You¡¯re talking to the wrong person! We already broke up,¡± she lied.

    Avery stood up and argued, ¡°I clearly saw Tobias send you backst night. Stop beating around the bush

    and just admit that you don¡¯t want to help the family.¡±

    Right then, Skr recalled Avery saying that she wished to reconcile with her. It looks like she can¡¯t keep

    up the act anymore.

    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll get straight to the point. I¡¯m not a part of this family, so I¡¯m not obligated to help you. Also, you

    overestimated my importance to Tobias. Do you really think he¡¯d immediatelye to your aid with just a

    word from me? This isn¡¯t ying house.¡±

    Thomas¡¯ face darkened in response to Skr¡¯s candor, but he had to suppress his rage and stop himself

    fromshing out at her.

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    ¡°Are you just going to watch me go to jail? You¡¯re still my daughter after all.¡± He yed the family card

    again.

    Skr shrugged her shoulders. ¡°I¡¯m fine with that. I have a murderer as a mother, so having a father

    who¡¯s ced behind bars is nothing.¡±

    As Thomas¡¯ chest heaved, he felt like he could explode at any moment.

    Skr walked to the door to take off the shoe covers when the phone in her bag rang. She knew who it

    was without needing to look. It was an exclusive ringtone she had set for Tobias, but her phone hadn¡¯t

    rung for a whole month since then.

    While taking off the shoe covers, Skr picked up the call. ¡°Still not done yet? I came to pick you up. I¡¯m

    outside now.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t expect Tobias toe and pick her up since he said he would be busy. If the Joneses saw

    him, she feared that Thomas would shamelessly voice some conditions that were to his benefit.

    At that thought, Skr ended the call, wanting to leave immediately when Hayden stopped her. ¡°Aren¡¯t

    you going to thank us for letting you eat at our home? Even dogs wag their tails in appreciation, you

    piece of filth.¡±

    Skr halted in her tracks as fury surged in her. ¡°I didn¡¯t even have a bite. Besides, I would never have

    stepped foot inside this house if you hadn¡¯t tricked me,¡± she retorted in a sarcastic tone.

    Avery sat back and watched from the sidelines while Thomas red daggers at his son. ¡°How can you

    talk to your sister like that, Hayden? This is also her home, so it¡¯s perfectly normal for her to eat here.¡±

    Hayden¡¯s face contorted with disdain as he watched his father curry favor with Skr. ¡°Dad, is this really

    necessary? How long do you think Tobias will stay with her? Since when were you so naive?

    Desperation has made you blind.¡±

    Until now, Thomas couldn¡¯t tell if Skr was still involved with Tobias, so he stayed silent for a while, lost

    in his thoughts.

    As Skr studied this family of four, a wave of disgust washed over her.

    Suddenly, a honk sounded outside the house. Skr was afraid that Tobias was getting impatient and

    rushing her to leave.

    Hence, she took out two hundred in cash from her purse and put it on the shoe rack by the door.

    ¡°Consider this as the fee for my seat at the dining table. Thank you for your hospitality.¡±

    Then, she opened the door without ncing back. Immediately, she spotted Tobias in the car as the car

    door was left ajar. He was in a ck suit with one hand resting on the steering wheel and the other

    holding his phone, seemingly looking at something.

    Thomas followed behind her and was surprised to find Tobias right outside his house.

    He stood rooted to the ground as fear crept up his insides. If he hadn¡¯t restrained himself earlier and said

    some nasty things to Skr, the oue would have been disastrous.

    Finally finding his voice, he pressed Skr, ¡°I thought the two of you broke up?¡±

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    Chapter 137

    ¡°I didn¡¯t say we couldn¡¯t get back together, did I? Are you here to see me off?¡± Skr countered in a t

    tone.

    Anxious, Thomas nced at Tobias, who was sitting in the car. Although he muttered a yes to Skr¡¯s

    question, his feet had already taken him to Tobias¡¯ car.

    Tobias raised his eyes to give Thomas a cursory nce. He couldn¡¯t be bothered with customary

    pleasantries and maintained his indifferent expression without uttering a word.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, I¡¯m sure you haven¡¯t had anything to eat yet. Would you like toe in for a meal?¡± Thomas

    stered a ttering smile on his face.

    Skr never thought that someone as cold-hearted and unfeeling as Thomas was capable of having that

    expression.

    ¡°No need,¡± Tobias responded tersely.

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    Skr skirted past Thomas and hopped into the front passenger seat, urging Tobias, ¡°Let¡¯s go. I couldn¡¯t

    stomach anything here, so I¡¯m hungry now.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ eyes flicked toward Skr, clearly sensing the sour mood she was in, and surmised that the

    Joneses must have mistreated her. I clearly told her not toe, but she didn¡¯t listen to me. This woman

    really has a knack for tormenting herself.

    It wasn¡¯t easy for Thomas to get an audience with Tobias. The other time when his precious daughter

    was bullied by Tobias, he had waited at the hotel lobby for a whole night before getting the chance to see

    Tobias. Now, he greatly regretted his actions and cursed at himself for letting his anger get the best of

    him.

    Otherwise, he could have made a better impression on Tobias.

    Thomas grabbed the door, preventing Tobias from closing it. ¡°Mr. Ford, can you spare me ten minutes? I

    need your help with something.¡±

    Tobias nced at Skr, letting her make the decision.

    Pursing her lips, she dered, ¡°Let¡¯s go. I don¡¯t want to be here a second longer.¡±

    Thomas was boiling with frustration, cursing at Skr silently for being ungrateful and not knowing her

    ce. How dare she act all snobbish with me right now? Has she forgotten how pathetic she was when

    she came here asking me for money to pay her school fees?

    Before Skr attended high school, she needed thirty thousand for her school fees. Her grandmother

    couldn¡¯t afford it, so she told Skr toe over and ask him for money.

    Thirty thousand was nothing to him, but he still hadn¡¯t wanted to give it to her. Since he had already

    divorced Miranda, he considered the child as hers and wanted to cut ties with her for good.

    Furthermore, Skr¡¯s birth was an ident. Miranda was the one who begged him to keep the baby.

    Nevertheless, Thomas rposed himself and started to y the pity card, wearing a dejected look on

    his face. ¡°Juste in and sit for a while. Please be understanding.¡±

    Skr thought she was hallucinating when she heard the plea in his tone.

    Tobias pondered over it for a while. If he didn¡¯t give Thomas a chance now, Thomas would definitely

    continue pestering Skr, so he figured that he might as well make things clear between them once and

    for all.

    With that, Tobias killed the engine and stubbed out his barely smoked cigarette before getting out of his

    car.

    However, Skr remained seated in the front and grabbed Tobias¡¯ arm. In a gentle voice, he coaxed

    away the gloom on Skr¡¯s face. ¡°Be a good girl. Come down with me, hmm?¡±

    This scene was deeply embedded into Thomas¡¯ mind. The ruthless and strong-willed CEO, Tobias Ford,

    was actually so protective of Skr and treated her so gently.

    Thereafter, Skr followed Tobias out of the car without protest as though she was possessed.

    Just then, Tobias¡¯ phone rang. Skr was ustomed to Tobias¡¯ busy schedule and had grown used to

    his long conversations over the phone. She also knew that he would sometimes speak in a foreign

    language.

    Skr went into the house first. When the servant saw here back, she picked out the shoe covers

    from the trash bin and handed them to her.

    Tobias, who came in after Skr, saw the whole scene. While his chiseled face remained

    expressionless, there was an ominous gleam in his eyes.

    ¡°Is this how your family treats guests?¡± His frosty voice could probably form icicles.

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    The servant didn¡¯t know who Tobias was. Having worked here for many years, she was an expert in

    pleasing her employers, so she knew that bullying Skr would make Irene, Hayden, and Avery very

    happy.

    ¡°I just threw them away, so it¡¯s not like they¡¯re dirty,¡± she rebuked.

    Sensing Tobias¡¯ displeasure, Thomas went to the shoe cab to personally take a pair of indoor

    slippers for Skr. He even castigated the servant, ¡°Can¡¯t you do your job well? Didn¡¯t I tell you to

    prepare some slippers for my daughter? Why did you give her shoe covers?¡±

    The servant was given an earful by Thomas, but she couldn¡¯t seem to remember him giving her that

    instruction. Furthermore, when Skr came here the first time, he didn¡¯t seem to have any objections

    when she gave her the shoe covers.

    The servant shot pleading looks at the rest of the Jones family, but of course, they couldn¡¯t be bothered

    with her as they were still in shock due to Tobias¡¯ sudden appearance in their home.

    Avery was the only one who remained calm since she had seen Tobias walking Skr back to the

    dormitory, so driving here to pick her up was nothing.

    Skr didn¡¯t change into the men¡¯s slippers Thomas had offered her because it was obvious that he had

    prepared them for Tobias and not her.

    Although Irene was reluctant, she pretended to be weing, curling her lips into an obliging smile.

    She personally poured a drink for Tobias, but thetter looked at the cups on the table and heartlessly

    turned her down, ¡°I don¡¯t take outside drinks.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Irene became visibly awkward, unsure of what to do.

    Hayden was dumbfounded when he saw Skr and Tobias still together. Isn¡¯t Tobias about to marry

    soon? Just what kind of rtionship does he have with Skr?

    Sitting on the sofa, Tobias casually grabbed an orange from the fruit te and held it in his palm.

    Oddly, the orange seemed to be dwarfed by the size of his palm.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Without further dy, Thomas respectfully handed the proposal he had prepared in advance to Tobias.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, can you take a look at this proposal? I believe that if we work together, it¡¯ll be a win-win

    situation.¡±

    Tobias took the proposal from Thomas¡¯ hands. Curious about its content, Skr leaned over to get a

    glimpse.

    It was packed with words and difficult toprehend at first nce.

    Tobias skimmed through the proposal, then snapped the folder shut before tossing it onto the coffee

    table.

    ¡°It¡¯s a mess of an abandoned project and you want my coboration? On what grounds? You can stop

    dreaming.¡±

    Skr stared at Tobias as her admiration for him shot through the skies. While she couldn¡¯t understand a

    thing in the proposal, he was able to pinpoint the problem after barely a few nces.

    Thomas grimaced and said, ¡°Please, Mr. Ford, on ount of Skr.¡±

    In contrast to Thomas¡¯ agitation, Tobias peeled the orange in a nonchnt manner and soon, a citrus

    scent permeated the air.

    He ced the peeled orange on the coffee table and replied, ¡°Well, that depends on Skr.¡±

    Just like that, Tobias gave Skr the power to decide the fate of a project worth billions.

    Thomas saw that there was still hope since Tobias did not outright reject him.

    It seemed like they had all underestimated how much Tobias indulged Skr.

    Skr ignored the pleading gaze Thomas was sending her. She had never imagined that she would one

    day hold such power over Thomas. How the tables have turned.

    Smiling wryly, she said, ¡°I¡¯m not all that important, so there¡¯s no need to consider me.¡±

    Tobias was very pleased with her answer. His woman should never allow herself to be taken advantage

    of. Although he would have helped Thomas if she relented, he would have been disappointed at the

    same time.

    If she were easily exploited and sumbed to every threat thrown her way, his future with her would be

    a bumpy journey or perhapspletely impossible.

    This was a practical way of thinking. He didn¡¯t need a meek and spineless woman as it would only result

    in more conflicts in the future.

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    Chapter 139

    Panic rose in Thomas¡¯ heart as his right ear rang. ¡°Skr, I¡¯ve worked hard for so many years, all for the

    sake of my children. You may not know this, but I¡¯d already nned to give you a portion of the shares

    because you¡¯re still my child after all.¡±

    With a look of disdain, Tobias watched Thomas¡¯ poor attempt at convincing his daughter, probably

    regretting all of his past actions.

    Skr did not believe Thomas at all. ¡°I don¡¯t care about all of that. Let¡¯s not owe each other anything so

    that no one would be a burden to the other.¡±

    As his patience reached its limit, Tobias¡¯ dark eyes gleamed. ¡°Stop making things difficult for her. You¡¯re

    a grown man, so take responsibility for your own actions. I¡¯ll give you my answer now. I won¡¯t help you,

    and there¡¯s no use in harassing Skr about it either.¡±

    Overwhelmed with despair, Thomas looked like he had aged overnight. Even his voice sounded choked.

    ¡°Are you really just going to watch me grow old and die in prison?¡±

    Skr¡¯s heart clenched in her chest. Revenge did not seem as sweet as she had imagined it to be.

    She turned to Tobias and asked softly, ¡°Will he really die in prison?¡±

    With a cold glint in his eyes, Tobias answered, ¡°Unlikely. At most, his assets will be liquidated.¡±

    With that, he checked his watch. ¡°Your ten minutes are up. If that¡¯s all, I¡¯ll be taking Skr away now.¡±

    Looking haggard and utterly miserable, Thomas kept mum and stopped trying to persuade them

    because he knew that it would only irritate Tobias all the more.

    After Skr left with Tobias, Thomas remained frozen to the spot like a statue.

    Seeing that, Avery quickly went over to support him and added fuel to the fire. ¡°Dad, didn¡¯t you see how

    Skr turned her back on us? Why are you still expecting her to help you? She¡¯s nothing but an ingrate.¡±

    Thomas heaved a sigh. ¡°If Tobias doesn¡¯t offer us a lending hand, it¡¯ll be difficult for us to turn things

    around this time.¡±

    Irene rolled her eyes at that. ¡°What¡¯s the big deal? I can just ask for my father¡¯s help. He and Tobias¡¯

    mother have been friends for many years. Skr isn¡¯t all that great.¡±

    Meanwhile, Skr muttered to herself in the car, ¡°I bet they¡¯re backstabbing me right now.¡±

    At the traffic light, Tobias raised his hand and caressed Skr¡¯s hair. ¡°Maybe.¡±

    Skr sighed as if epting her fate. ¡°My life is just crappy. Do you think changing my surname will give

    me better luck? I don¡¯t wanna be associated with the Joneses anyway.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Tobias let out a faint smile. ¡°There¡¯s no need for that. Now that you¡¯ve met me, no one can bully you no

    matter what.¡±

    Skr looked slightly dazed as she parted her lips to speak, but in the end, she withheld the words

    gnawing at the back of her mind. Is my luck really turning around, or is this rtionship doomed from the

    start? She constantly felt that she didn¡¯t belong in Tobias¡¯ world. Even though she liked him, the gulf

    between them was just too wide.

    Tobias took the route back to Skr¡¯s university, so she thought he was sending her home, butter on,

    he made a few turns and drove toward the only high-end vi within three kilometers of the university.

    On the way there, Skr asked him in confusion, ¡°Where are you taking me?¡±

    However, Tobias didn¡¯t answer her even when the car pulled up in front of a European-style vi. He took

    out a bunch of keys from the armrestpartment and dangled them on his index finger in front of

    Skr. ¡°Didn¡¯t you always say that you live too far from your university? This is the closest vi there is.

    From now on, you¡¯re the owner of this vi.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t take the keys from him due to the lingering fear in her chest as she recalled the incident

    with Zoey. Perhaps another woman would waltz into this vi as well.

 Chapter 140

    Chapter 140

    Tobias noticed the worry written on Skr¡¯s face. An unobtrusive smile appeared on his face as he said,

    ¡°You¡¯re the owner here. Give me your identity cardter. I¡¯ll transfer the ownership to your name.¡±

    Skr swallowed thickly. This gift is even more extravagant than a ck card.

    Shaking her head, she questioned, ¡°Are you throwing your money at me?¡±

    A trace of incredulity shed across Tobias¡¯ eyes. He furrowed his brows and deepened his voice. ¡°Can¡¯t

    I? Isn¡¯t this every woman¡¯s dream?¡±

    When he rxed his brows and seemed less unapproachable, Skr reached out and took the keys

    from him. Then, thinking that this gift was nothing but a hot potato, she threw the keys back to him.

    ¡°It¡¯s too expensive. I can¡¯t take it. I¡¯m afraid I might die from all the money being thrown at me.¡±

    Turning back to the front, his signature cold expression slipped back into ce. ¡°Unlikely. You¡¯d be

    stuffed to death at most.¡±

    As they entered the vi, Skr half-expected to see someone like Laura who was tasked to take care of

    the ce, but she was only greeted by silence.

    This vi wasn¡¯t very big, but the decor was exquisite and screamed money. A winding mahogany

    staircase connected the floors, and there was an antique touch to the entire ce, exuding a retro vibe.

    It looked like a beachside vi people often saw in movies.

    Drawing in a long breath, she noticed two pairs of matching indoor slippers, one pink and one grey,

    neatly ced on the shoe rack. She gingerly changed into the slippers and stood in the living room with

    her eyes darting around the ce.

    After a moment of silence, Tobias asked casually, ¡°So are you happy with this ce? I¡¯ve already settled

    the application for you to live outside campus. Once you¡¯re done filming, you¡¯ll move in here with me.

    Didn¡¯t you say that you didn¡¯t feel secure? Seeing me every day will solve that.¡±

    Naturally, Skr didn¡¯t believe his words. Before he disappeared, he had told her that they would see

    each other very often, but he vanished for a month after that without contacting her at all.

    Perhaps she would end up living here by herself, but that didn¡¯t seem like such a bad thing.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Skr went to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator to find that everything was stocked up. There were

    even several types of peanut butter. Seeing as the vegetables and fruits were neatly sorted in storage

    boxes, she surmised that whoever did this must have OCD.

    Tobias stood next to the refrigerator, holding it open. His towering figure was a head taller than it. ¡°Can

    you cook? I don¡¯t know how to do anything of that sort, so you¡¯ll have to take care of me in the future.¡±

    ¡°I can, but my cooking is not tasty. I always ate instant food that needed minimal cooking,¡± Skr replied

    curtly.

    Speaking of this, Skr suddenly felt ashamed as she recalled what the influencer lookalike Sheldon

    brought along the other day had said to her. Us girls should have more ss when choosing the food we

    consume. She had even said it while looking down her nose at her.

    Needless to say, she wished to be ssy too, but she could barely make ends meet, so it was out of the

    question.

    Before going to university, she never had meat fondue before because she couldn¡¯t afford it.

    After closing the refrigerator, Tobias locked eyes with Skr. His gaze was gentle and bewitching when

    he chided her, ¡°Your life is an absolute disaster. Learn how to cook from now on! I¡¯m not nning to hire

    a servant here. Having others around gets annoying.¡±

    Skr averted her gaze and looked slightly ufortable. He seems to think it¡¯s a woman¡¯s job to cook.

    Typical male chauvinist. Why can¡¯t he learn to cook too?

 Chapter 141

    Chapter 141

    She began to wallow in self-pity upon picturing herself living with him. Truth be told, she had amazing

    cooking skills. Everything she cooked would burst with vors.

    Back then, Jeremy used to say that she was most suited to be a housewife and that her cooking was

    even better than his mother¡¯s.

    At the Jones residence, Skr hadn¡¯t even touched the cutlery. Starving since morning, her stomach was

    growling loudly, and she barely had the strength to speak. She was also feeling sluggish from theck of

    carbs.

    ¡°Are you hungry? I¡¯m cooking some noodles, so I¡¯ll cook a bowl for you too,¡± she said to Tobias.

    Tobias lowered his gaze and smirked. ¡°I don¡¯t eat junk food like instant noodles.¡±

    Skr replied coldly, ¡°What a picky eater. When I was young, I didn¡¯t even get the chance to eat instant

    noodles. Grandma was frugal and would often cook in noodles. On Children¡¯s Day, she¡¯d buy me

    some braised beef instant noodles. At that time, I¡¯d thought this was the best food in the world. Even my

    dream then was to eat instant noodles every day when I grow up.¡±

    Tobias folded his arms and raised his brows at her. ¡°Are you telling me this to get my sympathy?¡±

    Skr was rendered speechless. That never even crossed my mind. I just said it on a whim. He is such a

    conversation killer.

    Arching her lips into a smile, she yed along with Tobias. ¡°You¡¯re right, Mr. Ford. After listening to such

    a tragic story, don¡¯t you think I¡¯m really pitiful? That I have a sad life? I¡¯ve suffered too much, but at least

    you¡¯re here now to alleviate some of my pain.¡±

    Tobias gently pinched Skr¡¯s cheeks that were flushed with embarrassment. ¡°Not at all. No one knows

    what¡¯s in store for them uponing into this world. Everyone out there has their own troubles, so why

    should they try and rte to yours? The key is in your hands. I¡¯m only giving you the support. Everything

    else is up to you.¡±

    Enlightened by Tobias¡¯ words, Skr raised her eyes to study this wise man.

    She couldn¡¯t deny that putting aside his wild taste in bed, he could indeed be considered a life mentor.

    She pursed her lips and murmured, ¡°I won¡¯t talk about these things anymore. You¡¯re right. There are

    people who have it much worsepared to me.¡±

    ¡°Smart girl. You can still talk to me about it but forget about telling other people. Keep your past hidden

    from prying eyes. Not many people can empathize, so it¡¯s better to maintain an air of secrecy.¡±

    Skr nodded in understanding. No one besides Tobias had ever given her such sincere and earnest

    advice.

    She took out some chilies and onions from the refrigerator, then found some chicken in the freezer.

    ¡°Do you eat Chicken Marnd?¡± she asked.

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    Tobias shook his head. ¡°Too oily.¡±

    ¡°What about grilled chicken?¡± Skr asked.

    ¡°How is that different from Chicken Marnd?¡±

    Exasperated, Skr let out a sigh. The man was really hard to please, so she eventually decided to cook

    instant noodles. He can take it or leave it.

    She cooked a big pot of noodles and transferred them into a ss casserole, filling every corner of the

    vi with its aroma.

    This time, she prepared two sets of cutlery but didn¡¯t call Tobias over to eat.

    As Tobias watched Skr slurping on the noodles while looking at her phone, he noticed the sheen of

    sweat on her forehead.

    He picked up his cutlery, then pulled out the chair beside her and gracefully lowered himself into it.

    Skr pushed the casserole toward him. ¡°It¡¯s good. You should try some. I put bacon, crab sticks, and

    fish balls in it.¡±

    Tobias forked up some of the noodles and ate them slowly.

    Skr gradually fell into a trance as she watched him, amazed at how he could look so elegant even

    when eating instant noodles.

    On the other hand, she ate food as though it was her first meal in a hundred years.

    ¡°Is it good?¡± Skr looked at him expectantly.

 Chapter 142

    Chapter 142

    Tobias rarely talked while eating; it was a habit ingrained into him.

    Silence nketed the living room.

    Skr thought she had spoken too softly, so she repeated, ¡°Do my instant noodles taste good?¡±

    Tobias took his time savoring the noodles before answering, ¡°Not bad, but it¡¯s a little salty.¡±

    Skr took another big mouthful of noodles. It looks like we don¡¯t have simr taste preferences.

    As soon as Skr came out of the shower, her waist was grabbed by a pair of strong hands.

    She knew very well what was about to happen. As Tobias¡¯ hands roamed all over her body, she

    reminded him, ¡°I don¡¯t want to take the pills anymore. They¡¯re not good for my body.¡±

    Some advised against taking morning-after pills more than three times per year, but she had already lost

    count of the times she took those pills since being together with Tobias.

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    Tobias had always been inconsiderate in this regard.

    Now that she brought it up, he reassured her, ¡°I understand. I¡¯ll control myself, but I don¡¯t like wearing

    condoms. It¡¯s ufortable.¡±

    She was then pressed down by his sturdy body with her lips sealed tightly. Tobias always dominated her

    in bed, and there was no room for resistance.

    Skr cooperated with his movements awkwardly. All of a sudden, the sound of a phone ringing pierced

    through the air, causing her heart to almost fly out of her throat.

    She frantically pushed against his chiseled pecs. ¡°Your phone is¡­ Mm¡­ Your phone is ringing. Don¡¯t be

    bothered with me¡­¡±

    Due to Tobias¡¯ teasing, she couldn¡¯t even form a proper string of words. Soon, his kisses drifted below

    her waistline.

    A crease formed between Tobias¡¯ brows as he grabbed Skr¡¯s wrists and pinned them above her head.

    ¡°Let it ring. I have more pressing matters at hand.¡±

    There was abination of desire and lust swirling in his dark eyes as his breathing turned heavy and a

    thinyer of sweat formed on his forehead.

    To Skr¡¯s relief, their lovemaking session finally came to an end. This man was a sex-machine. Skr

    had told him multiple times that she couldn¡¯t go on any longer, but that only made him wilder. She was

    completely at the mercy of his huge appetite for sex.

    In a bad mood, she turned her back to Tobias and curled up beneath the nket without bothering to put

    on her clothes.

    Faced with her smooth and fair back, Tobias hugged her from behind as both of their breathing gradually

    returned to normal.

    ¡°Are you mad at me? I made sure not to release inside so that you won¡¯t have to take the pills anymore,¡±

    Tobias whispered hoarsely with his lips pressed against the back of her neck.

    Despite that, Skr still wasn¡¯t in the mood to talk to him. He may not seem like it, but he had more than

    a few ways to torture her. She felt like she was going to die in Tobias¡¯ bed sooner orter. When that

    happened, her name would probably go down in history and rule the headlines of every media outlet.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you know that women should be treated with care and respect, Mr. Ford? You have terrible sex

    etiquette, always biting more than you kiss.¡± Skr pulled the nket over her head, trying to iste

    herself.

    Being used by a woman of having bad sex etiquette was a huge blow to a man¡¯s dignity. As if to

    punish her, Tobias gently bit down on her shoulder.

    Then, he let go of her waist. ¡°You don¡¯t even realize how lucky you are. Here I am, doing my very best to

    please you and yet you¡¯re not satisfied. When you¡¯re older, you¡¯ll understand just how lucky you are!¡±

    Indeed, Skr didn¡¯t understand. Even when she was half-dead from being tormented by him, he still

    had the audacity to im that he was pleasing her. All he cares about is his own pleasure.

    At that thought, she ignored Tobias and squeezed her eyes shut. Completely drained of strength, she

    drifted off to sleep within a few minutes.

    It was only after Skr didn¡¯t react for a long time that Tobias realized she was asleep.

 Chapter 143

    Chapter 143

    Tobias wasn¡¯t as lucky as her when it came to falling asleep. He pulled down the nket covering

    Skr¡¯s head and gently stroked her delicate cheek. She resembled a sleeping kitten as she murmured

    in her sleep, ¡°Why did all of you leave me? What have I done wrong?¡±

    She was dreaming that everyone had abandoned her.

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    Gazing at the moonlight beyond the windows, Tobias remained wide awake. Hey on his side and

    supported his head as he quietly watched Skr. It was a peaceful feeling and how he wished he could

    freeze this moment.

    The next day, Skr opened her eyes and felt the space beside her only to find it empty, without a trace

    of warmth left. Tobias is gone again.

    She tottered out of the bathroom. Every time Tobias had his way with her, she wouldn¡¯t be able to

    normally walk the next day.

    The sun was shining brightly this morning with its rays spilling in through the windows, enveloping the

    entire house in a warm glow.

    When Tobias noticed Skr still wearing a bathrobe, he quirked a brow at her. ¡°Are you seducing me this

    early in the morning? Was my performance yesterday not to your satisfaction?¡±

    Skr hastily tightened the belt of her bathrobe and changed the subject. ¡°Why are you up so early?¡±

    In answer to her question, Tobias served the breakfast he had prepared; fried eggs and sandwiches.

    Skr noticed that the fried eggs were out of shape and slightly burnt.

    She picked up a fork and took a bite out of the fried egg. A bitter taste instantly filled her mouth.

    ¡°Is it good?¡±

    Skr nodded. ¡°Pretty good.¡±

    Tobias sighed softly. ¡°I don¡¯t really know how to cook. It¡¯s probably quite bad, right?¡±

    Skr put down her fork, slightly annoyed. Why did he even ask me when he knows that it tastes

    horrible?

    He poured a ss of milk for Skr, but she pushed it away. ¡°I don¡¯t drink milk.¡±

    Tobias gave her a sidelong nce. ¡°Drink it. You¡¯re no different from an underdeveloped child. Don¡¯t you

    think you should focus on supplementing yourself? Do you wanna die from malnutrition?¡±

    He was obviously concerned about her, but he phrased it in such an awkward way.

    With a reluctant expression, Skr picked up the ss and chugged the whole thing.

    After that, she propped her cheeks on both hands. ¡°Can I ask you a question, Tobias?¡±

    In the midst of clearing the table, Tobias halted his movements and looked at her.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on with you and your fianc¨¦e? Am I the third party now? I heard that she¡¯s still living in

    your house. Everything is soplicated. What should I do?¡±

    Tobias replied in a clipped tone, ¡°I already told you that I wouldn¡¯t marry her, but I need time to convince

    my mom. Are you asking me this because you can¡¯t wait to marry me?¡±

    Although Tobias¡¯ answer was ambiguous, Skr had a strong hunch that he wouldpromise with his

    family and marry Tanya in the end.

    After all, he and Tanya were a match made in heaven to everyone else.

    With her chin resting on her hand, she smiled faintly. ¡°I¡¯m taking the train to N Province tomorrow. Filming

    will take at least three months. Are you going to stay here the whole time?¡±

    Tobias did not answer. What¡¯s the point of staying here when she¡¯s not around?

    After breakfast, he sent Skr back to university to pack up for her trip tomorrow.

    After Tobias checked his schedule using his phone, he ordered, ¡°Come down earlier tomorrow. I¡¯lle

    to pick you up. By the way, why aren¡¯t you traveling by ne?¡±

    Skr replied wryly, ¡°No one booked the tickets for me. Besides, taking the train is cheaper. You know,

    I¡¯m starting to think the director has forgotten about me.¡±

    Skr¡¯s thrifty personality made Tobias feel slightly exasperated. He clearly gave her a ck card, but it

    seemed like she was treating it more like a debit card.

    He didn¡¯t want Skr to be so courteous with him.

 Chapter 144

    Chapter 144

    ¡°Take care of yourself when you get there, and remember, don¡¯t agree to sign any contract for the time

    being.¡±

    With that said, he tipped her chin and pressed his lips against hers.

    As he deepened the kiss, Skr felt slightly breathless, and the air around them seemed to sizzle with

    electricity.

    At least half an hour had passed when they finally pulled apart from each other.

    After that, Tobias returned to being cold and domineering.

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    As Skr bid him goodbye, she felt slightly reluctant to part with him. Unwittingly, she had begun to crave

    hispanionship.

    Early the next morning, Skr dragged her LV suitcase to the train station alone.

    Standing among the crowd at the train station, she asionally nced at the signboard of W Province

    station, her youthful and delicate features attracting a lot of attention.

    ¡°What a coincidence. You¡¯re also leaving today?¡± A voice Skr would forever recognize reached her

    ears.

    Turning around, she saw Jeremy in designer clothes with his hair parted to the side and a pair of shades

    resting on his nose bridge.

    ¡°Are you stalking me?¡± Skr cast Jeremy a displeased look.

    Jeremy shrugged and stuffed one hand into his pocket. ¡°Don¡¯t be so paranoid. I don¡¯t have time to stalk

    you. Didn¡¯t you know that Director Daryl Williams personally picked me for the supporting role? The

    whole university knows about it.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t hear anything about Jeremy joining the cast.

    However, she had read the original novel before and indeed, Jeremy fit the image of the second male

    lead. She had to admit that Daryl really did have an eye for casting.

    Despite that, she didn¡¯t think she was suited to be the female lead.

    ¡°Why are you still taking the train instead of flying there when you¡¯re so loaded?¡± Skr mocked him.

    Her resentment toward him hadn¡¯t subsided yet. Tobias said he wasn¡¯t going to im back the three

    million, so all that money was still Jeremy¡¯s to keep. Bitterness swelled in her every time she thought

    about this.

    It was all because of her own stupidity back then. All she wanted was to save Jeremy¡¯s life, which was

    the reason why she failed to see the b*stard that he was.

    Jeremy could tell that Skr still didn¡¯t know he had been forced to return all the money. But he didn¡¯t

    dare to tell her for fear that she would confront Tobias andnd him in hot soup.

    His expression turned unsightly as he refuted, ¡°I could say the same about you. Aren¡¯t you with Tobias?

    Why are you taking the train to N Province instead of a first-ss flight?¡±

    Skr rolled her eyes at Jeremy. ¡°This is none of your business.¡±

    When the train arrived at the station, Skr dragged her suitcase and walked as quickly as her legs

    could carry her, wanting to keep a distance from Jeremy. s, she realized that she and Jeremy were

    sharing the same bunk only after boarding the train.

    Jeremy was delighted though. After stowing away his luggage, he wore a wistful look on his face and

    sighed. ¡°I still remember that you wanted to travel with me. You also said that we should visit the beach if

    we had money. Do you think this counts as us traveling together?¡±

    Ignoring his words, Skr put on her earphones to block out his voice. Mentioning their past was the

    greatest insult to her. A protective shell had long since formed over her heart. As a result of that incident,

    she knew she shouldn¡¯t invest all her time and effort into a rtionship because the more she loved, the

    easier she could get hurt.

    Being with Tobias required her to constantly keep her guard up and be prepared to get kicked to the curb

    at any time. Sometimes, she couldn¡¯t help but wonder if long-term rtionships even existed in this

    world. The number of divorce cases recorded in the Civil Affairs Bureau was enough of an answer.

    Jeremy offered her a peanut butter sandwich and said, ¡°This is for you. You probably haven¡¯t eaten yet

    since you came here so early.¡±

    As Skr took the sandwich, she found it ludicrous. She was allergic to peanut butter, but Jeremy didn¡¯t

    seem to know that even after being with her for so long. However, she could remember all of his

    preferences.

    At the moment, Jeremy was squinting at the ring hickey on Skr¡¯s neck, his expression turning ugly.

    ¡°Why did you turn me down back then? And now you¡¯ve suddenly be so wanton?¡±

 Chapter 145

    Chapter 145

    Skr could only see Jeremy¡¯s mouth moving. Still not satisfied, she adjusted her music volume to its

    maximum.

    The two of them ignored each other for more than ten hours on the train. The sky had turned dark

    outside the windows, and the train coach was filled with varying kinds of aroma. The man sitting across

    the aisle was slurping on some instant noodles. Not far away, someone was drinking and talking so

    loudly that the other passengers found it hard to sleep.

    Skr took out her phone to check the time. It was already three in the morning. Since she boarded the

    train, she hadn¡¯t heard from Tobias. Yet, she could still feel the ghost of his kiss on her lips from

    yesterday.

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    Upon checking his WhatsApp status, she found that he was online, which meant that he simply did not

    want to contact her. Moreover, he even had time to change his profile picture but didn¡¯t ask her about her

    journey.

    Instantly, she felt a pang of disappointment, like a girl in love for the first time, eagerly waiting for her

    boyfriend to contact her. He was constantly on her mind even when she was asleep, and every time she

    opened her eyes, she hoped to see a message from him.

    Skr zoomed in on Tobias¡¯ new profile picture. His previous one only had a nk background, but now,

    it was reced by andscape photo. No matter how much Skr studied it, she couldn¡¯t tell where it

    was taken.

    Seeing that Tobias¡¯ WhatsApp status remained the same, she put her phone aside.

    Just then, Jeremy finished a game of Mobile Legends. When he noticed the downcast look on her face

    as she stared at her phone, he came down from the top bunk and said with a sneer, ¡°Whose text are you

    waiting for? Surely not Tobias¡¯? Look at you, still so attached after getting dumped. Well, I don¡¯t me

    you. After all, women love getting in over their heads. You really are pitiful though, thinking you could

    marry into a rich family. Well, stop dreaming. How could Tobias Ford ever fall for you?¡±

    Every word Jeremy uttered was like a stab to Skr¡¯s heart. Nevertheless, she kept her expression

    impassive and picked up her phone again, nting her head as she tapped on her phone, seemingly

    chatting with someone.

    When Jeremy was talking, she didn¡¯t lift her head once to look at him as she couldn¡¯t be bothered to

    converse with him.

    Jeremy felt like he was punching cotton; nothing seemed to affect Skr. He couldn¡¯t figure out who she

    was currently seeing, but he was certain that it wasn¡¯t Tobias.

    Tobias was considered his creditor now. In order to look the part as an actor, he had taken a loan from

    Reliance Bank, a subsidiary of Ford Group, a few days ago and he med Skr for this. If it weren¡¯t for

    her, he would never have needed to borrow money.

    Abruptly, Skr¡¯s phone screen lighted up with a WhatsApp notification. Her heart skipped a beat before

    pounding violently against her ribcage. Then, she hurried tapped it open.

    Penelope: Skr, are you asleep? I think I¡¯m in love.

    Seeing that it was a message from Penelope, a myriad of emotions washed over her. She regretted

    harboring hope because it only brought her disappointment in the end.

    Skr leaned on the lower bunk bed andnguidly typed out a message: You tell me that once every half

    a month. Which hottie is it this time?

    Penelope: It¡¯s a boy-next-door kind of guy. I¡¯ll introduce you when you¡¯re back. So what exactly is going

    on between you and that guy? Have you broken up? Don¡¯t be a homewrecker.

    Skr: I¡¯m not a homewrecker.

    A hint of sadness entered Skr¡¯s clear eyes at being called a homewrecker by her best friend. Her

    choice of words was rather hurtful.

    However, she didn¡¯t know how to untangle herself from this situation. It didn¡¯t help that Tobias had given

    her an ambiguous answer after she asked him. Just this afternoon, she saw from social media that

    Tanya had participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Luxe, a shopping mall under Ford Group.

    Tanya was still Tobias¡¯ fianc¨¦e in name.

 Chapter 146

    Chapter 146

    Luxe was the biggest luxury shopping mall in the entire country. There were rumors that Tobias had built

    it for Tanya, his fianc¨¦e, so she could shop and dine like a queen whenever she wanted to. This was

    every woman¡¯s dream¡ªmany of them envied Tanya for her good fortune, sighing that she must¡¯ve saved

    the entire universe in her past life.

    Unfortunately, there would never be a ce for Skr in their privileged lives.

    A momentter, she threw herself onto the bed and turned her phone off. She didn¡¯t wish to discuss such

    heavy topics with Penelope in the middle of the night¡ªthey would only end up specting endlessly.

    Jeremy was snoring very loudly. Skr tossed and turned in the lower bunk, unable to fall asleep. She

    kicked his bunk in frustration. However, Jeremy, who was sleeping like a dead log, did not feel a thing.

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but recall when Jeremy was lying in the hospital bed like an ill cat. He didn¡¯t even

    have the energy to breathe. In fact, he reminded her of anguishing flower that had been stripped of its

    petals and left to die in the wind.

    The loud snores then were proof that he was as healthy as a horse. She traded her body for Jeremy¡¯s

    health! This was a stain on her existence that she would never be able to erase for the rest of her life.

    That afternoon, the train finally pulled into N Province. She didn¡¯t sleep a wink throughout the entire

    night, pulling an all-nighter for the first time in her life. On the other hand, Jeremy slept very well. He

    woke up just as they were supposed to get off the train.

    Jeremy followed after Skr as they made their way out of the train station. The distance between them

    was neither close nor far.

    ording to the map, there was still a long way to their destination. The production team didn¡¯t send a

    car over to pick them up. Evidently, they regarded their actors with little respect.

    Jeremy cursed under his breath, ¡°They couldn¡¯t even be bothered to send a sedan over. We have to pay

    for the transportation fees by ourselves! What sort of treatment is this?¡±

    Skr concurred with Jeremy, thinking that the crew disrespected them. However, she wanted to

    distinguish herself from Jeremy, not wanting to be under the same grading as him.

    She managed to hail a taxi by the side of the road. The moment the car door swung open, Jeremy shot

    inside without even sparing her a nce and shut the door after him.

    Skr was furious. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing? I was the one who hailed this cab!¡±

    Jeremy rolled down the window. ¡°Well, I got in first. Get in! Who knows when is the next taxiing? We

    can share the taxi fare.¡±

    Skr looked up at the sky in frustration. Dear God, what did I do to deserve this!

    Don¡¯t make Jeremy appear in front of me ever again.

    Who would even bother splitting the taxi fare! Jeremy was one of the most miserly people she had ever

    met.

    Tobias was right! How pathetic of me to fall for a thrash like Jeremy!

    Skr sat in the seat next to the driver¡ªwhere the payor would usually sit.

    When they arrived at the taxi terminal, Skr swiped her card on the card reader while Jeremy got out of

    the car.

    Skr went to the boot of the car and took out her luggage. She called out to Jeremy and reminded him,

    ¡°The cab fare costs twenty-eight. Please transfer me your share, thanks.¡±

    Jeremy looked sulkily at her. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re really asking me for it! No matter how you look at it,

    we¡¯ve been lovers for such a long time.¡±

    A smile appeared on Skr¡¯s delicate face. ¡°If I can even put a number to it, you owe me more than your

    share of cab fare. Stop spouting rubbish and pay up right now.¡±

    Jeremy transferred the money over to her, looking extremely reluctant. His gaze fell on her luggage,

    which had a Louis Vuitton logo emzoned on it.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Where did you even get that luggage? I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re dragging around a fake branded item when

    you aren¡¯t even famous yet. Look how vain and shallow you are.¡±

    Skr clenched her fists, feeling a sudden urge to p Jeremy across the face. She calmed herself

    down and smiled broadly at him. ¡°It was a gift from my boyfriend!¡±

    A vein throbbed in Jeremy¡¯s neck. How could she have the money for a luxurious suitcase if she could

    barely afford the ne ticket? It is all very suspicious.

    The filming site was in the countryside¡ªthe production crew had selected the location half a year ago.

    During the entire way there, Jeremyined about the producer¡¯s decision to film in such a deserted

    area.

    Although he was whining non-stop, he was actually feeling overjoyed. He had been stewing in a state of

    excitement these past few days.

    Acting in a movie produced by Daryl Williams was a straight ticket to stardom.

    The bus shook all the way to the shooting location, finally arriving at Knoxville Town. The conditions in

    this shanty town were worse than her expectations.

 Chapter 147

    Chapter 147

    The moment they stepped off the bus, a cloud of dust and sand swirled around them. Apparently, this

    town was identified by the government as one of the poverty-stricken areas in the country.

    There was a man in a white cap and grey waistcoat standing by the entrance of the town. When he

    spotted Jeremy and Skr, he made his way towards them immediately.

    They couldn¡¯t tell how old he was. He had long and thick sideburns that extended down the sides of his

    face. There was something bulky shifting around in his coat pocket.

    ¡°Oh, the both of you came together! I¡¯m Howard Cowley. I am tasked to pick the both of you up.¡±

    Howard¡¯s eyes were fixed on Skr as he spoke. He couldn¡¯t help but notice how supple her skin

    looked. How beautiful!

    Jeremy was very eager to make himself stand out. He rushed forward and shook Howard¡¯s hand

    immediately.

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    On the other hand, Skr merely smiled timidly at Howard.

    Howard led them to where the production crew was. On their way there, he updated them regarding the

    important details of the shooting procedure.

    Skr turned to him and asked, ¡°Has the director arrived yet?¡±

    Howard smiled cheerfully at her. ¡°Yes. Regarding your role as the lead actress, the production team has

    arranged for another candidate to film separately. The director will take a look at each of your scenes

    individually before deciding on the lead actress. You guys may go ahead and practice first. We will start

    with the supporting actors¡¯ scenes first.¡±

    Jeremy was pleased to hear this. ¡°I knew it! A renowned director wouldn¡¯t take the lead actress casting

    so lightly!¡±

    Howard¡¯s words proved Skr¡¯s suspicions correct. Before this, she had wondered if her sess had

    come too suddenly.

    If she were Daryl¡¯s first choice for the lead actress role, he wouldn¡¯t be treating her so poorly¡ªpoor

    enough to have her book her own cab to the shooting location.

    Perhaps he had been acting on impulse back when he chose her, and now he regretted it.

    They finally arrived at the filming site. This was the first time Skr had seen so many cameras around

    her. As the extras paced around the set listlessly, the director barked out orders to the other workers.

    Hearing that Howard had brought the two of them there, Daryl walked over to them, chomping nastily on

    a pear. As she met his bleary gaze, Skr felt a shiver run down her spine.

    Daryl scanned her from head to toe. Skr was in her casual wear.

    A pair of silky white ankle stuck out from beneath the rolled-up cuffs of her jeans. Her features, which

    carried a schoolgirl-like innocence, made her look even more beautiful.

    Daryl had wanted her to be his lead actress all along. However, the production teammented she

    appeared too modern,cking the rustic appeal they were looking for.

    Daryl thought that was hogwash. Unfortunately, Skr wasn¡¯t famous enough for him to speak up on her

    behalf.

    In the past, he would have fought bitterly to keep her as the lead actress. However, since he was making

    an art film this time, he had no choice but to bow down to the investors. Frankly, Daryl was very annoyed.

    If he knew this was going to happen, he wouldn¡¯t have invested so much time into looking for the perfect

    lead actress.

    ¡°Have the both of you taken a look at the script?¡± Daryl asked.

    Skr nodded. ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve read through the entire thing.¡±

    Daryl sighed deeply and said, ¡°Well, don¡¯t bother reading it anymore. They¡¯ve changed the lead actress.¡±

    Didn¡¯t Howard say that we would film separately and be judged based on our performance?

    Initially, Skr thought she might have a chance against the other actress if she gave her best efforts.

    The small spark of hope in her heart was extinguished almost instantly.

    ¡°May I know why?¡± Skr wanted an exnation¡ªshe would be lying if she said she wasn¡¯t

    disappointed. ¡°You could¡¯ve told me about this beforehand so I could be mentally prepared.¡±

    Daryl replied calmly, ¡°There¡¯s no reason behind it. It¡¯s quitemon in this industry for lead actresses to

    be swapped out at thest moment. However, I do think you¡¯re quite suited for the role of the supporting

    actress. You¡¯re still young, and there will be many more opportunities ahead of you. Sadly, our investors

    have decided that you won¡¯t be ying the role of the lead actress.¡±

    Skr had read the script of the supporting actress. She couldn¡¯t help but feel that she was nothing but a

    common wench who moaned and griped and seduced men. What an awful character!

    In the end, the supporting actress was the one who ended up with the lead actor. Skr knew that she

    would be getting a lot of hate mail once the film aired.

    Seeing her hesitate, Daryl said immediately, ¡°You can choose not to ept this offer if you don¡¯t want to.

    After all, we haven¡¯t signed a contract yet. If you choose to return home now, the production team will

    absorb the cost of your ne ticket home.¡±

 Chapter 148

    Chapter 148

    Daryl had seen many arrogant newbies in the industry¡ªsome of them refused to take up smaller roles,

    believing that anything else but lead roles were beneath them. He had a strong dislike for this sort of

    people¡ªhow important did they think they were?

    Skr tugged at her sleeves and replied immediately, ¡°When can we sign the contract? If I don¡¯t grab this

    chance now, someone else mighte along and take it.¡±

    Daryl beamed proudly at her. This girl was smart enough to know when she should treasure an

    opportunity.

    He still felt a little sorry for her. He had directedmercial films for years before his career in making art

    films. These sort of films showed off his artistry but often did mediocrely at the box office. This meant that

    the investors called the shots¡ªhe had no choice but to ept whoever they had selected as the lead

    actress.

    Daryl looked at Skr¡¯s pretty face and saw that fatigue was written all over it. Kindly, he said, ¡°Why

    don¡¯t you take a rest now and familiarize yourself with the supporting actress¡¯ lines? It¡¯d be great if you

    could finish memorizing them in three days. Any problems?¡±

    Although she was panicking inside, Skr nodded at him. Memorizing everything in three days was

    going to prove particrly difficult, and she couldn¡¯t guarantee that she would be able to do it.

    A murmur ran through the room as the crowd of people parted to let someone through. Behind Skr,

    Daryl exined, ¡°This is the new lead actress, Katrina Hudgens. You¡¯ll be acting in a lot of scenes

    together, so make sure to run through your lines with each other.¡±

    By the time he finished speaking, Katrina had already walked up to them. Her manager, Lisa, and her

    personal assistant followed behind her.

    Although it was cloudy, her personal assistant was holding a huge umbre over her head.

    Skr recognized Katrina instantly. She used to be the most popr girl at the acting academy. She was

    beautiful beyondparison and had a figure that was tall and alluring like no other. Avery might

    consider herself a great beauty, but Katrina was far more beautiful than Avery could ever be.

    However, despite knowing her name, Skr had never seen her works.

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    After she got together with Tobias, Skr had read up on some tabloid news about him. Katrina was

    photographed meeting up with Tobias¡ªthe two of them had gone into a hotel and only left together the

    next morning.

    Katrina had always been very ambiguous about the rumors swirling around Tobias and herself. It only

    made people more intrigued.

    Even now, everyone still knew Katrina as Tobias¡¯s secret mistress.

    Katrina peered haughtily at Skr and asked Daryl, ¡°Was she the original actress for my character?¡±

    Daryl replied, ¡°I suppose so. She¡¯s a newbie and has never acted in a film before. Do set a good

    example for her as her senior!¡±

    Katrina smiled ndly. ¡°I see.¡±

    She didn¡¯t look at Skr again. Instead, she looped her arm around Daryl¡¯s shoulders and said in a low,

    seductive voice, ¡°Well, I can be considered a newbie myself. Mr. Williams, please take good care of me.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but stare open-mouthed at her. Katrina¡¯s face was mild and sweet, but her

    mannerisms were provocative beyond belief. No wonder she managed to seduce Tobias.

    Skr wondered what Katrina¡¯s rtionship with Tobias really was back then. Were they a couple, or

    were they merely friends with benefits?

    Skr left the scene quietly by herself, without a personal assistant or a manager to apany her. She

    couldn¡¯t help but think of herself as a decapitated fly.

    Katrina¡¯s lips curled into a smile. She turned to Lisa and said, ¡°I wonder what Daryl was thinking. How

    could he have selected her as the lead actress? What¡¯s wrong with his eyes?¡±

    Lisa replied mockingly, ¡°I heard she isn¡¯t even signed to an agency. In fact, she¡¯spletely new to the

    industry. She¡¯s still a freshman in university.¡±

    Katrina¡¯s eyes narrowed as she smiled and said, ¡°No wonder she looks so young.¡±

    Skr walked into the hostel that the production crew had put together half a year ago. Although it was

    nowhere as luxurious as a hotel, it was much better than staying in one of the mud-brick houses the

    locals lived in.

    The rooms were decorated very poorly¡ªthere wasn¡¯t even a ce for her to wash up aside from the

    communal bathroom upstairs. Apparently, only the higher-ups in the production crew had individual

    bathrooms and even mini-fridges in their rooms.

    Skr put down her luggage and took out the script. She had memorized the lead actress¡¯s lines so

    perfectly that she could recite them in her sleep. However, she had been removed from that rolest

    minute. What am I supposed to do now?

    She threw herself onto the bed, which was so hard that she nearly cursed. She felt as though she had

    just fallen into a pit of mud bricks.

    It certainly looked like Skr was down on her luck that very day.

 Chapter 149

    Chapter 149

    She covered her face with the script and shut her eyes in a daze, her fingers gripping her phone tightly.

    Suddenly, there was a loud vibration in her palm. As though she had been injected with stimnts, she

    jolted out of her reverie immediately.

    She sat up on one arm. When she saw that it was Tobias, she let out a sigh that she had been holding in.

    She cleared her throat and epted the call.

    ¡°Are you there yet?¡± His familiar voice made some of her anger dissipate.

    ¡°Yes, I just got here. W-Why are you o-only calling me now?¡± Skr stuttered horribly as she tried to ask

    him.

    N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights.

    ¡°If I didn¡¯t give you a call, are you nning on waiting forever? How can you stand being so stuffy all the

    time? You can give me a call too, you know.¡±

    Skr froze a little. Had Tobias been waiting for her to give him a call all this time? No wonder he was

    only calling her now.

    ¡°Where are you?¡± Skr asked.

    ¡°I¡¯m in Thand. There¡¯s some private business I have to settle. Why, do you miss me?¡±

    Skr wanted to say something in response, but she held herself back from doing so. In her opinion,

    Tobias was exactly like the flying man up in the sky. What is he doing in Thand? He just went to Rome

    a month ago!

    Skr said uncertainly, ¡°I might be back earlier than I thought.¡±

    She didn¡¯t tell him that her role as the lead actress had been given to someone else instead. She

    couldn¡¯t help but fear that Tobias might think of her as being incapable of aplishing anything at all.

    Tobias promised, ¡°I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m stuck here for the time being. I¡¯ll visit you as soon as I return home. Wait

    for me!¡±

    Feeling rather shocked, Skr said, ¡°This ce is filthy as a pigpen. Are you sure you want to visit me?

    There¡¯s dust everywhere and a limited water supply. I don¡¯t even have a bathtub in my room.¡±

    Tobias replied nonchntly, ¡°I¡¯m not going there to take a shower, am I? I might not even be able to go if

    work gets too busy for me.¡±

    Talking to him was like getting aboard an emotional rollercoaster. Skr¡¯s mood changed consistently

    with every inflection in Tobias¡¯ voice.

    She hesitated a few seconds before saying, ¡°I have something to ask you. Do you know who Katrina is?¡±

    In a low voice, Tobias replied, ¡°No, I don¡¯t. Why are you bringing this up suddenly?¡±

    Skr chuckled bitterly to herself. Had Tobias really forgotten about her, or was he merely pretending?

    As expected, an eminent person has a short memory.

    He was photographed leaving the hotel with her sometime back. How can he not know her?

    Tobias hung up the phone. He had never heard of a person named Katrina before. Although it was rather

    strange that Skr brought her up so abruptly, he didn¡¯t bother asking her about it¡ªshe would tell him if

    she really wanted to.

    Skr stayed in her room and perused the script deep into the night. She was a fairly smart girl with a

    powerful memory¡ªhowever, having to memorize such arge volume of information in such a short

    amount of time made her brain feel like goo. Besides, all her lines were long-winded andplicated.

    She had taken on several minor roles before, but none of them had this many scenes. If she wanted to

    excel, she had to bring out the vileness of this character. In fact, it would be best if the audience felt like

    pping her after watching the film!

    She took a shower and returned to her room. Feeling much better, she picked up her phone, turned off

    the lights, andy down on her bed.

    Her phone screen lit up with another notification.

    It was from Tobias: Are you asleep yet?

    He had sent it at midnight¡ªhalf an hour before she stepped into the shower. Skr felt a little regretful.

    She should¡¯ve taken the phone into the shower along with her!

    She wondered if Tobias was asleep yet. If her memory served her right, this was the first time he had

    talked with her deep into the night. Before this, they had only chatted sparsely about very meaningless

    topics.

    Skr rolled to one side and tapped out her reply with one hand.

    Not yet. Are you asleep? Why did you suddenly think of contacting me?

    She spent a few more minutes searching for the right emoji, eventually settling for a cross-eyed cat.

    Tobias replied: What a strange question. You¡¯re the one who told me not to disappear on you and to

    contact you regrly.

 Chapter 150

    Chapter 150

    His words were cold and to the point¡ªit was nothing as romantic as she had envisioned. Skr scolded

    herself for being so petty. Tobias was treating it like a chore instead of messaging her willingly. Did he

    feel forced into it by me somehow?

    Skr replied: Can I ask why you¡¯re in Thand, by the way? For in-vitro fertilization? Getting sex

    reassignment surgery done?

    Her fingers flew across the keyboard as she typed frantically. She wanted to find amon topic of

    interest with him. Truth be told, it was rather pressurizing to have a conversation with a man that was ten

    years older than her¡ªshe couldn¡¯t think of what to say at all.

    Should she be like those university couples and send him lovey dovey messages? No, that was way too

    cheesy.

    Tobias replied immediately: I don¡¯t need that. Besides, I have no wish of bing a woman. I¡¯m here for

    a tattoo.

    Skr rolled around in bed excitedly. She didn¡¯t feel tired anymore.

    She couldn¡¯t help but associate tattoos with backstreet gangsters, who covered their entire bodies with

    skulls and other morbid images. This was theplete opposite of Tobias¡¯s vibe¡ªhe was mature and

    civilized. Since it was quite improbable that he would have gangster friends, how did he ever think of

    getting a tattoo?

    A sudden realization dawned on her. Had Tobias decided to get a tattoo of her name to prove his love for

    her? However, this sort of idea was quite preposterous. Skr was not one of those girls who lost all

    sense of logic the moment they got into a rtionship.

    However, although she tried to hold herself back, her fingers were very honest.

    She replied: What tattoo did you get? You don¡¯t have to do that for me¡­

    The chat window showed that he was typing a reply. However, it disappeared after a short while.

    Skr held onto her phone tightly, looking at the screen without blinking. However, Tobias didn¡¯t reply for

    another thirty minutes. Had her words baffled him?

    In the dead of the night, the crickets were chirping loudly. The surrounding was so quiet that Skr could

    even hear her own breathing.

    After an hour had passed, she decided to message him again.

    Skr typed: ???

    Waiting for him to reply was agonizing. Her heart kept beating furiously. She tossed and turned a few

    times as she yawned loudly. After turning around a few times, she finally fell asleep holding her phone.

    When she woke up the next morning, Skr felt around the bed for her phone before she even opened

    her eyes. When she finally did, the sun was already shining outside. Fatigue made her lie in bed for a

    little longer. When she saw a new notification on her phone, however, she jolted awake immediately.

    Tobias said: Sorry, my phone ran out of batteryst night while I was out.

    That message was sent at eight in the morning. Women were much more analytical when they were in

    love. Like Sherlock Holmes, Skr started to pull apart Tobias¡¯s words in her mind. He was out at one in

    the morning. However, most youngsters would never let their phones run out of battery. They usually

    carried a charger or a power bank with them wherever they went. Does Tobias have neither one of

    them?

    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Has he been drinking at one of Thand¡¯s bars yesterday night?

    Tobias used to be a VVIP at Elysium. Every time the boss knew of his arrival, he would run out and greet

    Tobias as though he were the president himself. Men would get bored easily if they only drank at bars.

    There were definitely women around yesterday night.

    The more she thought about it, the more troubled Skr felt.

    She felt a little bad for treating Tobias so unfairly. After her rtionship with Jeremy, she had be

    much warier of her men, especially her boyfriends. As she thought about it, she realized that Tobias

    wasn¡¯t exactly innocent either. After all, he didn¡¯t have the best reputation in this regard.

    If she were a man and had Tobias¡¯ worth and irresistible face, she would have gotten herself a harem

    by now. How could he stand being tied down by one woman?

    Perhaps the reason behind Tobias and Tanya¡¯s dyed wedding was because he didn¡¯t want to be tied

    down just yet. Perhaps, he still longed for the world of wine and women.

 Chapter 151

    Chapter 151

    She decided to reply as coldly as she could.

    Got it.

    Theirst conversation ended when she brought up the subject of his tattoos. The night often did silly

    things to people¡¯s minds. When she woke up the next morning, Skr marveled at herself for having

    dared to ask him about it. She had been self-delusional, after all.

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    She put her phone down on the bed. After tidying up her room slightly, she headed straight for the

    shooting location. The lead actor was arriving today. Skr overheard this from another person¡¯s

    conversation during dinner yesterday.

    The lead actor was a newbie as well. He had never acted a day in his life.

    That made Katrina the biggest star on the set. Daryl had finally summoned up the courage to cast novice

    actors this time, but the public didn¡¯t think too much of his n. Originally, the male lead was supposed

    to be yed by a social media star who had be very popr recently. However, before they could

    announce this, the production crew had swapped him out with another person.

    Skr paced around the production studio. Several townspeople had gathered around to watch the film

    shooting. Indeed, almost everything was interesting to them in this quiet, unhappening town. Some even

    went up to the production crew and volunteered to be extras.

    ¡°That girl looks so pretty! Look how nice her figure is! Her hips and butt are so well-defined.¡±

    ¡°But she¡¯s way too skinny, don¡¯t you think? Her butt isn¡¯t big enough. I worry for her if she decides to

    have babies in the future. All the actresses look so skinny. I¡¯m afraid they won¡¯t even be able to attract

    husbands, much less have children!¡±

    ¡°I know, right! None of them would be willing to settle downfortably with a guy. In fact, pity the men

    who will end up with them. These actresses get divorced all the time. It¡¯s somon that they probably

    don¡¯t even think twice about it.¡±

    A few older women were gossiping loudly near her. Skr heard everything they said loud and clear. Too

    afraid to pick a fight with the locals, she turned and shed a smile at them. The smile didn¡¯t quite reach

    her eyes¡ªshe wanted to show them that she had overheard their words, and they¡¯d better shut up or

    else.

    Suddenly, something dashed towards her, startling Skr slightly. When she finally recovered from her

    shock, she realized that it was a little girl who had ran out from the crowd and hugged her thigh.

    The girl¡¯s height just barely reached her thighs. Her hair was long and matted. Although it was nearly

    summer, she was still wearing a red cotton jacket. It was stained in so many ces that it was practically

    glowing ck in the sun.

    The girl looked up at her with bright eyes. Her cheeks were ruddy and filthy. Skr wondered when was

    thest time someone ran a bath for her.

    ¡°Miss, do you have anything to eat?¡± the girl asked timidly.

    Skr looked at the girl in shock. Quickly, she dug into her pockets to see if she had anything for her to

    snack on, but her search turned out to be futile.

    The olddies who had been gossiping about her just now crowded around them and started jabbering

    loudly again.

    ¡°Pollyanna, haven¡¯t you eaten yet? Where¡¯s your mother?¡±

    ¡°The mother is a disgrace. What sort of mother doesn¡¯t even feed her own child? Look how skinny the

    girl is. She¡¯s practically skin and bones.¡±

    ¡°She must be busy running after her son at home.¡±

    ¡°Pollyanna, you better let go of that woman immediately. City girls are obsessed with being clean. Why

    are you clinging on to her like that when you¡¯re so filthy?¡±

    As though she had been shocked, Pollyanna released Skr immediately. She bowed her head and

    fiddled her dirt-stained thumbs uneasily.

    Skr squatted down on the floor and caressed the girl¡¯s hair. ¡°I don¡¯t have any food on me now. Wait

    here for me! I¡¯ll go and get you something to eat.¡±

    ¡°God, this kid is absolutely filthy! I could smell her from a mile away. What was the production crew

    thinking, anyway? I can¡¯t believe they chose this disgusting shanty town as the filming location.¡±

    Katrina pinched her nose in disgust as she stopped right next to them. Regardless of where she was, her

    assistant would be behind her, holding the umbre over her head.

    Skr couldn¡¯t believe that anyone could be as cruel as to say these horrible things in front of a child. It

    might leave Pollyanna traumatized for life.

    Seeing the exaggerated expression on Katrina¡¯s face, Skr said darkly, ¡°It¡¯s not as though she doesn¡¯t

    want to take a shower. This ce doesn¡¯t even have running water, to begin with. Besides, you might

    want to get your nose checked out. I can¡¯t smell anything.¡±

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    Katrina blinked her pretty eyes and replied, ¡°I think you¡¯re the one who needs to get your nose checked

    out. Make sure to wash your hands well before we start shooting! I don¡¯t want my on-screen good friend

    to be all oily and gross.¡±

    Pollyanna ran her fingers through her hair, too frightened to say anything.

    Skr¡¯s impression of Katrina was getting worse by the minute. It wasn¡¯t because she stole the role of

    the lead actress from her, or because of the rumors surrounding Katrina and Tobias.

    Rather, it was because of the awful way she spoke to this child. There wasn¡¯t a shred of decency in her

    voice at all.

    Skr ignored her. She took Pollyanna¡¯s filthy hand and bent down to smile at her. ¡°I¡¯ll buy you some

    bread, alright? Do you want to have some soda with it?¡±

    Hearing that food was on its way, the tension finally disappeared from Pollyanna¡¯s face. She nodded her

    head frantically.

    Katrina remained rooted to her spot, frowning slightly. She turned to her assistant and ordered, ¡°When

    we¡¯re shooting our scenes together, make sure to check that she has washed her hands thoroughly.¡±

    Her assistant nodded. Inside, she wasining about how picky and capricious Katrina was. What a

    difficult person she is to work with!

    Skr led Pollyanna to the only sundry store in town. The interior of the shop waspletely dark when

    they stepped inside, and Skr was sure she could smell something rotting.

    The cabs and shelves looked old and dusty. Skr looked at the snacks on the shelves and felt a

    little put-out. Most of them are probably past their expiration date.

    Before she bought some bread for Pollyanna, she made sure to take a good look at the expiration date

    written on the stic packaging. They were still three days away from the expiration date. Skr

    muttered a prayer of thanks and paid for the bread.

    Pollyanna ripped open the packaging and wolfed down the bread. Evidently, it had been a long time

    since she had a full meal.

    In fact, Pollyanna reminded Skr of herself a long time ago, back when she was still living with

    Miranda.

    Back then, they lived a hand-to-mouth existence. Miranda had fallen into a depressive state over her

    failed marriage with Thomas. In fact, she never got over it.

    She couldn¡¯t even be bothered to prepare meals for Skr. Most of the time, they were reduced to eating

    stale croissants at home. Later on, when Skr was sent to live with her grandmother, Meredith had

    called Miranda all sorts of names and med her for taking out her anger on Skr.

    Skr didn¡¯t have many memories from her childhood, but sometimes she thought that was a good

    thing. Having a bad memory that was too powerful could cause unnecessary pain.

    Skr sat on a huge rock and said to little Pollyanna, ¡°Chew slowly. Don¡¯t choke on your food! I¡¯ve even

    bought you soda¡ªhere.¡±

    A bright, youthful voice rang out from behind her. ¡°Children shouldn¡¯t be drinking soda.¡±

    The voice belonged to a man who was wearing an army-green jacket and a shirt with the logo of the

    navy in it. He was wearing a pair of ck loafers on his feet.

    He was a very handsome young man, and he looked even better when he smiled. He was very well put-

    together, but unlike the pretty boys who were gaining fame on social media these days, he had a manly

    air about him.

    Skr replied, ¡°She doesn¡¯t get to drink it that often.¡±

    Pollyanna nodded timidly at the man.

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    He smiled and replied, ¡°That won¡¯t do either. Are you here for the shoot? I¡¯m Kai. I just arrived.¡±

    Skr had seen his name on the list of actors. Kai was ying the role of the male lead in this film. No

    wonder he was dressed in such a peculiar manner.

    Kai¡¯s smile was bright and full of self-confidence. Skr could tell that he had grown up overseas,

    probably in a more liberal country.

    She said, ¡°I¡¯m Skr, and I¡¯m here for the shoot, too. I¡¯m your future wife.¡±

    Realizing how strange that might have sounded, she quickly corrected herself and introduced herself as

    the supporting actress.

    Kai looked at her, and something flickered in his eyes. Very sweetly, he gushed, ¡°What was the male lead

    thinking? Why did he go for the lead actress when there¡¯s a beauty like you around?¡±

    Skr stood up and dusted off her pants. As she straightened out her clothes, she said, ¡°The lead

    actress is way more beautiful than me.¡±

    However, Kai was adamant. ¡°I¡¯ve seen Katrina before, you know. She isn¡¯t really as beautiful as people

    say she is. Anyway, it didn¡¯t leave much of an impression on me.¡±

    Skr muttered to herself, ¡°How picky can you get!¡±

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    Pollyanna finished the bread and the entire bottle of soda. Skr took out

    every single cent she had on herself and pushed the money into Pollyanna¡¯s

    hands.

    Quietly, she said, ¡°Take this money and buy some food for yourself when

    you¡¯re hungry. Don¡¯t let your mother find out.¡±

    Pollyanna nodded thankfully at her. Shyly, she asked, ¡°Miss, can I call you Mom?¡±

    N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights.

    This was a little shocking to Skr. She shook her head and said kindly, ¡°I don¡¯t have any children yet.

    Just call me Skr, okay?¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Pollyanna sounded a little crestfallen. She turned around and fled without looking back at her.

    Kai saw this and said to Skr, ¡°Don¡¯t be so kind to everyone you see. I¡¯ve heard stories about the

    children here. Whenever they see someone from out of town, they act pitiful so they can get free food.

    Lots of people in the production crew have encountered this sort of incident.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t think much of it. Who cared if Pollyanna had tricked her out of her money? The kid was just

    peckish. There was no need to be so calctive about it.

    Skr and Kai made their way to the shooting location. Kai followed after her as Skr led the way. His

    tall, bulky buildpletely shielded her body from the sun.

    When they all got there, everyone¡¯s eyes turned to Kai. Although he was a newbie in the industry, he

    held a rather prestigious status as the only son of Henry Group¡¯s CEO. He was a walking God of

    Fortune.

    Unbeknownst to Skr, Henry Group had another connection to her. The CEO was Tobias¡¯ uncle.

    This made Tobias Kai¡¯s older cousin. Anyone with a background as powerful as Kai¡¯s was surrounded by

    bootlickers everywhere they went. Even the director himself was obliged to treat him favorably.

    Katrina was the happiest person to see Kai¡¯s arrival. Skr couldn¡¯t help but suspect that the two of them

    were somehow involved with each other.

    Skr¡¯s scenes would only be starting filming tomorrow. She returned to her room to memorize her script

    again, conveniently steering clear of Jeremy.

    When Jeremy found out that she had lost the role of the lead actress to Katrina, he started mocking her

    loudly whenever he saw her around the set. Seeing the malicious smile on his face, Skr was so angry

    that she could hardly breathe.

    She wormed into her bed and held her phone high up above her face. The signal here was horrible. The

    Wi-Fi router was basically a decorative item, and her data was working very poorly. It took her ages to

    send out one message.

    She texted Tobias: Are you online? Have you returned from Thand?

    He replied almost instantly: I¡¯m back. I¡¯m having a meeting at the office now.

    Skry on her side and held the phone up to her face. For the past two days, chatting with Tobias on

    WhatsApp was the only thing she looked forward to.

    With Tobias, she felt too shy to say anything romantic. Even a simple ¡°I miss you¡± seemed immensely

    difficult to her.

    She sent him another message: I won¡¯t bother you if you¡¯re in a meeting, then. I was just bored so

    wanted to know what you were doing.

    Tobias didn¡¯t reply for a long time. Just as Skr was starting to wonder if he had ended the

    conversation, her phone screen lit up with a notification again.

    You aren¡¯t bothering me. Find a movie to watch if you¡¯re so bored.

    Skr replied: There haven¡¯t been any good movies recently.

    Tobias sent her a link to a streaming website.

    Skr clicked on the link excitedly. When the website finally loaded, however, she flushed scarlet

    immediately. Her heart was beating so fast that she felt a little light-headed.

    Nevertheless, curiosity got the better of her and she clicked on the video immediately. However, she

    didn¡¯t expect it to y so quickly. Immediately, the lewd sounds of a woman moaning filled the quiet

    room.

    Skr quickly returned to WhatsApp.

    She sent him another message: Why are you making me watch stuff like that?

    Tobias replied: Baby, do you want to spice up our bedroom life? Take a lesson or two from her. We can

    get closer that way.

    A series of embarrassing images popped into Skr¡¯s mind as she read his message. She was bent

    over Tobias¡¯sp¡ªhe raised his hand and swung it down on her buttocks with a humiliating p, leaving

    a clear, red mark on the flesh.

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    Imagining that painful yet gentle sensation, a sense of pleasure and excitement arose in Skr¡¯s heart.

    She got out of bed and stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom, then took off her pants and tried

    spanking herself erotically.

    To her frustration, she could not achieve a sense of pleasure out of it.

    Suddenly, she came back to her senses. What the hell am I doing?

    She put on her pants again and crawled back into bed when she noticed a few unread messages on her

    phone.

    Tobias: Have you seen it? How do you feel?

    Tobias: We can try that when we meet.

    His suggestive text messages made Skr wondered if he was truly in a meeting. How could he speak

    of such things if he were in a meeting?

    She sent a smiley face emoji without typing anything else.

    Tobias: Come on, say something. Don¡¯t just send me a smiley face.

    Skr: I¡¯m afraid of pain. If you hit me like that, it would be considered domestic violence. I¡¯m not a fan of

    that.

    Tobias: Don¡¯t worry, I will control the intensity. You don¡¯t have to be shy with me. Just be yourself.

    Skr: I¡¯m going to sleep.

    Although Skr put an end to the topic abruptly, her heart was captivated by Tobias. As the night fell, the

    air conditioner made a rumbling sound.

    Tobias did not respond to her message any further or even wished her good night, causing her to wonder

    if she had disappointed him.

    At ten o¡¯clock that night, the atmosphere in the meeting room of Ford Group was silent and tense. The

    project manager was still busy presenting his new proposals.

    Meanwhile, the other employees peeked at their CEO from time to time as though they were walking on

    a knife-edge.

    In the midst of his presentation, the project manager wondered if Tobias was listening to him as thetter

    was staring at the phone the whole time.

    There wasn¡¯t much expression on his face, and his employees couldn¡¯t figure out what he was thinking.

    When Tobias heard from Skr that she was going to sleep, he intentionally ced his phone with its

    screen facing up so he could easily see any new iing notifications.

    At that very moment, the project manager ended his presentation.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, do you anyments on the proposal?¡± he asked.

    Tobias finally looked up and narrowed his eyes. ¡°I didn¡¯t catch anything you said just now. Could you

    repeat your presentation?¡±

    Though the project manager¡¯s throat was already dry from speaking, he had no choice but to present

    everything again.

    Just as he scrolled back to the first slide of his presentation, Tobias interrupted him and signaled for the

    secretary toe over.

    The secretary walked over and waited for instructions.

    N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights.

    ¡°Take a look at my itinerary and book me a flight ticket to N Province,¡± said Tobias.

    The secretary was stunned. He wondered why Tobias wanted to add N Province to the itinerary even

    though thepany had no business dealings there.

    Nevertheless, he nodded and answered, ¡°Sure, Mr. Ford. You have some time to spare on Friday. Do

    you want to depart on Friday then?¡±

    ¡°Mhm,¡± Tobias responded. This meant that he would need to wait a week before he could meet Skr.

    This was the first time he had changed his travel ns for a woman. In the past, he used to be

    emotionally detached as such matters would inevitably get in the way of his career and business.

    Early the next morning, Skr was woken up by a sudden knock on her door. As she opened her eyes

    and regained her senses, she regretted what happened the night before. She had spent all night chatting

    with Tobias and did not even finish going through her script.

    She was stunned to see Kai when she opened the door. ¡°Is the hotel on fire?¡± she asked.

    Kai looked around in confusion. ¡°No, do you smell smoke?¡±

    Skr took the hair tie around her wrist and tied her hair into a neat ponytail, saying, ¡°Well, you knocked

    on my door so anxiously. I thought the building was on fire. Is something wrong?¡±

    ¡°I need to use your toilet. The one in my room is broken,¡± he said.

    Before Skr could say anything, Kai rushed into her room to use the toilet.

    Leaning against the door, she said loudly, ¡°Don¡¯t you feel embarrassed? We don¡¯t know each other that

    well, yet you charge into my room early in the morning to use my toilet.¡±

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    With the sound of a toilet flushing in the background, Kai said, ¡°Your room was the closest to mine, and I

    couldn¡¯t hold my pee any longer. There¡¯s nothing to be embarrassed about.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t refute any further, and she treated the situation as though she was doing him a favor.

    A whileter, Kai walked out from the toilet while shaking his wet hands.

    Just as he was about to close the toilet door, Skr stopped him and said, ¡°Don¡¯t close the door. Let the

    smell escape.¡±

    ¡°It was only pee, not poop. Why aren¡¯t you at the studio yet anyway?¡± he answered.

    She stared at him with a puzzled expression, wondering why did he behave as though they were old

    friends.

    She then said sluggishly, ¡°I¡¯m about to leave. The director wants me to familiarize myself with the script

    these two days.¡±

    Suddenly, Kai caught a glimpse of the ck bracelet on Skr¡¯s wrist. ¡°These beads look familiar. My

    cousin also has one of the same colors,¡± he said.

    Skr lifted her arm and took a look at the bracelet. It was given to her by Tobias, but she did not pay

    much attention to it.

    ¡°Not all bracelets are the same. It¡¯s impossible that your cousin and I are wearing matching bracelets,¡±

    she said.

    He then raised his chin slightly, saying, ¡°Of course not. He¡¯s not into innocent girls like you.¡±

    It was Skr¡¯s first official day on set, and she was treated as a neer despite the several small

    roles she had yed before.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Because her skin was extremely fair, Daryl had asked the makeup artist to use a darker shade of

    foundation on her. Otherwise, her natural fair and unblemished skin wouldn¡¯t look realistic when she

    yed characters from the countryside.

    While most lead characters generally looked pretty, Skr¡¯s character was meant to be unattractive-

    looking. She did not have manyints about this since she had yed a dead person before in a

    previous role.

    With a rough attitude, the makeup artist smeared foundation on Skr¡¯s face as though she were

    brushing paint on a wall.

    ¡°It¡¯s not even,¡± said Skr.

    The makeup artist put down the makeup brush and said, ¡°It¡¯s even. You¡¯re just not looking properly.¡±

    She simply let out a hum in response.

    Skr¡¯s first scene showcased a rivalry between her and Katrina¡¯s characters. Leanne, the supporting

    actress yed by Skr, had just found out that Stacie, Katrina¡¯s character, was in love with Todd, the

    male lead yed by Kai.

    So, Leanne asked Todd about their movie date the night before in front of Stacie, deliberately causing a

    misunderstanding between them.

    Out of jealousy, Stacie started to act out.

    During this scene, Skr was wearing army-green pants and white shoes while her hair was tied into two

    long braids. On the other hand, Katrina wore a neat, short wig, making her look youthful.

    With all cameras ready on set, Kai sat on a foldable chair as he watched the two actresses y out the

    scene.

    His agent Mr. Yue then said, ¡°Katrina is really attractive and she has pretty good connections. She will

    be a big hit in the next two years or so. I heard she even had a fling with your cousin some time

    ago.¡±

    Kai looked at Mr. Yue and said, ¡°I don¡¯t think Katrina is that good-looking, but Skr is really pretty to me.

    Her eyes are angelic, yet they contain a hint of sadness. I¡¯ve never met anyone as beautiful as her

    overseas.¡±

    Mr. Yue thought that Skr was pretty too but he responded wittily, ¡°What¡¯s the use of having only good

    looks? If you do not have good connections, you will not be able to make it big either. I heard that Skr

    was initially offered the female lead role but the investors did not agree to it. Of course, there would be

    sadness in her eyes.¡±

    Kai felt disappointed at that moment. If only Skr could y the female lead role, his performance

    would be much better. Katrina simply wasn¡¯t his cup of tea.

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    Meanwhile, Daryl tested his loudspeaker, but the interference of sound waves created a sharp buzzing

    sound.

    He threw the loudspeaker on the ground in an irritated manner, and his assistant quickly brought a

    recement for him.

    After he got a new loudspeaker, he announced, ¡°Things Of The Past¡ªscene five. Action.¡±

    Skr started running through the lines in her head. She maintained a calmposure the whole time.

    She had attended numerous acting sses so performance anxiety wasn¡¯t an issue.

    Tobias was her only source of anxiety then. Whenever she was with him, she would feel nervous.

    During the acting scene, Skr grabbed Katrina¡¯s arm, and just as she was about to say her lines,

    Katrina pushed her away in disdain.

    ¡°Katrina, what are you doing? Why did you push Skr away? The two of you are supposed to be good

    friends during this scene. No conflict whatsoever,¡± Daryl eximed.

    Katrina patted her sleeve on the spot where Skr touched with her.

    ¡°My arm is itching badly. Skr, could you go and wash your hands?¡± she said.

    Skr opened her hands to reveal her sparkling clean palms. She had taken a shower right before she

    left the house and she could still smell the fragrance of soap on her hands.

    However, Katrina¡¯s contemptuous tone made it sound as though her hands were full of germs.

    Upset by the two actresses, Daryl interjected, ¡°What¡¯s going on between the two of you? Why are you

    talking about washing hands in the middle of the scene?¡±

    While Katrina was still feeling agitated and ufortable, Skr insisted, ¡°The cleanliness of my hands

    does not affect our scene. It¡¯s not as if I¡¯m the male lead and we share a kissing scene.¡±

    She did not make anypromises despite Katrina¡¯s darkened expression and her status as a

    neer.

    Daryl then told her, ¡°Go and wash up. We can wrap up early if we manage toplete this scene.¡±

    Seeing how everyone was against her, Skr had no choice but to give in even though she did nothing

    wrong.

    She reluctantly went to wash her hands, and when she returned to set, the makeup artist was touching

    up Katrina¡¯s makeup. Despite the brief disruption on set, she appeared more rxed than everyone else

    there.

    Skr made a rebound quickly as she showcased her acting skills. She executed every facial expression

    and detail perfectly, making Katrina look like a neer inparison to her. In fact, the several

    blunders that happened during the scene were made by Katrina, not Skr.

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    Everyone on set knew of Katrina¡¯s reputation in the industry. She was well-known for simply being a

    pretty face.

    Besides her attractive looks, there was nothing good about her acting skills.

    If Daryl had the say as the producer, Katrina would not be the lead actress in this film.

    After the first scene waspleted, he did not hold back from praising Skr¡¯s performance. ¡°Your

    acting is pretty good and versatile. Those who are not in the know might even think you are a veteran in

    the industry.¡±

    Skr responded frankly, ¡°I¡¯ve yed a couple of minor roles before.¡±

    ¡°Those don¡¯t count. The real beginning of your career starts here with me. You don¡¯t have an agency yet,

    do you? Are you thinking of signing a contract?¡± he said.

    Recalling how Tobias had told her not to sign any deals, she shook her head and said, ¡°I haven¡¯t thought

    about it before since I haven¡¯t graduated.¡±

    Daryl was surprised by her response. He had taken the initiative to offer her a deal, yet she turned him

    down.

    So he tried to persuade her by saying, ¡°Right now, you¡¯re only getting minor acting roles without an

    assistant or agent. Sign a contract with my agency, and I promise I¡¯ll make you famous in three years or

    less.¡±

    Skr was undoubtedly tempted by Daryl¡¯s offer. It was a great opportunity to make a name for herself.

    Nevertheless, she still chose to listen to Tobias and declined Daryl¡¯s offer, ¡°I¡¯m in no rush to be

    famous. We can bring this up again after this film bes a hit.¡±

    Katrina watched them from afar and wondered what they were discussing since Daryl¡¯s expression was

    exceptionally friendly.

    I¡¯m ying the female lead. Shouldn¡¯t Daryl pay more attention to me?

    She then asked Lisa, ¡°Does Skre from a prominent background? Why is the director being so

    friendly to her?¡±

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    Lisa replied, ¡°She¡¯s just an ordinary girl in her freshman year of college. If she had connections, she

    would have been chosen to be the female lead from the start. One of the crew members saw Kai leaving

    her room this morning though.¡±

    Shocked to hear that Kai¡¯s name, Katrina grinned and said, ¡°No wonder Skr was so brazen just now.

    Turns out she has hooked up with the son of a tycoon.¡±

    Lisa then said in doubt, ¡°Skr probably doesn¡¯t know much about his background. Not many people in

    the crew know either.¡±

    Katrina scoffed. ¡°Come on, she¡¯s already sucking up to him. Do you actually think she doesn¡¯t know who

    he is? I¡¯ll organize a dinner party tonight to find out.¡±

    After they wrapped up for the day, she invited the whole crew for a dinner.

    The happiest person in the group was Jeremy, who kept showering Katrina with praises for her

    generosity. He tried hard to butter up to her, but she merely took him as a nobody.

    Skr put on some light makeup and changed into a white loose-fitting t-shirt matched with a pair of

    skinny jeans.

    She had brought a lot of old summer wear with her, and it was only now that she realized she had a lot of

    t-shirts with cartoon prints.

    In the past, she used to love such clothing, but she now thought that they were childish.

    One of the t-shirts had a print of Tom and Jerry. Jerry was holding a big block of cheese, while Tom was

    drooling as he watched on.

    Skr checked herself in front of the mirror for a long time before she finally left, but there were still no

    messages on her phone.

    To receive a message from Tobias the first thing after she finished shooting for the day was what she

    hoped for every day. Even an emoji was good enough for her.

    When she went downstairs, she saw a ck Mercedes-Benz covered in a thickyer of dust. It was as

    though the vehicle had been abandoned in the parking lot for a long period of time.

    Suddenly, the window rolled down. ¡°Hop in. I¡¯ll take you there. You don¡¯t need to take the bus.¡±

    The man turned out to be Kai.

    Skr held on to her leather bag anxiously and stammered, ¡°I-I will take¡­¡±

    Before she could finish speaking, Kai opened the car door for her. As soon as she got in, she felt relieved

    by the stream of cold air from the air-conditioning.

    ¡°I watched your acting today. You are really talented, and you¡¯re a lot better than an acting school

    graduate like me,¡± he said.

    Kai, who was sitting in the passenger¡¯s seat, turned back to look at her. As soon as heid eyes on her,

    he was captivated by her cute and sweet looks.

    ¡°I attended the acting school too,¡± Skr emphasized.

    Kai smiled. ¡°I see. Do you enjoy meat fondue by the way?¡±

    She noticed that he was deliberately trying to make small talk so they wouldn¡¯t feel awkward in the car.

    Nevertheless, she did not pay much attention to him since she was sitting alone in the back seat.

    Instead, she took out her phone to check if she had received any messages from Tobias.

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    Skr: I¡¯m on my way to have meat fondue. Have you eaten?

    She stared at the screen for a while after sending the message, but there was no reply.

    Seeing how dazed she looked while holding her phone, Kai asked her with a smile, ¡°Are you waiting for

    messages? From your boyfriend?¡±

    Skr was taken aback by his question. Is my expression that obvious?

    She nodded and said, ¡°Yup, boyfriend.¡±

    Kai¡¯s expression turned slightly sour as he let out a sigh. ¡°I thought you were single. Having a boyfriend

    before you make your big debut would affect your career,¡± he said.

    Skr didn¡¯t bother to rebut his statement since she was generally not a very ambitious person.

    Meanwhile, the crew was impressed when they reached the restaurant. It turned out that Katrina had

    booked the whole ce for their dinner party.

    After Kai went into the restaurant, Skr stood at the entrance to check her phone again. Her heart

    skipped a beat when she saw an unread message.

    Tobias: I¡¯m still busy. Haven¡¯t eaten yet.

    Tobias¡¯ message put a smile on her face as she was relieved that he wasn¡¯t being cold to her anymore.

    Just a few simple words from him made her feel warm and closer to him.

    On this sultry summer day, heat radiated in the air while the sound of buzzing cicadas and people¡¯s

    chatters filled the county streets.

    Skr typed her reply to Tobias while she walked towards the restaurant.

    Skr: I won¡¯t bother you then. We can chatter tonight.

    The smile on her face widened as she saw him typing back.

 Chapter 158

    Chapter 158

    Tobias: I want you to strip off all your clothes and show me tonight. I miss your sexy body. I will send you

    a video too.

    Skr¡¯s heart skipped a beat and her cheeks warmed up instantly to a red flush. What kind of request is

    that? Is he not embarrassed for saying such stuff? Like hell am I going to ept it.

    Skr: I¡¯m entering the ce now. I don¡¯t want to keep others waiting.

    Tobias: Don¡¯t drink any alcohol. I¡¯ll be waiting for you tonight.

    Acting as if she had done something deserving of guilt, she fumbled while keeping her phone. After

    calming her emotions, she headed up to the second floor and entered the private dining room.

    N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights.

    Upon entering the room, Kai waved at her and pointed to the seat beside him. Skr swept her gaze

    around the room and realized that it was the only seat left.

    She had no choice but to take a seat there. Kai helped to set the cutleries for her while he spoke, ¡°What

    took you so long? I almost wanted to go down to find you.¡±

    Skr replied, ¡°I was on a call.¡±

    Katrina squinted her eyes and teased, ¡°Oh? My male lead seems to be paying special attention to

    Skr.¡±

    Everyone¡¯s ears perked upon sensing that Katrina was trying to create gossip. In response, Skr threw

    in a casualment, ¡°Well, it was probably to return the favor as he came to use my toilet this morning.¡±

    She wanted to take the opportunity to rify while they were on the topic, as there were rumors that

    someone had seen Kai leaving her room that morning.

    Katrina smirked and looked toward Kai. ¡°You are weed to drop by and use my toilet too! By the way,

    did you contact your cousin recently?¡± While the meat fondue was bubbling, Katrina asked in

    anticipation.

    Kai recalled that Katrina and Tobias had been caught entering a hotel together on camera. ¡±He¡¯s a busy

    man. Besides, I went straight to the film set once Inded, so we did not keep in contact with each other.

    Why are you asking anyway? His fianc¨¦e is still living with him,¡± Kai warned her subtly.

    Katrina¡¯s face fell. ¡°I thought the wedding was postponed?¡± she muttered.

    Kai dipped a piece of meat into the fondue and replied, ¡°I¡¯m not sure about that. Are you still hung up on

    Tobias?¡±

    All eyes, except for Skr¡¯s, were on Katrina upon hearing that. The woman in question shed a bright

    smile and exined, ¡°Let¡¯s not bring up the past. The only reason I asked was because I need his

    contact so that I can collect some stuff that I¡¯ve left at his ce. So please, drop me a WhatsApp for his

    contact detailster.¡±

    Upon the mention of Tobias¡¯ name, Skr froze. The fork she was holding slipped through her fingers

    and fell onto the floor.

    She was in disbelief about the fact that Tobias was Kai¡¯s cousin. She ced her cutleries down and

    gulped down a ss of water.

    ¡°Tobias is your cousin?¡± Skr¡¯s eyes flickered.

    The room turned tense at Skr¡¯s question. Everyone stared at her as if it weren¡¯t her ce to speak

    about Tobias.

    Kai replied with a stiff nod. ¡°Why? Do you not know that I¡¯m from a rich family? Or do you know Tobias?¡±

    Skr shook her head and lied, ¡°I don¡¯t know him.¡±

    Katrina chuckled. ¡°She¡¯s still a student. How would she know Tobias? Besides, Tobias isn¡¯t someone you

    can just meet on a whim. Speaking of which, we had not seen him for quite some time already.¡±

    Someone asked, ¡°Were you really in a rtionship with Tobias before? Apologies if I am too direct with

    my question.¡±

    Katrina appeared to be in deep thoughts before she replied casually, ¡°What do you think?¡±

    Every time that question was thrown at her, she would give a vague reply for others to fill in with their

    imagination. Even though Tobias told her that he did not remember Katrina, Skr could not help but let

    her thoughts run wild.

    Katrina was the mood setter throughout the meal, while Skr zoned out often and was not participating

    much in the conversation.

    After the meal ended, Skr was prepared to leave with the others, however, Kai stopped her and

    asked, ¡°Are you free tonight? I was wondering if we could rehearse the scriptter.¡±

 Chapter 159

    Chapter 159

    Skr rejected Kai¡¯s request as it was alreadyte at night and she thought it would be inappropriate for

    a man and a woman to be alone in a room.

    She was still hung up on what Kai had mentioned during dinner earlier about how Tanya was still part of

    the Ford family. She was bummed out but dared not dwell on it further.

    Her ringtone sounded throughout the whole room and Skr fluffed up her hair in front of the mirror

    before epting the call.

    ¡°What took you so long? Are you ready?¡±

    Tobias was seated on a dark brown armchair in front of a French window that disyed an extravagant

    view of the luxurious city.

    Skr noticed how exhausted Tobias looked.

    ¡°Where are you?¡±

    ¡°In the office, alone.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯ste. Why are you still in the office?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not important. What¡¯s important right now is I wanted to see you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here.¡± Skr replied, pursing her lips.

    ¡°Not like this. I want you to strip naked and face the camera for me.¡±

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    Her heart was thumping loudly, and she blushed at the request. ¡°B-but you are at the office. What if

    someone sees us?¡±

    ¡°The office is empty. There¡¯s nothing to be embarrassed about; I¡¯ve seen you naked before.¡±

    She squeezed her phone tightly in her hands, unsure of what to do.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not going to record or take any screenshots of this,¡± Tobias assured with a weary voice.

    She ced her phone down. She knew very well that it was not eptable for her to perform such

    indecent acts but continued nevertheless.

    Her hands slowly reached down to the button on her jeans and tugged at it. She paused after the button

    was let loose.

    ¡°Take off your jeans,¡± he demanded impatiently.

    Skr grasped at her jeans and tugged it down past her hips, letting it slide down her legs to her ankles,

    revealing a cute pair of cotton underwear with strawberry prints.

    ¡°Take off your underwear. Do not leave a single piece of clothing on you, and look at me,¡± he

    commanded.

    Skr could no longer fight against her difort and refused, ¡°I don¡¯t think I can do this¡­¡±

    On the other end of the call, Tobias¡¯ expression darkened. ¡°The next time I see you, I will give you

    pleasure beyond your dreams. So be a good girl now and lie on the bed naked, holding your phone

    above you.¡±

    Skr felt conflicted within, so she asked, ¡°Before that¡­ I have some questions to ask you. Are you still

    engaged to Tanya? And what¡¯s your rtionship with Katrina?¡±

    Even though she was slightly embarrassed to be asking such questions regarding his personal life, she

    felt that she could not rest easy without knowing the answer.

    ¡°Our engagement is practically non-existent. I¡¯m just ying along to keep my mother¡¯s health condition

    stable. As for Katrina, I have no idea who she is.¡±

    Skr still had some doubts about the truthfulness of Tobias¡¯ replies.

    ¡°Alright, now that I¡¯ve answered your questions, it¡¯s your turn to do as I say. I¡¯ve got a meeting in twenty

    minutes, we don¡¯t have much time.¡±

    Now that she had gotten his answer, she had no other choice but to follow his instructions. After stripping

    down, Skry down on the bed while holding her phone with the lens aiming at her abdomen.

    ¡°Move the lens upward and y with yourself,¡± he instructed in a warm and gentle voice.

    She closed her eyes and followed as instructed. Before long, her breath was getting warm and heavy as

    the air in the room thickened with romance.

 Chapter 160

    Chapter 160

    Tobias gave a satisfied smile, all signs of exhaustion on his face earlier had dissipated.

    ¡°Do you want me to crave you?¡±

    Skr bit her lower lip and remained silent.

    ¡°Answer me.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± she lied.

    ¡°What is your favorite position, Baby? Let¡¯s try it when I visit you.¡±

    His deep sexy voice ignited the desire hidden deep within her. She hated herself for feeling that way.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Can I put on my clothes now?¡±

    The vulnerable state that she was in was humiliating yet exhrating.

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    ¡°You haven¡¯t answered my question. What is your favorite position? From the side, the front, the back, or

    on top?¡±

    ¡°From the side,¡± Skr blurted out.

    Tobias put on a smug smile and instructed, ¡°Put on your clothes and don¡¯t catch a cold. I will visit you two

    dayster.¡±

    Skr let out a sigh of relief as the humiliating act had finally ended. As she was about to get out of bed,

    a knock on her room door sent chills down her spine.

    She ended the call in a rush and put on her clothes. ¡°Who¡¯s is it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s me. Quick! Open the door! My toilet broke down again.¡±

    Skr speedily slipped her clothes back on. She opened the door to see Kai dressed in his singlet and

    beach shorts with his arm pressing on the wall.

    Skr stepped to the side to let Kai in. ¡°Have they not fixed your toilet yet?¡±

    Skr¡¯s nervousness seemed a little off to Kai at first, but seeing that she was alone in her room, Kai

    brushed off that thought.

    ¡°Not yet. I¡¯ll be quick.¡±

    A moment after the toilet was flushed, Kai opened the door with his dripping wet hands.

    Skr passed him a pack of tissues and eximed, ¡°Can you please dry your hands? It looked like you

    peed on your them.¡±

    ¡°You are such a vulgardy.¡±

    She red at him and prompted, ¡°Well, since you¡¯re done, please leave. I need to rest. Also, please stop

    coming to my room just to use my toilet. I don¡¯t want rumors to spread.¡±

    Kai made no move to leave. He noticed that Skr did not zip her pants properly. ¡°Your, uh, zipper is

    open. What were you doing?¡±

    Skr blushed upon hearing that and rushed into the toilet to tidy herself.

    Kai stood outside the toilet with his arms crossed and brows frowning. ¡°See? You¡¯re lucky I¡¯m here to

    warn you! Just imagine how embarrassing would it be for you if you were to leave your room like that.¡±

    Skr rubbed her temple to soothe her frustration. ¡°Thank you very much,¡± she replied with sarcasm.

    ¡°Now, please remember to close the door when you leave.¡±

    In response, Kai looked at Skr with his pretty eyes and introduced, ¡°Hi, I¡¯m Kai. I¡¯m twenty-four this

    year. I have no particr hobbies nor bad habits. My height is a hundred and eighty-three centimeters

    and my weight is-¡±

    ¡°Hold on, what are you doing?¡± Skr cut him off.

    Kai raised his brows and exined, ¡°I¡¯m doing a self-introduction because I want to be friends with you.¡±

 Chapter 161

    Chapter 161

    ¡°We¡¯re not elementary kids anymore. We don¡¯t need to do that to be friends.¡± Skr gave Kai a

    judgmental look.

    Kai chuckled and said, ¡°I admire your simplicity.¡±

    Skr was not exactly pleased with Kai¡¯spliment, as it could also mean that she was dumb.

    ¡°Are you close with your cousin?¡± Skr inquired while she sat and threw a bottle of water to Kai.

    Kai caught the bottle easily. He felt slightly annoyed and asked, ¡°Why are you so interested to know

    about my cousin? Do you know him?¡±

    Skr blinked her eyes a few times and lied, ¡°I¡¯ve heard his name before.¡±

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure the majority of the people have heard about him. His aloof personality and high status in

    the corporate world made him a mysterious figure. He doesn¡¯t spend his time on casual meetups or

    hangs out with kids like us.¡±

    Upon hearing Kai referring to himself as a kid, Skr thought he was way past the age to called himself

    that. However, it was true that Tobias was significantly older than them.

    Seeing how she was silent, Kai continued to ask, ¡°Why are you asking all these, anyway? Are you

    interested in him?¡±

    Skr pursed her lips slightly, thinking of a reply to Kai. How should I answer him? It¡¯s not like I can just

    blurt out to him that I had slept with Tobias.Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°You¡¯re overthinking it. I¡¯m just asking so that we¡¯ll have something to talk about.¡± Skr smiled faintly,

    showing her dimples. Kai was mesmerized by her cute smile.

    ¡° Well, this topic is boring. Why not ask me about my favorite food or my favorite game? Or even tell me

    what you like so we can find somemon interests.¡± Kai wanted to showcase himself to gain Skr¡¯s

    interest.

    She let out a big yawn and asked, ¡°Look, I am not interested to know what you like to eat nor am I

    interested to know what games you like to y. I really hate staying up past bedtime, so good night.¡±

    It was obvious that Skr was trying hard to chase Kai out of her room. Kai looked at the clock and

    realized that it was indeedte. ¡°Alright, rest well. Don¡¯t forget to lock the door. I¡¯ll be here in the morning

    to use your toilet.¡±

    Skr was speechless. If she could, she would gift a toilet cubicle to him so that he would not disturb her

    in the morning.

    Just as Kai was leaving Skr¡¯s room, Mr. Yue caught him. The atmosphere turned tense as the two

    men¡¯s eyes met. Kai could tell that Mr. Yue was displeased from the man¡¯s darkened expression.

    ¡°Kai, what¡¯s going on with you and thatdy? Now¡¯s not the time for you to be dating around. There are

    rumors questioning about the rtionship that the two of you share already! You¡¯re still a budding artiste

    so please, don¡¯t ruin your career like that.¡±

    Mr. Yue frowned at Kai.

    Kai leaned against the wall and exined, ¡°I am not dating anyone, I was just trying to make some

    friends. Besides, she already has a boyfriend.¡±

    Mr. Yue saw through his act and eximed, ¡°A boyfriend wouldn¡¯t stop you from pursuing her anyway. I

    know you very well, you¡¯re not someone who gives up easily. Just promise me you¡¯ll be careful not to end

    up being used by her as a stepping stone.¡±

    Kai smirked and said, ¡°You are overthinking this. Skr¡¯s not that type of person.¡±

    Mr. Yue chuckled. ¡°You know, you are great in every aspect except for that naivety that you have. I still

    think that you should stay away from her for the sake of your career.¡±

 Chapter 162

    Chapter 162

    ¡°Okay. Alright. I got it. I¡¯ll take note of it,¡± Kai interrupted to stop Mr. Yue¡¯s nagging.

    Meanwhile, just as Skr was about to sleep, her phone screen lit up, notifying her of a text on

    WhatsApp. Her body shivered in anticipation as she swiped across her screen.

    Thest time she felt that sweet feeling of anticipation was years ago.

    That time, when she was done with her assignments, she would switch off the lights and get to bed at

    eight-thirty at night with her phone in her hand. There were no instant messaging apps then; the phone

    was only used for text messages and phone calls. Jeremy would always give her a call at that time to

    catch up.

    Time flew by so quickly. She never expected that she would end up waiting for someone else now.

    Before Tobias hung up the call earlier, he told Skr that he was going to attend a meeting. As such, she

    thought that the message must be from him informing her that the meeting had ended.

    However, when she saw that it was a notification from Kai adding her as a friend on WhatsApp, she was

    slightly disappointed. He must have gotten my contact number from the workgroup¡¯s WhatsApp group

    chat.

    And here I am, thinking that it was from Tobias¡­

    She added Kai¡¯s number to her contacts too. His profile picture was a cool-looking purebred Husky.

    N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights.

    ¡°KaiKaiKai¡± was Kai¡¯s disy name on WhatsApp.

    ¡°KaiKaiKai¡±: This is my number. Hey, did you know you can star a contact? That way, I¡¯ll always be at the

    top of your contact list.

    Skr had no idea that WhatsApp had that kind of function nor did she care.

    Skr: If there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯m going to sleep. Good night.

    ¡°KaiKaiKai¡±: Wait, we haven¡¯t even started chatting yet. I want to share all my WhatsApp stickers with

    you. You can save them for future use.

    With that, her WhatsApp was soon flooded with sticker packs that Kai sent. However, she did not add

    them because Tobias did not like it when she sent him stickers on WhatsApp previously.

    ¡°KaiKaiKai¡±: Are you there?

    ¡°KaiKaiKai¡±: Hey! @Skr where are you? Do you need help?

    As the soft moonlight shone through the windows, Skr let out a huge yawn. She thought back to

    Tobias¡¯ request earlier and felt her cheeks heating up. She hid under her nket to relive that moment.

    Skr¡¯s phone kept lighting up throughout the night while she was soundly asleep. The next day, she

    was rudely awakened by someone knocking on her door. She checked her phone to find a whole lot of

    messages from Kai.

    The man in question was currently knocking on her door. Once Skr opened the door, Kai rushed into

    the toilet.

    ¡°Have you had your breakfast yet?¡± Kai asked while he was in the toilet.

    ¡°I was just woken up by you. Of course I haven¡¯t had breakfast yet. I¡¯ll find some random ce nearby to

    grab a biteter.¡±

    Afraid that Skr could not hear him, Kai said loudly, ¡°Now, now, we can¡¯t have that. I have some extra

    bread. I¡¯ll get them for youter.¡±

    Skr felt uneasy changing her clothes in the room with Kai around, so she urged, ¡°Are you done? I

    need to wash up and change my clothes.¡±

    Kai intentionally flushed the toilet on the high-pressure mode to show Skr that he really needed to use

    the toilet.

    On their way to the film site, Skr stayed a distance behind Kai.

    They were giving out croissants and soy milk for breakfast.

    Kai took three cucumber sandwiches for Skr.

    ¡°Here, I got you some cucumber sandwich.¡±

    Skr hated cucumber sandwiches. Miranda used to feed her cucumber sandwiches daily, so she got

    sick of them as she grew up.

    She shook her head and rejected, ¡°No thanks. I¡¯m watching my weight.¡±

    Kai gave her a once-over before he said, ¡°You¡¯re already skinny enough, so why are you still on a diet?

    Don¡¯t you know that girls who have some meat on them are the prettiest?¡±

    Skr got a feeling of d¨¦j¨¤ vu upon hearing Kai¡¯s words as Tobias had said the same thing as well.

 Chapter 163

    Chapter 163

    Skr took a sip of the rich and creamy soy milk. ¡°I¡¯m going to do my makeup now. I¡¯m fine with just a

    ss of soy milk.¡±

    As soon as she opened the door to the makeshift dressing room, she was instantly greeted by a wave of

    chilly air. The air conditioner was on full st, keeping the room¡¯s temperature at its lowest.

    The next moment, she was stunned to see Katrina lying on a military camping cot with a Herm¨¨s nket

    covering her body while a stylist was kneeling before her, doing her makeup.

    Standing beside Katrina was her assistant, who was holding a bouquet of roses under her request to fill

    the room with the scent of it.

    Had Skr not seen it with her own eyes, she wouldn¡¯t have known that those rumors on the inte

    about Katrina¡¯s diva behavior were not at all exaggerated.

    Katrina opened her eyes at the slight squeak of the door. ¡°Shush! I¡¯m trying to get some rest here!¡±

    Disregarding her insolence, Skr took a seat at the vanity table, waiting for the stylist to do her makeup.

    When she was done with her makeup, Katrina was still lyingzily, enjoying the scent of the roses.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr thought that her look was ugly today. Her outfit was abination of red and green, while her skin

    was tanned. Although it was a healthy skin color, it had concealed the natural beauty of her ss skin.

    Katrina only came out of the dressing room when Skr was almost done with her part of the shooting.

    Although Daryl had reminded the makeup artist to tan her skin, still, the foundation on Katrina¡¯s face was

    a few shades lighter than it was supposed to be. It didn¡¯t take a genius to know that she had once again

    disobeyed Dn¡¯s instruction.

    Her skin tone didn¡¯t suit the image of a vige girl; instead, it made her look more like a Victorian socialite

    living in the city.

    Upon seeing Kai, who was standing on the sidelines watching Skr act, she signaled her assistant to

    hand her phone over to him. ¡°You haven¡¯t given me Tobias¡¯s contact number.¡±

    With a deadpan expression, Kai turned her request down. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t give it to you. That¡¯s a

    vition of privacy. If you really want to get his number, you can always ask from other people.¡±

    Hearing that, Katrina¡¯s face darkened. She knew that even if she were to ask people around her, no one

    in her social circle would happen to know Tobias in person since thetter was someone of high society.

    As the day¡¯s shooting came to an end, Daryl called Skr over to guide her on her acting skills. He

    pointed out her weaknesses, saying that she should have more confidence and be more expressive with

    her eyes.

    He was sitting with his legs crossed while Skr was standing meekly before him like his student.

    Unbeknownst to him, however, her mind had long wandered off.

    She was eager to check on her phone in the locker because Tobias, having a change of ns, said he

    woulde and meet her that day. She was worried he couldn¡¯t find the location.

    The moment Daryl let her go, she raced into the dressing room like a horse out of the gate to grab her

    phone. To her disappointment, she only saw two app notifications.

    Just then, a sudden tap on her shoulder startled her. She turned around to find Kai standing close to her,

    his face inches away from her.

    ¡°You scared me! What are you doing here?¡± she asked. The annoyance was clear in her voice.

    ¡°I just heard that Jeremy is your ex. Don¡¯t you feel awkward to be cast in the same film with him?¡± Kai

    came to seek verification from her once he heard about the news.

    Skr mmed the locker shut with a ng. ¡°It¡¯s not like I can do anything about it. I can¡¯t possibly tell

    the director that I¡¯m quitting, can I?¡± She rolled her eyes at him internally before asking, ¡°Do you know

    any ce where I can take a shower? It¡¯s been a week since Ist took a shower.¡±

    There was no bathing facility in her room, and there was no running water in the ce to begin with.

    Every night, she could only clean herself by heating the water in the thermos and pouring them into a

    basin.

    Since Tobias promised that he will give her pleasure previously, she knew that Tobias would have

    intimacy with her when he visitster. It would be embarrassing if she met him with a stinky body and

    filthy hair.

    It took a while for Kai to respond to the sudden change of topic. He thought for a while before answering,

    ¡°Even I don¡¯t have a bathing facility in my room. Why don¡¯t I ask my assistant to drive you to the county?

    You can take a shower there.¡±

    His suggestion brought a smile to Skr¡¯s face. ¡°Thanks. I owe you one. I¡¯ll treat you to a meal next

    time.¡±

    ¡°Next time?¡± Kai said seriously, ¡°Give me an exact date to show your sincerity.¡±

    ¡°When the film shooting ends.¡±

    Kai was satisfied with the answer he got. ¡°I¡¯ll be looking forward to it then.¡±

    Since there was no shooting on her part in the afternoon, Skr took a ride on Kai¡¯s car, heading to the

    county to take her shower. On her way there, she called Tobias several times but couldn¡¯t reach him.

 Chapter 164

    Chapter 164

    It was alreadyte afternoon when she finished taking her shower. In the changing room, she called

    Tobias again. This time, the call went through.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t youing?¡± she asked.

    ¡°I¡¯m still busy,¡± was his curt reply before he ended the call.

    At that instant, she couldn¡¯t help furrowing her brow as her eyes dimmed with disappointment. He¡¯s still

    busy, which means he probably won¡¯te tonight.

    She had dressed up and starved herself to have dinner with him tonight. However, the higher the hope,

    the greater the disappointment; she was upset that he stood her up.

    Meanwhile, Kai¡¯s assistant, Logan, was leaning against the Mercedes-Benz, waiting for her. The country

    folks were all surrounding the eye-catching vehicle.

    As soon as she got in the car, she apologized, ¡°I¡¯m sorry for keeping you waiting so long.¡±

    Logan started the engine while reassuring her, ¡°No worries, Ms. Jones. Mr. Ronalds has ordered me to

    be at your service. It is no biggie even if I have to wait for you for the entire night.¡±

    Oh my, he does have a way with his words, huh, was Skr¡¯s impression of Logan.

    On the journey back, Skr had no choice but to carry on the conversation with him when thetter kept

    rattling on about Kai¡¯s friendliness and how nice he treated his employee.N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights.

    Just then, the ringtone of her phone interrupted their conversation. Without bothering to look at the caller,

    she answered the call as if it was her lifeline.

    ¡°I was busy just now, but now I¡¯m free. Are you so eager to meet me?¡± Tobias¡¯s deep voice was heard

    through the phone.

    Skr took a nce at Logan, who was keeping his ears out. She lowered her voice, whispering on the

    phone, ¡°Are you on your way? Or are you noting?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if I can arrive in time. Hey, stop changing the topic. Are you so eager to meet me? Do you

    miss me?¡±

    Feeling shy to admit it when someone was around, she stuttered, ¡°J-just a little, I guess¡­ I-I¡¯m in the car

    right now, so I¡¯ll talk to youter.¡±

    Before she could end the call, however, Logan suddenly coughed. His voice was loud enough to reach

    the other side of the line.

    ¡°Whose car are you taking?¡± asked Tobias in a cold voice. Skr hesitated for a moment before she

    responded with, ¡°What was that? I can¡¯t hear you. The line is bad. Hello? Hello?¡± With that, she hung up

    on him and heaved a sigh of relief. This man is really a jealous boyfriend.

    When she was back at the film set, she was required to act for an extra scene due to an amendment of

    the script. The scene in question was supposed to be Katrina¡¯s drowning scene.

    Before they started shooting, Skr voiced her concern to Daryl. ¡°I don¡¯t know how to swim. Is there

    anyone here who can save me if anything bad happens?¡±

    Hearing that, Daryl gave her an impassive nce. ¡°Are you asking for a double?¡±

    That was not her initial intention, but she nodded anyway. ¡°Yes, that would be great because I have a

    fear of water.¡±

    Dn simply brushed her off. ¡°We can¡¯t find a double for you at thest minute. You need to y the

    scene on your own.¡±

    Skr regretted having wasted her time taking a shower. Damn¡­ I should¡¯ve used that time to learn

    doggy paddle instead.

    Kai, who had justpleted his scene, patted his chest confidently while reassuring her, ¡°Don¡¯t worry,

    I¡¯m here for you! I¡¯ll save you if anything goes wrong.¡±

    Skr gave him a firm nod. Then, she made up her mind to just go with it.

    With the cameras at the ready, she stood in the designated position by the river, or rather, abined

    sewer outfall.

    They were required to shoot the scene at night to get real and high-quality footage. Although there was a

    water shortage in the ce, the director found a way to go about the issue by editing the outfall into a

    lake during the post-production phase.

    Meanwhile, Katrina was vaping at the side. Her assistant was standing behind her, massaging her

    shoulder. shing Skr a faint smile, she uttered, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I¡¯m on my period. Oh! By the way, I¡¯ve

    read the script just now. I should try to save you when you¡¯re falling into theke to strengthen the

    storyline. In contrast, your character should be an antagonist hated by the audience.¡±

    Skr was displeased. ¡°Next time, if you are going to make amendments to the script, can you please

    inform me earlier?¡±

    Katrina rolled her eyes in response. ¡°I¡¯ve alreadymunicated with the director beforehand, so just act

    ording to what I¡¯ve said. I¡¯ve been pulling all-nighterstely, and my skin condition has be worse.

    Ugh! Hopefully, we can finish everything early today.¡±

    On the stuffy summer night, the sound of crickets was distinct. The shadows of the trees fell across the

    road and hid the brilliant moonlight.

    Skr was wearing peasant clothing made out of linen and rough wool. Her forehead was covered with

    perspiration, and her clothes were drenched in sweat.

    ¡°Everyone, get in position! Three, two, one, action!¡±

 Chapter 165

    Chapter 165

    As the camera started rolling, Katrina, who yed the role of Stacie, began saying her line, ¡°We

    shouldn¡¯te out sote at night. They will scold us if they find out.¡±

    Str, who was cast as Leanne, replied, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. No one is going to find out. Stacie, do you know

    how to dance? Arthur has taught me before. He said he would bring me to a ball when he is back in town

    and teach me ballroom dance.¡±

    ¡°Stacie¡± lowered her head though her facial expression was a little unnatural. At this point, Skr walked

    to the designated camera position where ¡°Leanne¡± was supposed to pick a flower by thekeside but

    identally slipped and fell into theke.

    She struggled in the water, calling out for help. It was done out of instinct as she was overwhelmed by

    the fear of drowning.

    However, Daryl thought she was acting since this was exactly the type of genuine reaction he wished to

    capture.

    Fortunately, Kai jumped into the pool to save her in the nick of time. He approached her from behind and

    ced his arms under her armpits before dragging her to thekeside.

    No one gave him a hand when he was pulling her to shore.

    Soon after that, the crew¡¯s doctors on standby crowded her. They realized she was suffering from serious

    pulmonary aspiration.

    Kai was infuriated. ¡°Are you guys blind? Can¡¯t you see that she was drowning just now?¡± he roared.

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    Everyone fell silent at that, except Katrina.

    ¡°Tsk. She dares call herself an actress when she doesn¡¯t even know how to swim?¡± Her words were

    dripping with mockery as she made the remark.

    Skr gradually regained consciousness. For a moment, she thought she was going to die.

    Her body was soaking wet. Fortunately, Kai was thoughtful enough to cover her with a nket.

    Daryl yed down the seriousness of the incident by saying casually, ¡°That scene is not done yet. We

    still need to shoot the part where the female lead saves you.¡±

    Hearing that, resentment started boiling in Skr¡¯s heart.

    Kai raised his objection. ¡°Do you really think she can do it again in her current condition? This is

    supposed to be Katrina¡¯s scene. Why are you asking Skr to do it instead?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to perform this part on my own, but the storyline requires her to do it.¡± Katrina

    refuted.

    Lying on the ground, Skr felt as if she was a rare animal in the zoo being surrounded by people.

    Reluctant to be the center of attention, she tried to stand up.

    Kai immediately grabbed hold of her arm, helping her up. ¡°Are you alright? Are you cold?¡± he asked with

    his voice full of concern.

    With a faint smile, shemented with a self-deprecating sense of humor, ¡°My whole body stinks.

    Guess I will need to shower again.¡±

    Since she was not in a good state, Daryl allowed her to take a shower in his motorhome and get off work

    earlier that day.

    Skr didn¡¯t dare to dally in the director¡¯s motorhome. Although still in shock, she managed to take a

    quick shower and change into clean clothes in the shortest time possible.

    Kai was waiting for her outside when she got out of the motorhome.

    ¡°Thanks for saving me today. If it wasn¡¯t for you, I could¡¯ve died.¡± She was grateful to him for his help.

    Kai raised his hand to stroke her hair in response to her gratitude. Instinctively, she took a step backward

    to shun away from his rather intimate action.

    Smiling, he retracted his hand. ¡°You don¡¯t need to thank me for that. Come on! I¡¯ll walk you back to your

    room.¡±

    Wishing to spend more time with her, he tried to strike up a conversation when they reached her

    doorstep. ¡°I¡¯ll try to persuade the director to change the script. You can¡¯t do this again.¡±

    Skr shook her head before muttering, ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll search for some videos and learn how to swim.¡±

    Then, she dismissed him, ¡°Goodnight!¡±

    His gaze traced her movements as she entered her room. His heart was aching for this youngdy who

    not only joined the crew alone but was being bullied as well. At that instant, he couldn¡¯t help feeling

    protective toward her.

    The moment Skr closed the door, someone grabbed hold of her arm, pulling her over. Before she

    even realized it, she was being pinned against the wall.

    She was frightened to the core, thinking that it was a bad guy. Before she could let out a scream, the

    man mashed his lips against hers, giving her a passionate kiss.

    His breath was a mix of mintbined with tobo. She could tell the man¡¯s identity from the familiar

    scent of his white sandalwood cologne.

    She groped for the switch and turned on the lights, enveloping the room in warm light the next moment.

    Stung by the sudden brightness, Tobias involuntarily squinted his eyes.

    ¡°I thought you¡¯re noting.¡± She felt a tingling sensation on her cheeks caused by the friction of his

    stubbleing into contact with her skin.

    He held her in his arms, his breath tickling her as he spoke, ¡°I always try my best to keep my promise.¡±

    Then, he asked in a hoarse and tired voice, ¡°Do you miss me?¡± It seemed like this man had had a long

    and tiring day.

 Chapter 166

    Chapter 166

    ¡°How did youe in here, anyway?¡± she asked, resting her head against his chest. She was still

    slightly out of breath as she hadn¡¯t recovered from the trauma of the drowning incident.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t sneak in. I simply walk in here not too long ago.¡±

    The man didn¡¯t give her any time to recollect herself. He started fondling her while his lips lingered at her

    corbone, nibbling it. Every inch of him was craving for her and the uing lovemaking session.

    Her face was flushed, and she bit her lips to suppress her moan from the sexual pleasure brought about

    by the slightly tingling yet exciting touch.

    Just then, she realized he was trying to remove her pants. She quickly halted him, panting slightly as she

    pleaded, ¡°I¡¯m tired today, and I wish to take a break. Can we do itter?¡±

    He grumbled impatiently, ¡°You women are indeed troublesome.¡± He honestly thought Skr wouldn¡¯t be

    any more tired than him.

    He hadn¡¯t slept for three days, working days and nights so that he could finish his work at hand toe

    and meet her.

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    Without losing any time, he carried her in bridal style all the way to the bed. Then, he removed all her

    clothes before tossing her onto the hard mattress.

    He was still neatly dressed when he climbed onto the bed. ¡°Help me take off my clothes. If you¡¯re tired,

    you can just sit on top of me while I do all the work. I¡¯m sure you know what I¡¯m hinting at.¡±

    Skr was stunned speechless. He wants me to sit on him stark naked?

    She missed him a lot when he was not around. Now that he was finally here, she was afraid he would

    drain all her energy in bed.

    ¡°Are you here because you really miss me, or you just want to have sex with me?¡± She pressed her

    hands against his chest with all her might to prevent him froming any closer.

    ¡°Is there a difference?¡± He raised his eyes, fixing his gaze on her.

    She nodded firmly in response. If she didn¡¯t get a definite answer from him, she would be upset.

    Letting out a sigh, he lowered his head to look her in the eyes. ¡°If I only want to have sex, why would I

    postpone all my work and travel all the way here? Think about it. Since morning, I¡¯ve been driving for

    hours just to reach this freakin¡¯ ce.¡±

    Skr¡¯s eyes flickered as she was satisfied with his exnation.

    Noticing her attitude had softened, he grabbed her hand and wrapped it around his waist while his other

    hand traveled along her thigh to herher region. At that moment, Skr couldn¡¯t help but clench his

    ck shirt helplessly. Hmph! It¡¯s unfair. Every time I¡¯m stark naked, he still has his shirt on. Wait¡­ Did he

    take off his pants?

    She couldn¡¯t help casting her eyes downward, but she quickly looked away upon seeing his erection.

    ¡°Are you satisfied with what you saw?¡± His deep and husky voice made her heart flutter.

    She turned her head aside and refused to answer him, but her unrhythmic breathing gave her away.

    Disregarding her silence, he gave a peck on her forehead. ¡°Didn¡¯t you mentioned your favorite sex

    position before? I need you to tell me again,¡± he coaxed.

    With her cheeks burning, Skr pursed her lips and remained muted.

    Tobias crawled on top of her, propping himself by resting his arms on both sides of her body. ¡°Baby,

    come on. I really want to hear you say it. If you don¡¯t answer me, I¡¯ll have to try every position to find out

    myself.¡± He pressed his lower body against hers as he spoke.

    She knew he meant what he said, so she had no choice but to answer him, ¡°From the side.¡± Her voice

    was barely audible.

    Upon hearing her answer, his eyes darkened, swirling with lust. ¡°Alright. You¡¯ll get what you want, baby.¡±

    Breathing heavily, she dared not look at him.

    The moment he entered her, she was so nervous that she tightened up, giving him the feeling as if she

    was still a maiden. He resorted to kissing her lovingly to loosen her up. As the two became more sexually

    compatible over time, he began getting the knack of it, knowing what to do at the right moment.

 Chapter 167

    Chapter 167

    While they were sharing the passionate kiss, he suddenly lifted her waist, pressing her lower body

    against his. She held her breath at the sudden difort from herher region. The next moment, she

    swallowed her moans when the man once again kissed her ferociously.

    After a few rounds of sex, Skr¡¯s lips were already bleeding from her biting it to prevent her moan from

    escaping.

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    In the end, after being overwhelmed by the intense sexual pleasure, she began to whimper.

    Soon, her voice caught Tobias¡¯ attention. He eventually slowed down his pace when his eyes met her

    pitiful expression.

    By then, she couldn¡¯t even utter a word because of the soreness of her body. The long hours of

    lovemaking had exhausted her body.

    Although he still hadn¡¯t had enough of her, he had no choice but to end their lovemaking session much

    earlier than he expected. He pulled himself away from her at thest minute and released himself. After

    that, he wrapped her in his arms, caressing her back while kissing her gently.

    In a rxed state, he looked at her with his half-squinted eyes. For Skr¡¯s part, she was panting heavily

    while staring into space, her body was still shaking.

    A sense of guilt washed over Tobias at the sight. He knew he would need more time and patience if he

    was to unlock new sex positions with her. Since she was still inexperienced, he should be more patient in

    getting her in the mood.

    ¡°Baby, do you feel good?¡± He kissed the back of her ears and down to her neck before letting his lips

    lingered at her corbone.

    She closed her eyes, and her eyshes fluttered at the ticklish sensation. To her, Tobias was still a little

    careless and rough during their lovemaking.

    After a while, she expressed frankly, ¡°I¡¯m so tired. Can¡¯t you be gentler next time?¡±

    It hit him in the soft spot to hear her grumbled in a muffled voice. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll be more careful next time.

    Come! Let me carry you to the washroom. I¡¯ll give you a shower.¡±

    She tried to take the edge off her sleepiness upon hearing his words. Until now, her thigh was still

    shivering. ¡°There¡¯s no bathing facility here. As you can see, the living condition is harsh in this ce.¡±

    Tobias remembered her mentioning the poor living condition before, but he never expected it to be so

    harsh to this extent.

    The room was a little cold as the air conditioner was set at a low temperature. He covered her body with

    the nket before getting out of bed. He then found the remote on the nightstand and set the air

    conditioner at a few degrees higher.

    Lying on the bed, Skr fixed her gaze on his back. The man still had his shirt on while exposing his long

    pair of legs, and he had already worn his underwear without her realizing it.

    Tobias was a very tall guy. Since she became his girlfriend, six feet in height was considered short for a

    man in her eyes now.

    Just then, he picked up his trousers and fished out his Nat Sherman cigarette packet. He wanted to lit his

    cigarette, but he couldn¡¯t find his lighter.

    At this moment, he was no different than any other ordinary man who would be grumpy when they

    couldn¡¯t find their lighter.

    Finally, he gave up looking for the lighter and ced the cigarette down on the nightstand.

    ¡°Where is your tattoo?¡± she asked while turning on the bedsidemp to see better.

    However, Tobias disliked the sudden brightness.

    Standing beside the bed, he lifted her chin with his finger. ¡°Why are you so curious about my tattoo?

    What do you think I¡¯ve tattooed?¡±

    Every woman would have the kind of anticipation that their man would ¨C like an impetuous man madly in

    love ¨C tattoo her name on his body; Skr was no exception. Yet, she was too shy to speak her mind. ¡°I

    don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve never seen it before since you¡¯ve never taken your shirt off in front of me. Is it alphabets?

    Let me have a look!¡±

    Tobias slowly unbuttoned his shirt before tossing it over onto the bed.

    Skr couldn¡¯t be bothered that she was still naked before she sat up while fixating her eyes on his

    body.

    That was when she realized his tattoo was not as simple as she thought. It was not alphabets nor any

    ordinary signs.

    As her curiosity got the better of her, she got out of bed and approached him to take a closer look. The

    tattoo was located at the left side of his back, covering arge surface area. She tried to figure out the

    meaning of the tattoo but to no avail.

    ¡°What is the tattoo about? Is it rted to me? Why did you get this tattoo in the first ce?¡± She couldn¡¯t

    help throwing questions at him.

 Chapter 168

    Chapter 168

    With much patience, Tobias exined, ¡°This is a Five Line Sak Yant, one of Thand¡¯s most sacred

    tattoos. It is believed that having this tattoo will bring luck, protection, fortune, health, and good

    rtionships.¡±

    Skr tiptoed to touch the mysterious tattoo on his back. For a moment, she felt as if she had

    depreciated him by thinking he would tattoo her name. He is a mature man, after all. He¡¯s not some hot-

    headed guy who would tattoo a woman¡¯s name on his body.

    ¡°You are already filthy rich, but you¡¯re still hoping for more fortune?¡± she muttered.

    Tobias carried her to the bed and tucked her in. ¡°Instead of fortune, I got the tattoo because I wished it

    would bring me good luck. For the past two years, life was not going my way. It¡¯s hard to exin, but I

    feel like everything is destined. Now, I take all obstacles in life as my redemption to free myself from my

    sins.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t ask further questions. Although they were in a rtionship, the two of them lived in two

    completely different worlds. Even until now, she knew little about him and his life.

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    Since there was no basin in the room, Tobias headed to the washroom to wet a towel for her to clean

    herself up.

    When he came out of the washroom with the wet towel, he realized she had already fallen asleep. The

    room was silent except for the buzzing sound of the air-conditioner.

    The size of the bed was quite small. Her body had upied more than half of the space even though

    she was only five feet tall.

    Tobias didn¡¯t have the heart to shift her body for fear that he would wake her up, so he resorted to sitting

    on the armchair throughout the night.

    The next morning, Skr was awakened by the loud and continuous knocks on the door. ¡°Skr, open

    the door! I need to use the washroom!¡±

    In an instant, she was fully awake when she recalled that Kai woulde to her room every morning to

    use the washroom.

    Tobias found the voice of the person speaking outside the room familiar. He turned to look at Skr, who

    had already put on her clothes though her hair was still messy.

    She was now in a state of agitation, and there was no time for her to tidy her hair. Since she was here to

    work, she was reluctant to let anyone know that there was a man in her room to avoid creating a bad

    impression. Apart from that, she felt that it was better to keep their rtionship on the down-low because

    of Tobias¡¯s unique identity.

    That being said, there was no ce for him to hide in the room.

    Her heart thumped wildly in her chest when Tobias walked toward the door, reaching his hand for the

    doorknob. It was inevitable that the two men would meet each other face to face.

    As expected, Kai was stunned when he saw Tobias was the one opening the door.

    He was so shocked, in fact, that for a brief moment, he actually thought he was still dreaming.

    Casting his eyes over Tobias¡¯s shoulder, Kai caught sight of the messy bed. From Tobias¡¯s presence

    early in the morning and the strong fishy odor lingering in the room, as a man who had sexual

    experience, he could easily tell that they had had sex the other night.

    Skr felt awkward, especially when she recalled Tobias throwing the crumpled tissues and used

    condoms in the dustbin somewhere near where Kai was standing, beside the door.

    Meanwhile, Tobias wasposed all the while. As for Kai, he acted as if the world had crumbled upon

    him. ¡°Skr, why are you two together? So, Tobias is your boyfriend?¡±

    Tobias cast a nce at Kai and then at Skr. ¡°Why can¡¯t we be together? Is there a problem with us

    being a couple?¡±

    It was not a heartwarming reunion of the cousins as Skr expected. Instead, there was tension in the

    air.

    Kai questioned her harshly, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me? You know that I¡­¡± he trailed off.

    The atmosphere in the room became tenser.

    Truth be told, Skr didn¡¯t tell him of her rtionship with Tobias because things were better left unsaid.

    She was afraid he would misunderstand her as someone who wanted to ruin Tobias¡¯s engagement with

    Tanya.

    ¡°Well, now you know,¡± Tobias said nonchntly and patted Kai on the shoulder. Then, he asked, ¡°Have

    you eaten? Wanna have breakfast together?¡±

    Kai had lost all his appetite. The disappointment was barely veiled in his eyes when he looked at Skr.

    He thought she was just an ordinary girl with no background. He even felt sorry for her, thinking that she

    joined the crew alone. Now it turned out he was a fool all along.

    Skr stood rooted to the spot like a child who had done something wrong. Even though she knew Kai

    had misunderstood her, she couldn¡¯t exin herself right now.

 Chapter 169

    Chapter 169

    An air of despondency surrounded Kai as he still needed some time to ept the reality. ¡°No thanks. I

    don¡¯t have much of an appetite,¡± he turned Tobias¡¯s invitation down. With that, he turned and left.

    Skr heaved a sigh of relief once Kai was out of sight.

    Just then, she heard Tobias asking, ¡°It seems like you¡¯re close with Kai. Why didn¡¯t you tell me that

    you¡¯re cast in the same film as him?¡±

    Biting her lips, she raised her head to face Tobias, who was sitting on the armchair. ¡°I was afraid that you

    will be annoyed if I told you everything that happened. Besides, I didn¡¯t mean to hide it from you; I just

    forgot to tell you about it.¡±

    Tobias shed her a faint smile, flinging her back with her own words, ¡°It seems like someone has

    forgotten that she has sent me messages before, telling me what she ate for lunch. Aren¡¯t you afraid that

    this might annoy me?¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t help sighing internally. It sure requires a lot of mental effort tomunicate with him.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go and have breakfast. I bet you must be hungry now after an exhausting night,¡± he said,

    looking at her affectionately. At that moment, there seemed to be sweetness in the air.

    ¡°They don¡¯t sell breakfast here. We need to get our breakfast at the film set. You can wait here while I

    grab you a few croissants.¡±

    ¡°Why can¡¯t we go together? Am I embarrassing you?¡± he asked softly.

    Skr wanted to hide him from everyone, especially Katrina, who hinted that she had an intimate

    rtionship with him previously. She was worried that Katrina would try to rekindle her rtionship with

    him, and he would get back to his old me.

    Having no idea of her worries, Tobias simply walked out of the room and headed to the film set.

    Skr had no choice but to follow suit. Suddenly, as if something came to mind, she called out, ¡°Tobias,

    last night, you¡­ you¡­¡± Her face flushed as she stuttered.

    Upon hearing her words, Tobias halted his steps in the middle of the corridor.

    Skr took a deep breath to regain herposure. ¡°No, it was notst night. I mean, we had sex this

    morning. So I guess I meant to say morning? Since it was after midnight¡­¡± she started bbering again.

    Looking at her, he asked patiently, ¡°So, what are you trying to say?¡±

    Thetter bit her lips, trying to ovee her shyness. Then, she gabbled in a barely audible voice, ¡°You

    didn¡¯t use a condom, and they don¡¯t sell contraceptive pills here. What should I do?¡±

    Wrapping his arm around her shoulder, Tobias reassured her, ¡°I promised that I wouldn¡¯t let you take

    contraceptive pills ever again. Don¡¯t worry. You won¡¯t get pregnant since I didn¡¯t release inside you.¡±

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    Skr pushed her worries to the back of her mind since she could only trust in him for now.

    Meanwhile, at the film set, Lisa came running while yelling in excitement. ¡°Katrina! I saw Tobias Ford!¡±

    Katrina, who was enjoying her oatmeal, put her spoon down. ¡°You must be dreaming. How is it possible

    for someone like Tobias to show up in this dump?¡±

    Lisa tried to convince her, ¡°I swear he¡¯s here! I saw him and Skr standing in front of her room.¡±

    Katrina grew even more doubtful upon hearing her manager¡¯s words. ¡°Is this a joke? Are you trying to

    mess around with me early in the morning?¡±

    Before this, she had always believed that there was no such thing as love at first sight. However, her

    mindset changed when she encountered Tobias at the hotel. She knew immediately he was the man she

    would settle with for life. If only I could meet him once again.

    Tobias was the man of her dreams; everything about him matched her expectations. Even though he

    didn¡¯t even know her, she needed to thank the media for fabricating news and misleading the public

    about their rtionship after taking the photo of them entering the hotel almost simultaneously.

    Just then, Lisa pointed at the food disy counter that was some distance away. ¡°Katrina, it¡¯s Tobias!

    He¡¯s here! He¡¯s standing right beside Skr!¡±

    Katrina rose to her feet to look in the direction where Lisa was pointing at. Her heart sank when she saw

    Tobias and Skr standing next to each other. Lisa was right!

    In the meantime, Skr was introducing the food provided. ¡°What do you want to eat? Do you prefer a

    vegan sandwich or a croissant? Oh! There¡¯s taco as well.¡± There was a considerable difference in

    temperature during the night and the day. Although it was summer, the morning breeze brushing across

    her face was still a little chilly.

    ¡°Anything will do. Skr, I¡¯m going to find Kai. You can eat first without me.¡±

    Skr nodded in response. She was still bothered by an inexplicable feeling of guilt toward Kai. Kai was

    right. I should¡¯ve told him earlier.

 Chapter 170

    Chapter 170

    Skr¡¯s eyes followed Tobias as he entered Kai¡¯s motorhome that was brought to the film set not too

    long ago.

    The other day, Kai was excited when he texted her to tell her about the motorhome. He said she could

    take a shower in his motorhome whenever she wanted.

    Meanwhile, inside the motorhome, Kai¡¯s face clouded over the moment he saw Tobias. ¡°Tobias, aren¡¯t

    you getting married soon? I didn¡¯t think that you would still have the time to y with the girl¡¯s feelings.¡±

    Tobias furrowed his brows at the usation. ¡°Why do you think that I¡¯m ying with her feelings?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you spend so much time and effort on a woman before. Why must it be Skr? Don¡¯t

    you think it¡¯s inappropriate for you to be with her?¡± Feeling disappointed, Kai looked away from his

    cousin, casting his gaze outside the car window. After he left the hotel, he calmed down and thought

    about Skr¡¯s rtionship with Tobias. Skr was too young, and she was vulnerable to Tobias¡¯s

    advances, which exined why she still chose to be with Tobias even though he was engaged.

    Tobias¡¯s face darkened upon hearing his words. ¡°Are you trying to say that the two of you are a perfect

    match then? Could it be that my dear cousin is interested in my woman?¡±

    Kai¡¯s heart skipped a beat, but he admitted nevertheless. ¡°Yes. I like her. Besides, I can take good care

    of her, but you can¡¯t.¡± There was a hint of certainty in his voice.

    Tobias couldn¡¯t help but let out a chuckle. It looked like he had underestimated Skr¡¯s charisma.

    Apart from her sickly ex-boyfriend and that other guy who insisted on marrying her, now, even Kai was

    openly admitting that he liked her as if he were bewitched.

    To Tobias, all of them were still wet behind the ears to be considered as a match. He never thought one

    day he would need topete with them.

    His face grew grim upon hearing Kai¡¯s confession. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, she is now my girlfriend. I don¡¯t care

    if you like her, but you should keep it to yourself.¡±

    ¡°Do you think Aunt udia would ept her as your future wife? It¡¯s impossible of her to acknowledge

    your marriage with Skr.¡± Kai spoke up, pointing out the biggest obstacle that Tobias would need to

    ovee.

    Smiling faintly, Tobias uttered, ¡°This is none of your business. You should focus on your acting career

    instead of meddling in other¡¯s affairs.¡±

    Kai had always been an immature person in Tobias¡¯s eyes. Kai knew his cousin was implicitly warning

    him to stay away from Skr. However, he had no control over his own feelings.

    Right then, their conversation was interrupted by a knock on the door. The feeling of disgust surged

    within him when he opened the door to find Katrina.

    Even though he knew she was here for Tobias, he was unwilling to let her in his motorhome.

    ¡°Hello, Mr. Ford. Do you still remember me? My name is Katrina.¡±

    Tobias remembered hearing her name from Skr, but he was not personally acquainted with her. ¡°No,

    and I don¡¯t know you.¡±

    Kai chimed in to remind him about his scandal. ¡°Tobias, didn¡¯t the two of you spend the night together in

    the hotel? The paparazzi even took your photo.¡±

    Feeling slightly guilty, Katrina lowered her head at his blunt statement. She wanted to sleep with Tobias,

    but sadly she hadn¡¯t had the opportunity.

    Tobias suddenly recalled that there had been several times Skr alluding to him, asking if he was here

    only to have sex with her. It turned out she was misled by the fake scandal as well.

    He curled his lips into a meaningful smile. ¡°Oh really? But I don¡¯t remember at all.¡±

    Katrina looked up in an instant. ¡°That was just a misunderstanding. I only met Mr. Ford once.¡±

    Hearing that, Kai huffed, ¡°Then why were you asking for his contact number? And you even said you

    identally left your belongings at his. Were you making fun of me?¡± Do people see me as a kind guy

    who¡¯s a pushover? Why is everyone messing with me?

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    Not only Skr had kept her rtionship with Tobias from him, but even Katrina had lied to him.

    He was way too gullible and deceivable. No wonder Tobias looked down on him, saying that his brain

    had stopped developing since puberty.

    Katrina grinned sheepishly, acting innocent. She couldn¡¯t stop herself from stealing nces at Tobias,

    her gaze shining with awe and adoration.

    Right then, Skr was looking for Tobias to bring him his croissant. She noticed the door of the

    motorhome was opened, and both Tobias and Katrina were standing close to each other by the

    motorhome.

 Chapter 171

    Chapter 171

    They were less than thirty centimeters apart.

    When Tobias saw Skr walking toward him, he waved her over.

    Katrina did not have any intention to step aside for her.

    Tobias took the croissant from Skr and noticed that it was still warm. However, since he did not have

    much of an appetite, he gave it to Kai.

    Skr felt a pang in her heart when she saw that Tobias did not even appreciate the croissant she

    specially brought over for him.

    ¡°I have to get my makeup done soon, so I¡¯ll leave you guys to talk.¡± Skr looked intently at Tobias.

    Tobias flicked his eyes toward Katrina. ¡°Don¡¯t you have somewhere else to be, Ms. Hudgens? It¡¯s

    inconvenient for us to talk with you around.¡±

    Katrina held her breath at Tobias¡¯ blunt words, reluctant to leave just yet as she had barely said more

    than a couple of words to him.

    Unfortunately, she had to swallow her discontent and leave, all while cursing silently at Skr for her

    untimely appearance. She couldn¡¯t help but specte about the rtionship between Skr and Tobias.

    She noticed that the two of them looked very close to each other. Skr had even leaned toward Tobias

    subconsciously, an action that represented extreme dependence.

    ¡°Remember to visit my mom when you get back or you¡¯ll never hear the end of it from her,¡± Tobias

    reminded Kai.

    He could only hang about for a while, nning to leave with Skr soon.

    ¡°I called Aunt udia just a few days ago. She said Tanya¡¯s baby bump is already showing and it won¡¯t

    be long before she gets to meet her grandchild. So aren¡¯t you going to go home?¡±

    Kai¡¯s words were like needles piercing into Skr¡¯s heart.

    As for Kai, he was mad at Tobias¡¯s irresponsible behavior as it would only end up hurting Skr.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    He even spected that Tobias was merely using Skr as an outlet because Tanya was pregnant and

    unavable.

    After several seconds, Tobias replied calmly, ¡°I¡¯m not going home. If that¡¯s all, I¡¯m leaving with Skr

    now.¡±

    Tobias did not borate further. After finding out Tanya was really pregnant, he realized that the woman

    was willing to go to lengths beyond his expectations.

    He did not know who was the child¡¯s father, nor did he care. Since she wanted to put on a show, he

    would y along for now.

    Once the baby was born, the truth would be revealed by the results of a DNA test.

    Kai¡¯s hands balled into fists by his sides and his chest heaved with anger.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you go home for a short visit?¡± Skr looked listless and hershes trembled slightly.

    ¡°What for? To see my wife and child?¡±

    Standing so close to Tobias, Skr could feel the heat radiating off his body.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that what you should be doing?¡± she asked in a small voice as a wave of jealousy surged within

    her.

    She would always bebeled as a homewrecker, but nevertheless, she chose to trust Tobias

    unconditionally without knowing if it was the right or wrong choice.

    Tobias could tell that Skr was upset. Frustrated, he massaged his temples and sighed heavily. ¡°I will

    handle this mess and make sure you¡¯re not negatively affected by it. I don¡¯t have a wife or a child. If the

    child does turn out to be mine, I will end things between us and take responsibility for it. But I doubt that

    would be the case since I have never touched Tanya before. I¡¯m sick and tired of repeating myself, so

    don¡¯t make me do it again. The reason why I haven¡¯t cut Tanya offpletely is because my mother has

    severe heart disease and can¡¯t be emotionally provoked. This matter has to be carefully handled. The

    world isn¡¯t all about being in love. Sometimes familyes first. This is thest time I¡¯m saying all of this

    to you, so don¡¯t bring it up again. You¡¯re not a homewrecker, okay?¡±

    Skr sensed the simmering anger in Tobias. She felt aggrieved as she clearly didn¡¯t say anything

    outrageous. It was rare for Tobias to say so many words to her.

    To her dismay, it wasn¡¯t honeyed words he offered her, but a stern lecture instead.

 Chapter 172

    Chapter 172

    Skr knew that she shouldn¡¯t add fuel to the fire. If she went head-to-head with Tobias, things could

    very well get ugly.

    She nodded. ¡°I understand, I won¡¯t ask you again. I¡¯m fine with whatever you say.¡±

    Tobias reached out to grab her hand. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I shouldn¡¯t have used that tone.¡±

    Skr¡¯sshes fluttered. ¡°I understand where you¡¯reing from. It¡¯s not easy being trapped in

    between. It¡¯s my fault that your mother doesn¡¯t like me. I really do have a poor background. My neighbors

    used to say that I¡¯d have trouble marrying in the future and that my inws would scorn me, even my

    children won¡¯t be able to live with their heads held high.¡±

    Tobias heaved a sigh, then lifted her chin and gave her a peck on the lips. ¡°It has nothing to do with you.

    Why are you overthinking it? I don¡¯t choose my partner based on their family background or whatnot. I

    can make up for everything that youck.¡±

    Daryl had caught wind of Tobias¡¯ visit to the film set.

    Hence, the first thing he did was look for the man. When he saw Skr and Tobias together, he was

    visibly stunned.

    Before Skr went to get ready for filming, Tobias whispered something into her ear, making her blush

    furiously and scurry off after that.

    They already had a wild night in bed yesterday, but Tobias was insatiable, eager to have another

    lovemaking session tonight.

    After Skr left, Daryl asked out of curiosity, ¡°Mr. Ford, are you very close to Skr?¡±

    Tobias replied ndly, ¡°She¡¯s my girlfriend. This is her first time acting in a movie, so do take good care

    of her.¡±

    Daryl was dumbfounded. He never thought that someone with no background like Skr had Tobias

    Ford as her backer.

    He couldn¡¯t help but think that she was being too low-key. If she revealed her rtionship with

    Tobias, the female lead role would never have been snatched away by Katrina.

    He couldn¡¯t fathom why Tobias did not provide Skr with extra resources when he could do seemingly

    impossible things with only a snap of his fingers.

    Even the producers would cower upon hearing Tobias¡¯ name and would never insist on casting Katrina.

    Daryl quickly answered, ¡°I didn¡¯t know Skr was your girlfriend, Mr. Ford. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll take good care

    of her. She¡¯s very talented in acting and is a fast learner too. She¡¯s also very smart and¡­¡±

    ¡°Mm, I know,¡± Tobias interrupted him, obviously not bothering to engage in a conversation.

    In Tobias¡¯ eyes, everything Daryl said was unnecessary ttery.

    Within a single afternoon, word of Skr¡¯s rtionship with Tobias spread among the crew like wildfire.

    Everyone started to look at Skr differently.

    Katrina was distracted during the shoot in the afternoon, frequently having to retake her scenes. The

    rumors about her and Tobias were all ineffectual now.

    Before Tobias visited today, there were some people who thought she was acquainted with him, but he

    did not even give her the time of day when he was here earlier.

    Katrina was livid at bing aughing stock for everyone, and she med it all on Skr.

    After wrapping up for the day, Skr went back to her room to look for Tobias with a thermos sk in her

    hand.

    Upon her return, Tobias closed hisptop and put it aside.

    ¡°What are you wearing?¡± He scanned Skr from top to bottom.

    She was wearing army green overalls with a caramel-colored short-sleeved inner shirt that had Mickey

    Mouse designs on them. It was an oddbination, not to mention rather childish.

    Skr looked down at her clothes and tugged at her sleeve awkwardly. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Do I look bad?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ gaze on her was gentle as he ordered, ¡°Be more confident. Change out of it.¡±

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    Despite being judged for her fashion preference, Skr kept silent and deduced that Tobias probably

    found her appearance childish andpletelycking in femininity.

 Chapter 173

    Chapter 173

    This wasn¡¯t a catwalk runway. The ce she was at was dirty and dusty. After work, all Skr wanted

    was to dressfortably.

    It never crossed her mind to dress sexily in order to please Tobias.

    She had always liked dressing up this way since she was a child, preferring unisex clothes that were

    simple andfortablepared to skirts.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go change.¡± Skr opened the closet to look for something else to wear.

    After rummaging through the closet only to find more cartoon-printed T-shirts, she finally gave up.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have any nice clothes, so you¡¯re gonna have to bear with this.¡± She shrugged nonchntly.

    ¡°Change your pants then. It looks odd. And what are the big holes for? Saving cost on fabric?¡± Tobias

    simply couldn¡¯t ept her pauper-looking overalls.

    His OCD seemed to be acting up again as he had the strong urge to sew the holes on Skr¡¯s overalls

    shut.

    Left without a choice, Skr obediently found a pair of skinny jeans.

    Tobias¡¯ gaze fell on her as she emptied out the pockets.

    All of them were small and disorganized items; a strawberry hairpin, an almost empty packet of tissue,

    and earphone cords that were severely entangled.

    One by one, she ced the things on the table.

    Tobias shook his head at her. ¡°Are all girls so sloppy?¡±

    ¡°Not really. Are you calling me sloppy?¡± Skr asked.

    Tobias withheld his answer, certain that he would only get into an argument with Skr if he did not.

    Even so, his silence was already an answer. He stood up and carefully untangled Skr¡¯s earphones.

    Skr felt slightly rueful for being bad at pretending to be something she was not.

    Perhaps I should at least pretend to be elegant, considerate, and ssy. But¡­ I really could not care

    less about my appearance.

    Checking his watch, Tobias decided that it was time to leave with Skr.

    Sitting in his car, Skr asked where they were going and why he was driving toward the county.

    Noticing the wary and fearful look on Skr¡¯s face, Tobias¡¯ smile deepened. ¡°Do you think I¡¯m going to

    sell you off or something? Besides, even if I wanted to, No one from the vige wants a skinny girl whose

    shoulders and arms look like they can be snapped like twigs. They prefer meaty and fertile-looking girls.¡±

    What Tobias said sounded awfully simr to what the vige women said about her the other day.

    Fine, being thin is all my fault.

    Tobias had epted Daryl¡¯s dinner invitation tonight. He rarely participated in socializing events such as

    these, and he only agreed out of courtesy to Daryl and also to make Skr¡¯s days with the crew easier.

    Daryl arrived well before the appointed time, but without Tobias here, he did not dare to let the waiters

    serve the food.

    Kai grumbled silently at being forced by Daryl to attend.

    He did not want to see Tobias and Skr appearing together.

    When the couple finally arrived, Daryl hastily stood up to wee them.

    If it were not for Tobias, Skr would never have gotten the chance to see a well-known director such as

    Daryl being so subservient.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, Skr hasn¡¯t signed with an agency, so why not sign with me?¡± Daryl poured Tobias a drink.

    Tobias nced at Skr. ¡°What do you think?¡±

    This was quite a tempting offer to her. Pursing her lips, she replied, ¡°I think it¡¯s up for consideration.¡±

    Skr no longer wanted to be alone and running around like a headless chicken on the set.

    ¡°I will make Skr famous within two years,¡± Daryl promised.

    At that, Tobias¡¯ gaze on her turned slightly chilly and he turned a deaf ear to her answer.

    Meanwhile, Daryl had begun outlining Skr¡¯s future in an animated manner.

    ¡°She won¡¯t sign,¡± Tobias tly rejected.

    Daryl¡¯s excited chatter came to an abrupt halt.

    While nursing his drink, Kai refuted unhappily, ¡°Tobias, you¡¯re being too controlling. This is Skr¡¯s own

    business and it¡¯s her decision to make. You do know that she¡¯s not your ything, right?¡±

 Chapter 174

    Chapter 174

    Tobias shot Kai a dangerous look.

    ¡°Does Skr have other ns?¡± Daryl conjectured.

    Tobias replied inly, ¡°I have my own arrangements. Just take care of her during this period of time.

    She¡¯s still young and is bound to make mistakes, so cut her some ck whenever you can.¡±

    Kai felt uneasy bearing witness to Tobias¡¯ affection toward Skr. He obviously has a wife but he¡¯s still

    messing around with a young girl.

    The dinner was a long and boring one. Although Skr was the main topic of discussion, she felt like an

    outsider with no room to pitch in her opinion.

    Wanting to get some fresh air, she stood up with the excuse of using the restroom. Seeing this, Kai

    followed her out as well.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t get to ask you before. Why bother being with Tobias?¡± A maelstrom of emotions swirled in Kai¡¯s

    eyes.

    ¡°There¡¯s no particr reason and I don¡¯t really have an answer for you.¡± Skr stood by the restaurant¡¯s

    entrance as the summer night breeze blew past, the slightly humid air making her body feel sticky.

    ¡°The two of you aren¡¯tpatible. All he can give you is money. Nothing else,¡± Kai said bluntly. His heart

    felt as if it was being squeezed by an invisible force.

    Skr had already lost count of the number of times she had heard people saying the same thing.

    She shrugged and exined, ¡°I know that, but I can¡¯t bear to break up with him just yet. He treats me

    very well and that¡¯s enough for me.¡±

    It seemed to Kai that Skr was only deceiving herself, and he felt that they had different notions of

    good treatment. He found it hard to believe that Tobias would treat Skr well.

    After all, his cousin had an abundance of women throwing themselves at him and had already grown

    used to it, so it was impossible that his numb heart could warm up to a woman.

    Skr was naive and inexperienced, thinking that he cared just because he came to see her.

    Kai sighed in defeat. ¡°This is your choice and I respect it, but don¡¯t fall in too deep or you won¡¯t be able to

    walk out of it unscathed. I know him well. If he gets tired of you someday, you won¡¯t be able to salvage

    the rtionship no matter how hard you try to. Hell, you won¡¯t even get to see him again.¡±

    Skr could tell that Kai believed it was only a matter of time before she was given the boot.

    ¡°I¡¯ll head inside first. I¡¯ve been away for too long,¡± Skr excused herself.

    ¡°Can we still be friends?¡± Kai called out.

    Skr smiled feebly and reassured, ¡°Of course. You saved my life, so you¡¯re not just a friend to me,

    you¡¯re also my savior.¡±

    Kai decided that he would settle for the next best thing and let things unfold in their own time because he

    was certain that Skr woulde to regret her decisions.

    They returned to the private room one behind the other. After drinking himself into a drunken stupor,

    Daryl could no longer be bothered about taking care of his image. He was currently shirtless with cheeks

    that were flushed red.

    On the other hand, Tobias remainedposed as henguidly raised his ss of beer to his lips.

    Daryly sprawled across the table and was mumbling incoherent words.

    Tobias told Kai to send the director back. Despite his reluctance, Kai could only do as he was instructed.

    Before leaving, Daryl was so touched that he looked to be on the verge of tears. ¡°Mr. Ford, I never

    thought that I¡¯d be able to sit down and drink with you in this lifetime of mine.¡±

    The entire room reeked of alcohol. Skr sat down when she saw that Tobias had no intention to leave

    any time soon.

    ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. Let¡¯s go back now,¡± she suggested.

    N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights.

    Tobias chugged the remaining half of his beer, his body starting to heat up. ¡°You were outside with Kai for

    a long time. What were the two of you doing?¡±

    At that moment, Skr felt like she was a child being quizzed by a parent.

    She blinked several times before finding her voice. ¡°It was getting kind of stuffy here so I went out for

    some air. I guess it was the same for Kai.¡±

    Tobias frowned deeply and reminded, ¡°Remember to behave yourself when I¡¯m not around. Don¡¯t get too

    close to other men or I¡¯ll be upset.¡±

    Skr drew in a deep breath at Tobias¡¯ bluntness and emphasized, ¡°I didn¡¯t. We¡¯re just normal friends.¡±

 Chapter 175

    Chapter 175

    Tobias stood up and leaned close to Skr. The pungent smell of smoke and alcohol instantly invaded

    her senses.

    ¡°Stop exining yourself to me. I¡¯ll go settle the bill. Wait for me at the door. Are you full?¡±

    ¡°Yes, but isn¡¯t it the director¡¯s treat tonight? Why are you paying for it?¡±

    ¡°He can barely walk straight. How¡¯s he going to pay?¡±

    Because the restaurant was located in a county town, the feast Daryl had ordered only totaled up to

    slightly more than three hundred.

    As usual, Tobias took out his wallet and paid in cash.

    Seeing this, Skr had the urge to teach him how to pay via his phone.

    It was veryte by the time they got back. While Tobias wiped his body with cold water, Skr leaned

    against the toilet door and asked, ¡°When are you going back?¡±

    ¡°Why? Can¡¯t wait to see me leave?¡± Tobias threw a towel toward her, motioning for her to wipe his back.

    Skr walked in with the towel in hand. ¡°That¡¯s not what I meant. I¡¯m just worried that staying here too

    long will keep you from making money.¡±

    She gently wiped Tobias¡¯ broad back with the damp towel, the tattoo on his shoulder looked even more

    distinct this up close.

    If he were to wear a white tank top during the summer season, his tattoo would bepletely exposed.

    She thought of getting one as well, but she did not have the courage.

    ¡°Even if you keep me from making money, I¡¯ll still be able to take care of you. Stop worrying about these

    things. When will you finish shooting? Being apart isn¡¯t going to work,¡± Tobias countered.

    ¡°We can still text every day, no?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the point of texting when we can¡¯t see or touch each other?¡±

    Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.

    As Skr wiped Tobias¡¯ back thoroughly, she noticed the long scratch marks on his back, reminding her

    of how passionate they were in bedst night. Her cheeks instantly flushed a crimson red while her heart

    galloped in her chest.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure yet. Soon, perhaps. I¡¯ll leave once we wrap up here. It probably won¡¯t be long until then.¡±

    ¡°Good. You can actually go back every day since it¡¯s quite near.¡±

    Skr put down the towel and ced her hands on the sink, listening to the cicadas outside.

    ¡°Alright, go undress. We only had two roundsst night and I want more. I¡¯m going back tomorrow, so I

    won¡¯t be able to have my way with you for quite some time.¡±

    Even when talking about such a crude topic, he had no reservations when ites to stating what he

    wanted.

    ¡°You¡¯re going back tomorrow? Why didn¡¯t you tell me that when I asked you just now?¡± Skr¡¯s eyes

    dimmed, she was reluctant to part with him.

    She did not even realize when she had be so attached to Tobias.

    ¡°It¡¯s my mother¡¯s sixtieth birthday the day after tomorrow, so I have to go back. She¡¯s been very

    disappointed in metely. She¡¯d feel very hurt if I don¡¯t celebrate with her.¡±

    Skr would feel skittish whenever Tobias mentioned his family.

    ¡°Does that mean you¡¯ll also be seeing Tanya?¡±

    ¡°Yes, she¡¯ll be there. Why are you still dwelling on this matter? So what if I see her? It¡¯s not like I¡¯m going

    to do anything.¡± His gaze was calm, but there seemed to be a flicker of other emotions in them.

    Aftering out of the toilet, Skr sat on the bed and gripped the nket.

    Tobias walked toward her bare-chested and leaned down to kiss her forehead.

    ¡°Put your hands on the edge of the bed with your a** facing me.¡±

    Skr was reluctant to be ordered around like a puppet when it came to sex.

    She stayed motionless,pletely not in the mood for a serious discussion anymore.

    ¡°Why are you upset?¡± Tobias had a little too much to drink earlier, so his breathing was slightly heavier

    than usual. Even after wiping his body, the smell of alcohol still remained.

    ¡°You always order me around! I don¡¯t like that feeling,¡± Skr said truthfully.

    Tobias circled around Skr andy on the bed. ¡°Then let¡¯s make it fair. I¡¯ll lie down on the bed and you

    can do whatever you want.¡±

    Skr held her breath. ¡°Are you sure?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Skr took out her lipstick and walked to Tobias with a mischievous grin on her face before lowering her

    head to draw a pig on his body.

    Tobias smiled dotingly at her. ¡°That¡¯s it? I gave you a chance but you didn¡¯t use it wisely.¡±

 Chapter 176

    Chapter 176

    ¡°You¡¯re leaving already? The sun isn¡¯t even up yet.¡± Skry on the bed, staring at Tobias as he put on

    a ck shirt and tucked in his trousers, all the while admiring his narrow hips and slender legs.

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m leaving now. Remember, don¡¯t sign with apany yet. I¡¯ll tell you the details when you¡¯re

    back. Take care of yourself here.¡±

    Tobias had a cigarette between his lips and squinted through the cloud of smoke that was obscuring his

    vision.

    Skr hated it when people smoked in a room, especially when the windows were closed.

    Tobias seemed to be aware of this as he opened the door a crack when he lit a cigarette.

    Skr got up from bed, intending to send him off.

    When she snaked her slender arms around his neck, he turned sideways to stub out his cigarette before

    kissing her with lips that tasted like a mixture of mint and tobo.

    ¡°Behave while I¡¯m not here. I will try my best to reply to your messages, but I can get really busy at times,

    so you¡¯ll have to bear with me.¡±

    Skr did not have anyints since Tobias had patiently offered her an exnation. In the end,

    they came to a mutual understanding.

    As soon as Tobias left, Skr packed up and prepared to head to the set. When her phone vibrated, she

    fished it out and saw a message from Penelope.

    Penelope: How things are going between you and that old man? Give me all the details!

    Fortunately, Tobias had already left. Calling him an old man when he was only slightly over thirty was

    rather harsh.

    Skr: Just the usual. It¡¯splicated.

    Penelope: Mature and steady men are overrated. These kinds of men fool around the most. I got my

    heart broken again. Come back soon and drink with me.

    Skr¡¯s mouth twitched as she stared at the message. She seemed to recall Penelope saying the same

    thing less than two months ago.

    Somehow, she managed to fall in and out of love in just two months. Skr admired Penelope¡¯s fast-

    paced love life. She seemed to change men faster than the seasons changed.

    Skr sent a few words offort to Penelope before hurrying out. She had just left when she bumped

    into Kai.

    He noticed the subtle marks on Skr¡¯s fair and elegant neck. Needless to say, he knew what Tobias

    had done to herst night.

    Awkwardness nketed them.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Tobias?¡±

    ¡°He left early in the morning. Were you looking for him?¡±

    Kai smiled. ¡°No. You should hurry to the set now. You have many scenes today, so there¡¯s no time to

    waste. Oh, right. I forgot to tell you. Jeremy has left the crew.¡±

    Skr was slightly taken aback. He was still with the crew the day before and didn¡¯t finish filming his

    scenes yet. How did he finish so quickly?

    ¡°He finished filming that quick?¡± she mumbled.

    Kai still found Skr too naive. How can she be with a cunning fox like Tobias? She wouldn¡¯t even know

    whether she was being taken advantage of.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Because Tobias saw him, the producers requested for him to be switched out. I probably don¡¯t need to

    say the rest of it, do I?¡±

    Skr instantly understood what Kai meant; Tobias was the one who got Jeremy to leave.

    Without mentioning anything about it to her, he eliminated Jeremy just like that.

    A chill ran down Skr¡¯s spine. Tobias is too ruthless.

    At the set, Katrina was the first to approach her, calling out in an overly friendly voice, even drawing out

    the words, ¡°Hey, babe!¡±

    Skr felt repulsed by this.

    Since when were we that close?

    She remained expressionless and did not bother putting up an act with her.

    Katrina held back her anger even though she was given the cold shoulder. After Skr walked away, she

    turned to her manager, Lisa, andined, ¡°She¡¯s just Tobias¡¯ f**k buddy but look at her getting all

    cocky. Does she think she¡¯s better than us now?¡±

    As there were many gossip mongers among the crew members, Lisa remained cautious and kept her

    mouth shut for fear of her words reaching Skr¡¯s ears.

    Pillow talk could be lethal, especially when Tobias was involved. Lisa was not as stupid as Katrina who

    was the perfect definition of ¡°just a pretty face.¡±

    In the beginning, she had wanted to use the scandal with Tobias to create hype, but their ns were

    foiled when the real deal arrived. In the end, Katrina did not even get the chance to talk to Tobias.

 Chapter 177

    Chapter 177

    Daryl called Skr over right after she was done changing into her costume. He studied her, noting her

    innocent and clear eyes, spotless face, and youthful body.

    It was no wonder Tobias took a fancy to her.

    ¡°Please apologize to Mr. Ford on my behalf. I had too much to drinkst night. Mr. Ford won¡¯t hold me

    liable, will he?¡±

    Skr thought it was something important, but he had called her over just to apologize.

    ¡°No. He didn¡¯t say anything.¡±

    Hearing that finally got Daryl to rx a little, but he still regretted drinking so muchst night.

    Nheless, he could brag about having a meal with Tobias Ford to his peers for a long time toe.

    ¡°I¡¯m giving you more scenes.¡± Daryl decided spontaneously.

    Surprise flickered in Skr¡¯s eyes. ¡°Why?¡±

    Daryl gave Skr a meaningful look, hinting that this decision was made because of her rtionship with

    Tobias.

    Without a moment of hesitation, Skr rejected his offer, ¡°There¡¯s no need. My character isn¡¯t even

    likable, to begin with. If we add more scenes for her, I¡¯d probably be cursed to death by the viewers.¡±

    Daryl had also thought about this issue, so he tried again, ¡°Why don¡¯t you sleep on it and tell me after

    you¡¯ve decided? This could potentially give your character more depth.¡±

    Skr was still not interested and only wanted to finish filming this movie.

    The shoot in the morning went smoothly with many scenes passing in one take.

    Because she did not have any scenes with Katrina, their progress was much faster.

    After the crew wrapped up, Skr rolled up the sleeves of her costume. As she had not changed back

    into her clothes, she still looked like a youngdy from the 1970s.

    ¡°You said you were going to buy me a meal. Did you mean it?¡± Kai asked.

    Skr immediately turned him down. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t today. Perhaps when we¡¯re back home.¡±

    ¡°Why not today?¡± Kai argued.

    ¡°I¡¯m tired and I want to sleep.¡±

    Indeed, Skr looked exhausted. Herplexion was pasty as if she had just recovered from an illness.

    During the two nights Tobias was here, she barely slept a wink. She had been thoroughly ravaged and

    by the time he was done with her, it was already almost dawn.

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you his story and you¡¯ll understand why both of you can¡¯tst long, so are you going to buy me a

    meal or not?¡± Kai indirectly threatened her. To a woman who was in love, the condition he offered was

    too tempting to reject.

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    Skr barely knew anything about Tobias¡¯ life because until now, their interactions were mostly carnal

    instead of emotional.

    Just after she officially got together with Tobias, she left to film a movie so they did not get the chance to

    connect on a deeper level.

    Hence, Skr could not bring herself to let an opportunity to get to know Tobias slip from her grasp.

    ¡°What do you wanna eat then? Dinner is on me.¡±

    Kai gave her a strained smile. ¡°I don¡¯t remember it being so difficult to get a woman to eat with me. I¡¯m

    fine with anything. Let¡¯s just eat something simple.¡±

    Skr protested, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the cost. Since I¡¯ve already decided to buy you dinner, I have to

    make sure you enjoy a good meal.¡±

    Kaiined, ¡°It¡¯s fine. There aren¡¯t any ces with good food around here anyway.¡±

    After Skr and Kai finished work, they ended up going to the county since there were no restaurants in

    the area.

    She found a small restaurant famous for its pasta. Kai said with a grin, ¡°How did you know I like pasta?

    I¡¯m a big fan of carbs.¡±

    The two sat face to face, each lost in their own thoughts as they ate their pasta.

    Skr picked up her fork, twirled some pasta around it, and began eating. She had grown tired of the

    nd food provided by the filming crew.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you were going to tell me his story? Aren¡¯t you going to begin?¡± Skr took the initiative

    to break the silence.

 Chapter 178

    Chapter 178

    Kai chuckled softly. ¡°You really wanna know that badly? If I didn¡¯t promise to tell you, you would never

    havee.¡±

    Skr did not respond. All she wanted was toy down and go to sleep. Her dark circles could hardly be

    covered with concealer anymore.

    ¡°Tobias was abandoned by his father when he was young. His father took his mistress abroad and left a

    huge debt behind. Because of that, Aunt udia became a single mother with two sons and a huge

    debt. Thankfully, she is a very strong woman but they still lived a hard life back then. Tobias is known to

    be a filial son and has never truly disobeyed my aunt, so stop being an idiot, Skr. As long as my aunt

    doesn¡¯t ept you, you can never have a future with Tobias. Plus, he¡¯s not a one-woman kind of man.

    I¡¯m telling you all of this because I see you as my friend. You should seriously think this through. And one

    more thing, he used to have many women.¡±

    Feeling restless, Skr pushed the pasta around her te. Truth be told, she already knew about most

    of what Kai told her, but she never knew that Tobias was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth and

    had a past like that.

    She lowered her gaze. ¡°I can¡¯t leave him now. I understand everything you¡¯re saying, but I just can¡¯t let

    go.¡±

    Disappointment tore through Kai before helplessness filled him. ¡°Well, when you need a shoulder to cry

    on in the future, you cane to me.¡±

    Skr was stunned for a moment but did not say anything. If need be, she would cry on her own. She

    would never show her vulnerable side to others.

    After they were done eating, Skr went to pay the bill. When she took out her phone to pay via the app,

    she saw an unread WhatsApp message.

    Tobias: I¡¯ve arrived.

    They were only two simple words, but a surge of warmth filled her chest at the sight of them.

    She took sce in the fact that Tobias was at least trying to change. He was no longer like before when

    he disappeared without a trace for a month.

    He had probably grown used to her existence just like she did his.

    The next day, Skr was with the crew all day. Even though she did not have any scenes, she hade

    over to watch. Currently, she was sitting on a stool by the side, observing quietly.

    Kai really liked Skr¡¯s quiet and unassuming personality.

    He tried offering Skr to cool off in his motorhome several times, to which she politely declined.

    ¡°It¡¯s my aunt¡¯s birthday today. They should be eating together now. Just imagine this; Tobias together

    with his pregnant fianc¨¦e.¡± Without getting his makeup removed, Kai dragged a stool and sat opposite of

    her the moment he was free.

    Skr tucked some stray strands of hair behind her ear. ¡°No thank you. And please don¡¯t try to set me

    off.¡±

    Kai fished out his phone and browsed through social media, finallying across the perfect content to

    show Skr but was afraid she would not be able to take it.

    ¡°Sheldon just posted a photo on his social media. Do you wanna see it?¡± He waved his phone in front of

    Skr.

    Skr took the bait, grabbing the phone from Kai¡¯s hand, and scrolled through the content.

    In the photo, udia was wearing a red dress and looking youthful for her age. It was apparent that she

    was an absolute beauty during her younger days.

    The photo that Sheldon had posted was a group photo. In it, Tanya was standing beside Tobias, but the

    latter was not looking at the camera, seemingly uninterested.

    Tanya¡¯s baby bump was quite obvious and she was smiling broadly in the photo.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Feeling her heart turn cold, Skr returned Kai his phone.

    Kai raised his brows. ¡°Let¡¯s go out for drinks tonight. You¡¯ll feel better with alcohol in your system.¡±

    Skr immediately declined, ¡°No thanks. I don¡¯t drink and I¡¯m not sad either.¡±

    Kai peered at her with a doubtful expression. ¡°You¡¯re really stubborn, you know that?¡±

    That being said, Kai couldn¡¯t help but admit that Skr was in fact a very good-tempered person as she

    turned out to be calmer than he had expected.

    When Tobias received a call from Skr in the middle of his meal, he stood to leave.

 Chapter 179

    Chapter 179

    udia raised her hand to tug Tobias back. ¡°It¡¯s my birthday today. Don¡¯t answer it, I¡¯m sure your work

    can wait.¡±

    Tanya lifted her head to look at him and said considerately, ¡°Tobias, you can just answer it here. We

    won¡¯t make a sound until you¡¯re done.¡±

    Tobias declined the call, not wanting to get into a dispute with his mother during her birthday celebration

    because of a woman while his rtives were around.

    udia was happy with his decision.

    ¡°When are you going to move back, Tobias?¡± Tanya inched closer to him, her honeyed voice grating on

    his nerves.

    While udia was chatting with their rtives, Tobias led Tanya out of the private room.

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    As Tanya got up, she cautiously guarded her belly with both hands.

    Upon seeing the two of them leave, Tobias¡¯ uncle asked, ¡°No wonder the wedding¡¯s been postponed.

    Turns out his wife is pregnant. Why didn¡¯t you share such wonderful news with us, udia?¡±

    udia¡¯s expression turned slightly embarrassed. How could I? Was I supposed to say that my son

    doesn¡¯t want to acknowledge his wife and unborn child?

    If I did, my son would seem just like his b*stard of a father who discarded women like they were nothing.

    Tobias turned to close the door behind him. He and Tanya were standing in the corridor, and the

    expression on his face was sullen.

    ¡°So when are you going to leave?¡±

    Tanya caressed her belly while standing mere inches away from Tobias. ¡°Why should I leave? You

    shoulde home once you¡¯ve settled your mess outside. It¡¯s time to concentrate on raising this child

    together.¡±

    If it weren¡¯t for his self-restraint that kept him fromying a hand on a pregnant woman, he would have

    pped Tanya across the face by now.

    He had seen all kinds of women over the years. It was just too unfortunate that his mother took a liking to

    such a shameless one like Tanya.

    ¡°Do you really think I¡¯ll put up with this forever? You should know better than anyone who that baby in

    your belly belongs to.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ eyes burned with fury and his voice had a biting tone to it.

    Tanya smiled as she thought about how her n was still on track. Although the child does not belong to

    Tobias, she would make it seem so.

    To join the Ford family, sacrificing a child was nothing.

    Once she gave birth to the child, she knew that Tobias would undoubtedly arrange for a paternity test.

    Her previous attempt to fool him failed, so this child was her trump card to maintain her ce in the Ford

    family for the time being.

    As for the baby, she could easily stage a miscarriage. Although she would be harming herself in the

    process, it was worth it for the sake of her future.

    Faced with an angered Tobias, she continued to insist, ¡°Feel free to do a paternity test after the child is

    born. Tobias, I don¡¯t ask for you to love me. I would even ept your cheating ways, but please don¡¯t

    force me to leave your side. Let me take care of Mom.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ phone was vibrating incessantly at that moment. Due to his boiling anger, he whipped out his

    phone irritably.

    Tanya squinted her eyes and saw that the saved name on Tobias¡¯ phone showed ¡°ASkr.¡±

    He¡¯s still with that woman. He even put the alphabet A in front of her name so that he can easily find her

    contact number.

    This is practically a public disy of affection!

    ¡°Your mom and I have talked about Skr before. She knows that Skr¡¯s the daughter of a murderer.

    Do you really think your mother will ept someone like her?¡± Tanya feigned kindness as she calmly

    reminded Tobias.

    Tobias shot an icy nce at Tanya. If it weren¡¯t for his mother¡¯s health issue, this woman would never

    have the nerve to act like this.

 Chapter 180

    Chapter 180

    ¡°This is none of your business. I don¡¯t need anyone¡¯s approval to be with who I want to be with.¡±

    Tobias nced downstairs, watching the peopleing and going in the hotel lobby.

    Tanya stared at Tobias and noticed a storm brewing behind his calm exterior. Thinking about how close

    she was to marrying Tobias, her resentment toward Skr intensified.

    After the birthday celebration, Tobias and udia left in the same car.

    Neither of them said anything. udia still could not bring herself to forgive Tobias.

    When they were about to arrive home, udia finally spoke, ¡°Move back tonight. Tanya¡¯s belly is getting

    bigger and she needs someone to take care of her at night.¡±

    Tobias replied coldly, ¡°The child isn¡¯t mine, so what¡¯s there for me to take care of?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re such a b*stard, Tobias. Tanya isn¡¯t so bold. She¡¯s a kind and capable woman. She is what every

    man should look for in a woman. I¡¯m certain she¡¯s the perfect one for you¡­¡±

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    Tobias could not help but feel that udia was underestimating Tanya. She had no idea how pretentious

    Tanya could be, always ying the victim to garner sympathy from her.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t n to bring this up since it¡¯s your birthday today, but I¡¯m in love. Tanya¡¯s life has nothing to do

    with me. If you like her so much, you can keep her by your side for all I care but don¡¯t expect me to

    compromise.¡±

    Having said this, Tobias felt as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He had to give Skr a

    sense of security instead of making her feel like he was stringing her along.

    Experiencing some breathing difficulty, udia clutched her chest with a grimace on her face. ¡°Are you

    trying to piss me off until I¡¯m dead on my birthday?¡±

    Tobias looked back at udia just then. The atmosphere in the car was tense, so he did not continue

    speaking lest he angered her even more.

    After sending udia home, Tobias finally had time to return Skr¡¯s call, but no one answered on the

    other end.

    Sheldon trailed after Tobias and said unhappily, ¡°Mom used to call me a useless and immature brat, but

    now you¡¯re the one pissing her off the most, and all because of a woman.¡±

    Faced with his brother¡¯s usation, Tobias replied in a calm voice, ¡°I¡¯ve been living for the two of you for

    a long time. For once, I decided to live for myself. I¡¯m done ying and it¡¯s time that I settle down.¡±

    Worried that udia would use him as her punching bag, Sheldonined, ¡°I don¡¯t know what the

    hell is going on with you two. All I know is that I¡¯m in a tough spot and I have to protect myself. Can I

    crash at your ce tonight?¡±

    Tobias did not turn him away and took him to Be Garden with him.

    Only then did Sheldon realize that Tobias had been living here all this time and that this ce was less

    than three kilometers away from Skr¡¯s university.

    In the car, he couldn¡¯t help but tease, ¡°So you¡¯re even keeping herpany in university? Isn¡¯t this what

    parents do?¡±

    Tobias gave him a dirty look, shutting him up instantly.

    Indeed, he was much older than Skr, but not so much that he could be considered her parent.

    When the car took a turn, its headlights shone to reveal a beautiful figure standing before the closed

    doors of the vi. Tobias stepped on the brake lightly and looked out the window to see Skr.

    He got down from the car while Sheldon remained inside.

    When Skr spotted Tobias, she stood rooted to the ground with an embarrassed look on her face. ¡°I

    forgot to bring the house keys and you didn¡¯t answer my call.¡±

    Tobias took out his keys and handed them to Skr. ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to be filming? Why are you

    back?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ face did not show the surprise Skr was expecting to see.

    ¡°I took some time off. I don¡¯t have any scenes to shoot for a few days, so I dropped by to visit.¡±

    Seeing that Skr did not reach out to take the keys, Tobias ced them in her hand. ¡°To visit me? Or to

    check up on me because you¡¯re worried?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Maybe both,¡± Skr answered.

    Of course, she could not tell him that her imagination had run wild after seeing those photos, worried that

    Tobias would be swayed.

    She was also annoyed at herself for being distrustful, always allowing her negative thoughts to get the

    best of her.

    ¡°Alright. Head in first.¡± Tobias caressed her hair that was a little damp because she had rushed all the

    way back here, gued with worry.

    Skr was dumbfounded. ¡°You¡¯re not staying here tonight?¡±

    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I be? I¡¯m just going to park the car. There¡¯s still someone in there. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not

    going anywhere. Seeing as you came back to find me, I¡¯ll make sure you¡¯re well-loved tonight.¡±

 Chapter 181

    Chapter 181

    Skr¡¯s eyes drifted toward the ck Porsche andnded on Sheldon, who had gotten off the car and

    was currently waving at her across the distance.

    While Tobias went to park the car in the garage, Skr opened the front door and stepped aside to let

    Sheldon in.

    Sheldon had a cheeky grin on his face when he rified, ¡°I¡¯m just here to crash. I won¡¯t disturb you two.¡±

    Skr blushed slightly as she put down her bag. Even though she had not been here for a long time,

    everything looked pretty much the same. For some reason, she felt slightly edgy, as though she was a

    guest here.

    When Tobias came in, he told Skr to wait for him as he had some business affairs to handle, to which

    Skr nodded obediently before going upstairs to take a shower.

    Aftering out of her shower, she saw Sheldon sitting in the living room with his long legs resting on

    the coffee table.

    ¡°Are you watching a TV series?¡±

    On the TV, the male lead was earnestly professing his love to the female lead.

    Skr rubbed her forehead, never expecting Sheldon to like watching romance dramas. She

    remembered watching this particr series when she was in elementary school.

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    At that time, she was young and easily tricked into believing that true love existed.

    Skr sat on another sofa with water still dripping from the ends of her hair. Sheldon yawned before

    remarking, ¡°It¡¯s quite a nice series. Don¡¯t all you girls like watching these kinds of romance dramas?¡±

    Skr vaguely sensed that there was a hidden meaning behind his words and wondered whether she

    was bing paranoid.

    Before long, Sheldon fell asleep and started snoring on the sofa. Hence, Skr switched to another

    movie to watch. Just as the movie was reaching its climax, Tobias came downstairs.

    Skr¡¯s eyes were still fixated on the TV screen.

    Tobias sat beside her and nced at Sheldon snoring away on the sofa.

    Suddenly, moans of pleasure came from the movie ying on the screen.

    ¡°Let¡¯s not watch anymore.¡± Skr had turned slightly red in the face and was grateful for the dim lights.

    Tobias slowly leaned forward to kiss her lips. ¡°Why not?¡±

    His warm breath tickled the shell of her ear and the sound of his soft yet heavy breathing was all she

    could hear.

    His husky voice filled her ears and she stared transfixed as his gaze turn heavy with desire. As if having

    a mind of its own, her hand reached for the remote control to switch off the TV.

    Feeling an itch in his nose, Sheldon opened his eyes drowsily only to see his brother pressing Skr to

    the sofa while kissing and fondling her.

    He started grumbling in his heart. Why are they in such a hurry? I mean, c¡¯mon. On the couch? What do

    they take me for? Air?

    He immediately squeezed his eyes shut, pretending to be asleep as he was afraid of seeing too much.

    ¡°Baby, let¡¯s go upstairs.¡±

    Sheldon¡¯s whole body had tensed up with cold sweat coating his back. Oh, thank God. Finally, they¡¯re

    taking it elsewhere.

    The next morning, Sheldon went downstairs to see Skring out of the kitchen with an apron tied

    around her waist right before noticing the piping hot food served on the table.

    Skr¡¯s face was without makeup, but with her exquisite and striking features, she managed to give off

    an exotic vibe.

    Sheldon had to admit that Skr was very beautiful, even more so than her sister Avery.

    He pulled out a chair and sat down. Three tes of visually pleasing spaghetti Aglio olio were ced on

    the table.

    ¡°Where¡¯s my brother? And what¡¯s wrong with your voice?¡± Sheldon queried.

    He suspected that the two of them had taken things too farst night and that Tobias was still sleeping

    due to overexertion.

    ¡°He¡¯s showering upstairs. He¡¯ll be down soon.¡± Skr sat across Sheldon and gave him a pair of cutlery

    as her cheeks heated up.

    She must have screamed her voice hoarsest night.

    Recalling the past, Sheldon said wistfully, ¡°My mother used to be busy all the time and would always

    leave my brother and me at home. The two of us only knew how to cook noodles, and my brother¡¯s

    cooking was beyond horrible.¡±

 Chapter 182

    Chapter 182

    It was the same for Skr, or perhaps even worse. Her grandmother would lock her up at home alone

    whenever she went out and did not allow her to use the stove at all. Hence, she did not even have the

    luxury to cook noodles.

    Every time she was hungry, she would munch on raw instant noodles or stale bread. As a result, she had

    suffered from severe malnutrition since young and it could be seen from her appearance during her

    schooling days.

    Tobias came downstairs after changing into a pair of ck trousers and a light blue shirt with a silver-

    grey striped tie to match it, looking cool and attractive.

    ¡°Tobias, can I still stay here tonight?¡± Sheldon asked while eating his spaghetti. He would rather hide

    away here than listen to udia breathing down his neck at home.

    ¡°No.¡±

    Sheldon frowned at his brother¡¯s point-nk answer. ¡°You¡¯re so mean¡­¡±

    ¡°Why did you get up so early? You should rest more. You don¡¯t look so good.¡± Tobias gazed at Skr

    who had been busy in the kitchen the entire morning.

    Skr touched her face in response.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t want the two of you to go hungry and as the only female here, I couldn¡¯t just sleep in and let you

    two starve.¡±

    Tobias was not moved by Skr¡¯s thoughtfulness because he felt that she should rest more. She was

    already thin to begin with and what was worse, she seemed to have lost weight.

    She was so skinny that people might think she was a victim of domestic abuse.

    Sheldon was shooed out of the house by Tobias right after he finished his breakfast. The former had

    agreed to meet some friends at the cybercaf¨¦ earlier on and had grabbed Tobias¡¯ car keys just before

    leaving.

    Skr was about to clean up the dishes when Tobias stopped her. ¡°Just let me do it. I can do a better

    job.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but think Tobias was underestimating her. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m handicapped. How bad can

    I be at washing the dishes?

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t your brother need to work?¡± Skr was rather curious about Sheldon.

    In her mind, Sheldon always seemed so free.

    ¡°No. He¡¯s unemployed, but it¡¯s a good thing because it¡¯s one less thing for me to worry about.¡±

    Sheldon¡¯s current way of life was probably something many people could only wish for.

    Since Tobias would probably head to thepany, Skr nned to go shopping with Penelope and

    make a trip to her university after that.

    After Tobias was done tidying up the kitchen, he did not immediately leave like she thought he would.

    Noticing the brown briefcase on the sofa, she picked it up so that she could hand it to him.

    ¡°Are you chasing me away?¡± Tobias hugged her waist from behind, resting his chin on her head.

    ¡°I¡¯ll wait for you toe home. Just focus on work and don¡¯t worry about me.¡± Skr ced her hand on

    his arm, soaking in the warmth from his embrace as his white sandalwood scent filled her senses.

    This scent used to haunt her, but now, she foundfort in it.

    Before Tobias left, he took out a gold card and ced it on the table.

    ¡°I just opened a shopping mall. Go there for some shopping if you¡¯re bored. You don¡¯t need to pay for

    anything. I¡¯ll leave this card here. The address is on your phone.¡±

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    Skr picked up the gold card and smiled a toothy grin. ¡°Why Mr. Ford, are you throwing money at me

    this early in the morning? What if I get too used to this and be a materialistic gal someday?¡±

    Tobias would not mind even if she did. With tender affection, he brushed a kiss on her forehead, her

    eyes, her nose, and finally her lips.

    ¡°All you need to do is be a good girl. Spend as much as you like. I can afford it.¡±

    It was a simple promise, one filled with conviction. Tobias never doubted his ability to satisfy a woman¡¯s

    desires, both in terms of money and bodily pleasures.

    Skr stood by the door to see Tobias off.

    Upon hearing her whisper his name, Tobias turned around. ¡°You¡¯ve been looking at me like this for quite

    a while now. Is there something else?¡±

 Chapter 183

    Chapter 183

    ¡°I¡¯m thinking of visiting my mother. Do you know if she¡¯s well enough to see me?¡± Skr had dreamt

    about her childhood several times already.

    She was still not mentally prepared to face it.

    ¡°Don¡¯t go just yet. I¡¯ll ask the doctor tomorrow and arrange a suitable time for both of you to meet.¡±

    Skr suddenly realized that Tobias did not keep track of her mother¡¯s condition, so he was in the dark

    just as much as she was.

    They were not rted to each other whatsoever, so Tobias was not obligated to care for her.

    Skr watched Tobias¡¯ tall and straight back as he walked away and retrieved her gaze only after a long

    time.

    As usual, Tobias walked in long strides, picking up the pace as he went.

    Meanwhile, Skr shuffled back tiredly with an odd gait.

    Last night hadpletely drained her. She resembled a rag doll during the entire process, allowing

    Tobias to do whatever he pleased with her body.

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    She threw on a simple outfit and went out to meet Penelope who was waiting at a nearby caf¨¦.

    When Skr arrived, she saw Penelope wiping her tears away with a piece of tissue. Then, her gaze

    landed on the table which was littered with balled-up tissue papers.

    Skr could only imagine how long her friend had been crying.

    ¡°Babe, you¡¯re finally back. Do you have any idea how much I missed you?¡± Penelope seemed to have

    her hands full as she cried and wiped her snotty nose, all the while not forgetting to drink her hot

    chocte.

    Skr raised her hand to call for the waiter and ordered a cup of lemon tea. She decided not to have any

    caffeinated beverages lest she struggled to sleep at night.

    She took the seat across from Penelope¡¯s and said, ¡°Haven¡¯t gotten over thest guy you dated? How

    long has it been? Judging by your speed, isn¡¯t breaking up amon urrence?¡±

    As it turned out, Penelope was not crying because of her breakup, but because she was swindled out of

    her money.

    She had fallen victim to a long con and all of her money was gone. To make matters worse, she now

    owed a huge debt. She did not dare to tell her family about this because she knew that telling them

    would be useless anyway.

    Even if she reported this to the police, they wouldn¡¯t be able to catch those people. The police imed

    that they had received many cases like this and getting back the money would be close to impossible.

    The more Penelope thought about it, the more hopeless she felt. Every tear she cried was for each cent

    she lost. In the end, she sobbed uncontrobly while announcing, ¡°Skr, I fell victim to a long con but

    you can¡¯t tell anyone about this.¡±

    Skr, who was still wet behind the ears, did not know what Penelope meant. Furrowing her brows, she

    asked, ¡°What do you mean ¡®fell victim¡¯? You look fine.¡±

    Penelope wiped her eyes and exined, ¡°The other day, a man messaged me on WhatsApp. He was

    very handsome and gentlemanly. Later on, he said he was in the investment industry and gave me the

    website for a very good project, saying that we could all earn money together. It was as if he

    brainwashed me and I kept putting money in. Just a few days ago, I realized that he was a scammer

    because I couldn¡¯t withdraw any of the money I put in. All of my savings are gone now and I even

    invested half a million. My whole life is done for.¡±

    Skr was listening intently the whole time.

    By the time Penelope was finally done, there was a look of astonishment on Skr¡¯s face. She

    swallowed before asking, ¡°Where did you even get half a million?¡±

    ¡°I borrowed it and I don¡¯t have a single cent to pay it back. I¡¯m going to officially be a debt dodger from

    now on. Even if I sell myself, I won¡¯t be able to gather so much money.¡±

    Skr never thought that Penelope would do something like this because as far as she knew, Penelope

    had always been shrewd and more mature than those of her age.

    Penelope¡¯s parents were both honest workers. They were not well off, so Penelope had always aspired

    to marry into a rich family since junior high.

    She had a bumpy love life. Even though she had dated a few young men from wealthy backgrounds,

    none of them worked out in the end.

    All the men gave her the same reason; they weren¡¯t meant to be.

 Chapter 184

    Chapter 184

    Skr was also affected by this, she started to be pessimistic after witnessing too many incidents

    like this happening to Penelope. She felt that it was unrealistic and impossible for Tobias and her to be

    together because of the ever-present chasm between them.

    Probably everyone in the country knew of Ford Group. Meanwhile, she was just an ordinary person

    amidst the crowd.

    Skr had never encountered anything like this before. Seeing the pitiful state Penelope was in, she

    decided to ask Tobias if there was a way to get the money back.

    ¡°I¡¯ll ask Tobias and see if he can help,¡± Skr told Penelope.

    Penelope had a very bad impression of Skr¡¯s so-called boyfriend and stubbornly refuted, ¡°You¡¯re

    being too naive. No one would want to get involved in something like this. He doesn¡¯t even care about

    you that much, so why would he bother himself with my problem? What¡¯s the use in asking him for help?

    Is he going to lend me money?¡±

    Penelope still believed that Skr was being led on by that man.

    Suddenly, her eyes widened as she made a wild spection. ¡°Do you think that man is a scammer too?

    They slowly approach you, then get you to apply for a loan and run off with all your money. Let me tell

    you, men with killer looks are the worst. I mean, no straight woman can resist tall, and handsome men,

    right? You have to be smart or you¡¯ll end up like me. If that happens, crying would be useless.¡±

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    Skr was amazed by Penelope¡¯s overactive imagination. Even in her current fix, she managed to whip

    up an interesting theory.

    Skr pondered for a moment but still decided to discuss it with Tobias to get a definite view. She knew

    that he definitely had someone at hispany who could trace the IP back to the scammer.

    Skr stayed at the caf¨¦ with Penelope for quite some time, so her ns to head to the university had to

    be shelved.

    She told Tobias her location and thetter said he woulde and find her after leaving thepany.

    It was alreadyte afternoon, so Skr went to the disy case by the counter to buy something to eat.

    Penelope stopped her, saying, ¡°Don¡¯t buy the food here. They¡¯re too expensive. I can¡¯t afford to eat all

    these in my current state.¡±

    Skr ignored her. Afraid that her friend would be hungry, she ordered an extra piece of cheesecake.

    As evening approached and the sky darkened with it, Tobias finally showed up.

    Penelope took a sip of coffee, showing open hostility toward the man.

    ¡°Why did you call me over here?¡± Tobias habitually raised his hand to caress Skr¡¯s hair.

    Penelope¡¯s eyes followed his movements. Even though she had already sworn off choosing men based

    on their appearances, she had to admit that the man beside Skr still gave her the same impression as

    the first time ¨C personable, mature, and handsome.

    Penelope was reluctant to tell outsiders about the trouble she got herself into, so she remained silent.

    Skr kept it simple by saying, ¡°My friend was swindled out of half a million. Is there a way to get it

    back?¡±

    ¡°Inte fraud?¡± Tobias cut to the chase.

    Skr nodded while Penelope bowed her head.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get your hopes up. It¡¯s difficult,¡± Tobias answered.

    Penelope spiraled into further despair. She had heard enough of this at the police station and did not

    want to hear it again.

    Putting up a tough front, she said, ¡°You don¡¯t need to help me find a solution, Skr. I will handle it

    myself.¡±

    Skr protested with a heavy heart, ¡°How are you going to get so much money? Just wait until I receive

    my pay from shooting. I¡¯ll help you.¡±

    What Skr said brought Tobias¡¯ mind back to the time when she sacrificed herself to get money for

    Jeremy¡¯s illness.

    He did not know if it was stupidity or naivety that fueled her to put herself on the line for the sake of

    others.

 Chapter 185

    Chapter 185

    Knowing how hard things had been on Skr over the years, Penelope did not want to implicate her.

    She could not bring herself to let Skr pay for her own mistake.

    Tobias took out a checkbook from his suit pocket and wrote a cheque for half a million before giving it to

    Skr.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry yourself sick over this. It¡¯s not that big of a deal anyway,¡± he said in an exceptionally calm

    tone.

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    Penelope was dumbfounded. Skr held onto the cheque, steeling herself before extending it toward

    Penelope.

    Despite finding it improper, she had no choice. Currently, her top priority was getting Penelope out of this

    predicament.

    As Penelope stared at the string of numbers written on the cheque, she became tongue-tied and was

    even more curious about this man¡¯s story.

    She smacked the cheque on the table and resolutely refused it. ¡°I won¡¯t take it. Why should I take your

    money? It¡¯s better that you figure things out with that wife of yours at home instead.¡±

    Tobias cast Skr a long and meaningful look. She really does tell her best friend everything.

    Never one to be good at giving exnations, he did not exin himself to Penelope. Moreover, he found

    it unnecessary to talk about personal affairs with people who were irrelevant.

    What upset him was the fact that Skr did not seem to trust that he would never take Tanya as his wife.

    Meanwhile, Penelope took Tobias¡¯ck of exnation as an admission by silence, she was certain that

    Skr woulde to regret this rtionship in the future. There were no short of young girlsmitting

    suicide for men like him.

    As it was gettingte, Skr vehemently persuaded Penelope into epting the cheque, but it was to no

    avail.

    In the end, Skr could only give up. Perhaps Penelope would change her mind when she really ran out

    of options.

    The three of them exited the caf¨¦ with Tobias taking the lead and the two girls walking behind him, arm in

    arm. Like two school girls crushing on a senior, the two of them giggled softly as they stomped on his

    shadow.

    Tobias gantly offered to bring Penelope home first.

    As they rode in his spacious Porsche SUV, Penelope whispered into Skr¡¯s ear, ¡°You should keep your

    guard up. Spending money on you doesn¡¯t mean he loves you. Don¡¯t let all this materialistic stuff cloud

    your judgment.¡±

    Through the rearview mirror, Tobias spied the two girls whispering to each other. Both of them seemed to

    have endless topics to talk about.

    Even after so many years, Penelope still lived in the same old house.

    The family of three lived in a space of about ten square meters where there was only one room. They

    slept on a bunk bed and for privacy purposes, she had installed a curtain on the upper bunk.

    Her home was close to the one Skr used to live in and was only two to three minutes away by foot.

    Penelope was the one who apanied her the most throughout her childhood.

    When they arrived outside her house, Penelope gave Skr an inquisitive look, seemingly asking where

    she was going with this man.

    Not long after Penelope left, Skr heard someone calling her name.

    She turned around and saw her cousin, Kevin Watts, carrying a backpack. He was wearing ck-rimmed

    sses and was d in a baggy school uniform. He had mild e and light stubble, all typical

    characteristics of an adolescent boy.

    With a broad grin on his face, he greeted Skr enthusiastically.

    Tobias went for a smoke, seemingly unwilling to have any interaction with Skr¡¯s rtives. Or perhaps,

    he felt that it was a waste of his breath to entertain a mere high school student.

    As for Skr, she had not seen Kevin for a long time.

    He told her that his father had been sacked and went out looking for a job every day, but oddly, none of

    the factories were willing to hire him.

    Skr gazed at Tobias¡¯ towering figure in the distance, watching as puffs of smoke cloaked his

    features. Does he have anything to do with this?

    Logically speaking, it would be easy for her uncle to find a job since there was currently a shortage of

    skilled workers and all the factories would be jumping at the chance to hire one.

    After exchanging pleasantries with Kevin, she finally left.

    ¡°Finished?¡± Tobias hooked an arm around Skr¡¯s waist, letting her lean into his embrace.

 Chapter 186

    Chapter 186

    Skr asked, ¡°My uncle was fired from the factory and can¡¯t find a job now. Is this your doing?¡±

    Tobias was silent for a while before changing the subject. ¡°It¡¯s rare for me to leave thepany so early.

    You must be hungry. Come, I¡¯ll take you to dinner! What do you feel like eating? Or do you wanna buy

    something back to cook?¡±

    Skr did not prod further. What can I do even after getting the answer? use Tobias of being too

    ruthless in his punishment?

    ¡°Let¡¯s eat at home. I¡¯ll cook for you. What do you feel like eating¡­¡± Skr looked at the time and found

    that it was almost six.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine with anything you cook.¡± Tobias did not make any requests. He was never a picky eater, anyway,

    his priority had always been to fill his belly.

    He brought Skr to the supermarket to buy the ingredients she needed for cooking.

    In the past, Skr had always envied couples shopping in the supermarket. The man would push the

    cart while the woman would carefully select the ingredients. Then, they would go home together and

    cook.

    In her mind, shopping for groceries with the person she loved was such a happy feeling.

    However, Skr was not lucky enough to feel this happiness because Tobias kept answering his phone

    while pushing the cart with one hand.

    Tobias was speaking in fluent French. Even though Skr could not understand thenguage, she could

    tell that Tobias was not in a good mood from his furrowed brows.

    Skr chose what she needed and gestured to Tobias, asking if he was done.

    Tobias hung up the call and said apologetically, ¡°Sorry for the long call. Have you gotten everything you

    need?¡±

    Skr nodded, motioning at the shopping cart that was piled high with varying items.

    Tobias bent to rummage through the cart. ¡°You didn¡¯t get the most important thing! I don¡¯t wanna have to

    go out to buy condoms when we¡¯re already in the thick of things.¡±

    Skr¡¯s heart skipped a beat. Indeed, they had used up thest box yesterday night.

    Tobias really had a ravenous appetite for sex. Under normal circumstances, she would never get the

    chance to have a peaceful sleep at night.

    There were boxes of condoms on the shelves by the checkout counter. Without a second thought, Tobias

    took a few boxes that were zero one sizes.

    Skr lowered her voice and asked, ¡°Is this one veryfortable?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t like wearing condoms, but you¡¯ll worry if I don¡¯t. To be honest, they¡¯re not veryfortable,¡±

    Tobias replied.

    Even so, Skr was unwilling topromise on this. She still had her own bottom line.

    She wasn¡¯t sure whether Tobias would take responsibility for the child if she were to get pregnant

    someday.

    In a way, he was like sand to her because she would never have the confidence to hold onto him.

    ¡°It seems like my son hasn¡¯t been very busytely, seeing as he left thepany so early to shop for

    groceries with a woman.¡± udia studied them coldly.

    udia had already seen Tobias grabbing the condoms earlier.

    Tanya was also present and had her arm linked with udia¡¯s. They even had some bodyguards in

    casual clothes behind them, depicting a very grand sight.

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    Skr immediately released Tobias¡¯ hand just as the air around them went still.

    Skr greeted softly, ¡°Mrs. Ford¡­¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare talk to me,¡± udiashed out.

    She took out a box of condoms from the cart and said in a voice trembling with anger, ¡°Tanya is pregnant

    with your child, but you¡¯re still fooling around with another woman every night. You even have the mood

    to go grocery shopping with her. Tobias Ford, how long are you going to keep bullying Tanya? How did I

    ever give birth to a son like you? In the past, I¡¯ve always turned a blind eye to the things you did, but this

    is too much.¡±

    Tobias frowned deeply as his mother seethed with anger while Tanya had put on an aggrieved look on

    her face with tears pooling in her eyes.

    He found it embarrassing that his mother had aired their dirtyundry in public.

    A crowd had formed around them. Since they only heard one side of the story, all of them assumed that

    he had done something despicable.

    Indeed, he had done his fair share of shady things, but he was not despicable to this extent.

 Chapter 187

    Chapter 187

    Thest time udia was hospitalized, she was warded into the ICU as her condition was extremely

    serious. Luckily, they managed to get a foreign specialist to treat her.

    The doctor had constantly reminded them that she could not undergo any stress. And that became

    Tobias¡¯ weakness which Tanya seized upon.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, I¡¯m sure you can see how I¡¯m unable to pleasure Tobias in my current condition. Hence,

    you¡¯re just my recement for the time being. But, you will soon end up just like me,¡± Tanya sobbed.

    She had inadvertently be the ¡°wife¡± that everyone sympathized with. Her ¡°husband¡± cheated on her

    while she was pregnant despite the fact that Tobias and her were not actually married.

    ¡°Enough, do you have no shame?¡± Tobias pulled Skr closer to him and he could feel that her body

    was slightly trembling.

    Many onlookers had surrounded them and watched themotion.

    Skr felt the full brunt of their condescending gazes and mockery. Anyone who had a sense of justice

    would naturally sympathize with the pregnant Tanya.

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    Tobias vented his frustrations on the bodyguards who were also watching from behind. ¡°Send my mom

    and Ms. Hanson home.¡±

    Tobias wanted to take Skr away as she didn¡¯t deserve to go through this.

    He was stumped by such humiliation. In the business world, he was ruthless and decisive in whatever he

    did. In fact, he would do whatever it takes to achieve his gains.

    However, resolving this problem was just like walking through a minefield. He had to be careful not to

    ignite any one of them for fear that his mother¡¯s condition would deteriorate.

    He neither had the luxury to be gentle nor harsh. Tanya was staying with his mother on the ount that

    she saved her life.

    To the extent that he suspected someone had actually caused his mother to fall unconscious on the

    streets.

    Therefore, he was already investigating the matter.

    Not daring to disobey Tobias, the bodyguard suggested to udia, ¡°Ma¡¯am, let¡¯s go home.¡±

    udia gave the bodyguard a side-eye and proposed, ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. I¡¯m sure Ms. Jones hasn¡¯t had

    dinner yet. Since we¡¯re all here, I want to have a meal with my son. Ms. Jones, why don¡¯t you join us?¡±

    Skr looked at Tobias as the decision was his to make. She was aware it wasn¡¯t really a dinner

    invitation, but a trap instead. She would be made to suffer.

    However, despite how terrible it felt, she knew she had to face it sooner orter. There was no way to

    avoid it.

    Skr epted udia¡¯s invitation as she wasn¡¯t willing to put Tobias in a difficult position. Although he

    didn¡¯t seem to be troubled at all.

    They arrived at a French restaurant with beautiful surroundings and exquisite decor. udia was a

    regr here. Every time she visited, she would dine in a private room reserved only for her because she

    did not like to be disturbed. When she wasn¡¯t around, the room would not be used for other guests.

    Faced with Tanya¡¯s jealous gaze, Tobias sat beside Skr. She wasn¡¯t in control of today¡¯s situation at

    all.

    Just a month ago, Tanya had assumed Skr was just one of the many flings Tobias had. She didn¡¯t

    expect them to still be together and that they had spent so much time with each other.

    After udia ordered her usual from the waiter, she took a sip of tea to moisten her throat. ¡°Tobias¡¯

    tastes are simr to mine. He prefers his food to be lightly seasoned. Ms. Jones, do you like French

    food?¡±

    Skr nodded. ¡°I¡¯m alright with it.¡±

    When Skr saw how well udia maintained herposure, it felt like the calm before the storm to

    her.

    ¡°Just alright? It seems you have no taste in food, just like your taste in men. Despite knowing Tobias has

    a family, you still insist on interfering.¡±

    It was just as Skr had expected. She replied, ¡°There¡¯s no way I can exin myself. But I know I have

    not hurt anyone.¡±

 Chapter 188

    Chapter 188

    She didn¡¯t dare say too much as she knew udia wasn¡¯t in good health. Being confrontational with

    udia would end badly for her. If anything happened to udia, it would be the end of her rtionship

    with Tobias.

    She could understand why Tobias feared his mother so much. It wasn¡¯t because he obeyed her for no

    reason. Instead, it was on the ount all the years she had suffered as an indebted single mother who

    was still responsible for two boys. Those years were unimaginably tough.

    Tanya eximed angrily, ¡°You should stop pretending to be innocent. You are literally his mistress. How

    can you still im that you didn¡¯t hurt anyone? Unless you don¡¯t even see me as a person.¡±

    When she heard Tanya¡¯s voice trembling in anger, udia quickly consoled her as she was pregnant.

    Tobias looked at them pensively and asked, ¡°Mom, what do you want? Will you only be happy if I married

    Tanya? So what if I married her? Do you want her to live like a widow? Even if you don¡¯t think it¡¯s a

    problem, I am already tired of this.¡±

    Tobias had made it clear how frustrated he was.

    ¡°I¡¯m willing to do anything for you including that.¡± Tanya¡¯s expression was resolute while her eyes looked

    as if she would do anything for him.

    The more Tanya acted that way, the more udia sympathized with her. As a woman, she pitied Tanya

    for her predicament and hated Tobias¡¯ irresponsible actions.

    ¡°Go die then,¡± Tobias snapped with an icy gaze. Tanya was the most annoying woman he had ever met

    in his life.

    All this while, he had never allowed anyone to cling on to him like that. It was just that Tanya had the

    protection of his mother.

    Tobias¡¯ expression grew so dark that it frightened Skr.

    Tanya burst into tears from the humiliation. Her pitiful look would earn sympathy from just anyone.

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    udia gritted her teeth as she warned them, ¡°For as long as I¡¯m alive, I will never let this woman into

    the family. Since both of you are present, I hope I have made myself clear. Ms. Jones, you and Tobias

    are never meant to be. What right do you have to be together with him?¡±

    Skr was devastated by how harsh udia was. She felt the old times were a lot better where love

    was still innocent, unlike now. There were simply too many things to consider, to the extent there wasn¡¯t

    any room for being willfully stubborn.

    She admitted, ¡°I admit I¡¯m not good enough. We may not be together in the end but I will treasure the

    days we are together.¡±

    Tobias took a deep breath as if he were trying to suppress his emotions.

    Finally, he spoke with an indifferent tone. ¡°Mom, I wouldn¡¯t be in such a difficult position if you would only

    believe me. There¡¯s no point in continuing this meal. Also, you shouldn¡¯t think it¡¯s Skr¡¯s fault. The only

    reason she is with me is that I gave her no choice. She has been forced topromise and ept me.

    Hence, you¡¯re venting your frustrations on the wrong person.¡±

    He then stood up and prepared to leave with Skr, worried that she couldn¡¯t take it. After all, she was

    only twenty and had limited experience in life. Given how sharp and aggressive his mother was, there

    was no way Skr would escape unscathed.

    Skr stood up and bowed slightly at udia. ¡°Mrs. Ford, I know that you resent me. I can¡¯t ask

    anything of you and I¡¯m well aware of how inadequate I am. I will try to improve. Hopefully, you will

    approve of me the next time we meet.¡±

    Skr¡¯s words were polite and respectful, regardless of whether udia wanted to hear them.

    ¡°Tobias, you will regret this. She is someone that is willing to abandon her mother. Someone like that

    doesn¡¯t deserve your attention,¡± Tanya called out to Tobias. Circling around the table, she stuck out the

    gentle bump on her belly on purpose.

 Chapter 189

    Chapter 189

    Skr was jolted when she realized Tanya had investigated her background, to the extent she knew

    about her mom being hospitalized.

    udia who just found out hated Skr even more because of it. To her, someone that could abandon

    their own mother was capable of much worse.

    Tobias red at Tanya who was trying to stop him from leaving. ¡°You seemed to have done your

    homework. It¡¯s such a shame you¡¯re not a detective. You should focus on taking care of the baby. Once

    the child is born, our rtionship will end.¡±

    Tanya had no choice but to watch them leave as she didn¡¯t dare throw a tantrum in front of Tobias.

    On the way home, Skr was in a sullen mood. She would asionally stare at the neon lights and

    passing cars outside the window before shifting her attention to Tobias who was driving.

    When they arrived at a red light, Tobias held Skr¡¯s hand and threaded his fingers through them. She

    could feel how warm and rough they were.

    Given how rough Tobias¡¯ hand was, she realized that he wasn¡¯t always this rich. He must have put in

    years of painstaking effort to be able to stand at the pinnacle of sess.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t take what my mom said today personally. I shouldn¡¯t have brought you there anyway.

    Besides, you look terrible when you worry about it. Frowning makes you look like an old hag.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t realize that Tobias was quietly watching her the moment they left the restaurant.

    When she felt she had forgotten something, she realized the things she bought at the mall were still

    there. However, it was toote to go back for them.

    They had wasted their time there.

    ¡°Does it mean we have nothing to eat for tonight?¡± Tobias remarked with a smile.

    Skr replied pensively, ¡°Perhaps I¡¯ll just cook some spaghetti.¡±

    Tobias lost his appetite the moment he heard it was spaghetti again.

    Tobias wanted to drive her out to have something else but Skr still insisted on spaghetti. Hence, he

    wondered why she loved spaghetti so much.

    Tobias hated spaghetti. When he was young, Sheldon and he had to eat spaghetti every day.

    Skr led the way and brought him to a spaghetti restaurant that was very popr on the inte.

    They were famous for their frog leg spaghetti and many influencers would visit just to be seen there.

    Furthermore, they were also featured in many food programs.

    Despite it beingte, the ce was still packed.

    Tobias pulled aside the porti¨¨re for Skr to enter.

    Skr ordered two tes of frog leg spaghetti and a portion of roasted pork. To round off, she asked for

    two cans of soft drinks.

    She generously dered, ¡°This is my treat.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t argue.

    When the te of frog leg spaghetti was served, Tobias cringed as he picked up the frog leg.

    He then ced it on Skr¡¯s te instead.

    His actions warmed Skr¡¯s heart, causing her to smile blissfully. ¡°You don¡¯t have to do that. I already

    have enough to eat.¡±

    ¡°But I don¡¯t eat this.¡±

    Suddenly, Skr felt her bubble burst. She had been overthinking.

    He had given her the meat because he didn¡¯t want them and yet she thought he wanted to save it for her.

    Skr¡¯s appetite appeared to be good as she finished all the food despite therge portions.

    However, Tobias only had a little before leaving it by the side.

    ¡°Can you still eat?¡± Tobias pushed his te toward Skr.

    Skr replied, ¡°Mr. Ford you really know the value of thriftiness by giving me the leftovers.¡±

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    Tobias chuckled. ¡°Even if we order a new one, you wouldn¡¯t be able to finish it. Hence, it will just be a

    waste of money.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t understand the way Tobias thinks. She didn¡¯t expect someone like him to utter the words

    ¡°waste of money¡±. People who didn¡¯t know him might actually think he was stingy.

 Chapter 190

    Chapter 190

    As the restaurant wasn¡¯t big, all the tables were ced close to each other.

    A young couple sitting beside them heard Tobias¡¯ words.

    Armed with a superiorityplex, the girlmented to her boyfriend in disdain, ¡°Darling, the guy

    beside us isn¡¯t willing to pay for another te. But he does look handsome. It seems like by looking good

    is enough to get by nowadays.¡±

    Her boyfriend gave them the side-eye. ¡°That¡¯s why you should be grateful for how well I treat you. After

    all, I let you spend my money at will. Next time, I should just be more stingy just like him.¡±

    Both Skr and Tobias clearly heard the couple¡¯s conversation.

    Skr sneered, ¡°Sheesh, what¡¯s there to gloat about.¡±

    Tobias simply ignored them as he wasn¡¯t bothered by such a trivial matter.

    In the end, Skr didn¡¯t finish the second te. She just paid and left.

    From inside the restaurant, the couple watched as Skr and Tobias got into a Porsche despite not

    willing to pay for another te of spaghetti.

    Stunned, both of them wondered if this was how the rich actually lived.

    Back at home, Skr went upstairs to take a bath. As for Tobias, he seemed free today as he didn¡¯t work

    on hisptop.

    Meanwhile, the TV was on in the living hall and tuned to the financial news channel. Currently, it reported

    that the Ford Group had officially ventured into the entertainment industry and set up their own

    managementpany.

    After her shower, Skr walked out in a loose bathrobe. She was so slim that the bathrobe looked

    oversized on her.

    Sitting beside Tobias, Skr¡¯s body emitted the fragrance of the shower gel she used.

    To Skr, showering was the most therapeutic part of the day. When she realized she needed to start

    filming soon, she wondered how long she needed to wait before being able to shower again.

    She poured a ss of warm milk and put it by his left hand. With his elbows on his knees, Tobias looked

    at the milk.

    ¡°You¡¯re serving me a drink of your own ord. Do you have a request?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ question was direct. It caused Skr to realize that he could easily see through her. Before she

    even voiced out what she wanted, he already knew the answer.

    Skr bit her lip. ¡°Can you lend me some money? Five hundred thousand will do. I¡¯ll repay you with the

    money I receive from acting. I¡¯ve also written down the IOU.¡±

    Skr was exceptionally polite with Tobias.

    Tobias furrowed his eyebrows. ¡°Are you trying to pay off your friend¡¯s debt?¡±

    Skr nodded. After giving it a lot of thought, she knew that it was impossible for Penelope to gather so

    much money from her job in customer service.

    Tobias replied inly, ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so cordial with me. Besides, you shouldn¡¯t sympathize with

    your friend for being stupid. I¡¯m someone fair so there¡¯s no need for an IOU. You can repay the favor with

    your body.¡±

    She was still wearing the loose bathrobe as she followed Tobias upstairs. Rummaging through his

    drawer, he took out one of his white shirts and handed it to Skr.

    ¡°Wear this. I want to see you in it¡­¡±

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    The shirt¡¯s sleeve extended beyond her arms and it felt very cooling.

    ¡°I have my own pajamas.¡± Skr pointed at the wardrobe that belonged to her.

    ¡°I just want you to wear this. It has nothing to do with whether you have your own pajamas or not.¡± Tobias

    extended his hands into her robe and pinched her as punishment.

    Under Tobias¡¯ gaze, Skr changed into the white shirt he had just given her.

    His shirt was so loose that she didn¡¯t feel secure in it. She had nothing else on and the shirt entuated

    the shapes of her body.

    Tobias watched on in glee. She looked sexier with the shirt aspared to being naked.

    ¡°Have you been with a lot of women before?¡± Skr began to feel the pressure under Tobias¡¯ pensive

    gaze.

    ¡°Not really.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t believe it. In her eyes, Tobias was a yer and life was his stage. He valued freedom and

    she believed it was difficult for him to settle down.

 Chapter 191

    Chapter 191

    ¡°Why did you insist on taking my virginity then?¡± Skr finally asked the question that burned in her heart

    for a long time.

    She wasn¡¯t sure how many girls experienced the same thing before her.

    ¡°I just felt like it at the moment. You were the first.¡± Tobias tousled her hair but his gaze wasn¡¯t gentle.

    Skr was stunned as she felt his answer was both amusing and infuriating at the same time.

    ¡°Did you like anyone else before this?¡± Skr peppered Tobias with questions as she was curious about

    his history. When it came to a rtionship, she was unable to keep her curiosity in check.

    There was a lot she wanted. But most importantly, she wanted security. She hoped to hear Tobias say,

    ¡°No, you¡¯re the only one.¡±

    ¡°I did. But it was a long time ago when I was still studying. I felt as if she was the most innocent girl in the

    world. She was good in her studies and also very pretty¡­¡±

    Hearing how Tobias described her, Skr began to feel jealous.

    When he was talking about the girl, his eyes were filled with gentleness.

    Perhaps every man has a soft spot for his first love. No matter how rich and powerful one may be

    or even be surrounded by an innumerable number of girls, there will always be one that is pure.

    However, Tobias didn¡¯t notice the jealousy that was creeping into Skr. In fact, he assumed that they

    were still chatting casually.

    Over thest few days that she spent with Tobias, they were making love most of the time. To the extent

    Skr felt a sense of phobia when she looked at the bed.

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    The kitchen, bathroom, living room sofa¡­ every spot in the house had traces of their lovemaking.

    As Tobias was creative with the multiple positions to ¡°punish¡± her, he would f*ck her till she begged for

    mercy. Sometimes, he would get her to call him ¡°master¡± just to fulfill his fantasies.

    As her holiday was about to end, Tobias told her that she could go and see her mother.

    The doctor told her that her mother¡¯s condition was stable. Sometimes, the nurse would take her down to

    the garden for a walk. She would also chat with the other patients and participate in the hospital¡¯s

    activities.

    Miranda was wearing a blue and white checkered hospital gown and a brown woolen hat when she saw

    Skr.

    As they had not seen each other for a very long time, Miranda could barely recognize her.

    She looked intently at the girl with reddened eyes in front of her. ¡°Miss, why are you staring at me? You

    seem very familiar. Do you know me?¡±

    Miranda had never talked to Skr in such a calm and gentle manner before.

    Skr shifted her nce toward Tobias who was watching from afar while leaning by an old locust tree.

    Although she told him that she would be fine by herself, Tobias still insisted oning.

    Skr began to speak, ¡°I¡¯m Skr, do you remember me? I¡¯m your daughter.¡±

    Skr was both nervous and fearful as she wasn¡¯t sure if her name might agitate Miranda.

    Miranda had always med her for her divorce, thinking that it was because Skr wasn¡¯t a boy. She

    assumed Thomas divorce her because he preferred to have a boy.

    What she wasn¡¯t aware of was how much Thomas loved Avery. Hence, the divorce had nothing to do

    with the child¡¯s gender.

    ¡°Skr? My daughter?¡± Miranda covered her mouth. The moment she heard Skr¡¯s name, tears began

    to flow. She then motioned for Skr toe closer.

    Her response came as a surprise to Skr who was expecting herself to be yelled and cursed at.

    When Miranda embraced her tightly, tears began to flow. ¡°Do you know how much I have missed you?

    It¡¯s been such a long time since you came to see me. Skr, take me out of here. I want to live together

    with you. So that I can take care of you and make amends.¡±

 Chapter 192

    Chapter 192

    Skr froze as she realized she had a tendency to be taken advantage of. Given Miranda¡¯s request, she

    didn¡¯t know what to do about it.

    After crying for about half an hour, Mirandargely spoke rationally and didn¡¯t seem like she was sick at

    all.

    Bathing under the afternoon sunlight, Skr sat shoulder to shoulder with her on a bench in the hospital

    garden.

    Miranda held onto Skr¡¯s hand. ¡°Skr when do you n to get me out of here?¡±

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    Skr had counted a total of six times Miranda requested to be discharged.

    She replied, ¡°That will depend on the doctor.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s so expensive to stay here. How can you even afford it? I heard my room costs a hundred thousand a

    month. I don¡¯t want to put so much pressure on you. Just let me out of here.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t tell Miranda that someone else was paying for it as now wasn¡¯t the time.

    She promised Miranda that if the doctor agreed, she would arrange for her to be discharged. After all,

    she hoped that Miranda would be able to restart her life.

    However, Miranda was currently on medical parole. Once she was cured, she would have to return to

    prison to finish serving her sentence.

    Am I going to send her back to prison?

    As she escorted Miranda back to her ward, Tobias continued to watch nearby. He was worried that

    Miranda wasn¡¯t mentally stable and would potentially harm Skr.

    Although the doctor¡¯s report stated that Miranda had recovered her mental capacities, Tobias was still

    worried about eventualities.

    Skr finally left the ward at night. Time passed quickly as both mother and daughter had a lot to catch

    up on.

    Before Skr left, she promised Miranda that she would ask the doctor.

    Waiting on a bench, Tobias passed Skr a bottle of warm honey grapefruit.

    ¡°Are you happy that you could finally reunite with your mother?¡± he asked.

    Skr had mixed emotions about it and couldn¡¯t clearly exin what she was feeling. It all still felt

    surreal to her.

    ¡°Can my mom be discharged? She asked me sixteen times today about it. Before I left, she still

    reminded me that she was waiting for my answer.¡±

    ¡°Technically, the decision is entirely up to you.¡± Tobias had already checked with the doctor. He said

    Miranda was ready to be discharged anytime.

    ¡°The hospital is a lot morefortable than prison and I don¡¯t really want to send her back. She

    assumes that medical parole means that she¡¯s free,¡± Skr exined her considerations.

    Miranda still had eight years left on her sentence. Even if Skr managed to get her out, Irene would

    definitely kick up a big fuss given her character.

    A murderer should pay for her crimes. This was something Skr had never sympathized with Miranda

    before.

    ¡°I can help you deal with it. We can give her a ce to stay and arrange for parole,¡± Tobias exined his

    n slowly.

    Skr didn¡¯t agree to it immediately as she needed to think through it.

    When they were leaving the hospital, they saw a hearse and a few men in white uniforms carrying a

    large coffin.

    Tobias quickly covered her eyes tightly with his hands and led her away.

    Dragging Skr away, Tobias knew that she might be frightened at night or scared of the dark after

    seeing something like that.

    The next morning, Skr was to take a flight back to where she was filming. The moment she reached

    home, she started packing. This time there were a lot more clothes for her to bring.

    Tobias¡¯ assistant had bought them based on his taste. He felt that Skr¡¯s current outfits were too

    childish.

    Both of them didn¡¯t lookpatible when they were out on the streets. He was worried that he looked

    like an uncle taking his niece out instead.

 Chapter 193

    Chapter 193

    Tobias looked at her apologetically. ¡°Tonight, you will have to stay home by yourself as I need to drop by

    the office. Remember to check all the doors and windows at night before you sleep.¡±

    Skr was disappointed. ¡°Why are you going sote at night? Did something serious happen?¡±

    Already changed, Tobias replied when he was about to leave, ¡°It¡¯s still manageable. Tomorrow, I¡¯ll get the

    driver to pick you up. You should go ahead and rest early.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t ask him to stay despite feeling reluctant to let him leave. She wasn¡¯t going to coquettishly

    make him stay.

    In fact she was very independent, which had cost her to suffer a lot during her previous rtionship.

    But, Tobias was pleased with her. By not acting clingy around him, he wouldn¡¯t lose his patience and

    understanding for her.

    He needed someone that was sensible and not too dependent on him.

    After walking Tobias out, she watched until the ck Porsche disappeared from her sight.

    Skr let out a lonely sigh as he could be away due to a single phone call. She was already used to it by

    now.

    When she reached the set, Skr met Kate. She was the assistant Tobias had assigned to Skr

    though he didn¡¯t mention it to her.

    Kate was in her thirties and looked very experienced. She also gave off a mature and aggressive vibe.

    After chatting briefly, Kate asked Skr, ¡°What is your rtionship with Mr. Ford?¡±

    When Skr replied that there were in a rtionship, Kate didn¡¯t ask anything further. Meanwhile, there

    was a new Mercedes-Benz motorhome at the film site.

    Kate exined, ¡°Mr. Ford arranged this as a gift to you.¡±

    Skr stared at the luxurious motorhome in surprise. ¡°He didn¡¯t tell me about it. Besides, it doesn¡¯t seem

    appropriate for me to be in such a high-end motorhome given my trivial role.¡±

    Kate raised her eyebrows. ¡°This has nothing to do with your role. It¡¯s just unimaginable to stay in such a

    dusty ce without the cozy motorhome.¡±

    Skr then called Tobias to verify and also ask him why he didn¡¯t tell her in advance.

    However, the call just wouldn¡¯t connect. Ever since he left the night before, she didn¡¯t manage to get in

    touch with him.

    When she called in the morning, his phone was off. But now, it just wouldn¡¯t connect at all.

    ¡°Can you get in touch with Tobias?¡± Skr asked Kate for help.

    Kate replied helplessly, ¡°Since when does Mr. Ford even have time for me. If even you can¡¯t get him, I

    doubt I can.¡±

    Before the morning was over, the news of Tobias gifting Skr a new motorhome had spread throughout

    the crew.

    Katrina raged in jealousy. She couldn¡¯t ept how Skr could continuously one-up her given that she

    was still unknown.

    In the shared dressing room, Skr¡¯s makeup artist was helping her to apply her foundation. Her actions

    were incredibly gentle as if she were a different person from earlier.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, your skin is wless. It¡¯s so great to be young. On the contrary, Katrina¡¯s skin is visibly

    different. She hasrger pores and experiences outbreaks frequently.¡±

    Skr was reluctant to gossip as she was worried her words would find their way to Katrina¡¯s ears.

    Hence, she closed her eyes in silence.

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    At the sound of footsteps approaching, the makeup artist closed her foundation kit with a crisp snap.

    ¡°Congrattions, you got a motorhome on your first movie,¡± Kai remarked indifferently.

    Opening her eyes, Skr turned to look at Kai. His expression did not reflect his congrattory wishes at

    all. Instead, it was one of disdain.

    ¡°It was unexpected as I just got to know about it. Now, I no longer need to use your motorhome to

    shower.¡±

    Kai pulled up a chair and sat opposite Skr. ¡°It seems your trip home was extremely fruitful. Tobias

    appears generous to women, throwing money around like it¡¯s nothing. I can only lend you my shower but

    he can present you a motorhome.¡±

 Chapter 194

    Chapter 194

    Skr understood what Kai was insinuating. It was as if his pride as a man had been trampled upon.

    Skr didn¡¯t understand why this even bothered him. Perhaps in his eyes, she was just a materialistic

    woman.

    Skr adjusted her cor. ¡°I can¡¯t ept the gift as it is too expensive. I¡¯m just borrowing it for the time

    being. Once the shooting is done, I¡¯ll return it in its original condition.¡±

    Kai felt his heart tied up in knots. Given how rare it was for Tobias to treat a woman so well, Kai was

    worried that Skr would be further entrapped by him.

    Although he only knew Skr for a short while, he felt the sudden urge to protect her when he saw her

    spacing out and looking lonely at times.

    Suddenly, Kate entered anxiously looking for Skr. She informed her that the director had called out her

    name a couple of times and couldn¡¯t find her.

    When Kai saw Kate, he recognized her right away.

    He guessed only a newbie like Skr wasn¡¯t aware of how capable Kate was.

    As an extremely experienced agent within the entertainment industry, Kate wouldn¡¯t just manage

    anybody. As she had a widework of contacts in showbiz, she groomed many famous celebrities

    throughout the years.

    Any actor or actress would die to have Kate manage them. And now, Tobias had assigned her to help

    Skr.

    Furthermore, it was likely that Tobias was very influential as Kate was taking a break over thest two to

    three years. She had returned to work just for Skr.

    Meanwhile, Skr quickly followed Kate out and ran towards the film site.

    She was supposed to have a dialogue with Kai but he only came out from the dressing room after a long

    time.

    Before filming started, Skr tried her best to familiarize herself with the lines. In this scene, she was

    supposed to confess her feelings to the male lead yed by Kai.

    The script required some physical contact. She was to hug Kai by his waist and stood on her toes to kiss

    him.

    Meanwhile, Kai was already dressed in a red tank top and an army green jacket. Although it was a

    cheesybination, he managed to pull off the look and was absolutely dashing in it.

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    Skr and Kai quickly went through the script together before Daryl hurried them to get ready as filming

    was about to start.

    The scene where she was to confess was under a locust tree outside of the vige entrance.

    As the weather was scorching hot and the sun shone over their heads, it felt extremely ufortable

    with the heavy makeup on their faces.

    ¡°Are you nervous about our scene together?¡± Kai asked out of concern when he noticed Skr fidgeting.

    However, Skr was actually ufortable with the heat as she fanned herself desperately. ¡°If only we

    can speed up filming.¡±

    Whether in real life or acting, Skr was terrible at confessing her feelings. Especially when she was

    required to steal a kiss from Kai.

    She kept stuttering in her dialogue and couldn¡¯t bring herself to kiss him.

    Skr was unable to y the proud second lead role in front of the camera.

    As the atmosphere was getting tense and Daryl was fuming, Kai helped her to relieve the tension by

    joking with everyone.

    By the time they wrapped up, night had already fallen. They filmed the same scene from the afternoon till

    the evening.

    As it was her fault that the filming was dyed, Skr apologized to the crew sincerely.

    Daryl reprimanded her for losing her focus after a few days of holiday. It would be uneptable if she

    continued to perform that way.

    It was just like when she was in school. Every time she returned from a school holiday, her exam results

    would be terrible as she needed more time to settle.

    After having her makeup removed, Skr saw that Kate hade out of the motorhome and was

    waiting for her to have supper. As of now, both of them were still unfamiliar with each other.

    Skr was someone that was slow to warm up to others. Hence, it was difficult for her to be friendly with

    people she didn¡¯t know well.

    Visibly upset, she frowned with her lips pursed tightly.

    Kate consoled her, ¡°It¡¯s impossible to get in character all the time. Don¡¯t think too much about it and take

    your time. Today, I talked to Daryl. He said that you are very talented and wants to sign you.¡±

 Chapter 195

    Chapter 195

    Skr was still frowning from the immense pressure she felt. ¡°Tobias won¡¯t allow it. Perhaps he thinks

    that I¡¯m still a student.¡±

    Until now, Kate didn¡¯t understand what Skr¡¯s rtionship was with Tobias. What does Skr mean

    when she mentioned that they were in a rtionship? Does Tobias even need a girlfriend?

    It was obvious that he didn¡¯t. Nheless, Tobias is paying too much attention to her to make this just a

    fling.

    Did the Ford Group venture into the entertainment industry just for this girl? It was unlikely for Tobias to

    do something as impulsive as that.

    Meanwhile, Skr checked her phone and saw that there weren¡¯t any messages from Tobias.

    After she returned, she began tidying her room to distract herself. Her room was so messy that it looked

    like a pigsty.

    Thest time it was tidied up was before Tobias left as he couldn¡¯t stand how messy it was. The clothes

    in the wardrobe were all neatly arranged.

    It was the next morning before Tobias finally contacted her. His excuse was that he was busy and didn¡¯t

    check his phone.

    Turning herself on her bed, Skr sounded sleepy as she still hasn¡¯t fully woken up. ¡°Why did you send

    me a motorhome?¡±

    ¡°Is there a need to ask why after receiving a gift? It¡¯s simple. You are to have what others have.¡±

    Nody on Earth would be able to refute to that.

    When Skr saw that it was still early, she got out of bed and headed to the washroom with her phone.

    ¡°Would you mind if I have a kissing scene?¡±

    The line went silent for a few seconds.

    ¡°Don¡¯t ask me this question. You should decide for yourself. I¡¯m sure you know what my answer is.¡±

    Discussing with a mature man will always put one at a disadvantage. He will always leave the choice to

    you but make his stance very clear.

    ¡°I understand. I¡¯ll be back the following day. Will youe and pick me up?¡± Skr asked in a coquettish

    manner.

    It was a rare request from her.

    ¡°I¡¯ll get the driver to do it. I¡¯m don¡¯t have timetely.¡±

    Skr wasn¡¯t happy with his answer but wasn¡¯t in a position to voice her displeasure.

    N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights.

    After chatting for a while, she heard a female voice in the background.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, you barely rested thest two days. Do you want to dy the meeting?¡±

    While Skr was still on the line waiting for his response, Tobias ended the call without even saying

    goodbye.

    She didn¡¯t call back as she didn¡¯t want to disturb him.

    Nevertheless, she was still upset. What¡¯s so difficult about ending the call properly? She felt that it was

    disrespectful for him to end the call abruptly.

    Today, she managed to finish all her parts and performed within expectations.

    Sometimes she would wonder if she was really suited to be an actress.

    When she told her grandma that she wanted to be one, Grandma replied, ¡°We¡¯re just ordinary folks. You

    should be grateful if you can earn a living instead of having such a ridiculous dream.¡±

    After the filming waspleted, Skr thought about the little girl that approached her and called her

    ¡°Mommy¡±. She wondered how she was doing.

    She asked the vigers where the little girl stayed.

    Not far from the filming location, Pollyanna¡¯s house was made of mud bricks while thepound was

    lined with a wooden fence. Inside, there were a few hens.

    When Pollyanna saw Skr, she put down her winnowing basket and ran toward her with her dirty little

    hands outstretched.

    ¡°Skr.¡±

    Skr tousled Pollyanna¡¯s dirty hair which had knotted by itself. She asked, ¡°Why are you home alone?¡±

    At that moment, a woman with tan skin walked out. She was so fat that one could see theyers of fat on

    her face.

    She was holding a boy in her arms with her top unbuttoned, exposing her breast. She must have just

    finished breastfeeding the boy.

    Skr quickly averted her gaze.

    ¡°Did youe from the city to film here?¡± The woman looked at the slender and beautiful woman in front

    of her before approaching Skr with her exposed chest.

 Chapter 196

    Chapter 196

    Skr reminded her, ¡°Your top is still unbuttoned.¡±

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    Embarrassed by what she saw, Skr blushed.

    Thedy didn¡¯t care and sneered instead, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that? It provides my son food and which

    woman doesn¡¯t breastfeed anyway? Do all the children in the city grow up drinking form milk?¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t know as she had never given birth before. Nevertheless, thedy stared at her as if she

    were malnourished. Her concern was indeed valid given how big and strong she was aspared to

    Skr.

    Skr asked, ¡°Can I give this child a treat? I¡¯m leaving tomorrow after all.¡±

    Thedy didn¡¯t reject her request despite her being a stranger. Instead, she added impatiently, ¡°Just go,

    this girl is just so annoying. I would actually get some peace once she¡¯s gone.¡±

    Skr could see that thedy favored her son as she focused all her love and attention on him.

    Looking at Pollyanna, Miranda felt a rush of emotions. The phrase that Miranda repeated the most when

    she was young was ¡°If only you were a boy.¡±

    When Skr brought Pollyanna to the film site, Kate eximed, ¡°Where did you find this little girl? Her

    face is so dirty.¡±

    Skr knelt down and cleaned Pollyanna¡¯s face with a napkin. She hardly knew how to interact with

    children let alone take care of them.

    She just wanted to do something before she left given how pitiful Pollyanna was.

    Pollyanna was obedient. She didn¡¯t struggle as Skr wiped her face for her.

    ¡°Skr, do you have any children of your own? It would be wonderful to be your daughter.¡± Pollyanna

    ttered Skr as she gave a hopeful gaze.

    Skr chuckled, ¡°It¡¯s still a long way before I have any children. Pollyanna, aren¡¯t you happy?¡±

    She shook her head. ¡°Mommy loves my brother more. Every day, I barely have enough to eat. Skr,

    can you take me back to the city? I¡¯ll definitely be good.¡±

    Skr was stunned at how desperate Pollyanna wanted to leave.

    When Kate saw that Skr was tempted to do so, she shook her head with a sigh. She felt Skr hadn¡¯t

    seen enough of the world. There were loads of pitiful people out there and there was no way she could

    care for them all.

    Kate exined to Pollyanna with a serious expression, ¡°Your mom is still around so we can¡¯t take you

    away no matter how obedient you are.¡±

    With tears welling up in her eyes, Pollyanna lowered her head as if she had done something terribly

    wrong.

    Skr sighed and added, ¡°I wille and visit often, alright? For today, I¡¯ll take you out to the nearby

    town and buy you some beautiful tops and dresses.¡±

    Pollyanna wiped off her tears in response.

    Kate asked Skr in concern, ¡°Will you be alright taking a child out by yourself? I bettere along.¡±

    When Skr saw Pollyanna looked at Kate fearfully, she knew she was afraid of Kate.

    She replied, ¡°I¡¯ll be fine. She¡¯s a good girl.¡±

    When Kai heard about it, he offered to be their driver and wanted to tag along.

    Pollyanna was delighted when she saw such a handsome man joining them.

    After an hour¡¯s drive, they arrived at the nearest town. Skr took Pollyanna to a children¡¯s clothing

    shop.

    It was the first time Pollyanna saw such beautiful dresses in her whole life and kept eximing how

    pretty they were.

    It was also the first time Skr shopped without restraint and she finally got to experience the rush of

    splurging. Whichever dress Pollyanna liked, she would ask the owner to wrap it up.

    It turned out that Pollyanna liked almost every single piece of clothing in the shop.

    Kai wondered if kids nowadays were a lot smarter and knew how to take advantage of others. If he were

    in Pollyanna¡¯s shoes, he wouldn¡¯t have dared ept a single dress.

    He remembered that his aunt gifted him a Porsche for his eighteenth birthday. That was when he just

    returned to the country and also met Tobias for the first time.

    During his birthday party in a hotel, he saw Tobias holding a gun through a gap in the door to a private

    room. The cold barrel of the gun was pointed at one of his close friends.

    A bang rang out and that was how he lost his best friend.

 Chapter 197

    Chapter 197

    When she saw Kai spaced out at the entrance, Skr patted him on the shoulder. She asked with a

    smile, ¡°Thinking of some pretty girls?¡±

    Kai regained his senses. ¡°No, there¡¯s no pretty girl. No one is more beautiful than you.¡±

    Kai wasn¡¯t ttering Skr on purpose as she was indeed a beauty. He was actually thinking about the

    reason she and Tobias were together. It must be her looks.

    Finally, Skr almost spent all her money while Pollyanna¡¯s hands were filled with shopping bags. Before

    she left, Pollyanna insisted to have her number which Skr provided.

    Meanwhile, Kai felt that the little girl was too smart for her own good and that it wasn¡¯t such a good idea

    for Skr to be so close to her.

    The cold moonlight finally shone on the quiet vige in the hills.

    Kai picked up some tall grass from the roadside and gave them to Skr. ¡°These are for you, to

    celebrate the sessfulpletion of filming.¡±

    Skr bent down and plucked a few more. Using her nimble fingers, she weaved them into a small

    rabbit.

    ¡°And this is for you.¡±

    Kai broke into a smile. ¡°You¡¯re more generous than I am. Is he picking you up tomorrow? I doubt he is.¡±Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    Skr shook her head. ¡°He¡¯s been busy recently. I¡¯ll be heading home by myself.¡±

    ¡°Are you staying together?¡± Despite his reluctance, Kai still asked about it.

    Skr didn¡¯t answer. She didn¡¯t want Kai to know too much and have it affect Tobias.

    When Skr didn¡¯t answer, Kai took it as an implicit yes.

    He sighed. ¡°Tobias is by far the most heartless man I have seen. And you are someone who is so kind

    that you even cared for a random little girl whom you do not know. I¡¯m just worried that you will suffer

    without even knowing it in the end. But don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m here to protect you. After all, you¡¯re a good friend

    of mine. Fate has brought us together.¡±

    Skr frowned slightly as she felt Kai was being dramatic. Deep down, she could feel him resenting

    Tobias and that their rtionship was a rocky one.

    After they left W Province, Skr was picked up at the airport by Tobias¡¯ driver. He was already waiting

    with a big sign with her name written crookedly on it.

    The driver was a middle-aged man who looked honest and reliable. The car was parked in the basement

    car park. When she entered, she saw Susan.

    She had met Susan once and knew that she was Tobias¡¯ secretary. Thest time they met was when

    Susan came to pick her up from her dorm and brought her to see Tobias in the hotel. It was the night

    Avery offered herself to him.

    Susan greeted her without any expression, ¡°Ms. Jones, we meet again. You must have had a long

    journey. Mr. Ford sent me to pick you up.¡±

    Skr replied with a smile, ¡°I¡¯m fine as I managed to catch some sleep on the flight. You didn¡¯t have to

    come as I could have gone home by myself.¡±

    Sitting in the front passenger seat, Susan turned around and nced at Skr. There was a cold glint in

    her eye. ¡°He¡¯s at The Bay Restaurant. He wanted me to take you there.¡±

    As the car drove towards The Bay Restaurant, Skr still felt full from the meal she ate on the ne.

    As it was eight in the evening, the restaurant was very crowded. Susan led Skr to room 301.

    When she saw the room number, she suddenly recalled the time when she was serving drinks at

    Elysium. The room was of the same number where she reunited with Tobias. Circumstances were

    different then as Tobias was ruthless and cruel. He almost f*ck her on the spot.

    Six months had passed since then.

    Skr assumed that Tobias was in the room alone. When she followed Susan in, she was surprised to

    see the room filled with people. The men were all smartly dressed while the women dolled up to the

    nines. When Skr entered amidst the clinking wine sses, everyone turned their attention to her.

    Tobias whispered something to ady in a red V-neck dress and she stood up and gave up her seat.

    Tobias then gestured for Skr toe over. As this was the first time Tobias invited Skr to attend

    such a formal event, she was puzzled as to why he didn¡¯t tell her beforehand. After a long and arduous

    journey, her face was oily while she was still in loose casual clothing. She felt rude to not have dressed

    any better.

 Chapter 198

    Chapter 198

    He had always nned everything without discussing it with her or even notifying her in advance.

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    Tobias didn¡¯t introduce her as she tightened her grip on her bag and sat beside him. Also, no one dared

    to ask what their rtionship was.

    As she quietly sat beside Tobias, he barely said anything to her throughout dinner. Feeling thirsty, she

    saw that the ss in front of her was empty. Furthermore, there was only wine on the table. Hence, she

    grabbed a bottle beside Tobias and poured it into her ss.

    However, Tobias took her ss away and downed the wine in one gulp. Next, he called for the waiter

    and ordered a ss of warm fruit juice.

    Despite the room being cold from the air-conditioning, Skr was so thirsty that she wanted to have iced

    fruit juice instead. Warm fruit juice was simply too sour to her liking.

    Other than her, all the otherdies at the table could really drink. Their malepanions kept refilling

    their sses as they kept downing one ss after another.

    One of the girls looked to be of her age and was dressed provocatively. Her plunging neckline was so

    low that she exposed a substantial part of her assets. Despite the fact that she was visibly

    ufortable, a man in a blue shirt who was sitting beside her kept urging her to drink.

    She tried to protest, ¡°Mr. Crane, can I stop drinking? I can¡¯t drink anymore and I feel terrible.¡±

    The man sneered, ¡°Stop whining. You should be honored that I¡¯m asking you to drink. It¡¯s only two bottles

    and you¡¯re alreadyining?¡±

    Under such pressure, the girl seemed to be on the brink of tears. Raising her ss, she downed it at one

    go. Skr could see her face turn pale and her hands had begun to tremble.

    When she looked at the bottle of liquor on the table, she realized that its alcohol content was at forty

    percent. Even a tough guy would have trouble holding his liquor with the amount thedy drank.

    As everyone continued to chat, no one came to the girl¡¯s rescue.

    They were all talking about business. From Bitcoin to futures and to crude oil. Everything they talked

    about revolved around financial gains.

    The man in blue poured another ss for the girl. He was wearing a pair of gold-rimmed sses and

    had a clean look on his face. Despite the gentle exterior, he had an insidious gaze. ¡°Continue drinking.

    Why are you stopping?¡±

    The girl was terribly drunk. Holding onto her stomach, her sweat and tears were all mixed together. She

    slurred as she pleaded, ¡°Mr. Crane, I really can¡¯t drink anymore.¡±

    Skr tightened her grip on Tobias¡¯ hand under the table. However, Tobias continued to serve her more

    food and didn¡¯t look like he was going to help the girl.

    Skr whispered into his ear. ¡°Why are all the men bullying thedies. Is this what you consider as fun?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ gaze darkened as he stared at the indignant Skr. ¡°Youngdy, I brought you here to enjoy a

    meal together. We will leave when we¡¯re done. Anything else has nothing to do with you.¡±

    Skr was extremely upset at Tobias for asking her to join such a dinner. She didn¡¯t understand what

    was he thinking.

    It was obvious to her that all thedies here were not of the decent kind, and she was just one of them.

    She interceded on the girl¡¯s behalf, ¡°She¡¯s not able to drink anymore in that condition. Are you trying to

    kill her? Do you have to bully a girl just to satisfy your ego?¡±

    The atmosphere in the private room suddenly changed. The man in blue gave Skr aplicated look.

    He was aware that the one that humiliated him was Tobias¡¯ girl.

    Regardless of what their actual rtionship was, she was still rted to Tobias. Even if she pped him,

    there was nothing he could say.

    Tobias got Skr to sit down and finally spoke. He told Winston, ¡°Don¡¯t let her drink anymore. We¡¯re

    almost done so that¡¯s all for today. If thedy doesn¡¯t want to drink, don¡¯t force her.¡±

    After Tobias made his stand clear, no one dared to disobey.

    Covering her mouth, the girl was obviously in great difort. She looked as if she could puke or

    copse onto the ground anytime. Her forehead was also sweating profusely.

 Chapter 199

    Chapter 199

    Skr helped her to thedies. While waiting outside for her, she heard her retching non-stop. She was

    grateful for what happened at Elysium when she was serving drinks to pay for Jeremy¡¯s medical fees.

    If Tobias hadn¡¯t rescued her from her predicament, she surmised she would be in the same situation as

    the girl, being forced into corners by lecherous men.

    When the girl came out from the toilet, she didn¡¯t even dry her face after washing it with cold water. As

    her wet hair stuck to her face, she took a deep breath before lighting a cigarette.

    ¡°My name is Luciana Walter, thanks for interceding on my behalf today. If not for you, I would have been

    ruined by that man. They had no respect for women.¡±

    Skr passed her a pack of tissues. ¡°No thanks needed. Next time, don¡¯t go binge drinking. Even if

    you¡¯re in your prime, it will definitely take a toll on your body. Since you know they have no respect for

    women, you should keep your distance from them.¡±

    Leaning against the wall, Luciana couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°Who doesn¡¯t want to go home at this hour and

    sleep. I have no choice as I need the money. Despite how hard it is, I can make more money in one

    dinner than a pretty manager does in a year.¡±

    Tobias had left the private room in search of Skr and saw her chatting with Luciana outside thedies.

    When their eyes met from afar, he was barely smiling. Skr could sense that he was upset over her so-

    called heroic actions at the dinner table.

    Before she left, Luciana thanked her again but Skr said nothing. The next time she encountered

    something like that, she wasn¡¯t going to step in and help. All she did was getting in the way of others

    making money.

    As Tobias had a lot to drink, the driver was already waiting at the door. As Skr followed behind him,

    both of them didn¡¯t say a word on the way home.

    In the car, they were seated at the back. Tobias¡¯ inherent white sandalwood scent had been covered by

    the stench of alcohol. It was so strong that she felt somewhat drunk just by smelling it.

    Susan was sitting in the front passenger seat. When Tobias kept his silence, she gave the driver the

    address and had him drive them to Be Garden.

    With four of them in the car, the atmosphere felt awkward. Skr preferred to be alone with him so that

    they could have some privacy.

    However, Tobias was always surrounded by people. They would only get the chance to be alone only

    when they were home. Even then, they would still be asionally interrupted by phone calls.

    Tobias lifted her cheeks with his fingers. ¡°You were a busybody today. Both of them were willing parties.

    Why did you want to interfere?¡±

    Skr thought that all men liked kind women. Obviously, Tobias wasn¡¯t one of them. He didn¡¯t need her

    to stand out and act the hero.

    ¡°Did I affect your business deal? I¡¯m sorry if I did.¡±

    After letting her go, he shifted his gaze outside the window. ¡°No, you didn¡¯t. I¡¯m not worried about that.

    It¡¯s just that your impromptu outburst of kindness will get you into trouble one day. If I weren¡¯t there, you

    would already be in hot soup. Do you understand what I¡¯m trying to tell you? I can¡¯t be there to protect

    you all the time. You have to think of the consequences before you act.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t defend her actions. After saving Luciana, she didn¡¯t feel that it was appreciated at all. Tobias

    was right. Doing the right thing isn¡¯t necessarily the best decision.

    When Tobias spoke, she could feel that his gaze was extremely cold. It caused her to suddenly feel the

    tension in the air.

    Meanwhile, Susan was sitting quietly in the front passenger seat.

    Five minutester, just like clockwork, she turned around and handed a bottle of pills to Tobias.

    It was something that never crossed Skr¡¯s mind before as his girlfriend. In fact, it was Tobias¡¯

    secretary who was more attentive to him. After all, she had never taken care of someone drunk before

    and didn¡¯t even know there was a pill to help alleviate it.

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    After taking the pills, Tobias still felt ufortable. He thenid his head down on Skr¡¯s shoulder.

 Chapter 200

    Chapter 200

    Meanwhile, Tobias didn¡¯t receive a response from Skr after giving his advice let alone hear her saying

    that she would not repeat it again.

    When they arrived at Be Garden, he could hardly walk and used her as a human crutch. Most of his

    weight had been shifted to her.

    Susan alighted together with them. As the hot summer breeze blew on their faces, the stickiness it

    brought was simply ufortable.

    She asked Skr, ¡°Do you need help? When Mr. Ford had too much to drink previously, I was always by

    his side and am used to taking care of him.¡±

    Skr declined her offer, ¡°No need, I¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    Tobias waved for Susan to go as he didn¡¯t want another person at home.

    N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights.

    When they opened the door, it was obvious that Tobias had not returned home for days. All the windows

    were tightly shut, causing the room to feel stuffy while a musty smell permeated the air.

    Tobias sat on the sofa with his elbows on his knees and hands supporting his head. He continued to

    massage his temple.

    He had to admit he was getting older. There was a stark difference in his ability to hold in liquor after

    thirty aspared to how it used to be when he was younger.

    Skr opened all the doors and windows to let the clean air in and handed Tobias a ss of warm water.

    He took a sip before putting the water aside. Looking at him, Skr felt that he was still not in bad shape.

    He wasn¡¯t that drunk and just looked to be in slight difort.

    It wasmon to feel this way after having too much to drink. Skr asked, ¡°Do you want to sleep or

    shower first?¡±

    Tobias took off his jacket and loosened his tie. ¡°Of course I need to shower first. You should shower with

    me, just in case I fall unconscious in the bathroom from drinking too much.¡±

    Tobias was grinning cheekily. Skr replied with a frown, ¡°I¡¯ll wait for you outside. Call me once you¡¯re

    done.¡±

    Tobias insisted, ¡°I¡¯m really looking forward to a romantic bath. I¡¯m going to fill the tub. You should go get

    ready.¡±

    Skr was stunned. ¡°What¡¯s there to prepare?¡±

    Tobias replied, ¡°Oh, in that case, just take off your clothes. How are you going to bath with your clothes

    on? You can¡¯t stay outside. What if I fainted?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ shamelessness had exceeded Skr¡¯s imagination.

    When she settled into the tub with him, she didn¡¯t expected him to do nothing else.

    After she got out of the bathroom, she slipped into one of Tobias¡¯ oversized shirts.

    As she was exhausted from the long day, she hoped for Tobias¡¯ understanding. However, he obviously

    had a different idea of helping her rx.

    Flipping the nket aside, he pressed himself on her. The warmth of his body caused her breathing to

    heat up.

    It was another long and passionate night. Once they were done, Skry in Tobias¡¯ embrace. She

    didn¡¯t even feel like moving a finger, as if all her energy were expended in the love-making.

    ¡°Are you tired? Is it more tiring filming or doing it with me?¡± Tobias whispered into her ear despite

    knowing the answer.

    As both of them clung together tightly, they could feel each other¡¯s sweat.

    Skr closed her eyes and replied, ¡°It¡¯s probably thetter. I¡¯m so tired that I can¡¯t move. Why did you

    bring me there tonight? Did you want to tell all those people that I¡¯m your mistress?¡±

 Chapter 201

    Chapter 201

    Once their lust dissipated, her unhappiness over the evening¡¯s events crept in. When she thought about

    the private room at The Bay Restaurant, she recalled how the men looked at her and their attitude

    toward their femalepanions. It was simply infuriating. She didn¡¯t understand Tobias¡¯ social circle and

    wondered if phndering was a favorite pastime of theirs.

    Tobias didn¡¯t expect Skr to be so affected by it. His intention was simple. All he wanted to do was have

    dinner and head home after that. And yet, it triggered Skr.

    He bit down on her shoulder forcefully. It was so painful Skr covered it and red at him.

    ¡°Next time, please don¡¯t take me to such dinners. All of them see women as objects. Is it supposed to be

    a gathering of mistresses?¡± Skr voiced her resentment. Tonight¡¯s experience was really upsetting for

    her.

    ¡°Alright. Stop letting your imagination run wild. I don¡¯t have a mistress and neither are you one.¡± Tobias

    pulled Skr into his embrace easily and drank some water from the ss beside the bed. After that, he

    fed it into Skr¡¯s lips.

    As the warm water flowed from his lips, Skr didn¡¯t swallow and let it flow along her lower jaw instead.

    Tobias quickly followed up by kissing along the trail of the water.

    Under normal circumstances, Tobias was a man of few words. He seemed to be born with a frosty

    demeanor, simr to those of noble blood. He was both powerful and intimidating, to the extent Skr

    didn¡¯t dare disobey him.

    But in bed, he was nevercking in ideas. He could easily arouse her and turn her on until she was

    driven crazy with lust.

    Again, Skr woke up before Tobias did. Both of their circadian clocks seemed to be on different tracks.

    She remembered falling asleep in a daze before Tobias left the room. When she went to the bathroom at

    midnight, she realized he wasn¡¯t in bed and noticed that the study room light was on.

    She didn¡¯t disturb him and left without making a sound. She was curious as to when Tobias would ever

    sleep earlier than her.

    Breakfast was simple. They had whole wheat bread, hard-boiled eggs, and ck coffee.

    Skr began to watch her weight. Previously, she assumed that she could eat anything without putting

    on weight. After being together with Tobias for thest few months, she realized she gained ten pounds

    despite not seeing each other every day. Fortunately, ten pounds wasn¡¯t a lot for an ordinary person as

    she was still just as slim.

    But, the saying goes, ¡°one looks ten pounds heavier on the silver screen¡±. When Skr saw her face on

    film, it looked as if she had put on more than ten pounds. As screens were two-dimensional, they had the

    effect of ttening one¡¯s face. Even Daryl questioned her as to why did she put on so much weight.

    Skr wondered if it was because she was getting older and her metabolism was slowing down. But,

    she was only twenty years old. Hence, it must be due to Tobias. A man¡¯s love could also fatten ady up.

    Without waiting for Tobias, she began biting into the tasteless whole wheat bread. She nned for it to

    be her only meal for the day. So that she could lose ten pounds within the month.

    While she was nibbling on the dense texture of the bread, Tobias came down from upstairs. His first

    reaction was, ¡°Are you broke?¡±

    After painstakingly swallowing a mouthful of bread and drinking some water, she replied, ¡°It¡¯s bad luck to

    talk about being broke first thing in the morning.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights.

    Tobias picked up the whole wheat bread and realized that it was dark and hard. Skr hadn¡¯t bothered to

    toast the bread first. Although they seldom cooked, the kitchen was still very well equipped.

    ¡°Why are you tormenting yourself by having such a breakfast? What in the world are you even eating?¡±

    Tobias brought out a bottle of milk and put it into the microwave.

 Chapter 202

    Chapter 202

    Skr didn¡¯t dare tell Tobias that she was trying to lose weight as he wanted her to look plumper. Ideally,

    he wanted her to have big breasts and protruding hips so that it felt curvaceous to the touch. However,

    her figure was still pretty good with curves in all the right ces.

    Tobias had even asked her before if she had stopped growing after sixteen.

    Despite sounding harmless, it was an utterly humiliating question.

    She had actually put some serious thought into it. She only vaguely remembered that she had to wear a

    long sleeve school uniform even in summer. It had covered all her physical beauty that came along with

    puberty. Hence, no one thought about buying bras for her.

    At that time, she thought how wonderful it would be if her mom were still around. However, she grew up

    with minimal supervision as her parents were not around. As Grandma was already old, this was one of

    the things that slipped her mind.

    Skr opened the fridge in front of Tobias. ¡°The fridge is empty. So I¡¯ll head to school first before

    stocking it up. What do you want to eat tonight?¡±

    Tobias picked up the bread that Skr had eaten halfway and took a bite. He immediately found it

    unptable.

    ¡°You can save the trouble. I won¡¯t be staying here for the next few days. You decide whatever you want

    to eat. Or else I can get a chef to cook for you every day.¡±

    When Tobias told her what his ns were, Skr pursed her lips. She had many ns in her mind as

    she assumed he would be treating the ce like home and spend more time with her. However, it now

    appeared that he had different ns.

    ¡°Where are you going if you¡¯re not staying here?¡±

    ¡°Home. My mom is due for her heart surgery. The international team of specialists treating my mom

    concluded that we shouldn¡¯t dy any longer. After all, it is an extremely risky surgery.¡±

    When Tobias brought up the matter, his eyes were filled with concern. There were risks in any surgery

    and he was worried that his mom couldn¡¯t survive it.

    ¡°Therefore, are you going to stay in the same house as Tanya?¡± Looking annoyed, Skr tilted her chin

    upward.

    Tobiasughed at her. ¡°You used to be so afraid of me. And now, you¡¯re being extremely territorial. I¡¯ll

    come back once the operation is over. So stop letting your imagination run wild.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t insist on him staying as she knew he had his mind made up and was just informing her

    about it. Besides, given that udia was undergoing a major operation, Tobias would definitely have to

    be there for her.

    After breakfast, she returned to school. The moment she entered her dorm, she realized her bed was

    filled with random things belonging to everyone else.

    Feeling embarrassed, Yasmin rolled up her sleeves and prepared to move her things. ¡°I thought you

    were noting back. I¡¯ll move my stuff right away.¡±

    ¡°Forget it, I won¡¯t be here anyway. You don¡¯t have to move them.¡±

    Carmen sneered, ¡°That¡¯s true. I heard you found a new ce and that it¡¯s a vi. You wouldn¡¯te

    back here unless you needed to.¡±

    Despite maintaining her smile, Skr gathered all of Carmen¡¯s things on her bed. ¡°You should take your

    things away. It¡¯s running out of space here.¡±

    Carmen scoffed, ¡°You¡¯re so petty. Can¡¯t you be more generous?¡±

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    When Skr looked at Carmen¡¯s annoying face, she understood why she was close to Avery. After all,

    both of them belonged to the extremely annoying group.

    When Avery saw Skr after her ss ended, her attitude improved a lot. However, Skr could still

    sense theck of sincerity. ¡°Congrattions forpleting filming in the hills as the second female lead.¡±

    Smiling, Skr replied inly, ¡°Thank you. I really regret taking your role from you. If it were you, you

    may have ended up as the female lead. I failed to keep the role.¡±

 Chapter 203

    Chapter 203

    When Avery heard Skr¡¯s snide remarks, her true feelings were not written on her face.

    After leaving the dorm, Skr went to the instructor¡¯s office to cancel her leave. The instructor was on

    bad terms with her. During the spring trip, he med her for all their problems. Also, Skr didn¡¯t gift him

    anything when he went around announcing his wedding to everyone.

    All the students sent him wedding gifts privately except for Skr.

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    After knocking on the door, Skr informed him of her purpose of visit. Standing in front of his table, the

    instructor scrutinized her from head to toe. He realized that she had be a different person ever

    since she started acting in a movie. Skr was holding a Herm¨¨s bag and wearing clothes from Chanel.

    Her pants were from a brand he didn¡¯t even recognize.

    Despite being rich after starting from humble beginnings, she was still oblivious about his wedding. That

    was utterly disrespectful of her!

    ¡°You didn¡¯tplete all your credit hours. Hence, you need to repeat the semester again.¡± The instructor

    pulled out her notice to repeat from a file of documents.

    Skr was puzzled. ¡°Why do I need to repeat when I have taken leave? Before I went filming, I already

    applied for leave from you.¡±

    ¡°No, you didn¡¯t do that,¡± the instructor lied. He did remember Skr applying for leave but he had

    canceled it. He preferred students that curry favor with him instead of the stingy ones.

    It isn¡¯t about money. It¡¯s about respect.

    ¡°I did apply for leave three months ago!¡± Skr was guessing if the instructor was making her life difficult

    on purpose. It was of no use if it was just her word against his.

    ¡°I have no record of that. You should just ept the notice. If you can¡¯t do it, I¡¯m afraid you can¡¯t continue

    studying here.¡±

    Skr suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. She forced augh instead. ¡°I¡¯ll go and check with the

    administrative office and hope that you have made a mistake. After all, I have a weak heart and will feel

    miserable if I have been wrongly used. I¡¯ll be so depressed that I may leave this world for another

    one. Who knows what I¡¯ll do when I¡¯m impulsive. I¡¯m just worried I¡¯ll get you involved.¡±

    The instructor had heard thatst semester there was a student who was devastated when she received

    a repeat notice. Unable to ept it, shemitted suicide by jumping into ake. Therefore, Skr was

    using this incident to threaten him.

    He cleared his throat and answered, ¡°I¡¯m just doing my job ording to the rules. I can¡¯t ord you

    special treatment just because you went filming.¡±

    Skr left the office with the notice in hand. Ever since she was young, none of her teachers ever liked

    her.

    She didn¡¯t have good results nor a good family background. Also, she wasn¡¯t street smart at all. During

    sports day in high school, she was sitting in a front-row seat. But her teacher forced her to give up her

    seat to others.

    During the parent-teacher meeting, Grandma would always have a glum expression on.

    No matter which school she went to, someone would always find out that her mom was a murderer and

    that she had no one to watch over her.

    Hence, she never had any luck with boys in school. During those days, the only person by her side was

    Jeremy.

    The repeat notice stated that she needed toplete another thirty credit hours to avoid punishment this

    semester. Or else, she would be expelled from school.

    The thirty credit hours tranted into thirty sses of two hours each. Furthermore, she needed to sit for

    the supplementary exam.

    On top of that, she still had toplete her B2 French lessons. In their film academy, French was an

    extremely important subject, more so than the others.

    If she didn¡¯t pass her B2 exam, she would have to drop out and it would really be troublesome.

    Filming was physically tiring while school was mentally taxing. She couldn¡¯t allow the instructor to get

    away with twisting the facts about her leave application. Hence, she wasn¡¯t going to ept the status

    quo. Worsees to worst, she would go and see the principal.

    Whether she would end up repeating the sses would depend on more than just her words. Hence,

    Skr wanted to find someone toin about it.

 Chapter 204

    Chapter 204

    However, she realized there wasn¡¯t anyone she could talk to. Tobias had gone home and wouldn¡¯t be

    interested in listening to her rants. Therefore, she decided to have lunch at the cafeteria.

    When she arrived, she recalled that she was on a diet. However, the whole wheat bread in the morning

    was simply too little to fill her stomach. Furthermore, her body was signaling to her that she was in need

    of food.

    Lucky for her, the cafeteria of a film academy was not short on meals for people on a diet. There was

    even a special booth catering to them. Skr ordered a sd without the vinaigrette and dressing.

    The calories of the dressing and vinaigrettebinede close to that of a fatty piece of steak.

    Holding her sd, Skr went around finding a seat. She finally found one in front of a BBQ booth.

    Eating her greens while taking in the smell of BBQ meat was a tormenting experience.

    As long as she continued acting, she would have a never-ending battle with her appetite. She finally

    understood why actresses always had a bad temper.

    ¡°Can I join you?¡± Above her, a sweet voice rang out while Skr was munching on a piece of cucumber.

    Looking up, she saw Luciana from the dinnerst night. In a pair of TB shorts, a white top, and a Kenzo

    cap, she looked exceptionally sporty and fashionable. Compared to how provocatively she dressedst

    night, she appeared to be an entirely different person. Today, she looked like a pretty and active female

    student.

    ¡°It seems like fate has brought us together again.¡± Skr had heard that it wasmon for students at

    the film academy to have sugar daddies. In fact, anyone in school might have one.

    After all, they were all gorgeous, and being beautiful meant that they had what men wanted. Regardless

    of whether it was looks or figure, all of them were the cream of the crop from the whole country.

    Lucianaughed. ¡°Actually, I already recognized you yesterday. After all, you are rtively famous to

    have been chosen by Daryl. I was also there on the day of the audition. Now, I understand how you got

    the part so easily. It¡¯s because you slept with Tobias.¡±

    When Luciana talked about it, it seemed like a casual chat to her. She didn¡¯t feel that it was inappropriate

    to be discussing this at the cafeteria.

    ¡°The fact that I got the part had nothing to do with him.¡± Skr didn¡¯t understand why she even bothered

    to exin. Perhaps, she didn¡¯t want to be misunderstood and wanted others to know she got the part

    based on her own merit.

    Luciana scoffed, ¡°In that case, you should milk the opportunity as much as you can before you are

    dumped. There are no good men among them. If you hadn¡¯t saved mest night, I might have died at the

    table itself. However, if I made Mr. Crane happy, I would get a part. Hence, it was a worthwhile gamble.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t understand why Luciana had to set aside her dignity to do that. Given how pretty she was,

    she would potentially have a bright future ahead of her.

    Nevertheless, Skr didn¡¯t lecture her as she didn¡¯t know what Luciana had been through before. After

    all, her own life was messy enough, and she wasn¡¯t in a much better position.

    After chatting a while longer, Skr prepared to leave. However, Luciana called out to her, ¡°Actually, you

    should consider yourself lucky. When you wanted to have a drink, Tobias changed it to fruit juice instead.

    It¡¯s obvious that our positions are different. You are the first woman that Tobias has brought along. Before

    that, I¡¯ve seen him a couple of times in simr gatherings.¡±

    However, Skr felt that was the way it should be. When men brought their girls out, they were

    responsible for taking care of their partners¡¯ needs. Instead, she felt Luciana was not showing herself

    enough respect to expect the same treatment.

    Meanwhile, Penelope was waiting for her near the school. Skr had the check Tobias had given her in

    her pocket.

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    When both of them met, Skr gave her the check.

 Chapter 205

    Chapter 205

    However, both her tone and bodynguage were filled with repulsion. ¡°You took his money again? Who

    is he really to give you five hundred thousand that easily? This money is a lifetime of savings of another

    ordinary person.¡±

    ¡°I borrowed the money but you don¡¯t have to repay me in a hurry. Just take your time.¡± Skr didn¡¯t want

    to give Penelope too much pressure.

    She already had enough bad luck. Before she even graduated, she was cheated of so much money.

    Given how hard it was to make money now, there was no way she could earn much even if she worked

    non-stop.

    Penelope was close to being driven mad by the debt collectors. Therefore, she had no choice but to take

    the check while insisting that she would repay everything.

    Skr heaved a sigh of relief when Penelope epted the money. After all, she had been kept up the

    whole night by Tobias just so that she could get it.

    Even then, Penelope didn¡¯t forget to show Skr a picture of her new boyfriend. Skr was impressed

    that under such dire circumstances, Penelope still had the mood to be in a rtionship.

    When Skr leaned in to look at the picture on Penelope¡¯s phone, she saw a guy who had permed his

    hair to make it look frizzy. Even through the screen, she could feel that he was a jerk.

    Penelope was always like that. Her taste in guys was extremely different from Skr¡¯s. Hence, there

    would never be a case where both of them as best friends would fight over the same man.

    Material ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Shemented insincerely, ¡°He¡¯s alright, just a little strange.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean by ¡®strange¡¯?¡±

    Skr replied, ¡°He doesn¡¯t look like someone you could rely on.¡±

    There was no way Penelope shared Skr¡¯s opinion.

    She exined, ¡°We have a very good rtionship. Every day, we would talk a lot on the phone and yet

    still have so much to say.¡±

    Skrughed at herself for worrying about Penelope when she still had plenty of time for love.

    Two minutes after she mentioned him, Penelope¡¯s boyfriend called.

    When Penelope saw who it was, she quickly forgot her troubles with a smile. ¡°He¡¯s checking on me again

    and is really clingy. That¡¯s why it¡¯s better to be in a rtionship with someone your age. You will have

    common topics and also passion. Look at you now, your phone hasn¡¯t even rung once. Any man worth

    his salt would be calling by now.¡±

    Skr put her phone back in her pocket. ¡°He¡¯s really busy and will only call at night. However, we really

    are different from both of you. We don¡¯t chat tillte into the night. After all, he has to work while I have to

    rest.¡±

    Penelope seemed to haveprehended Skr¡¯s rtionship status as she called her foolish. She

    didn¡¯t believe one could be so busy to the extent of not having time for a quick chat.

    Not unless he didn¡¯t put in any effort at all.

    Penelope advised Skr, ¡°You better keep your eyes open so that history doesn¡¯t repeat itself. Look at

    how much you did for Jeremy and got nothing in the end.¡±

    Skr winked with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s still alright. At least I¡¯m out of the rat race early.¡±

    On the way back home, Skr received a call from Kate. She requested Skr to delete everything on

    her social media ount. Furthermore, she was not to post anything arbitrarily.

    When she checked her long-forgotten social media ounts, she realized it was filled with pictures of

    her and Jeremy when they were still a couple. No wonder Kate was so pissed over the phone.

    When she arrived home, the first thing she did was wipe everything out until there was nothing left.

    About half an hourter, Kate arrived at her house based on the address she gave. When she saw

    Skr living in a vi, she knew right away that it was because of Tobias.

    Skr poured a ss of water for Kate and sat on the sofa opposite her. ¡°Will anyone pay attention to

    my social media ounts? The movie posters are out, but it doesn¡¯t even have my face on it. It¡¯s really

    difficult for people to know me.¡±

 Chapter 206

    Chapter 206

    Kate smiled confidently. ¡°With we around, there¡¯s no need for you to worry about bing popr. We

    will take it a step at a time as there¡¯s no need to rush. I have just been officially assigned as your agent

    by Mr. Ford. Of course, you have the right to decline.¡±

    Skr had done some research on Kate before. She knew that Kate was an experienced manager who

    had groomed many popr stars. She had made new artists popr and reinvigorated the careers of old

    ones. She didn¡¯t need to get her hands on top-notched stars as she could turn those under her into one.

    A manager yed an important role in an actress¡¯s career as she was the conduit to all the avable

    auditions. She would also have to choose the script for which she wanted her actress to audition and

    also be on the constant lookout for vacant roles.

    The more capable an agent was, the more demanding she would be towards her actress. Skr was

    aware that based on her current status and abilities, Kate was willing to be her agent simply because

    Tobias had arranged it. Therefore, she had to make the best of the opportunity.

    Skr dly epted, ¡°I¡¯ll be in your care going forward. I hope I won¡¯t disappoint you.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    When Kate realized that Skr was still very young and was the main actress she was responsible for,

    she gave her some honest advice. ¡°You have to seize the opportunity given that you are at your prime. If

    it were up to me, I wouldn¡¯t have arranged for you to star in that movie as a second lead unless you can

    outshine Katrina. But after a few days observing you onsite, it¡¯s obvious you still don¡¯t have what it takes

    to do that yet.¡±

    Skr was happy to ept Kate¡¯s brutal honesty. Although Katrina¡¯s acting was bad, so was Skr¡¯s.

    Both of their acting skills were more or less on par with each other. All she could do now was stand toe to

    toe with Katrina, but to outshine her was simply impossible.

    Kate chatted with Skr¡¯s till it waste, telling her about howpetitive the entertainment industry

    was.

    Furthermore, she encouraged Skr to solidify her rtionship with Tobias. After all, he was also an

    extremely valuable resource to be tapped. Skr asked her, ¡°How do I do that?¡±

    Kate gave her a knowing smile. ¡°You¡¯re also an adult. So I don¡¯t think I should be that blunt.¡±

    Skr understood that Kate wanted her to try her best to ingratiate herself with Tobias. But, she didn¡¯t

    want to do it.

    When Kate was about to leave, her sharp eyes noticed a pair of male sandals. It seems like Tobias

    comes here too.

    The girl is really lucky. With such a powerful patron, her career will likely progress very smoothly.

    Meanwhile, Skr wanted to know about udia¡¯s condition and whether the operation was sessful.

    Or perhaps they were still preparing to check her into the hospital.

    When she dialed Tobias¡¯ number while standing at the door, she heard a ringtone from outside.

    When the call connected, Skr asked, ¡°Where are you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m at the door, open it.¡±

    Putting her hands on the doorknob, Skr couldn¡¯t wait to open the door. Tobias put down his phone

    when he finally saw her.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you weren¡¯ting back at night?¡± Given howte Tobias came home, Skr considered

    it a pleasant surprise.

    ¡°I¡¯m here to check if you¡¯re hiding another man,¡± Tobias replied half-jokingly, looking awfully tired.

    Skr stepped aside for Tobias to enter. ¡°There¡¯s no man here unless you introduce one to me.¡±

    ¡°How dare you!¡± Tobias¡¯ gaze darkened. It was obviously a joke but he had taken it seriously.

    ¡°Why are you being so angry. I was just kidding,¡± Skr grumbled. He really has no sense of humor.

    Tobias tousled her hair as he softened his tone. ¡°I¡¯m not angry, just a little tired. I just want to see you. I¡¯ll

    be heading back tomorrow.¡±

 Chapter 207

    Chapter 207

    As Skr was fetching the slippers, Tobias noticed two sses on the coffee table. He picks up one of

    them and looks at Skr.

    ¡°You have a guest over?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, Kate was here. She said she wanted to be my manager, who I believe was your arrangement?¡±

    Tobias nodded. Good¡­ I don¡¯t really feel safe leaving Skr alone at home¡­

    He had brought a cardboard box with him when he came over. Skr kept staring at it as he ced it on

    the coffee table, curious as to what was inside. Unbeknownst to her, it was her parcel which he had

    helped pick up from the post office.

    ¡°Are you tired?¡± Tobias asked, making no mention of the box whatsoever.

    Skr shook her head. ¡°Not really. I¡¯ve been resting for two days, which is a huge break from filming. Do

    you want me to make you dinner?¡± That¡¯s probably all I can do for him right now¡­

    ¡°Since you¡¯re not tired, go ahead and open the box!¡± Tobias tilted his head in its direction.

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    Having received the green light, Skr quickly cut the tape with a pair of keys and opened the box. In it

    was a fluffy fox¡¯s tail with a small bead on the front.

    This¡­ I know what this is¡­

    Tobias noticed her blushing and asked softly, ¡°Would you like to try it?¡±

    Skr felt her heart race a little. As if I could say no to Tobias when hees up with some new idea?

    After giving it some thought, she asked hesitantly, ¡°Will it hurt?¡±

    ¡°No, though you¡¯ll probably feel a slight difort. I want to see you put it on,¡± Tobias said as he walked

    up to her and tapped on her pants button.

    His mom will be having her surgery soon, and here he is, bringing me a fox tail butt plug in the middle of

    the night¡­ I¡¯m not sure if I can understand his logic here¡­ Does he see me as a tool to relieve his

    stress or something? This reminds me of that incident where a female celebrity was sent to the ER

    because she couldn¡¯t remove the five golf balls she put inside her. ording to the rumors online, she

    did it because some rich guy promised to pay her ten million for each golf ball she could fit inside her.

    Well, this butt plug is a lot milderpared to that, but still¡­ Are rich people so stressed that they need

    such weird kinks to relieve themselves?

    Tobias sat down on the sofa and patted himself on the thigh. ¡°Come on, get those pants off and bend

    over. I¡¯ll help you put it on.¡±

    Being the shy type, hearing those words only made her feel a lot more ufortable than she already

    was.

    She tossed the fox tail at him and said, ¡°No, I can¡¯t do this. Put it on yourself if you like it so much.¡±

    ¡°Yes, you can. Now,e here!¡± Tobiasmanded.

    Oh? No room for negotiation, eh?

    ¡°And if I refuse?¡± She asked, lifting her chin defiantly.

    Tobias looked disappointed. ¡°Forget it, go get some rest. I¡¯ll be in the study.¡±

    Little did she know, he was actually manipting her through the use of reverse psychology. Skr

    found herself starting to waver when she saw that he was unhappy. On top of that, she was also curious

    about how it would feel if she had it on.

    As he was about to get up, she took off her pants and bent over on hisp.

    He gave her a kiss on her back and whispered in her ear, ¡°That¡¯s right¡­ You be a good girl, and I¡¯ll be

    nice to you.¡±

    He was very gentle in his approach, and all she felt was a slight chill when the tail was attached.

    Tobias then watched in satisfaction as Skr stood up and spun around with the tail. It gave her a certain

    inexplicable air of sexiness, and he felt his fatigue disappear as it was quickly reced by a powerful

    surge of arousal.

 Chapter 208

    Chapter 208

    ¡°How long do I have to keep this thing on? It¡¯s really itchy and ufortable¡­ Also kind of

    embarrassing¡­¡± She asked meekly.

    Tobias stared at the tail that was now a little wet and said, ¡°Just a little while longer¡­¡±

    Skr had to stand as she couldn¡¯t sit down with that thing on. Damn it, I¡¯m dying to take this thing off,

    and he¡¯s just sitting there leisurely enjoying the view¡­

    After standing for a bit, she felt her legs start to get tired and grabbed a cushion to kneel on instead.

    Oh, man¡­ She has no idea how sexy she looks right now¡­

    Tobias felt his body heating up from the arousal. ¡°Baby, you sure are a fine dime!¡±

    He then whipped out his phone and began snapping away, much to Skr¡¯s chagrin. She stood up and

    tried to snatch his phone away as she couldn¡¯t bear to have anyone see those pictures of her.

    Tobias grabbed her by the shoulder and whispered into her ear, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, these are for my personal

    viewing only. My phone has been encrypted, so the pictures are very safe in here.¡±

    Despite her being on the verge of tears from the embarrassment, she found herself charmed into

    submission by his gentle voice.

    He then held her against the sofa with one of her legs on his waist as he continued, ¡°You can take it off

    now if you don¡¯t like it. I¡¯m going to shower you with all of my love and affection tonight.¡±

    Skr felt goosebumps all over when she heard that.

    Who else will he be showering his love and affection with next time, I wonder¡­

    The sun shone brightly through the thin curtains in the bedroom, which was now filled with the scent of a

    crazy night in bed.

    Tobias had already left the house while she was still sleeping.

    At around 10 a.m., Skr was having some toast with coffee for breakfast when she got a call from the

    hospital urging her to head over as soon as possible.

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    She tried asking what it was about, but the guy on the phone hung up on her without answering her

    question. Having no other choice, she gobbled down her food and rushed over to the hospital.

    At the entrance, she was putting on her face mask when she saw two ck Maybachs pull up nearby.

    Skr recognized the license te right away and quickly hid behind a pir. You¡¯ve got to be kidding

    me!

    Tobias was dressed in a ck suit as he stepped out of the car, his ice-cold expression forming a huge

    contrast with the warm morning sun. He sure looks like apletely different person when he¡¯s in

    public¡­

    She saw him talking to someone next to him, but couldn¡¯t make out what they were saying as they were

    too far away.

    The driver then opened the door, and Tanya helped udia out of the car. Skr felt her heart pounding

    rapidly from the difort of having to hide whenever she saw them.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go take care of the admission procedures upstairs,¡± Tobias said before making his way into the

    hospital.

    udia felt incredibly nervous as she watched him disappear into the distance. She was afraid that she

    would die on the operating table.

    A heart surgery is a very risky one¡­ I can¡¯t die just yet¡­ I want to live to witness the birth of my

    grandchildren, and hear Tanya tell me it¡¯s a boy¡­

    Skr let out a sigh of relief after seeing them all enter the hospital.

    Gosh, why am I so useless? Why is it so hard for Tobias to just have a normal rtionship? Perhaps

    things would¡¯ve been a lot different if Ie from a rich family like Tanya, but I suppose I can¡¯t ask for

    much in life¡­ Who knows, maybe I¡¯ve done something unforgivable in my past life and am paying for it

    in this one?

 Chapter 209

    Chapter 209

    Skr made her way to Miranda¡¯s ward in the Psychiatric Rehabilitation Department and saw her knitting

    a sweater.

    Miranda put the needle and thread down when she saw Skr and motioned at her to sit down beside

    her.

    Skr was a little excited at first as she thought Miranda had made her a sweater, but a closer inspection

    revealed that it was for men. The sweater was halfway done and onlycked a sleeve to make it

    complete.

    ¡°Do you think it¡¯ll fit your dad?¡± Miranda smiled gleefully while showing off her work.

    ¡°Why are you making Dad a sweater? He never paid you a single visit during your time in prison!¡± Had

    the doctors not confirmed Miranda¡¯s full recovery, Skr would¡¯ve thought she was still crazy.

    ¡°He must¡¯ve had his reasons. I know he still loves us, Skr. I mean, how else would you still be alive

    today if he didn¡¯t? You should learn to be grateful, you know?¡± Miranda gazed at the sweater and

    imagined how Thomas would look wearing it.

    It took Skr every ounce of her strength to refrain from going on a rant about how Meredith was the one

    who paid for her school fees and daily expenses, all with that meager sry of hers.

    However, she knew there was no point in telling Miranda that as all she could think of was how amazing

    Thomas was.

    Even when Thomas cheated on her back then, Miranda simply med everything on the fact that Irene

    was able to give birth to a son.

    Given how old-fashioned and patriarchal Skr¡¯s grandparents were, it came as no surprise that they

    wanted a son to help carry on the family lineage. Naturally, Irene fulfilled that wish of theirs and reced

    Miranda¡¯s position in the family by giving birth to Hayden before the divorce even took ce.

    To make matters worse, Miranda had to have her uterus surgically removed due to excessive bleeding

    when giving birth to Skr, so having children was no longer possible for her.

    That was why she hated Skr so much back then.

    ¡°You had mee all the way here just to see this sweater?¡± Skr asked in annoyance.

    Miranda was oblivious to the change in her tone and held her hand as she spoke, ¡°The doctors say I can

    be discharged soon, so why haven¡¯t you made ns to take me home yet? By the way, I¡¯ll need to have

    a family member apany me throughout the final checkup, so you have to stay here with me for the

    next two days.¡±

    Staying with her is fine. I¡¯m just worried that she¡¯ll go looking for Dad once she gets discharged, but I

    can¡¯t just keep her in the hospital forever¡­ Speaking of which, I hear Dad¡¯s had it pretty roughtely. His

    company has been liquidating its assets ever since Tobias refused to help him out. Skr sighed deeply

    at the thought of that.

    In the end, she promised to apany Miranda for her checkup and agreed to bring her home if the

    doctors dered her fit for discharge, much to her delight.

    She sure doesn¡¯t look like a prisoner who¡¯s been cooped up for too long¡­ If anything, she strikes me as

    a migrant who¡¯s returning to her home country! Looks like prison¡¯s been treating her well¡­

    At noon, Miranda told her that she was hungry and that she hadn¡¯t taken her lunch.

    Skr nced at her watch and said, ¡°I¡¯ll have the nurse bring you some food right away.¡±

    ¡°No! Despite this being a VIP ward, the food they serve here is terrible! Get me some BBQ ribs from the

    cafeteria instead!¡± Miranda said disdainfully.

    ¡°Were you so picky during your time in prison as well?¡± Skr asked.

    Miranda didn¡¯t like that one bit. ¡°How could you say that? Are you looking down on me just because I

    went to prison for manughter? What happened back then was an ident!¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    She didn¡¯t have the courage to tell Skr the secret that she kept locked up deep down inside. You did

    this to me, Thomas! I¡¯ll have you repay what you owe me with the rest of your life!

 Chapter 210

    Chapter 210

    Skr quickly defused the situation when she saw how offended Miranda was. ¡°I was just kidding, Mom!

    Wait here while I go get you those ribs, okay?¡±

    She decided to ask for directions to the cafeteria at the counter and overheard the nurses chatting

    excitedly.

    ¡°I heard Tobias¡¯ mom has just been admitted into our hospital today! We¡¯ve got cardiologists from all over

    the world over here! Did you see the flowers outside the Cardiology Department? It¡¯s crazy!¡±

    ¡°The lives of the wealthy are worth more, I guess¡­ I bet the director is stressed out of his mind after

    epting such a high-profile client!¡±

    ¡°My friends from the Cardiology Department told me how handsome Tobias is. I can¡¯t even imagine how

    many women he¡¯s slept with! It¡¯s such a shame that he¡¯s already got himself a fianc¨¦e, and a pregnant

    one at that!¡±

    The two of them were so carried away with their conversation that they didn¡¯t even notice Skr standing

    there.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    The news hit her like a freight train and left her devastated.

    So Tanya is still sticking to him like glue, huh¡­ Tobias said he¡¯d take care of things with her, but when?

    After udia¡¯s surgery?

    After finding out the directions to the cafeteria, Skr took the elevator to the first floor.

    Ding! The sound of the elevator doors opening was followed by a deep male voice.

    ¡°Where are you going?¡± Skr looked up and saw Tobias standing in front of her.

    After a brief exchange of nces, Skr quickly looked away as she exined, ¡°My mom called for me.

    I wasn¡¯t following you or anything!¡± Considering how suspicious he is, I¡¯ve got to exin myself clearly or

    he¡¯ll get the wrong idea and think I¡¯m following him! Well, I guess I can¡¯t really me him for being so

    paranoid. Given his position, he¡¯s probably dealt with all sorts of liars on a daily basis! The na?ve young

    boy who would readily believe everything people tell him is long gone!

    ¡°Yeah, I know. I saw you hiding behind the pir when I arrived earlier.¡±

    Skr gasped. And here I thought I did a great job at hiding too!

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t youe to say hi to me, then? Was it inconvenient for you to do so?¡± she asked as she

    continued walking in front of him, the two of them not more than two feet apart.

    Tobias didn¡¯t bother holding back and replied honestly, ¡°It is indeed inconvenient at the moment. Don¡¯t

    worry, we¡¯ll have plenty more opportunities in the future to get you two properly introduced.¡±

    Oh, wow! Gee, thanks for assuming that I was trying to suck up to your mom, Tobias!

    Tobias followed her all the way to the cafeteria where she bought honeyed pork ribs, BBQ ribs, and a

    Caesar sd.

    Skr didn¡¯t really know what Miranda¡¯s favorite food was. All she remembered was seeing here

    home drunk as a skunk all the time when she was a kid. The memories of her momughing and crying

    on the floor like a madman still haunted her to this day.

    Before Tobias was able to reach for his wallet, Skr had already paid for the food using her phone.

    I¡¯d better learn to pay with my phone too, or she¡¯ll always beat me to the bill! I know she rarely uses the

    ck Card I gave her, so she¡¯s basically paying out of her own pocket. That stubborn girl¡­

    That thought left him feeling ufortable as he believed men should pay for their women.

    ¡°Have you taken your lunch?¡± Tobias grabbed her by the wrist when he saw her hurrying off.

    Her face is pale, her lips are cracked, and yet that hasn¡¯t stopped her pretty face from getting the

    attention of every guy in the cafeteria!

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    Chapter 211

    ¡°Yeah, I had some spaghetti,¡± she lied.

    Tobias tightened his grip on her wrist slightly. ¡°Join me for lunch. I¡¯m starving, and it feels lonely eating all

    by myself.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t believe him one bit.

    ¡°Don¡¯t lie to me! I saw youe here with a bunch of people, so how could you possibly be lonely?

    Anyway, I have to go. My mom is still waiting for me to bring her lunch, and she hasn¡¯t eaten anything

    since morning.¡±

    The Cardiology Department and Psychiatric Rehabilitation Department were on different floors, so Tobias

    could only follow her as far as the elevator.

    ¡°How¡¯s your mom doing?¡± Skr asked while waiting for the elevator.

    ¡°She¡¯s alright. We haven¡¯t decided on whether she¡¯ll be getting a coronary bypass or a heart transnt.

    The problem with thetter is that it¡¯ll take time to find a donor¡­¡± Tobias was clearly fatigued and

    stressed out when he said that.

    Skr gave him a pat on the shoulder and reassured him in her most mature-sounding voice possible,

    ¡°Everything will be alright.¡±

    She was so caught up in the moment that she didn¡¯t even realize the elevator arriving. Noticing that,

    Tobias decided to keep quiet about it as he wanted to spend more time with her.

    By the time she realized it, the elevator was already going up.

    ¡°Come on, we¡¯ll take the stairs.¡± Tobias took the food over from her and began walking towards the

    stairwell.

    With her food in his hands, she had no choice but to follow him up the stairs.

    He only handed the food back to her when they arrived on the seventh floor. ¡°Go home earlier tonight,

    and make sure to stay away from ces that are dark.¡±

    That was by far the most heartwarming thing she had ever heard from him.

    Even so, she couldn¡¯t do as he said as Miranda had a blood test scheduled very early the next morning,

    so she had to spend the night in the hospital.

    She told him everything, including the part about Miranda insisting on getting discharged.

    Instead of making her decisions for her, Tobias simply nodded and said, ¡°Well, I won¡¯t say any further

    since you¡¯ve already made up your mind. Still, will you at least kiss me goodbye?¡±

    The two of them were standing so close to each other that they could feel their breaths on their faces.

    Skr got on her tiptoes and gave him a quick peck on the lips, which obviously wasn¡¯t enough for him.

    He rubbed the tip of his nose against hers before tilting his head to the side and kissing her passionately,

    only stopping when they were interrupted by the sound of footstepsing from behind.

    He gave her a quick nip on the tongue as he pulled away from her and turned around.

    It was his assistant, Susan.

    Ew¡­ Just how desperate is this woman? Tobias¡¯ mom is getting heart surgery soon and clinging to him

    is all she cares about? Does she not have anything else to do apart from seducing men?

    Susan looked away in disgust at the thought of that.

    While Skr burned bright red from being seen kissing, Tobias waspletely unfazed by it.

    He even pinched Skr on the cheek in front of Susan as he said, ¡°I¡¯ll be staying in the hospital for the

    next two days as well, so just call me if you need anything.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡± Skr nodded and shed Susan a polite smile before leaving.

    He waited till she was far away before shooting Susan a cold re. ¡°So, did you just happened to pass

    by, or were you actually looking for me?¡±

    ¡°Mrs. Ford had mee looking for you, says she has something to tell you. I think she¡¯s really worried

    about the surgery going wrong.¡±

    ¡°Got it. Susan, you¡¯ve been working with me for a really long time now. I hope you know what you should

    and shouldn¡¯t do.¡±

    Susan pursed her lips. ¡°Do you not trust me, Mr. Ford?¡±Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

 Chapter 212

    Chapter 212

    Tobias¡¯ expression grew cold. ¡°I don¡¯t trust anyone, Susan. You should know that by now.¡±

    Susan felt disappointed. I¡¯ve been working with him for over ten years, and he still doubts me¡­

    ¡°What took you so long? I was starving!¡± Mirandained before Skr even set the food down on

    the table.

    ¡°There was a long queue in the cafeteria,¡± she replied.

    True enough, it didn¡¯t take long before Miranda had finished all of her food.

    ¡°I¡¯m so happy to have you here with me, Skr. I know I¡¯ve wronged you in the past, so I¡¯m really d

    that you¡¯ve forgiven me.¡±

    Skr remembered what Meredith said on her deathbed. Grandma was so worried about Mom that she

    insisted I take care of her once she got released from prison. She also told me not to hate Mom as she

    had suffered a lot in life. You really overestimate my capabilities, Grandma¡­ There¡¯s no way I would¡¯ve

    been able to afford Mom¡¯s medical bills without Tobias¡¯ help!

    Skr simply kept quiet and whipped out her B2 French textbook. The exam wasing soon, and she

    was prepared to give up on university if she couldn¡¯t pass it.

    The evening sun cast an orange glow in the ward, and the warm, gentle breeze blowing through the

    open windows provided some relief from the strong smell of disinfectant.

    Just like that, Skr read her textbook in silence while Miranda carried on knitting the sweater. It was

    such a serene moment, one that Skr had never thought she would someday live to experience.

    ¡°Where do you get your money for the hospital bills?¡± Miranda tried to start a conversation, but Skr

    ignored her question.

    After failing to get a response from her a second time, Miranda tried asking the nurse for an answer

    instead.

    The nurse told her the exact amount, which shocked her greatly.

    ¡°Where do you think I get the money from?¡± Skr asked.

    Miranda answered confidently, ¡°It must be your dad, right? Man, it¡¯s been so long since Ist saw him! I

    wonder how he looks like now¡­ Do you have a picture of him in your phone?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the point in seeing his picture when he didn¡¯t even contribute a single cent? ording to him, he

    isn¡¯t obligated to pay for his ex-wife¡¯s medical bills!¡± Skr said coldly.

    Miranda froze and stared at her in disbelief. ¡°That¡¯s not possible! Skr, do you have some sort of

    problem with your dad? Why do you keep badmouthing him like that?¡±

    ¡°He and I are no longer rted, so what does it matter? Besides, you don¡¯t even have a ce to stay

    even if you were to return! Grandma has given Uncle Wesley her house, and there¡¯s no way he¡¯d take

    you in!¡±

    ¡°Forget about your grandma¡¯s house, I¡¯m sure your dad will take us in!¡± Miranda said after a brief pause.

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    Skr kept quiet as she didn¡¯t know what else to say. Screw it, Mom won¡¯t give up until she sees

    Thomas anyway. He¡¯s the one who created this mess, so I¡¯ll just let him clean it up himself!

    Meanwhile, things were a little chaotic outside udia¡¯s ward as a lot of people came by to visit the

    moment they found about her hospitalization.

    Tobias had no idea who it was that released that information. He had the bodyguards posted outside the

    door to prevent anyone from entering.

    ¡°Where have you been? You weren¡¯t even answering my calls!¡± Tanya asked as she handed him an

    apple that she had just peeled.

    ¡°I¡¯ve blocked your number.¡± Tanya red at him resentfully as he ced the apple on the nightstand.

    ¡°Tobias¡­¡± udia called out to him weakly. She could see that he didn¡¯t like Tanya at all. The only

    reason Tanya was able to put up with his attitude was because of her incredible levels of patience.

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    Chapter 213

    ¡°I¡¯ve made the arrangements with the specialists. They¡¯re all suggesting that you get a coronary bypass

    as it is the least risky option, so you don¡¯t have to worry about a thing,¡± Tobias reassured her as he sat

    down on the side of her bed.

    udia got Tanya to leave the ward by having her fetch a ss of warm water from outside.

    She then turned towards Tobias and asked, ¡°You went to see that woman again, didn¡¯t you? I know her

    mom is being treated in this hospital, and that you¡¯re the one paying for her medical bills.¡±

    ¡°Is that why you chose this hospital, Mom? Talk about going the extra mile, eh?¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    ¡°Listen, everyone out there is saying that you¡¯re calling off your wedding with Tanya, and that poor girl is

    crying every night because of it! If you weren¡¯t nning on taking responsibility, then you shouldn¡¯t have

    gotten her pregnant in the first ce!¡± udia said angrily.

    ¡°I told you, I didn¡¯t get her pregnant, so stop pressuring me already, okay? I don¡¯t n on getting married

    to anyone!¡±

    udia eased up her attitude a little. ¡°Not even with that woman? You¡¯re not getting any younger, Tobias.

    If you had a kid when you should¡¯ve, that child would probably be of working age by now! Anyway, do as

    you see fit with Tanya. I¡¯m too old to be getting involved in your personal affairs.¡±

    Tobias shed her a faint smile. ¡°Like I said, I don¡¯t n on getting married at the moment. Besides, I

    don¡¯t like kids and you know that! Get some rest, Mom. I¡¯m going out for a smoke.¡±

    udia could see that he was dying to end that conversation, and decided to let him be.

    It¡¯s pointless to get angry at him, given how stubborn he is. If he really decides not to marry Tanya, then

    she¡¯ll just have to ept her fate, I guess. As much as I like her, she is still an outsider and cannot

    Unbeknownst to her, Tanya had overheard everything from outside the door and was secretly cursing at

    her.

    So all that talk about liking me and wanting me to marry her son was all a lie, huh? I knew I couldn¡¯t trust

    that old hag¡­ No, I can¡¯t just sit around and do nothing! I have to act fast before they get rid of me!

    When the ward fell silent, Tanya leaned against the door and strained her ears to find out what was going

    on.

    It was at that moment that the door opened from the inside, and Tanya fell forward onto the floor.

    udia went pale from shock when she saw Tanya fall as she was allegedly pregnant with Tobias¡¯ child.

    ¡°Help her up, Tobias! What are you waiting for?¡± She shouted.

    Tanya tried to put on a tough front despite the extreme pain in her tummy. ¡°I¡¯m alright, I can get up on my

    own¡­ It just hurts a little, that¡¯s all.¡±

    This woman sure is pretentious in everything she does¡­ Instead of helping her up, Tobias simply stared

    at her and called out to the bodyguard outside, ¡°You there,e help Ms. Hanson to her feet. She¡¯s not

    feeling well and shouldn¡¯t be in the hospital.¡±

    Tanya clenched her teeth in anger as she spat the words at him, ¡°I fall down while pregnant, and the first

    thing you do is get rid of me¡­¡±

    Skr wasn¡¯t really picky when it came to sleep, so she woke up feeling just fine the next morning

    despite having slept on the couch the whole night.

    Miranda had woken up early that day and was doing some aerobic exercises in the ward. Her body was

    in such great shape that one would¡¯ve assumed she was in her twenties if they only saw her from

    behind.

    Knock! Knock! Knock! Thinking it was the nurse reminding them of the checkup, Skr let out a yawn as

    she went to open the door with her eyes half-open. However, her eyes shot wide open when she saw

    Tanya standing outside.

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    ¡°What is it, Ms. Hanson?¡± she asked, standing between her and the door.

    ¡°I think we should have a nice little talk, you and I,¡± Tanya said as she stared her in the eye.

    ¡°We¡¯ll talk in the corridor,¡± Skr didn¡¯t want to let her in, but Tanya simply shoved her out of the way and

    waltzed right in.

    Her boldness was mainly backed by the fact that people generally wouldn¡¯t dare hurt a pregnant woman,

    which was exactly the case with Skr.

    That was the first time Tanya had met Miranda, and she could see right off the bat where Skr got that

    pretty face of hers from. Like mother, like daughter, huh?

    ¡°Is that a friend of yours, Skr?¡± Not knowing who she was, Miranda greeted her warmly and even

    poured her a ss of water.

    As her gaze fell upon Tanya¡¯s tummy, she turned towards Skr and said, ¡°Look at how far along your

    friend is while you¡¯re still here all single!¡±

    Tanya let out a snicker when she heard that. So this murderer doesn¡¯t know anything, eh?

    ¡°Single? Is that why she¡¯s stealing my husband like a sl*t? Seems to me you don¡¯t know your daughter

    all that well, Miranda!¡±

    ¡°Hey! Watch your mouth, Tanya! Get out of here and take your bullsh*t with you! You¡¯re disturbing my

    mom!¡±

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    Miranda asked Skr what she was going on about, to which she replied, ¡°It¡¯s nothing, Mom.¡±

    Tanya sneered, her eyes filled with hostility as she red at Skr. ¡°Nothing? Tobias would¡¯ve married

    me if by now if not for you! Well, I guess I have my own kindness to me. I should never have let you

    go that easily! Anyway, you¡¯d better stay the hell away from Tobias or I¡¯ll make you pay dearly, you hear?

    One word is all it takes for me to make you disappear! Do you think Tobias will still remember you when

    you¡¯re gone?¡±

    Yes, that¡¯s right¡­ Get angry, Skr! Get really angry and hurt me! The angrier the better! I¡¯vee fully

    prepared for anything! I don¡¯t know if God wants this baby to live, but I sure as hell don¡¯t! If I give birth to

    this baby, Tobias will conduct a DNA test and uncover the truth for sure!

    Skr decided to take a leap of faith and take Tobias at his word that the child wasn¡¯t his. ¡°What the hell

    do you want from me, Tanya? First of all, you two aren¡¯t even married yet, so I haven¡¯t stolen anyone¡¯s

    husband! Second of all, that child doesn¡¯t belong to Tobias and you know it!¡± she said with great

    confidence.

    Having no idea as to what was actually going on, Miranda got confused and scolded Skr instead, ¡°I

    can¡¯t believe you actually became someone¡¯s mistress, Skr! Apologize to her right this instant!¡±

    Miranda had always been a people-pleaser, so she naturally assumed that Skr was in the wrong even

    though she knew nothing of what actually happened.

    However, that only seemed to encourage Tanya further. ¡°Wow, even your homicidal mom knows better

    than you, Skr! You wanted to be a star, right? I¡¯ll let everyone know what you did! See if anyone will

    support you, then!¡±

    Skr mustered every bit of willpower she had in her to suppress her raging anger.

    ¡°Go ahead, you¡¯ll just embarrass yourself even more if word gets out. Everyone will know you as an

    unmarried mother living off the Fords!¡±

    Those words opened up Tanya¡¯s old wounds, and she felt the urge to stab Skr to death.

    How the hell is a twenty-year-old girl like her able to tolerate being insulted and humiliated in front of her

    own mother?

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    Chapter 215

    Tanya lifted her hand with the intention of pping Skr. However, her wrist was grabbed tightly by

    Skr before her palm could hit on Skr¡¯s face. Skr looked at her with a fiery yet ruthless gaze and

    responded, ¡°You are not qualified to hit me. Previously, I was together with Tobias because I didn¡¯t have

    a choice. However, he didn¡¯t promise me anything. Both of you could have gotten married but you

    messed up and ended up in your current situation.¡±

    Tanya was in pain and asked Skr to release her. Nheless, Tanya would not believe in this little

    sl*t¡¯s nonsense.

    Tobias didn¡¯t marry her not because of what Skr had just said. In fact, it was all because this b*tch had

    sown discord between them through pillow talk.

    Men were creatures whose thoughts were influenced by lust and sexual arousal. After Skr had slept

    with him, he became ky and nned to call off the wedding with Tanya.

    Skr must be skillful in bed as she was endowed with a waist as slim as a pencil as well as a pair of

    long legs. As such, she knew how to catch Tobias¡¯s attention.

    Skr released her hands gently at the end because Tanya was pregnant after all.

    Nheless, who would have expected that Tanya would have fallen down on the floor by herself? She

    held her stomach with her hand while hunched inside the ward. Her expression was in extreme agony.

    Within those few minutes, Skr¡¯s mind waspletely nk. She still hadn¡¯te to herself on what

    had urred.

    Tanya was taken away by the doctor lying on the stretcher. Soon, she was ushered by the bodyguards of

    the Ford family into the delivery room.

    She then saw Tobias. He looked awfully grim while udia was present as well.

    udia pped Skr and it went right onto her face as she didn¡¯t avoid her iing palm.

    udia became furious that her voice began to shiver. Her poise and mannerism were thrown out of the

    window at this moment.

    ¡°You are such a cruel woman. Tanya has been very patient with you all this while yet you are still

    unsatisfied. All of us are women. As such, you should know how important a child is to a mother,¡±

    udia reprimanded.

    Skr wasn¡¯t bothered about that. She was well aware of how Tanya had deliberately fallen down in front

    of her in order to conveniently used her of pushing her down. Hence, Tanya was indeed the one who

    should bebeled as cruel.

    All these seemed to be well nned. Luckily, she didn¡¯t start a fight except for self-defense when she

    was in conflict with her.

    If she really did push her, then she would be in deep trouble and any amount of exnation would never

    be able to clear her name.

    Skr¡¯s eyes were red. At that point in time, she knew that it would be useless for her to pretend to be

    strong. With that, her anguishing tears started flowing down. In fact, she could cry at any time as she

    was the best student in her ss in mastering this skill at the acting course she attended. Thus, the way

    she cried was neither ostentatious nor stiff.

    She lowered her head and wept while lifting her head to glimpse at Tobias from time to time with an

    innocent look aptly.

    Tobias was moved. He then wrapped his arm around Skr¡¯s shoulder to let her lean against him and

    consoled her, ¡°I know that this incident has nothing to do with you. Don¡¯t be afraid as I¡¯m here with you.¡±

    At that point in time, Skr still didn¡¯t make any exnation.

    She thought that it might be time to fight back as she had been used of being the third party who

    stole someone¡¯s husband. In fact, she had enough of this kind of life where she needed to hide in the

    dark.

    Since Tanya had taken the initiative by going as far as sacrificing her unborn child to drag Skr into a

    dispute, she had also decided to take the initiative to counterattack.

    Everyone was taken aback by Tobias¡¯ action. In spite of his fianc¨¦e struggling to save their baby inside

    the delivery room, he was stillforting the woman who caused the miscarriage of his child.

    With such an unbelievable act, everyone around couldn¡¯t help but suspect if Skr had cast a spell on

    Tobias.

    ¡°The baby can¡¯t be rescued,¡± the doctor shook his head and sighed while walking out of the delivery

    room.

    Tobias responded coldly while udia nearly fainted.

    udia pointed at Skr who was still hiding in Tobias¡¯s arm, with a bitter expression as she was

    heartbroken. ¡°Are you happy with the oue now? You really acted cruelly. Why such a young woman

    like you are so wicked? You didn¡¯t even give her a chance.¡±

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    Finally, Skr moved away from Tobias¡¯s arm. Then, she exined, ¡°I didn¡¯t touch her. She fell down on

    the floor by herself. Mrs. Ford, I am not that bad as I don¡¯t even dare to kill a cockroach not to mention

    harming a person¡¯s life.¡±

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    Chapter 216

    ¡°Nonsense! Who would put her own baby at stake? Do you think I believe in what you said? You are

    trying to give a false ount of the truth!¡±

    udia was overwhelmed by grief and indignation.As a result, she was feeling dizzy and unable to stand

    properly. Tobias held her but she pushed him away coldly.

    Their rtionship as mother and son had never been so estranged before if not for Tanya¡¯s incident.

    Skr sighed. ¡°I would never believe that a mother would do that to her child if I didn¡¯t see it with my own

    eyes. I didn¡¯t push her and my mother can be the witness.¡±

    Miranda was nowhere to be found. Despite such an eventful scene, she didn¡¯t even turn up to check on

    Skr.

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    ¡°Your mother is a murderer. Yet, you expect me to believe her words? You have to pay for the baby¡¯s

    death,¡± udia cursed her.

    Her vicious remark sent a chill down Skr¡¯s spine. udia must have been so enraged that she made

    such a remark in the public. Eventually, those people were also having cold sweats upon hearing her

    comment.

    ¡°Mom, you looked tired. I will handle the issue here. Please return to the ward first.¡±

    udia noticed that Tobias didn¡¯t even me her for the entire episode. Instead, he still defended her.

    As such, udia was very disappointed. She couldn¡¯t take both the physical and the emotional impact

    anymore. Tears gradually flowed down from the corner of her eyes. Despite that, her inner rage had yet

    to settle.

    As udia was afraid that she might copse, she was then ushered by someone back to the ward.

    Before she left, she stared daggers at Skr. As long as I live, I will not let you have the opportunities to

    be part of The Fords by any means. I will never ever forgive you unless I die.

    Skr gazed at Tobias with the expression of being framed and mistreated. It made everyone felt

    heartbroken upon seeing her pitiful look.

    With a hoarse voice and a crying tone, Skr said, ¡°Mrs. Ford, I didn¡¯t do anything to her. If you

    suspected me, then you can call the police to take me away. Let them investigate. Nheless, I don¡¯t

    have the gut to carry out this act as it harms other¡¯s life.¡±

    However, udia didn¡¯t seem to believe in her crocodile tears. This littless had a lot of tactics up her

    sleeve to seduce my son into falling head over heels for her.

    Others had left whereas Tanya was still inside the delivery room as the doctor had put her under a two-

    hour observation.

    Finally, the situation returned to peace temporarily. Then, Skr was relieved and asked, ¡°Why don¡¯t you

    go inside and have a look? I could do without yourpanion as I will be alright.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t have any intention to go inside.

    Skr wrapped her arm around Tobias¡¯s waist while she ced her head tightly on his chest. She looked

    like she wascking in strength and as weak as a kitten.

    ¡°Why do I need to go inside? I don¡¯t want to do that,¡± Tobias replied without any hesitation.

    Although Tanya was still lying inside the delivery room, Skr didn¡¯t even show any sympathy for her.

    Even a fierce tigress wouldn¡¯t eat its own cub. However, Tanya had resorted to such an unscrupulous

    way just to frame me. This woman was very cruel indeed. As such, she waspatible with Tobias.

    ¡°Are you hungry? I can take you to eat something,¡± Tobias asked while feeling a bit exhausted.

    Skr shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t have any appetite. In fact, I don¡¯t wish to eat anything. I am returning to

    my mum¡¯s ward. I¡¯ll fetch her from the hospital tomorrow. Carry on with whatever that you have to do! It is

    not appropriate for me to be here.¡±

    Tobias asked her in return, ¡°There is no such thing. As long as I am by your side, no one can harm you.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Skr felt warm in her heart. In addition, she felt content with the promise that Tobias

    made. At the time when she felt helpless, Tobias didn¡¯t use her like the others. For that, she was

    grateful to him.

    ¡°Do you believe in me? I don¡¯t mind if others misunderstand me since I only care about your opinion.¡±

    Tobias gently stroked her slightly messy hair. ¡°There is no reason why I shouldn¡¯t believe you. I believe in

    everything that you told me. Now, you don¡¯t have to worry too much. I will see you once the issue has

    been sorted out.¡±

 Chapter 217

    Chapter 217

    Skr nodded as she felt that today was a very terrible day for her. Hence, she had a bad feeling about

    this incident. The consequence of this incident was likely leading to an extreme oue ¨C only one of

    them would survive in this tragic tug of war over Tobias.

    After Skr left, Tanya was also being transferred to the ward. She looked very frail and her face looked

    pale as she was lying sickly on the patient¡¯s bed.

    ¡°Tobias, you own me for this,¡± Tanya uttered in a hoarse voice with her eyes closed.

    ¡°Oh, really? I don¡¯t think so. I guess you should have a clear picture of whether Skr really caused your

    miscarriage or otherwise,¡± Tobias looked at her coldly without even the slightest hint of sympathy in his

    eyes.

    ¡°You are still trying to protect that woman up until this point. Seeing that you have caused me to lose a

    child, you will have to marry me this time to make up to me.¡±

    Tobias felt that she must be out of her mind as she was willing to employ such an unscrupulous tactic

    just to get him to marry her. Originally, he wanted to arrange for a paternity test once the baby was born.

    Then, the truth would be out. However, he would not have to wait anymore due to her own deed.

    ¡°You are still hoping that I would marry you? Do you have any other means to ckmail me? Maybe my

    mother¡¯s health as a threat? You should know that I hate being threatened. I have been tolerating you for

    such a long time.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ cold treatment was not what Tanya had expected, so she was feeling grief and despair after

    seeing how heartless he was. The result was not what she had imagined earlier as she had expected

    Skr to be the scapegoat of her miscarriage. Consequently, Tobias would definitely not forgive

    her.

    Unfortunately, the event took a turn. In fact, Tobias didn¡¯t even utter a single harsh word to Skr.

    Furthermore, he didn¡¯t show the slightest concern towards her.

    ¡°Mom will definitely feel indebted for my condition. Tobias, I want you to redeem yourself for what you

    have done to me.¡± Her eyes were red and filled with rage.

    Tobias smirked, ¡°Your miscarried fetus has been removed by someone even before you left the delivery

    room. You are really capable as you have probably managed to bribe the hospital personnel. Now, let¡¯s

    see who has more money. Since you are not willing to give birth to that baby, I will grant you your wish.

    Do you think my mother will ept a woman who is without a uterus?¡±

    Tanya gazed at him with a fearful expression and she shouted, ¡°You are no different from the animals.

    You can even think of such a low and wicked method!¡±

    She felt a chill running up her spine.

    Two people wearing white coats were walking towards the ward. Tanya recognized both of them as she

    had gone through them in order to falsify her medical report previously.

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    Currently, both of them had be Tobias¡¯ men now.

    Tanya got up from her bed even without thinking of the excruciating pain in her body while trying to run

    away. Tobias had lost his mind and conscience. He was now the personification of the Grim Reaper

    waiting to sign her death warrant.

    Unfortunately, she was being pinned by two people. ¡°Sorry, Ms. Hanson.¡±

    Tanya was forcefully brought into the operation theater. Tobias watched on with a deep gaze while there

    was nothing but frostiness in his eyes. It all over now.

    He ordered everyone to have their lips sealed and announced that Tanya¡¯s miscarriage had caused her

    to have a huge blood loss. Hence, her uterus had to be removed in order to save her life.

    When Skr returned to her mother¡¯s ward, Miranda was still knitting a wool sweater. She didn¡¯t ask her

    a thing while she also didn¡¯t mention anything to her.

    She was sorting out things before hospital discharge. The imprint of palm on her face was still visible as

    her right cheek had swollen unusually. With that kind of strength, udia certainly did not behave like a

    patient with a heart problem.

    Finally, Miranda asked her, ¡°You were being bullied?¡±

    Skr wanted to conceal the truth and covered her face with her hand. ¡°Nope. I just hit something

    identally.¡±

    Miranda gave Skr an egg with its shell still unpeeled. ¡°Put in on your face and roll it around the wound.

    Skr, your boyfriend¡¯s wife is pregnant. Isn¡¯t it bad for you to act like this? As a girl, you need to be

    more self-restraint. After all, you are a daughter from a high-status family.¡±

 Chapter 218

    Chapter 218

    Skr was overjoyed due to the concern from her mother. To her, that was better than being totally

    ignored. She guessed that only her mother would still treat her as a daughter from a high-status family. In

    the eyes of others, she was just a murderer¡¯s daughter who had been abandoned by her own father.

    ¡°There is nothing bad about it. There are things which are hard to exin to you.¡± She was too tired to do

    any exining. Currently, she just wanted to keep quiet while wondering what happened on Tobias¡¯s

    side. Additionally, she feared that she had severely offended udia.

    Previously, she didn¡¯t harbor any hope that Tobias would marry her.

    Currently, it seemed even more hopeless.

    The next morning, Skr who had not slept for the whole night gave Tobias a call but he didn¡¯t pick up.

    Miranda already put on a wig and dressed up in a khaki-colored dress with a floral design. On top of that,

    she also put on the shades. It was as though she was going on vacation.

    ¡°Do I look good?¡± Miranda looked at the mirror and put on a smile which she thought was the most

    perfect smile.

    ¡°Appeared to be an old-fashioned look,¡± Skrmented.

    Miranda rolled her eyes at her daughter. ¡°I asked a nurse called Wincy to buy it for me. By the way,

    where are we going to stay after I discharge from here?¡±

    Skr was in a dilemma as the house belonged to Tobias. In spite of that, he didn¡¯t have the intention to

    invite Miranda to stay with them. Nevertheless, this was normal as no one wished to be disturbed.

    Furthermore, he preferred the house to be quiet.

    Skr remained silent for some moments and Miranda asked again, ¡°Don¡¯t tell me that I don¡¯t have a

    home to go to.¡±

    Skr replied, ¡°I¡¯ll find a house for you.¡±

    Then, Miranda was satisfied while she chuckled, ¡°Initially, I thought that a daughter is not good. However,

    now I understand that having a daughter is actually better. Mom¡¯s beloved yet caring daughter, when are

    you going to introduce your boyfriend to me?¡±

    Miranda just recalled after leaving the ward. She stood in the corridor and stared at Skr when she was

    asking her that question.

    ¡°He is very busy, so he is not free.¡± Skr answered perfunctorily.

    ¡°Have you heard that Tobias¡¯s wife had a miscarriage that resulted in a huge amount of blood loss? She

    went through an operation to remove her uterusst night.¡±

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    ¡°She is not his wife as they are not married yet. She is just his fianc¨¦e! Well, her dream of marrying into a

    wealthy family was dashed. The Fords definitely would not ept a sterile woman,¡± said a nurse.

    ¡°What a tragedy. She was arrogant when she came here and acted like a queen. However, look at her

    miserable predicament now,¡± she continued.

    The nurses walking along the corridor continued to gossip about Tanya¡¯s incident. Upon hearing that,

    Skr frowned. When she was still therest night, she didn¡¯t hear anything about Tanya¡¯s uterus being

    removed. What happened after I left?

    Miranda looked as though she was given a new lease of life after leaving the hospital. As a matter of

    fact, she had lost more than ten years of freedom. The air outside seemed to be so fresh for her.

    Skr waved for a cab and found a hotel nearby. She had Miranda settled down first while she searched

    for a house. This came out of a sudden, so she didn¡¯t prepare anything.

    Upon knowing that she will be staying at the hotel, Miranda was clearly dissatisfied and queried, ¡°You

    haven¡¯t owned a house yet?¡±

    Skr was stunned and looked at her. She thought of what she had done to give Miranda the wrong

    impression about her having the ability to purchase a house in a city, wherend was highly expensive.

    After all, she was just a student. Everything she had was given by Tobias.

    Skr pointing to herself, ¡°Please take a look at me. Do I look like I can afford a house? I am just renting

    a ce.¡±

    Miranda started to criticize Skr, ¡°You are just so foolish. Tell me what do you get by getting involved in

    a rtionship with a married man. He doesn¡¯t even give you the money! To make things worse, you even

    need to rent a house to live in. Are you sacrificing in the name of love?¡±

    Miranda talked endlessly and thus causing Skr a headache. In turn, she wished to know why was her

    mother still couldn¡¯t forget Thomas. Did he give her anything?

    After Miranda had settled down, Skr received a call from the university informing her about the

    registration of the B2 French exam. She had been absent from ss for two days without a reason.

    Hence, she definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to pass this term¡¯s examination if she kept on skipping sses.

    Skr asked Miranda, ¡°Can you stay here alone as I need to go and settle something?¡±

    Miranda probed her, ¡°Where do you want to go? You just left me here all by myself. I have just been set

    free and I know nothing. I don¡¯t even know how to switch on the television yet you are not worried.¡±

 Chapter 219

    Chapter 219

    Skr pointed at the phone. ¡°You can call the front desk if you need anything. There¡¯s also food and

    beverages.¡±

    Skr left without waiting for Miranda to finish her words. While waiting for a taxi in front of the hotel, a

    ck Porche stopped in front of her.

    The car¡¯s window rolled down, revealing Tobias with sunsses on. He looked like a well-disguised

    pervert.

    Skr got into the car¡¯s passenger seat. ¡°How do you know that I¡¯m staying here?¡±

    Right after she finished asking, Skr remembered that Tobias installed a GPS tracking device in her

    phone. Thus, he would know her whereabouts while she knew none of his.

    ¡°Why did you bring your mom to a hotel? Who are you trying to humiliate right now?¡± Tobias asked,

    passing her the coffee he bought on the way.

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    The coffee was still warm. There were many coffee houses near his office, and their businesses were

    great. Not many girls could resist the temptation of coffee.

    Skr took the coffee but didn¡¯t drink it. ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you mean. Who have I humiliated?¡± she

    asked curiously as she looked at Tobias with a slight tilt of her head.

    Tobias didn¡¯t exin further. He didn¡¯t like clingy woman, and those obedient ones were his favorite.

    Skr, on the other hand, was too independent. She carried all her responsibilities and kept them to

    herself. This was something he disliked. It was clear that as independent as she was, she would rent a

    house for Miranda and stay with her, thereby fulfilling her responsibility as a daughter.

    Was he going to be single again?

    His face darkened at that thought. He fiercely stepped on the elerator, despite the constant warning

    from the navigation system of the exceeded speed limit.

    Skr held on to the grab handle and kept reminding him, ¡°Slow down! Slow down! Slow down!¡±

    Only then did Tobias release the elerator. Skr held onto her chest to calm her racing heart. After

    the terror passed, she furiously asked, ¡°Did you know that you could get into an ident like this? You

    are not a kid anymore, so why are you acting like one?¡±

    He almost had the impression of being much older than just a decade as he listened to Skr¡¯s scolding.

    ¡°How can a kid satisfy you? You need an experienced person like me,¡± said Tobias with a smirk.

    Skr was in a hurry to go back to her university, but Tobias gripped her hand tightly and insisted that

    she joined him for food. This man was definitely a big hurdle in her studies.

    She was almost dragged from the car and was urged into a convenience store.

    She sat at an empty seat and saw that he bought a lot of instant food and croissants. ¡°I still have work to

    do, so I can¡¯t apany you for long. Just eat something simple.¡±

    This was the first time she felt Tobias was easy to deal with. He seemed like an average person with a

    croissant in his mouth.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t ask you to apany me.¡± Skr held her face as she looked out the window. Tobias disliked

    clingy girls, but now he was the one being clingy.

    ¡°Don¡¯t let me hear you say that again. Just keep it in your heart. You don¡¯t appreciate the fact that I came

    straight from the hospital to see you.¡±

    She saw his resentment and harshness, meeting his eyes. It showed that he cared about her reaction a

    lot.

    Skr took a sip of the tea bought by Tobias, but she didn¡¯t like it because it was too bitter and not

    refreshing.

    She wanted her coffee, but it was left in his car. Before she could have a sip, she was dragged by Tobias

    into the convenience store for tea instead.

    ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have said that. I need you here to apany me and I hope that you¡¯re by my side every

    second. It would be even better if we¡¯re together twenty-four hours a day.¡± She still apologized, even

    though she didn¡¯t feel anything wrong with what she said.

 Chapter 220

    Chapter 220

    Her tone was too exaggerated, her expression too stiff, and there was no emotion in her eyes.

    Tobias coldly remarked, ¡°Don¡¯t act. I don¡¯t like you lying to me. But if you want to be with me for twenty-

    four hours, I can still ept it.¡±

    Skr pouted. It looked like he was in a bad mood. Tanya¡¯s incident must have affected him. How could

    any man not sympathize with a woman with a tragic background?

    Skr forced some sadness into her tone, ¡°I know you¡¯re in a bad mood because your family was deeply

    affected by the incident, but I don¡¯t know how I can make you feel better.¡±

    Skr wasn¡¯t sure of when this would end, and how long her rtionship with Tobias couldst. Tanya

    had criticized her as someone who could only hide in darkness and never see the light.

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    The way Tobias treated her was true to Tanya¡¯s words. He had only brought her to attend a public event

    and met his friends once.

    He didn¡¯t introduce her to his friends. There were only mistresses who apanied his friends. None of

    them were girlfriends or wives.

    So, she was aware of her status. She was only hoping for a simple romantic rtionship but ended up

    with aplicated man.

    ¡°Are you full? I¡¯ll send you to the university once you¡¯re full.¡± Heavy rain started to fall outside, and a bolt

    of lightning tore across the dark sky.

    Tobias didn¡¯t give Skr a reply because he didn¡¯t want to talk about Tanya in front of her. He knew that

    Tanya would no longer be involved in their lives.

    Tobias bought two umbres from the convenience store. He was holding his umbre, but the rain still

    wet one side of him. While Skr was dry as a desert.

    When they reached his car, half of Tobias was drenched with water dripping down his hair.

    Skr took out a bag of tissues and wiped his face dry with it.

    ¡°This saga with Tanya has ended. She won¡¯t be involved with us anymore in the future. You don¡¯t have to

    ask indirectly about her, because you¡¯re my girlfriend from now on. Understood?¡±

    After whatever that had ensued, he finally gave a reply. It was thest time he would bring up this matter,

    for there was no way he would let her know of what actions he took to resolve the situation.

    ¡°But your mom will never forgive me.¡± Skr sadly lowered her gaze. She was evil in udia¡¯s eyes, and

    she never wanted to face udia anymore.

    The atmosphere turned solemn, but Tobias still kept the engine running.

    All of a sudden, he pulled Skr onto hisp, startling her. She wasn¡¯t prepared for it.

    He locked his gaze with hers and stared at her beautiful eyes; Sensing the fear and frustration in her, he

    kissed her. The kiss was gentle and not from lust. ¡°It will be fine as long as you listen to me. She will

    slowly ept you once she¡¯s better.¡±

    Tobias asked her to wait again. Skr didn¡¯t understand what she was nervous about.

    The rain outside was getting heavier, so Tobias drove his car into the universitypound. He stopped

    in front of her department building.

    Skr set up an umbre as she got down from his car and waved goodbye.

    Tobias stared at her silhouette. Not long after she started walking, he saw her talking to a guy.

    He drove in a bit further and honked. ¡°You should hurry in now,¡± Tobias rolled down his window and said.

    Skr was confused at his sudden change in attitude. The guy left in a hurry after meeting Tobias¡¯s

    sharp gaze.

    Tobias drove nearer just because of some small talk between her and a guy. Is he jealous? Dispelling

    that thought, she hurriedly went to her ssroom to pick up a B2 French exam form.

    She filled the form and went to the instructor¡¯s room to submit it right after.

    ¡°You have been skipping ss a lot recently even though you don¡¯t have any work. If this continues, I¡¯ll

    have to inform your parents,¡± warned the instructor.

    ¡°I had some urgent family issue, so I didn¡¯t manage to apply for leave,¡± exined Skr.

 Chapter 221

    Chapter 221

    The instructor just passed an extra ss form to her without listening to Skr¡¯s exnation. He advised

    her, ¡°Take an extra ss during your holiday. You¡¯re not famous yet, but you¡¯ve already started acting like

    one. Or do you think that you¡¯re already one?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t act any differently. I¡¯m not the one who acts all high and mighty. Isn¡¯t Amelia still in ss?¡± Skr

    shrugged her shoulders with an indifferent tone.

    Amelia was Skr¡¯s senior. She had worked with famous directors in her high school days, so she had

    high poprity within the industry. Even something minor like her entrance exam attracted the reporters.

    She was the university¡¯s Goddess. Other students even acted like groupies when she went to the

    cafeteria.

    ¡°How can you measure up to Amelia? She has Kate as her agent, so she has a bright future ahead of

    her, and you are only fit for the supporting role. Don¡¯t be too arrogant,¡± huffed the instructor.

    Only then did she realize that she had the same agent as the school¡¯s Goddess, Amelia. It was no

    wonder that Amelia had so many resources and opportunities.

    Since thest time she met Kate, she didn¡¯t contact her anymore. Skr highly suspected that she was

    forgotten.

    She hadn¡¯t signed any formal contract yet, so she still didn¡¯t have an agency.

    Miranda called her continuously after she left the office to persuade her to return. On the other side,

    Skr had gone shopping and had lost her way.

    Skr took shelter from the rain at the entrance. The rain was pouring so heavily that the ground

    appeared white.

    ¡°Have you lost your mind? You want to go shopping in this weather?¡± exasperated Skr.

    ¡°Just now, a young guy dropped by. He left a credit card with me and said it was his boss¡¯ order. I asked

    him about the card¡¯s upper limit. He replied that there¡¯s no limit.¡±

    Skr tightened her grip on the phone. Tobias was too efficient that he even made arrangements for

    Miranda.

    ¡°Don¡¯t touch the card. Just leave it there and don¡¯t use it,¡± said Skr urgently.

    ¡°Are you mad? Someone gave you money for free, but you don¡¯t want to spend it,¡± Miranda muttered.

    Skr didn¡¯t apany Miranda to go shopping, for she just couldn¡¯t spend his money as if it were her

    own.

    She called Kate to meet up with her because she still hadn¡¯t arranged any work for her.

    So she¡¯s the famous agent that everyone talks about! Amelia, on the other hand, has just received

    another job offer.

    Skr couldn¡¯tpare to Amelia, and she knew that.Hence, she wanted at least a minor role for her to

    earn some extra ie.

    She didn¡¯t want to use Tobias¡¯ money unless necessary.

    She felt as if she was owning him a favor. He had given her a lot, but she couldn¡¯t just keep being

    pampered in this state and expect him to provide for her forever.

    Kate invited her to meet at a coffee house by the river near Tobias¡¯ office. She took an elevator to the

    sixteenth floor, and the whole city view could be seen.

    ¡°What is the urgency? I¡¯m quite busy at the moment,¡± Kate said, staring at her phone.

    ¡°Amelia, you have to seize this chance. I worked hard for this huge job offer,¡± Kate said warmly into her

    phone.

    Skr waited till Kate was done with her conversation then exined, ¡°Can you arrange some work for

    me? None of thepanies got in contact with me after I finished the movie.¡±

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    Kate had only helped to verify her Instagram ount and nothing else.

    Skr monitored the number of followers daily, but it didn¡¯t even reach a hundred. Most of her followers

    were still her ssmates.

    ¡°My dear, Mr. Ford hasn¡¯t made any arrangements for you yet. I¡¯m still a free agent as of now. Only when

    Tobias signs me under Royal Entertainment, then can I help you.¡±

    Skr noticed a change in Kate¡¯s attitude.

    Skr didn¡¯t push further. There must be a reason for her sudden change. It could be that the discussion

    about her fees hadn¡¯t ended yet.

    She looked calmly at Kate, ¡°Alright. He is busy at the moment, so I didn¡¯t want to bother him. Let me

    know once there is any offer.¡±

 Chapter 222

    Chapter 222

    Skr¡¯s patience was something Kate admired about her. Unfortunately, Tobias didn¡¯t satisfy her

    requests.

    She was signed under a small agency that belonged to the Ford Group, but a sudden fee increase

    offended Tobias.

    She was now in an awkward situation.

    ¡°I have amercial shooting that you can try. It is for MM Beans. If you ept the offer, you can go for

    the casting interview tomorrow. We still need to wait for Daryl¡¯s movie because the post-production after

    filming will take quite a while. You don¡¯t have any outstanding work at the moment, so you can only wait

    for now. This leaves amercial shooting being the best chance for you right now because it allows

    you to be flexible with your time,¡± Kate said as if giving handouts.

    ¡°Send me the location and time for tomorrow¡¯s interview. I¡¯ll go.¡± Skr didn¡¯t reject, despite it being a

    small offer. She understood that a minor role was still a job nheless.

    Kate really liked Skr since she was easily satisfied. She would have put more effort into Skr if it

    weren¡¯t for her own benefit.

    She had given thismercial deal to Amelia before, but she didn¡¯t want it as the products were not

    high-end. Amelia aimed to be the representative of only high-end brands.

    They were interrupted by Kate¡¯s phone at least five times during their discussion.

    Kate sent the address to Skr. She was afraid of identally deleting the message, so she starred it.

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    The rain had stopped, and the night air had a refreshing after-rain scent. Skr zipped up her hoodie as

    the temperature dropped.

    She didn¡¯t want to go back to the hotel so early, so she just took a stroll along the river.

    She reached a crossroad that was near a hospital after a while.

    She didn¡¯t want to go there. That ce was a nightmare for her, mainly because she was pped and

    humiliated in front of bystanders.

    In the end, she decided to try her luck, unable to withstand it further. Tobias did mention in the afternoon

    that he would be at the hospital at night.

    She stood at the entrance of the Cardiology Department and called Tobias on his phone.

    Tobias quickly came out from the ward. He was dressed in casual wear as he nned to stay the night,

    and he just finished showering.

    Skr smiled as soon as she saw him. Her perfect smile and chiseled face attracted a lot of attention

    and left a longsting impression on others.

    ¡°What brings you here?¡± Tobias beckoned for Skr toe over to his side.

    ¡°I was taking a stroll outside and reached here eventually. How¡¯s your mom?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s fine. The surgery¡¯s tomorrow. It¡¯ste for you to be strolling the streets alone. Go home early.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t mention Kate¡¯s problem to Tobias. She had assumed that he couldn¡¯t be bothered to be

    worried about her at this significant moment.

    ¡°I¡¯m leaving now, go back in,¡± she advised.

    Tobias noticed that it was almost half an hour to midnight, so he was worried about letting her go back

    alone.

    He asked Skr to wait for him and that he would be back soon.

    Skr took a seat on the bench in the hallway. Tobias had changed into jeans and a round-neck sweater.

    The majority of the clothes he wore were in dark tones, as if his life were colorless.

    Tobias wanted to send her home, but Skr shook her head and rejected his offer. ¡°I can just call a cab,¡±

    she assured.

    Tobias was silent briefly, but in the end, he insisted to send her back to the hotel.

    Before she got off his car, he passed a set of keys to her. The keys were for a house near their ce, so

    she could let Miranda stay there.

    However, Skr didn¡¯t want it. Tobias has no obligation to care for every minute detail about my mother

    after all.

 Chapter 223

    Chapter 223

    Tobias shove it into her hands.

    Upon returning to the hotel, Skr saw a heap loads of shopping bags on the bed while Miranda was

    admiring her skirt in front of the mirror.

    Even though it was middle of the night, she had painted her lips crimson red. The color was so dark that

    others would have thought that she had eaten a child alive.

    Skr couldn¡¯t figure out how Miranda ended up being on medical parole. She didn¡¯t look mentally

    unstable at all, let alone depression. Furthermore, she was all dolled up and her fashion sense was even

    more daring than a teenager.

    ¡°Why did youe back sote?¡± Miranda smacked her lips and admired the lipstick color in the mirror

    before taking a nce at Skr.

    ¡°I was out for work purposes. I looked for my agent to find out if there were any job notices.¡± Skr

    stared at the luxury goods on the bed and came to realize that Miranda had a really expensive taste

    when it came to shopping.

    Miranda knew Skr had attended a film academy and said, ¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll seed in this industry.

    Look at our family¡ª do you think any of us has the talent to seed in this career? Based on my

    observation, you¡¯re stubborn, soft and gentle, so how would you fit in? I think it¡¯ll be better if you live a

    simple life, find a reliable man and marry him. That¡¯s how you should spend your life. Look at the man

    who gave me his card¡ªhow sensible of him.¡±

    Skr looked at the mirror while removing her earrings habitually. She had only pierced her ears twice

    during middle school when Penelope and her went to the mall.

    ording to her, one would be a woman the next life if they had their ears pierced. She started

    regretting it because being a woman was too difficult.

    ¡°I¡¯ll settle my own matters. Isn¡¯t it toote for you to start caring now?¡± Skr took a nce at Miranda

    who was still staring at the mirror.

    She retaliated since it wasn¡¯t too difficult for her to do so.

    Right after, she ced the key on the table and said, ¡°From now on, you can stay here. I¡¯lle and visit

    you frequently. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s wise for us to live together.¡±

    Skr managed to find a new ce in a short period of time but Miranda didn¡¯t have the intention to

    move in. ¡°I¡¯ll go stay with your Uncle Wesley. Half of the house is mine and I¡¯mfortable staying

    there.¡±

    ¡°But Uncle Wesley does not wee you.¡± Skr¡¯s eyebrows furrowed.

    Miranda snickered. ¡°Half of the house belongs to me, and I¡¯ll move in even if he doesn¡¯t wee me.

    We¡¯ll see what reason they¡¯lle up with to drive me away.¡±

    Skr used to hear from her Grandma that Uncle Wesley was afraid of her mother. Ever since they were

    kids, he was constantly beaten up by Miranda.

    Skr was fine with it if Miranda wanted to move in to that house because she wouldn¡¯t need to owe

    Tobias even more then.

    As she wasn¡¯t used to sleeping in the same bed as Miranda, she hugged her pillow and was getting

    ready to shift to the sofa.

    Miranda patted the bed and said, ¡°The bed is so huge. Isn¡¯t there enough room for you to sleep?¡±

    Skr plopped her pillow onto the sofa. ¡°I¡¯m not used to sleeping with someone else, I¡¯ll sleep on the

    sofa tonight.¡±

    Miranda uttered, ¡°You¡¯re being hypocritical. So are you going to sleep in separate beds with your man

    too?¡±

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    Skr red at Miranda. Both of them didn¡¯t have the best way ofmunicating as she didn¡¯t show

    respect for elders and Miranda hadn¡¯t been acting like an adult either.

    She was acting as if she was in her early twenties, a young girl who acted solely based on her interests.

    After sleeping on the sofa for one night, she woke up the next morning with an acute pain around her

    waist and her back. It felt as if someone had trampled all around her.

    After she showered and without waiting for Miranda, she put on a baseball cap in front of the mirror and

    straightened it.

    She made sure everything was alright before grabbing her bag and went out.

    There wasn¡¯t much time left for themercial audition. She valued it very much as it was her first.

    Miranda was still fast asleep and snoring loudly when Skr left the room.

 Chapter 224

    Chapter 224

    Upon arriving downstairs at the lobby, she went ahead and paid the room fees. Miranda would take

    forever to get up from bed.

    Twelve o¡¯clock was the checkout time.

    Skr felt as if she was Miranda¡¯s mother instead. After being in prison for a long time and having to

    rejoin society, Miranda was behaving like an innocent little girl.

    Those times when Skr used to visit her in prison, Miranda was acting totally different. She couldn¡¯t

    wait to w her fingers around Skr and choke her to death.

    Then, she suddenly transformed. Which one was the real her?

    After she managed to get a cab and arrived at the address Kate had given, the audition location was at

    Terrier Bay.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    The casting crew for the advertisement wouldn¡¯t cast people who were of B grade and above. Even

    though the product was a huge brand, they were fully confident and there was no need to create more

    awareness in the market.

    The cost of the advertisement would mainly be spent on purchasing valuable segments, and they didn¡¯t

    need to spend much on celebrities.

    Upon arriving the audition location, Skr saw that there were quite a few others of the same age as her.

    Everyone seemed pretty rxed because they didn¡¯t have much hope in getting casted. It would be

    great if they did, if not everything was fine too.

    Skr saw a familiar face among the crowd¡ªit was Luciana. She was yawning with her head tilted to

    one side while tapping on her cell phone.

    She lifted her head up and saw Skr, before waving at her.

    Luciana looked a little under the weather and it was as if she was suffering from a hangover. There were

    even visible bruises on her arm.

    ¡°Why did youe for such a trivial advertisement? Didn¡¯t you sign with Daryl Williams?¡± Luciana stared

    at her lethargically.

    Skr lowered her head and looked at the script she received upon arriving. ¡°I haven¡¯t signed yet. I am

    now without apany, no assistant andck of resources.¡±

    Lucianaughed. ¡°Were you dumped by Tobias? You¡¯ll get used to it. Men like them would only harbor

    feelings towards women for a week and I¡¯m not even downying it. I was almost ruined by that bastard

    Howard. He even said I was his number two girl. How useless.¡±

    She was furious and her smile disappeared after she had said that.

    Skr¡¯s lips curled. ¡°I should congratte you for not being scammed anymore.¡±

    Luciana frowned and she was bitter from within. A nobody like her would only seed using such

    tactics.

    If she were to rely on her own ability, only God would know how long it would take for her to seed.

    She didn¡¯t need anyone to feel relieved for her. She just wanted to reach her target as soon as possible.

    Skr¡¯s script was very simple as it was only one line, It¡¯s really MM Beans!

    She was trying to figure out what kind of expression the director would be looking for.

    Upon seeing her being so serious, Luciana waved her hand and said, ¡°The advertising fee is less than

    three thousand, so there¡¯s no need for you to be so serious.¡±

    Skr frowned. The job that Kate introduced was indeed three thousand only. She might have been too

    na?ve in thinking that it would be easy to earn money in the entertainment industry.

    She thought the minimum would be at least five thousand.

    Upon hearing her name being called, she bent down and straightened the creases on her pants, before

    walking up on stage.

    Skr was very good looking. Once she stepped onto the stage, her beautiful looks had captured the

    attention of many instantaneously.

    Her teacher once told her that her beautiful looks was a blessing given by God.

    The advertisement director was very young, and he looked as if he was in his early thirties. He was

    wearing a baseball cap that had an MM Beans logo imprinted on it.

    ¡°We can start now.¡±

    ¡°There really are MM Beans!¡± Skr¡¯s tone wasn¡¯t an exaggerated one and her gorgeous smile was

    captivating.

    She sounded as if she was flirting and whispering to her boyfriend.

    It wasn¡¯t fake at all but utterly sweet.

    The director booked Skr on the spot and she was expected to shoot themercial the very next day.

    The duration for the shoot would be two days.

    Normally, there would be agents waiting outside seeking for talents and handing out business cards at

    casting ces like that.

    Skr left and the moment she arrived at the entrance, about two or three men shoved their business

    cards into her hands. They were all from small agencies and even online influencer tforms.

    Skr held the business cards in her hands and saw that thest one had an online influencer training

    tform printed on it.

 Chapter 225

    Chapter 225

    Skr¡¯s lips curled. Thesepanies were famous for their notorious exploitation. They would have

    their talents make money by doing live streams and would charge a lot for training fees prior to that.

    She kept the business cards inside her pocket and told them she would consider the offer in order to

    escape from their grasp.

    She called Kate to tell her that she was sessfully booked for themercial.

    Kate acknowledged that indifferently then hung up the phone. Skr could vaguely hear through the

    phone that Kate seemed to be at some shooting location.

    Amelia asked her, ¡°Kate, who¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s one of Tobias¡¯ fling. Previously, he wanted to sign with me but I increased the pricest minute and

    that made him angry. We are still in a stalemate. That girl has pretty good standards, and I hope to take

    her under my wing.¡±

    Amelia¡¯s face darkened. ¡°You¡¯ve said you wouldn¡¯t guide new people for now.¡±

    udia¡¯s surgery went well and Tobias was utterly relieved.

    Ever since she was hospitalized for two days, udia hadn¡¯t seen Tanya at all. She asked Tobias,

    ¡°Where is Tanya? She must be pretty upset now.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s at the mental hospital for treatment after her breakdown,¡± Tobias said indifferently while his eyes

    darkened.

    udia¡¯s heart shrank upon hearing that. She continued asking Tobias, ¡°Are you the one who sent her

    there? Tanya is such a nicedy, and it must¡¯ve been you who had caused her so much pain.¡±

    ¡°She had a miscarriage and a hysterectomy. Why would you still want me to marry her if she wouldn¡¯t be

    able to conceive anymore? If you insist, then I have nothing to say,¡± Tobias uttered, clear of udia¡¯s

    intentions.

    She had been dreaming of having grandchildren, so why would she allow a woman who wasn¡¯t able to

    conceive to marry into the Fords?

    udia sighed. Finally she said, ¡°Her life has been rough and it¡¯s unfortunate for her to end up being like

    this. Which hospital is she at? I¡¯ll go and visit her.¡±

    ¡°Focus on your recovery, and stop thinking of other stuff,¡± Tobias replied instantly, not wanting udia to

    meet Tanya.

    That woman was like a ticking time bomb¡ªit was better to stay away from her.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    When Susan said that Tanya was pitiful, he disagreed because things happened for a reason. It was her

    responsibility for ending up in her situation.

    ¡°I will never ept that woman whether or not you end up being with Tanya. Let me be clear.¡± udia bit

    her lips upon mentioning Skr.

    She had never hated a person to this extent. That girles from a less than ideal background, and she

    sure is sinister and evil.

    It would be very unfortunate if she were to be married into the family.

    Tobias frowned; he was very familiar with udia¡¯s stubbornness. Skr was just unlucky, but it wasn¡¯t

    her fault. It was his problem because he was unable to bring both perspectives into y.

    udia forced Tobias to promise that he wouldn¡¯t continue seeing Skr.

    Tobias ignored her and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me, I¡¯ll manage my own problems. I¡¯d never said I would

    marry her.¡±

    At the hospital¡¯s corridor, Sheldon took out his cell phone and showed Tobias.

    ¡°Where did you get the photo from?¡±

    ¡°It was taken by my friend and he said that he saw a beautifuldy. She looks so beautiful even though it

    was taken by a camera. I heard it was taken at somemercial shooting location.¡±

    Tobias deleted the photo from Sheldon¡¯s phone. It seemed like Skr had no choice but to go for

    commercial casting because she was unable to sign with an agency yet.

    In regards to Kate wanting to increase the price all of a sudden, it wasn¡¯t the money he cared about, but

    rather his refusal to ept how Kate was handling the matter.

    When she picked up Tobias¡¯ call, Skr was still in the middle of themercial shoot. She had eaten a

    kilogram of chocte beans and her voice was almost gone.

    It was definite that she had regained that one kilogram she had lost during her diet.

    Tobias had told her that he would go find her that night. Skr found a quiet spot and she leaned her

    body against the wall. ¡°It¡¯s inconvenient for me today as I¡¯m having my period.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t meet you just to sleep with you.¡±

 Chapter 226

    Chapter 226

    Skr pretended to sound clueless while she uttered, ¡°Are you sure it¡¯s not?¡±

    Every time Tobias came over, he would want to rip off her clothes savagely.

    Tobias replied in a deep voice, ¡°You¡¯ve guessed it right. We can still do that even if you¡¯re having your

    period. There¡¯s still your mouth.¡±

    Skr blushed instantaneously. She had brought it upon herself for starting a topic as such with Tobias.

    ¡°Skr, quick. Why are you chatting on the phone for so long?¡± one of the staff said impatiently after

    searching for her everywhere.

    Such a horrible attitude! Skr hung up the phone immediately.

    After she had returned to the shooting location, she slipped her cell phone into her pocket and the

    makeup artist hurried over for some touch ups.

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    ¡°There are really MM Beans!¡± Skr uttered her line for the seventy-third time.

    Luckily for her, she appeared beautiful on camera and her expression was young and lively. It almost

    seemed like a movie.

    For a three thousandmercial to cast a face that looked like a movie star, it was worth every penny

    and even the director praised her capabilities.

    Upon receiving her sry, Skr looked at the three thousand that popped up on her card bnce. That

    was her first step towards being financially independent.

    Before heading home, Skr saw that there were a few missed calls from unknown numbers. She

    ignored them because that type of calls would usually be from property agents.

    Just when she was about to put her cell phone inside her bag, the phone rang again.

    Before Skr was able to utter a word, a rude-sounding woman spoke.

    ¡°Are you Penelope¡¯s friend? She had severely breached her contract for a long time and that has

    constituted in a financial crime. We can¡¯t get in touch with her. Tell her to pay off her debts by three o¡¯

    clock today, otherwise we will sue her.¡±

    Skr was utterly confused. She had gave Penelope the money, so why wasn¡¯t it enough?

    ¡°I¡¯ll try contacting her.¡±

    ¡°Please do it as soon as possible. It¡¯s only fair for her to pay off her debts. I¡¯ll give you one hour to try and

    contact her.¡±

    That woman sounded fierce and rude.

    Skr was infuriated. ¡°Why are you so fierce towards me? Am I the one owing you? Are you crazy?¡±

    She hung up the phone right after and called Penelope. She was unable to reach her and her voicemail

    box was already full.

    Upon returning home, Skr was still trying to get in touch with Penelope. Her line was either busy or

    shut off.

    While she was bending down to change into her slippers, the lights in the living room were suddenly

    turned on. The brightness of the light was utterly ring.

    Skr saw Tobias sitting on the sofa, lying downfortably while staring at her.

    ¡°I thought you woulde overter at night.¡± Skr walked towards Tobias and hugged him from

    behind. Her long and luscious soft hair draped across his shoulder and that tickled him.

    ¡°I think I¡¯ve been poisoned. I¡¯ve missed you even though I hadn¡¯t seen you for a day.¡± Tobias rubbed the

    spot where Skr¡¯s hair had tickled him.

    Fortunately, Skr was able to withstand it while he expressed himself lovingly in a serious manner.

    He sounded as if he was lecturing her even though he was trying to be loving.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t I here right now? How was your mother¡¯s surgery? I didn¡¯t ask you over the phone because I was

    worried that she might hear my voice from the call. Hence, I hung up.¡±

    He smiled. ¡°Why would I need to be disciplined by her when I¡¯m not a teenager anymore?¡±

    Tobias took out a lemon vored lollipop from his coat and gave it to her.

    Skr grabbed it in her hand. ¡°I¡¯ve eaten too much chocte from themercial shooting. My blood

    sugar reading would definitely be sky high if I eat this. It¡¯s better for me not to eat it.¡±

    Tobias snickered. ¡°I didn¡¯t ask you to eat it. Since you told me you¡¯re having your period, why not lick a

    lollipop while I observe you? I¡¯ll guide you along the way.¡±

    While staring at Tobias, Skr yfully ripped open the lollipop, put it in her mouth and crunched it with

    her teeth several times. She was hinting to Tobias that would happen to him if he had continued.

    Tobias pulled out another orange vored lollipop. ¡°It¡¯s alright, I have more.¡±

 Chapter 227

    Chapter 227

    Tobias leaned down and stared at Skr. He cupped the side of her face with one hand while the other

    started unbuttoning her shirt.

    While he was taking his time, Skr saw the opportunity to reject. ¡°It¡¯s not the right time to do it. Are you

    going to insist?¡±

    Tobias raised his eyebrows slightly. In turn, he pinned Skr down and yanked at her overalls but he

    was stuck in the midst of doing that.

    ¡°But I feel like it. What should we do?¡±

    At that moment, Skr¡¯s phone suddenly rang.

    It was so loud as if she had speakers attached to it.

    The call had saved her; holding her phone to her face, she created a gap between them.

    ¡°Why is someone calling at such an odd hour? Put your phone on speaker.¡±

    It was rare for Tobias to be curious about why Skr¡¯s phone had suddenly rung.

    Skr took a nce and it was an unknown number.

    She clicked on speakerphone because she had nothing to hide. It waste and it was impossible for a

    man to call her at such odd hours.

    ¡°Have you informed your friend? Why didn¡¯t we receive the funds yet?¡± The woman sounded aggravated

    through the phone.

    Skr looked at the clock that was on the wall. These debt collectors are sure hardworking! It¡¯s ten at

    night and they are still working.

    ¡°What money are you talking about?¡± Tobias grabbed Skr¡¯s phone.

    ¡°The money she owed ourpany. It¡¯s fair to pay off a debt and it¡¯s useless to continue dragging the

    payment. Ourpany is legitimate; if she¡¯s not going to pay her debt, she will receive a statement from

    the court.¡±

    Tobias hung up the phone as he didn¡¯t want to continue listening to that woman shout. Hey down on

    the bed and rubbed his eyebrows. ¡°Who have you been associating yourself with?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ tone was a mix of sarcasm and contempt as he looked down on her selection of friends.

    ¡°I have no clue either. That woman is so fierce and this is the second time she has ridiculed me today,¡±

    Skr ranted instantaneously.

    Upon seeing Tobias¡¯ cool off and showing no interest of continuing his act, she sat up and buttoned her

    shirt.

    ¡°They¡¯re just doing their job.¡±

    Tobias did not validate her feelings after what had happened but he exined it rationally instead.

    Skr wasn¡¯t particr about Tobias¡¯ actions, for she was clear that the financial team in Ford Group

    worked that way too. Plus, they also had a collections department so it was normal for him to see things

    from a more logical standpointpared to her.

    Tobias opened the drawer and took out a white medicine container. He took two pills and ced them in

    his mouth.

    Skr asked, ¡°Why are you always taking this type of medicine? You might be dependent on them or go

    crazy if you continue taking them.¡±

    She had read on the inte regarding the side effects of sleeping pills. Those articles were terrifying to

    read because some reflected that people might die after taking them.

    He replied, ¡°I¡¯m fine. My brain is working well so far but I can¡¯t guarantee what would happen to me in the

    future.¡±

    Not long after, Tobias fell asleep while hugging Skr from behind. He had a solemn expression and his

    eyebrows furrowed even when he was sleeping. However, it was obvious he was sleeping soundly.

    Tobias slept earlier than Skr and she wasn¡¯t used to it. She would usually be the first one to fall asleep

    while Tobias headed over to his study room.

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    Sometimes, he would return to the bed and sleep there and other times he would spend the night on the

    study room¡¯s sofa.

    She lifted up the nket and got down from the bed. Then she headed towards the kitchen for a ss of

    water.

    On the way out with her phone in her hands, the messages came in one after another.

    She nced at it and suddenly Penelope¡¯s message appeared.

    Penelope: Did they call you instead? I¡¯m sorry.

    Penelope: It¡¯s a long story. I¡¯ll exin it to youter.

 Chapter 228

    Chapter 228

    Penelope: Skr, are you still there? Did you see my messages?

    Skr called Penelope after for a meet up that evening. The location would be at the noodle shop near

    the school.

    Ever since she ate nearly one kilogram of chocte beans, she was on the verge of giving up the idea of

    losing weight. She could still smell the chocte whenever she hupped.

    Tobias thought Skr would have prepared breakfast but there was nothing on the table. She had

    changed her outfit and was ready to head out.

    A ck bomber jacket and an overall¨Cit was a beautiful and sassy style of fashion.

    Tobias couldn¡¯t understand why Skr preferred such a fashion style. In his opinion, woman should wear

    something more elegant and ssy.

    ¡°Where are you going?¡± Tobias poured himself a ss a water and added a teaspoon of salt.

    She replied, ¡°I¡¯ve signed up for our campus¡¯ B2 French exam.¡±

    ¡°Will you be able to ace it?¡± Tobias had doubts about her capabilities.

    ¡°It¡¯ll be tough, so I¡¯ll let fate decide.¡±

    Tobias thought someone must be really dumb to fail such a simple French test.

    ¡°Go to Royal Entertainment tomorrow. I¡¯ll be your boss starting from tomorrow and stop going for those

    pettymercial shoots. It¡¯s a waste of time.¡±

    To Skr¡¯s astonishment, she nced at Tobias. How did he know I went formercial shoots?

    ¡°Must I join yourpany?¡±

    Tobias smiled and said, ¡°Of course, the entertainment industry isplicated and you need someone to

    guide you. Initially, I didn¡¯t really encourage you to join this industry. Since it¡¯s your dream, it¡¯s better I

    don¡¯t stand in your way.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t need Tobias to specially care for her as she wished to explore the industry herself.

    However, it wouldn¡¯t reflect well on her if she rejected him. It would make her seem like she was clueless

    about what was good or bad for herself.

    After careful consideration, she replied, ¡°I¡¯ll be punctual tomorrow. Am I going to see you here tonight

    after Ie back?¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t give a definite answer and Skr curled her lips. ¡°Since I¡¯m not in the right state to do it, it¡¯s

    normal if you leave.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Tobias frowned and replied softly, ¡°I can hug you to sleep still. The weather is getting

    colder and I still need your warmth. Do you agree?¡±

    Skr smiled. ¡°So does that make me your bed-warming servant?¡±

    Instead of giving a direct answer, Tobias uttered, ¡°You¡¯re right about warming up the bed but I don¡¯t think

    you qualify to be a servant. Which servant serves their bosses like this and provides inadequate

    services?¡±

    Tobias frowned at Skr. He wanted to be treated more attentively and lovingly.

    Skr furrowed her brows. ¡°I¡¯ve done my best and you¡¯re stillining that I¡¯m not attentive enough.

    Do you want me to be like a robot servant where I¡¯ve to kneel down and change your shoes every time

    youe home?¡±

    Upon hearing that, Tobias thought that sounded liked a good idea. He loved seeing Skr kneeling and it

    was also their favorite position in bed.

    Being in that position, she looked very attractive. On top of that, her moans and cries were purely

    seducing.

    Tobias offered to send Skr to her campus. However, thinking that it might be crowded, she rejected his

    offer and had already called for a cab earlier.

    While she was standing at the door, Tobias grabbed her waist from behind with force.

    ¡°Good luck with your exam. I¡¯ll give you a present if you ace it.¡±

    Skr turned her head and gazed into Tobias eyes curiously. ¡°May I ask what is it?¡±

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    For unknown reason, she felt that Tobias wasn¡¯t sincere and would just gift her with something that was

    expensive but meaningless.

    Tobias pinched her cheeks. ¡°It¡¯s a toy that would increase your pleasure or a whip¡­ It¡¯s your choice.

    Compared to a ruler, you might feel morefortable when I smack your bum with a whip.¡±

 Chapter 229

    Chapter 229

    Skr brought nothing but a ballpoint pen to the B2 French exam, and she calmly put it away in her

    pocket after the exam was over.

    Avery was in the same venue as her for the exam, but the results did not matter to her.

    Instead, she stood in the corridor and stuck out and arm to block Skr when she walked past.

    ¡°I heard that your mother was discharged from the hospital,¡± Avery said usingly. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t murderers

    stay in jail? Why isn¡¯t she sent back immediately?¡±

    Skr scoffed.Looks like you¡¯re keeping yourself updated!

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    Tobias had told her that he would settle the matter for Miranda, but she figured that he would have

    forgotten about it by now.

    She grimaced.That would bepretty embarrassing¡­

    Tobias was a busy man, and there was no telling if he had the time or energy to think about her request

    after a whole day of working.What if he had memory loss from all those sleeping pills?

    Avery seemed very worked up, but Skr simply smiled and asked, ¡°Why are you so concerned about

    my mom? Are you scared that she¡¯ll snatch your dad away from you?¡±

    Since young, Avery had always hated Skr to the core, and her father¡¯s love was not something she

    was willing to share.

    She wanted everything that Skr had, but she never allowed Skr to have what she had.

    They used to pretend to be friends in front of others, but that fa?ade had since worn off. Avery could not

    care less about Tobias, and to her, Skr was nothing more than Tobias¡¯ sex partner.

    She was the other woman.

    ¡°Tell your mother to behave,¡± Avery growled angrily. ¡°If she dares toe near me or my parents, I¡¯ll call

    the cops on her.¡±

    Skr chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll take her somewhere where you can¡¯t touch her.¡±

    After that, Skr turned around and walked away, leaving Avery trembling in hatred. Her nails dug into

    her palms, but it did not hurt a single bit.

    Avery¡¯s father became an absentminded mess the moment he heard of Skr¡¯s mother¡¯s release, and

    several fights had broken out between him and Avery¡¯s mother because of that.

    Meanwhile, Skr queued up outside the family-run Italian eatery where she was supposed to meet up

    with Penelope. Their business was booming, and she had to wait for quite a while before she finally got a

    seat.

    After she sat down, she ordered two tes of their signature pasta with extra meatballs and some

    garden sd as a side dish.

    Her stomach grumbled as she looked at the pasta and sd.Tobias woulddefinitely avoid kissing me if

    he knew I ate raw onion in the sd!

    By the time Penelope arrived at the restaurant, Skr had already finished half her pasta. Neither of

    them were particrly bothered with table manners, after all.

    She took off her hat and ced it next to the steaming pasta, but she made no move to pick up her

    cutlery.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I give you five hundred thousand? Haven¡¯t you gotten it settled?¡± Skr asked.

    Penelope shook her head with a sigh. She had na?vely given the money she was supposed to pay up to

    her boyfriend, and he ended up running away with it.

    However, when she told Skr about her unfortunate experiences, she received a thumbs-up from her,

    much to her surprise.

    ¡°You only knew him for a week, and you¡¯re entrusting him with so much money?¡± Skr asked.

    However, she grimaced a little when she realized that she was just being a pot calling the kettle

    ck.Didn¡¯t Jeremy take three million from mest time? Why is he still living like a beggar?

 Chapter 230

    Chapter 230

    Thest time she saw him in school, he looked like he had been living on the streets, despite the

    expensive fur coat on his shoulders.

    I wonder where all that money went¡­

    Penelope buried her face in her hands in despair. ¡°What do I do? I won¡¯t be able to return the money in

    time¡­ ¡°

    ¡°Have you called the police?¡±

    ¡°I did, but the police didn¡¯t seem to care. I told them about it a long time ago,¡± Penelope said.

    Suddenly, Skr¡¯s phone buzzed, and she took it out of her pocket.

    Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    She tapped on the new message from Tobias to read its contents.

    Tobias: I¡¯ll be home at seven tonight. You¡¯re cooking

    Skr nced at the clock on the wall and sighed when she realized that it was already past six o¡¯clock.

    How the hell am I supposed to rush back and cook for him in less than an hour?

    She put down her phone without replying Tobias and turned to Penelope again. ¡°I just received two

    hundred thousand from the movie. Take it and use it to pay your debt,¡± she said as she pulled out a

    brand-new bank card and handed it to Penelope.

    Penelope took the card without hesitating, obviously frightened by the scare tactics the debt collectors

    have been using.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to return you the money as soon as possible. I¡¯m so sorry for all the trouble, Skr,¡±

    Penelope said, lowering her head in shame.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I don¡¯t have a lot of friends to begin with, so I have the obligation to help you,¡± Skr said

    through a mouthful of pasta.

    Penelope looked up all of a sudden. ¡°Your Aunt Sharon is going crazy over your mom¡¯s habits, you know.

    She¡¯sining about her to every neighbor she bumps into, but she¡¯s nothingpared to your

    mom.¡±

    Skr smirked. Aunt Sharon is nothing but a cowardly bully, after all! She wouldn¡¯t dare to get in the way

    of a so-called murderer!

    She raised her hand and asked a waiter to help her pack a portion of pasta while Penelope looked on

    incredulously.

    ¡°Are you really that hungry? You¡¯ve already had such a portion!¡± she eximed.

    Skr took the stic bag containing a box of steaming pasta and smiled. ¡°Someone¡¯s waiting for me at

    home, but I don¡¯t have time to cook for him. This will do.¡±

    Penelope fell silent, knowing full well that the five hundred thousand Skr gave herst time must have

    been a gift from the ¡®someone¡¯ she had been talking about.

    Are they living together now?

    Later, Skr noticed Avery standing not too far away from her as she was waiting for her cab. She had

    seen the fur coat that Avery was wearing online, and it had cost about fifty thousand.

    Skr watched as the family¡¯s Mercedes-Benz pulled up next to Avery and looked away after she got on

    the car.

    She had heard rumors about how Thomas¡¯pany was going downhill, but Avery¡¯s extravagant

    lifestyle did not seem a single bit affected by it, had it been true.

    When the cab came to a stop outside her house, she leapt out of the cab at lightning speed and rushed

    over to the door, almost running into her neighbor¡¯s dog in the midst of her frenzied race.

    Just as she was about to step into the house, she rammed headfirst into Tobias¡¯ chest, making him groan

    out loud.

    ¡°Really? Hugging me in public?¡± he said, frowning.

    Skr ignored him and walked into the kitchen to serve the pasta she packed from the restaurant into a

    te.

    ¡°Dinner¡¯s ready!¡± she called.

    Tobias nced at the pasta and made a face. ¡°That¡¯s all?¡±

 Chapter 231

    Chapter 231

    Skr took out some baked beans from the fridge. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that? You should have told me

    earlier. I didn¡¯t have time toe back and cook.¡±

    Tobias put down his cutlery and sighed, his appetite long gone.

    Seeing how reluctant he was to eat the pasta, Skr put the baked beans away and took out two eggs

    and a bell pepper. ¡°I can make you an omelet if you want.¡±

    ¡°I had some eggs from breakfast,¡± Tobias said.

    ¡°No one¡¯s stopping you from having another one at night.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m getting old. I need to watch my cholesterol level.¡±

    Skr burst outughing. What am I supposed to say? ¡®No! You¡¯re not old!¡¯?

    She put the eggs back into the fridge and rummaged around for ideas.

    ¡°Grilled chicken?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Fish stew?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t like it.¡±

    ¡°BBQ ribs?¡±

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t sound very appetizing.¡±

    Skr hissed in exasperation and mmed the fridge door shut.

    She tossed a bottle of water at him. ¡°You¡¯re having water for dinner then!¡±

    Tobias grinned. I like how she¡¯s showing her true colors in front of me. Things won¡¯t be so boring with her

    around.

    To Skr¡¯s surprise, Tobias downed the bottle of water and called it a day.

    ¡°I¡¯ve settled your friend¡¯s matter,¡± Tobias said as he lit a cigarette while lounging on the sofa. ¡°Tell her to

    be more careful next time.¡±

    Skr put down the mop in her hands. ¡°I just gave her another two hundred thousand. You don¡¯t have to

    get yourself involved, you know.¡±

    Tobias was not very happy with how determined she was to keep him out of her matters. ¡°You didn¡¯t

    withdraw any money from your card. Where did the two hundred thousand evene from?¡±

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    ¡°I gave her my sry for mytest movie,¡± she said with a sigh.

    As a new actress, hermissions were worth around a tenth of veteran actresses, and she had given

    all of her payment away.

    ¡°Everything?¡±

    ¡°Yes, everything,¡± Skr said, nodding.

    Tobias turned around to nce at her. ¡°Including my gift?¡±

    Skr jumped as she remembered her promise to Tobias to get him a watch after she got her payment.

    She figured that a reasonably-priced watch was sufficient, but she hadpletely forgotten about it the

    moment Penelope told her about her sob story.

    Tobias, on the other hand, was not going to let her forget about it so easily.

    Skr rubbed her temples in regret. Urgh¡­ why did I make that promise in the first ce?

    ¡°Sorry¡­ I guess it¡¯s gone now,¡± she said, scooting over to rest her head on his chest, only to flinch away

    when she came dangerously close to his lit cigarette.

    Tobias snuffed the me hurriedly and gazed at her doe-like eyes before leaning down to nt a kiss on

    her forehead. ¡°How are you going to repay me then? Is your period over?¡±

    After his failed attemptst night, Skr could tell that he was getting irritated. He hated being told to

    keep his hands off her body every few weeks.

    She nodded, her face flushed. ¡°Getting in bed with you instead of spending money to get you a watch?

    Sounds like a deal to me.¡±

    Tobias patted her backside and went upstairs to shower.

    As he showered, Penelope surprised Skr by returning the two hundred thousand she gave her, and

    her voice was trembling with gratitude in the phone call that followed.

    ¡°Honey, I don¡¯t know who did it, but my debts are all gone! I¡¯m forever indebted to whoever returned the

    money for me!¡±

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    Chapter 232

    Unbeknownst to Penelope, her best friend was going to repay that Good Samaritan by getting in bed

    with him.

    ¡°Alright, talk to youter,¡± Skr said before hanging up and dragging herself upstairs.

    By the time Tobias emerged from the bathroom, she was already in bed, d in a sexy lingerie.

    Tobias walked over to her while rubbing the moisture out of his hair. He bent down and sniffed her neck.

    ¡°You should shower too. You literally smell like onion.¡±

    Skr raised her head to meet his eyes. ¡°I had a lot of cheese too!¡±

    Tobias closed his eyes and rubbed his hands together. ¡°Brush your teeth for ten minutes, or I¡¯m not

    touching you.¡±

    Skr grinned. Just as I¡¯d expected!

    Instead of following his instructions, she began to unbutton her lingerie while watching his expression

    closely.

    After she peeled the lingerie off her body, she rolled to the side and started to stroke her slender, milky-

    white legs while licking her lips seductively. Let¡¯s see if you can withstand this, Tobias! I¡¯m the one taking

    initiative now!

    I wonder if he¡¯ll still insist on taking a shower¡­

    Tobias¡¯ eyes shed longingly. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to take a shower?¡±

    Skr shook her head. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with smelling like an onion?¡±

    Before she knew it, Tobias had already leapt on top of her and pinned her down.

    She instinctively sped her knees together to put some distance between them, but he pried them open

    easily, as though he was just opening a door.

    She closed her eyes and waited for his entry.

    When nothing happened a few secondster, she opened her eyes by a slit out of curiosity, only to find

    Tobias furiously rummaging through the drawers while wearing nothing but his underwear.

    ¡°We¡¯re out of condoms¡­ ¡° he said before spewing out a series of obscene curses.

    Skr was a little taken aback, considering the fact that Tobias never swore.

    She sat up and shivered as the cold air made the hairs on her body stand on end. Pulling a nket over

    to cover herself, she asked, ¡°Are you going to buy some now, or are we calling this off for tonight?¡±

    Tobias sat down by the side of the bed and looked into her eyes longingly. ¡°Can we do without it?¡±

    Skr shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m going to lose my fertility if I kept eating my n B pills. My future husband

    would despise me!¡±

    Tobias frowned. ¡°Who¡¯s your future husband?¡±

    Skr grimaced. I can¡¯t tell him that it doesn¡¯t make sense for me to marry him, can I?

    ¡°It¡¯s you¡­ ¡° she lied.

    Tobias sank into deep thought for a moment before kissing her on the forehead. ¡°Get some rest. Let¡¯s try

    again tomorrow.¡±

    Skr was ready for it, but she could not help but feel betrayed when he said those words.

    Why can¡¯t he just tell a white lie?

    She grinned and asked, ¡°Can¡¯t you at least y along?¡±

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    Tobias pulled her into his embrace and licked her ears gently. ¡°Your ears aren¡¯t there to hear white lies.

    Well, if you¡¯re disappointed, I can go out and get some from the store now. Wait here and don¡¯t fall

    asleep.¡±

    However, by the time he came back, Skr was already fast sleep and snoring like a little piglet.

    Tobias sighed and threw the condoms he just bought into the drawer. What a waste of time!

 Chapter 233

    Chapter 233

    The sound of a phone vibrating echoed against the walls of the room, making it louder than it should be.

    Noticing that it was a call from Kate, Tobias picked up the call and sneaked out of the room.

    ¡°Apologies for calling at this hour, Mr. Ford. Did I disturb your sleep?¡± Kate asked.

    Tobias lit a cigarette and gazed at the smoke. ¡°Why are you calling me at this hour in the first ce?¡±

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t free earlier on,¡± Kate relied.

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t mean I have to follow your schedule. We don¡¯t have anything to talk about anyway,¡± Tobias

    said coldly.

    Kate fell silent for a few seconds before speaking again. ¡°Can we meet tomorrow morning at eight-thirty,

    Mr. Ford? Shall I go to Royal Entertainment or Ford Group?¡±

    ¡°Royal Entertainment,¡± Tobias answered.

    Tobias had told Skr to report at Royal Entertainment in the afternoon, and hence she was still sleeping

    when he left the house.

    Before he left, he took out a bottle of water from the fridge to get back at her for serving him water for

    dinner the previous night.

    By the time he arrived at Royal Entertainment, he was already an hourte.

    Kate watched as Tobias sat down in front of her and grinned. ¡°Looks like your attitude is the answer, Mr.

    Ford. You can¡¯t even be punctual for our meeting!¡±

    ¡°We have nothing to talk about,¡± Tobias repeated.

    ¡°Skr¡¯s doing heaps of advertisements with very low rewardtely, but I believe she is worth much

    more than that. I wouldn¡¯t have asked to meet you if you have already severed ties with her,¡± Kate said.

    The secretary entered the room to serve them tea, and Tobias smiled while taking a sip. ¡°That doesn¡¯t

    matter. You¡¯re not the only person who can help her rise to stardom.¡±

    Kate gazed at him confidently. ¡°I believe that I¡¯m irreceable. I can maximize her potential in the

    entertainment industry.¡±

    Tobias admired her straightforward way of doing things, but she was threatening the wrong person.

    He chuckled. ¡°You see, I¡¯m not a fan of bargaining. The payment I gave you was final, and it¡¯s already

    twice as much as any other manager in the industry. Aren¡¯t you being a little too greedy here?¡±

    Kate was indeed blinded by the lucrative amount that Tobias promised, and she wanted even more than

    that. Royal Entertainment was affiliated with Ford Group, after all.

    Knowing Tobias¡¯ wealth, she figured that he would not have minded her request for a raise.

    However, thest thing she expected was for him to reject her outright.

    Kate flexed her fingers in displeasure, hoping to buy a little more time for herself to convince him.

    Tobias nced at his watch. ¡°You have twelve hours to think about it, and if I don¡¯t hear from your after

    that, your payment would be halved. I have better things to do.¡±

    Kate was taken aback by how he was using time to pressure her.

    Kate was a smart person, and she did not want to waste any more time. She decided to just go ahead

    with the contract that the secretary brought over fresh from the printer.

    ¡°I have a condition,¡± Kate said. ¡°I want you to sign Amelia Simons under thispany as well.¡±

    Tobias agreed without much thought. He did not know who Amelia was, and he did not have to attend to

    the details of the contract anyway.

    All he wanted was to get Skr a proper manager, and he hoped that she would learn to be independent

    as she walked down the red carpet to stardom.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    She would not aplish anything if she depended on him for everything.

 Chapter 234

    Chapter 234

    Tobias did not have much hope in Skr when she entered the entertainment industry, since her

    personality was nothing like that of a rising star.

    ¡°It¡¯s time. I shall take my leave,¡± Tobias said as he stood up from his seat.

    ¡°Wait!¡± Kate blurted. ¡°May I ask what¡¯s your rtionship with Skr?¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    ¡°Just do your part,¡± Tobias said before disappearing around the corner.

    Kate watched as he left with a smirk on her face. He¡¯s so bad at making conversation!

    She picked up her phone and called Amelia to inform her of her new contract with Royal Entertainment,

    and Amelia was overjoyed to hear of the news.

    Royal Entertainment was a newpany that was miles away from the level that Amelia¡¯s current

    company was at, but it had the support of Ford Group.

    Meanwhile, Tobias made his way to Valerie¡¯s office, which surprised her.

    She stood up from her chair immediately. ¡°Good morning, Mr. Ford!¡±

    Valerie was one of the youngest members of Ford Group¡¯s executive board, and the speed of her

    promotions had sparked rumors that she had hooked up with Tobias in private.

    Even so, everyone in both Royal Entertainment and Ford Group respected her greatly.

    ¡°Is there anything I can do for you, Mr. Ford?¡± Valerie asked as she gestured to her secretary to serve

    Tobias tea.

    Tobias handed her a stic folder that contained a simple two-page resume.

    Valerie looked at the girl pictured on the resume, who looked like a literal goddess even without any

    Photoshopping.

    ¡°She just signed a contract, and she¡¯ll being over this afternoon,¡± Tobias said.

    Valerie put the resume down on the table and smiled. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of her. Is she a new actress? I

    didn¡¯t expect you to personally deliver her resume to me, Mr. Ford.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I think she¡¯s new,¡± Tobias said calmly. ¡°She hadn¡¯t had any major roles yet.¡±

    Valerie fell silent. Tobias would have revealed everything he was willing to talk about by now, and she

    had no right to probe further.

    ¡°How¡¯s thepany doing?¡± Tobias asked.

    ¡°I¡¯ll send the daily minutes to youter on,¡± Valerie said, not directly addressing his question.

    ¡°Spare me the details,¡± Tobias said, a little annoyed.

    ¡°We had a huge influx of new artistes and trainees recently, and we¡¯ve been contacting the TV stations to

    broadcast our survival shows and advertise our new idol groups.¡±

    Tobias hummed in reply and did not ask any more questions.

    He was not an insider of the entertainment industry, and he barely knew any famous artistes.

    ¡°Take care of this girl,¡± he said.

    Valerie smiled. ¡°Of course, Mr. Ford.¡±

    Later, Valerie handed a contract to Skr. ¡°Here¡¯s our contract, Ms. Jones. Feel free to ask me if you

    have any queries about the terms and conditions. You may show this to yourwyer if you wish.¡±

    Valerie watched as Skr flipped through the contract. She¡¯s pretty young, just like what the dossier

    describes. I wonder what¡¯s her rtionship with Mr. Ford¡­

    Skr noticed that she was forbidden from backing out of the ten-year contract, and doing so anyway

    would cost her a hefty fine.

    Huh¡­ this is not unlike you, Tobias! How demanding!

 Chapter 235

    Chapter 235

    Skr signed the contract and handed it to Valerie.

    ¡°I look forward to working with you. You work hard and I promise you won¡¯t regret it,¡± Valerie said as she

    held her hand out.

    With a handshake, Skr and Valerie sealed the deal.

    Atst, Skr felt more secure now.

    In the lobby of thepany, she saw that Kate was looking around. It looked as though she was waiting

    for someone, so Skr went ahead and greeted her.

    After the two met up, they sat down on a sofa in the lobby.

    ¡°I just signed the contract with Royal Entertainment. From today onward, I¡¯m officially your manager,¡±

    Kate announced.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say both parties weren¡¯t able toe to an agreement back then?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s back then.¡± Kate smiled. ¡°We¡¯re talking about the present right now. Once the money issue was

    settled, everything just fell into ce nicely.¡±

    Skr really liked how straightforward Kate was. She was really ambitious and full confidence in

    herself. It doesn¡¯t seem like she¡¯s married. Married women usually don¡¯t have that shine in their eyes.

    During their conversation, Skr¡¯s phone kept on ringing. No matter how many times she denied the call,

    the phone call kepting back.

    After repeating that a couple of times, Skr finally decided to pick up. ¡°I¡¯m busy right now. I¡¯ll call you

    later, okay?¡±

    The way she treated Miranda was a little harsh as she was really blunt with her.

    On the other end of the line, it was like Miranda did not even hear Skr. Her daughter¡¯s words were just

    wind by the ears to her.

    Before the call ended, Miranda told Skr to meetup at Wesley¡¯s ce that night. They were having a

    family gathering.

    However, to Skr, family felt like such an unfamiliar and distant notion.

    When her grandmother was still alive, she really hated it when all the rtives came over for a meal

    during any festivities.

    At the dining table, everyone would be singing praises to Skr¡¯s cousin, Eva. There would be all sorts

    ofpliments like how beautiful she looked, how good her grades were as well as how she would be

    really sessful in the future.

    In contrast to that, the rtives saw Skr as a poor and pitiful child, a disappointment to say the least.

    For the family toe together again like that, Skr figured that it was most probably Miranda¡¯s idea.

    Seems like she¡¯s doing really well. Even Uncle Wesley¡¯s not going against this.

    Skr¡¯s uncle was a cheapskate after all. It would be a miracle if he ever paid for anyone else¡¯s food. He

    was truly a scrooge.

    Kate, on the side, smiled and said, ¡°You can go first if you¡¯re busy. By the way, you have an audition

    tomorrow.¡±

    That news came out of nowhere and caught Skr off guard. With it being so soon, Skr had to

    wonder whether Kate was holding out on her before this.

    So, when she asked me to do the shoot for themercial, she was just throwing out some crumbs?

    She actually has jobs to give me, but she just didn¡¯t want to.

    ¡°What¡¯s the setting of the movie? Modern or in the ancient past?¡± Skr asked Kate.

    ¡°It¡¯s modern. All the scenes will be filmed here, so you won¡¯t need to go on trips. We can talk about it

    after the audition. I¡¯ll get someone to give you some extra attention.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea,¡± Skr refused. ¡°It¡¯s better if I just get the role via skill. If I got the role

    through some other means, I doubt the director would be happy with the end product.¡±

    After that, Skr said goodbye to Kate and left. When she was at the entrance of Royal Entertainment,

    she noticed a familiar silhouetteing out of a ck Mercedes-Benz.

    The woman did not even bother opening the door herself, as she waited for the assistant to do that for

    her.

    The woman¡¯s long ck hair was over her shoulders and she had sunsses on to cover up her small

    face. She was slim and wore a cropped top even in such weather.

    Does she think she won¡¯t fall sick?

    Skr inspected a little more closely, trying to figure out the woman¡¯s identity. She could vaguely guess

    that it was Amelia Simons.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    The woman stood in front of her for a split second before going into the building.

    When Kate saw Amelia, she approached her and gave her a passionate hug. It was clear that the

    rtionship they had was more than just manager and artiste.

 Chapter 236

    Chapter 236

    If their age were further apart, Kate would have already taken Amelia in as a goddaughter.

    ¡°Kate, I knew you¡¯d bring me over as well if you jumped ship.¡± Amelia looked gratefully at Kate.

    ¡°I¡¯veid the path for you until this point,¡± Kate said with a smile. ¡°I¡¯d never give up on you until you rise to

    the top.¡±

    On the other hand, Skr kept on getting Miranda¡¯s phone calls as she was extremely impatient. Even

    though Skr was told to reach by four thirty, Miranda had been calling her since three thirty to rush her.

    Miranda also told Skr that her cousin was back and asked her to pick her up at the station.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like she doesn¡¯t know the way. Why do I need to go pick her up?¡± Skr was upset by her

    mother¡¯s request.

    ¡°She said she brought too many gifts, so it¡¯s hard to carry everything,¡± Miranda responded.

    In the end, Skr took a deep breath and called a cab to the station to meet her cousin, Eva.

    Once she reached the station, Skr could already see Evaing out of the train with a lot of bags

    with her.

    Their gazes met, but neither of them showed any enthusiasm.

    Skr never liked Eva as she was always arrogant.

    Having said that, Skr did put some thought into it. She was not that narrow-minded, but she

    remembered how Eva would always ask their grandmother about her grades at the dining table when

    they were young.

    Meredith would always react to Eva¡¯s question with a sigh and criticized Skr in front of the rtives.

    She would say that Skr already had nothing but still refused to work hard.

    When Skr was applying for Southwood Film Academy, Eva would always mock her decision, saying

    that it was a ce for rich kids. And that she should just study something that couldnd her a job easier.

    The other option was to just quit school and head straight into sales for clothes and cosmetics to lighten

    the load on their grandmother since Skr had grown up.

    Eva would always look down on Skr and criticized her actions while cing herself on the moral high

    ground.

    ¡°I¡¯ll get a cab,¡± Skr told Eva as she took out her phone.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need. My boyfriend wille over to pick me up,¡± Eva stopped her.

    Hearing that immediately got Skr frustrated. What was Miranda doing? Why did she ask me toe

    help Eva when her boyfriend¡¯s already on it! No wonder she changed her internship location back here. It

    was for a boy!

    Then, Eva took out her phone and made a call. A BMW X1 showed up not long after and honked.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. He¡¯s here,¡± Eva said with a smile.

    Hence, Skr followed behind Eva, but her hands were empty since Eva already had someone helping

    her.

    When they got on the car, Skr self-consciously sat at the back and took out her phone from her bag.

    ¡°Herm¨¨s?¡± Eva asked as she looked back at Skr¡¯s bag. ¡°How much was it? Why are you using a

    counterfeit?¡±

    Skr picked up the bag to have a look, ¡°For vanity I guess. You know me. I¡¯m very prideful. No harm in

    getting a fake one to boost my image.¡±

    ¡°Work hard in the future and get a real one,¡± Eva smirked. ¡°Using a counterfeit just feels so lowly. By the

    way, I heard you¡¯ve gone back to school?

    ¡°Yeah. And the holidays areing soon.¡±

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    Eva sighed. ¡°Poor Grandma worked her life away for you. Even her retirement fund was spent on you. To

    be honest, you should¡¯ve never gone to that school. When Grandma passed away, she only had three

    thousand left in her bank.¡± Eva was cing herself on a moral high ground once again, criticizing Skr

    as if she herself were a saint.

    ¡°Your dad took thatst three thousand,¡± Skr spoke nonchntly.

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    Chapter 237

    ¡°That was because he was worried that you¡¯d just waste it. You think my family cared about such a small

    amount?¡±

    Eva¡¯s response made Skr snicker. ¡°It really seemed like they cared a lot though. Your mother took

    everything Grandma left behind after all.¡±

    Eva immediately gave Skr a threatening stare, and look sheepishly towards her boyfriend. ¡°My cousin

    really likes to spew nonsense.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. She just a kid after all.¡± Her boyfriendughed.

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    Before they reached the old manor, Skr realized that she did not tell Tobias that she would be

    returningte that night.

    Skr: I¡¯m having dinner with my family tonight.

    She sent out her message and got a reply from Tobias after around ten minutes.

    Tobias: Which home? You want to have dinner with me?¡±

    Skr: At my uncle¡¯s. Having dinner with a whole bunch of rtives, and my mom.

    Tobias: Am I not invited?

    Skr: Emmm¡­ I don¡¯t think so.

    Tobias: Have fun then.

    When they arrived at the house, Skr tossed her phone into the counterfeited bag Eva talked about.

    Miranda was standing at the door and weed Eva as passionately as possible.

    Skr had heard that, before Miranda went to jail, she was an aunt that took extreme care of her niece.

    ¡°Our Eva looks so polished and beautiful now. Is this your boyfriend? What a handsome man.¡±

    However, Miranda¡¯s warm wee was met with Eva¡¯s cold shoulder. Even Skr felt a little awkward

    watching their interaction.

    Eva¡¯s boyfriend¡¯s name was David Johnson, a generic name to say the least. He was a civil servant

    whereas both his parents were university lecturers, a schrly family.

    Skr¡¯s aunt, Sharon, would always be boastful whenever her daughter was mentioned while she threw

    some shade at Skr as well.

    The whole house was really lively as all the rtives were gathered together. Having said that, Sharon

    only showed a smile when she saw Eva and David. Most of the time, she would look really gloomy.

    While everyone was mingling around, Skr went to sit beside Miranda and whispered to her, ¡°Why did

    you want me toe? I don¡¯t really need this meal. By the way, can you just change that stupid habit of

    yours where you call someone nonstop no matter the situation.¡±

    ¡°Family should alwayse together like this. Look at how lively it is! Why don¡¯t you just bear with it.¡±

    Miranda rolled her eyes at Skr.

    At this point, the way Wesley and Sharon treated Skr had certainly improved a bit, but they still had

    doubts regarding Skr¡¯s rtionship with Tobias. To them, the prominent businessman having a normal

    rtionship with Skr just sounded like a huge joke.

    Besides, since what happenedst time, no one heard anything about Skr having a boyfriend.

    ¡°Your niece might have just been a victim to the rich people¡¯s game and got left behind,¡± Sharon told

    Wesley.

    Wesley could not care less about what his wife was talking about. The only things on his mind were how

    he was still unemployed as well as how his older sister just came back as if nothing happened. The best

    part was she lived there without showing any signs of shame nor guilt. To top it off, no one dared go

    against her.

    Previously, Wesley was told that Miranda had gone insane. The situation now however, made Wesley

    feel like he was the one going insane as Miranda seemed as normal as she could possibly be.

    On the other hand, Skr started getting hungry the more she looked at the table filled with food. Since

    I¡¯m already here, might as well dig in.

    She picked up a piece of duck meat and started chewing away, noticing that the meat was dry and hard

    to bite through. This was definitely a cheap duck.

    One of the aunts saw that Skr was eating the duck, so she immediately picked up the drumstick of the

    duck and ced it into Eva¡¯s bowl. It was like they were afraid that Skr would grab the drumstick for

    herself.

    Meanwhile, everyone¡¯s attention was once again focused on Eva.

    ¡°Eva, is it true that you¡¯re staying here for good this time? Have you settled all the work rted issues?¡±

    ¡°When are you nning to get married? David here looks like he would be a fine husband.¡±

    ¡°Back then, I¡¯ve always said that, out of all the children, you are the one who is going to shine the

    brightest.¡±

    ¡°Skr, what have you been up totely?¡± Eventually, one of the rtives¡¯ attention went Skr¡¯s way.

    At the moment, Skr still had a meatball in her mouth as she raised her head. ¡°Haha, nothing much.

    Just some meaningless work.¡±

 Chapter 238

    Chapter 238

    ¡°Skr is studying at the Southwood Film Academy,¡± Miranda told them in support of Skr. ¡°You all

    know where that is right? A lot of celebrities graduated from that school. I¡¯m hoping that she¡¯d be

    really famous in the future. She¡¯s my only insurance n after all.¡±

    Eva sneered. ¡°So many people that came out of that school would end up just being extras or ying

    insignificant roles. Those famous celebrities spent a lot of money to get to where they are. Where do you

    get that money from? There was Grandma¡¯s retirement fund in the past. What about now?¡±

    Eva started being the wet nket again, clearly not wanting Skr to get any attention.

    Skr raised an eyebrow in response and smiled. ¡°I just finish filming a new movie by Daryl Williams.¡±

    ¡°Oh?¡± Eva looked at her suspiciously. ¡°That¡¯s a famous director. What role did you y?¡±

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    ¡°The second female lead. There were quite a lot of scenes.¡±

    With that, Eva went silent. She had to admit that Skr had an exquisite looking face. There are

    abundance of beautiful faces in the industry though. For a nameless actress like you to gain poprity

    would be a huge joke.

    After a while, Eva cleared her throat and made an announcement. ¡°Everyone, I¡¯m getting married soon.

    Mum, Dad, David¡¯s parents would like both families to meet before that. They¡¯ve already prepared a

    house that¡¯s more than two thousand square feet for us.¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± David chimed in. ¡°Mr. and Mrs. Watts, my mother really liked Eva so the house was prepared well

    in advance. It¡¯s located in the city so it¡¯s more convenient for Eva to travel to work.¡±

    All the rtives there were shocked by the announcement. Their jaws dropped even further when they

    heard about the house in the city.

    ¡°Eva¡¯s really amazing! Even your husband is impressive. Your inws seem nice too! Have you secured

    a job yet?¡± One of the aunts said tteringly.

    ¡°It¡¯s confirmed,¡± Eva dered proudly. ¡°The human resource department already sent me an offer. I¡¯m

    going to work in the Ford Group.¡±

    At that instance, Skr almost choked herself when the Ford Group was mentioned. She was

    astonished that Eva was going to work in Tobias¡¯pany.

    Sharon and Wesley looked at each other for a brief moment. Other than them, no one knew that they

    actually met Tobias.

    On the other hand, Miranda was in jail for quite some time, so she did not know whether Eva¡¯s job was

    good or not.

    Nevertheless, Miranda did not want Skr to lose face. ¡°Skr has a great boyfriend too! He even gives

    me money to spend! Look at my clothes, these costed thousands!¡±

    Evaughed nonchntly in response. ¡°Aunt Miranda, why don¡¯t you invite him to dinner with us? Give

    him a call. Everyone here can help you assess him.¡±

    Miranda wanted to meet Skr¡¯s boyfriend as well, so she started coercing her. ¡°Why don¡¯t you give him

    a call and ask him toe over?¡±

    But, Skr was having none of that. ¡°Why should I? What¡¯s he even here for? To finish our leftovers?

    He¡¯s a busy man.¡±

    ¡°How could you talk to your mother like that?¡± An aunt reprimanded. ¡°Skr, you¡¯re being really

    disrespectful. Think about how difficult it was for your mom, she was jailed for so long.¡±

    Skr, however, fought back. ¡°I meant no disrespect to my mother. I know things have been difficult for

    her, but have you people ever visited her even once? I don¡¯t think so.¡±

    As the exchange went on, the atmosphere at the table became more and more tense.

    All of a sudden, Eva mmed her fork on the table. ¡°You better not go too far, Ms. Skr Jones.

    Everyone here is your elder, so show some respect! Don¡¯t you dare think you¡¯re all great just because

    you got into a film academy? What did Grandma teach you? Don¡¯t use insolence as a weapon tosh out

    at the people who care most about you.¡±

    Skr felt sick after seeing the smug way Eva talked. ¡°I¡¯m done here. You guys carry on without me. Oh,

    by the way, can you people please stop thinking that Eva¡¯s going to starve? Everyone keeps putting food

    in her bowl like I was gonna finish everything if you don¡¯t guard the food from me. I don¡¯t even like duck!¡±

    As she was standing up, Miranda grabbed her arm. ¡°Why are you like this? Why do you have to ruin a

    nice evening like this?¡±

 Chapter 239

    Chapter 239

    Skr felt aggrieved. She did not feel like she did anything wrong. Nevertheless, she had always been

    oppressed like that in the past, anyone would start feeling like letting it out at this point.

    However, Skr stayed calm. ¡°I¡¯m leaving now. Sorry for spoiling your mood. Eva, you should get some

    more food on your boyfriend¡¯s te. Don¡¯t let me affect his appetite.¡±

    Eva stared at Skr, infuriated by herments.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    I would¡¯ve never brought David here if I knew this would happen. Now, he¡¯ll just think we¡¯re a mediocre

    family.

    After Skr left, Miranda apologized to her rtives awkwardly, but she actually agreed with what Skr

    had said.

    During her time in jail, the only person that ever came to visit was her mother who brought Skr with

    her.

    Not once did her own brother visited her.

    Meanwhile, Skr got out of the house and heard a car honking from afar. She instinctively looked

    towards the direction of the noise.

    She stood there, looking at a car she did not recognize and scratched her head. What am I thinking?

    Why would Tobias be here?

    All of a sudden, Skr¡¯s phone rang. It was Tobias.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, what are you standing there for? Hop on¡­¡±

    Right then, Skr realized that the car she was looking at really was Tobias¡¯. Hence, she immediately

    ran over to open the door and hopped into the passenger seat. Up to the point where she fastened the

    seat belt, the whole process was smooth like butter.

    ¡°Why are you so nice all of a sudden? You¡¯re even here to pick me up.¡± Skr showed Tobias a near

    perfect smile.

    His hands were on the steering wheel when he replied, ¡°I was worried that you might get bullied at the

    dinner and I¡¯ll have to rush in for you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not that weak you know. No one would dare to bully me,¡± Skr affirmed.

    There was still a hint of smoke indicating that Tobias lit a cigarette just now. The opened window also

    pointed towards the same indication.

    The weather had been getting colder and colder recently. Especially at night, the frigid wind felt like it

    would bite into the bones.

    Skr was tightening her cor due to the cold, so Tobias closed the window and turned on the heater.

    He did not bring Skr home immediately. Instead, they went to a caf¨¦.

    ¡°Are we going on a date?¡± Skr saw the signboard of a caf¨¦. It looked like business was going well

    since a lot of people were seated by the window.

    ¡°Well, something like that¡­¡± Tobias found a spot and parked the car.

    They got out of the car together. The difference in temperature felt like there was a change of seasons.

    With it being so cold, Tobias took off his coat and ced it over Skr. The scent of his cologne

    immediately filled up every breath she took.

    Then, he wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him so they could keep warm.

    After entering the caf¨¦, Skr went to look for seats whereas Tobias ordered a cup of cappino as well

    as a cup of ck coffee without sugar and milk at the counter.

    ¡°Do all CEOs drink ck coffee?¡± Skr asked. ¡°Every time I watch a series or read a novel, the CEO

    would always have a ck coffee, without fail.¡±

    It was the first time Tobias ever heard about something like that though.

    ¡°I got used to it. I¡¯m a very loyal man, once I get used to something, I¡¯ll stick to it,¡± he answered.

    Skr smiled as she stirred the coffee, humored by what Tobias just said. She did not say anything as

    Tobias¡¯ description of himself was way off.

    ¡°That¡¯s why you can¡¯t fall asleep. You drink too much ck coffee.¡±

    Tobias did not respond as he did not want to continue the small talk. They were not there for the sole

    purpose of dating either as he quietly took out a contract from his briefcase.

    Skr had seen it before. It was the one she signed that very day. They are now in the hands of Tobias.

    ¡°Did I filled it in incorrectly? Did it get rejected?¡± Skr asked.

 Chapter 240

    Chapter 240

    Tobias rested his arms on the backrest of the chair while he looked at Skr.

    ¡°Nothing¡¯s wrong. There are three copies of the contract, and I have two of them. I brought two of them

    here for you so you can keep them.¡±

    Skr blinked. She was not really sure of Tobias¡¯ intention. ¡°Why is it that I have to keep them?¡±

    ¡°This is to prove to you that you still have your freedom. Even though you have signed a contract with

    me, there is no time limit. If you don¡¯t like how it¡¯s going in the entertainment industry, you can always

    back out.¡±

    Hearing that, Skr happily epted the contracts and put them in her bag. The servitude contract is

    null and void now.

    She then rested her chin on her hand. ¡°It seems like you¡¯re getting more and more humane,¡± Skr

    teased him.

    Skr remembered how Tobias forced her to sign a contract back then. The conditions on it were all

    tyrannical to make her submit to him. But now, he was the one that took the initiative and handed her the

    contract.

    Tobias smiled. ¡°I¡¯m a very honest man. As long as you give me what I want, I¡¯ll give you what you want.

    ¡°What do you want?¡± Skr asked.

    ¡°I want you to listen to me, and service me well in bed.¡± Tobias lowered his voice but the words were still

    clear as day.

    Skr immediately looked around for fear of being overheard.

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    ¡°You¡¯re talking as if we made some indecent deals. That sounded like some conspiracy was going on.¡±

    Tobias raised his hand and looked at his watch. ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. By the way, did you pass your B2

    French exam?¡±

    Skr nodded proudly. ¡°I¡¯m still quite smart you know. I only did some studying at thest minute, and

    was still able to pull through.¡±

    She had already forgotten about Tobias¡¯ gift.

    ¡°The toy I prepared for you can finallye into y then. Let¡¯s go home.¡± Tobias said as he gave Skr

    a profound gaze.

    Her brows knitted. ¡° What toy?¡±

    Tobias got up and whispered into Skr¡¯s ears, ¡°Something that will make you experience ecstasy.¡±

    With how he was in bed, Skr could hardly even handle him at this point.

    Once they got back, she looked at the exquisite ck box that Tobias gave her. Inside, was a little

    vibrator. Her faced flushed as she touched the silicon texture, imagining how it would be like when it was

    activated.

    Skr looked at Tobias as she was starting to get heated. ¡°Can we not do this?¡±

    ¡°Have you used this before?¡± Tobias asked softly.

    Skr shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t really like these things.¡±

    Tobias grinned. ¡°I know you¡¯re going to like it. Lie on the bed. now¡±

    Skr looked towards the messy and ginormous bed, and went ahead toy down awkwardly.

    Her heart rate was skyrocketing as it was getting way too exciting for her.

    Tobias pulled off Skr¡¯s pants and gave the toy a little push as it disappeared into her.

    She started twitching around sensitively. She bit her lips as she indulged in the unusual trembling from

    within her body.

    Skr¡¯s breath grew heavier. Her body shifted around and she covered herself with a nket, trying to

    hide the embarrassing look on her face.

    ¡°Take the nket off. I want to see you.¡± Tobias suddenly gave out an order.

    She bit her lips even harder, and followed his order. Skr was trying to control herself from making any

    weird noises.

    ¡°Baby, you¡¯ll feel even better if you turn around.¡± Tobias said gently. It was gentle enough to make

    anyone melt.

    Skr listened, and turned toy on her stomach. She could feel the toy pressed against her and the

    sensation she felt intensified even further.

    ¡°Which is better? Me or the toy?¡± Tobias looked at Skr, satisfied at what he was seeing.

 Chapter 241

    Chapter 241

    Skr¡¯s voice sounded monotonous from all the shivering. ¡°You¡¯re much better.¡±

    Tobias was really satisfied with her answer, but he squat at the bedside and said, ¡°Louder. I can¡¯t hear

    you.¡±

    So Skr repeated her answer over and over again as Tobias repeatedly asked her another three more

    times.

    After that, Tobias picked her up by the shoulder and used his phone to turn off the vibration remotely. The

    room was quiet once again.

    No one would have thought that Tobias would know how to use such an app since he did not even know

    how to make payments with his phone.

    ¡°Can we do this more often?¡± Tobias caressed Skr¡¯s face as he spoke. He knew how tofort her

    after sessions like these.

    Skr did not answer, so he smiled. ¡°I¡¯ll take that as a yes then. Go wash up now. The night is still

    young.¡±

    She looked at him, astonished. Skr thought they were done, but Tobias had to drop that bombshell on

    her.

    While Skr was in the shower, Tobias was smoking on the bed with only a pair of underwear on him. All

    a sudden, Susan called, but he immediately denied it.

    Tobias did not want to be thinking about work during the night since it was his free time.

    However, the phone rang once again. Tobias was getting a bit fed up so he took the call. ¡°It¡¯ste. What

    is it?¡± He asked in cold manner.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, you should check Instagram. Two members of thepany jumped of a building this

    afternoon. It¡¯s trending right now.¡±

    After the call ended, Tobias waited for Skr toe out and asked, ¡°Where¡¯s your phone? Give it to

    me.¡±

    Skr hesitated for a split second. ¡°What do you need my phone for? You want to inspect the content?¡±

    ¡°Of course not.¡±

    Skr said nothing more as she bent down to pick up her pants from the floor. She then took out her

    phone from it and handed it to Tobias.

    He proceeded to look for the icon for Instagram. When all of a sudden, a message popped out from the

    top of the screen.

    Kai: I¡¯m going back soon. You said you¡¯d treat me to a meal.

    Tobias¡¯ expression darkened as he stared at Skr. ¡°Are the things I tell you a joke to you?¡±

    Skr felt puzzled as there was nothing on her phone that she¡¯d be afraid to show people. His reaction

    was odd to her.

    ¡°What are you talking about? I didn¡¯t do anything that is against your order, I think .¡± Skr was not sure,

    so she added thest two words for insurance.

    However, Tobias did not respond. He did not care about Instagram anymore as he opened up Skr¡¯s

    WhatsApp.

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    When Skr got close to see what he was looking at, Tobias was already looking at her conversation

    with Kai.

    ¡°We¡¯re just good friends!¡± She bit her lips and immediately exined. ¡°Don¡¯t overthink it. And why are

    you looking through my messages anyway? Do I not have any privacy anymore?¡±

    Skr reached out to grab her phone from Tobias, but he raised his arm to block her.

    He started scrolling back their conversation and found out that they had been talking very frequently.

    Right then, Tobias closed his eyes and took a deep breath. From Skr¡¯s perspective, he was emitting a

    terrifying aura. The situation at the moment was like the calm before a storm.

    So, she quickly tried to exin herself once again. ¡°We are really just good friends. You can see that

    from our conversation that we never went out of line.¡±

    ¡°I told you in the past to stay away from him.¡± Tobias voice was low and exuded a lot of pressure. ¡°What

    are you doing right now? Do you like messaging him so much? Why not just talk face to face? He¡¯s

    asking you out for a meal anyway.¡±

    Skr sat beside the bed, her hair was still dripping wet and her face looked a little sad.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t even talk too much with him. He¡¯s your cousin after all, there¡¯s no way something would happen

    between us.¡±

 Chapter 242

    Chapter 242

    Tobias could not tell whether Skr was doing it on purpose, or was she just that innocent.

    Therefore, he cklisted Kai¡¯s WhatsApp number for her because he did not want them to have any

    interactions with each other.

    Seeing what he did, Skr was speechless. He¡¯s a very stubborn man. He has zero tolerance for things

    like this.

    ¡°Don¡¯t ever let me see this again. Do you understand?¡± Tobias warned.

    She nodded. ¡°But he did save my life though. If it weren¡¯t for him that day at the river, I would have been

    dead.¡±

    Nevertheless, those words could not sway Tobias¡¯ decision, not even a little.

    Skr held her phone tightly in her hand. She was not as carefree this time for fear that there still might

    be something that would catch Tobias¡¯ eyes.

    Tobias held his hand out towards her, and she reluctantly handed her phone over once again.

    ¡°Please stop going through my stuff,¡± she pleaded. ¡°I still have the right to my privacy. No one would

    possibly be okay with what you just did. Why don¡¯t you give me your phone too and let me go through

    everything inside.¡±

    ¡°My phone is on the bedside table.¡± Tobias did not even raised his head. ¡°Go grab it yourself. There¡¯s a

    secret folder in there that contains videos of us. The visuals are impressive, but the sound is bad.¡±

    With just one nonchnt remark like that, Skr¡¯s face flushed bright red and her heart raced.

    She was not about to back down, so she took Tobias¡¯ phone and asked him for the password.

    ¡°Your birthday,¡± Tobias answered.

    Skr proceeded to key in her birth dates, but the phone warned her that it was wrong.

    ¡°Did you remember someone else¡¯s birthday? Mine definitely does not unlock this,¡± sheined to

    him.

    Skr tried again but to no avail while Tobias was looking through what was trending on Instagram.

    ¡°Wait, I remembered it wrongly,¡± he suddenly said. ¡° The password¡¯s 123123.¡±

    Skr was annoyed. Is he messing around with me?

    There was one news that caught Tobias¡¯ attention. He was certain that it would crash thepany¡¯s

    share price and market value. He looked through thements and everything was about how Ford

    Group was exploiting capitalism and undermining the workers. Some said that the employees were not

    being treated equally and that the system and culture within thepany was ruthless and heartless.

    On the other hand, Skr held Tobias¡¯ phone in her hand and asked, ¡°Can I do whatever I want with it?¡±

    Tobias uttered a perfunctory sound in agreement, allowing Skr to continue.

    The first thing she did, was opening up the photo gallery, but there was nothing there. The secret folder

    that Tobias talked about should be locked.

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    Penelope had told her that she should be looking at his spending history when going through a man¡¯s

    phone. Having said that, Tobias was someone that did not know how to use his phone to make

    payments, so there was no record to be found.

    When she was still dating Jeremy, Skr would always find movie tickets in his pockets.

    Every time, Jeremy would tell her that he went to see it with a dorm mate, and she would believe him.

    She figured that two man watching a romance film together was quite romantic in some ways.

    After going over everything on the phone, Skr was getting bored. So, she did what Tobias did and

    opened up his WhatsApp.

    To her surprise, her name was pinned at the top. However, before she could feel happy about it, she saw

    a lot more pinned conversations. Her name was only at the top because she was thest person Tobias

    contacted.

    Skr eventually lost interest in Tobias¡¯ phone and left. She went downstairs to get some ice cream.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was still focused on Instagram. He did not notice Skr leaving because there were

    to many things going on Instagram at the moment.

    When Skr got back, she half knelt on the bed and passed him an ice cream seeing that he looked

    bothered. She thought Tobias was still unhappy about the Kai issue, but there was nothing more for her

    to say. She already exined everything to him.

    Tobias shoved the ice cream away and Skr noticed that he was looking at Instagram. So that¡¯s why he

    wanted my phone. He doesn¡¯t have Instagram on his! I have misunderstood.

    The content on Instagram was very clear. It had a huge title, embolden in red.

 Chapter 243

    Chapter 243

    Two Ford Group Employees Jumped Off The Top Of The Company Building.

    Skr immediately looked at Tobias. ¡°When did this happen? Why didn¡¯t you say anything?¡±

    ¡°This afternoon. I just found out about it.¡±

    ¡°Do you need to go?¡± Skr had a hunch that Tobias was about to head over to thepany in the

    middle of the night to handle this crisis.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going anywhere. I¡¯ll see to it tomorrow. Besides, how could I go when you¡¯re right here with me?¡±

    Tobias raised Skr¡¯s chin and gave her a kiss on the cheeks.

    ¡°Was I too fierce just now?¡± He asked in a soft voice.

    Skr was not really bothered by it, but this was an opportune moment for her to feint frailty. Thus, Her

    eyes sparkled as tears formed. She looked at Tobias as pitiable as possible. ¡°It was okay. I can take it. I

    just felt I have been wronged somehow. I¡¯m not the type of girl who goes sleeping around you. You are

    my first man.

    She knew that men had a virginityplex. Any man would feel an intense pride if this was brought up.

    Skr herself actually got curious about the woman that took Tobias¡¯ virginity.

    He had some weird fetishes on bed, so there was a chance it was because of some traumatizing

    experience. Like the plot of a movie that had something to do with the color grey. She remembered that

    the male lead slept with a friend of his mother at a very young age and started getting into SM.

    Nevertheless, Tobias was definitely more moderatepared to him.

    Tobias tossed the phone aside and ce his hand over Skr¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Be nice. I didn¡¯t say that you

    were sleeping around. I¡¯m just saying that you don¡¯t need so many male friends. Understand?¡±

    Skr was well aware of Tobias¡¯ tyrannical ways.

    ¡°Are you tired?¡± He asked.

    Skr shook her head. Even though the session with the toy did exhaust her, it was not as tiring as how

    Tobias usually had his way with her in bed.

    ¡°Go put something on then. Let¡¯s go to the office,¡± he said after giving her butt a p.

    Skr was stumped for a moment. ¡°Won¡¯t everyone find out about our rtionship if you bring me

    there?¡± She reminded.

    Tobias was unconcerned. ¡°Do you think the employees would think that I¡¯m single?¡±

    That made sense to her. With his wealth and status, anyone would think that Tobias would have a really

    colorful private life. In fact, it was quite true. He always had women around him, changing one after

    another. God knows how many women Tobias had before Skr.

    When Tobias arrived at thepany with Skr, it was already eleven. The Ford Group building was

    fully lit at the moment.

    Skr followed behind Tobias as they walked in. Before they reached the private elevator for the CEO,

    she realized she was overthinking things. I doubt anyone would figure out our rtionship with us

    walking like this.

    Tobias took her straight to the public rtions department since the whole department was working

    overtime because of what happened.

    In the meeting room, everyone stood up and greeted when Tobias came in.

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    Skr had never been surrounded like that before and it made her realize why everyone was always

    climbing up the hierarchy.

    As long as you are standing, no one would dare sit down.

    Soon after, everyone¡¯s attention shifted towards Skr. They all thought that she was Tobias¡¯ new

    assistant. She¡¯s a bit too young to be an assistant though.

    Tobias proceeded to sit down at the head of the table and everyone else took their seats as well. Skr

    did not find a ce to sit so she just stood beside Tobias.

    Seeing that she was standing, Tobias pointed at the manager of the department. ¡°You go get a new chair.

    You,e sit here.¡± The second half of his sentence was directed at Skr.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. I¡¯m fine with just standing.¡± She said considerately.

 Chapter 244

    Chapter 244

    The department manager had already left his seat beside Tobias, but Skr still thought that it was a bad

    idea, so she remained standing.

    ¡°Why are you standing there? Aren¡¯t you tired? Just sit.¡± Tobias issued an order.

    With that, Skr had no choice but to sit by his side.

    The members of the department had sorted out the whole suicide situation and handed the report to

    Tobias along with the public opinion survey results. Almost all of the public¡¯s opinions were negative. A

    lot of itined about there being too much overtime work and that the internal assessments were

    way too harsh. To them, those were the causes for the employees¡¯ death.

    Tobias flipped through the documents and sneered. ¡°If they can¡¯t even handle that sort of pressure,

    they¡¯re better off dead. We¡¯ve all been through stressful times. We¡¯ve all experienced hardship.¡±

    Skr looked at Tobias. Once again, she had witnessed how merciless he could be. To him, people¡¯s life

    did not matter whatsoever.

    Then, the manager handed Tobias the draft of their public statement for him to check. While he was

    going the draft, Tobias¡¯ held Skr¡¯s hand tightly within his own in front of everyone there. ording to

    the draft, thepany was going to deny any and all responsibilities toward the matter.

    While Tobias was still reading, everyone there was stunned. Mr. Ford¡¯s actually flirting with a woman at a

    time like this?

    ¡°If you¡¯re bored, you can go out for a walk. Go to the cafeteria if you¡¯re hungry. The food there is not

    bad.¡± Tobias whispered into Skr¡¯s ear.

    Skr shook her head and whispered back. ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll just stay here as long as you¡¯re alright.¡±

    Meanwhile, all the staff sat there cautiously. Everyone was curious about Skr¡¯s identity as she could

    get Tobias to speak so gently.

    The general public has been requesting a formal exnation from the Ford Group regarding the suicide.

    Tobias looked at the manager. ¡°What¡¯s there to exin? They were the ones that made the choice. Did I

    force them to jump? Scratch this part of the draft.¡±

    After a while, Tobias rejected the draft they prepared. It looked like the draft was really good with how it

    manipted the words and sentences. But to Tobias, the whole team was just a bunch of idiots.

    Skr started yawning as she was at her limit. It was almost three in the morning and it did not seem like

    the meeting would end any time soon.

    Somehow, she was able to understand why the employees of this internationalpany wouldmit

    suicide. They were making money by burning their lives working overtime.

    This is the hour when people get really sleepy at that time of the day, and the feeling of hunger coupled

    with sleepiness did not feel good for Skr.

    Tobias noticed that her eyes were closing and that she was just forcing herself to stay awake. It looked

    like she could fall asleep at any minute.

    So, he capped his pen and gave her a pat and the shoulder. Skr¡¯s watery eyes immediately widened

    as she jolted awake.

    Her sleepiness was relieved by quite a bit and she looked towards Tobias, thinking that she had just

    fallen asleep. Did I snore? It would be really embarrassing if I did.

    Then, Skr looked at the staffs in the meeting room. Everyone had a grim expression on their face with

    their brows tightly knitted. It did not seem like they were in a good mood.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Tobias said out of the blue. ¡°We¡¯re going back. You need to rest.¡±

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    However, Skr was stubborn. ¡°You just go on with your work. I¡¯m fine.¡±

    Tobias was having none of that. He grabbed her by the arm and gently picked her up. Then, he pulled

    her into his arm while he took her bag.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. Even if you don¡¯t need the rest, I do.¡±

    Hearing that made Skr slightly relieved. She did not want Tobias to dy his work because of her

    since she could not help him with anything there.

    Skr once thought about whether she would be a strong and independent woman once she

    graduated. Whether she would be able to stay level-headed when dealing with serious issues. She

    wondered if she would be able to engage in deep conversations with people elegantly and valiantly.

    In short, just like Tobias¡¯ assistant, Susan.

    Because of the condition of her family and the environment she grew up in, Skr figured that it was

    almost impossible for her to obtain that sense of dominance that Susan gave off. There was still too

    much she needed to learn.

 Chapter 245

    Chapter 245

    After Skr left with Tobias, the atmosphere in the public rtions department immediately started

    getting active.

    ¡°For Mr. Ford toe here at this hour, he must have understood how much this incident would affect

    thepany,¡± somemented.

    Othersined, ¡°To be honest, he didn¡¯t look that concerned. He was even flirting with a little girl.¡±

    ¡°This is the first time we¡¯ve seen the woman behind that Devil, just waltzing into thepany like that.¡±

    ¡°The bosses secrets are none of our concern right now. Hurry up and get to work. The more we dy

    this, the higher the chances for everyone here to lose their jobs.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    On the way back, Skr had fallen asleep in the car. She did not wake up even when they reached the

    house and Tobias did not want to wake her up. So they stayed there since the warmth in the car was

    cozy enough.

    Skr slept through the night until the next day morning. When she opened her eyes to find herself in a

    car, she rubbed her eyes, thinking she was still dreaming.

    ¡°Your sleep quality is really good. You can sleep anywhere sofortably.¡± Tobias said as he stroked her

    messy hair.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you wake me up?¡± Skr yawned. She was still sleepy. ¡°Did you stay in here the whole

    night? You should¡¯ve gone inside.¡±

    Tobias smiled. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I was worried that you¡¯d suffocate in the car and die. That¡¯s going to crash the

    value of this car for sure.¡±

    Skr frowned. This man really doesn¡¯t have a way with words.

    ¡°Do you want to head to bed now?¡± She looked towards him.

    ¡°It¡¯s early in the morning, I¡¯m not interested in doing that right now,¡± Tobias answered seriously.

    Skr gave her forehead a massage helplessly, thinking that Tobias really knew how to put things

    together. ¡°I¡¯m talking about just sleeping. None of those funny businesses you have in your head.¡±

    ¡°Oh¡­¡±

    Having said that, Tobias still needed to head to thepany, so he asked Skr to go in herself.

    After the two parted ways. Skr immediately jumped into the shower cleaned herself. Kate was still

    waiting for her at the audition after all.

    The audition was held at the Excelsior Hotel. When Skr arrived, a lot of people were already there

    waiting.

    There were quite a few that Skr could actually name. Even the female lead for a popr series,

    Felicia Zaine, was there. She had stared in multiple series with billions of views.

    The chances of Skr securing the role of female lead over her was very slim.

    While Skr was flipping through the script, the crowd was getting worked up as Amelia Simons came

    in. She had sunsses on while she paraded inside, exuding an intense presence.

    Skr figured that, since they had the same manager, it was a good idea to go and greet Amelia.

    Having said that, before Skr could move, Amelia was already sitting down beside her. ¡°I thought Kate

    only arranged for me to do the audition. But you¡¯re here too. Nice to meet you, I¡¯m Amelia Simons, you

    can call me Amelia.¡±

    Skr was surprised that Amelia recognized her. So she greeted her but did not ask Amelia to take care

    of her or anything of that sort.

    In the industry, not many people would go out of their way to take care of someone. Technically

    speaking, Skr and Amelia werepetitors above all else.

    ¡°You¡¯re still new. The character doesn¡¯t suit you.¡± Amelia narrowed her eyes to look at Skr, her tone

    was rude to say the least.

    ¡°You won¡¯t know until you try I guess. Besides, I¡¯m just here for the audition, I didn¡¯t say anything about

    wanting to y the female lead.¡±

    Amelia thought that Skr still had some self-awareness. What was Kate thinking when she arranged for

    her toe with me.

    To Amelia, Skr had no results to show and was unworthy to be there at the audition. She¡¯s only been

    in one movie that¡¯s still in post-production, no one even knows her.

    This was the first time Skr saw the script.

    It was adapted from a popr web novel series where a wealthy girl fell in love with a poor guy. It

    sounded like the worst kind of drama.

    However, it was really popr online, even the male lead was confirmed to be Harry Reid, a famous

    actor.

    He was known as the prince of a certain school back then. Even Skr heard about him when she was

    in school. At that time, it was very popr to be non-mainstream, so a lot of people were using

    Friendster.

    There were a lot of photos of handsome men on the site and Harry would always be on it.

 Chapter 246

    Chapter 246

    Harry debuted in a talent show and emerged as the champion that year.

    Skr remembered that she actually voted for him via SMS and was caught by her grandmother. She

    was even punished for it because it was a waste of money.

    Then, Kate appeared at the audition. She had always been a busy person, the audition was no

    exception. The first thing she did once she arrived was greeting the casting director of the audition,

    asking him to give some extra care towards her two artistes.

    A great manager would always find a way to get their artistes some sort of special treatment in situations

    like this.

    For Kate, it was a simple task to aplish with all the connections she had in the industry.

    The Director, Vensa Roy, had directed quite a few popr series in the past few years. She even had a

    title like The Mother of Drama Series.

    During the audition, Skr just sat there, quietly watching the performance by the other talents. Until

    finally, her name was called. Hence, she put down the script and went on stage.

    The part that she got was a difficult one. As the female lead, the family had gone bankrupt from a failed

    business endeavor. Her father was hospitalized and her mothermitted suicide because she could

    not handle the situation. The scene was set in the funeral house where the female lead went to see her

    mother.

    Kate was at the side, thinking that Skr had really bad luck because she got such an unlucky scene.

    However, Skr knew that the most important thing to show in an audition was her presence. No matter

    what role she had, she needed to exhibit enough presence. Thus, Skr imagined herself as a one of

    those big celebrities that won multiple awards. That way she would have enough presence to outshine

    the otherpetitors.

    She took in a deep breath. I must seed. Skr needed to find a way to stand out in the entertainment

    industry. If she ended up being some second-rate artiste, she would never be able to raise her head in

    front of Tobias. Skr needed to shorten the gap between them for their rtionship tost.

    If she stayed the way she was and let Tobias take care of her, he would eventually get bored of her.

    Tobias had the means to find someone new for sure.

    By then, Skr would have nowhere to go and no shoulders to cry on.

    She was really serious about all her rtionships, so she wanted them to have a happy ending. It was

    not that Skr loved him deeply or anything of that nature, she just did not want to spend more time

    getting to know someone new.

    ¡°This woman looks exquisite. Her beauty is literally breath-taking,¡± the directormented as Skr

    walked on the stage.

    The casting director in charge agreed. ¡°Indeed, that¡¯s a unique yet extraordinary beauty. She¡¯d do well

    even just being eye candy in the industry.¡±

    Skr heard theirments loud and clear. I¡¯m not here just so I could be some eye candy.

    The scene she got needed her to express some form of tension and it was particrly difficult.

    Once the director gave her the signal to start, Skr took a deep breath and dived right in. On the stage,

    there were some simple props. There was a white cloth covering a dummy on the floor that was

    supposed to be the deceased mother. When Skr pulled the cloth off, she saw a big smile right on the

    face of the dummy.

    Skr suspected the director deliberately set this up to see if anyone wouldugh.

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    On the other hand, Kate went and sat down with Amelia even though her eyes were on Skr at all

    times. ¡°You did really poorly just now, the female lead should still have some pride in her even though the

    family has fallen. You showed none of that just now,¡± Katemented on Amelia¡¯s performance.

    Amelia exined to her that she did not have enough prep work done because of all the work she was

    doing.

    Her gaze was also on the stage as Skr dropped to her knees. No skill nor eye drops were needed for

    Skr to start crying since she had a good control over her own emotions.

    Amelia was displeased, so sheined to Kate. ¡°Kate, I thought you only asked me toe for this

    audition, why is she doing here? She can¡¯t even act.¡±

    Kate disagreed with Amelia. In her opinion, Skr was talented and intelligent. She was a girl that grew

    up with her now-deceased grandmother, her expressions and emotions would certainly be able to grab

    the hearts of the people watching her.

 Chapter 247

    Chapter 247

    Skr knelt on the floor, crying her lungs out with her head on the dummy as she choked. ¡°Mom! Why

    did you have to leave me? What¡¯s going to happen to me now? What about Dad? Please just open your

    eyes and look at me!¡±

    Truth be told, Skr actually had a reserved personality. But when she¡¯s in front of a camera, it was like

    she had an alter ego. She would be clumsy when moving around, so Skr had to force herself

    into acting mode.

    She was crying a river at this point and her voice was getting hoarse. Her eyes showed nothing but

    hopelessness.

    With a performance that fully expressed the desperation and helplessness of the character, people that

    did not know her would be shocked if they found out she was an amateur.

    ¡°And, cut!¡± The director gave the signal to stop. However, Skr was still crying as she had gone too

    deep into the character and she was still trying to calm herself. After about half a minute, Skr finally

    stood up, and that marked the end of her audition.

    After that, she felt rxed. She really wanted to seed, but instant fame was not the way to go. It

    required luck, albeit it being quitemon in the industry, Skr knew that her luck had never been

    good.

    ¡°Not bad,¡± the directormented before Skr bowed and got off the stage. The only thing left for her

    to do after that was waiting.

    It was like attending an examination, the results would only be announced after a few days.

    Kate went down to talk to Skr. Seeing that Skr still had tears in her eyes, she took out a

    handkerchief and handed it to her. Kate was quite satisfied with Skr¡¯s performance so she did not hold

    back on her praise. ¡°That wasn¡¯t bad at all. I knew you¡¯ve got talent in doing this. Your performance just

    now was really eye catching. I¡¯d say it was just as good as any of the professionals.¡±

    Meanwhile, Amelia stood beside them, listening to Kate praising Skr. Her displeasure was written all

    over her face as she just lost half of Kate¡¯s attention towards her.

    Skr smiled. ¡°You¡¯re being too modest with yourpliments, Kate. When will they announce the

    result?¡±

    ¡°Within the week. Are you nervous?¡±

    ¡°Not really. I¡¯ll leave it all up to fate,¡± Skr replied calmly.

    After all, a lot of artistes had experienced failing in an audition. The only thing to do was to go for more

    and keep trying. Continuous failure was also something artistes needed to go through.

    After that, Kate asked Amelia to tag along and have dinner together, but Amelia refused. ¡°You guys go

    eat. I¡¯m not really hungry right now, and I have amercial I need to shootter. So, I can¡¯t eat.¡±

    Kate noticed that Amelia was not happy, so she just let her be.

    She smirked as Amelia was the fruit of all her pampering. Now she was getting a bit too prideful for her

    own good.

    Meanwhile, before Skr could leave, the casting director in charged as well as director Vensa

    approached them. Vensa handed her a piece of paper with a line on it.

    ¡°Can you read that for me?¡±

    Reading lines was one of the best ways to test an artiste¡¯s fundamental skills. For Skr, her results in

    the reading ss had always been good. She was born with a good voice and her pronunciation was

    natural and clear. People would definitely understand each and every word she said.

    So, Skr looked at the line for a minute and memorized everything.

    Suddenly, her voice changed from her normal gentle voice into a raspy one. Her vibrant smile turned cold

    as well. ¡°Who did this to my father? I swear I will take back everything I¡¯ve lost and trample those who

    mistreated us under my feet! Even at the cost of my life!¡±

    The line was not long, but Skr¡¯s performance was near perfection.

    ¡°You¡¯re quite impressive, youngdy. No wonder Kate is looking out for you. I see a bright future ahead

    of you,¡± Vensa remarked.

    Kate had a hint of pride in her eyes as she responded, ¡°I¡¯ve always had a good eye for talent. After you

    go back, director, please do give Skr some consideration. She has a few more big auditions lined up

    so don¡¯t miss out.¡±T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

 Chapter 248

    Chapter 248

    Kate¡¯s ability to lie impressed Skr as she knew there were no more auditions lining up. The one she

    just did was the only one she had.

    While they were eating, Skr tried to confirm whether she did have more work lined up.

    Kate denied. ¡°I¡¯m still looking for scripts that suits you. You don¡¯t have to worry about that since the

    agency you¡¯re in will never go out of films to shoot. What¡¯s more important right now is your looks. Follow

    me to the agency if you¡¯re free this afternoon. We need to work on your appearance.¡±

    Hearing that made Skr lower her head. She looked at her outfit and thought that it was alright. Nothing

    too fancy. Just a very average look. The criticism from Kate was definitely unwarranted.

    ¡°Your hair color needs to change too,¡± Kate continued. ¡°What era are you from? ck hair? It doesn¡¯t

    match your skin tone at all.¡±

    Skr only smiled and agreed with Kate¡¯s arrangements.

    After the meal, both of them went to Royal Entertainment. Skr wondered whether she would see

    Tobias here as she looked around.

    Kate noticed her intentions. ¡°Tobias neveres here. This is just a subsidiarypany. He has only

    come here once, and it was for you too. He wanted me to look after you.¡±

    What Kate just said was news to Skr.

    Soon after, they got to the stylist and he picked out a color for her hair. Skr did not have anything

    better in mind so she went along with it.

    Momentster, Valerie came in and watched Skr with her arms crossed. She had a white suit on her

    and wore ck high heels. Her new look entuated her boldness and strength. Her presence rivaled

    that of Kate¡¯s as they stood side by side.

    ¡°How¡¯s she? The signing was not cheap.¡± Valerie initiated some small talk with Kate.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    ¡°She has potential. But her personality is too reserved and not as outgoing as Amelia¡¯s. It would be

    easier for her to standout in the industry if she was more outgoing,¡± Kate responded.

    ¡°That¡¯s why she climbed into Mr. Ford¡¯s bed and found herself a sugar daddy.¡± Valerie¡¯s tone was calm

    even though her gaze was sharp.

    In her eyes, all the women in the entertainment industry had some dirt on them. None of those so-called

    pure and delicate girls were actually real. Those were just shows they put up for their fans. Behind the

    scenes, they would do anything to get the role they wanted.

    Valerie actually felt a bit jealous of Skr for being able to get a man like Tobias. She had no idea who

    was the one taking advantage of their rtionship.

    Valerie put it very bluntly, but Kate tried her best to avoid talking about it. ¡°I¡¯m not familiar with her

    personal life. But Skr does look fairer after the change in hair color. She already had fair skin to begin

    with.¡±

    Valerieughed. ¡°I trust your capabilities. We¡¯d both be winners if she got famous. I¡¯ve arranged some

    training for her since the school is now on winter break. Before she gets any movies to film, I¡¯m nning

    to let her practice dancing with the other trainees.¡±

    Kate agreed since she had the exact same idea.

    Meanwhile, Skr was looking at the mirror. She was still getting used to the new hair color since she

    had ck hair all her life. However, the greenish yellow coupled with her facial features made it so that

    she seemed less reserved and added some wildness to her appearance.

    She proceeded to take a photo of herself in the mirror. Since Skr was never really bothered by the

    way she looked, she never used any filters while taking photos and would just send it over to Tobias right

    away for him to give somements.

    Having said that, the timing did not feel right as the suicide incident was not resolved just yet. Skr

    figured Tobias would not even bother looking at her message in a time like this.

    So, she wanted to retract it, but two minutes had passed, it was already toote.

 Chapter 249

    Chapter 249

    Inside the meeting room of the Ford Group, all the higher-ups sat around the long meeting table,

    reporting the negative impact of the employees¡¯ suicide issue on thepany.

    Everyone held their breath as the CEO wore a dark expression on his face while he went through the

    reports.

    There was a pin drop silence. Ding! A ding from a phone broke the silence. Instantly, everyone looked

    towards Tobias as it was his phone.

    The staff had started to notice that Tobias was a different man now. Back then, he would have never

    brought his phone along into the meeting room, but not anymore.

    Right then, he looked up to take a glimpse of everyone there and the lot of them immediately shifted their

    gaze away. Tobias opened up his WhatsApp to see a photo of Skr with her new hair color.

    His brows knitted. What color is this? She looks like someone just dumped soda on her.

    Tobias raised his hand as he kept his eyes on the photo. She¡¯s such a weirdo, nothing like how a woman

    should be.

    ¡°Did I ask you to stop? From now on, everyone reports to me on the solution of your respective

    department and the possible reasons behind the suicide. Starting from the right and go from there.¡±

    Tobias issued out the order while his hand replied to the message.

    Tobias: It¡¯s so ugly.

    Everyone present was on their best behavior, carefully reporting everything as they were terrified to even

    misread a word.

    Soon after, Skr got a reply from Tobias. His blunt respond was a clear indication of his displeasure

    with her new look.

    Valerie had asked her assistant to bring Skr to the practice room. The room took up almost the whole

    floor. It was a ce where the trainees practiced their dancing and body shaping exercises.

    Skr watched their practice through the ss wall. The boys in there all looked quite feminine, but their

    bodies looked really fit. Everyone had a towel on their neck as they repeatedly practiced the dance

    moves. Their shirts were already soaked in sweat.

    ¡°Yo¡­ isn¡¯t this my sister-inw?¡± A familiar voice came from behind. Skr turned around and saw that it

    was Sheldon.

    He sounded the same as always, his tone was much softer than Tobias¡¯. And every time he greeted

    someone, he would have a sly grin on his face.

    ¡°Why are you here? I think I haven¡¯t seen you in a long while now.¡± Skr asked. She was still getting

    used to how Sheldon addressed her.

    ¡°My girlfriend¡¯s inside.¡± Sheldon pointed into the practice room.

    Skr was immediately stumped. She was shocked by the speed at which Sheldon changed his

    girlfriend. Thest time she saw him, he was with a famous online influencer. But now, it was a trainee.

    Truth be told, Sheldon was famous on the inte. A lot of female celebrities and online influencers were

    vying to get close to him.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since I saw my brother too,¡± Sheldon continued. ¡°He doesn¡¯t pick up my calls and

    ignores my messages on WhatsApp. Being neglected like this doesn¡¯t feel good.¡±

    Skr could not tell Sheldon that she was with Tobias every day either.

    ¡°You free tonight? Let¡¯s have dinner together,¡± Sheldon invited.

    ¡°I¡¯m actually on a diet recently, sorry.¡±

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    Hearing that, Sheldon started inspecting Skr. She did seem slim enough, butpared to the females

    celebrities, Skr still had some baby fat to get rid of.

    However, Sheldon smiled. ¡°It¡¯s just one meal. You need to eat to gain energy for your diet anyway. I can

    only see my brother if you were there.¡±

    Sheldon¡¯s intentions did not seem pure, but seeing that he missed his brother so much, Skr decided

    to agree. ¡°Alright then. I¡¯ll get to work first. Call meter tonight.¡±

    Right as Skr left, Sheldon received a call from Kai, so he decided that the more the merrier and asked

    Kai if he was free that night to go for a drink.

 Chapter 250

    Chapter 250

    Kai agreed without any hesitation. He had been in the countryside for so long, so he figured it was about

    time for him to have some fun.

    At night, Kai looked at Sheldon when he saw Skr. He was not sure if Sheldon did it deliberately or was

    it all just a coincidence.

    On the other hand, Sheldon was unaware of their situation and introduced them to each other. ¡°This is

    my brother¡¯s girlfriend, Skr. She¡¯s gorgeous, right?¡±

    Meanwhile, Kai looked at Skr and asked, ¡°Why did you cklist my WhatsApp? It indicated that my

    messages were being denied whenever I sent something.¡±

    ¡°You guys, know each other?¡± Sheldon was puzzled. ¡°You should¡¯ve told me earlier then. I wouldn¡¯t have

    introduced you. You actually have a wide range of friends, Skr.¡±

    ¡°I met him during the filming,¡± Skr exined as she sat down. ¡°We¡¯re in the same movie, but I was

    done with my scenes earlier since he¡¯s the male lead.¡±

    Kai sat opposite Skr, and he really wanted to know why Skr cklisted him. ¡°Aren¡¯t we friends?¡±

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    He was really bothered by this issue. Seeing that, Skr reflected on her actions and realized that she

    might have gone too far. So, she smiled and said, ¡°I think that was an ident on my part.¡±

    ¡°I do that too!¡± Sheldon was innocently trying to y along with Skr. ¡°I identally delete people all

    the time. Kai, you¡¯re a handsome man, why have a dog as your profile picture? And you don¡¯t post

    anything. Who would know that it¡¯s you? There were many times where I almost deleted you by

    ident.¡±

    However, Kai was still very frustrated. He did not trust Skr¡¯s exnation, but he could not dig any

    deeper. From what he knew, there was a high chance that Tobias was behind it all. After all, Tobias was

    a selfish prick that could not tolerate anyone near his any of his possessions. Even if Tobias¡¯ feelings for

    Skr were fake, he would not let any man near Skr either way.

    ¡°The woman makes the decision here,¡± Sheldon said as he passed the menu to Skr.

    Skr took the menu and order some food as well as a sd for herself but no alcohol for her.

    Nheless, Sheldon asked for a bottle of gin but was roasted by Kai for it.

    ¡°Since when were you such a cheapskate? You actually think you can treat us with a bottle of cheap gin

    like that?¡±

    Kai and Sheldon were of a simr age, and their rtionship had always been good, a direct contrast to

    what Kai thought about Tobias. To him, Tobias was as cold as ice, to say the least.

    What Kai said hit Sheldon right where it hurt as his facade started to crumble. ¡°My brother froze all my

    financial support, okay. He¡¯s forcing me to work at thepany! With what I have, the cheap gin is all I

    can afford right now! You should be grateful that you at least have something to drink! Don¡¯t be so picky

    now,¡± Sheldon eximed.

    Hearing that confused Skr. ¡°Your brother would never actually force you to do things you don¡¯t like,

    what happened?¡±

    It was the same question on Sheldon¡¯s mind, so he let out a sigh. ¡°Maybe he thinks I¡¯ve been going too

    far recently. He said I was living like trash and have no contribution or value at all. He told me that if I

    continued like this, I¡¯m better of just be dead.¡±

    Those were some really hurtful words, but Skr was certain that it all came from Tobias. She knew that

    sometimes, his sharp tongue would cause others more than just pain. The way Tobias talked made

    others felt like he was slicing them slowly and dashing salt all over the wounds at the same time.

    Compared to everyone else, Tobias treated Skr very gently.

    ¡°What does he mean by value? Is everything just a business transaction?¡± Kai sneered. ¡°Do we have to

    go against our conscience just so we could maximize our gains?¡±

    ¡°Have you been stuck in the countryside for too long? Why are you so cynical all of a sudden?¡± Skr

    asked.

    Kai remained quiet. Is she defending Tobias?

    After a while, all the dishes were served, but Skr was only touching the sd. I must persevere!

    Kai, on the other hand, thought that she was just being shy since she was in front of two men. Women

    need to maintain their image in front of men after all, is what he thought. So, he picked up a piece of beef

    and was about to put it in her te.

    Sheldon sensed something from Kai¡¯s move and immediately stopped his fork from moving any further.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like she can¡¯t reach it. Maybe she just doesn¡¯t like beef.¡±

 Chapter 251

    Chapter 251

    Skr forced a smile and said, ¡°I can only eat vegetables. I¡¯m still not slim enough, so my manager

    asked me to lose weight.¡±

    Sheldon asked, ¡°What¡¯s your body weight and height?¡±

    Taking a nce at him, Skr pursed her lips at his insensitive question. ¡°It¡¯s a secret. I don¡¯t want to

    tell.¡±

    However, this only made Sheldon¡¯s curiosity grow. He tried to trick Skr while pointing at his eyes. ¡°Did

    you know that I have a special talent? I can figure out a woman¡¯s height and weight just by looking at

    their figure. And no woman can escape from this.¡±

    Skr raised a brow and looked at him in a rxed posture. ¡°Then go ahead and guess. Let me see

    your special skill.¡±

    Sheldon felt defeated while Kai looked at Skr and said, ¡°Stop losing weight, because you look great

    right now. Those female celebrities are always in a foul mood because they¡¯re trying to lose weight. Eat

    is the pleasure in life.¡±

    His words make sense, but so what? A chubby celebrity can¡¯t even be eye candy.

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Sheldon could be very obsessive sometimes, refusing to give up until he had reached this goal. Looking

    all innocent, like a little boy, he asked in a whiny manner. ¡°Tell me, please. It¡¯s only your height and

    weight.¡±

    ¡°Just wait until I get famous. It¡¯ll be updated on Wikipedia.¡± Skr tried to evade his question.

    Seeing how determined Skr was, Sheldon offered to exchange some information with Skr to

    convince her. ¡°If you tell me, I¡¯ll tell you something about Tobias.¡±

    The woman was tempted as she didn¡¯t know much of Tobias.

    Kai looked at them cynically. They are just like a family, and their conversation is all about Tobias.

    Skr answered this time, ¡°My height is 168cm and I am 50 kg.¡±

    After listening to her words, none of them thought Skr was skinny. Pretty women had to weigh not

    over 50 kg, and if they wanted to look good on camera, they would¡¯ve to lose weight.

    Kai remembered Katrina, one cast member in the same film as him. She was less than 45 kg and almost

    as tall as Skr.

    He doesn¡¯t like women that were too skinny. Skr was just perfect.

    Skr had given her answers, but Sheldon chickened out from the deal they had. What can I tell her?

    Tobias won¡¯t spare me if I tell her too much.

    So, he made excuses. ¡°It¡¯s a long story. I¡¯ll tell you when I have the chance someday.¡±

    Skr took a sip from her cup and frowned. ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t want to tell me. I didn¡¯t think you have

    the balls to tell, anyway.¡±

    Sheldon took a picture of Skr in secret and sent it to Tobias with a caption: Your wife is in my hands.

    After a short while, Sheldon received a call from Tobias, and thetter sounded displeased. ¡°Where is

    this? Send me the address.¡±

    Before Sheldon could say anything, Tobias hung up on him.

    Feeling aggrieved, he immediately sent the address to Tobias. It¡¯s so difficult to meet Tobias nowadays,

    and I¡¯ll have to use Skr as a cover.

    If I can¡¯t meet him, I¡¯m really going broke. The money in my bank ount isn¡¯t enough to buy my

    girlfriend branded bags.

    When Tobias arrived, Skr, Sheldon, and Kai were engaged in a heated conversation. She found that

    those two men were nosier than she was.

    Sheldon brought up his new girlfriend. She was a hard-working girl, so he took their rtionship

    seriously, unlike how he used to toy with other women.

    What kind of woman is she? Skr was curious, as the woman could discipline a rich yboy like

    Sheldon.

    Kai snorted, ¡°You? You guys will definitely break up in three months.¡±

 Chapter 252

    Chapter 252

    Kai saw Tobias entering the room in his ck leather jacket, and the smile on his face immediately

    disappeared without a trace, while he ced a piece of pork on Skr¡¯s te.

    Seeing his actions, Tobias frowned. Skr was totally oblivious to the man¡¯s arrival, smiling and teasing

    Sheldon, calling him ¡°the retired yboy.¡±

    Suddenly, she felt a cold breeze brush across her face and the familiar scent made her turn around. After

    lifting her head to look at the man behind her, she blurted out, ¡°Why are you here?¡±

    Tobias pulled a chair over and sat beside her. ¡°Why? Am I not wee here?¡±

    Sheldon asked the server to prepare a set of cutlery for Tobias, but thetter said indifferently, ¡°No need.¡±

    Skr hurriedly exined, ¡°I was surprised because Sheldon didn¡¯t tell me you¡¯ll be here.¡±

    Tobias swept a nce at Kai meaningfully. Taking Skr¡¯s spoon, he scooped the piece of pork cutlet

    and ced it on Sheldon¡¯s te.

    Sheldon was touched when Tobias gave him food. ¡°Tobias, you remembered I like pork cutlet?¡±

    Kai¡¯s expression turned dark. Why does he mind if I give food to Skr? Did he use up his generosity

    doing business? He¡¯s so petty.

    ¡°Have you finished eating? Let¡¯s go home if you¡¯re done.¡± Tobias obviously wanted to leave as soon as

    possible.

    Chewing the piece of pork cutlet in his mouth, Sheldon hurriedly seized the opportunity and begged

    Tobias. ¡°Tobias, can you give me some money, please? When will you stop freezing my ount? It¡¯s

    almost my girlfriend¡¯s birthday, and I can¡¯t even afford a Herm¨¨s bag for her.¡±

    Folding his arms, Tobias leaned against the chair and scrutinized him. ¡°Don¡¯t buy it then. Must it be

    Herm¨¨s?¡±

    Sheldon scratched his head in frustration. Never did he think Tobias was serious about punishing him. A

    long time had passed, but his heart didn¡¯t seem to soften at his brother¡¯s suffering.

    He mumbled, ¡°When we went out, she was looking at the bag in the Herm¨¨s shop. I¡¯m sure she wanted

    that bag from the look in her eyes, and I can¡¯t afford to hurt her feelings.¡±

    Even though Sheldon looked pitiful, Tobias ignored his pathetic state and rejected him mercilessly once

    again. ¡°I¡¯ll say it again. If you want money, earn it yourself.¡±

    Having his hopes extinguished by his ruthless brother, Sheldon was at a loss. Now, He didn¡¯t seem like

    he was from a rich family. Instead, he was so poor to the extent of buying a meal for himself would post

    an issue.

    Sheldon was anxious and fought back. ¡°Tobias, what do you want me to do? Rtives are more

    important to you than money, no?¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t bat an eye at him ying the family card and said indifferently, ¡°Come work at thepany

    and use your sry to buy the bag.¡±

    Sheldon knew Tobias wasn¡¯t someone who would repeat his words twice, so he could only give in and

    hold on while waiting for a turning point.

    Kai didn¡¯t blink as he stared at them while a whirlpool of emotions was forming in his heart. Ever since

    Tobias came in, he sat so close to Skr.

    After eating, the server verified the dish they ordered. Sheldon took a look at the bill, the meal was

    expensive.

    Sheldon turned to look at Kai with a pleading look in his eyes, while thetter took out his phone to pay

    the bill. Sheldon initially imed he was treating them to a meal, but in the end, Kai was the one paying.

    After paying for Skr, Tobias walked away while the woman followed behind him. His legs are long, so

    the distance between his steps was quite far, and Skr could only jog to catch up with him.

    When she sat in the front passenger seat, Tobiasmanded, ¡°Sit in the backseat.¡±

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    Skr looked at Tobias. He was expressionless and didn¡¯t seem angry, but it was obvious that he wasn¡¯t

    pleased.

    Then she sat in the backseat while the man drove the car.

    After a series of turns, they got further and further away from their house, and it was over an hour¡¯s ride.

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but asked, ¡°Where are you taking me?¡±

 Chapter 253

    Chapter 253

    Tobias finally stopped the car. They were surrounded by trees and the dark sky was descending upon

    them. Skr sat in the car, reluctant to get down.

    Tobias opened the car door and urged, ¡°Get down.¡±

    After hesitating for a while, Skr did as he said.

    Stepping on the grass, she followed behind the man.

    Tobias stopped in his tracks while Skr continued walking causing her to bump into him.

    He said, ¡°Put your hands on the tree for support and take off your pants.¡±

    Taken aback by his outrageous words, Skr asked, ¡°Here?¡±

    Tobias nodded and pointed at the tree in front of them. ¡°Here. Bend over.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t have the courage to say anything. Although it is a remote ce, it¡¯s still possible for us to

    get caught. What if people film us while we are at it? Not to mention that the weather is chilly. Taking off

    my pants here will only freeze my butt.

    Feeling like she was being toyed with Tobias, she was angry. ¡°I¡¯m not a toy! No one will treat their

    girlfriends like this. Give me some respect.¡±

    Tobias looked at her and asked in return. ¡°Every couple is like this. Perhaps they are even more into it

    than us. Adults have many secrets. We¡¯re just dating normally and I didn¡¯t take you as a toy. You take offExclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.

    your pants first, and I¡¯ll do itter. Isn¡¯t it fair?¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t budge while Tobias unbuttoned her pants easily.

    Silence ensued in the wilderness, and his voice was firm. ¡°It¡¯s not just your pants I¡¯m going to take off if

    you want me to do it.¡±

    Skr knew Tobias could do anything if he wanted.

    So, to prevent herself from being stripped naked in the wilderness, she took off her pants in anger.

    He said, ¡°Underwear¡­¡±

    The woman could only give in as she closed her eyes while continuing to strip.

    From his tone, she could tell that if she dragged on any further, not only would she be stripped naked, he

    would leave her in the wilderness.

    After taking off her underwear, she could feel the chillness in the air. cing her hands on the tree, her

    heart was racing, and at that moment she didn¡¯t feel cold.

    Lowering her head, she could see a pair of polished leather shoes, the grassy ins, and her pair of

    canvas shoes.

    ¡°Say that you want me.¡± Tobias leaned down and looked at her reddened face, slowly yet surely

    destroying her reason.

    Biting down her lip, the woman didn¡¯t say anything.

    p! Tobias pped her butt with brute force and left a red handprint. ¡°Say it! Someone wille here if

    you keep dying.¡±

    Skr shivered from the pain and said bitterly, ¡°Please, take me.¡±

    ¡°How do you like me to do it?¡± The smile on Tobias¡¯ mouth grew wider.

    ng! The sound of the man taking off his belt was clear in the quiet forest.

    Leaning in, Tobias¡¯ hot breath was against the side of her neck while the woman let out moans.

    She felt her head burning while their skin contact sent an electric shock through her body.

    Lowering his voice, Tobias said, ¡°You knew Kai likes you, yet you still approached him. Are you testing

    my patience?¡±

    Skr finally knew why Tobias would torment her like this. It was all because of her hanging out with Kai.

    Hugging her waist, the man was rough as he thrusted into her, making her go limp and her breathing

    soon became raspy.

    Tobias continued until there was a car approaching. Seeing the faint yellow light from afar, he finally let

    her go. The woman was exhausted she could barely move, so he helped her to put on her pants.

    After they were finished with everything, that car sped away in another direction.

    This time, Skr didn¡¯t sit in the seat next to the driver¡¯s seat and made a beeline for the backseat,

    shutting the car door loudly to vent her frustration.

 Chapter 254

    Chapter 254

    Tobias sat beside Skr, causing her to look at him with a wary look in her eyes. Scooting away from

    him, she asked, ¡°You¡¯re doing it again? I¡¯m done with you going crazy.¡±

    Tobias reached out his hand to touch the woman, but she blocked him. His anger had subsided, so he

    was patient with her. ¡°Don¡¯t throw a fit with me. From now on, stop meeting Kai. He gave you food

    deliberately in front of me, so he¡¯s rather ill hearted.¡±

    Skr¡¯s heart was filled with anguish. Sheldon was the one who called Kai to join them. Plus, she did

    nothing wrong as they were just hanging out as friends.

    Inparison, there are beautiful women and assistants at Tobias¡¯ side. However, Skr wouldn¡¯t drag

    Tobias into the woods and do whatever she wanted to him, even if she was upset.

    Taking in a deep breath, she growled, ¡°You know nothing. I was just eating with Sheldon. I¡¯m not a god,

    so I don¡¯t know Kai was there, too. If I know you¡¯ll be there, I won¡¯t join them. Plus, I told you my pain

    tolerance is low. It hurts so much when you hit my butt. You sadist!¡±

    Listening to her roars out of anger, Tobias chuckled. ¡°But you enjoyed it. Don¡¯t suppress your nature and

    just let it out.¡±

    Reluctant to y word games with the unreasonable man, Skr turned to look outside the window.

    ¡°Drive. Do you want us to get eaten by wolves?¡±

    Tobias got out of the car and dragged her to the front seat.

    On the way home, Tobias suddenly asked, ¡°How¡¯s your interview?¡±

    Without sparing the man a nce, she said, ¡°I¡¯m still waiting for their notice.¡±

    He asked while concentrating on the road. ¡°Do you want to be the lead actress?¡±

    Skr replied indifferently, ¡°There¡¯s no need¡­¡±

    She was still trapped in the torturing memories just now, while Tobias was calm and poised, as if nothing

    had happened.

    When they came to a red light, she noticed a YSL lipstick between the gaps of the front seat.

    After picking up the lipstick, she hid it in her sleeves and asked, ¡°What did you do today?¡±

    Tobias couldn¡¯t shake off the fishy feeling when Skr inquire about his schedule. She¡¯s not someone

    who likes to poke her nose around.

    He answered, ¡°I was at thepany, and then I went to meet you. Is there anything wrong?¡±

    Skr twitched her lips and tossed the lipstick at Tobias¡¯ face out of spite.

    That¡¯s right. She tossed it.

    She threw it with some force as she was angry. The lipsticknded on the corner of Tobias¡¯ eye, and the

    man covered his eyes immediately.

    After feeling better, his eyes darkened as he red at Skr. ¡°What are you doing? I¡¯m driving! Do you

    want us dead?¡±

    Frowning, Skr raised her voice. ¡°Why is there lipstick in your car? There¡¯s also strands of long hair.¡±

    She was acting like a wife confronting her husband about why he was meeting with other women.

    Skr didn¡¯t hit him for no reason. Tobias¡¯ Adam¡¯s apple bobbed as if he was trying to suppress some

    kind of emotion in his heart.

    He asked, ¡°You¡¯re saying that I¡¯m seeing other women?¡±

    Skr replied, ¡°I¡¯m not just being suspicious. That¡¯s most probably the case, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Tobias smiled helplessly at her guess.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    He exined it to Skr calmly, ¡°Rest assured. I don¡¯t have any other woman except you, as I don¡¯t have

    the time or effort to waste on rtionships. This is thest time I¡¯m exining it to you, so don¡¯t get

    paranoid again. You hear me?¡±

    He was supposed to suck up to her, but he was so adamant even in his exnation. It was as if he was

    too impatient to even console her.

    Skr twisted open the lipstick and drew it on the back of her hand. Only a woman in her twenties would

    use this kind of color.

    She memorized the shade and threw the lipstick away after getting off the car.

 Chapter 255

    Chapter 255

    Taking the keys, Skr opened the door and went to wash her hands in the kitchen without waiting for

    Tobias, who was parking the car.

    When Tobias got home, Skr had changed into her casual outfit and she was cing a te of fruits

    onto the coffee table.

    Cherries, strawberries and diced mangoes.

    Turning on the television, she didn¡¯t even bother to ask if the man wanted to eat the fruit, while the man

    didn¡¯t talk to her and went upstairs for a shower.

    When he went downstairs to the living room, Skr was still watching the television while eating the

    strawberries. She burst intoughter and could barely catch her breath.

    Detecting Tobias¡¯ presence, her smile froze immediately.

    The man sat beside her and tried to take her into his arms, but she struggled to escape his grasp with a

    look of disgust. ¡°I feel warm. So don¡¯t get too close to me.¡±

    Tobias got up and switched off the heater while Skr secretly cursed at him in her heart.

    How cunning!

    Tobias wanted to spend more time with Skr, so he didn¡¯t go to the study. Taking out a stack of

    documents from his briefcase, he ced them on the table. Every single person in the files was of a

    clean background.

    He wanted to choose some youngsters of clean background. As for those who had been climbing their

    way up, their social circle was way too big, and it would be possible for them to cut corners.

    Being Tobias¡¯ assistant, one would enjoy the luxury of being ttered by many people, so it was the most

    desired position by every employee in thepany.

    Skr reached out to take a cherry from the te and when she saw Eva¡¯s photo among the stack of

    documents, she almost swallowed the cherry whole out of shock.

    She took the initiative to start a conversation with Tobias. ¡°What¡¯s all this for? There are at least ten

    thousand employees in yourpany. The HR should be the one in charge of interviews.¡±

    Taking her into his arms, he nibbled on her ear and whispered, ¡°The HR had narrowed down the list to

    these people. I wanted this list of people with clean backgrounds to be my assistant.¡±

    Skr pursed her lips as she admitted the fact that Eva was outstanding. She could stand out from so

    many candidates and even climbed her way to the top in an internationalpany.

    Tobias sighed with regret and said, ¡°I wish you could be my assistant. If only you can stay with me all

    day, and we can do some enjoyable things together when we are tired.¡±

    Skr interrupted his daydreams by covering his mouth, stopping him from continuing.

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Is it not enough to torment me at home and outside? He wants to do it even in the office.

    Skr received a call from Kate when she was on the way to Wesley¡¯s house.

    Kate sounded calm on the phone, as if she knew this would happen. She asked Skr to get herself

    ready for the shoot a few dayster, and the script was sent to her email. Thepany also hired an

    assistant for her to meet tomorrow.

    This was splendid news to Skr. Never did she think she would be under the spotlight and not just

    some extra or side character.

    In the past, she had taken several minor roles and was always envious of the lead actress. Now that she

    had be the main character, she was truly happy, but not to the extent of fainting from excitement.

    When Skr arrived at her uncle¡¯s house, Miranda was wearing a ck gown with retro wavy hair

    spread on her shoulders. Although she was quite old and did nothing to maintain her beauty in the

    prison, she still looked great as she had nice features.

    Skr¡¯s features took after Miranda, especially her eyes and brows.

    When Miranda saw Skr, she spun around while lifting her dress. ¡°Look at me. Am I pretty? Isn¡¯t this

    dress so fitted for me? Your Dad¡¯s out on a business trip. I¡¯ll go look for him after he¡¯s back.¡±

 Chapter 256

    Chapter 256

    Skr ced her bag on the wooden chair and rested her chin on her hands while looking at Miranda,

    who was immersed in her own beauty. ¡°Are you sure he¡¯s on a business trip? Maybe he¡¯s hiding from

    you. Just look for other men if you really want to have a man.¡±

    Miranda frowned and took a nce at Skr. ¡°I went to prison back then, but now, everything¡¯s different.

    I¡¯ll take back everything he owes me. It¡¯s time for us three to have a reunion.¡±

    Skr felt there must be some secret between Miranda and Thomas, seeing as how Miranda was so

    confident that thetter would abandon his family to be together with her.

    In Skr¡¯s opinion, Miranda was more or less daydreaming.

    She looked at Miranda curiously and spoke in a rxed tone, as if she was talking about others¡¯ matters,

    even if it actually traumatized her.

    She said, ¡°Why do I feel that you¡¯ve changed? You used to hate me to death in the past when I visited

    you with Grandma, and you¡¯re displeased that I¡¯m not a boy. What happened to you?¡±

    After voicing out her doubts, the tension in her heart was released, and she felt rxed. Miranda¡¯s

    change was unbelievable and odd.

    Miranda ced her hand on her daughter¡¯s shoulders and said seriously, ¡°I have my pride to uphold, and

    I don¡¯t want my daughter to think I¡¯m miserable. I was depressed in the prison, always thinking of going

    out and hoping to see the outside world again one day. And I received a chance to go on medical parole,

    so I grasped it and pretended to be crazy. I was a little sick in the head, but it wasn¡¯t too serious to the

    point of losing my mind. It¡¯s just that the doctors kept giving me tranquilizers and antidepressants.¡±

    Miranda¡¯s answerpletely demolished Skr¡¯s opinion of her. It seemed her mom wasn¡¯t hopelessly

    romantic but full of schemes.

    However, Skr felt that something was fishy behind Miranda¡¯s release from the prison. Miranda¡¯s

    mental condition isn¡¯t severe enough for her to be on medical parole, and it isn¡¯t easy to exploit loopholes

    of thew. How did she break out from the prison so easily? I don¡¯t think pretending to be crazy can

    achieve this.

    Could it be Tobias was secretly helping her?

    Then why didn¡¯t he tell me anything?

    Walls have ears. Miranda¡¯s words were heard by the people eating meat fondue next door.

    In a careful manner, Sharon deliberately locked the door and lowered her voice. ¡°No wonder Miranda¡¯s

    out of the prison so fast. She¡¯s pretending to be sick!¡±

    Wesley said nothing as he continued to cook the meat, all the while staring at the pot.

    Looking at his cowardly behavior, Sharon was utterly furious. ¡°I¡¯m talking to you! When do you think she¡¯ll

    leave? We¡¯re not some charity organization, offering people a ce to live.¡±

    Wesley sighed and said helplessly, ¡°What do you want me to do? Mom didn¡¯t leave the house to Skr,

    but she didn¡¯t remove Miranda¡¯s name, so half of this house belongs to her. I can¡¯t possibly kick her out.

    If you really want to say it, then go ahead.¡±

    Sharon was so enraged that she almost flipped the table, but she didn¡¯t dare to make too much noise as

    it might attract Miranda¡¯s attention. ¡°I can¡¯t do that. Miranda killed someone before! Do you want your

    wife to die in her hands?¡±

    Eva drank a sip of fruit juice to ease the spiciness and raised a brow. ¡°Why are you guys fighting over

    this? She¡¯s on medical parole, but getting discharged doesn¡¯t mean she is free from her punishment.N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    They are so foolish. Aunt Miranda is sentenced to life imprisonment and after she¡¯s released, she¡¯ll be in

    her seventies or eighties. So, she shouldn¡¯t be here now. Don¡¯t you guys understand?¡±

    Sharon and Wesley exchanged nces, and it was as clear as day that they didn¡¯t understand what their

    daughter was hinting at.

 Chapter 257

    Chapter 257

    Eva urged, ¡°I¡¯ve made it so clear. Just call the police and let them take Aunt Miranda away. There must

    be some mistakes in the procedures causing her to be freed from custody. Once the police officers look

    into this matter, she¡¯ll be taken back to where she was.¡±

    Now that Eva had mentioned it clearly, she took out her phone and handed the task of reporting Miranda

    to her parents.

    Sharon chickened out and elbowed Wesley. ¡°She¡¯s your sister, so you should report her.¡±

    Looking at the numbers 999 on the phone screen, Wesley hesitated as he raised his hand and put it

    back down soon after. Miranda was his sister, and she had been taking care of him since they were

    young. Now that she was out of prison, he felt reluctant to send her back in.

    His conscience wouldn¡¯t let him take the phone while his heart was conflicted, but Miranda living in his

    house had brought them a lot of inconveniences. His house wasn¡¯t that big to begin with and ever since

    Miranda stayed there, Sharon had been quarreling with him every day while their son was forced to stay

    at the school dorm.

    Sharon red at her husband and said, ¡°You¡¯re so useless. Just take the phone. How hard could it be?¡±

    Eva added fuel to the fire. ¡°Dad, you¡¯re not betraying Aunt Miranda. You¡¯re just carrying out your duties

    as a good citizen. She doesn¡¯t seem like she suffered in the prison. We¡¯re not reporting her. Instead,

    we¡¯re helping her to find a better ce.¡±

    Listening to Eva¡¯s words, Wesley finally mustered the courage and took the phone. However, he gave

    the phone to Sharon after hesitating for a few minutes.

    His wife was so furious that she scolded, ¡°Coward!¡±

    She took the phone and reported to the police, saying that an inmate escaped and came to their house,

    threatening their lives. Giving the address to the police officers, she urged them toe capture the

    inmate as soon as possible.

    After reporting to the police, Sharon felt so rxed that she started humming a tune.

    Now, there won¡¯t be any outsider in our house.

    Ever since Miranda stayed with them, not only did she feel suffocated, she lost her appetite and even

    had trouble sleeping at night.

    Having stress weighing upon her every day, blisters appeared at the corner of her lips and it was getting

    on her nerves. She wished for the death of Miranda so badly.

    Eva said wistfully, ¡°We¡¯re so unlucky to have someone like her as our rtive. She¡¯s dragging everyone

    down. Kevin can¡¯t be a civil servant if he wants, while I can¡¯t pass the background checks of the

    government. This is all because of Aunt Miranda, but why are we the ones taking the me for it?¡±

    Sharon widened her eyes in surprise. ¡°Damn this Miranda! Dragging us down like this.¡±

    Then she shifted the me to Wesley and scolded, ¡°It¡¯s all because of your family members. I¡¯m so

    unlucky to be married to you.¡±

    Meanwhile, Miranda asked, ¡°Skr, are you hungry? They are eating meat fondue next door. Do you

    want some?¡±

    Skr shook her head. ¡°Not really. If they really want us to join, they could¡¯ve asked.¡±

    Miranda smiled and said, ¡°You¡¯re quite arrogant. Are you getting along well with the man who gave me

    the card? His wife¡¯s giving birth soon, but you¡¯re still involved with him. Well, I think you should break up

    with him and find another to spend your life with.¡±N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Hearing these words from Miranda, Skr was shocked. In the past, Miranda had always wanted her

    daughter to marry someone rich, so that she could enjoy the rest of her life in fortune and wealth.

    She didn¡¯t tell Miranda about everything, as it was way too hard to exin.

    Checking the time on her phone, she got up from the couch. ¡°I have to go. Did you call me here just to

    admire how beautiful your new gown is?¡±

    Miranda tried to make her stay. ¡°Why are you leaving in such a hurry? I told you I have good news to

    share. Eva is going to work in an internationalpany as the CEO¡¯s assistant and she¡¯s about to get

    married. You¡¯ll need toe up with a n for your life.¡±

    Miranda seemed more like a mom now, as she treated Skr better.

    Listening to Miranda mentioning Eva, Skr recalled seeing Eva¡¯s photo on the coffee tablest night.

 Chapter 258

    Chapter 258

    Tobias was so efficient in his work that the notice was announced by the HR department quickly.

    Skr was reluctant to listen to Eva¡¯s achievements as she admitted she was nowhere close to the

    outstandingtter.

    Not only did she have excellent results, she received love from her parents and her lover. She was a

    natural beauty, and every rtive deemed her to be sessful.

    Inparison, Skr was just a pitiful child who had no one to take care of her.

    Skr brushed her off and said, ¡°I know. I¡¯ll figure it out myself. I¡¯ll be off now¡­ If there¡¯s anything, hit me

    up.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Before she exited the house, she heard somebody knocking on the door. Thinking that it was the delivery

    man, she opened the door with no hesitation.

    At the door stood a few men in uniforms and peaked caps while the man in the middle was carrying a

    bag.

    Skr asked in confusion, ¡°Who are you guys looking for?¡±

    Miranda saw the police officers, but it was toote to flee. Lowering her head, she wished the earth

    would swallow her uppletely, hiding her from them.

    One of the police officers asked, ¡°Is this Miranda Watts¡¯s house?¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t reply and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Are you guys here to enumerate the residents?¡±

    The police took out an arrest warrant. ¡°We suspect that she broke out of prison, so we¡¯re bringing her

    back for an investigation.¡±

    Skr thought everything would be peaceful, so she was caught off guard by the sudden waves of

    trouble crashing onto her.

    Miranda lifted her head and pretended to be a fool. ¡°You bad people! Where do you think you are taking

    me? I¡¯m not a criminal anymore, so why are you guys here?¡±

    Sharon was listening to the movements outside the room and she felt relieved, knowing that Miranda

    was going to be arrested.

    What she wanted the most was for Miranda to rot in prison to save her family and herself some trouble.

    Sharon praised her daughter happily, ¡°My dear daughter, you¡¯re so smart! We should¡¯ve done this long

    ago. Let¡¯s see how long this woman canst.¡±

    Eva chuckled, ¡°You guys should learn to utilize thew. That way, she won¡¯t get to stay in our house.¡±

    Miranda was arrested by the police. When she was taken away, she was in handcuffs and many

    residents saw everything that happened.

    Everyone was gossiping, saying that she shouldn¡¯t be pitied and deserved it, seeing how she got

    arrested after being released for a short while.

    With doubts in her mind, Skr stood at the intersection as she stared at the police car speeding away.

    Before Miranda was dragged away by the police officers, she held onto Skr¡¯s hand in a vice-like death

    grip, with tears welling up in her eyes. The words she said only carried the reluctance of having her

    freedom being snatched away from her once again.

    Skr followed the police car to the police station.

    She wanted to learn about the situation, but she was blocked by the police officers at the entrance, so

    she could only wait outside from evening until past midnight.

    Shivering from the cold weather, she went to a convenience store nearby and bought a cup of hot coffee.

    When she went back to the police station, she stopped a police officer in his tracks. He was one of them

    who went to Wesley¡¯s house to arrest Miranda.

    Rushing her way to the police officer, she panted heavily, gasping for breath. ¡°What¡¯s the situation with

    Miranda Watts? Can you please tell me?¡±

    The police officer sympathized with the girl as she was waiting in such freezing weather outside.

    He disclosed, ¡°The results stated that she didn¡¯t return to jail after her medical parole, so shemitted

    a crime against thew. She¡¯ll be taken away to the prison she used to stay in tomorrow, and she¡¯ll be

    locked up now.¡±

    Skr¡¯s heart sank, even though she was mentally prepared for the worst.

    Miranda was sentenced to life imprisonment formitting intentional homicide, so there was no way

    she would be released after a decade.

    However, Skr found it hard to ept that her mother would be taken away the next day.

    She pursed her lips and said, ¡°Is there a way to turn this around?¡±

    The police officer answered, ¡°I don¡¯t think so, as there is evidence of her breaking out of the prison.

    Young girl, the weather is freezing, so you should go back home. You can visit her when she¡¯s in jail.

    There¡¯s no point in waiting as you won¡¯t be able to meet her now.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t figure it out. Everything was fine until now¡­ How did the police officers find out?

 Chapter 259

    Chapter 259

    ¡°You¡¯re the ones who found out about this?¡±

    The policeman refused to borate any further, knowing that going into too much detail might result in

    disciplinary action for him. So he just shook his head and waved down a taxi, then got in it and left.

    The fact that Miranda had put on her new dress today specifically to show Skr but was now being

    made to wear a prison uniform left a bitter taste in her mouth.

    Her feet felt as heavy as lead as she stood helplessly by the roadside, staring at the brightly lit-up police

    station. The building was literally right in front of her, yet she couldn¡¯t bring herself to take a single step

    forward.

    The phone in her pocket rang. Noticing that the call was from Tobias, she cleared her throat and shoved

    down her swell of emotions before answering it.

    ¡°I just got back. Where are you? Why aren¡¯t you home?¡±

    There was a long pause as Skr inhaled deeply through her nose, then replied, ¡°I¡¯m in front of the

    police station. My mom¡¯s in there.¡±

    ¡°Send me the address. I¡¯ming over.¡±

    Just as he had promised, Tobias soon arrived at the police station. The sight of him getting down from

    his car made Skr feel as if the earth had finally stopped swaying under her feet.

    Running straight to him, she wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her head into his chest.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You seem upset, did someone bully you?¡± He asked, running a hand through her hair

    soothingly.

    His voice was low and deep, but gentle.

    ¡°My mom is going to be sent away tomorrow, and I don¡¯t know what to do. She was arrested just this

    afternoon.¡±

    Skr felt Tobias¡¯ chest rise and fall against her face as he sighed. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say so earlier? You

    should have called me as soon as it happened.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t know what to tell him. Maybe she hadn¡¯t wanted to cause trouble for Tobias, or maybe she

    just hadn¡¯t thought about him in her moment of panic.

    But Tobias understood the reason why, even if she didn¡¯t say it out loud.

    In her book, asking him for help whenever she got in trouble was not an option. Even now, she still

    stubbornly believed that she could handle everything by herself.

    But there were just some things she couldn¡¯t muscle through with pure determination alone.

    This situation waspletely out of her hands. She was a mere college student with no connections, no

    community resources avable to her, and no social influence.

    ¡°How long are you going to hug me for?¡± Tobias whispered into her ear.

    It was only then that Skr snapped out of her daze, pulling away from him as she wiped at her teary

    eyes.

    ¡°Sorry. I¡¯m kind of disoriented right now.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t mind. He was already used to seeing Skr in a disoriented state.

    Patting her back, he reassured her, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Your mom will be fine. It¡¯s my fault for being too busy

    and not properly managing my time as ofte.¡±

    His tone and attitude exuded an aura of absolute confidence that calmed her nerves.

    Skr couldn¡¯t go into the police station, but the chief of police immediately came out to greet Tobias as

    soon as the man entered. His attitude was so meek and humble, it seemed like he would have gotten on

    his knees if Tobias simply asked.

    Tobias made Skr wait in the corridor for him. He then spotted a vending machine that sold various

    types of snacks and buns, moving to stop a female officer who was passing by.

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    The officer froze up as she stared at the man in front of her. Standing at a height of nearly two meters tall

    with a perfectly symmetrical face and deep-set, handsome features, the sight of him made her be

    much more alert than any caffeine ever did.

    Is this the start of my fairytale love story?

    ¡°How does this machine work? My girlfriend is getting a little hungry.¡± The man¡¯s words immediately

    shattered her fantasy.

    He¡¯s lucky he¡¯s so good-looking. I nearly misunderstood this as a very unpleasant way of flirting.

    After the female officer taught him how to use the vending machine, Tobias chose a bun, some ham

    sausages, and a bowl of porridge. To his dissatisfaction, the porridge was cold.

    Setting the food on Skr¡¯sp, he told her, ¡°Wait here for me. I¡¯ll handle everything and your mom will

    be out before dawn.¡±

    Skr¡¯s previous anger towards Tobias¡¯s ¡°punishment¡± melted from the warmth with which he looked

    after her.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this all very troublesome for you?¡± she asked, looking up at him.

    He smiled slightly. ¡°Not at all. Make sure to eat everything I bought for you.¡±

    Skr watched Tobias walk away and strike up a friendly conversation with a few uniformed police

    officers at the end of the hallway.

    What are they talking about?

    She peeled open the packaging of the bun and took a bite, recognizing the taste of the coconut-vored

    filling.

    Time ticked by slowly. Tobias was long gone, as were the several uniformed police officers.

    Her phone vibrated in her pocket, and she switched it on to read the new messages from Eva.

 Chapter 260

    Chapter 260

    Eva: How is Aunt Miranda doing? Don¡¯t worry too much. You have to trust the justice system. There¡¯s just

    some stuff that we can¡¯t control.

    Skr scoffed. If Eva was telling her to ¡°trust the justice system¡±, then clearly she had already predicted

    the oue of this situation. She had suspected that Eva had something to do with the police showing

    up at her house, and now here she was, pretending to care about Skr.

    Having nothing to say to Eva, Skr decided to ignore her messages.

    It was two in the morning when Tobias finally reappeared. Skr instantly got to her feet as he walked

    towards her, asking him, ¡°What happened?¡±

    He didn¡¯t offer a response, instead waiting for a while until a hysterical Miranda was eventually brought

    out by the police.

    When the police had told her that she was innocent and free to leave, she nearly fainted from

    excitement, thanking every god and deity out there for watching over her.

    This was the start of Tobias and Miranda¡¯s awkward first meeting at a police station.

    He took the initiative to introduce himself by greeting her and saying, ¡°Hello, I am Skr¡¯s boyfriend.¡±

    Taken aback, Miranda began rposing herself, visibly nervous from how tightly she was gripping her

    skirt. ¡°What should I call you? I am so grateful to you for getting me out of there.¡±

    ¡°Just call me Tobias,¡± he answered, smiling. ¡°And you¡¯re wee. I¡¯ll be sending you home now.¡±

    Miranda still looked apprehensive. ¡°I won¡¯t be arrested again, right? This whole ordeal has really taken a

    toll on my weak heart.¡±

    ¡°As long as I¡¯m around, you will not get arrested, so you don¡¯t have to worry about that,¡± Tobias

    promised.

    Skr let out a long sigh of relief. Now, there was another issue for which she was indebted to him.

    The chief of police walked them right to the entrance of the police station, going on and on about ¡°having

    caused trouble for Mr. Ford¡±.

    But Tobias didn¡¯t hold back. ¡°I hope simr incidents of arresting innocent citizens never ur again,¡±

    Tobias told him, tantly gaslighting the chief of police into believing that it was his men who were at

    fault.

    Skr and her mother got onto Tobias¡¯ ck Ferrari.

    Miranda¡¯s eyes lit up at the sight of the expensive vehicle. Her mood had changed so abruptly, it was as

    if she had already forgotten everything that happened that day.

    ¡°How much does a car like this cost?¡±

    Skr sighed, rubbing her temples. ¡°Mom, could you please calm down? The car doesn¡¯t matter right

    now.¡±

    Tobias nced back at Miranda while he was driving. ¡°Do you have a driving license, Ms. Watts? If you¡¯d

    like, I can gift the car to you.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t. She can¡¯t drive,¡± Skr rushed to stop him.

    Miranda¡¯s jaw fell open. Although she was, by all means, a metaphorical gold digger, there was no way

    she could ept such an expensive gift, exining hurriedly, ¡°No, no! It¡¯s fine! I¡¯ll just¡­ I¡¯ll just look at it.¡±

    It was already veryte. Miranda, worried she might disturb her brother and his family¡¯s sleep, asked if

    she could stay at Skr¡¯s for a while.

    Staring out the window, Skr mumbled, ¡°You won¡¯t be disturbing their sleep. If anything, they¡¯ll be

    ted to see you back home.¡±

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    That was a lie. She wanted to witness the disappointment on Eva and the others¡¯ faces.

    Skr¡¯s exnation made sense to her mother. Miranda¡¯s brother had to be worried for her, especially

    because she had been arrested so suddenly.

    Tobias stopped the car by the roadside to go to a convenience store, and Skr got out with him.

    ¡°Are you hungry?¡± she asked.

    Tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear, he shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m running out of some¡­ supplies at

    home. I don¡¯t want to have to run out to get them right before we do ¡°it¡±.¡±

    Skr bit her bottom lip, muttering through gritted teeth, ¡°Are you a demon? Don¡¯t you ever get tired?¡±

    Tobias enjoyed Skr¡¯s embarrassed reaction and took pride in flustering her this way. ¡°I¡¯m just a man

    who¡¯s pursuing what I want. You¡¯ve heard of the saying ¡°there¡¯s no such thing as a free meal¡±, right? I

    helped you¡­ So you have to repay me.¡±

 Chapter 261

    Chapter 261

    Miranda was still a little reluctant to part with them when Skr and Tobias dropped her off at her house,

    saying, ¡°Today¡¯s meeting was just too rushed. I¡¯ll treat you to a meal one day whenever you¡¯re free,

    Tobias.¡±

    Not wanting Miranda and Tobias to interact too much, Skr cut into the conversation. ¡°He¡¯s really busy,

    so maybe next time.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m free anytime, Ms. Watts. Just ask Skr to pass on the message to me,¡± Tobias immediately

    followed up with a smile.

    Only then was Miranda satisfied. Tobias was a very powerful man and her savior. If he hadn¡¯t been

    dating Skr, she might have had to stay in jail forever. Even after so many years, I still have to rely on

    Skr.

    She¡¯d always thought that it was useless to raise a daughter, but things were different now. Miranda

    didn¡¯t regret having given birth to Skr anymore, but she did regret taking out all her frustration from the

    divorce out on Skr as a child.

    ¡°Thank you.¡± Skr rested her head against the car window, tired and in a bad mood.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a big deal. You¡¯re going to make it up to me anyway.¡± Tobias turned up the heating system in the

    car, something he usually never did because the warm air conditioning made him feel stuffy and

    ufortable.

    ¡°I¡¯m way too tired, and besides, we already did ¡°it¡± yesterday. Can¡¯t I repay you in some other way?¡±

    pleaded Skr.

    ¡°Well, what do you have to offer me?¡±

    Skr grew quiet. How else can I make it up to Tobias? The twenty million cash deposit? It didn¡¯t seem

    like he¡¯d want that.

    Besides, her bank ount didn¡¯t have that twenty million anymore. She¡¯d transferred fifteen million to

    Miranda because Miranda didn¡¯t have any other source of ie after getting out of jail, and had never

    purchased any kind of insurance.

    Everything and anything required money nowadays, and she couldn¡¯t just leave her mother to her own

    devices. Plus, she had confiscated from her the card that Tobias had given Skr.

    What if she¡¯s unable to control herself and overspends on unnecessary things?

    She was worrying herself to death trying to ensure that Miranda could live a normal life.

    Shaking her head in resignation, Skr sighed. ¡°I guess all I can do right now is selling my body. But,

    filming for my new movie is starting soon. If I be famous, I¡¯ll bury you in all the money I¡¯m bound to

    earn.¡±

    That was an absolute lie. There was probably no one on earth who could bury Tobias in more money

    than he already owned.

    Noticing that Skr looked fatigued, Tobias decided not to press the topic any further. ¡°I know, I know.

    When you earn enough money to bury me alive, then it¡¯ll be my turn to kick back and rx. I want to

    experience what it¡¯s like to be pampered and spoiled too.¡±

    The sun had already risen when they arrived home.

    Skr felt even guiltier for having dragged Tobias into her mess. If it weren¡¯t for her, he would be asleep

    on his bed about now.N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Yawning, sheid down on the sofa with a pillow in her arms. With her chin resting on top of the pillow

    and a small pout on her lips, she resembled a lostmb.

    The more Tobias stared at Skr¡¯s new hairstyle, the unhappier he became. The cuteness that he

    adored from before was reced by a sassy fierceness, and he didn¡¯t like it. Her original ck hair was

    more than good enough. Why did they have to ruin it?

    ¡°If you¡¯re tired, go upstairs to sleep,¡± he told her.

    Skr yawned again, rubbing her neck. ¡°What about you? Are you going to sleep too?¡±

    Taking a look at his wristwatch, Tobias said, ¡°I need to make another trip to the office.¡±

    That woke Skr up. Tobias going back to the office at five in the morning sounded suspiciously simr

    to the excuse other husbands would give their wives, saying that they had to stay back at the office for

    work even though it was the middle of the night. The sleepiness in her mind cleared and was

    immediately reced by intrusive thoughts of whether there was actually someone else somewhere else

    waiting on Tobias.

 Chapter 262

    Chapter 262

    Skr attributed her damned curiosity and pessimism to her Scorpio sun sign.

    Even today, she felt that there was no single part of her that was worthy of being Tobias¡¯ girlfriend.

    Everyone always said that ¡°confident women are the prettiest women¡±, but she could only resort to

    finding her self-confidence in Tobias¡¯panionship.

    Her home environment while growing up affected her in a very negative and unhealthy way. It was

    exactly why she was so desperate to prove herself, it was exactly why she wanted to discover her self-

    worth, and it was exactly why she wanted to be perfect. Pursuing those ideals was the only thing

    she was absolutely determined and confident in.

    Looking up at him, she realized that he seemed tired, a constant wrinkle between his eyebrows.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    ¡°Why do you need to go to work so early in the morning if you¡¯re the boss? Can¡¯t you just re-arrange your

    own schedule? If you leave for the office now, you¡¯ll arrive earlier than even the security guards.¡±

    Tobias could hear the suspicion in Skr¡¯s questions. She was just beating around the bush because

    she was insecure.

    He preferred girls who were obedient, but at least Skr hadn¡¯t outright used him of anything.

    ¡°I have to go elsewhere for a meeting and thene back at noon. That¡¯s why I¡¯m leaving so early in the

    morning. Are you satisfied with this exnation?¡±

    He clearly sounded upset. Is he annoyed because I¡¯m being a busybody?

    She waved him away, forcing a near-perfect smile. ¡°Just go. I¡¯ll rest for a while and then go out, too.¡±

    As Skr trudged up the stairs, Tobias called out after her, ¡°Be careful while you¡¯re home alone and go

    get some sleep soon.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t respond, continuing to walk up the stairs. She was aware that she wasn¡¯t acting right and

    that her heart felt like it was being squeezed dry inside her chest. It was as if her love for Tobias had

    completely taken over her entire being, and her emotions fluctuated based on Tobias¡¯ every move and

    every word.

    All of his moods directly determined her own. This could not go on. Her past rtionship had been

    exactly like this, and it was the reason why she had been so deeply hurt.

    She¡¯d had a total of two rtionships, both of which she was very serious about. Is this one going to

    backfire just like thest one had?

    If Tobias turned on her and didn¡¯t want to take the rtionship seriously anymore, she could guarantee

    that they wouldn¡¯t just be physically apart, they would most likely never get back together, nor even see

    each other ever again.

    She returned to the bedroom and flopped onto the bed, yawning as she curled into afortable

    sleeping position.

    She distantly wondered how Wesley and his family were doing. They were most likely stunned by how

    Miranda had been dered innocent, hastily rediscussing their schemes behind her back.

    And to think that Miranda had been worried about returning home sote because she might disrupt their

    sleep. If she hadn¡¯te home at all, they really might have stayed sleeping soundly like a baby.

    Skr only awoke when her phone rang with a call from Kate, who sounded very cross with her when

    she answered the call. ¡°We had an appointment at eleven o¡¯clock today. It¡¯s already eleven. Where are

    you?¡±

    Skr instantly jumped out of bed, washing her face and brushing her teeth at record speed. She had

    forgotten to set an rm, and hadn¡¯t expected that she would sleep for so long either.

    It took her only ten minutes after getting out of bed to leaving the house bare-faced and waving down a

    taxi to head for Royal Entertainment.

    She had yet to reach her destination when her phone rang again. This time, it was a call from Tobias.

    Skr was a little taken aback, wondering if he had identally called the wrong number because he

    usually never contacted her at this time of day.

    Answering the call and saying ¡°hello¡± a few times into the receiver, she was met with no response.

    All she heard were the sounds of Tobias¡¯ surroundings. There were people all around him talking

    heatedly, and it sounded like their discussion had just reached a boiling point.

    Skr listened to the strange call as she walked, and even asionally picked out Tobias¡¯ cold,

    emotionless voice.

    ¡°The final payment hasn¡¯t even been paid, and yet you all keep drawing up new blueprints. Are you just

    lying to yourselves or do you think I am an idiot?¡±

 Chapter 263

    Chapter 263

    Skr didn¡¯t understand a single thing, but could only ascertain that the conversation was about money.

    Tobias had said before that he was only still alive for the sake of earning money and nothing else.

    If she were in Tobias¡¯ shoes, she would have retired and escaped to an exotic ind some years ago.

    Scared that she might identally overhear some trade secret and be a target, she hung up the

    call.

    Skr made a beeline for Kate¡¯s office. Even though Kate wasn¡¯t usually at thepany building, she

    had put a lot of effort into renovating her office, and there were even pictures of her pet dogs on the

    desk.

    I knew it. Kate still isn¡¯t married yet, even at this age.

    Hearing a knock on the door, Skr let herself in nearly an hourter than the previously agreed time.

    She instantly apologized, sputtering out some excuse about how she waste because of a traffic jam

    when, in actuality, the drive had beenpletely uneventful.

    She didn¡¯t want to lie, but she couldn¡¯t tell Kate the truth that she had spent all ofst night at a police

    station.

    Kate was very serious and professional woman, and would not give face regardless of whoever it was

    when it came to her work.

    She didn¡¯t care for Skr¡¯s exnation, demanding, ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you leave home an hour earlier so

    you¡¯d arrive on time even if there was a traffic jam? Artistes need to know about the importance of

    punctuality. This isn¡¯t college where you can just say ¡°sorry I¡¯mte¡± and shrug it off. If you keep this

    attitude up, people are going to think you¡¯re arrogant and egotistical.¡±

    Skr just bowed her head and admitted that it was her fault for beingte, promising Kate that she

    would never repeat the mistake ever again.

    Only then did Kate seem to calm down somewhat, making a call and asking Skr¡¯s new assistant to

    come in.

    During her previous filming session, Skr had had to do everything by herself. No one had even helped

    her to take some of the catering food that the staff had ordered.

    Skr always showed up on set alone without a team, an assistant, nor a manager. This reflected badly

    on Kate, as other people might think that theirpany was mistreating their artists, or that Kate was a

    useless manager.

    Before long, a young girl with long, pin-straight hair and wearing in clothes with dark-rimmed sses

    entered the room. She didn¡¯t look older than a fresh graduate.

    The girl shyly greeted Skr, taking in the up-anding celebrity that she was going to be looking after

    for the time being.

    Needless to say, she was astonished at how good-looking Skr actually was. Seeing her in person

    without any beauty filters nor makeup, there was no doubt in her mind that Skr could easily rise to the

    top of the entertainment business.

    The new assistant¡¯s name was Hannah Hayes. Skr¡¯s first reaction to hearing her name was,

    unfortunately, salivating at the thought of a sweet honey cake.Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    Hannah was nearly knocked off her feet when Skr smiled at her. No woman could possibly resist her

    smile, let alone a man.

    Skr thought that Hannah looked a little ditzy.

    After Hannah left the room, Skr turned around to ask Kate, ¡°Why did you assign me a newbie? Two

    newbies both with zero experience sounds like a recipe for disaster.¡±

    She was very upfront about her dissatisfaction with her new assistant, but Kate had ns of her own and

    had expected Skr¡¯s reaction.

    ¡°If I assign you an experienced manager and they turn out to be a sleazy asshole, you might end up

    getting taken advantage of. Your assistant doesn¡¯t need to do much for now except manage what you eat

    and where you sleep. Newbies are meant to help each other grow.¡±

    Skr sighed, softening her tone. ¡°Fine. I get it. If there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯m going to go take a look at the

    script. Filming is going to start soon.¡±

    Kate wanted to talk with Skr more, but sensing that the young woman was desperate to leave, she

    kept silent and let her go.

    Skr was still weary from having not rested well the previous night. She just wanted to take a look at

    the practice rooms before heading home straight away.

    It was there that she bumped into Amelia, who had just finished practicing her dance choreography.

 Chapter 264

    Chapter 264

    Amelia was wearing skintight athleisure wear thatplemented her slim, gorgeous body well. If Skr

    had to guess, Amelia couldn¡¯t have weighed much more than forty kilograms.

    Now that¡¯s what I call a skinny legend. You could start a fish pond in the hollow of those corbones.

    As fellow artists under the same manager, she felt obliged to greet Amelia.

    Skr waved at her as she wiped off some sweat with a towel.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t congratted you yet on getting a female lead role before graduating,¡± Amelia said, a hint of

    contempt in her voice.

    Skr replied humbly, ¡°I was just lucky, that¡¯s all.¡±

    Amelia¡¯s sharine sweet giggle that followed sounded mocking.

    ¡°It¡¯s not as if your luck just came to you out of nowhere. Tell me, do you call your benefactor ¡°daddy¡± in

    bed?¡±

    Skr¡¯s smile instantly froze on her face. She did, in fact, have a vague memory of being forced by

    Tobias to call him ¡°master¡±.

    But she would never be so perverted as to call him ¡°daddy¡±.

    Amelia interrupted her train of thought by continuing, ¡°That lead role was actually supposed to go to me,

    you know. But I gave up the chance and so, it went to you. I hope you¡¯ll always stay that lucky.¡±

    Skr wiped the smile from her face, her gaze turning sharp. ¡°I hope so too¡­ And I also hope that you

    won¡¯t ever give up your opportunities for my sake again.¡±

    Giving her a sidelong nce, Amelia huffed. ¡°Showbiz goes through new generations of artistes and

    entertainers with a very high turnover rate. Maybe you should put more effort into making sure your

    benefactor stays by your side. I¡¯m not as fortunate as you are and grew up in a strict household, so I

    can¡¯t possibly imagine selling my body out in order to make a name for myself.¡±

    ¡°Please don¡¯t worry about me! I was born with a natural determination and talent for doing unimaginable

    things,¡± Skrughed innocently.

    From Amelia¡¯s point of view, Skr was broken to the point of no return. How else could someone do

    something so immoral and scandalous and not be ashamed of themselves, but take pride in it instead?

    Skr decided to stop talking to Amelia, havinge to the conclusion that Amelia probably just felt

    indignant and bitter about Skr¡¯s new role. Don¡¯t me me, me Kate¡­ She¡¯s the one who used to

    spoil you by focusing all her time and resources on you, and you alone.

    Being forced to give up the lead role to someone else must not have been easy, but Skr could care

    less.

    When Skr left Royal Entertainment, it was already afternoon and she had yet to hear from Miranda.

    She couldn¡¯t stop feeling antsy ever since Miranda was released. There was an incessant worry that

    Miranda might cause trouble, or get involved with the Joneses again.

    When she got home and pushed open the door, she was surprised to see Tobias at home. It was out of

    character for him to return so early.

    The man was seated on the sofa, head lowered as he ate his sd slowly and carefully with a

    disposable fork.

    If he live-streamed himself eating and covered up that handsome face of his, no one will ever watch it.

    His attitude was too prim and proper while eating, and it made his food seem unappetizing somehow.N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Skr set her bag down and went to wash her hands beforeing back to the living room to ask him,

    ¡°Why are you home so early? Where¡¯d the sde from?¡±

    She expected for him to say that Susan or another one of his secretaries had bought it for him.

    Tobias handed her a container of food that he had left untouched in its stic bag, having bought it for

    her to eat.

    ¡°I ordered it on my phone.¡± He had finished the sd and started eating the leftover chicken slices.

    Skr giggled quietly. Tobias was making speedy progress considering that he didn¡¯t even know how to

    pay bills using his phone a while ago.

    Maybe she should be concerned that Tobias had been with her for so long, he had started stooping to

    her level and ordering delivery food.

    Early the next morning, Skr was awakened by her phone nearly blowing up with notifications from

    Instagram.

    Her follower count had grown by ten million overnight. She even looked at the number three times over

    to make sure that her bleary eyes weren¡¯t fooling her.

    Tobias had been woken up by Skr¡¯s movements as well, draping his arm over her waist and slipping a

    hand into her underwear without even bothering to open his eyes.

 Chapter 265

    Chapter 265

    However, Skr was in no mood to think about those things. Her eyes were fixed on her phone screen

    as she wondered where all these fans hade from.

    It was possible that herpany had bought fake followers for her. After all, she had way too little

    followers on her Instagram page before, and it had made her look a little pathetic.

    Skr grabbed hold of Tobias¡¯s wandering hand, pulled it out of her underwear, and got out of bed to

    open the curtains.

    Instantly, the blinding rays of the morning sun spilled in through the windows and shone down on Tobias,

    who had gone to sleep only in his underwear.

    Skr couldn¡¯t help herself from ogling at his well-proportioned body. How much did he spend on gym

    membership to achieve those six-pack abs?

    Tobias shielded his eyes from the sun. He sounded as though he had just woke up. ¡°Why are you pulling

    the curtains open? Some things are better done in the dark.¡±

    Skr was already wearing her clothes. ¡°Who said I was going to continue rolling around in bed with

    you? I have to go to the office now. I have an audition for an advertisement.¡±

    ¡°What time does it start?¡±

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°In the afternoon,¡± Skr replied without hesitation.

    Tobias stretched out his hand and grabbed his phone from the edge of his bed. It was only eight in the

    morning.

    Her eyes were drawn to the burgeoning tent at the front of his pants. If his underwear wasn¡¯t there to

    keep it in check¡­

    She couldn¡¯t help but imagine the scious image in her mind. Shuddering slightly, she decided not to

    provoke him so early in the morning. She didn¡¯t want to get a fiery dose of him just as she woke up.

    After being woken up by Skr, Tobias couldn¡¯t fall asleep again. He mped a cigarette between his

    teeth and made his way to the bathroom.

    ¡°Are you going to take a shower? I¡¯ve prepared a towel for you. I¡¯ve even changed them once every

    three days, like you requested.¡±

    Tobias turned around and looked at her. ¡°Since you can¡¯t satisfy me, I have no choice but to use my

    hands to satisfy my needs.¡±

    He said that with apletely straight face. Skr yed dumb and continued packing her things.

    After he went into the bathroom, she crept over and pushed the door slightly ajar.

    The room was full of smoke¡ªevidently, Tobias had forgotten to turn on the venttion in the bathroom

    before he started puffing away on his cigarette.

    He squinted his eyes and saw a pair of eyes peeking out at him from the gap in the doorway.

    ¡°Do you have a particr interest in watching men in the bathroom? Or are youing in to assist me in

    the shower?¡±

    Realizing that she had been discovered, Skr said without hesitation, ¡°I thought you were really going

    to do it with your hand.¡±

    ¡°Why would I use my hand when I have my woman? If you¡¯re really concerned about me,e in and

    help me out.¡±

    Skr pushed open the door and went to stand by the sink, silently watching both of their reflections in

    the mirror.

    Tobias¡¯ hair was cropped in a very stylist fashion. His facial features were smooth and delicate, and his

    side profile was nothing short of perfect. Both his looks and the manner with he carried himself made her

    swoon a little.

    She wondered wistfully at how beautiful their future children would be.

    But will we even have children? Skr chastised herself for thinking of something so foolish.

    Tobias and she were as different as the earth and the sky¡ªshe was earth, and he was the sky!

    He was a wealthy man sought after by numerous girls in the entertainment industry, and most of them

    were famous actresses. They were more than suitable partners for a man of his standing.

    Throughout their one year rtionship, he had never once promised to marry her or to take care of her

    for the rest of her life.

    As Skr stared at the mirror in a daze, Tobias handed his shaving razor to her. ¡°Do you want to help me

    shave?¡±

    She frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t know how to use this, and I¡¯ve never helped anyone shave before. Do you have an

    electric shaver? I think I might have a go with that.¡±

    Tobias had already smothered his chin with shaving foam. ¡°Electric razors don¡¯t work very well on me. I¡¯ll

    lie down on the sofa and you can do the honors.¡±

    The growth rate of one¡¯s hair was closely tied with the production level of hormones in one¡¯s body.

    Tobias¡¯ moustache grew very fast¡ªalthough he shaved in the morning, Skr often found bristles on his

    chin by the afternoon.

    No wonder he was so insatiable in bed. Sometimes, she wondered if a woman could truly satisfy him.

    Tobiasy down on the sofa. Carefully, Skr positioned the razor on his cheek and scraped it down his

    chin gently.

    He shut his eyes without a care in the world. As her hand made its way down his cheek, he could feel the

    tenderness of her skin against his own.

    Abruptly, he said, ¡°I wish I could take a break from work today to be with you for the next twenty-four

    hours.¡±

 Chapter 266

    Chapter 266

    Skr¡¯s hand trembled a little. Immediately, Tobias let out a hiss of pain. She ran to get a few pieces of

    tissues to staunch the flow of blood.

    There was a cut on the right side of his face. Although it was a rtively small wound, it was visible to

    the naked eye.

    She had ruined his face!

    However, Tobias didn¡¯t seem to mind, even as Skr apologized repeatedly to him. She was careless

    and jumpy by nature, so it was a risk he had to take.

    In azy drawl, he said, ¡°I¡¯ll be returning home veryte tonight. My mother asked me to stop by for a

    while. Do you want toe with me?¡±

    As soon as he mentioned udia, Skr felt overwhelmed with dread again. She had developed a sort

    of trauma towards that woman. If udia saw her again, she might copse from anger, and her old

    illness might rpse.

    ¡°Are you sure your mother is well enough to handle the shock of seeing me?¡±

    Tobias fell silent as he pondered over her question. Eventually, he decided not to extend the invitation to

    her again. Indeed, his mother red up whenever sheid her eyes on Skr.

    Her anger when she saw Skr was no less than her fury when the topic of her disloyal scumbag of a

    husband was brought up.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    Tobias hugged Skr and bit down lightly on her earlobe. ¡°You must regret being with me.¡±

    This was the first time he had said anything like that to her. Skr smiled. ¡°I don¡¯t mind¡ªI¡¯m not a

    Hollywood starlet or anything. But I believe I¡¯ll get there soon! One day, I¡¯ll be a household name

    because of my looks and gain some influence in the industry.¡±

    Skr was pretty, and she knew it. Since she had the looks, she might as well unt it to her advantage.

    Tobias pressed a kiss to her forehead and said, ¡°Yes, you are beautiful. I¡¯m going to die in your hands

    one day, you cunning vixen!¡±

    ¡°You overestimate me,¡± Skr retorted, her lips curling into a smile. ¡°My fragile little body is going to

    break under your rough ministrations one day.¡±

    Something shed in his eyes as he realized that there was some truth in her words. Indeed, he could be

    rough with her in bed sometimes.

    Her moans as she pleaded for mercyst night were still resounding in his ears. However, he had

    continued going, venting his fresh desires on her. Making love to her was simply one of the best things

    he had ever done.

    The two of them lounged around the t until afternoon. Then they finally left together.

    On their way to Royal Entertainment, Skr suddenly turned to Tobias and asked, ¡°If I were to be

    famous one day and the paparazzi exposed our rtionship to the public, what should we do?¡±

    ¡°I can pay them to keep quiet. Don¡¯t you worry about it.¡±

    She felt a lump form in her throat. This wasn¡¯t the answer she had wanted.

    ¡°You mean we can¡¯t ever go public with our rtionship?¡± she pressed.

    ¡°Do you want us to go public? Don¡¯t tell me you expect me to marry you.¡±

    Skr¡¯s mind had gonepletely nk. Betraying her heart, she responded with augh, ¡°No way¡­

    you misunderstood me.¡±

    Tobias looked a little colder and haughtier now. ¡°I think our rtionship right now is splendid! We can

    have the space to do our own things without being tied down by the burden of marriage.¡±

    This was exactly how a jerk would think. Suddenly, Kate¡¯s warning shed in Skr¡¯s mind again. You¡¯d

    better be more careful of Tobias. Don¡¯t think you can live happily ever after just because a powerful man

    like him made you his woman.

    As she continued to struggle with theplicated emotions within her, the car pulled up in front of Royal

    Entertainment.

    Without even saying goodbye to Tobias, she opened the door and got out of the car.

    Likewise, he remained silent. Evidently, the topic they just discussed had brought a great deal of

    unhappiness to the both of them.

    The moment she entered the lobby of the office building, Skr spotted a bunch of trainees crowding

    around. There was a bus just outside the door, which seemed to be here to pick them up.

    One of the girls was being surrounded by the rest.

 Chapter 267

    Chapter 267

    Skr shot a few curious nces towards them. Without her noticing, Kate sneaked up behind her.

    She followed Skr¡¯s gaze and said simply, ¡°That girl is Sheldon¡¯s girlfriend. The two of them have been

    getting along very well recently, and he keeps dropping by to visit her. That¡¯s why the other trainees suck

    up to her so much.¡±

    Skr understood the hidden meaning behind her words. No wonder these girls were hanging around

    her!

    Frankly, Skr thought the girl looked like an average online influencer.

    How did she steal the heart of a notorious yboy like Sheldon? She probably has some sort of hidden

    talent.

    Sheldon probably liked her the same way Tobias liked Skr for her unquestioning obedience. However,

    it wasn¡¯t something Skr particrly enjoyed doing¡ªrather, she couldn¡¯t hold herself back from doing

    so. After all, she owed Tobias too much.

    The filming crew dropped by to sign the final contract with her. Skr was a little disappointed to see that

    her pay was slightly below one million.

    Kate was exasperated. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re hesitating! This figure is practically unheard of for

    neers in the industry. Besides, this is your first drama. You have to climb thedder slowly.¡±

    However, with this measly sry, Skr wondered how long it would take for her to gather enough cash

    to smother Tobias.

    Even his watch cost more than her entire sry for this drama. They were truly worlds apart.

    She picked up the pen miserably and signed her name on the dotted line.

    This contract also required the signature of the CEO. Thinking that it was Tobias, Skr flipped quickly to

    thest page. However, the signature there belonged to Valerie instead! Skr slumped back against her

    seat.

    Kate knew exactly how she was feeling. ¡°Mr. Ford has transferred his decision-making power to her. He¡¯s

    way too busy to bother with Royal Entertainment now.¡±

    Skr had met Valerie once. She was awe-inspiring, not unlike the suave, self-assured Kate herself.

    Tobias seemed to like surrounding himself with powerful, talented women.

    He didn¡¯t return to the t for the next few days. Skr hadn¡¯t seen him ever since he went home for

    dinner with his mother¡ªor rather, she hadn¡¯t seen him since she brought up that ufortable topic in

    the car.

    Did I scare him off? As the endless possibilities swirled around her mind, Skr felt her heart sink

    miserably.

    She had called Tobias twice during the time he refused to return to the t. He answered both times, but

    their calls had neversted for more than thirty seconds. He always said he was busy.

    In the end, Skr gave up on calling him. Anyway, filming for the new drama was going to begin soon,

    and she didn¡¯t want her emotions to affect her work. Besides, there was no use being too enthusiastic

    towards a man.

    However, Tobias wasn¡¯t one to fall for this sort of behavior. If she didn¡¯t bother to contact him, he might

    just continue ignoring her for an indefinite amount of time.

    While the filming crew set up the shooting set, Skr posted a photo of her on set for the first time in her

    life.

    It was the result of a three-hour painful discussion between the makeup artists and stylists.

    Kate had a very clear vision of what Skr¡¯s image should be. She wanted thetter to dazzle everyone

    with her beauty the moment she stepped into the limelight.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    ¡°You¡¯re beautiful, sweetheart!¡± Kate eximed as she looked at her, loading Skr with effusive praises.

    ¡°Thanks¡­¡± Skr forced a smile onto her face. They had put her in a dress that was so red it looked as

    though it was on fire, and she didn¡¯t like it one bit.

    She was the only one who was dressed so formally. Naturally, she stole the attention on set, but the

    gaudiness of her dressing and makeup gave everyone the impression that she was desperate to stand

    out among the crowd.

    She stood quietly next to Harry as they waited for the crew to finish setting up. Next to each other, the

    duo looked like the perfect couple.

    Harry was a very chivalrous guy. When they took a photo together, he let his hand hang limply in the air

    instead of draping it over her shoulder.

    Kate and Harry¡¯s manager, Tyler, stood in a corner. Both of them were busy scrutinizing their own artist

    with their arms folded.

    Tyler observed, ¡°Your girl is pretty good-looking. As long as her acting isn¡¯t too terrible, she¡¯ll gain quite a

    lot of fame immediately. See how well the two of them look together! In fact, thepany has been

    meaning to make a couple out of them.¡±

 Chapter 268

    Chapter 268

    Kate burst intoughter. ¡°Why does it sound like they¡¯re doing Skr a service? She has always had an

    innocent image.¡±

    Tyler gazed at Skr¡¯s beautiful face. Innocent? Yeah, right.

    Like Helen of Troy, Skr had a face that couldunch a thousand ships. Men would go weak in the

    knees when they see her. She was still a student, but she had already starred in one of Daryl¡¯s films and

    was now the lead of this drama.

    It was no secret how she had risen in the industry so quickly¡ªshe probably slept her way up! Innocent

    my foot!

    However, Kate didn¡¯t shut down the idea of Harry and Skr being a couple entirely. ¡°We¡¯ll have to see

    the audience response when this drama is aired.¡±

    #Unrequited Love Press Conference#; #Harry Reid#; #Pride of Southwood#.

    Those were the three hashtags that started trending on social media immediately afterwards. Skr

    found herself saddled with the unfamiliar burden of being Southwood Film Academy¡¯s pride.

    She felt a little embarrassed. She had always kept a low profile in school, except for the one time people

    dished the dirt on her on social media.

    After that, however, everything had pretty much returned to normal.

    As it turned out, the public took very well to her ravishing appearance at the press conference. Her

    Instagram followers shot to five hundred thousand in less than a day.

    Despite that, there was another camp of people who were very critical of her on social media. They

    frequently left all sorts of nastyments under her posts.

    Theyined that Skr¡¯s looks werepletely different from what they imagined the female lead

    would look like, and that she wouldn¡¯t do justice to the novel.

    Not only was she too beautiful, but her face had a rather b*tchy look to it as well.

    That was the most likedment under that post.

    Skr used to think that she was only passably good-looking. However, after her makeup artists did their

    magic, her looks were greatly elevated to that of a renowned beauty. No wonder so many women were

    jealous of her.

    In the car, she scrolled through thements miserably.

    Why don¡¯t you act as a vixen or the male lead¡¯s mistress? You aren¡¯t suited for this role at all.

    Don¡¯t you dare sink your ws into Harry!

    How did she have the gall to ept a lead role when she has never acted much before? Just look at her

    rubbish acting skills! I bet she has a sugar daddy who got her this role in the first ce.

    My poor Harry is going to get tainted by her! Don¡¯t you think she¡¯ll try to seduce Harry with her looks?

    Skr felt a wave of anger wash over her. She closed the Instagram application immediately.

    It had been five days since shest talked to Tobias. She decided to unleash her pent-up fury on him

    instead.

    Her fingers flew over the keyboard as she typed furiously.

    Tobias¡¯s phone screen lit up again and again as notifications continued to pop up.

    Susan ced the documents shepiled on his desk.

    They were both quick and efficient, and their partnership was nothing less than a perfect one.

    This was also why Tobias particrly valued Susan as his secretary.

    It was very quiet in the office. asionally, there was a loud crinkle of papers as someone turned a

    page.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, you have some notifications on your phone,¡± Susan reminded him.

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Tobias finally mped the file shut and picked up his phone from the table. Immediately, he saw lines

    and lines of text messages from Skr, all filled with angry expletives.

    Tobias felt a little confused. Was she acting up because he had been neglecting her for the past few

    days? That couldn¡¯t be helped. Unfortunately, he had to go to work, too. He couldn¡¯t spend all of his time

    engaging in debaucherous behavior with Skr.

    He told Susan to leave first. She shot a curious look at his phone and saw Skr¡¯s name on the screen.

    So they are still together! Susan felt a little stunned.

    She had worked with Tobias for so many years, and she knew he had a messy private life. Most of his

    rtionships with women didn¡¯tst long.

    There were only a few types of woman on this earth. He despised those who got emotionally attached to

    him and refused to leave.

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    Chapter 269

    In fact, Tobias had a fianc¨¦e once, but they never went through with the marriage. Susan heard she had

    a mental breakdown and was institutionalized in a mental hospital.

    Only Tobias himself knew what happened between them.

    Susan knew that, stripped of his charisma, Tobias would be nothing more than an average hostile,

    dangerous yboy. This was why she constantly reminded herself not to fall for him.

    Her boss would rather remain a bachelor for life than being bogged down by marriage and the demands

    of one singr woman.

    Just as Susan was leaving the room, she bumped into Eva at the door.

    Susan shot her a look. Eva had a rather lovesick look on her face, and Susan¡¯s expression turned rather

    critical.

    The office had just hired a few assistants. Eva was objectively the best-looking one out of all of them.

    Susan feared that she might have developed a few strange ideas. Eva was a pretty good worker, and

    shepleted all her tasks wonderfully.

    Tobias tore his gaze from his phone and looked up at Eva. ¡°Is there something wrong?¡±

    ¡°Mr. Ford, the weather has been rather coldtely. My mother made some soup to thank you for taking

    such good care of me. Please drink some¡ªit¡¯ll do wonders for your health.¡± Eva ced the canister of

    soup on his desk and made to twist open the cover.

    Tobias leaned back in his chair and continued reading his documents, looking utterly unruffled.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, you should drink while it¡¯s hot,¡± Eva persisted. The silence in the room was making her

    ufortable.

    ¡°First, I¡¯ve never extended any special treatment towards you. Second, I hate soup¡ªthey make me sick

    and taste horrible to boot. Besides, do we know each other very well? You don¡¯t have to be so concerned

    about me.¡±

    Tobias drew blood with every word. Eva felt as though someone had just emptied a bucket of ice-cold

    water on her head. She put the lid back onto the canister.

    The wild, savage expression in Tobias¡¯ eyes frightened her.

    She had no choice but to leave the room. Just as she reached the door, he looked up and gazed at her.

    Eva¡¯s heart started beating wildly as she felt her face heat up.

    ¡°Aside from work matters, please do note in here to look for me. You might be new, but that¡¯s no

    excuse for yourck of propriety.¡±

    Eva bowed her head in humiliation. This was the first time she had been so thoroughly embarrassed.

    Tobias hadn¡¯t bothered to treat her with respect at all.

    The office fell silent as she crept despondently out of the room and shut the door behind her quietly.

    Susan was waiting for Eva in the corridor.

    She gazed contemptuously at the canister in thetter¡¯s hands and the mncholic expression on her

    face.

    Blocking Eva¡¯s path, Susan smiled and said mockingly, ¡°I remember telling you about the rules of this

    office on your first day. Have you forgotten all about it? Don¡¯t think you can climb the corporatedder by

    engaging in this sort of atrocious behavior. Use the time and do your work properly!¡±N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Eva tried in vain to defend herself, but Susan refused to listen to her. She had seen this sort of girls

    before.

    Tobias had never expressed an interest in any of his female subordinates. He hated it when people tried

    to suck up to him.

    He frowned and pursed his lips in annoyance. He tried to call Skr, but she hung up on him every

    single time.

    After he tried calling her a few more times, she got so frustrated that she simply blocked his number.

    What the hell is she doing? Infuriated, Tobias removed his tie and flung it onto his desk. He stalked over

    to his window and watched as rain poured down onto the streets outside.

    It was already winter, but it still rained every other day. Recently, it had been bone-chillingly cold.

    Sometimes, it was so cold at night that Tobias had a hard time falling asleep¡ªthat was when he thought

    two people in bed was better than one.

    He hadn¡¯t had much time to rest these days. He was spending most of his days in the office, which left

    him no time to engage in his usual debaucherous behavior. In fact, it had been a month since hest had

    s@x.

 Chapter 270

    Chapter 270

    Skr packed up after a day of shooting. On her way home, Hannah informed her about the filming time

    and location for the next day.

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but admire Kate¡¯s prowess in choosing her staff. Although Hannah wasn¡¯t exactly the

    brightest, she was loyal, hardworking, and responsible.

    When Skr heard she had to leave the house by five-thirty tomorrow morning, she nearly cried. In the

    past, she had woken up before dawn, but now that she was busier than a bee, she wanted nothing more

    than to sleep in.

    She took out her keys to open the door. As she bent down to remove her shoes, she spotted a pair of

    men¡¯s shoes on the rack.

    When he heard the door m shut downstairs, Tobias stuck his hands in his pockets and ambled down

    the stairs slowly.

    Skr had been keeping a careful count of the days since shest saw him a month ago. She couldn¡¯t

    help but feel a little distant from him.

    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± she asked callously.

    Tobias walked over to her and tilted her chin up with his finger. In a voiceced with lust and desire, he

    said, ¡°You don¡¯t seem thrilled to see me. Weren¡¯t you trying to get me toe over just now? You sent

    me so many emojis.¡±

    Skr was certain that she had never asked him toe over to spend time with her. How had he

    managed to turn the tables on her so quickly?

    As calmly as she possibly could, she replied, ¡°You¡¯re a busy man, and an important one at that. I would

    never dare to disturb you like that.¡±

    She sounded a little huffy as she said that.

    Tobias held a stic bag up from the sofa and passed it to her. ¡°I came over to visit you as soon as I was

    done. You didn¡¯t disturb me at all. Anyway, I was busy. Can¡¯t tell you what I was busy with, though¡ªyou

    probably won¡¯t understand a word I say.¡±

    Skr opened the stic bag. When she saw what was inside, her face flushed scarlet in

    embarrassment. As expected, Tobias hadn¡¯t changed at all.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    Gingerly, she fished a translucent G-string out of the bag.

    ¡°Are you going to wear it? I won¡¯t have much to say if you do, but if you want me to put this on, you can

    dream on!¡±

    Tobias smiled, but it didn¡¯t quite reach his eyes. ¡°Are you dumb or something? Do you think I could fit in

    that tiny piece of cloth?¡±

    Skr flung the flimsy piece of underwear at him, and Tobias caught it in his hands.

    Without even blinking, he brought the G-string to his face and gave it a deep sniff. ¡°This will smell even

    better after you¡¯ve worn it.¡±

 Chapter 271

    Chapter 271

    Tobias treated this ce as his temporary imperial residence.

    Skr discovered a long time ago that this man was prone to severe mood swings, and his attitude

    towards her was hot-and-cold.

    When he was in a good mood, he treated her like a precious gem. If she asked, he would probably steal

    a star from the night sky for her.

    However, he was sometimes so brutal that he seemed like apletely different person.

    Skr mmed her schedule for tomorrow onto the table. She hit the table so hard that her hands hurt.

    ¡°I have to leave the house before the sun even rises tomorrow. You¡¯ll excuse me for not doing it with you

    tonight. If you¡¯re so desperate, you can always find another woman to vent your animalistic instincts on.¡±

    Skr looked as though she had swallowed a few mouthfuls of gunpowder. Tobias gazed at her with a

    steely expression, feeling aggrieved.

    She doesn¡¯t like my present.

    Skr caught a faint whiff of alcohol on his clothes. He had probablye straight here from one of his

    work parties.

    Tobias nced at her schedule on the table. It was almostpletely full¡ªshe had a very busy day

    tomorrow.

    Without another word, he took her upstairs to a dimly lit room. The moment they entered the room,

    Tobias removed his hand from her waist and started undoing the button on her pants.

    Skr grabbed his hand, which was hovering around the edge of her underwear. ¡°Are you going to stay

    after this, or leave immediately after we do it?¡±

    She decided to pop the question. In the past, she had looked forward to living together with Tobias¡ªthat

    meant they could see each other after work every day. It was some form of happily ever after for her; she

    supposed.

    However, he had ruined this fantasy of herspletely. After a few weeks of their quiet routine, he

    dropped by less frequently. Sometimes, he refused to reply to her texts or answer her phone calls.

    It would be a lie to say his change of heart did not hurt her.

    Tobias let go of her. With a scious expression in his eyes, he said, ¡°Just once? That won¡¯t be enough.

    We¡¯ll have to do it thrice at least¡­ or I won¡¯t go tonight.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t know if she shouldugh or cry.

    What should¡¯ve happened afterwards happened. Tobias practically ripped her pants off her body. He was

    very aggressive this time¡ªher pants were only halfway down her thighs before he pushed her onto the

    bed and entered her from behind.

    Sweat dripped down his forehead as he panted and breathed raggedly. He told Skr in a low voice that

    it had been half a month since he did it.

    She didn¡¯t know if she should believe him.

    Afterwards, Tobias sat on the sofa and smoked quietly, while Skry in bed, naked as the day she

    was born. Even breathing hurt.

    She couldn¡¯t summon the energy to sit up in bed. Her calves were still cramping up, which made her

    shiver in pain.

    As Tobias flicked the ash off his cigarette into the ashtray, he noticed that there were a few cigarette

    stubs in it. They weren¡¯t from the brand he smoked.

    He put out his cigarette, which he had only finished smoking a third of. Gazing at Skr darkly, he asked,

    ¡°Who has been here while I was away?¡±

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    Skr knew he had a reason for asking that question. She climbed up from the bed with much difficulty

    and realized it was the cigarette butts in the ashtray that piqued his suspicion.

    ¡°Penelope came a few times. Are you against my friends dropping by?¡±

    The butts in the ashtray looked like a brand preferred by females. Tobias didn¡¯t ask about it again.

    Hey back down in bed and cuddled up to Skr, trying to move even closer to her.

    He hadn¡¯t taken any sleeping pills tonight, but fell asleep anyway. Even with the heavy weight of his arm

    on her, Skr didn¡¯t dare to move.

    After setting the rm for half-past four in the morning, she shut her eyes and listened to the even

    breathing next to her ear.

    However, her movement as she turned the rm off jolted Tobias awake.

    They quickly changed out of their pajamas. Tobias had behaved like a starved wolfst night, quite unlike

    how he had been when she first saw him downstairs.

    Skr was kind enough to let him sleep in at her house. It was way too early in the morning, anyway.

    However, Tobias ced an arm around her shoulders. Without another word, he steered her out of the

    door.

    It was winter, but the first few rays of the morning sun were already creeping across the horizon,

    illuminating the cars that were puttering about on the roads.

    Skr got into his car. It was the same one that she had discovered a lipstick stain a few weeks ago, but

    now it was perfectly clean. She noticed there was a can of xylitol gum in the cupholder.

    Skr popped a gum in her mouth. Her face scrunched up in disgust immediately¡ªit was mint-vored.

    ¡°Be careful,¡± Tobias drawledzily. ¡°Those are aphrodisiacs.¡±

 Chapter 272

    Chapter 272

    Skr froze and nearly swallowed the entire stick of gum in her shock.

    Tobias burst intoughter. ¡°Did you really believe that? Oh, what a foolish child.¡±

    He sounded rather affectionate when he said that. Skr rolled her eyes at him and continued chewing

    on the stick of gum.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to talk about your work?¡± Tobias asked.

    ¡°What¡¯s there to talk about? If I¡¯m not going for an outdoor shoot, I¡¯m in the filming studio.¡±

    Tobias shot her a dark look. ¡°Two people need to share amon topic of interest if they want to have a

    better rtionship with each other, especially two people from different industries. Aside from what we do

    in bed, we seem to have nothing to each other to talk about.¡±

    His words pierced her heart like a dagger. As Skr looked out of the window, she said dully, ¡°You

    should go look for a career woman to suit you better.¡±

    She had twisted his words entirely. However, Tobias couldn¡¯t be bothered to reply her. He had even

    downloaded Instagram for her sake in order to understand what went on in the entertainment industry.

    Evidently, he did put some effort into this rtionship.

    Before Skr got off the car, Tobias said cidly, ¡°I¡¯ll be there tonight, too. I hope you¡¯ll wear that G-

    string I gave you ande greet me at the door.¡±

    ¡°In your dreams!¡±

    He knew she was still angry with him because of what he said in the car. He didn¡¯t continue to beg her,

    but he knew he could simply force her to do it in bedter on.

    Tobias admitted he was a little wild in bed. He had many kinks, and he liked spicing up things most of the

    time. However, Skr was easily embarrassed by this sort of things. Whenever he suggested them, she

    mped up in fear and ruined the mood immediately.

    Unlike some of the crazier girls he had slept with, Skr was shy with these things. Tobias had tried to

    tone it down as much as he could and be more patient with her.

    A man and a woman had to be on the same page when it came to this. Only then could they have an

    enjoyable time in bed.

    As Skr climbed out of the Porsche, Tyler spotted her from a distance away.

    He smiled wickedly and muttered to himself, ¡°See, I was right! She has a sugar daddy, after all. That

    Porsche alone cost at least five million.¡±

    Behind him, Harry, who had gotten up too early in the morning, shut his eyes tiredly. ¡°I can¡¯t believe the

    company wants me to couple up with her. What if we offend her sugar daddy?¡±

    Tyler snorted derisively. ¡°That won¡¯t happen. Their rtionship is purely transactional; he won¡¯t care that

    much. Thepany will decide if they want to couple up the both of you after the drama airs. We can¡¯t

    let her mooch off your poprity so easily.¡±

    Harry was feeling very miserable. His girlfriend had been kicking up a fuss recently to get him to go

    public with their rtionship. If thepany insisted on making him and Skr a couple, his girlfriend

    would probably go insane from anger.

    As the makeup artist applied her makeup, Skr yed with her phone. Her stylist approached her with

    a whitece gown and told her to put it on.

    Skr yawned as she entered the changing room. When she took off her clothes and gazed at herself in

    the mirror, she realized her lily-white skin was covered with purplish-green hickeys. No thanks to Tobias.

    Her stylist was rushing her. But if she wore the dress, everyone would know what she didst night!

    As the stylist got more impatient, Skr had no choice but to head back outside. Everyone¡¯s gaze was

    drawn to her naked arm, and the adults knew at once what she had done.

    Skr bore the zing res and walked over to the makeup artist stoically. ¡°Can I cover these up with

    concealer?¡±

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

 Chapter 273

    Chapter 273

    The makeup artist nodded and got the concealer from the dressing table.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    Kate¡¯s scowl showed how upset she was as she stood by Skr¡¯s side. Men like Tobias are too kinky

    and sadistic if they could treat a girl like this? I bet Skr has been having a hard time ever since they

    became a couple. Her slender arm is covered with love bites!

    Lili covered Skr¡¯s hickey skillfully to match her skin tone.

    ¡°Thank you, Lili.¡± Skr smiled with satisfaction.

    After everyone left, Kate took Skr aside and gave the actress a piece of her mind. ¡°I don¡¯t care what

    you do in private with Tobias, but I don¡¯t want this to happen again! You are a rookie making your official

    debut in showbiz. However, I don¡¯t wish to see this happened again in the future. As a public figure, you

    need to think before you act. To put things bluntly, you¡¯re not his whore.¡±

    Skr blushed from the humiliating truth in her agent¡¯s words. Kate was right. I have been too giving to

    Tobias¡¯ needs!

    She deliberately arrived at the studio earlier because she had many scenes to film. While she was

    preparing, the director, Vensa, walked towards her with ady.

    Skr recognized thedy as Sheldon¡¯s girlfriend, the trainee she saw at Royal Entertainment

    previously.

    ¡°Skr, this is Winnie Moore, our second female lead. Please get to know each other.¡± Vensa made the

    introductions.

    Fiona, who was the second female lead and fellow rookie, began shooting with Skr. Winnie¡¯s sudden

    recement as the former¡¯s role came as a shock.

    It was rare to have changes in casting once filming began unless it was by the order of the executive

    producer. Nheless, Fiona¡¯s acting was wless, and she was very cooperative on the set. It was

    impossible for Mr. Hughes to rece such a fine actress under normal circumstances.

    If Winnie had used her connections to get the role, then everything would make sense.

    Skr was reminded of the day when Sheldon had asked Tobias for money to buy his girlfriend a

    birthday gift. It must be the limited-edition Herm¨¨s bag that Winnie¡¯s assistant was holding.

    Thetest member extended her hand to Kate and ignored Skr. ¡°Nice to meet you, Kate. I¡¯m Winnie;

    an actress from Royal Entertainment too.¡±

    Kate patronized her with an ¡°Mm.¡±

    Thetter was pissed by herck of interest, but she quickly hid her emotions and greeted Skr with a

    simple smile before stepping away.

    The set was bustling as the director cued for the camera.

    Skr was getting the goosebumps in her thin and white tulle dress as Harry and she were on standby

    before the camera.

    All the characters¡¯ names had been re-invented for adaptation purposes. Harry was Hans Cruz, the male

    lead and she, Lenny Dunn, the female lead. In that scene, Hans was asking Lenny the reason for her

    wanting to go overseas.

    Skr was quick to get into her character; her emotions and bodynguageplemented her script

    perfectly. Lenny had to convey her pain to Hans through her eyes when she couldn¡¯t find the right words.

    Inparison, Harry was acting too hard. He was spitting into her face when the script required Hans to

    curse.

    His acting reminded Skr of theedian, Tom Carrey.

    He couldn¡¯t grasp Hans¡¯ emotional state even after Vensa¡¯s guidance through the walkie-talkie. Out of

    frustration, the director got up from her chair to give him a personal show-and-tell. She also advised that

    his acting style was no longer the trend.

 Chapter 274

    Chapter 274

    Vensa unwittingly made aparison. ¡°This is the difference between an amateur and a professional.¡±

    She was indirectly criticizing Harry¡¯s performance while praising Skr, a graduate from the film

    academy, for her professionalism.

    Shortly before they went for lunch break, Harry finally got into the momentum.

    Hannah was queuing at the food cart for her lunch, like everyone else.

    Suddenly, a young assistant squeezed in and cut the queue.

    Hannah adjusted her spectacles and tried to reason with the assistant. ¡°Can¡¯t you see that we are

    queuing? How rude of you to jump in!¡±

    Thetter rolled her eyes. ¡°I¡¯m in a rush to get Ms. Moore her food. She has hypoglycemia. If she doesn¡¯t

    take her meals on time, she¡¯ll pass out.¡±

    The crew tried to talk Hannah into forgiving her, but that only riled her more. She collected two sets of

    lunch and passed one to Skr, still fuming.

    ¡°What happened? Who offended you?¡±

    Hannah thenined to her about the incident. Since it was a trivial matter, Skr told her not to

    make a fuss with Winnie.

    Conne Kim, Winnie¡¯s assistant, was a familiar sight to the filming crew. Because of her dominating

    personality, Connie had offended many people. It took her years before she finally became an assistant

    to rookies.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    Skr realized how blessed to have an agent like Kate, who recruited Hannah. If a woman like Connie

    became Skr¡¯s assistant, she could only imagine the amount of backstabbing the two-faced tyrant

    would cause her.

    Connie tried to push the me away when she returned to Winnie. ¡°Skr must pride herself for being

    the lead. You should¡¯ve seen her assistant just now. All I wanted to do was to collect you lunch, but she

    demanded that I queue up at the back of the line! I can¡¯t imagine her arrogance once Skr shoots to

    fame!¡±

    ¡°I told Sheldon that I wanted to be the lead, but he turned me down. Skr isn¡¯t famous, and she had the

    gall to act like a diva.¡±

    ¡°I agreed, Winnie. People like her are pretentious. I noticed Harry didn¡¯t really care about her but he took

    the initiative to chat with you.¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately, I already have a boyfriend. It is useless no matter what he does.¡±

    Connie was full of admiration for Winnie. ¡°The entire filming crew knows you are Sheldon¡¯s girlfriend. I

    can see the envy in their eyes when they look at you.¡±

    To maintain her figure, Winnie took several bites of the vegetables inside the lunch box and put the rest

    away. ¡°Skr has a sugar daddy to back her up, too. I heard her body was covered with bruises from the

    abuse. Luckily, Sheldon treats me nicely.¡±

    ¡°It is natural for him to treat you well. If I were a man, I would fall for you too. Women like Skr are only

    fit to be a mistress.¡±

    Skr¡¯s ear was burning. Someone must be gossiping about me behind my back now.

    Kate had a condescending look when she watched Skr eat. ¡°Where on earth can you find another

    actress who has your appetite?¡±

    Skr put down her fork. Kate was right. Again. She didn¡¯t have the same discipline.

    Kate sighed. ¡°You need to bring your weight down to ny pounds. I believe it¡¯s doable.¡±

    Skr pped her forehead. Huh, talk is cheap. I can¡¯t do it unless I fast for the next one month!

 Chapter 275

    Chapter 275

    Skr was allowed to rest for an hour in the afternoon. Hence, she directly went to the motorhome to

    take a nap.

    Kate arranged for fresh flowers to be delivered daily so Skr could smell the fragrance of jasmine. The

    agent was always attentive to details.

    Skr left the studio earlier once she was done with her scenes in the evening. On her way home, she

    received a call from Tobias inviting her to a teahouse for a discussion. After that, they could head back

    together.

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    She entered the address into the navigation system and realized the teahouse was far away from her

    house, in the opposite direction.

    Regardless, she arrived at the teahouse, past a rosewood partition, and came to a door where she could

    hear the boisterousughter of several men in a room.

    One man said, ¡°Mr. Ford, my models are all very young. One of them is only seventeen, a minor. If you

    are interested, you can have her tonight.¡±

    ¡°No thanks. I¡¯ve been practicing a new routine recently,¡± Tobias drawled.

    Skr was standing by the entrance. The rich really have various forms of ways to pleasure

    themselves. She thought she was young enough for Tobias¡¯ taste. s, she was wrong.

    She opened the door and entered the room. The men watched as Tobias pulled a chair for her to sit

    beside him. ¡°When are we leaving?¡± she asked, showing off her sovereignty.

    The man who had introduced girls to Tobias earlier smiled in embarrassment. ¡°Oh, Mr. Ford has a date.

    My bad for being in the wrong ce at the wrong time.¡±

    Tobias took his wallet from the table and teased, ¡°Luckily, I didn¡¯t take up the offer just now. I¡¯m leaving

    now.¡±

    The way their fingers interlocked together reminded Skr of Jeremy from her university days. Jeremy

    used to skip sses and go to cybercaf¨¦ with his friends. I used to look for him after ss so he could

    send me home. That was ages ago. The cybercafe became a teahouse. Even my friends were gone.

    Skr was dazing when Tobias interrupted her, ¡°You wish to say behind?¡±

    She shook her head.

    Tobias knew she was feeling cold, so he held her in his arms to warm her up as soon as they got into the

    car.

    ¡°I hate the way those men teat a woman. Can you stop inviting me to such gatherings?¡±

    Heughed. ¡°The conversation among men usually revolves around woman or money. Don¡¯t take it too

    seriously.¡±

    Skr was worried she might be the topic of their conversation after the meal. ¡°I assumed that

    includes sex. Have you told them about ours?¡±

    ¡°Nah! I don¡¯t need to share our blissful moments with them. There is no reason to prove how good I am

    in bed as long as you know it.¡±

    While having the conversation, Tobias stopped his car at a seafood restaurant.

    ¡°Wait for me inside. I¡¯ll join you in a while.¡± Tobias helped to unbuckle her seat belt.

    However, Skr remained seated. ¡°I thought we were going home? You haven¡¯t eaten yet?¡±

    ¡°Your mom is inside. She wants to meet me.¡±

    Finally, Skr understood his intention. She had underestimated her mom¡¯s capability. Miranda managed

    to contact Tobias directly, without her knowledge.

    Skr got off the car and entered the restaurant.

    Miranda was sitting in the private room while a waiter served a te of lobster.

    Skr put her bag down and stared at the table full of seafood. She smacked her lips and asked, ¡°Are

    you paying for the meal? It¡¯s at least three thousand.¡±

    Miranda raised a brow. ¡°Of course. Since I invited your boyfriend for dinner, I can¡¯t let him pay, right?

    Only a sumptuous spread is worthy of his status.¡±

 Chapter 276

    Chapter 276

    ¡°Where did you find so much money?¡±

    Miranda replied, ¡°Well, you gave me fifteen thousand. How on earth can I spend it all so quickly?¡±

    Skr estimated her mom wouldn¡¯t have a single cent left by the end of next month.

    Tobias parked his car outside and walked into the restaurant. He greeted Miranda politely. ¡°Ms. Watt.¡±

    Miranda sized him up. The more she looked at him, the more satisfied she was with her future son-in-

    law.

    She thought Thomas was good-looking when he was young. However, on second thought, Tobias had

    the qualities of a man; masculine yet tough.

    ¡°I hope I didn¡¯t cause any inconvenience by suddenly inviting you for dinner.¡± Miranda poured Tobias a

    ss of wine.

    Mixing seafood with wine could cause gout.

    He smiled. ¡°No.¡±

    It was taxing for him because they had nothing inmon. Therefore, he just simply answered whatever

    questions she asked.

    Skr found Miranda was a little too much. The least her mother could do was inform her about the

    dinner n.

    ¡°Tobias, what do you do for a living?¡± Miranda asked in a straightforward manner.

    She didn¡¯t have a clue about his background. However, she knew he was a capable man and her

    benefactor because he resolved a major crisis for her.

    Skr felt helpless. ¡°Mom¡­ you don¡¯t have to worry about that.¡±

    ¡°I am self-employed.¡± Tobias kept his reply short.

    Miranda was rather disappointed by his answer. She thought he would borate.

    She cleared her throat and continued, ¡°My daughter has led a pitiful life since she was a child. She might

    not be smart, but you mustn¡¯t do her wrong. Besides, your fianc¨¦e is going to deliver soon. What will

    happen to my daughter then?¡±

    Skr was sweating. Is Mom really concerned about me, or she¡¯s trying to embarrass me? She already

    knew about his fiance¨¦, yet she still wants me to continue the rtionship with him.

    While Miranda was talking, Tobias drank half a ss of wine. ¡°We already ended our rtionship. Ms.

    Watt, you invited me for dinner today to ask me to take a stand?¡±

    Miranda admired intelligent people like him. Then she refilled up Tobias¡¯ ss with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s for the

    best, I guess. Otherwise, I will be worried about Skr?¡±

    Tobias looked at Skr. ¡°Mom, please stop asking. What are you trying to do? Are you forcing him to

    marry me? I don¡¯t need you to decide my life.¡±

    After seeing Skr reacted strongly, Miranda gave her a cold look. Why is Skr so foolish? She still

    doesn¡¯t understand that she needs to grab this golden goose. She¡¯ll regret it in the future if he slips

    through her fingers.

    Apparently, Miranda also had her own motive. If Thomas were to find out about Skr and Tobias, he

    would treat them better in the future.

    Tobias drank the whole ss of wine in a shot. He then noticed Skr was blushing. Obviously, she was

    too nervous to know his answer.

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    He leaned against the chair, lowered his gaze at the two empty sses in front of him as he gave

    Miranda an analogy. ¡°If the ss is full, it will overflow. The same principle applies to humans. When one

    tries too hard, it could backfire. Ms. Watt, I hope you understand what I¡¯m trying to say.¡±

    Miranda had no idea, but Skr got his message loud and clear. Tobias didn¡¯t intend topromise. He

    had tactfully told them he would leave anytime if he was driven into a corner.

 Chapter 277

    Chapter 277

    Skr poured some wine for herself and downed the content in one gulp, ss after ss.

    Tobias stopped her. ¡°That¡¯s enough. You have a low alcohol tolerance.¡±

    She drank a whole bottle of wine. In her drunken stupor, she promised never to hold on to the thought of

    marrying him. Her mother¡¯s n had backfired.

    Skr was too naive to think that a dinner with her mom could soften his view on marriage.

    After a while, Tobias refilled her ss instead of stopping her from drinking. In the end, Skry her

    head on the table as she felt the alcohol work its way in her empty stomach.

    Miranda continued the conversation with Tobias outside the private room, away from her daughter.

    However, he was worried about leaving Skr alone in the room. He checked on her a few times before

    heading to the corridor to smoke. ¡°Ms. Watt, just tell me what is on your mind. I¡¯m all ears.¡±

    Miranda thought differently.

    She didn¡¯t understand what he said at the table just now, so she asked, ¡°Can you be honest with me?

    Will you marry Skr? You are much older than her. She¡¯s still young. It will ruin her reputation if both of

    you were to split up in the future. Will any man want a used woman? A guy needs to be responsible to

    the woman when both of them are living together, right?¡±

    Miranda had resorted to forcing him to marry her daughter. It was exactly what Tobias hated most.

    He kept his reply as vague as possible. ¡°Well, that depends on the future. As of now, I can certainly tell

    you we will not be getting married because we have different views and personality. We need more time

    to know each other.¡±

    Finally, Miranda understood his stand. However, she was not surprised by his answer. The wealthy

    possessed a simr trait; they were extremely smart and calctive. Her method didn¡¯t work because

    she couldn¡¯t outsmart him.

    Skr was still sprawled on the table when Tobias returned to the private room. She opened her eyes

    when he helped her up.

    Tobias had firsthand experience dealing with a drunk Skr.

    She couldn¡¯t even stand on her own, and she was extremely unpredictable. Skr could be grinning like

    a fool this minute, but the next, she would grab him by the cor and start cursing like now. ¡°Tobias, wipe

    the smugness off your face. One day, you will be f*cking begging me to f*cking marry you. I still have lots

    of admirers courting me.¡±

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    She was feeling nauseous and dejected.

    However, Tobias simply smiled and said, ¡°Alright¡­ I am looking forward to that day.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t recall how she got back home. When she woke up on the bed in the room, she was

    wearing Tobias¡¯ shirt. Her entire body felt weak. And she was having a hangover.

    Tobias was sitting next to the bed with aptop was sitting on hisp. Once she woke up, he closed his

    laptop and put it aside.

    ¡°How did Ie back on yesterday?¡± Skr couldn¡¯t remember a thing.

    She saw the used condom in the trash. There were bloodstains on it. She could only imagine how rough

    he had been with her the night before. Tobias is such an animal. He didn¡¯t even leave me alone when I

    was drunk. What¡¯s with the blood? It wasn¡¯t my first time. Don¡¯t tell me he used it with someone else?

 Chapter 278

    Chapter 278

    Tobias answered in a soft tone, ¡°I¡¯ll get a cab for you. Don¡¯t force yourself to drink as if you¡¯ve just lost

    your boyfriend. I didn¡¯t break up with you.¡±

    Skr smiled bitterly. Why did Tobias think that only he could dump me and not the other way round?

    He was confident that he was the one controlling the rtionship, but Skr was not easily manipted.

    ¡°What¡¯s in here?¡± She asked while she pointed at the bin.

    ¡°Are you seriously asking that? You¡¯ve helped me put that on several times already! Why are you still

    asking?¡± Tobias sighed.

    Skr rolled her eyes at Tobias and said in an annoyed tone, ¡°I mean the blood. Why is there blood?

    Where is it from?¡±

    That topic turned Tobias off. He was finest night until Skr¡¯s period came during their love-making

    session. At first, he was excited, thinking that he broke her hymen again. After he realized that it was her

    period, he could not help but stop halfway.

    ¡°Ask yourself that question. Didn¡¯t you feel any difort?¡±

    As Skr uncovered the nket, she felt utterly embarrassed. She did not expect to get her period while

    she was drunk. The grey bedsheet was stained with patches of dark red.

    She swooped her hair to the back and eximed frantically, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you wake me up? What do we

    do now?¡±

    Tobias narrowed his eyes and eximed in reply, ¡°If only you woke up! I¡¯ve tried waking you up to no

    avail. Furthermore, I didn¡¯t know how to help you with it. I couldn¡¯t let you sleep on the floor too. Anyway,

    we can always change the bedsheet.

    Skr was mad. She rushed to take a shower and instructed Tobias to get off the bed with his eyes

    closed.

    Instead of closing his eyes, Tobias started to take off the bedsheet. ¡°There¡¯s no need to be embarrassed

    in front of me, but if you want to drink in the future, just remember what happenedst night.¡±

    Skr stopped Tobias as she wanted to clean up the mess herself. She felt guilty as it was her mistake.

    Tobias understood how she felt. Still, she was vulnerable when she got drunk. Luckily, he was there with

    her, or someone else could have easily taken advantage of her.

    ¡°Do you still want to get yourself drunk in the future?¡± Tobias asked while changing the bedsheet.

    Skr dare not get drunk anymore. She was unsure of what triggered her to drink like her ss was

    bottomless.

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    Tobias got a cab for her instead of sending her to the film site personally. He spent too much time there

    as he still had a pile of work waiting for him to clear.

    Skr was about to bete. She rushed into the studio¡¯s dressing room and saw Winnie, who had just

    completed her makeup.

    Winnie was a petite cute girl. She seemed like the type that would be popr amongst male

    homebodies. Her assistant was trying to take a good photo of her by adjusting the camera angle.

    Even though Winnie was just the second female lead, with herpany¡¯s support, she had a

    significantly higher number of followers on Instagram than Skr ¨C she even had her own fan club.

    There were a lot ofizens who left positivements on Winnie¡¯s page. Though she only joined the

    film a few days back, the majority already knew that she was the second female lead in the show.

    The fans also raised a poll topare Skr and Winnie on who was more suitable for the role of

    Lenny.

    Winnie received ny-five percent, while Skr only received a measly five percent of votes. Most

    voters felt that Winnie¡¯s personality and aura suited the female lead role better. They doubted the

    director¡¯s ability to select the right people for their roles. Furthermore, theseizens mostly critiqued

    Skr¡¯s still cuts for being too amorous.

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    Chapter 279

    ¡°Here¡¯s a gift for you.¡± Winnie walked over to Skr¡¯s side while she was doing her eye makeup.

    Skr opened her eyes and saw a book tied with a red ribbon left on the makeup table. It was the novel

    of the drama they were acting in.

    At that moment, Skr felt narrow-minded as she began to doubt Winnie¡¯s true intention behind that

    gift. Was it to show me who the real female lead was?

    Skr held the book up and looked at Winnie. ¡°Thank you for the book, but I don¡¯t have time for reading.¡±

    Winnie raised her brows. ¡°It only took me two days to finish. I love the female lead in the book. She¡¯s

    pure-hearted with a strong mind. The book described her as petite, bright-eyed, and has a beautifully

    sculptured face. She was like a milk candy ¨C you could smell her sweet innocent scent from far.¡±

    Winnie was basically self-praising. No wonder there was a sickening strong smell of milk candy when

    she stood beside me earlier.

    Skr lowered her head to use her phone as she did not want to deal with Winnie. ¡°That¡¯s too bad then

    cause you are very simr to the female lead character. Even theizens agree.¡±

    Winnie replied humbly, ¡°N-no! Don¡¯t listen to thoseizens. Maybe the director wanted to portray her in

    a different style.¡±

    Skr shrugged her shoulders and said, ¡°No matter what they say, I was chosen to be the female lead

    by the director and the crew. If you feel that you should be the female lead instead, please tell them

    directly instead of doing all these to hint me.¡±

    Winnie froze and her face fell. She turned and left.

    She was mad ¨C she threw the ss bottle of artisan water that Connie passed her. It shattered into many

    tiny pieces.

    She bit her lips and muttered, ¡°She¡¯s just showing off that the director and the crew had her back.¡±

    ¡°Exactly! The director will surely regret it. Just look at your poprity!¡± Connie added.

    After Winnie left, Skr gifted the book to Hannah.

    That day¡¯s filming was exceptionally smooth. Skr¡¯s scene with Harry ended in one shot. Harry was a

    true professional, and Skr admired his adaptability.

    Since that day Vensa gave Harry some feedback, she improved significantly and had maintained that

    standard of acting.

    As they were near the end of the shoot, the director requested one more scene that needed to be shot

    outdoors.

    The venue was at Ford Group, right smack in the middle of the Central Business District.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    They sent in several requests previously but were all rejected. When they heard that Ford Group finally

    epted the request, it felt like they had won the lotto.

    They took a bus there. Skr shut her eyes to keep her eyes well-rested and overheard Connie¡¯s

    conversation with the crew.

    They were really loud, as Skr could hear them clearly even with her earpiece on.

    ¡°The reason Ford Group allowed us to film there was due to Winnie. Who else could beat her

    poprity?¡±

    ¡°The previous team that I was with requested for a whole month to no avail,¡± one of the crew added.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s all thanks to our dear Winnie. She¡¯s so capable that she didn¡¯t even need to send in a request.¡±

    Connie spoke louder as if she feared that no one could hear her.

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    Chapter 280

    Skr took out her earpiece, gathered the wires, and kept it in her pocket.

    Throughout the journey, Winnie and her assistant had been showing off the rtionship between Winnie

    and Sheldon.

    When they arrived at Ford Group, the producer, filming crew, and production coordinator got ready

    speedily. The makeup artist was applying makeup for Skr while both were standing. Skr secretly

    did not like applying makeup as the makeup would notst on her oily skin.

    Harry had changed into a suit, which made him look charming. A crowd was formed at the lobby,

    gathered with people who wanted to watch them.

    Skr scanned through the script for the scene. It was a reunion scene where the female lead, Lenny,

    went to thepany where the male lead, Hans, worked and hugged him after two years of separation.

    Skr pressed a finger on her forehead. After all, they were filming the scene at Tobias¡¯pany.

    ording to his previous reaction towards her interactions with Kai, she was afraid that Tobias would get

    jealous.

    Skr was reminded of how possessive Tobias could be. He wanted to keep her by his side without

    giving her any promises, yet he did not allow her to date others. It was a one-sided rtionship.

    The filming started, and Skr positioned herself to wait for Harry to walk out of the door.

    Winnie, whose role was the second female lead, stood beside Harry as his fianc¨¦e. Both of them were

    about to get married.

    Skr had a deja vu moment as she recalled her experience of snatching another¡¯s fianc¨¦.

    At that moment, the higher management team, who was following behind Tobias, took the CEO¡¯s lift

    down with him. Through the ss lift, they saw themotion in the lobby, which was filled with

    cameras.

    Tobias furrowed his brows and asked Susan, ¡°What¡¯s going on at the lobby? Are they filming?¡±

    Susan replied, ¡°It was Sheldon¡¯s idea. He mentioned that his girlfriend¡¯s filming crew wanted to film here.¡±

    ¡°Who gave the approval?¡± Tobias was annoyed.

    Susan shook her head. ¡°No one gave the approval. You were not informed as you were in a meeting.

    Little did we know that they would be here on such short notice. Mr. Ford, do you want me to chase them

    back?¡±

    Tobias did not reply as he saw a familiar figure ¨C Skr. A camera was filming her hugging a guy for

    several minutes until the director cut the scene.

    Susan spotted Skr and noticed that Tobias clenched his jaw with his facial expression cold as ice.

    Skr pushed Harry away as she did not like his cologne.

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    ¡°You look as stiff as a block of wood from the screen! You need to put in more emotions! Have you not

    dated before? Have you not hugged a man before?¡± Vensa held the script up and pointed it out to Skr.

    Skr knew that she lost focus. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. It¡¯s totally my fault,¡± she apologized.

    Vensa would be generous with her praises for people who performed well. However, she had a bad

    temperament. If someone were to perform below his expectation, he would criticize them badly. The

    more they try to exin themselves, the stronger the criticism.

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    Chapter 281

    Vensa vented, ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear your apologies. Please focus! It was not easy getting permission to

    film at this venue, and we have to finish filming by tonight. Don¡¯t be the ck sheep with yourme

    acting. Your hug was so emotionless that any guy would lose interest in you for it.¡±

    Skr never noticed her own expression when she hugged Tobias. Regardless, she knew that it

    definitely felt more natural than hugging Harry.

    Winnie tried to calm the director down by acting as if she were very understanding by saying to her,

    ¡°Director, please calm down. How could Skr not have any experience in dating? You can¡¯t expect her

    to be able to immerse herself in it immediately. I¡¯m sure Skr knows better as she has more experience

    than me.¡±

    Skr rolled her eyes at Winnie¡¯s words as she gave up trying to be nice to that girlfriend of Sheldon.

    Tobias witnessed the wholemotion of the director yelling at Skr with the loudspeaker and

    narrowed his eyes.

    There was an urge in him wanting to pull Skr out from that mistreatment, but he knew that it was all

    part of her work. She would not appreciate him for doing that.

    Meanwhile, with the extra time he had, Harry was on Instagram, posting a photo of the film set at the

    lobby of Ford Group. That photo was expected to be a hot topic of discussion, which could beat a

    picture of him at the presidential suite of Bulgari.

    Susan noticed that Tobias¡¯ feet froze on that spot and gently reminded, ¡°Mr. Ford, shall we proceed?

    Your next appointment requires you to attend an auction personally.¡±N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Susan reminded again, but Tobias was still staring at Skr even though he was particr with

    punctuality.

    While Harry walked out with his secretary for the second take, Skr adjusted her mindset. If worse

    comes to the worst, she would imagine Harry was a carrot.

    That second take was better but was still not up to the director¡¯s requirements. He still felt that Skr

    was too stiff.

    That scene was supposed to portray her being d to reunite with him regardless of the presence of his

    partner.

    Vensa suggested that Skr take a break to adjust her state of mind.

    Despite the crowd, Sheldon arrived to visit his girlfriend. Winnie had given him a call earlier and

    requested for him to visit her.

    The number of times that Sheldon turned up at thepany could be easily counted with ten fingers.

    Nevertheless, Winnie¡¯s face brightened up as she rushed towards him for a hug.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was still observing the situation from the higher floors.

    Upon hearing the news of Sheldon¡¯s arrival, the director went ahead and introduced himself. Winnie was

    stuck onto Sheldon¡¯s side in bliss.

    Skr expected that Sheldon would not recognize and greet her as Tobias had not revealed their

    rtionship to anyone.

    After all, he had to stay alert as they were at Ford Group, where rumors could easily spread.

    Harry walked toward Skr and passed her a bottle of water. ¡°Do you hate that hugging scene with me

    so much?¡±

    Skr epted the water, yawned, and exined, ¡°N-No. It¡¯s just that I¡¯m not in my optimal state today.

    I¡¯m sorry we had to have so many retakes.¡±

    Harry joked half-heartedly, ¡°People might think that you¡¯re making use of that chance to take advantage

    of me and keep hugging me.¡±

    Skr squinted her eyes and red at Harry. He was totally not her type; he was too cheesy.

 Chapter 282

    Chapter 282

    Winnie and Sheldon cuddled and nuzzled up freely in public, not giving a damn about the people around

    them. She was keen to let the whole world know about her rtionship with Sheldon.

    Winnie tiptoed to lean closer to whisper in the man¡¯s ear, ¡°Don¡¯t you think that I¡¯m more suited to be the

    female lead? Am I marked by bad luck or something? I¡¯m always the supporting actress, no matter how

    hard I work. Look, the female lead is over there. Doesn¡¯t she look just like a vixen?¡±

    Sheldon¡¯s heart skipped a beat at her words. cing a finger over her lips, he whispered, ¡°Mind your

    words. You¡¯ll be the female lead one day. But this time, you¡¯ll have to swallow your pride.¡±

    Despite her dissatisfaction, Winnie gave in.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was leaning against the railing on the stairway while looking down at the lower floor.

    His eyes were riveted on Skr solely.

    Waiting silently beside him, Susan dared not urge her boss.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, you¡¯re still at work.¡± Hearing a voice behind him, Tobias looked over his shoulder and saw

    Emily walking toward him.

    She had juste down from the top floor to get some fresh air. The woman was pleasantly surprised to

    run into Tobias. It¡¯s too bad that Susan is by his side.

    The man hummed coldly in response. In an instant, Emily felt that the awkwardness in the atmosphere

    was almost suffocating.

    ¡°Why are you still here? Are you waiting for us to send you back?¡± Susan reprimanded her.

    With her lips pressed together, Emily shook her head. Though she was afraid of Tobias and Susan, she

    couldn¡¯t resist the urge to get closer to him.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    I don¡¯t know what¡¯s happening to me. I can¡¯t stopparing David to Tobias ever since I started working

    at the Ford Group. Tobias fulfills all the criteria of the man of my dreams. He¡¯s mature, dominant, wise

    and wild¡­

    Seeing such an ideal man every day made her bing more reluctant to get married.

    Emily nced down and realized that the filming was still going on downstairs. Her eyes widened the

    moment she spotted Skr. ¡±Isn¡¯t that my cousin, Skr? What is she doing here?¡±

    Tobias became attentive at the mention of Skr¡¯s name.

    Just when Emily was about to walk away and head home, he called out to her. ¡°Hold on. There¡¯s

    something I want to ask you.¡±

    The woman was overjoyed. Her eyes were gleaming with hope as she asked, ¡°What is it, Mr. Ford?¡±

    ¡°Is Skr your cousin?¡±

    Emily was stupefied by his question. Why does he even care about this? She nodded and replied, ¡°Yeah.

    She¡¯s on set downstairs right now. She has this unrealistic dream of bing a superstar since young.

    Though I advised her to keep her feet on the ground, she refused to listen to me. Skr has always been

    harebrained and dull-witted, and she never changes her mind unless she is at a dead end. I guess she¡¯ll

    stay this way for life, dreaming of reaping what she has not sown.¡±

    Eva gave a long-winded answer, when Tobias had only asked her a simple question.

    Susan sneered in her heart. I can¡¯t believe how dumb Eva is. It¡¯s obvious that Mr. Ford has his own

    reasons for asking her that. Yet, she babbles exaggeratedly, and every word she says pisses him off.

    Sure enough, Tobias¡¯ expression turned grim at once.

    ¡°Mr. Ford¡­¡± Eva called out gently. Her voice sounded sweeter than ever.

    Waving his hand dismissively, he said, ¡°You may go now.¡±

    Looking at his stern expression, the woman was puzzled. Have I said something wrong?

    Afterward, Eva left without greeting Skr, as she felt that they were not that close.

    At the filming site, everyone regarded Winnie differently now. Sheldon even asked his assistant to buy

    coffee for the entire crew.

    After six retakes of a scene, Skr had finally done filming her part. She reached out to massage her

    aching shoulders.

    Sitting on a bench, she realized that other than Hannah and herself, every crew on the set had a cup of

    Starbucks coffee and a slice of cake.

    The fact that she was being ostracized was too obvious to be overlooked.

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    Chapter 283

    Skr asked, ¡°Who bought those coffees? I¡¯m the only one being left out. What are they trying to do?¡±

    Hannah answered with a dejected look. ¡°Winnie and her assistant gave out those coffees. Look, she and

    her rich boyfriend are taking turns to feed each other cakes.¡±

    Why does Sheldon pretend as if he doesn¡¯t know me here? Is he afraid of affecting his brother¡¯s

    reputation since we¡¯re at the Ford Group?

    Skr patted Hannah¡¯s shoulder while saying, ¡°Let¡¯s do the same thing tomorrow during filming. Buy the

    whole crew coffees except the two of them.¡±

    I have to make a stand. I can¡¯t let Winnie trample all over me without retaliating. She won¡¯t stop as long

    as I endure it in silence.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be filming at the studio tomorrow, so the crew will be much bigger, and it¡¯ll cost us tens of

    thousands to buy everyone coffee,¡± Hannah replied in a low voice.

    Skr ate her words right away. ¡°Let¡¯s wait for themission then. I don¡¯t have that much money now.¡±

    Hannah eyed Skr suspiciously. I once saw a ck card which has no spending limit inside her bag.

    Why is she acting as if she¡¯s broke?

    In the meantime, Tobias rubbed the back of his neck to ease the soreness.

    My woman just hugged another man six times in a row tonight. I¡¯m starting to hate that Skr is now in

    showbiz. Yet, I can¡¯t stop her because this is her dream. Other than her contact with other men, I don¡¯t

    want to be bossy or restrict her freedom. As long as she¡¯s with me, and her body is mine alone. If we

    break up one day, I will no longer care about it.

    In the olden days, these seemingly morous celebrities were of the lower ss in the eyes of the

    public, as they were exposing too much of themselves.

    Susan was sharp-eyed and noticed that only Skr and the girl beside her had no coffee.

    She turned to look at Tobias. ¡°Mr. Ford, is Ms. Jones being ostracized by the crew? She didn¡¯t get any

    coffee and cake, but the rest of them have it¡­¡±

    If Susan hadn¡¯t pointed it out, Tobias wouldn¡¯t have noticed it.

    His eyesnded on Sheldon, who was still acting all lovey-dovey with his girlfriend. He should¡¯ve at least

    greeted her.

    In the meantime, Skr was waiting for Harry and Winnie to finish filming their scenes before all of them

    could head home. She then fished out her phone and swiped the screen to unlock it.

    The woman dared not browse her Instagram, which was full of fans of the novel ¡®Unrequited Love¡¯.

    As she casually scrolled through some videos on her phone, sleepiness overcame her, and her eyelids

    grew heavy. Suddenly, a tall figure overshadowed her.

    Lifting her head, she saw Tobias standing right in front of her with two cups of coffee in his hand.

    ¡°You¡¯ve always been resilient. Why are you looking so sleepy?¡±

    Staring at the man with a nk face, Skr slowly took the coffee from him.Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    What is Tobias doing here? Why did hee over when there¡¯re so many people around? Isn¡¯t he

    worried about his reputation?

    Skr has been shutting herself off because of Tobias¡¯ grinding. She was convinced that their

    rtionship would be kept in the dark forever.

    ¡°Why are you still here? I thought you went home.¡± Skr¡¯s voice was soft and weary due to her

    drowsiness.

    ¡°If I had gone home earlier, I wouldn¡¯t have seen you hug the other man six times. Are you going to sleep

    with me six times tonight to soothe my heartache?¡± Tobias bent forward and mumbled in her ear. His

    warm breath caressed her neck, and their postures would lead to dubious assumptions.

    Skr¡¯s brows drew together. How long has he been watching me? He even remembers how many

    times I did that.

    Wrapping her arms around his neck, she replied yfully, ¡°I don¡¯t think you can do it for six times. Not a

    chance!¡±

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    Chapter 284

    Standing up, Tobias shrugged nomittally. ¡±No men like to be challenged this way.¡±

    Holding his phone, Sheldon was totally engrossed in ying Mobile Legends. As he was losing out, he

    spotted his brother out of the corner of his eye.

    Wow. Is he kissing Skr here?

    Thinking of the pathetic bnce in his bank ount, Sheldon hurriedly ran over to his brother with a

    ttering grin on his face.

    Tobias¡¯ expression fell the second he saw his brother. The atmosphere around him grew tensed as anger

    pulsed through his veins.

    He then questioned, ¡°Are you blind? You¡¯re so busy clinging onto your woman that you bought the entire

    crew coffees except Skr. Sheldon, do you have a death wish or something?¡±

    Baffled, Sheldon felt aggrieved at his brother¡¯s words.

    I did that only to avoid bringing any negative influence upon him, yet he scolded me. Since when did my

    brother be so petty? It¡¯s just a cup of coffee. Isn¡¯t he overreacting?

    Skr came to his rescue and said, ¡°I believe he doesn¡¯t know about that. Why are you scolding him?

    Yes, he didn¡¯t greet me, but I didn¡¯t greet him either.¡±

    Little did they know, the filming crew couldn¡¯t help casting curious nces at them from the moment

    Skr put her arms around Tobias¡¯ neck. They had been wondering who Skr¡¯s sugar daddy was.

    The only thing they knew was that her sugar daddy could be a sadist, because bruises had been seen all

    over her body when she wore a dress. He must have been rough toward her in bed.

    Scrutinizing the sugar daddy¡¯s back, they felt that the answer was about to be revealed soon.

    The moment Sheldon addressed the man beside Skr as his brother, everyone was

    dumbfounded, especially Winnie, who was walking over to them after she finished filming.

    Stopping in her tracks, she was rooted to the spot while gawking at them. After a while, Sheldon pulled

    her over to his side. ¡°Tobias, let me introduce to my girlfriend, Winnie.¡±

    In a daze, the woman stared nkly at Skr, who then gave her an icy sideways nce.

    Tobias wasn¡¯t even the slightest bit interested in getting to know Sheldon¡¯s girlfriend. He lost count of

    how many women his brother had brought home before. Though Sheldon imed to be deeply in love

    this time, Tobias was convinced that his brother was only toying with her.

    Meanwhile, the director found out that Tobias was here. Instantly, she removed the earphones and

    rushed over to the man. Tobias¡¯ brows furrowed inconspicuously as he saw more peopleing to him.

    Standing beside Tobias, Skr tried to remain as still as she could, keeping a distance from the man.

    She refused to be clingy, lest they think that she was showing off her rtionship with Tobias. Although

    many might¡¯ve seen them just now, she still wanted to try her best to avoid any gossip, because she

    knew that the filming crew was already spreading rumors that she had a sugar daddy who was sadistic.

    It¡¯s all Tobias¡¯ fault to leave hickeys all over my body.

    Meeting Tobias, the director could hardly contain her excitement, thanking him for allowing them to do

    the filming here.Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    Tobias took the opportunity to do Skr a favor, saying impassively, ¡±Actually, I did that for Skr¡¯s

    sake.¡±

    With her lips pressed together, Winnie¡¯s face turned sullen. Earlier on, the entire crew knew it was

    because of her that they could film in this ce.

    However, a single sentence from Tobias enabled Skr to steal all the credit and limelight from her.

    She then nced bitterly at Tobias, but Sheldon waspletely oblivious to her reaction, ying along

    with his brother. ¡°Tobias really cares about Skr. Please take good care of her, since she¡¯s a newbie.¡±

    Sheldon grabbed every opportunity to prove himself in front of his brother.

    Rage shot through Winnie¡¯s chest.

    Unwilling to entertain the director, Tobias spoke only a few words. Under the scrutinizing gaze of the

    entire crew, he asked, ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. Is the filming done? If so, I would like to take Skr out of here.¡±

 Chapter 285

    Chapter 285

    The director shed a courteous yet enthusiastic grin. ¡°It¡¯s done. Feel free to leave with Skr, Mr. Ford.¡±

    Meanwhile, Harry and his manager, Tyler Lewis, were standing somewhere nearby. Tyler, who was

    experienced in the entertainment industry, broke out in a cold sweat. ¡°Skr is Tobias¡¯ chick. This woman

    definitely isn¡¯t as simple as she seems to be. She¡¯s modest and has been keeping a low profile.¡±

    Harry seemed to have grown ustomed to such things. ¡°Winnie just can¡¯t stop making a big fuss about

    getting a rich boyfriend, but Skr is really smart in this case. She knows how to protect her reputation

    and portrays herself as an innocent woman as she makes her debut as an actress. I heard that Tobias

    isn¡¯t a loyal man. How long do you think the two will be together?¡±

    Tyler had heard that quite a number of popr female celebrities fell head over heels for Tobias.

    However, the man never once had a scandal with any of them, though he had been in the entertainment

    industry for a long while.

    Previously, Katrina spread rumors about herself being together with Tobias, but everyone knew that she

    was trying to boost her poprity, and her love was unrequited.

    Hence, he was mystified by Tobias¡¯ way, as thetter disregarded all the gorgeous and popr

    celebrities, but fell for a twenty-year-old budding actress. Usually, someone as young as Skr got into a

    rtionship just for fun.

    Meanwhile, Skr asked Hannah to text her about tomorrow¡¯s schedule before heading home.

    Thetter appeared utterly perplexed. Why did Skr say that she can¡¯t afford to buy the entire crew

    coffees when she¡¯s in a rtionship with Tobias Ford? How could she say that she has no money when

    her boyfriend is so rich? I even thought that she¡¯s single.

    Sheldon immediately went after the couple, while Winnie requested her boyfriend to bring her back as

    well. Nevertheless, he rejected her, saying that he and his brother had some personal matters to talk

    about, so no outsider was allowed.

    ¡°How about Skr? Isn¡¯t she an outsider too?¡± Winnie refuted.

    Ignoring his girlfriend¡¯s protest, Sheldon took the initiative to drive the car. Tobias sat in the passenger

    seat, while Skr was in the backseat.

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    ¡°Tobias, give me another two million, please? You¡¯ve canceled my bank cards, but I need money to

    survive,¡± Sheldon pleaded with a sad face. Despite being on his uppers, he still refused to go to work.

    ¡°No way.¡± Tobias rejected him firmly.

    Sheldon had never needed to worry about his finances since he was a teenager. Even though the man

    had been squandering all his money carelessly, his brother didn¡¯t say a word about it. Now this sudden

    change of lifestyle was a living hell for him. He even dared not go to a bar like he used to.

    He turned to ask for Skr¡¯s help. ¡°Skr, my dear sister-inw, please help me out. Can you bear to

    see me starve to death?¡±

    asionally, Sheldon addressed her as his sister-inw jokingly, but now she felt really awkward. Tobias

    has never shown any desire of making me his wife.

    Looking out the car window at the night sky, Skr replied, ¡°You won¡¯t die of hunger. I can tell that you¡¯re

    rather strong and can no doubt hold on for a little longer.¡±

    Sheldon felt out of breath as his chest tightened. Since when did I offend her? She is such a small-

    mindeddy.

    Throughout the car ride, Sheldon never kept his mouth shut. Finally, Tobias couldn¡¯t take it any longer

    and rebuked his brother. ¡°Can you just shut up? I can see that there¡¯s no way I can get you to work.

    You¡¯ll be managing a bar from now on. We¡¯ll talk about money once the operation of the bar is on track.

    But you¡¯ll have to be responsible for all the profits and losses of the bar.¡±

    Skr suddenly had a hunch that Sheldon would treat his friends to some free drinks if he were to

    manage a bar.

    Despite his reluctance, Sheldon knew that this was the best offer he could get from his brother.

    ¡°Are you serious about your rtionship with Winnie?¡± Skr asked.

 Chapter 286

    Chapter 286

    Sheldon answered with no hesitation. ¡°Of course I am. She¡¯s the kindest and prettiest girl I¡¯ve ever met.

    She has a heart for stray dogs and will cry whenever she sees any homeless animal on the street.

    Though she doesn¡¯t have a wealthy family, she¡¯s diligent and ambitious.¡±

    Skr fell silent after hearing his reply. Alright, I¡¯d better not meddle in their rtionship. Sheldon has

    every right to love Winnie, even though I dislike her.

    ¡°By the way, since she has a humble family background, will Mrs. Ford be okay with it if you bring her

    home?¡± Skr brought up the key issue in their rtionship.

    Her question killed two birds with one stone, even though she was close to giving up. udia¡¯s attitude

    means nothing to me, since I¡¯m not going to marry Tobias, so she and I will never be a family.

    Tobias looked over his shoulder at Skr. Resting her chin on her hands, she smiled at him. ¡±Don¡¯t

    worry, I¡¯m not nning on anything. I¡¯m simply curious about it.¡±

    On the other hand, Sheldon was already imagining how things would be like when his mother saw his

    girlfriend for the first time. Shaking his head, he brushed those scary images in his mind aside.

    Afterward, Tobias asked his brother to pull over by the road. Skr couldn¡¯t help but gulp at the sight

    of the taco food truck by the roadside.

    There¡¯s nothing more enjoyable than having a beef taco when I¡¯m starving in the middle of the night.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Sheldon got out of the car after the couple and took a seat beside Skr. As Tobias went to order their

    food, the woman reminded him that she didn¡¯t want anytro in her taco.

    ¡°Are you close to Winnie? She¡¯s an innocent and straightforward person, so she¡¯s still a kid and can be

    ignorant sometimes. Please take care of her, alright?¡± Sheldon¡¯s lips twitched up instinctively when he

    talked about his girlfriend.

    Skr remembered clearly about Tobias¡¯ opinion of his brother. Tobias described Sheldon as all brawn

    and no brain, and he¡¯s born half-witted. At that time, I felt that Tobias was being too harsh to judge his

    own brother this way. Now I¡¯m convinced that Tobias is right. Otherwise, how could he say that Winnie is

    still a kid when she¡¯s two years elder than me?

    Skr said with a smile, ¡±I¡¯m no better than her. Perhaps you should ask your girlfriend to take care of

    me too.¡±

    Sheldon chewed on her words. A few secondster, he nodded in agreement. ¡°You¡¯re right. You both

    should take care of each other. Winnie is really hardworking. I asked her why she put so much effort into

    her work, only then I knew she did so to buy a new house for her parents. She and her parents are still

    living in a house smaller than two hundred square feet. I really want to help her, but she has been very

    lucky. If my brother hadn¡¯t cut me off financially, I would¡¯ve bought a new house for her without a second

    thought.¡±

    Skr gave him a smile without uttering a word. I wish he will stay poor so that Winnie wouldn¡¯t be able

    to swindle a new house out of him.

    After that, their food was served. All three servings of tacos hadtro in it, even though Skr had

    reminded Tobias not to put any of it in her taco. Once again, her words fell on deaf ears.

    ¡°I said notro. This is what I hate eating the most. I remember telling you twice about it,¡± Skr

    comined.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be picky,¡± Tobias asked.

    Having no other choice, Skr picked thetro out of her taco piece by piece, while Sheldon watched

    her with a sympathetic gaze.

    My brother is indeed a male chauvinist. He¡¯s so ustomed to being superior, that he rarely sees things

    from others¡¯ perspectives. And that makes him headstrong and high-handed.

    In the end, Skr put hot sauce all over her taco, while the two men prefer having theirs just like that.

    After dinner, Sheldon sent the couple home. Before leaving, he asked his brother when the bar will be

    ready.

    ¡°Tomorrow,¡± Tobias replied briefly.

    The second Skr stepped through the door, the man pulled her into his arms before they could change

    their clothes.

 Chapter 287

    Chapter 287

    Tobias leaned forward to sniff at Skr¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I can still smell another man¡¯s scent on you. Take a

    bath and wash it off. It¡¯s making me ufortable.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s my job. It¡¯s not like I went out and messed around with other men,¡± she emphasized.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    Still, Tobias wasn¡¯t pleased. His gaze darkened as he said, ¡°That¡¯s the most I can tolerate. You¡¯re not

    allowed to act in any kissing scene. Don¡¯t you kiss me if you have kissed someone else.¡±

    ncing at Tobias¡¯ awkward expression, Skr giggled. ¡°You¡¯re much worse than me. I don¡¯t know how

    many women you¡¯ve kissed in the past. Make sure that you¡¯re faithful yourself before asking me to do the

    same.¡±

    Tobias couldn¡¯t find the words to refute her. She¡¯s right, but now I¡¯m not the same womanizer whom I

    used to be.

    Afterward, the man went to his study. Skr was having the time of the month, so he could do nothing

    other than leering at her.

    Skr pushed the door of the study open. The woman had taken a bath and changed into her white silk

    sling nightdress, revealing her fair and slender legs. Her hair was still damp, and her cheeks were rosy.

    Despite having no makeup on, her baster skin still appeared translucent from within.

    She walked in with a te of sliced orange and put it on his desk.

    Tobias took off his sses, which he put on only when he was working, and rubbed the bridge of his

    nose. ¡°Wow, that¡¯s very kind of you to bring me fruits. Are you trying to make amends to me?¡±

    Up till now, Skr never felt that she had done anything wrong. This man is unbelievably petty. I was

    only doing my job. Besides, it was nothing more than just hugging. It¡¯s understandable that he gets

    worked up if I have done the scene naked. Even so, I¡¯m only doing it for the sake of art.

    She fed a piece of orange to Tobias. ¡°The oranges in the fridge are about to dry up soon. It¡¯ll be such a

    waste to throw them away.¡±

    Though the orange wasn¡¯t as juicy as usual, the man did not mind at all.

    ¡°Is Eva your cousin?¡± Tobias thought of this all of a sudden. What a small world.

    Skr raised a brow at him. ¡°Yeah. Didn¡¯t you know that? Your pretty assistant is my cousin.¡±

    She already knew it. Tobias gestured for Skr to sit on hisp, and thetter hooked her arms around

    his neck. Looking up, she touched his chin with her forehead.

    ¡°Are you both not on good terms?¡±

    Skr chuckled. ¡°How do you know that? We¡¯re not that close. Eva has always been the pride of the

    family because of her beauty and good academic results. Her boyfriend¡¯s family is well-off, and she¡¯s

    going to marry him soon. All our rtives are fond of her as well.¡±

    That was all she said about Eva.

    Tobias sneered, ¡°How well-off is her boyfriend¡¯s family is? Is there anyone wealthier than your man?¡±

    Skr was tongue-tied. As a matter of fact, Tobias isn¡¯t being overconfident to say that. Undeniably, he¡¯s

    influential and filthy rich. If I ever break up with him, I¡¯ll never be able to find another man who is better

    than him. Besides, it¡¯s unlikely that anyone can surpass him.

    Tobias recalled the way Eva talked about Skr with a disdainful look.

    Judging from Eva¡¯s words, she obviously despises Skr. Perhaps it¡¯s a norm that the average

    people are toplement the outstanding ones, and Skr is definitely the former.

    ¡°How do you know she¡¯s my cousin? Did she tell you that?¡± Skr asked.

 Chapter 288

    Chapter 288

    Is Eva trying to find out whether there¡¯s something going on between Tobias and me? But that¡¯s not like

    her at all. As far as I know, she isn¡¯t a straightforward person, so she¡¯ll certainly beat around the bush

    and sound me out via WhatsApp, instead of asking openly.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. She doesn¡¯t know about our rtionship. If you don¡¯t like her, I¡¯ll ask the HR Department to

    inform her not toe to work anymore.¡±

    Tobias sounded totally carefree. The man had no regard for the tremendous effort the others put in to

    climb thedder and be a high-position assistant. He only cared about the results.

    That was why he could kick Eva out anytime, in case Skr wasn¡¯tfortable with her presence

    around him.

    Skr thought about it for a moment. ¡°What¡¯s the point of firing her? Her presence doesn¡¯t bother me.

    But you¡¯d better stay loyal. I don¡¯t want to see you get together with any other woman before we break

    up.¡±

    After finishing a cigarette, Tobias threw it into an ashtray. ¡±Are you warning me not to get together with

    your cousin? I¡¯m very choosy when ites to women. You¡¯ll have to keep me satisfied if you want me

    to stay loyal to you. Only then I won¡¯t cheat on you.¡±

    On the next day, Skr realized that almost everyone in the filming crew stared at her inquisitively when

    she went to the filming site. The news about her rtionship with Tobias had spread like wildfire.

    Behind her back, they were chattering that she would surely be the female lead of the uing

    blockbuster movie, and her future was secured.

    Right after she put on her makeup, Winnie came over with a cup of coffee. ¡°Ms. Jones, I¡¯m sorry. My

    assistant didn¡¯t see you after buying coffees yesterday. That¡¯s why she didn¡¯t give it to you.¡±

    With a smile, Skr took the cup of coffee from her and handed it to Hannah right away. ¡°If I¡¯m not

    mistaken, I¡¯m two years younger than you, so there¡¯s no need to address me as ¡®Ms. Jones¡¯.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll call you Skr then. Sheldon said we should take care of one another. I don¡¯t have any friend here,

    so I think of you as my buddy.¡± Winnie tried to curry favor with her.

    However, Skr disliked bootlickers. The smile on her face gradually faded away. ¡°The crew is looking

    for me. I should get going.¡±

    Annoyed by Skr¡¯s arrogant attitude, Connie said with a sullen face, ¡±She has been lying low and

    waiting for Tobias to show up so that she can humiliate you. Such a vicious woman! Look at her. She¡¯s

    so full of herself.¡±

    Winnie red at Skr¡¯s departing back. Her voice sounded deeper than usual. ¡°What can I do? As an

    artiste under Royal Entertainment, Tobias is my boss too. But she grabbed the opportunity and slept with

    the boss right after joining thepany.¡±

    ¡°Winnie, you¡¯re not bad yourself. Mr. Ford is so into you. I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll side with you.¡±

    The filming of ¡®Unrequited Love¡¯ was half-done. Today¡¯s outdoor shooting was at a college, as the scene

    was a shback. Skr changed into a blue and white school uniform. Then, the stylist dyed her hair

    ck and put on hair extensions for her. Now her long and silky hair reached her waist.

    Her makeup was light and minimal, making her look young and innocent.

    Numerous college students gathered around to watch the filming, and it took the security guards a long

    while to clear the site.

    Quite a number of Harry¡¯s fans came over, calling out his name enthusiastically. As a result, the audio

    quality of the filming was greatly affected.

    Sittingnguidly on a foldable chair, Skr was taking sips of tea. The afternoon sun cast a bright, warm

    light on her, and she could barely open her eyes.

    At the same time, her phone rang incessantly with repeated calls from Miranda.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? I¡¯m going to start filming soon, so I can¡¯t talk to you for long.¡±

 Chapter 289

    Chapter 289

    Miranda could not contain her excitement, choking on her words as she said, ¡°Thomas is taking me out

    for dinner tonight. We¡¯ve booked a western restaurant which is known for good steak. What should I

    wear tonight?¡±

    Skr raised her beautiful brows. ¡°It¡¯s the best if you wear nothing at all.¡±

    Without waiting for her mother¡¯s reply, she hung up the phone straight away. I have a bad feeling about

    Thomas treating my mom to dinner. I¡¯ll bet he has an ulterior motive.

    After some time, the crew finally managed to clear the filming site, allowing only those students who

    were ying minor roles to stay back. Right before the filming started, Skr adjusted her braids,

    looking naive and attractive while carrying a backpack.

    This scene was about Lenny realizing that she was in love with Hans, so she was going to confess her

    feelings to him. Hans was riding on a bicycle as she chased after him and called out his name.

    The director spoke into a loudhailer, asking the crew and actors to get into position.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    Harry then rode on a bicycle, while the cameraman and Skr ran behind him.

    ¡°Cut!¡± the director shouted. Skr was panting heavily after running for a few rounds. Hannah handed

    her a bottle, and she took two big gulps of water.

    It was already evening when Skr got off from work. The woman couldn¡¯t stop thinking about Miranda

    and Thomas, as she was worried that her mother would get hurt again.

    She was still wearing the school uniform and carrying a backpack, because Hannah left her clothes in

    the studio.

    Winnie and her assistant came over and asked whether Skr wanted to go back with them. Thetter

    declined their offer and got into the car in front of the school.

    Winnie felt aggrieved that Skr had a car, but she did not. She once mentioned this in front of Sheldon,

    but the man did nothing about it.

    Tilting her head, Skr took a photo of herself and sent it to Tobias with a text: Uniform temptation.

    Tobias was on his way home when he received the photo from her. Skr is indeed daring and

    rebellious, trying to be seductive even when she is having her period.

    Wearing a school uniform, the woman appeared child-like. Her ivory and wless face seemed more

    enticing than usual.

    Tobias was reminded of the girl he liked when he was still studying in school. Back then, his puppy love

    was sincere and pure without any selfish desire. He was happy as long as he could see her every day.

    However, he could never get the same feeling ever again.

    Tobias replied: Are you seducing me?

    With the phone in her hand, a smile spread across Skr¡¯s face.

    She asked: How do I look in uniform? My clothes are still at the studio. That¡¯s why I¡¯m going home in this

    costume.

    Tobias replied mischievously: It¡¯ll be better if you wear nothing.

    As Skr was happily tapping on her phone, she suddenly put a hand over her stomach. There was a

    dull pain in her tummy since she ran during filming today, but she didn¡¯t pay attention to it.

    Now the pain was getting unbearable. Lying on the seat in the limousine, she huddled up in agony. Her

    forehead was covered with droplets of cold sweat.

    Hannah was shocked by the sudden change, asking in a panic, ¡±Skr, are you alright? Do you want me

    to contact Kate? Are you feeling unwell?¡±

    Biting her lower lip, Skr mumbled with much difficulty, ¡°It¡¯s pointless to look for her now. Ask the driver

    to take us to the hospital. I can¡¯t stand the pain anymore.¡±

    Closing her eyes, she couldn¡¯t help but tremble uncontrobly.

    Once they arrived at the hospital, Skr was put on a stretcher and sent to the emergency department.

    Standing outside the door, Hannah broke down in tears as a wave of anxiety washed over her.

    Soon, a doctor came out of the emergency department. ¡°Are you the patient¡¯s family? She¡¯s having acute

    appendicitis and needs to go for surgery now.¡±

 Chapter 290

    Chapter 290

    Hannah signed the notice on behalf of Skr, yet she didn¡¯t want to take responsibility for thetter.

    Therefore, Hannah fished out Skr¡¯s phone from her bag.

    She scrolled through the contact list and found a contactbeled ¡°Mom¡±. Without hesitation, she called

    the number.

    Right then, Miranda was seated in a well-decorated restaurant with a splendid environment. She looked

    elegant and graceful. Her face was flushing red as she gazed at her old me affectionately. It had been

    a long time since shest met the man.

    N?velDrama.Org exclusive content.

    In contrast to Miranda¡¯s passion, Thomas didn¡¯t show any excitement about their rendezvous. Instead,

    he pursed his lips tightly and had a serious look on his face.

    ¡°Come and live with us, Thomas. You¡¯re running out of time. You have to move in by this month.¡±

    Miranda swirled the ss of wine gently while looking at the ga red liquid casually.

    Hearing her words, Thomas was in a tight spot. ¡°I¡¯m not ready to talk to Irene about it. She¡¯ll definitely

    make a fuss. Besides, my children won¡¯t ept it either. Let¡¯s take some time and think it through, shall

    we?¡± he carefully asked.

    Miranda drank up her wine and her eyes turned grim. ¡°Don¡¯t you forget what you had done! I was made

    your scapegoat and I¡¯d suffered in jail for so many years. You have to pay the price!¡± she scowled.

    Hannah tried to reach Miranda, yet thetter didn¡¯t pick up her calls. Suddenly, Hannah thought of

    Tobias, but she was unsure whether he woulde over for Skr.

    Hannah had little experience of being an assistant, but she was no stranger to how things worked

    between a female star and a sponsor. The former secured the sources whereas thetter satisfied his

    sexual desires. They were merely getting what they needed from each other.

    Hannah called up Skr¡¯s manager, Kate. Upon receiving her call, Kate rushed to the hospital. She was

    already in the hot water because of the tight filming schedule before she was informed about Skr¡¯s

    situation. However, she didn¡¯t me Skr as it was something uncontroble.

    In the corridor, Kate questioned Hannah, ¡°Have you contacted her family? Why are you here alone?¡±

    Hannah shook her head. ¡°I called her mother, but no one answered. I didn¡¯t know who else I could

    reach.¡±

    Without further ado, Kate took out her phone and called Tobias. That was Skr¡¯s best opportunity to get

    hold of Tobias. A strong, controlling man like Tobias Ford would feel protective towards a weak woman.

    Besides, Skr would never have to worry about her sponsorship as long as she was with Tobias. That

    could save up a lot of work on her end.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was having a meal with his family. ¡°Have you cut her offpletely?¡± udia stared

    at Tobias as she queried.

    Ever since Tobias moved out, she could only have a meal with her son once a week. udia always

    envisioned a happy family, with her beloved children and grandchildren surrounding her.

    However, everything was ruined. The child was gone, Tanya had gone crazy, and Tobias had distanced

    himself from the family. All these happened because of Skr Jones.

    Tobias remained silent. He picked up the fork and knife, then elegantly cut the steak. Under this somber

    atmosphere, Sheldon was scrutinizing the two of them. He was waiting for the right timing to introduce

    Winnie to his family.

    ¡°There are a fewdies that I want you to meet. They¡¯re all beautifuldies with decent family

    backgrounds. Free up some time to meet them,¡± Miranda said.

    Tobias paused upon hearing that. He twitched his lips indifferently, then ced the utensils down. ¡°Are

    you setting up a blind date for me? Don¡¯t bother yourself. I don¡¯t need that.¡±

    udia frowned at his cold response. ¡°How long do you n to continue this nonsense? You have to get

    married one day. Stop messing around with that wretch. You¡¯re looking for a girlfriend, not a childish little

    girl. She¡¯s too young and does no good to you whatsoever. Your future wife has to be a good match for

    you and she¡¯s definitely not the one.¡±

 Chapter 291

    Chapter 291

    Sheldon found her words hrious. Indeed, Skr was too young for his brother. She was just a little girl

    and had nothing inmon with Tobias.

    There was nothing else they could talk about other than having sex. Sheldon had never seen them

    chatting with each other. He was always the one who kept jibber-jabbering all the time.

    Right then, Tobias¡¯ phone rang. Leaving his meal unfinished, he picked up the car keys and instructed

    the maid to hand him the coat.

    udia immediately stopped him. ¡°What happened? Can¡¯t you leave after the meal?¡±

    Tobias hesitated for a few seconds before he replied, ¡°Something came up. I have to head to the

    company. You enjoy your meal. I¡¯ll see you next week.¡±

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    udia called out to Tobias, but he left in a hurry without looking back.

    Sheldon couldn¡¯t help but whine, ¡°Mom, why must you make him stay? I can apany you. You¡¯re

    biased towards Tobias, Mom. You¡¯re always worried about his marriage and you¡¯ve never once cared

    about me. I¡¯m not that young anymore. Don¡¯t you think I should settle down and get married?¡±

    udia held her head with one hand and pinched her brows. ¡°I had high hopes for Tobias. I expect him

    to get married and have a child soon. But I guess it¡¯s not going to happen. Do as you please, Sheldon.

    Pick a few women from our family friends and choose the one whom you like.¡±

    Upon hearing that, the smirk on his face faded. Sheldon cleared his throat and asked with a serious look,

    ¡°Can¡¯t I go for the woman I like? Why must I pick one from our family friends? Those heiresses are spoilt

    and pretentious. We¡¯re living in modern times now. Who still cares about social status?¡±

    udia raised her volume. ¡°Stop dreaming! I¡¯m doing this for your own good. Don¡¯t behave like your

    brother and never get yourself a promiscuous woman. I loathe those gold-diggers who are calcting

    and materialistic. Just like Skr Jones, she¡¯s a shameless woman and has ruined our family.

    Sheldon was lost in his thoughts. Judging from udia¡¯s attitude towards Skr, his mother would never

    ept Winnie. udia spoke of Skr as if thetter was an unforgivable sinner.

    By the time Tobias arrived at the hospital, Skr had undergone surgery. She was still under observation

    in the operation theater.

    Tobias looked anxious when he arrived. Hannah didn¡¯t expect to see him there. If she knew Tobias would

    come over, she would¡¯ve contacted him in the first ce.

    Hannah gazed at Tobias. He was holding his ck coat and talking to Kate outside the operation theater.

    The red light above the door was off, yet Skr was still inside. Tobias started getting worried until Kate

    told him that the doctor was observing Skr¡¯s condition.

    After Tobias found out Skr was fine, he turned around and was about to leave. Kate looked at him in

    disbelief. She was provoked by his reaction. She suppressed her anger towards him and kept the

    emotion to herself.

    Kate was worried sick about Skr, yet Tobias just took a nce at the door and left without looking

    back. He¡¯s such a cold-hearted man.

    Kate tactfully asked, ¡°Mr. Ford, are you leaving now? Skr may look for you after she regains her

    consciousness.¡±

    With one hand in his pocket, Tobias nced at her with a condescending sneer. ¡°I¡¯m heading to the

    counter to pay the expenses. If I don¡¯t do it, who will handle it for her?¡±

    Kate realized that she had misunderstood him.

    Tobias went to the ward after he settled the payment. When he saw Skr, she had regained her

    consciousness.

 Chapter 292

    Chapter 292

    Skr was lying on the bed in a hospital gown. Looking at her pale face, Tobias gently asked, ¡°Do you

    want to drink some water?¡±

    Skr shook her head and replied with her weak voice, ¡°I can¡¯t drink water yet. The doctor says that I

    have to¡­ pass wind.¡±

    She lowered her head after saying that as she felt embarrassed. Tobias looked at her dry lips, then he

    went to the nurse station and came back with a cotton bud. He wetted the cotton bud with warm water

    and wiped it on her lips.

    Skr gazed at him and cast a weak smile. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you¡¯re so good at taking care of people. I¡¯ve

    never been sick like this before. I wonder how the filming crew is doing.¡±

    Skr informed the filming crew and took a few days off for recovery. After staying in the hospital for

    three days, Tobias sent a driver to take her home.

    Tobias visited her daily during the hospitalization, but he didn¡¯t stay long. Skr never asked him to stay

    overnight because she didn¡¯t want to make it an obligation for him. To stay or to leave, that was his

    choice.

    The female patient next to her also underwent an appendectomy. Her boyfriend stayed with her for

    almost 24 hours. He fed her and gave her massages every day. Skr was jealous of the girl, but she

    never held high expectations of Tobias to do that for her. It would be freaky if he stayed by her side all

    day long.

    Miranda had already been informed about Skr¡¯s condition, yet she didn¡¯t show up at all. Instead, she

    just asked Skr to stay in the hospital. To Miranda, it was just an appendectomy, not a big deal. Skr

    didn¡¯t feel upset about it because she had gotten used to the absence of her mother¡¯s love after all these

    years.

    Skr was bored as soon as she reached home. She called Penelope and asked her out to go

    shopping.

    Penelope was shocked when she saw Skr. ¡°Are you not eating well? You¡¯re way too skinny,¡± Penelope

    imed.

    Skr pointed at her belly. ¡°I just had an appendectomy a few days ago. Well, I guess it¡¯s a good way to

    lose weight fast.¡±

    Stunned by her statement, Penelopeined, ¡°How could you not tell me? I would¡¯ve paid you a visit

    at the hospital if you had told me earlier.¡±

    After saying that, Penelope took out two stacks of cash that were wrapped with white paper strips.

    Obviously, the cash was fresh from the bank.

    ¡°Here is twenty thousand. I still owe you four hundred eighty thousand and I¡¯ll clear it by this month.¡±

    Penelope handed the cash to Skr.

    Looking at the cash, Skr furrowed her eyebrows. ¡°Where did you get the money? It¡¯s okay, Penelope.

    You can pay me back slowly. I¡¯m getting sixty thousand for each episode of the new drama. Besides, I¡¯m

    not in need of money.¡±

    Penelope put a cherry tomato into her mouth. ¡°I have a new boyfriend. He¡¯s from a wealthy family, so I

    can clear the debt in no time. My boyfriend is a good man. The only thing is he¡¯s a bit too old for me. I¡¯ll

    introduce him to you next week. We can have lunch together.¡±

    Skr was dumbfounded. Penelope had many ex-boyfriends and she always got a new one not long

    after her breakup. Penelope showed Skr a picture of her new boyfriend. Skr widened her eyes in

    shock when she saw his picture.

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    She knew the man in the picture. It was him whom she met at the tea room the other day. She

    remembered that the man introduced a young model to Tobias. Such a coincidence! Penelope can even

    get her hand on this man.

    Skr returned the phone to Penelope, then she said with a serious look, ¡°You have to break up with this

    man. I know him. He¡¯s not a decent man and he¡¯ll drag you down.¡±

    Penelope didn¡¯t expect Skr to object against her rtionship with the man. Her face darkened and

    immediately denied Skr¡¯s im, ¡°He¡¯s the most charming man that I¡¯ve ever seen. It¡¯s the first time

    that I can finally be a little girl and protected by a mature gentleman like him.¡±

 Chapter 293

    Chapter 293

    Skr held her head and frowned. ¡°That¡¯s his trick to pick up a girl. I¡¯ve met him once and he was talking

    about how he fooled around with women. Don¡¯t trust him, Penelope.¡±

    Penelope looked at her with a displeased look. She hoped Skr to feel happy for her, but Skr

    dampened her enthusiasm instead. Annoyed by her response, Penelope argued, ¡°You¡¯re no better than

    me. You flirt with men too. You don¡¯t know my boyfriend, so you have no right to say anything about him.¡±

    That was the first time the besties fought against each other. Skr replied madly, ¡°You¡¯ll regret it. Just

    don¡¯t lose yourself in the rtionship.¡±

    Penelope¡¯s heart ached when she heard Skr¡¯s words. She¡¯s my best friend. She should be happy for

    me, shouldn¡¯t she? I guess she just can¡¯t ept the fact that I have a good boyfriend now.

    Penelope put the money on the table and walked away. Skr called out to her, yet she totally ignored

    her and left. Skr drank up her fruit juice and felt upset that her best friend turned her back on her

    because of a despicable man.

    While Skr was on her way back, she scrolled through Penelope¡¯s social media. She was worried when

    she realized Penelope put her heart and soul into the rtionship.

    Her posts on social media were all about the man, showing off her new boyfriend. She posted pictures of

    the man¡¯s back, his shirts, and some pictures of them holding hands.

    Penelope had never done anything like that.

    Skr called Tobias and asked him toe over to the mall. He was attending a business event when

    she called him. He left the event early and headed towards Skr. She could smell the strong odor of

    liquor on him when he approached her. Tobias took down his coat and seated himself, then he took a sip

    of Skr¡¯s coffee.

    ¡°Why are you here in the mall? You should be resting at home,¡± Tobias asked while gazing around.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    ¡°I¡¯m bored. Did you drink? You reek of alcohol.¡± His scent was so strong that she couldn¡¯t smell the

    fragrance of her coffee anymore.

    ¡°A little bit. I was attending a business event. Why did you call me? Do you want me to pick you up, or is

    there something you want to buy?¡± Tobias reached out to his pocket, then he realized that he had left his

    wallet in the office.

    Skr showed him the cinema¡¯s website on her phone. She was checking out the movie tickets for a

    romantic film. ¡°I was in a bad mood, so I wanted to watch a movie with you. But I guess you¡¯ve drunk a

    little too much. Just forget about it. Let¡¯s go home.¡± After saying that, she turned off her phone.

    Tobias cast a smile at her. ¡°I¡¯m not drunk. Let¡¯s watch a movie. I¡¯ll just take a nap there.¡±

    Such a party pooper! Skr heaved a sigh upon hearing that. What¡¯s fun about that if my date just

    sleeps through the movie?

    After that, she bought two tickets for a romantic film. There weren¡¯t many people in the hall, so they

    practically booked the ce.

    There were forty minutes more until the movie started. Tobias wanted to have a smoke at the fire

    escape. Skr didn¡¯t want to follow, yet he grabbed her wrist and dragged her to the fire escape behind

    the mall.

    Holding the tickets in her hand, Skr stood by the door. She hugged herself with her own arms and

    mocked, ¡°What a pitiful girl I am! I¡¯ve just been discharged from the hospital and now I¡¯m forced to

    breathe in secondhand smoke. Do you want me to die early, Mr. Ford?¡±

    Tobias squinted his eyes as he looked at her. Actually, smoking was just an excuse. He saw Thomas and

    Miranda at the cinema, and he didn¡¯t want Skr to run into them.

    Before she noticed, he pulled her out of the ce. Tobias was shocked to see Thomas and Miranda

    there, holding hands and going to a movie like a couple. He wouldn¡¯t believe it if he hadn¡¯t seen it with

    his own eyes.

    If he loves Miranda so much, then why did he abandon his family?

 Chapter 294

    Chapter 294

    Tobias didn¡¯t want Skr to witness that, but she couldn¡¯t bear the heavy scent of cigarette smoke

    anymore. Just when she touched the doorknob, Tobias hugged her from behind. ¡°Stay with me for a

    while. We can go back after the movie starts.¡±

    Skr was puzzled. ¡°Did you run into your ex-girlfriend or old me? Why should I stay?¡±

    Tobias gazed at her with his deep, dark eyes. ¡°Do you think I¡¯ll hide from my ex-girlfriend?¡±

    Skr thought about it for a while. Well, it doesn¡¯t seem so. A ruthless man like him will definitely ignore

    his old mes if he meets one. Besides, who knows how many old mes did he have?

    Skr took a look at the time and there were 20 minutes more until the movie started. She couldn¡¯t help

    but yawn with boredom. Oh my! I¡¯ll have to stand here for 20 minutes more.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    She took out her phone and wanted to have a talk with Penelope. Before she could unlock her phone,

    Tobias took it away from her. ¡°Is it so boring to spend time with me? You¡¯re always on your phone when

    you¡¯re with me. Whenever you¡¯re free, you y with your phone. You even bring it to the toilet. To you,

    your phone is more important than me, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Skr was at a loss. She didn¡¯t understand why he made a fuss about it. Everyone yed with the

    phone as a pastime.

    He was the only one who didn¡¯t touch his phone other than receiving calls and emails. His phone was

    perfectly clean. There weren¡¯t any apps other than the default ones.

    Skr replied, ¡°People do that all the time. You want me to stay and I have nothing else to do other than

    ying with my phone. What now? Do you want me to y with you?¡±

    She found her words inappropriate as soon as she dropped herst word. She overestimated herself and

    put it the wrong way somehow.

    Before she could say anything else, Tobias kissed her on her lips. A taste mixed with a light tobo and

    liquor scent overwhelmed her senses.

    On the other hand, Skr had a cup of cappino just now. Her soft lips tasted exactly like the sweet

    caramel pudding.

    Tobias reached out to her skirt and she quickly stopped him with her hands. She gestured him towards

    the security camera that was focusing on them.

    Skr bit him on his lips to sober him up. After a few seconds, Tobias removed his hand.

    He let go of her hands as well. Once her hands were freed, she pushed him away.

    Tobias tasted his own blood in his mouth. ¡°Are you a puppy? How could you bite that hard?¡± he scolded.

    Skr didn¡¯t apologize for it. Instead, she pointed at the security camera. ¡°Don¡¯t you see there¡¯s a

    camera? I don¡¯t want to expose myself in front of the security guards.¡±

    Tobias replied with his deep, husky voice, ¡°I didn¡¯t intend to do it here anyway. I know what I¡¯m doing.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t buy his words. He always did things the way he wanted.

    It was almost the showing time. Tobias put his arm around her shoulders and walked towards the

    cinema. However, they still ran into Thomas and Miranda at the entrance.

    The old couple was holding hands. In contrast to Miranda¡¯s affectionate face, Thomas looked miserable

    with a forced smile on his face.

    Skr loosened her grip and the popcorns scattered all over the floor. ¡°Why are the two of you

    together?¡±

 Chapter 295

    Chapter 295

    Skr mustered up her strength before she could say that. She couldn¡¯t believe her eyes. She thought

    Miranda was daydreaming when thetter said with confidence that she would reconcile with Thomas. I

    guess the joke is on me now.

    Thomas focused on Tobias as soon as he saw him. He approached Tobias and greeted him in a friendly

    way.

    Tobias didn¡¯t even give a nod. He despised the men who abandoned their families, just like how his

    father did to his family.

    Miranda was not embarrassed at all. Instead, she looked cheerful. ¡°Skr, I didn¡¯t know you were

    discharged from the hospital. I was just talking to your dad about you. We were talking about paying you

    a visit.¡±

    ¡°I see. So do you n to visit me at the hospital after the movie?¡± Sorrow and bitterness washed over

    her. She couldn¡¯t ept the fact that the two of them got back together after what Thomas did to

    Miranda.

    Thomas disdained Miranda and even forbade her to get her treatment at the hospital after she was

    released on medical parole.

    Skr would rather die when she saw the two of them were in love with each other.

    If Tobias hadn¡¯t held her waist, she would¡¯ve copsed onto the floor at the moment.

    Listening to Skr¡¯s usation, Miranda couldn¡¯t exin herself because she knew she had gone

    overboard.

    To prevent Skr from getting provoked again, Tobias urged her, ¡°The movie has started. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Skr was not in the mood for a movie. ring at them, her eyes were burning with anger. ¡°Skr, how

    are you feeling now?¡± Thomas approached her as he asked.

    Skr closed her eyes and took a deep breath. After a few seconds, she looked into Thomas¡¯ eyes with

    a cold sneer. ¡°You have a date with your ex-wife while your wife and children are waiting for you at

    home.¡±

    Provoked by her words, Miranda shouted at Skr, ¡°I¡¯m your mother. How can you side with the other

    woman? Your dad will divorce the woman soon. After that, we can live together happily as a family.

    That¡¯ll be perfect!¡±

    ¡°Do as you please, but leave me alone,¡± Skr uttered the words through her clenched teeth.

    After dropping her words, Skr couldn¡¯t wait to get rid of them. She held Tobias¡¯s arm and headed

    towards the hall.

    Skr plopped herself down on the seat. Her mind was perplexed with thousands of thoughts. Looking

    at her grouchy face, Tobias calmly said, ¡°Don¡¯t be mad. They know exactly what they¡¯re doing. Just let

    them be. Don¡¯t let it get the best of you.¡±

    Skr sighed and pinched her brows. ¡°You know nothing about Thomas¡¯ wife. She¡¯ll wreak havoc if she

    finds out the two of them go on a date behind her back. I guess she¡¯ll cause a ruckus in front of the

    filming crew soon, only to give me a hard time.

    ¡°So, are you worried about yourself?¡± Tobias held her hand in the darkness. His big hand made her feel

    warm and secured.

    ¡°I¡¯m worried about Mom. What if they set her up and put her into jail again? I don¡¯t really care about

    myself. I have a bad reputation anyway. The filming crew thinks that I got my chance through the back

    door. No one believes that I made it through the audition with my own effort.¡±

    She had been caught up in multiple scandals before she became famous. If she became a top star one

    day, all these scandals would be her endless nightmares.

    Tobias left a kiss on the back of her hand. She is too naive after all. Until this day, she still thinks that she

    made it through the audition all by herself.

    Skr had no idea that Tobias was one of the producers. He invested fifty million in the production in

    order to secure her role of the female lead.

    Skr had been reced once and he would not let her go through that again. No one could change his

    mind, nor get into his way.

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 Chapter 296

    Chapter 296

    The next day, Skr was still on leave, so she went to Wesley¡¯s house to look for Miranda. Just when

    she arrived at his house, she saw Eva who was on her way out to work. What a lucky day!

    Eva had only started working for a short time, yet she had already got herself a new Audi Q3. The

    neighbors had been praising her for her outstanding achievement as a CEO¡¯s assistant.

    Skr tried to walk past her, but Eva stretched her arm and stopped her. ¡°You¡¯re early. I guess you

    haven¡¯t had your breakfast, have you? Well, we don¡¯t have extra utensils for strangers though.¡±

    Skr gave her a side-eye. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m not interested in your dishes. Shouldn¡¯t you in a hurry?

    You¡¯re runningte. Your boss will arrive at thepany sooner than you.¡±

    Tobias had departed to thepany early in the morning. Sometimes, Skr thought he was pushing

    himself too hard. There would never be enough time for him to deal with the endless work.

    Eva curled her lips upward with a flint of glee in her eyes. ¡°My boss is lenient with me. He won¡¯t say a

    word even if I don¡¯t clock in. Just mind your own business.¡±

    Eva looked at Skr arrogantly, as if she was a queen. Eva had been receiving special treatment since

    she was young. She was the apple of everyone¡¯s eye. Moreover, she was selected as the monitor from

    primary school to high school. Not only that, she was the president of the student council in the

    university. Anyone would¡¯ve been proud to have her achievements.

    However, Skr was skeptical about what Eva said. Tobias and Susan never bothered about little things

    other than thepany¡¯s benefits. Eva was just an assistant. Even though they knew she was Skr¡¯s

    cousin, that made no difference. Besides, Tobias knew she and Eva were not on good terms.

    Holding the thought in her mind, Skr unwittingly sized Eva up. Eva couldn¡¯t care less about it. Instead,

    she held her chin up and sneered.

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr took a look at her watch. It was nine-thirty sharp. Eva waste and nothing could change that.

    After Skr stepped into the building, she reported to Tobias that his employee waste to work.

    Although she didn¡¯t work for Ford Group, she knew that it had a well-established corporate culture.

    Tobias was very particr about punctuality, so his subordinates had to do the same. If the employee

    waste to work, one-third of the sry would be deducted with no exemptions.

    Eva is taking advantage of the flexibility of her working schedule. An assistant¡¯s working schedule was

    usually flexible as the assistant had to make adjustments ording to the needs of the higher-ups.

    Therefore, clocking in was notpulsory and that was why Eva could be impudent and take her own

    sweet time.

    When Skr walked in, Miranda was having porridge at the dining table. It was a round old wooden table

    that looked vintage. Meanwhile, Miranda was eating from a cheap porcin bowl. Despite that, she

    looked elegant like a rich ssy wife.

    Skr felt relieved when she realized that only Miranda was home. It would make things easier.

    If Wesley and Sharon were home, they would probably eavesdrop on her conversation with Miranda and

    make a drama out of it.

    ¡°Come and have some porridge.¡± Instead of giving Skr a warm wee, Miranda just raised her

    finger and pointed at the kitchen. Skr would have to get the porridge herself if she wanted to have

    some.

    Skr took a seat on the sofa and stared at Miranda. ¡°What happened between you and Thomas Jones?

    What did you mean when you said ¡®living together happily as a family¡¯? I didn¡¯t ask further because

    Tobias was there.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t want Tobias to know too much about her family dispute. She stayed awake throughout the

    night because she was afraid of having a nightmare. Three of them living together as a family and being

    pretentious to one another would be the worst nightmare that she could ever imagine.

    ¡°Well, believe your eyes and ears. We¡¯re going to marry each other again. I¡¯m thinking if we should hold

    a wedding.¡±

 Chapter 297

    Chapter 297

    Something is off. There¡¯s no way the man would agree to such a ridiculous idea. Skr questioned

    further, ¡°Did you ckmail Thomas Jones to force him to divorce his wife and remarry you?¡±

    Her question caught Miranda off guard. However, Miranda yed dumb and chuckled. ¡°What are you

    talking about? I am an ex-convict. How am I supposed to ckmail him? Your dad feels guilty for what

    he did, so he wants to makepensation.¡±

    After hearing what Miranda said, Skr burst into sarcastic chuckles. How can she say that with a

    straight face?

    Thomas Jones was never a soft-hearted man. Instead, he was selfish and merciless. If he meant to

    compensate them, he would¡¯ve done it years ago.

    Skr recalled her difficult childhood. She had lived a careful and frugal life since she was young. She

    would¡¯ve been long dead if it weren¡¯t for Grandma. Thomas was never there for her. He just left her to

    fend herself. He only cared about his new family. He brought the entire family on overseas tours and

    gave them everything they wanted. He even bought Avery a yacht on her tenth birthday.

    Skr¡¯s heart ached when she recalled what the merciless man had done to her and her mother. She

    knew Miranda was stubborn as a mule. It seemed that she was unable to get anything out of Miranda.

    Anyhow, Skr gave her a gentle reminder. ¡°Thomas Jones is having a hard time now. Hispany is in

    the red and it¡¯s on the brink of bankruptcy. You, of all people, should know that the only person who can

    help him is Irene Ziegler, with the power of the Ziegler family. I¡¯ve told you whatever you need to know. If

    you keep being stubborn, there¡¯s nothing else I can do.¡±

    Miranda sneered at her statements. She didn¡¯t believe a word. A smart, sessful businessman like

    Thomas would never let anything bad happen to hispany. Even if thepany had some issues,

    they would be child¡¯s ys to Thomas.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    Although Miranda didn¡¯t give any response, her eyes were filled with determination. Right then, Skr

    knew that Miranda had made up her mind and whatever she said earlier had gone down the drain.

    Thomas would never divorce Irene Ziegler unless he was ready to give up his life.

    However, it¡¯s Mom¡¯s choice. She¡¯s old enough to make her own decision. Skr was done with her, for

    she had tried her best to talk Miranda out of it.

    Miranda reached out to Skr¡¯s hand and smiled at her. ¡°Skr, can you give me some money? I¡¯m a bit

    tight on money recently. I need to buy a few dresses.¡±

    I gave her four hundred fifty thousandst month, yet she spent all the money in just a month! I guess

    I¡¯ve been too harsh on myself and should¡¯ve pampered myself instead.

    Looking at Miranda¡¯s luxurious clothing and essories, Skr raised her eyebrows with a smirk on her

    face. ¡°I¡¯m penniless. Why not you get money from Thomas Jones? He¡¯s trying topensate us for his

    sins, isn¡¯t he? Why are you backing off now? He can give you whatever you want. Enjoy your meal. I¡¯m

    leaving now.¡±

    ¡°Tobias can help, can¡¯t he? He¡¯s rich. I¡¯m sure he wouldn¡¯t mind being a filial son-inw in advance.¡±

    Skr wasn¡¯t surprised by her mother¡¯s shameless statement.

    She gave a self-mockingugh. ¡°You¡¯re being ridiculous. What makes you think he¡¯ll marry me?¡±

    Skr had given up on the thought of marrying Tobias. It was merely impossible.

    Who will be my husband then?

    Marriage was something beyond her reach.

 Chapter 298

    Chapter 298

    She almost married Jeremy. If she were his wife, she could only be a housewife, taking care of his

    parents and children at home.

    I guess I¡¯m not that unfortunate. Luckily I made another call, or else my life would be wasted.

    While Skr was lost in her thought of marriage, Penelope called her. Penelope apologized for what

    happened the day before. Besides, she invited Skr for dinner as she had an important announcement.

    As her best friend, Skr happily epted her invitation although she had a date with Tobias that

    evening. Tobias was going to bring her to a nice restaurant to have some gourmet Western cuisines.

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but feel relieved after she called off the dinner. She felt stressed whenever she had

    Western cuisines with Tobias. The man was very particr about the ambiance and the food quality.

    He always opted for a full-course meal which consisted of an appetizer, soup, main course, sd, and

    dessert.

    The dining etiquette was way tooplicated to her liking. Actually, Skr was not very fussy about

    what she ate. Besides, what annoyed her the most was that she had to stay alert throughout the meal so

    that she didn¡¯t make a fool of herself.

    That was her first time to call off a date with Tobias. His response was rather indifferent. He just hummed

    in response, then he ended the call.

    Skr was expecting Tobias to express concern for her, such as reminding her to get more rest.

    However, he would never say something like that to her.

    Penelope was living a good life now. She and Skr used to have budgeted meals together at small

    restaurants, but now she booked a table at a high-end Japanese restaurant for dinner.

    It cost at least eight hundred per person. In the old days, they never set their foot in these deluxe

    restaurants.

    ¡°I¡¯m pregnant.¡± Penelope smiled happily as she caressed her belly. Wrinkles appeared at the corners of

    her eyes.

    Skr froze in her position as she was overwhelmed by the news. For a moment, she could not utter a

    word.

    After rposing herself, she asked, ¡°Whose child is it? Is the man the father? Did you tell him?¡±

    Penelope pursed her lips and nodded.

    After a few seconds, she softly replied, ¡°Not yet. I¡¯m going to keep the baby anyway. I¡¯ve ced all my

    hope on my baby. He¡¯s too good for me. I have to stabilize our rtionship with our baby. He¡¯s going to

    marry me.¡±

    Upon hearing what Penelope said, Skr started getting emotional. ¡°Are you trying to win a man¡¯s heart

    with your baby? Don¡¯t be silly. What if he doesn¡¯t acknowledge that it¡¯s his child?¡±

    Penelope condemned right away, ¡°No, he won¡¯t do that.¡±

    After their meetup, Skr went home early. She put on the new nightgown and waited for Tobias toe

    home. It was a ck silk camisole nightgown with a deep V-neck. It fit her perfectly, showing her nice

    figure.

    When Tobias came home, he was stunned by her beauty. The ck silk fabricplimented her fair

    skin. She looked so sexy.

    Tobias squinted his eyes and fixed his gaze on her amazing figure.

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    Skr walked towards him while flicking her hair back from her face. ¡°How do I look?¡± she asked shyly.

    ¡°Something is missing,¡± Tobias answered indifferently. In fact, Skr looked extremely attractive when

    she dressed like that.

    However, Tobias always had high expectations. It was not easy to please him.

    Besides, he saw through her move. There had to be a reason for Skr to be so nice to him suddenly,

    most probably she had something to ask from him.

    Skr bit her lips and looked at him. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Do I not look sexy and pretty?¡±

    Skr thought she looked stunning in the nightgown.

    Tobias went to the bedroom and looked for something in the cab.

    Skr had kept some sexy lingerie there.

    He handed a demi bra and acy underwear to her.

    After hesitating for a few seconds, Skr took the lingerie and headed towards the room to get changed.

    ¡°Why are you avoiding me? Get changed in front of me.¡± Tobias ced one arm over the sofa and

    looked at her with a mischievous smile on his face.

 Chapter 299

    Chapter 299

    Skr did as he said. She acted swiftly and got changed in a wink. She was so embarrassed and her

    face was as red as a tomato.

    Her shyness made Tobias even more aroused.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    However, he kept calm and whispered in her ear, ¡°What do you want from me?¡±

    He knew it! I shouldn¡¯t have put up such a show. He¡¯s not aroused anyway. I should¡¯ve just told him

    instead.

    Skr regretted seducing him in a sexy nightgown.

    She even rehearsed the scene in front of the mirror before he came home.

    ¡°I want to meet a person. He¡¯s your friend. Can you help me?¡±

    Skr was not sure how Tobias would feel about it, so she asked him carefully.

    Although she had slept with him, he seemed distant to her.

    Therefore, Skr never asked him about his whereabouts or whatsoever unless he told her himself.

    Before that, she had asked once but he seemed annoyed as if she had crossed the line. Since then, she

    would only call him and get straight to the point.

    ¡°Alright. Who is it? I¡¯ll make arrangements.¡± Tobias didn¡¯t ask further and agreed to help without

    hesitation.

    Things went easier than she thought. However, she didn¡¯t know the man¡¯s name. ¡°I don¡¯t know his name,

    but we¡¯ve met him at the tea house. The one who introduced a young model to you that day.¡±

    Tobias had an excellent memory. He instantly remembered the man after listening to her.

    ¡°His name is Brayden Scott. He¡¯s running a coal mining business.¡± Tobias briefly described the man¡¯s

    background. He still didn¡¯t ask Skr about her intention of meeting the man.

    She would tell him if she wanted to.

    ¡°Is he married?¡± Skr still held out hope for the man. If he was single, perhaps Penelope could try her

    best to get him.

    ¡°If I¡¯m not mistaken, he has a kid around six or seven.¡± Tobias¡¯ reply made Skr¡¯s hope shatter into

    pieces.

    Tobias was the type of person who acted on his words. He arranged a meetup for Skr and Brayden on

    the next day¡¯s evening.

    Skr gazed at the man sitting in front of her. She didn¡¯t take a close look at him during the first

    encounter. Looking at his good-looking appearance, she finally understood why Penelope fell for the

    man.

    Brayden was indeed an attractive man. He was in his early forties, looking smart in his grey suit. He

    looked decent and smart, perfectly showing the charm of a mature man.

    That was their second encounter. Brayden sized Skr up in silence. He couldn¡¯t believe that Tobias had

    fallen for a woman.

    ¡°To what do I owe the pleasure, Mr. Ford?¡± Brayden had a deep, pleasing voice.

    Tobias lit up a cigarette and nced at Skr. ¡°My girlfriend wants to see you. I¡¯m not sure about the

    reason though.¡±

    Brayden was stunned when Tobias addressed her as ¡°girlfriend¡± instead of ¡°friend¡±.

    ¡°I¡¯m Penelope¡¯s friend. She¡¯s pregnant with your child.¡± Without beating around the bush, Skr got

    straight to the point. She wanted to know Brayden¡¯s attitude on that matter. Most importantly, she tried to

    keep Penelope safe from harm.

    Upon hearing that, Brayden was nonplussed. Right then, Tobias figured out Skr¡¯s intention. Penelope

    had put herself in trouble with some debt, and now she was impregnated.

    ¡°So? Are you asking if I will take responsibility for the baby? But now we don¡¯t even know the biological

    father of the baby,¡± Brayden replied.

    Skr tried to keep her cool and said solemnly, ¡°You¡¯re a married man. It¡¯s not fair to Penelope. You

    should tell her the truth, then talk to her about the baby. The baby¡­¡±

 Chapter 300

    Chapter 300

    Brayden stopped her mid-sentence. ¡°She can keep the baby if she wants it so badly. I have more than

    one child anyway. Ms. Jones, you should stay out of this and let her decide on her own.¡±

    Brayden was exining himself out of respect for Tobias. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have wasted his time

    talking to an outsider. He used contraceptives every time they were intimate, so only Penelope knew the

    truth of her pregnancy.

    After hearing his reply, Skr snapped, ¡°I want you to confess everything to her so that she doesn¡¯t get

    hurt further! Since you can¡¯t marry her, how is she supposed to live as a single mother? Do you want her

    to throw a tantrum in front of your wife and show your wife what you¡¯ve done behind her back?¡±

    Brayden was provoked by her usations. He took a look at Tobias, hoping he could step in and hold

    her down.

    In contrast to Skr¡¯s emotional reaction, Tobias was calm. He sided with Brayden instead. ¡°You should

    let your friend make her own decision. It¡¯s either she keeps the baby or has an abortion. She can make

    her decision before it bes a fetus.¡±

    Skr knew Tobias well. To him, it was not a big deal and it was just a waste of time to talk about it.

    They¡¯re right. I have no right to make the decision for Penelope. Skr decided to call her and let her

    deal with it.

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    Right then, there was no way to keep Penelope from being heartbroken. However, Skr didn¡¯t want her

    best friend to be fooled. She had to make Penelope face the truth even though it might hurt her deeply.

    Brayden didn¡¯t care much about confronting Penelope. He was not afraid toe clean because he

    knew Penelope well. Unlike Skr, Penelope was a smart girl who knew exactly what she wanted.

    While waiting for Penelope¡¯s arrival, Tobias and Skr took a walk outside. The sun was setting and a

    warm red glow filled the sky. Skr sensed the chill on her skin when the wind blew.

    Tobias took down his coat and put it around her. A scent of white sandalwood filled the air.

    Skr held his hand and looked at him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about today. I may have ruined your friendship with

    Brayden. I know I¡¯ve put you in a tight spot, but there¡¯s no other way.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t really care about Brayden. I just thought it was a waste of time. Why did you ask your friend to

    come over? Honestly, I don¡¯t want to wait anymore. I could¡¯ve settled many tasks with the wasted time,¡±

    Tobias said.

    Skr firmly replied, ¡°I have to wake her up from her fancy dream! What Brayden is doing will ruin

    Penelope¡¯s life. She¡¯ll struggle to live a good life if she raises her child alone as a single mother. Neither

    she nor the child deserves it. That man will not take care of them.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t reveal his emotions easily, but Skr knew he was moved by her words, particrly when

    she mentioned the phrase ¡°single mother¡±.

    ¡°I get that. I¡¯ll be more careful next time and make sure we use contraceptives. I won¡¯t impregnate you.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t mean that though. When they first got together, Tobias was very casual about it. He even

    asked her to carry his child, but now he sang a different tune when he thought of marriage.

    However, Skr was not in the mood to think about their rtionship. She just hoped that Penelope

    wouldn¡¯t ruin her life because of an irresponsible man like Brayden.

    They waited for her for a long time, but Penelope was nowhere to be seen. Tobias was getting agitated.

    He stood up and was about to leave.

    Brayden looked at Tobias and cast an apologetic smile at him and Skr. ¡°I guess Penelope is resting at

    home. Pregnant women need more rest. Ms. Jones must be feeling upset. Mr. Ford, I guess you¡¯ll have

    to work harder tonight tofort your girlfriend.¡±

 Chapter 301

    Chapter 301

    Men would often crack dirty jokes among themselves. Tobias wouldn¡¯t have given a damn in the past.

    However, he raised his head and stared at Brayden coldly that time. He says too much.

    Brayden thought he would best shut up right then.

    Skr couldn¡¯t get through Penelope as thetter had already blocked her number. Skr could not

    comprehend why she would do that.

    Her emotions were all over the ce. In her mind, she started imagining poor Penelope holding her

    child, suffering alone with no ce to go.

    Tobias noticed Skr¡¯s dazed look. He stated the facts harshly, ¡°Maybe your friend knew all along that

    Brayden was married. She didn¡¯t show up because she didn¡¯t want to face it and lose face in front of you.

    She brought this all on herself. Brayden never once took off his wedding ring.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s impossible! Back then, when she thought that I was your mistress, she nearly skinned me alive.

    She wouldn¡¯t do something like this. She is an upright person,¡± Skr insisted stubbornly.

    Tobias thought of Skr as being delusional. Upright my foot! The onlooker sees most of the game.

    However, when ites to themselves, they would often get lost in their own feelings.

    Perhaps she had been more than eager to spread her legs for the married man. And to justify herself,

    she beautified her inexcusable act as sacrificing and giving herself away in the name of love.

    He was unwilling to further argue with Skr or try to convince her. Lifting his hand, he undid the buttons

    on her shirt one by one. ¡°I did not ept your bribe yesterday. I guess I¡¯ll ept that offer today instead.¡±

    Tobias pressed his body against her. He whispered hoarsely, ¡°Don¡¯t wear this kind of shirt in the future.

    It¡¯s a hassle to take off.¡±

    I remember Brayden saying it¡¯s time for my little girlfriend to vent her desires.

    Tobias made sure that her desires were well taken care of alright. He was especially vigorous that day,

    even a little rough, like a looting bandit.

    Skr noticed that Tobias took out the box of condoms from the drawer out of his own this time. Maybe

    he didn¡¯t want me to be a single mom.

    She was more clingy than usual that day, perhaps, she really needed to vent her desires.

    Tobias had wanted to end their lovemaking a few times, but her arms refused to let go. Her nails dug into

    his skin, preventing him from ending their steamy session.

    He was surprised at that. Skr is a quick learner. At this rate, she would soon surpass me.

    At the filming site, Skr tried to call Penelope whenever she had time. However, the calls did not

    connect at all. It was as if Penelope was the heartless yboy, and Skr was the pitiful admirer who

    kept chasing after her.

    Kate shared with Skr her uing work arrangements¡ªamong those were the publicity activities for

    the movie premiere and amercial shoot for Fendi¡¯s spring collection.

    Skr wondered if Kate had mistakenly input the job as she couldn¡¯t believe Fendi would take her in as

    their model. What a coveted opportunity this is!

    ¡°Are you sure? Why would they want me? I don¡¯t think my poprity is worthy to them.¡±

    Kate smirked. ¡°Why not? Don¡¯t forget that you are an artist of Royal Entertainment under my care. There

    is also Ford Group backing you up. Why is it so hard to believe? As long as you can hold on steadily,

    your future prospect is boundless.¡±

    Skr smiled bitterly. She had dreamed of the day when she could face Tobias with pride when she

    became established in the industry. It looks like I could not escape from Tobias¡¯ clutches, even if I had

    wings made of steel.

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    Kate reminded, ¡°You have an interview today. If the host asks you about your rtionship status, you

    must say that you are single. Always bear in mind that you and Tobias do not have any rtions in the

    eyes of the public.¡±

 Chapter 302

    Chapter 302

    Skr nodded. She was suspicious that Kate¡¯s repeated emphasis was because of Tobias¡¯ reminder. I¡¯m

    not that foolish to expose something in concealment!

    If everyone knew about their rtionship, they would have to put an end to it.

    After their night of passion the other day, he hadn¡¯te back for a few consecutive nights.

    Skr did not call to ask where he was. He woulde home when he wanted to. She didn¡¯t want to

    create problems for herself.

    Skr was someone whocked self-assurance. Tobias once told her that sense of security should not

    come from anyone else but the person himself.

    Coming to think of it, Tobias was a good mentor. He had taught Skr a lot of important life lessons.

    After the filming had wrapped up, Skr went straight to the TV station. That was her first time filming

    alone. However, she appeared natural on-screen as she greeted the host gracefully.

    Facing the camera, Skr was undeniably the epitome of gorgeousness. Kate had mentioned before

    that good looks could bring one many things¡ªmoney and a career.

    Those words truly hit the nail on the head. Right then, Skr was indeed using her looks to rope Tobias

    in to pave the way for her with his money. She just needed to ride on the wave and make a name for

    herself.

    Her interviewer was one of the lead hosts for the TV station, Tom Reyez. He was supposed to interview

    his idol¡ªMelissa Nivans, the famous actress.

    He was all pumped up for the interview before the TV station informed him at thest minute that he was

    to interview an uprising starlet instead. Tom was so disgruntled that he lost his temper with the producing

    director in the dressing room. His words were, ¡°Since when did I have to stoop so low as to interviewing

    a newbie! Isn¡¯t this for the young hosts!¡±

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    However, Skr took his breath away the moment they met.

    She had only light makeup on¡ªthat highlighted her wless porcin skin. The outfit she wore perfectly

    entuated her curvy figure. On the whole, she was gorgeous beyond words!

    Tom held the interview ording to the script. Skr spoke meticulously. Her answers to all the

    questions were quite brief. She was afraid that she would have a slip her of tongue and the Inte

    would make a mountain out of molehill out of it.

    ¡°Skr, I heard that you are still studying. Do you have a lot of admirers at your institution?¡±

    Skr shot a nce at Kate, who shook her head slightly. Getting the hint, Skr answered

    unhesitatingly, ¡°There are a lot of beautiful girls in Southwood. I am just average, so I don¡¯t have any

    admirers.¡±

    ¡°This means you are currently single?¡± Tom had strayed from the script and started asking her about her

    current rtionship status.

    Skr kept a straight face but she was struggling internally. Are we in a rtionship or merely

    exchanging favors?

    She gracefully smiled. ¡°Yes, that is right. I am currently single. I hope to have a campus romance too, but

    I am far too busy filming.¡±

    Upon hearing Skr¡¯s response, Kate smiled with satisfaction. Great! It would create a sense of

    anticipation for male fans who are attracted to her beauty. Skr was managing herself well without

    much guidance. I¡¯d give her answer ten out of ten.

    After that, Tom asked a few more inconsequential questions. The way he looked at Skr was evident

    that he was captivated. The look in her eyes was as clear as crystals, untainted by the humdrum of the

    mundane world. She seemed to be such a wonderful girl.

 Chapter 303

    Chapter 303

    At the same time, Tom couldn¡¯t help but sigh. How long will she be able to keep up with that innocence?

    There is a high possibility she would fall for the unspoken rules of the entertainment industry.

    Afterpleting the interview, Skr politely bowed to Tom. Then, she turned and bowed to all the staff

    present and thanked them for their hard work.

    By doing that, she had sessfully boosted her already positive image further.

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    Kate entered the dressing room shortly after. Skr had already changed out of her dress into jeans and

    a hoodie. She looked a far cry from the goddess that she was just moments ago.

    When she heard the sound of heels clicking against the marble floor, she deftly asked about her

    performance earlier while taking off an earring. ¡°Kate, how did I do?¡±

    Kate gave her a praising look. ¡°You did better than I expected. You held Tom Reyez¡¯s undivided attention

    the whole time. He couldn¡¯t keep his eyes off you at all. You have a certain charm that is irresistible to

    men. No wonder Tobias is so taken in by you. You have a captivating stare that is spellbinding.¡±

    A hint of sadness lingered in Skr¡¯s eyes when she heard Tobias¡¯ name. Kate had overestimated me.

    I¡¯m not that important to Tobias. I¡¯m just a ything that he could summon and dismiss at his will. The

    man is terrifying.

    He could perhaps be described as maniptive, even. One day, he could make you feel like the happiest

    woman in the world and the next, an abandoned woman, leaving you without a trace. There was nothing

    you could do except to wait for his return.

    Though at times, it seemed like he was waiting for Skr to take the initiative to contact him. However,

    most of the time, it seemed like he didn¡¯t want to be disturbed. She never had a say in this game of his.

    People tend to be vulnerable during nighttime. Skr was wallowing in self-pity when Kate reminded her

    that her phone screen was shing. Tobias¡¯ name entered her vision.

    Kate reminded, ¡°Take note and remember to change his name. You will need to be careful in public as

    people will intentionally take photos of your phone screen. It will be difficult to guard against.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m done with my work. Where are you?¡± Tobias¡¯ deep voice came from the phone speaker.

    Initially, Skr wanted to tell him she was done with her work too. After some deliberation, she said, ¡°My

    schedule is pretty tight today.¡±

    ¡°Alright then.¡± With that, Tobias ended the call. Skr gripped the phone dejectedly as if she was

    expecting something else.

    Kate, having experienced a simr situation, noticed Skr¡¯s anguish. She was still a youngdy, after

    all. So, she wore her heart on her sleeve.

    She mercilessly exposed Skr¡¯s little trick. ¡°ying hard to get only works for hot-blooded teenage

    boys. It doesn¡¯t work for men like Tobias. You should take the initiative more.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll see how it goes. We are both busy with our matters. It¡¯s quite good this way.¡±

    Kate didn¡¯t say anything else. Skr could only y ording to the choices she made. In her heart,

    she knew that she and Tobias would not make it far.

    To most people, Tobias gave off an aloof vibe. He did not belong to anybody, only to himself.

    On the way home from work, Skr wondered whether he woulde over tonight. Every time he

    contacted her, he would appear at home. His voice telling her that he could see her every day would

    reverberate around her ears at any time.

    It was only sweet nothings. How many times have I told him not to disappear out of the blue? I don¡¯t ask

    for much. A message from him to let me know he is there would be enough to make me feel secured!

    Tobias might have promised me when I said so. Still, he failed to keep his promise.

    Skr didn¡¯t want to be the inferior party. She felt like she could no longer keep up with him.

 Chapter 304

    Chapter 304

    Skr fumbled for the light switch as she got home at dawn. The expensive furnishings did nothing to

    mask her loneliness in such a big and empty house.

    Skr would always take a shower and head to bed once she got home. As long as Tobias was not

    around, she would not enter his study.

    However, she had been sleeping poorly for the past few days despite her exhaustion. She ofteny

    awake on the bed for hours on end.

    Skr suspected that she was stressed out. Work, rtionship, and friendship problems all yed a

    role.

    She entered the study and sat on Tobias¡¯ chair. She began flipping through the neatly arranged

    documents on his desk.

    She did not understand a thing¡ªthe documents were full ofplicated jargon in both Ustranian and

    Chanaean. All the documents had Tobias¡¯ signature on them.

    Flipping to the bottom of the stack, she saw the words ¡°Quest Group¡± on thest page.

    The Quest Group was Thomas¡¯pany. When he had first established it with his wife Irene, the

    industry was amazed at their decision to go into business together as a couple.

    What they did not know was that Miranda had been the victim in Thomas and Irene¡¯s seemingly perfect

    marriage.

    Thomas needed the funds from Irene¡¯s family to establish the Quest Group.

    Even if Miranda had given birth to a male heir, their marriage was bound for ruin. She could not keep up

    with the grandeur of Thomas¡¯ ambitions.

    Skr realized right then that the Ford Group had ns to acquire the Quest Group.

    She had never been one to pry into Tobias¡¯ business affairs.

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    This time, though, she pulled out her phone and took a picture of the document. She wanted to ask

    Tobias if his decision to buy over the Quest Group had anything to do with her.

    In Skr¡¯s eyes, the Quest Group was on a decline. If it were not for special reasons, Tobias would

    never have considered acquiring thepany.

    Skr moved everything on his desk back to its original ce.

    She switched on theputer and browsed its contents. The clicking noises from her mouse were

    jarring against the silence of the room.

    She did not learn anything interesting from her digging. The only games on theputer were

    minesweeper and solitaire.

    Even the games are as nd as his character.

    It seemed like the documents in Tobias¡¯ study did the trick. She fell into a deep sleep once her head hit

    the pillow.

    Dimly, she thought she heard her phone ring. The ringing grew louder just as she was about to dismiss it

    as a dream.

    She fumbled for her phone with her eyes still closed. Upset at the disturbance, she answered angrily,

    ¡°Who are you? Why are you calling in the middle of the night? I don¡¯t want a loan or any expensive liquor

    deals. I¡¯m not looking for a house either.¡±

    Skr thought it was a spam call from some insistent salesperson.

    ¡°Skr, are you home? I¡¯ve nowhere to go. Could I stay the night at your ce?¡±

    Skr became wide awake at the sound of Penelope¡¯s voice. Her anger dissipated immediately. She

    finally reappeared. Skr had forgotten how many times she had called Penelope to track her down.

    She sent Penelope her address before pulling on a pair of fluffy, white slippers and a thick coat. Yawning,

    she went to open the front door. The temperature outside was much colder than she had expected.

    She shivered as she waited for Penelope to arrive.

    Half an hourter, Penelope showed up in a cab. She eximed loudly when she saw Skr, ¡°You live

    here? A single square foot in this area is worth five digits! Are you really so well-paid for starring in

    dramas?¡±

    Skr deadpanned, ¡°This isn¡¯t my house. I¡¯m not that rich.¡±

    Penelope took a turn around the house and confirmed that Skr was living with a man. She had spied a

    razor in the restroom.

 Chapter 305

    Chapter 305

    Skr cooked a bowl of pasta for Penelope in case she had not eaten anything yet that night. She¡¯s

    pregnant now; she needs to take good care of herself for as long as that baby¡¯s in her belly.

    ¡°Brayden has gotten in touch with me. He says it¡¯s up to me to keep the baby or not. My parents have

    been bugging me about the father¡¯s identity ever since they found out that I was pregnant. However, I

    can¡¯t reveal the truth.¡±

    Penelope frowned after swallowing some pasta.

    Skr looked at her in disappointment. ¡°You knew Brayden was married, right? And you know the

    complications of having a baby out of wedlock. He¡¯s got his own family too. I think you should go for an

    abortion. I¡¯ll apany you to the procedure.¡±

    Penelope had been in shock the past few days herself. She had found out from Brayden that Skr¡¯s

    mysterious partner was Tobias.

    The CEO of the invincible Ford Group is single.

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    To think I was worried that Skr might be fooled by Tobias. She could not help butugh at her past

    ignorance. Skr will never draw the short end of the stick if she¡¯s with a man like Tobias. Even if they

    split up, she¡¯ll earn herself a pretty penny. I¡¯d have to worry about myself first.

    Penelope did not want to abort the baby. She replied to Skr, ¡°Well, he can always get a divorce. I¡¯m

    younger and prettier than that wife of his anyway. This baby is my trump card. I¡¯ve always said that I¡¯m

    going to marry into a rich family. Now the opportunity¡¯s right in front of my eyes; I can¡¯t just let it slip by.

    Skr, you can stop talking me out of this.¡±

    As they chatted in the living room, there was the sound of a car parking in the driveway.

    Penelope nced at Skr nervously as she wondered about the identity of thiste guest.

    The key turned in the lock of the front door. Skr approached the door as Tobias walked in. A gush of

    cold wind followed him into the room.

    ¡°Why are you still awake? Were you waiting up for me?¡± Tobias asked as he removed his shoes. He saw

    Penelope standing up from the couch.

    It¡¯s her problematic friend. Looks like Brayden¡¯s not too choosy about his romantic liaisons. She looks

    pretty normal to me.

    Feeling awkward, Skr took Tobias¡¯ jacket from where it was slung on his elbow. ¡°My friend¡¯s staying

    the night. I didn¡¯t know you¡¯d be home today. I hope this arrangement doesn¡¯t bother you.¡±

    Tobias answered matter-of-factly, ¡°This is your house. Anything you decide doesn¡¯t bother me at all.¡±

    Penelope felt nervous around Tobias after knowing about his rtionship with Skr. Even a simple

    hello seemed like a challenge to her. Her eyes darted around the room.

    Tobias happened to notice the small bump on Penelope¡¯s abdomen. I don¡¯t know how women are

    supposed to look like when they¡¯re pregnant, but that looks like she¡¯s at least two months along.

    The awkward atmosphere in the living room persisted. Skr went to the kitchen to prepare supper for

    Tobias, leaving him and Penelope alone in the living room.

    Tobias flipped through one of the magazines on the coffee tables.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, are you close to Brayden?¡± Penelope cleared her throat and attempted to make small talk with

    him.

    Without lifting his head, he replied, ¡°I don¡¯t like to pry into other people¡¯s private affairs. However, you are

    Skr¡¯s friend. I don¡¯t want your emotions to affect her wellbeing, so I¡¯d advise the two of you to reduce

    your interactions.¡±

    He had conveyed all of this in a chilly tone, which urately reflected his sentiments when it came to his

    thoughts on Skr¡¯s rtionship with Penelope. While he did not mean to stop her from socializing with

    others, he preferred her to stay away from someone who invited trouble as frequently as Penelope did.

    Tobias¡¯ direct barb was a huge blow to Penelope.

 Chapter 306

    Chapter 306

    ¡°I won¡¯t affect Skr. I believe that¡¯s just your prejudice against me, Mr. Ford. Skr and I have been

    friends for decades. We¡¯re as thick as thieves. Perhaps I hold more weight in her heart than you.¡±

    Tobias scoffed, ¡°I hope so.¡± The icy look in his eyes intensified.

    Dissatisfied, Penelope pursued further, ¡°Have you met Brayden¡¯s wife? He told me that the two of you

    are very close.¡±

    Tobias kept quiet. So what if Brayden and I share a bond?

    Right then, Skr walked out with a bowl of pasta. Wearing a pair of heat-insting gloves, she carefully

    served the oval-shaped bowl in front of Tobias.

    ¡°You guys go ahead and enjoy your meal. Please excuse me,¡± Penelope uttered.

    Skr called out to her and led her to the guest room upstairs. I should¡¯ve told Tobias in advance that

    I¡¯ve got a guest at home, then it wouldn¡¯t have been so awkward for Penelope.

    She asked for a pair of pajamas, but Skr could not offer her any because hers were extremely

    revealing.

    A few days ago, she even received a fis one, which she had chucked aside in the wardrobe. Her

    array of nightgowns spoke volumes about Tobias¡¯ fetish.

    Penelope did not insist. She removed her jacket andy down on the bed. Seeing Penelope¡¯s bulging

    belly, Skr felt so sorry for her.

    After helping her to settle in, Skr headed downstairs only to find Tobias had already finished the entire

    bowl of pasta. He was puffing on a cigarette with his eyes squinted as white smoke lingered around him.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me earlier that you¡¯reing? I didn¡¯t get to prepare a proper meal.¡± Skr wanted

    to bring the bowl into the kitchen.

    Tobias grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his embrace. ¡°Since when there¡¯s a rule that requires me to

    inform before showing up?¡±

    Skr looked at the stairwell. Thank goodness Penelope isn¡¯t here.

    ¡°This is the invitation to your father¡¯s birthday banquet tomorrow.¡± Tobias fished out two invitation cards

    from his pocket.

    In the past, Thomas never really had the chance to talk to Tobias. It was on Skr¡¯s ount that Tobias

    epted the former¡¯s invitation.

    Skr knew about the birthday banquet. She did not n to attend it initially¡ªnot until she found out that

    Miranda was going to be there too.

    Miranda updated her happily over the phone that Thomas would be announcing his divorce with Irene on

    his birthday. With that, their hard days would soone to an end.

    ¡°Are you going?¡± Skr asked.

    Tobias answered half-heartedly, ¡°Well, I¡¯ve never attended a birthday party before, except for my

    mother¡¯s. Then again, if you¡¯re going, I¡¯ll be there to keep youpany. I¡¯m afraid that you can¡¯t cope

    with it alone.¡±

    Smiling, Skr said, ¡°Don¡¯t you think that you¡¯re a dangerous man, Tobias Ford? When you pamper me,

    you make me feel like I¡¯ve got the whole world in my hands. Conversely, when you give me the cold

    shoulder, I feel like I¡¯m in the deepest pit.¡±

    Tobias could sense grievances from her tone of voice and reflected on himself. Indeed, when I¡¯m

    focusing on a task at hand, I won¡¯t even think about Skr.

    Penelope left super early the next morning. She informed Skr through text message that Brayden had

    picked her up.

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    During breakfast, Skr attempted to pry some information from Tobias. ¡°What do you think is the

    chance of Penelope and Brayden getting together? How¡¯s Brayden¡¯s rtionship with his wife?¡±

    Last night, Penelope was the one who tried to dig information from Tobias. Right then, it was Skr¡¯s

    turn.

    Knowing that Tobias disliked gossiping, Skr had to work harder to get him to talk.

    Cupping her hands around her face, she bit her lips, winked at him bashfully.

    Eventually, Tobias caved in. ¡°Brayden¡¯s wife has gotten used to him being a yboy. So, they won¡¯t get a

    divorce. Penelope won¡¯t be the only woman who has his child. In other words, she can deliver him a

    baby, but he certainly won¡¯t take responsibility for it. Do you understand?¡±

 Chapter 307

    Chapter 307

    Upon hearing that, Skr¡¯s heart skipped a beat. Brayden is such a jacka*s, much worse than I¡¯ve

    expected!

    Infuriated, she mmed her hand on the table and tarred everyone with the same brush. ¡°All of you men

    are despicable creatures! Can you actually sleep at night after impregnating a woman?¡±

    Gazing at her face which had turned red in anger, he chuckled. ¡°Did Brayden force her? Absolutely not.

    Hence, you can¡¯t me it on one party for it takes two to tango. You should be thankful that you¡¯ve met a

    serious and responsible man like me.¡±

    She rolled her eyes at him. Sheesh! It¡¯s equally selfish to engage in any casual rtionship that doesn¡¯t

    end up in a marriage.

    He did tell me before that he might not be able to spend a lifetime with me. Does that reflect his serious

    and responsible attitude?

    She asked him, ¡°What if I have your baby? Will you behave like Brayden¡ªtoy with me, and then leave

    me?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to answer a hypothetical question.¡± He dropped the topic.

    Skr did not push it further as she was not interested to discuss the subject in detail with Tobias. Birds

    of the same feather flock together. They¡¯re both the same.

    In Skr¡¯s eyes, Tobias was a slightly better scum than Brayden.

    Though Quest Group had copsed, there were still many guests who came forward to celebrate

    Thomas¡¯ birthday with him.

    The arrival of Tobias was a big deal. If it were in the past, Thomas would surely felt proud and excited.

    However, it was not the case that night¡ªhe was glum and troubled.

    Miranda had been pressuring him to announce his divorce with Irene publicly at the banquet. Otherwise,

    she threatened to tell the police what happened back then.

    Why didn¡¯t I steel my heart and kill Miranda in jailst time? Who would have thought she could be

    acquitted on all counts? Thomas regretted not taking action sooner.

    All in all, Miranda¡¯s release was made happen after Skr got together with Tobias. Thomas strongly

    believed that Tobias yed a part in it and admitted his mistake for underestimating Skr¡¯s capabilities.

    Irene spotted Miranda in the crowd. While stering an elegant smile on her face, she shot a

    questionable gaze at Thomas, which he managed to dodge.

    The two women had animosity toward each other for half a century-long. Apanied by her son, Irene

    approached Miranda.

    ¡°What a surprise! Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s really inappropriate for you to appear at this banquet? Do you like

    being a troublemaker so much? Are you too free after being released from jail?¡± Irene said softly through

    her gritted teeth.

    She did not want others to hear a single word she said.

    Miranda stood there, scrutinizing both Irene and Hayden. He¡¯s so tall and looks so much like Thomas.

    ¡°I return to im my position as thedy of this house. This will be my home henceforth.¡± Confidently,

    Miranda stared at Irene with a pair of provocative eyes.

    ¡°What nonsense! A crazy woman like you should be kept behind bars until the day you die,¡± Hayden

    retorted as he red at Miranda.

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    He then shifted his gaze to Skr. This mother-and-daughter pair is unbelievably insolent! They dare to

    the banquet today, thinking that they have Tobias¡¯ backing.

    In the past, Skr was just like a beggar when she came to ask for money. The only difference between

    now and then is that this beggar now wears a custom-made gown.

    Miranda waved at Thomas, who knew he could not escape his fate. At that time, Avery appeared with a

    threeyer birthday cake.

 Chapter 308

    Chapter 308

    Avery was the one who selected the cake personally. She was wearing a white pleated tulle dress and a

    tiara on her head. Coupled with her exquisite features and curvy figure, one would have assumed it was

    her birthday.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was surrounded by guests who wanted to strike a business rtionship with him. Yet,

    he refused to acknowledge nor give them any response, let alone epting any of their name cards.

    Skr kept a distance from Tobias at the banquet. She knew that he would not have attended the

    function if it were not for her.

    The ignorant Avery called upon Thomas to cut the cake, giving him an excuse to escape Miranda.

    Avery passed the knife to Thomas and gave him a peck on the cheek, leaving a light lipstick stain on his

    face.

    Smiling gleefully, she said coyly, ¡°I¡¯d like to wish my dearest Dad, a happy birthday. You¡¯re the best Dad

    in the whole world. I love you so much!¡±

    While Avery was expressing her heartfelt love to Thomas, Skr felt so down for not knowing how it was

    like to be showered with fatherly love. Thomas had channeled all of his attention and affection to Hayden

    and Avery, leaving none for her.

    ¡°The youngest Jones is such a beauty. I heard that she¡¯s studying at the film academy. She¡¯s probably

    going to be a famous celebrity in the near future.¡±

    ¡°Oh, the way the little princess simpers melts my heart.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s only twenty, being in the prime of life.¡±

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    In a low voice, Tobias reminded Skr, ¡°If you feel uneasy, we can leave right away.¡±

    Skr took a nce at Miranda and shook her head. ¡°Leave now and let her face this alone? Should I

    empathize and feel sorry for my mom or support her to be a homewrecker?¡±

    Tobias replied indifferently, ¡°I think you already have the answer.¡±

    A hostile look settled upon her face. None of them is a saint. Irene was a mistress whereas my mom

    keeps getting herself entangled in this mess though she¡¯s unwanted. In a nutshell, she concluded that it

    was all Thomas¡¯ fault for being a womanizer.

    Only in novels would there be unrealistic praises or positive characteristics written about a disloyal

    husband and a mistress.

    ¡°Ladies and gentlemen, thank you foring from near and far. I have an important announcement to

    make today.¡± Faced with Miranda¡¯s coercive gaze, Thomas was about to bring up the dreaded topic.

    Right then, there wasplete silence in the room. The guests were anticipating good news, namely,

    Irene was pregnant.

    Thomas looked in the direction of Irene but did not maintain eye contact with her. He uttered, ¡°Let¡¯s get a

    divorce.¡±

    Skr squeezed Tobias¡¯ hand tightly. Oh my, he did it! It¡¯s exactly like what I¡¯ve visualized in my

    nightmare.

    The people in the room froze in shock, contrasting to Miranda¡¯s delightful expression.

    Baffled, Irene looked at Thomas in the eye. ¡°Is this a joke? Are you out of your mind?¡±

    At that moment, Miranda, who was wearing a brown gown, strode to the center of the room and held

    Thomas¡¯ hand. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Irene, time¡¯s up. Thanks for taking care of my man all these years. You¡¯ve

    done a lot. Now that I¡¯m back, you can step back into your little corner. I told you, I¡¯m here to reim my

    position as Mrs. Jones.¡±

    Irene was dejected. Avery went ballistic as she yelled, ¡°Get out of here, you crazy woman! You¡¯re not

    wee.¡±

    With a clenched fist, Hayden was about to throw a punch at Miranda. Thankfully, he was stopped by

    Skr, who rushed to block in front of her mother.

    She advised him calmly, ¡°Don¡¯t act in a rash. Is it necessary for you to create a scene when millions are

    watching us right now?¡±

 Chapter 309

    Chapter 309

    Tobias remained deadpan and adopted a wait-and-see attitude. The Joneses were quite messy in their

    family affairs; the rtionships between each individual were veryplicated.

    Thomas did not want to go to jail. Ashamed, he bowed his head before his children, ready to face their

    reactions.

    With the Zieglers having a severe capital chain rupture, Thomas had no choice but to oblige Miranda.

    Thetter could request Skr to ask Tobias for help and resolve thepany¡¯s problem.

    Irene raised her arm, ready to strike Miranda, but was blocked by Skr. As a result, the tight p

    landed squarely across Skr¡¯s face.

    ¡°Both of you are scums. How dare you publicly oppress us? This is the first time I¡¯ve seen such a

    shameless pair!¡±

    Skr¡¯s brows drew together. ¡°Look who¡¯s talking? Weren¡¯t you a mistress who did the same thing back

    then?¡±

    Skr¡¯s attitude against Irene had always been very aggressive. However, the way Irene treated Skr

    wasparatively a thousand times worse.

    She could never forget how Irene stepped on her face with her stiletto heels. The awful scene was still

    vividly captured in her mind as if it had only happened yesterday.

    She was only a teenager when they tortured her that one time she went to borrow money for tuition fees.

    Skr could recall that it was raining cats and dogs that very day when Irene pushed her frail body to the

    floor, cursing her. You¡¯re an unwanted beggar. I won¡¯t hesitate to beat you up each time I see

    you¡­ Irene¡¯s harsh words still rang in her ears.

    She wanted to fight back so badly at that time but was too feeble to do so. Consequently, she was picked

    up and bullied further by Irene while Hayden and Avery watched on.

    Every time Skr thought about their sarcasticughs and malicious expressions, she had to resist the

    urge not to tear them apart with her own bare hands.

    Another person who witnessed all of these was Skr¡¯s biological father, but he merely stood there,

    allowing it to happen. In the end, Thomas took out two hundred from his wallet and tossed it at her,

    saying good riddance.

    Since then, Skr saw Thomas in his true colors and learned the hard fact that not all parents loved their

    children equally.

    While Skr was holding her burning cheek, an angry Hayden raised his hand up high, wanting to strike

    her again.

    ¡°That¡¯s enough. What fault does Skr have? You should know very well the consequences that will

    befall you should you p her.¡± Tobias dashed to the center of the ruckus and stared daggers at Hayden.

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Intimidated, Hayden put down his arm which was hung mid-air.

    At that instance, Irene was as mad as a ho. She could not care less about who Tobias was. ¡°It¡¯s all

    your fault, Tobias! I¡¯m sure you¡¯re the one who threatened my Honey to divorce me. You wrecked our

    family! There¡¯s nothing you won¡¯t do because of this wicked girl!¡±

    Irene¡¯s words left the guests puzzled.

    What does Tobias have to do with the Joneses? Everyone started gossiping under their breath.

    With resentment, Skr rified, ¡°This has got nothing to do with Tobias. You should question your man

    instead of barking at innocent people.¡±

    Tobias did not bother to stand up for himself. Hugging Skr, he examined her face and the obvious p

    mark. He then sighed and said, ¡°It¡¯s either I change my habit of not hitting women, or you could return

    her one right now.¡±

    Skr was shocked to hear that. She knew that if she were to p Irene, thetter would definitely not

    fight back in Tobias¡¯ presence.

    She noticed that there were many guests who had taken out their phones to record videos. If the

    situation went out of control, she would gain public exposure. However, it was not a desirable thing to be

    featured in the headlines because of an ugly domestic problem.

    Considering so, she called upon Tobias¡¯ bodyguard, Samuel, and whispered a few words to him.

    Next, she walked toward Miranda, who was beaming with joy. Such a scene gave her a thrill and made

    her more excited than taking drugs.

    Skr took the blow for Miranda¡¯s sake. She looked at her mother disappointedly. ¡°I don¡¯t care what

    method you used to achieve your goal, it doesn¡¯t matter to me anymore. The two of you can live however

    as you please in the future. Don¡¯t harass me ever again. I¡¯m done with you.¡±

 Chapter 310

    Chapter 310

    Miranda felt wronged and her bright grin disappeared from her face. She could not understand why

    Skr was so upset when their family of three would soon reunite.

    Suddenly, Irene eximed. Samuel had approached and gave her a stinging smack on the face.

    It was a powerful and brutal p. Irene was almost sent sprawling on the floor if Avery had not supported

    her.

    She had never been this furious in her life!

    After that incident though, Tobias changed her perspective about Skr. He always had the impression

    that she was a wimp, who would just endure any oppression.

    It seems like this shrewd girl can be ruthless too. She had her revenge taken without moving a finger.

    Skr took out a brand new two-hundred note from her purse and ced it next to the birthday cake. ¡°I

    haven¡¯t had a chance to wish you a happy birthday. Take this as your present.¡±

    Thomas was extremely humiliated. His life waspletely ruined by Miranda. I should have gotten rid of

    Skr when she was still in her swaddle.

    He could only curse in his heart because he needed Tobias¡¯ help to acquire Quest Group to get out of

    the quagmire.

    He was confident that Tobias had the ability to turn things around and revive Quest, which was on the

    verge of bankruptcy.

    Hence, he could not burn bridges with Skr.

    The dirtyundry of the Joneses was aired in all major media the following day, causing a frenzy

    amongstizens. The drama involving a prominent family piqued their interest.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    The Mysterious Illegitimate Daughter Of The CEO Of Quest Group Exposed!

    #ThomasCommitsAdultery

    #HaydenJones

    #AveryJones

    Skr woke up to a long list of popr searches and a series of Instagram hashtags featuring the

    Joneses. However, her face and Miranda¡¯s were censored in all rted news.

    Although Tobias was present at the banquet, his name did note up on the search either.

    He did appear in a few screenshots posted asments, but those were also removed almost

    instantaneously.

    Anxious, she hugged her pillow. I was too careless. I didn¡¯t expect this to blow up on such a big scale.

    ¡°You¡¯ve ordered for the news to be removed?¡± Skr leaned on Tobias.

    After an intimate night, he was still exhausted and sleepy.

    Skr, on the contrary, was exceptionally energetic. She had been following the updates on Instagram

    since dawn and realized that theizens empathized with the original Mrs. Jones and despised the

    mistress.

    Thank goodness no one has dug deep enough into the scandal yet.

    Surprisingly, Hayden gained much poprity out of the incident. The published photos characterized him

    as a wealthy heir, attracting the attention of most femaleizens. One even outrightly proposed to him

    online: I don¡¯t mind about your family affairs. I want to marry you!

    Tobias snatched away Skr¡¯s phone, turned it off, and chucked it aside. ¡°Whatever happened yesterday

    will surely go viral. Thus, I¡¯ve instructed the public rtions team to look into it. Rest assured that your

    mother won¡¯t be exposed. The media who were on site took a lot of your videos. So, for your sake, it¡¯s

    better I do something to suppress the news.¡±

    She responded softly, ¡°I¡¯m certain that your mom would see the news. Sigh, her impression of me will

    only get worse.¡±

    Tobias grinned. ¡°It won¡¯t. Don¡¯t worry.¡±

    Skry her head on his chest. She loved that position a lot because she could clearly hear his beating

    heart. ¡°That¡¯s because I¡¯ve hit rock bottom, right? By the way, I¡¯ll finish filming tomorrow. I¡¯ll be super

    busy after that and we won¡¯t get to see each other often. Do you have any ns?¡±

    She reached out to his hand while he locked fingers with her. ¡°It sounds like friends with benefits are

    taking things to the next level. It¡¯s hard to n ahead. Let¡¯s y by ear, shall we?¡±

    Skr giggled. We always go along with what he has in mind. It¡¯s never about my ns or how I feel.

    We¡¯re literally taking one day at a time.

    ¡°When I be famous, would you mind if I get involved in some juicy news for marketing purposes?¡±

    Tobias was jealous when Skr had a brief conversation with Kai. So, she thought that he would

    probably not agree to it.

    ¡°Well, if it¡¯s for work purposes, you can go ahead with it.¡±

    Skr simply nodded. All right then, since he doesn¡¯t care about this, there¡¯s no need for any chastity

    vows.

 Chapter 311

    Chapter 311

    Tobias was good at reading people¡¯s emotions. He felt that he hadmunicated his opinions clear

    enough to Skr.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going out today?¡± Skr was curious to see him sipping tea on the sofa without any intention

    to leave.

    The winter sun shone into the room through the window aperture, bringing with it a cozy touch. Yet, the

    warmth still could not melt his cold expression.

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you always grumbling that I don¡¯t spend enough time with you? So, I¡¯m going to stay home, enjoy

    a cuppa, bask in the sun, and keep youpany all day.¡±

    Spending time at home like an old couple was not a lifestyle that Skr was ready for.

    Seeing that she had gotten dressed to head out, Tobias called out to her, ¡°I¡¯m staying in, but you¡¯re going

    out? I¡¯ve checked with your manager. You don¡¯t have any work today, so you don¡¯t need to be at the set.

    Are you avoiding me?¡±

    Skr doubted herself for a second. I¡¯ve got an appointment with Kate at eleven today. Why is Tobias

    iming otherwise?

    Right when she was about to make a phone call to confirm her schedule, Tobias grabbed her wrist. ¡°Your

    appointment today has been canceled at the veryst minute because your manager fully understands

    that apanying me is a better option¡ªmore practical than attending work events.¡±

    So, he¡¯s subtly saying that as long as I serve him well, I¡¯ll be rewarded with a lot of resources that will

    benefit my career? Skr cringed at his words but did not debate further with him.

    She was walking a tightrope, anticipating the day her umted resentment would burst out like a

    popped balloon. She whined under her breath, ¡°The story will surely develop differently when you dump

    me one day.¡±

    Tobias did not hear what she said. Shrugging her shoulders with a smile on her face, Skr pretended

    as if nothing happened.

    Then, she removed her handbag and slumped on the sofa. Simpering, she asked, ¡°What¡¯s your n for

    the day, Mr. Ford? You¡¯re probably still tired fromst night and don¡¯t have the mood to go another round

    during the day, right?¡±

    Indeed, Tobias seemed disinterested.

    ¡°Wherever you want to go. I can be your chauffeur today.¡± That was the only thing he could suggest.

    Skr did not have anything in mind. In fact, there was no ce she wanted to go with Tobias. When

    they went on dates, she always had to stay quiet by the side while he spoke on the phone.

    At that moment, Tobias heard knocking on the door. He nced at Skr, signaling her to answer the

    door.

    However, she remained seated as steady as a rock with the hope that the high and mighty Tobias would

    step down from his throne and do the honors.

    He opened the door and was not surprised to see the two individuals at the entrance. In a cold and

    unfriendly tone, he blurted, ¡°The new neighbors are here to say hi?¡±

    Both Miranda and Thomas were astounded that Tobias already knew about their move.

    It was a double delight for Miranda. She had her husband back and also discovered the shocking news

    about Tobias¡¯ identity¡ª the CEO of Ford Group.

    In the past, she wouldin about raising a daughter and often think that a daughter¡¯s worth

    depended on the value of her husband. There¡¯s no wonder the guests at the banquet revered Tobias, just

    like how the ancient courtiers behaved when they saw their king.

    The term ¡®new neighbors¡¯ caught Skr¡¯s attention.

    Upon realizing who was at the door, she shut her eyes for three seconds as she took a deep breath. Now

    I know why there had been things being delivered to the vacant house across the street since half a

    month ago.

    She was almost certain that Thomas was behind this because Miranda did not know Skr¡¯s

    address. He was definitely up to no good.

    Leaning back against the sofa, Skr stared at her parents. Their presence affected her mood.

    ¡°It¡¯s your dad¡¯s idea to move closer so that we can take care of each other.¡± Miranda sat side by side with

    Thomas as if they were inseparable.

    Skr could notprehend how the two could live with each other after a severe fallout.

 Chapter 312

    Chapter 312

    Skr kept quiet. It¡¯s their right to live wherever they want. Anyway, I don¡¯t have the ability to buy the

    entire residential area. Even this house isn¡¯t mine anyway. She did not ept it when Tobias presented

    her the property document albeit her name was printed on it as the rightful owner of the house.

    It was Miranda¡¯s first time visiting Skr. She was shocked to the core to see all of hervish internal

    decorations and luxurious furniture. This is way better than what I¡¯ve expected. She¡¯s living the life!

    Skr was rather hostile. ¡°It¡¯s better for neighbors to mind each other¡¯s own businesses. I don¡¯t need

    your care and concern for I¡¯m so used to living by myself all these years. It feels weird to have the two of

    you showing up in my life now. Anyhow, don¡¯t trouble me. I can¡¯t help you with whatever problems you¡¯re

    facing either; it¡¯s beyond my capability to resolve it for you.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ gaze gradually darkened. What does she take me for?

    Embarrassed, Miranda smiled wryly. ¡°I can understand it¡¯s hard for you to digest this within a short time.

    Take it easy.¡±

    Considering that it was the affairs within the Jones family, Tobias did not say a word. There were things

    that Skr had to settle herself. However, for a man like him who preferred a clean-cut rtionship, he

    was annoyed and disgusted by theplication of the matter.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    ¡°Skr and I are heading out. I think you guys should take an early leave.¡± With his head lowered and

    face buried in his palms, Tobias portrayed an exhausted look.

    Instantly, Thomas knew that it was not the right time to discuss mergers and acquisitions with him.

    Bringing up the issue about Quest Group would only anger Tobias further.

    As soon as the new neighbors left, Skry t on the sofa and massaged her temples. ¡°I suspect that

    the person who killed Irene¡¯s sister was Thomas and not my mom. That¡¯s the only reason I can think of

    as to why a cowardly man like him would agree to divorce his wife, without gaining anything out of it.¡±

    Tobias could see where she wasing from.

    He asked casually, ¡°So what if you¡¯re right? Could you be so righteous and send your dad to jail? That¡¯s

    all their own doing.¡±

    Skr was rendered speechless. She was worried that Miranda was being used by Thomas without her

    realizing it. Her biggest nightmare was to see Thomas harming Miranda once he had achieved his

    motive. He¡¯s capable of any malicious acts.

    Skr fretted so much about it that it consumed all of her thoughts. Consequently, it affected Tobias¡¯

    mood too.

    ¡°Shall we go out and have some fun? Massage parlor or do you want to hit the bar?¡±

    Tsk, there¡¯s nothing fancy about how a rich guy passes his free time. The two options did not pique

    Skr¡¯s interest. In fact, she detested them.

    Tobias insisted, ¡°Pick one.¡±

    He stubbornly pushed her to make a decision.

    I abhor how the masseuses gawk at Tobias and flirt with him in their revealing clothes.

    If we were to go to a bar, what if he takes a fancy to the hot girls who approach him at the bar?

    In the end, Skr chose the first option, thinking that Tobias would behave himself if they shared a

    private massage room. They went to a parlor where he was a regr. Needless to say, his appointed

    masseuse was extremely familiar with every inch of his muscles, except his private parts.

    It had been two to three months since Linast saw Tobias. After a long yearning, she was over the

    moon to be informed by her manager that Tobias had booked a room.

    Her colleagues were full of inconsequential chatter. ¡°Mr. Ford must have missed you badly. Hey Lina, tell

    us the truth, did you guys do it in the private room?¡±

    Lina avoided their gaze and smiled sheepishly.

    Every girl would have a fairy tale dream. Tobias¡¯ presence in her life was the sole motivation that fueled

    her through each day. She could remember by heart the dates of his visits and waited patiently for that

    day to arrive.

 Chapter 313

    Chapter 313

    Whenever Lina¡¯s colleagues teased her, she would have butterflies in her stomach at the mention of

    Tobias¡¯ name.

    Before setting out, Tobias received a call and needed to meet with his assistant, Susan. Hence, Skr

    went ahead on her own.

    She had gotten used to him being habitually disappearing when duty called.

    If Tobias did not bring her to such a ce, she would never have had the chance to correct her

    impression of a massage parlor. She was dumbfounded by how it was built and decorated opulently; it

    was magnificent!

    Upon entering, Skr could sense an extravagant vibe. The atmosphere echoed its slogan: A Deluxe

    Experience For Your Enjoyment.

    The therapists were all wearing professional uniforms, unlike what she had imagined. There were no

    voluptuous girls in skimpy clothes or special services associated with sex.

    ¡°Lina?¡± Skr called out softly as she was not sure if she got the right person.

    As soon as she heard her name, Lina turned around and was stunned to see Skr. Theirst meeting

    was back in high school.

    Though Skr looked very different now, Lina could still recognize her at first nce. She¡¯s prettier than

    she was back then.

    The twodies shared a bond during their schooling days. They were always seen going to the

    convenience store or the bathrooms in pairs.

    Lina would share half of her pasta with Skr.

    Being good friends, they even walked home together after school. Meredith would always praise Lina for

    her good results andmented that Skr should work harder.

    Unfortunately, they lost contact when Lina left school in junior year. They did not expect to run into each

    other at such a ce.

    Skr was thrilled. She never had many friends around her and had been asking around her ssmates

    for news about Lina.

    On the contrary, Lina felt so awkward to see an old friend at her working ce. It seems like Skr is

    doing very well now. Those who can afford toe here are the ones who usually have high disposable

    ies.

    Lina knew Skr¡¯s background like the back of her hand. She used to live with her grandmother and

    never joined any school events or expeditions.

    Scrutinizing Skr, Lina realized that she was wearing a limited edition Cartier bracelet on her wrist and

    dressed like a rich socialite. If that¡¯s not a fake bracelet, she must be someone else¡¯s kept woman.

    Since Skr was waiting for Tobias, she had some time to kill. She walked up to Lina and hugged her.

    ¡°Where have you been all these years? I thought that you went abroad. Why didn¡¯t you keep in touch

    with me?¡±

    Lina responded, ¡°I wanted to contact you, but I was worried that you¡¯ve forgotten about me. How are you

    doing? Are you here with Jeremy? I don¡¯t see him.¡±

    Lina brought up Skr¡¯s ex-boyfriend. Amongst their ssmates, some still assumed that Skr and

    Jeremy were still an item.

    Some even gossiped in their chat group, asking if Skr was pregnant with Jeremy¡¯s baby.

    The rumors continued to spew out from their mouths. Some even vividly described Skr¡¯s child as a

    seven-pound baby girl.

    Skr was rendered speechless. What would I look like if there¡¯s a seven-pound baby living inside my

    small-frame body?

    With a polite grin, she answered, ¡°We broke up a long time ago. It¡¯d be so strange if he shows up right

    now. Who knows, he might be somewhere shopping with his new girlfriend!¡±

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    Lina was curious to discover that the golden pair had separated. She recalled making a joke about

    attending their wedding as the bridesmaid before she left school.

    Perhaps Skr dumped Jeremy for a rich guy? Lina presumed so as Skr came from a poor family.

    Who doesn¡¯t want to take a shortcut in life? She had seen many young girlsing to the massage

    parlor with their sugar daddies and had a jolly good time in the private room.

    Tobias was an exception as he always came alone. He was a man of few words; very intimidating, yet

    extremely generous with his tips.

    There was once when Tobias took the initiative to strike a conversation with her and asked about her

    age.

 Chapter 314

    Chapter 314

    As the corridor wasn¡¯t a good ce to talk, Skr and Lina entered a private room instead. The room

    was a lot bigger than expected and had two beds inside.

    In front of them was even an indoor hot-spring.

    When she realized Tobias frequented this ce, Skr mumbled, ¡°So a couple can enjoy a bubble bath

    here too.¡±

    As her imagination began to run wild, the images of Tobias making out with a pretty masseuse in the

    pool shed across her mind.

    As they chatted, Skr noticed that Lina would asionally check the pocket watch pinned to her cor.

    Skr asked, ¡°Are you in a hurry? Am I holding you up from your work?¡±

    Lina smiled gently. ¡°No, I¡¯m waiting for a customer. It¡¯s already past his appointment time. Yet, he still

    hasn¡¯t shown up.¡±

    Skr was curious as to how Lina ended up bing a masseuse. After all, she used to be top of the

    ss in high school.

    If she had continued her studies, she would definitely have entered a good university.

    Detecting her hesitance, Lina said with a sigh, ¡°At that time, my parents lost a lot of money in their

    business. As I still had a younger brother, I had to start working to support him. But now, things have

    worked out for me. I¡¯m making more than a manager here.¡±

    Skr felt that it was a shame Lina couldn¡¯t live up to her potential. Back then, she was really

    hardworking and even told Skr that books were the path to sess. She also dered that she would

    be very sessful in the future.

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    However, reality was cruel to her.

    Skr didn¡¯t want to dwell on her sad past for too long.

    ¡°Do you have a boyfriend?¡± Lina scrutinized Skr and noticed that thetter was in designer clothing¡ª

    even her shoes were limited edition.

    Taking a sip of tea, Skr replied, ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure if ¡®boyfriend¡¯ is the right word.¡±

    Lina was puzzled by her reply. Skr took out her phone and handed it to her. ¡°Give me your contact.

    One day, we can share a meal with Penelope.¡±

    Skr felt awkward when she mentioned Penelope. I wonder how is she doing now?

    Ever since she left with Brayden, Skr didn¡¯t hear from her anymore.

    When they heard a knock on the door, Lina opened it. A voice rang out from outside. ¡°Lina, Mr. Ford is

    here and is smoking by the door. You should get yourself ready for him.¡±

    Skr could hear everything clearly from inside. Upon hearing the news, Lina let out a smile while tidying

    her appearance.

    Skr asked, ¡°Which Mr. Ford?¡±

    Lina replied with a grin, ¡°He is a regr customer of mine. Anyway, I have to work now. Let¡¯s catch up

    another day.¡±

    Just when Lina was about to leave, Skr called out to her, ¡°You don¡¯t have to go. It seems he wants to

    come in.¡±

    Lina didn¡¯t understand what Skr meant. ¡°Who¡¯sing in?¡±

    When Skr stood up to open the door, Tobias was already standing right by it. His expression was icy

    cold.

    ¡°Are you waiting at the door? Are you this clingy?¡± Tobias took off his jacket. Before Lina could get it,

    Skr was already one step ahead of her.

    It¡¯s a first for Tobias to bring a woman here. She turns out to be my good friend from my school days.

    Tobias is ten years her senior. Obviously, their rtionship is out of the ordinary.

    The moment Tobias entered, he ced his hand on Skr¡¯s hip.

    Lina¡¯s mind went nk. She was stunned for a long while before regaining her senses.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, I didn¡¯t expect you to know Skr. It¡¯s a small world, after all.¡± Lina¡¯s gaze darkened as she

    steadied herself to greet them.

 Chapter 315

    Chapter 315

    Skr introduced Lina to Tobias as her high school friend.

    However, he wasn¡¯t interested as it wasn¡¯t surprising to run into schoolmates asionally.

    It had never crossed Lina¡¯s mind that Tobias¡¯ partner would be Skr. It is ironic how I would be a bundle

    of nerves whenever he came.

    She admired Tobias. However, she never took the initiative to speak to him because she considered

    herself unworthy. It looks like he doesn¡¯t care about a woman¡¯s background at all.

    Behind him, a masseur entered and informed them that Skr had chosen him.

    When Tobias saw how fair and handsome the young man was, he furrowed his eyebrows and asked

    Skr, ¡°What¡¯s going on? Why did you choose a man?¡±

    Skr let out a snort. ¡°It¡¯s the manager¡¯s pick, not mine. Anyway, what¡¯s wrong with a male masseur?

    Don¡¯t you have a female masseuse to attend to you?¡±

    Tobias was upset at how Skr¡¯s response. Is she really going to let a man massage her in front of me?

    Meanwhile, Lina had quickly prepared a towel and the massage oil for his back. Tobias always liked for

    her to start the session from his back.

    Whenever she didn¡¯t put enough pressure, he would ask, ¡°Have you not had any food today?¡±

    Given how obvious Skr had made her point, Tobiasughed affectionately. ¡°It is troublesome toe

    here with you. Fine. I¡¯ll let him massage me while you get a female masseuse.¡±

    Skr realized that it would put Lina in an awkward position. ¡°Forget it, just go with your usual

    masseuse.¡±

    Tobias shot a nce at Lina. Given the situation, he knew it would be inappropriate for Skr¡¯s friend to

    take off his shirt.

    Hence, he chose another masseuse and sent Lina away.

    Despite how reluctant she was, Lina had no choice but to obey her customer¡¯s wishes.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    After walking Lina to the door, Skr waved her phone to remind her to keep in touch.

    Meanwhile, Tobiasy on the massage bed. When the male masseur began the massage, he felt

    extremely ufortable.

    As for Skr, she was enjoying herself. Resting her eyes, she remarked, ¡°Do you know Lina well? She

    seems to be looking forward to seeing you. I was curious if that Mr. Tobias she was talking about was

    you. As it turns out, it really is you!¡±

    Tobias replied solemnly, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have gotten her to massage me if I knew she was your ssmate.

    Nevertheless, she has good technique, and her hands are still tender due to her young age.¡±

    Skr chuckled. ¡°Should I start learning how to do it? So that you don¡¯t have toe here next time.¡±

    Tobias simply responded with silence.

    After Tobias got a male masseur, Lina¡¯s colleagues teased her mercilessly, causing her to feel gloomy.

    They knew that Tobias dismissed Lina because Skr did not want a female masseuse to attend to him.

    After what happened, Lina would unlikely have the chance to provide Tobias with a massage anymore.

    Some of them even gloated at her misfortune. ¡°Did she think that Tobias would fall for her after a couple

    of sessions? She must be dreaming!¡±

    Lina held a grudge over the fact that Skr humiliated her, especially since they were good friends in

    high school.

    Meanwhile, Skr had just fallen asleep when Kate¡¯s call came in.

    Over the phone, Kate anxiously wanted her to return at once as the filming crew had encountered some

    problems. She needed Skr to head to the studio to record a voiceover.

    Tobias was exasperated at the timing of things. Nheless, he let Skr off as he didn¡¯t want to

    interfere with her work.

    Before he could offer to drive her there, Skr had already packed and left the private room.

 Chapter 316

    Chapter 316

    Before she left, Skr didn¡¯t ask if Tobias would be home at night. Somehow, both of them had

    understood each other very well.

    Furthermore, she had paid Lina extra, as if Lina had serviced them that day.

    The manager informed Lina about it. ¡°It¡¯s your lucky day! You earned a huge tip even without doing

    anything.¡±

    Lina rejected it angrily. ¡°Do what you want with the money. What does she mean by this? Is she taking

    pity on me? Back in the day, I would have been the one to take pity on her. Now that she¡¯s rich, does she

    think she can humiliate me this way?¡±

    The manager was puzzled as to what had infuriated Lina. Why won¡¯t she take the money? Is she a fool?

    When Lina found out that Skr had left early and Tobias was still inside, she brought a ss of orange

    juice and knocked on the door.

    The environment within the private room was so quiet that she could hear her own breathing.

    Under the dim lighting, Tobias was sitting on the sofa, smoking. He nned to sit only for a while before

    leaving. After all, there was no point in staying since Skr wasn¡¯t around.

    Lina then bent over to serve Tobias the orange juice.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, the next time you¡¯re here, you should get me to give you a massage. I¡¯m worried that the

    others might not be good enough.¡± She wanted to seize upon the opportunity.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter to me. Everyone¡¯s the same, after all. The male masseur is equally good. Besides, my

    girlfriend doesn¡¯t like me having a female masseur.¡±

    As Lina nodded in disappointment, the atmosphere grew awkward.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect Skr to be your girlfriend. We shared a deep bond during high school. She has had it

    tough. Back then, her mom was a murder convict. As a result, no one was willing to be her friend.¡±

    As there wasn¡¯t an ashtray around, Tobias dropped his cigarette butt into the ss of orange juice

    instead. ¡°Are you trying to make small talk?¡±

    Lina almost choked in response as she tried to hide her hypocrisy. ¡°No, I¡¯m just happy to see her. I have

    always wanted to contact her but didn¡¯t manage to do so. Now that I¡¯ve reunited with her again, I¡¯m just

    delighted by it.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t believe her. After all, it wasn¡¯t hard to look for someone in this day and age.

    Given how advancedmunications technology is nowadays, finding someone is just a piece of cake.

    He put on his jacket, not intending to continue the conversation any longer. ¡°Skr is waiting for me to

    pick her up. I¡¯ve got to go.¡±

    Before he left, Tobias gave a huge tip to Lina. He assumed Lina came in to make small talk for that

    reason. After all, Skr¡¯s interference caused thetter to lose a customer.

    ncing at the cigarette butt in the ss of orange juice, Lina picked it up with her hand. She pinched it

    with her fingers and smudged it across her lips.

    With desire written all over her face, she remarked, ¡°Does this count as indirectly kissing him?¡±

    Meanwhile, Skr arrived at the recording studio. She found out that one of the microphones was not

    working during filming. Hence, she needed to record a voiceover.

    Skr quickly solved the trivial problem. Holding the script in her hand, she enunciated her words clearly.

    The subtitler¡¯s job had it easy because Skr¡¯s recording was fit for use in the film. Her pronunciation

    was distinct and clear, unlike the other actors, who spoke inaudibly.

    T¨ºxt belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    After Skr finished her recording session, Kate handed her a cup of honey drink to soothe her throat.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to interrupt your date with Tobias.¡±

    Skr nodded candidly. ¡°You did, but work is work. It¡¯s more important than private matters. Besides,

    absence makes the heart grow fonder. We shouldn¡¯t stick together all the time.¡±

 Chapter 317

    Chapter 317

    Kate would¡¯ve believed in Skr¡¯s glorified statements if not for her absence of mind whenever Tobias

    didn¡¯t get in touch with her. Thetter would always check her phone for texts or calls from Tobias.

    Winnie arrived at the recording studio momentster, dressed in a down jacket with a revealing camisole

    inside. Her choice of outfit¡ªis she feeling warm or cold?

    When Winnie saw Skr, she greeted thetter warmly, implicitly acknowledging their ¡°familial¡±

    rtionship.

    Although they were both girlfriends to the Ford siblings, Skr didn¡¯t think it called for a close

    rtionship between the two women. Call me petty, but I still couldn¡¯t get over the things she has done to

    me!

    ¡°Given the chilly weather today, aren¡¯t you worried about catching a cold by wearing so little?¡±

    Despite Winnie¡¯s dramatic tone, Skr replied inly, ¡°Someone will pick me upter. So, I won¡¯t catch a

    cold.¡±

    She didn¡¯t bother to borate further either, appearing cold.

    Before entering the recording studio, Winnie whipped out her phone and called Sheldon toin.

    Hearing that, Sheldon felt that Skr didn¡¯t show him any respect at all by ignoring Winnie.

    Hence, he began to feel exasperated. How dare she show such an attitude just because she has Tobias¡¯

    affection.

    She knows that Winnie is my girlfriend, so why does she have to act so distant?

    Sheldon could imagine how disappointed Winnie must have felt. Furthermore, he couldn¡¯t bear to see

    her ingratiate herself with someone who didn¡¯t reciprocate.

    Outside, it was just as Winnie had described. The temperature had dropped significantly at night while

    the wind was bone-chilling cold. Skr stood by the entrance for a very long time.

    Skr wasn¡¯t waiting for Tobias to pick her up as she wasn¡¯t expecting him.

    After waiting in the brutal winter wind for more than ten minutes, she still couldn¡¯t manage to hail a cab.

    As her hands trembled in the cold, she took out her phone to order a Uber ride.

    Upon arriving home, she saw Tobias standing by the door, dressed in a grey woolen sweater.

    She had never seen him in such casual clothing before, and it made him look younger.

    The moment they made eye contact, Tobias reprimanded, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you get someone to pick you up?

    I¡¯ve told you time and again¡ªdon¡¯t take Uber, especially when you¡¯re alone! Considering how gorgeous

    my Baby looks, who knows what the driver might do to you? It¡¯ll be toote for regrets by then!¡±

    Despite how nice Tobias framed his words, Skr had the urge to retort. Why didn¡¯t he think of calling

    me to see if I needed a driver?

    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    However, she kept it to herself. Forget it! With him staying over is already good enough.

    Skr averted his gaze instead. ¡°I will definitely fight him to the death to protect my chastity.¡±

    Tobias smiled smugly. ¡°You fool, if that happened, your survival is paramount. Don¡¯t you know your

    priorities?¡±

    After changing her shoes, Skr nced at the house opposite. However, she didn¡¯t see any lights at all.

    Thomas and Miranda must be out.

    Their debate on whether to prioritize her survival or integrity continued as they removed their shoes and

    entered the house. The moment they were in, Tobias pinned her on the wall to kiss her.

    Skr pushed him away and pleaded with her eyes. ¡°Mr. Ford, please at least give me some time to

    catch my breath. I¡¯m exhausted.¡±

    After Tobias let her go, Skr noticed his briefcase by the door from the corner of her eye.

    No wonder he is in such a hurry. He isn¡¯t spending the night after all. It looks like I¡¯ll be sleeping alone

    tonight.

    Skr recovered her gaze and questioned, ¡°Do you really have to leave? It¡¯s already nine.¡±

    Tobias stroked her chin before lifting it gently. ¡°I still have something on at night. I¡¯ve reserved the day for

    you, but things never go as nned. Therefore, are you still going to deny me?¡±

    Skr read between the lines. A satisfied man will naturally be less promiscuous.

    She then led Tobias upstairs before taking off his clothes piece by piece. He seemed to be pleased with

    the ¡°forey.¡±

    Despite rushing for time, Tobias worked vigorously in bed, to the extent Skr couldn¡¯t take it anymore.

    Given how well he performed, Skr realized that she would shamelessly crave this feeling when he

    wasn¡¯t around.

    Before tasting the forbidden fruit, she had never understood how a man and a woman couldn¡¯t get

    enough of each other.

 Chapter 318

    Chapter 318

    To think about it, she wasn¡¯t attracted by Tobias¡¯ steadiness, wealth, nor good looks.

    Instead, it was lust that made her fall deeper in love with him.

    Naturally, she was aware that the only thing she could offer him was the excitement in bed.

    I don¡¯t think he is in love with my messy family, dim-wittedness, or even my identity as a mediocre

    celebrity?

    After their fiery session, shey in bed and watched him get ready to leave. Her butt was reeling in pain

    after he had pped her forcefully. Hence, all she wanted to do was lie on her side.

    Tobias was standing by the bed, putting his belt back on. With a cigarette in his mouth, he looked around

    for a lighter.

    Skr found one under the pillow and flung it to him, which he steadily caught.

    ¡°The next time we meet, we have to be more cautious. Daryl¡¯s movie will begin promotions soon. Which

    means more people will recognize me.¡± Resting on her pillow, she squinted slightly at Tobias.

    Tobias replied, ¡°We¡¯ll talk about it when you¡¯re famous.¡±

    Skr buried her head in her pillow in embarrassment. Perhaps, Tobias felt that she was getting ahead

    of herself. After all, she was beginning to act like a diva before she was even famous yet.Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you walking me out?¡± After putting out his cigarette, he sat by the bed, all dressed. He had

    combed his hair so meticulously that there weren¡¯t any stray strands sticking out.

    ¡°Do I look like I¡¯m able to do so?¡± Skr flipped the nket aside to expose her youthful body in all its

    glory.

    Tobias leaned in to kiss her on her shoulder, leaving a love mark. ¡°You¡¯re a girl. You have got to be more

    ladylike.¡±

    During the celebratory dinner to mark the end of filming for Unrequited Love, Skr was interviewed by

    many reporters since she was the female lead.

    When they asked her about her rtionship status, she tantly replied, ¡°Single.¡±

    Since it was her first time working with Harry, they asked her if any sparks flew during filming.

    Skr was ambiguous in her answer. ¡°It seems fate has brought us together. I used to have a ssmate

    by the name of Harry. He has an equally nice personality too.¡±

    She had to remain nonmittal. If the drama turned out great, they might be featured as a couple to

    boost publicity.

    When it was Harry¡¯s turn to be interviewed, he couldn¡¯t stopplimenting Skr either. Both of them

    kept singing each other¡¯s praises.

    However, everyone in the crew knew that no chemistry existed between both of them at all. In fact, they

    didn¡¯t interact with each other off-screen.

    The media¡¯s focus was on Skr and Harry only. Theypletely neglected Winnie, who was the

    supporting actress for the film.

    It was Skr¡¯s first time watching the trailer that night. Holding a ss of red wine in her hand, she

    focused her attention on the screen.

    The corner of Skr¡¯s mouth lifted when it came to the scene of Skr and Harry hugging. However,

    there was a hint of coldness in her eyes.

    The scene took ce in Ford Group under the watchful eyes of Tobias.

    Vensa lived up to her name as The Mother of Drama Series. Every scene she filmed was just

    breathtaking. Every frame shot looked like the cover of a romance novel.

    On top of the beautiful cast, the trailer was visually stimting.

    Ever since she was in high school, Skr loved to read romance novels. She also read many of the

    serialized stories in romance magazines at that time.

    Needless to say, she couldn¡¯t afford all these back then. She borrowed it from Penelope after thetter

    had finished reading.

    Skr had kept all of them in good condition to this day. After all, she never enjoyed school when she

    was young. At that age, she wasn¡¯t aware that studying hard would enable her to change her fortunes.

    Having been addicted to romance novels, she had been dreaming of falling in love since young.

 Chapter 319

    Chapter 319

    Before she met Tobias, it had never crossed her mind that she would be involved with a man who was

    more than ten years older than her. Furthermore, she wouldn¡¯t have imagined that his wealth could rival

    even that of countries.

    As Skr¡¯s mind began to drift away, she would smile politely and take a cursory sip of wine whenever

    someone came to raise a ss at her.

    Right then, the man toasting her was someone she had met once before¡ªMaverick Sullivan, who

    managed a TV station.

    The drama would take up the prime time slot on Channel 3 in Maverick¡¯s TV station.

    Maverick was short but very smart. However, he was so fat that his pot belly prevented him from

    buttoning his jacket.

    In Skr¡¯s eyes, he was simply disgusting.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, you have a bright future ahead of you. Any drama broadcasted from our station will top the

    rating charts.¡±

    Skr smiled in response. Is he trying to blow his own trumpet?

    ¡°Mr. Sullivan, I appreciate the support you have shown us,¡± Skr replied cordially.

    When Maverick put his arm around her shoulder, Skr avoided it discreetly, causing him to feel upset.

    After Skr sauntered away, all Maverick could do was to watch her silhouette. He did so for a long time

    before recovering his gaze reluctantly.

    When his secretary came over, he whispered some instructions to him. A momentter, the secretary

    shoved a room card into Skr¡¯s hands.

    Since it wasn¡¯t his first time doing it, he handed over the card calmly. As for Skr, she received the card

    with equal poise.

    However, she put the card back into his pocket next. ¡°Please thank Mr. Sullivan for his kindness.¡±

    The secretary replied with displeasure, ¡°Mr. Sullivan wants to take his rtionship with you to the next

    level. Ms. Jones, are you ying dumb?¡±

    Skr¡¯s expression was frosty. ¡°Let me be frank. I¡¯m not interested.¡±

    The secretary stormed off, thinking that Skr didn¡¯t know what was good for her. After all, one needed

    Mr. Sullivan¡¯s support before one could star in Channel 3¡¯s variety shows and dinners.

    Skr went to the hotel¡¯s corridor to get some air.

    When Maverick walked in her direction, reeking of alcohol, Skr couldn¡¯t help but furrow her eyebrows

    at the stench.

    When he saw her frowning, Maverick assumed she was ying hard to get. He then made the same

    mistake as countless other men by letting the alcohol cloud his judgment. Suddenly, he threw himself at

    her and grabbed her hand.

    Skr didn¡¯t expect that someone of his stature would pull such a stunt in public. Luckily, she was

    mentally strong and didn¡¯t show panic.

    She calmly asserted, ¡°Let go of my hand.¡±

    Skr¡¯s rejection caused him to feel the rush of ying the domineering male.

    As his alcoholden breath caused Skr to feel nauseous, he tightened his grip on her wrist further.

    As the man inched closer, Skr could no longer hide her fear. ¡°I¡¯m going to scream for help now if you

    don¡¯t let go! It will do you no good if the media catches the sight of this.¡±

    Her threats however, fell on deaf ears.

    When he raised his hand to fondle her breasts, Skr responded at once with a tight p.

    Incensed, Maverick red at her. ¡°F*ck! You are just a mediocre celebrity! How dare you act high and

    mighty in front of me? You should feel honored that I want to sleep with you.¡±

    When Skr raised her leg to kick Maverick away, it wasn¡¯t much help as he easily overpowered her.

    The man shoved her against the wall roughly. The impact hurt so much that she almost burst into tears.

    Just when Maverick approached her step by step, a hand reached out from behind him all of a sudden

    and grabbed him.

    Looking up, Skr saw a familiar face in her panic. It was Kai.

    Realizing that he had witnessed the embarrassing incident, Skr was suddenly dumbfounded.

    Kai stared fiercely at Maverick. ¡°Mr. Sullivan, why is a man of your age bullying a girl? I have recorded

    everything that just happened. What do you think will happen if I put it online? Do you think you can still

    keep your position as the station manager?¡±

    As someone experienced in the entertainment industry, Maverick naturally recognized who Kai was.

    Although he was still new to the scene, his influence was so strong that no one dared touch him.Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

 Chapter 320

    Chapter 320

    As Kai had a recording of the incident, Maverick quickly wavered. ¡°Don¡¯t do anything rash. I had too

    much to drink and just wanted to chat with this prettydy.¡±

    Forcing a smile at Maverick¡¯s disgusting face, Skr asserted, ¡°I never agreed to chat with you. You owe

    me an apology.¡±

    Maverick widened his eyes and warned her, ¡°Watch your words. I can withdraw your drama anytime and

    cklist you.¡±

    Reaching out to Kai for his phone, Skr saw that he did make a recording of the incident just now. She

    was well aware that the video couldn¡¯t be allowed to get out. After all, thest thing she wanted was to be

    the subject for wagging tongues.

    However, she pretended to threaten Maverick. ¡°If you don¡¯t apologize, I¡¯ll upload this video on the

    inte.¡±

    Hence, Maverick had no choice but to grit his teeth and apologize. At that moment, he had sobered up

    and held a grudge over what happened. However, he had no choice but to apologize.

    Skr sneered, ¡°You can go now. Next time, stay away from me. I don¡¯t want to see your ugly face.¡±

    The moment Maverick left, the tension she felt was immediately relieved. Heaving a long sigh, she

    leaned helplessly against the wall and smiled at Kai. ¡°Thank you foring in the nick of time. You can

    delete the video now.¡±

    Skr hadn¡¯t seen him in a while and he had changed his hairstyle. Aspared to before, he looked a

    lot wilder now with a head full of frizzy hair.

    When he tried to support Skr, she retracted her hand at once. To reduce the awkwardness, he tousled

    his own hair instead.

    Kai was aware that she wanted to avoid any gossip. She really is devoted to Tobias.

    ¡°I saved you again. So how are you going to thank me?¡±

    After hesitating for a moment, Skr couldn¡¯t think of anything else other than treating him to a meal. Am

    I to use my body to repay him?

    When she realized it was gettingte, she bade Kai goodbye. As the dinner hadn¡¯t ended, she knew she

    shouldn¡¯t be gone for long. Hence, she headed back with a confident swagger.

    Kai noticed that she had since changed a lot. Skr now exuded a feminine charm that could seduce

    any man she met. Therefore, it wasn¡¯t a surprise to him that Maverickmitted such a despicable act

    of taking advantage of her in public view.

    Given that she was a lot more alluring than before, Kai knew that she must be in a rtionship right then.

    When he figured that man to be Tobias, Kai clenched his fists so hard that his knuckles turned white.

    After returning to the dinner, Skr walked up to Harry and toasted the media together. After Skr took

    a sip of wine, Harry took over her ss in a chivalric manner and finished it for her.

    The affectionate disy between them and the bravado shown by Harry only served to elerate the

    camera clicks in their direction.

    When the dinner ended, Maverick stood waiting by Skr¡¯s MPV. The sight of a TV station manager

    escorting a third-rate starlet like Skr caused the crowd to be curious. They wondered who Skr

    actually was or if she had some kind of rtionship with Maverick.

    Skr got into the car without even giving Maverick a nce. She treated him as if he wasn¡¯t even there.

    When Maverick knocked on the window, Skr ordered the driver, ¡°Drive.¡±

    She was aware of what his intention was. He had wanted to ask her if she had deleted the video or not.

    But, she refused to reply as she wanted him to think that she had dirt on him. It would spoil the fun if she

    had given him the answer too early.

    After the event ended, udia called Kai over to the Ford residence. The moment he arrived, he noticed

    that Tobias was also there.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    He was sitting with another woman on the sofa but there was arge gap between them. The woman

    seemed to be in her early thirties and looked charming with her long hair draped on her shoulders.

    However, she was still a far cry from how attractive Skr was.

 Chapter 321

    Chapter 321

    Smirking, Kai asked, ¡°Tobias, is she your new girlfriend?¡±

    Turning her attention to Tobias to await his answer, thedy¡¯s eyes were filled with anticipation.

    ¡°No, you can ask your aunt who she is.¡± When Tobias inly replied, Kai could clearly hear thedy¡¯s

    heart shatter.

    Every week, Tobias woulde home to a plethora of dishes prepared by udia. However, most of

    them were lightly seasoned. When Kai came over, he preferred to have his food heavily seasoned

    especially grilled meat. Therefore, he would always gobble up arge portion of blood sausages

    prepared just for him.

    It was actually one of Skr¡¯s favorite food. When they were filming, Kai would remember her going

    around town looking for a ce that sold blood sausages. She told him that having blood sausages

    together with spaghetti simply tasted heavenly.

    Before they were seated for lunch, Kai found out that thedy with Tobias was called Cynthia Crane. She

    was the daughter of the CEO of Crane Cultures, and udia had arranged for her to be matchmade with

    Tobias.

    Despite Skr¡¯s harrowing experiencest night, Tobias is still attending a matchmaking session here.

    Feeling indignant on behalf of Skr, Kai felt that she was being extremely foolish. In fact, he wanted to

    tell her what Tobias was doing then.

    During lunch, Cynthia kept serving Tobias food. Whatever she gave him, he didn¡¯t touch them at all.

    Grinning widely, udiamented how attentive and caring Cynthia was. She came from a good

    family and was highly educated.

    Given how generous udia was with her praise, Cynthia lowered her head bashfully. With a gentle

    tone, she replied, ¡°Thank you for yourpliments. But I still have a long way to go before I can match

    the achievements of my parents. Since I was young, my mom has always taught me to be respectful of

    my inws. Furthermore, she reminded me to always be a good wife by being attentive to my husband.¡±

    Seeing the drama unfolding before him, Kai couldn¡¯t contain his anger. He then discreetly filmed the

    scene and sent it over to Skr.

    Kai: Your other half is going through a matchmaking session.

    Meanwhile, Skr was in the midst of shooting for Fendi¡¯s spring outerwear collection. She had spent

    the whole morning posing and finally had some time to have a drink. It was then that she received Kai¡¯s

    text message. What could he be sending me?

    After she saw the video, she felt as if her heart was being torn apart. She repeatedly convinced herself to

    not take it seriously. After all, this was bound to happen sooner orter, and there was nothing she could

    do about it.

    Suddenly, her gaze dimmed.

    Just the same morning, she was delighted to have received Tobias¡¯ call. He told her that he missed her

    and would being over at night to make love to her.

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    Despite knowing that thest sentence was what he truly cared about, Skr still relished the fact that he

    missed her.

    It had been a harrowing day, especially after the surprise Kai had sent her.

    While she calmly watched the video, she was oblivious to the fact that Kate was looking over her

    shoulder.

    ¡°Don¡¯t let it affect your mood at work. You should have expected this to happen anyway. Men are

    attracted to younger women because of the sense of novelty and the lust for their bodies. You should be

    smart and learn not to care.¡±

    Skr was given a fright when she suddenly heard the voice behind her and quickly deleted the video by

    reflex. After she calmed down, Skr replied, ¡°He told me he won¡¯t get married.¡±

    Kate poisoned her thoughts. ¡°You can also take it as him not wanting to marry you. Anyway, don¡¯t dwell

    on it too much. Just take advantage of the time you have with him to pave your path for the future. He

    can give you more than you can ever imagine. Therefore, just endure it and don¡¯t make a fuss.¡±

    At that moment, Skr could feel tears welling up in her eyes. Can he never give me what I truly want?

 Chapter 322

    Chapter 322

    Tobias and Skr had tried many positions in bed.

    His favorite was burying himself in her arms, biting her as he grabbed her by the hips. That way, he could

    go deeper and the intense intimacy gave him a sense of domination.

    However, Tobias noticed that she was out of sorts today. It seemed as if she was trying hard to suppress

    her own emotions. Even when they climaxed, she had a listless expression that bordered upon

    impatience. Suddenly, their momentum was broken when she asked when would he be done.

    Pulling her into his embrace and resting his head on her shoulders, Tobias gently bit her. ¡°What are you

    thinking about? Did I somehow hurt you?¡±

    Skrughed awkwardly. ¡°Given how rough you were, how could it not feel ufortable?¡±

    Tobias resented her snarky attitude. ¡°Just tell me what¡¯s on your mind? Are you ming me for not

    seeing you over thest few days? I remember telling you that I was away on business and just got back

    yesterday.¡±

    Leaving his embrace coldly, Skr put on the bathrobe that was left on the floor. The slender silhouette

    of her body was alluring as ever. ¡°I know. But when will you evere and see me because you truly

    miss me, and not just for the sex? I was under the impression that you had just gotten off the ne and

    rushed here because you needed to satisfy your desires.¡±

    ¡°No. It¡¯s disappointing to think that you have such an impression of me. I¡¯m here because I want to see

    you, even if it is just for a nce.¡± Despite his casual tone, Tobias meant every word he said.

    Disappointing? Tobias doesn¡¯t have a heart. How can he feel disappointed?

    Skr went downstairs to cook some pasta. Making love with Tobias was a vigorous exercise as he

    always wanted to try many different positions.

    She was feeling disheartened over the situation. After all, Tobias had brought a potential marriage

    partner home to have dinner with his family.

    As for her, she had never even set foot in the Ford residence before. How ironic was it that just a phone

    call from him could delight her easily?

    The fact that she could tolerate it meant that it no longer bothered her as much. Therefore, it wasn¡¯t

    worth her time fretting over.

    Didn¡¯t Tobias say that it didn¡¯t matter which of us chose to leave? And that no one is indispensable?

    Meanwhile, Tobias was only wearing his boxers whileing down the stairs. As the dim yellow light

    illuminated his body, the tattoo on his back caused him to ooze with masculinity.

    Until then, Skr didn¡¯t know what the mysterious words on his tattoo meant. After all, it wasn¡¯t a

    surprise that businessmen tended to be superstitious.

    The moment Tobias came down, he caught the scent of something delicious. Skr must be having

    spaghetti again.

    When he approached to take a look, he only saw one te, and it was filled with chili kes. It looked

    extremely spicy to him.

    As Skr buried her head in the food, she ignored Tobias¡¯ approach.

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    When Tobias came out from the kitchen with a fork in hand, he tried some of the spaghetti and found

    them too spicy for his liking.

    After he had taken a bite, Skr picked up the te and dumped everything into the garbage bin.

    She was venting her frustration despite knowing that it was both a childish and tasteless gesture.

    Infuriated by Skr¡¯s unexined tantrum, Tobias asked angrily, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you? Why are you

    acting so weird today? Did I do something to offend you? Why don¡¯t you just say what¡¯s on your mind?

    Have I spoilt you to the extent that you have be more brazen?¡±

 Chapter 323

    Chapter 323

    ¡°Was the matchmaking sessful, Mr. Ford?¡± Skr coldly asked. Smilingnguidly, she leaned back

    into the sofa while desperately suppressing the raging emotions within her.

    Amidst the suffocating silence, Skr assumed Tobias would storm out in anger after being exposed.

    Given his character, she expected no less.

    Her cold and mocking smile had pierced his heart like a dagger.

    Finally, he broke the silence with a calm and deep voice. ¡°Please listen to me. When I came home, the

    woman was already there; my mom invited her over. Do you actually think I need someone to

    matchmake me if I¡¯m really looking for a wife? Did Kai tell you about this?¡±

    Despite being smart, Skr could also be impulsive at times. At that moment, she realized her

    questioning had carelessly exposed Kai, and it wasn¡¯t appropriate to have done so.

    She tried to cover up her mistake. ¡°No, it has nothing to do with him. Just take it that I¡¯m blindly

    specting. You have so many servants at home. It¡¯s not difficult for me to bribe any one of them.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t bother to expose her ludicrous excuse.

    When he tried to hold Skr¡¯s hand, she pulled it away instead.

    Tobias was stunned when his hand grasped at thin air. Lifting his gaze at her, she looked both alluring

    and defiant at the same time.

    Stung by a sense of bitterness, Tobias didn¡¯t force the issue.

    Standing up from the sofa, Skr remarked with a self-deprecating tone, ¡°Considering that you like

    obedient women, I must have crossed the line today. Tobias, I will not care about the women around you

    going forward. All I ask of you is to break up with me before you get married. As my career is just getting

    started, I don¡¯t want to bebeled as a mistress. I have had enough of being embroiled in such

    controversies.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t get married.¡±

    As he stared intently at her with his abyss-like gaze, the wrinkles by the corner of his eye made him look

    authoritative and difficult to read.

    ¡°But I want to. In fact, I¡¯m looking forward to having kids with the person I love.¡± Skr averted her gaze.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    Tobias didn¡¯t respond to herment. As he raised his hand to stroke her face, he stopped mid-air. ¡°You

    should rest early now. It¡¯s obvious that you¡¯re not in the mood to see me today. I¡¯m leaving.¡±

    Before Skr could bid him goodbye, Tobias had already gone upstairs to get changed. Looking sharp

    as always in his suit, his face didn¡¯t disy a shred of emotion.

    When Skr returned to the room after he was gone, she was greeted by the messy bed and an erotic

    scent. It reminded her of the vigorous scene that had just urred.

    Flipping the nket aside to get in bed, she suddenly noticed a ck velvet box on the pillow. Furrowing

    her eyebrows, she opened it and saw a blue diamond ne inside. It looked extremely exotic and

    expensive. No girl could resist the temptation of diamonds.

    It was now apparent that Tobias was aware of this. Staring quietly at the ne, Skr figured that

    she would never be able to afford something like that within her lifetime.

    Hence, she decided to keep it in the safe at home. When she unlocked the safe using her birthday as the

    combination code, she realized that it was stuffed with jewelry. Without her knowledge, Tobias had

    presented her with many gifts.

    The generosity he disyed toward her was simply unimaginable. He had the capability of fulfilling any

    materialistic desire she could ever dream of.

    To her, he was like a drug. Despite knowing how dangerous he was, she just couldn¡¯t stay away.

 Chapter 324

    Chapter 324

    Finally, Skr was being recognized in the streets for the first time. A few girls were taking pictures of her

    with their phones.

    She didn¡¯t put on any airs. Smiling warmly, she suggested to the girls, ¡°You should switch on the beauty

    filter so that I¡¯ll look prettier in the pictures.¡±

    Despite saying that, she was aware that they weren¡¯t using any filters at all as there really wasn¡¯t any

    need to.

    Meanwhile, Penelope stood quietly by Skr¡¯s side as her bump grew more obvious.

    Skr had picked a restaurant with an elegant ambiance to meet. She even requested the waitress to

    get a pillow for Penelope to support her back with.

    After having known her for a long time, Skr had grown used to them looking out for each other.

    In the past, Penelope had always taken good care of her. During meals, Penelope would generously

    share whatever she had brought in her lunch box.

    As Skr picked up the menu, she noticed Penelope was looking pale and weak.

    ¡°What would you like to have?¡±

    Penelope replied, ¡°Anything will do. My appetite has been very goodtely. Yesterday, when I went for

    my maternity checkup, the doctor told me the baby is three months old now and it¡¯s a boy.¡±

    Penelope¡¯s eyes sparkled with anticipation when she mentioned the word ¡°boy.¡±

    ¡°Did he apany you for the checkups?¡± What Skr cared about the most was how Brayden was

    treating her.

    She could understand how Penelope felt when she misunderstood her for being the third party. The

    indignance of seeing a friend degrading herself willingly was indescribably painful.

    She had wanted to help Penelope by bringing her back to the right path. However, her advice had fallen

    on deaf ears as Penelope just couldn¡¯t refuse Brayden.

    Instead, she even made excuses on his behalf. ¡°He is busy at work, so he asked me to go by myself.

    Besides, there¡¯s nothing wrong with going alone. He had also arranged for my checkup to be done at

    Concord Hospital where I received VIP treatment. Hence, I didn¡¯t need to queue at a public hospital at

    all. It does feel good to be rich. The sight of pregnantdies queueing at the public hospital with their

    large bellies simply gives me the shivers.¡±

    Skr was speechless. She didn¡¯t think there was anything wrong with going to a public hospital and

    neither did going to a private hospital make one superior to others.

    If a pregnantdy has lost too much blood, does the private hospital have arger blood bank than the

    public hospital?

    Skr took a bite of her food. ¡°Do you like Brayden for his money or who he is?¡±

    Penelope threw the question back at her. ¡°Do you then like Tobias for his personality or his money?¡±

    Despite knowing the answer, Skr didn¡¯t reply. Sometimes, she wished that Tobias was poor. That way,

    they could both live ordinary lives, get married, and have kids.

    However, given how handsome he was, Tobias would likely have a lot of admirers.This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    At the mention of Tobias¡¯ name, Skr¡¯s mood shifted. Ever since he left that night, both of them hadn¡¯t

    spoken to each other.

    It was just that he updated his social media status mysteriouslyst night.

    It was the first time he did it.

    Skr had expected a picture of some random scenery. After all, someone like him would never upload a

    selfie unless he had gone mad.

    She quickly tapped on it and realized that Tobias had just shared a financial report.

    The whole report was in Ustranian, and she was the one who had painstakingly tranted it.

    As Skr¡¯s mind was somewhere else, she didn¡¯t say much during the meal. Consequently, Penelope

    assumed that she was just refusing to admit she was in love with Tobias¡¯ money.

    As dwelling on the topic would only lead to further resentment, Skr changed the subject and told

    Penelope about Lina instead.

 Chapter 325

    Chapter 325

    Intrigued, Penelope asked, ¡°What has she been up to? She has gone missing for a long time and hasn¡¯t

    contacted anyone.¡±

    Skr replied honestly, ¡°She is a masseuse now and is just as beautiful as always.¡±

    The moment Penelope heard the word ¡°masseuse,¡± she snorted out loud.

    ¡°How did she end up bing a masseuse? It seems there¡¯s no point in studying hard. I remember she

    used to be very good in her studies, and many of the boys in ss fancied her too.¡±

    Penelope¡¯s words reminded Skr that Lina did have a lot of admirers then.

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    But, she had ignored them as she wasn¡¯t interested in boys her age.

    Skr corrected her, ¡°She¡¯s a legit masseuse, so don¡¯t get the wrong impression. What¡¯s wrong with her

    using her hands to make a living?¡±

    Penelope shrugged. Skr thought, who doesn¡¯t have to work for a living? Even Penelope has to work

    hard to ensnare Brayden.

    After both of them finished their meal, Lina called Skr out of the blue, giving them a shock.

    Speak of the devil.

    Lina suggested having afternoon tea to which Skr readily agreed. She even decided to bring

    Penelope along. After all, she had been advising Penelope to get more exercise given that she¡¯s

    pregnant instead of staying sedentary all the time.

    After Skr got the bill, she checked her phone and didn¡¯t see any unread messages.

    With that, she casually put her phone back into her pocket.

    When Penelope finally met up with Lina, she looked at her with disdain. She felt that Lina¡¯s hands were

    filthy from massaging countless men.

    Meanwhile, Lina was disappointed when she didn¡¯t see Tobias. Come to think of it, it does make sense.

    There¡¯s no way someone as busy as him would be by Skr¡¯s side all the time.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to be pregnant as I wasn¡¯t aware that you were married.¡± Lina stared at Penelope¡¯s

    baby bump.

    Penelope dered proudly, ¡°My man is just too busy. Once I have given birth, we will have our wedding.

    I¡¯ll remember to send you an invitation then.¡±

    Skr was stunned by Penelope¡¯s response. Brayden wasn¡¯t even divorced yet, and here she was

    nning their wedding.

    Lina looked at Penelope enviously. ¡°It¡¯s good to settle down, unlike me. Until now, I still don¡¯t have a

    boyfriend. Skr, I suppose you and your boyfriend have been going out for a long time now.¡±

    When Skr heard the word boyfriend, her lips twitched in response. She had also once assumed that

    she was Tobias¡¯ girlfriend.

    She replied ambiguously, ¡°Not very long. I don¡¯t even remember when we started.¡±

    Penelopeughed. ¡°Skr, don¡¯t be modest. Tobias is smitten with you. Even Brayden told me about

    how special you are to him. Who knows, you might even get married before I do.¡±

    Skr froze briefly as she was surprised at how much faith Penelope had in her rtionship.

    However, Lina hung her head in disappointment. She never had the chance to interact with Tobias

    despite her colleagues suggesting that Tobias treated her differently. After all, he would give her a huge

    tip every time. Does he really not have any feelings for me?

    As they continued to chat, Lina kept talking about Skr. Penelope had kept count of the number of

    times she mentioned Tobias¡¯ name which was more than five.

    She then gazed sharply at Lina. ¡°Why do you seem to talk as if you know Tobias well?¡±

    Lina replied sheepishly in front of them, ¡°We¡¯re not that close. But, he has been nice to me.¡±

 Chapter 326

    Chapter 326

    When they were done, a ck Rolls-Royce stopped by the curbside to pick Penelope up.

    She asked Skr, ¡°Do you want me to give you a ride? It¡¯s hard to get a cab now given that it¡¯s peak

    hour. Since you¡¯re already famous, why don¡¯t you get a driver?¡±

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    Skr declined Penelope¡¯s offer as she didn¡¯t want to ride in Brayden¡¯s car. She was puzzled as to what

    Lina¡¯s intention was by saying that Tobias treated her well. What does she mean? Is she just stating a

    fact, or is she saying it on purpose in front of me?

    But what can she do? She must just be smitten by the sight of a mature and charming man. Skr didn¡¯t

    dwell on it as it was just a trivial matterpared to what was currently going on between her and

    Tobias.

    While Skr was waiting for a cab, a ck Porsche drove in her direction and screeched to a halt,

    grabbing her attention. When its windows wound down, it revealed Tobias looking out.

    It wasn¡¯t a surprise that Tobias found her as it was easy for him to find whomever he wanted.

    When Lina saw him, her dejected heart was invigorated. She looked in Tobias¡¯ direction and gave him a

    vibrant smile.

    Ignoring her, Tobias¡¯ gaze was focused on Skr.

    ¡°What are you being stunned for? It¡¯s cold out here. How long do you n to stand there?¡±

    Skr asked Lina out of courtesy, ¡°Do you need a ride?¡±

    Lina nodded without hesitation. Before Skr could say anything else, Lina had opened the car door and

    sat in the front passenger seat.

    Giving Lina a puzzled look, Tobias felt that she was behaving inappropriately. Under normal

    circumstances, the guest should be seated in the back seat. Despite knowing Lina and the fact that she

    was good at massaging, he knew little else of her.

    Standing outside the car, Skr knocked on the window with a curious expression. She hoped that Lina

    would realize her faux-pas without her having to point it out.

    Fine, I¡¯ll just take it that she is oblivious to etiquette.

    As Tobias didn¡¯tment, Skr opened the car door and sat at the back. The moment she entered the

    car, it was filled with the strong fragrance of perfume. Mixed with Tobias¡¯ white sandalwood scent, there

    was an erotic charm about it.

    When Tobias asked Lina where she stayed, Lina replied with her address. In response, Tobias remarked,

    ¡°It¡¯s dangerous there as there are many foreigners.¡±

    Lina hung her head and replied dejectedly, ¡°I have no choice because the rent there is cheaper. I need to

    support my family as my brother is still studying.¡±

    Tobias casually replied, ¡°I¡¯ll give you enough money for you to lead a good life.¡±

    Skr felt as if they didn¡¯t know she was there. When she heard their flirtatious conversation, she

    grumbled, ¡°You can drop me off first since it¡¯s on the way there.¡±

    Lina¡¯s eyes were filled with anticipation as she desperately hoped that Skr would get off quickly. She

    would then be left alone with Tobias, which was a difficult opportunity toe by.

    Tobias rejected her suggestion. ¡°Save it. I¡¯ll send your friend home first as I have something to talk to you

    about.¡±

    Lina¡¯s emotions felt as if they were on a roller coaster as they came crashing down again.

    When they arrived at Lina¡¯s address, Tobias didn¡¯t drive into thepound despite being able to. His

    actions made it clear that Lina was to walk back up herself. After all, he didn¡¯t want to waste any time.

    When Lina didn¡¯t move, Skr asked, ¡°Is this the wrong address? Don¡¯t you live here?¡±

    Shaking her head, Lina looked conflicted, ¡°As there are no streetmps, I¡¯m scared of the dark. Also, it

    really isn¡¯t safe around here.¡±

 Chapter 327

    Chapter 327

    By then, Tobias had reached the limits of his chivalry. Lowering down the windows, he lit a cigarette and

    rested his arm on the car door. He looked out the window to show that he had no intention of sending

    Lina in.

    Finally, Skr offered out of courtesy, ¡°I¡¯ll walk you in. What¡¯s there to be afraid of anyway?¡±

    When he saw Skr preparing to get down, Tobias threw his cigarette away and drove into the

    compound instead.

    Lina was disappointed by Tobias¡¯ actions. If not for Skr, he wasn¡¯t even going to escort her in after all.

    After walking Lina up, the environment reminded Skr of being chased out of her rented ce after

    Meredith¡¯s death. It could not get any worse than that.

    Before Lina entered her home, Skr called out to her, ¡°When you invited me out for tea, did you really

    mean to catch up for old times sake, or was it just a pretext to see my boyfriend instead?¡±

    Skr never liked beating around the bush and preferred to be candid. Lina¡¯s dubious actions had

    caused her to doubt her intentions. When Tobias was driving, Lina looked at him as if she was ready to

    give herself to him.

    Stunned by Skr¡¯s question, Lina covered her mouth in shock. ¡°Skr, what are you talking about?

    Since when did you be so mean?¡±

    Skr had never expected the word ¡°mean¡± to be used to describe her. All this while, she had never

    been feisty as the rage in her had long been expended by her birth family.

    Skr replied with a smile, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I don¡¯t mean anything. I¡¯m happy to be reunited with you again.

    It¡¯s just that I remembered how happy it was during our school days. Remember, don¡¯t fall in love with

    someone you¡¯re not supposed to. Or else, you will regret it.¡±

    Instead of taking Skr¡¯s advice, Lina felt that she had changed into someone who was mean and petty.

    Not wanting to intensify the awkwardness, Skr added with a smile, ¡°I¡¯m just kidding. I wanted to see

    how you would react when I scared you.¡±

    However, Lina couldn¡¯t tell which of them was real.

    As Tobias grew impatient with waiting, he honked a few times. Just when Skr entered the car, she

    suddenly noticed a bracelet on the seat. She picked it up while remembering that Lina didn¡¯t wear any.

    ¡°Do you think just because you¡¯re driving a Porsche the honk won¡¯t disturb the residents? Tobias, since

    when have you lost your civility?¡±

    Skr then flung the bracelet at his face. Tobias didn¡¯t flinch as this was the second time she threw

    something at him. At that moment, he began to lose his patience.

    ¡°Whose bracelet is this? It looks like an imitation given how light it is and probably isn¡¯t worth much.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s your friend¡¯s. Other than that, I don¡¯t know,¡± Tobias exined calmly.

    ¡°She wasn¡¯t wearing it. In fact, there was nothing on her wrist at all.¡± Skr didn¡¯t believe it was Lina¡¯s.

    Furthermore, this was the second time she found something belonging to a woman inside the car. The

    first was lipstick, and then a bracelet.

    ¡°In that case, I¡¯m equally stumped. If you really can¡¯t find the owner, just take it that I have a fetish for

    wearing female essories.¡±

    Tobias never liked to lie. Besides, he really didn¡¯t know who it belonged to.

    Skr warned him, ¡°It¡¯s not that you like wearing women¡¯s things, but more like you enjoy feeling

    jealous.¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    ¡°Are you nning on making me jealous? If you cheat on me, I¡¯ll break your legs.¡± Tobias finally lost his

    patience with Skr¡¯s snide remarks.

 Chapter 328

    Chapter 328

    The atmosphere in the car began to feel tense. Obviously, Skr didn¡¯t dare to cheat on Tobias as she

    was well aware that his threats were serious.

    Skr had not seen Tobias since the night he stormed off. Now that he hade to pick her up, she

    figured it might be because he was looking for sex.

    Tobias was naturally worried that she would have that impression. Meanwhile, he had brought her to his

    house. Ever since he got together with Skr, he seldom returned here. Before they entered, he

    emphasized, ¡°Tonight, we¡¯ll not be sleeping with each other, so you can put a stop to your preposterous

    thoughts.¡±

    Skr took a deep breath as she could sense the mood he was in. Despite not knowing where she was,

    she could deduce the identity of the owner from the cold and minimalistic design of the ce. After all,

    Tobias loved cool colors. Bouncing off the light gray walls, the white lights shining above their heads

    gave off a frosty vibe.

    ¡°This is where I used to stay. I haven¡¯t returned here in a long time because of you.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean because of me? I have never forbidden you froming and neither have I

    restricted your freedom.¡± Crossing her legs on the sofa, Skr scanned the surroundings. Just from the

    living hall alone, there were no traces of a woman¡¯s existence.

    ¡°Do you know why I have fallen for you? Because I feelfortable when I¡¯m with you, regardless of

    whether we¡¯re in bed or not. Therefore, despite knowing that we aren¡¯tpatible with each other, I have

    never ended our rtionship. In fact, I have been thinking about how to maintain it for the long term.¡±

    As this was the first time Tobias bared his soul to Skr, he didn¡¯t expect her to understand all of it. He

    just wanted them to stop arguing.

    Over thest two days, Skr had calmed down a lot. Gazing deep into his eyes, she took a step closer

    to Tobias. As both their noses touched, he could feel her warm fragrant breath all over his face.

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    ¡°Are you apologizing to me? Or are you trying to justify the situation? There¡¯s a big difference between

    the two.¡±

    Tobias stared intently at her. ¡°Apologize. I shouldn¡¯t have sat at the same table with a matchmaking

    candidate. Going forward, I¡¯ll be more careful about situations that involve the opposite sex. I¡¯ll make

    sure you won¡¯t be upset by this again.¡±

    When he lifted her chin, he could see that her eyes were reddened. At the moment, she looked both

    puzzled and aggrieved.

    She knew how difficult it was to get an apology out of him.

    How much is one willing topromise for love? Suppressing her tears, a gentle smile emerged on her

    face. Tobias must have feelings for me. After all, he didn¡¯t get me topromise this time.

    ¡°I¡¯m clear today. Do you have any ns?¡±

    Making her intentions known, her gaze was filled with anticipation.

    Tobias smiled. ¡°Since I said we won¡¯t be doing it today, I will keep my word. Or else, you will have the

    impression that all I want is sex from you. Tonight, you should stay here. We will only go back tomorrow.¡±

    Skr locked her arms around his waist. ¡°And yet, I was thinking of staying here longer. Is it only for one

    night?¡±

    ¡°This ce isn¡¯t equipped fordies. So, it will be inconvenient for you. Or, if you really want, you can

    bring your luggage and stay here.¡± That was Tobias¡¯ biggestpromise.

    He had brought Skr into his personal space. It was also something he had not done before.

    He teased with a gentle voice, ¡°Now that my nest has been discovered by you, you can easily find me

    whenever we quarrel.¡±

    ¡°I won¡¯t be looking for you. You wille home whenever you feel like it.¡± Skr was too stubborn to

    admit it.

 Chapter 329

    Chapter 329

    At night, no matter how Skr seduced Tobias, he refused toy a finger on her. Slowly, she began to be

    more open in expressing her desires. The lust in her eyes and the raging passion in her heart were what

    his exact sentiments were.

    The next morning, Skr began ransacking his bedroom. When she opened his wardrobe, she saw a

    row of white and ck suits. It was as what Tobias had said¡ªthere was not a single feminine trace in the

    house.

    As Tobias was a light sleeper, he was woken up by the ruckus Skr was making. He uttered in a deep

    voice, ¡°You can stop looking now. There isn¡¯t anything here for you to find. If you insist on finding a panty

    just to satisfy yourself, you might as well take yours off and throw it into the wardrobe.

    After her intentions had been mercilessly exposed, she climbed into bed with her eyebrows raised. ¡°Do

    you always stay here when you¡¯re not at my ce?¡±

    When he saw Skr¡¯s cute expression, Tobias smiled. ¡°I¡¯ll either be at the office or the Ford residence.

    Other than that, I¡¯ll be at your ce. My life isn¡¯t as exciting as you think it is.¡±

    Given that Skr had seen how hedonistic Tobias could be at the bar, it was hard to imagine what else

    he would define as exciting.

    When they heard the doorbell ring downstairs, Skr¡¯s heart suddenly dropped. Tobias threw her a

    nket to cover herself, thinking that it was the maid who hade to clean the ce up.

    The moment he opened the door, he saw udia standing there. Instantly, he blocked the entrance to

    prevent her from entering.

    Sheldon was also behind her, holding a thermos filled with soup.

    ¡°Tobias, it¡¯s freezing outside. Why are you blocking the entrance? Mom has made some soup in the

    morning, and she didn¡¯t even let me have any.¡± Sheldon shivered from the cold.

    ¡°I have a guest. This isn¡¯t a good time.¡±

    At that moment, Skr had gotten dressed and wasing down the steps. When Tobias left the room,

    he had left the door open. Therefore, she could hear everything clearly through the gap. Initially, she had

    wanted to stay out of sight but decided against it. Why should I hide?

    The moment udia saw Skr, she was outraged. After shooting a re at Tobias, she chided Skr,

    ¡°Ms. Jones, why are you staying overnight at a man¡¯s house before marriage? Haven¡¯t your parents

    taught you that a girl needs to behave properly?¡±

    Sheldon¡¯s eyes widened. He was shocked that Tobias dared to bring Skr there despite knowing that

    udia would often drop by. He is just asking for trouble by keeping her here.

    Skr stepped forward defiantly and replied with a smile, ¡°Mrs. Ford, it¡¯s good to cohabitating before

    marriage. Or else, how are we to know if we¡¯repatible with each other?¡±

    Tobias almost burst out inughter. Is she extolling the virtues of sex before marriage?

    Having never seen such a shameless girl before, udia red at Skr. ¡°You will never be with my

    son. Even if both of you arepatible, I will forbid it. To think that you let others soiled yourself at such

    a young age! Such a disgrace!¡±

    Tobias wrapped his arms around Skr in front of udia. ¡°Mom, I have never sullied my girlfriend. If

    you really hope to have any grandchildren in the future, you should ept her. There¡¯s something wrong

    with me as I can only get it up when I see her.¡±

    Given how impudent Tobias¡¯ words were, the conservative udia couldn¡¯t be any more enraged by him.

    It was obvious from her attitude that udia would never ept Skr.

    On the way home, udia¡¯s expression was frighteningly gloomy.

    Sheldon advised her, ¡°Mom, given that Tobias has been with Skr for such a long time, you should just

    let him be. He didn¡¯t say anything about marrying her anyway. The way I see it, he¡¯s not going to marry

    anyone.¡±

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

 Chapter 330

    Chapter 330

    udia remained stubborn. ¡°How can a girl like that be worthy of the Ford family? What about her mom

    who is a convicted murderer, and her dad who is a cheating divorcee? It will be a disgrace to our family.

    Besides, she¡¯s nothing but a third-rate actress. They have no future at all.¡±

    Sheldon replied, ¡°What do you want then? Tobias has made it clear that he is only interested in Skr.

    Who doesn¡¯t like young women? Besides, remember thedy you introduced to him just a few days ago?

    What kind of a person is that? She¡¯s such a hypocrite.¡±

    udia shot Sheldon a re to get him to shut up. Right then, she was bursting with rage.

    After udia left, Skr heaved a sigh of relief as she copsed on the sofa.

    She lifted her gaze at Tobias. ¡°Have I offended your mom to the point of no return? I suppose she is

    never going to like me, am I right?¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t know what to say tofort her.

    ¡°It takes time. Anyway, you¡¯re going out with me, not my mom. Both of you will hardly meet each other

    anyway.¡±

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    Skr wasn¡¯t too affected by the incident. At least udia was still civil with her and didn¡¯t curse her like

    a shrew.

    After all, Tobias and she would never get married. By extension, udia would never be her mother-in-

    law too. However, Skr didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry at the idea.

    Anyway, I¡¯m still young and it¡¯s better to focus on being happy. I¡¯ll just enjoy my rtionship with Tobias

    while itsts.

    After the incident, Skr finally realized why Tobias was reluctant to bring her there. The Ford residence

    was really just a few minutes away from here.

    Tobias was worried that udia would run into her. And Skr was indeed unlucky to have it happen on

    her first visit.

    He had never wanted her to have any interaction with his parents. It wasn¡¯t because he was trying to

    protect her, but he just found it too troublesome.

    After putting on some light makeup, Skr prepared to go out. She had promised Penelope to

    apany her for her prenatal care checkup. As there was a short holiday, she wanted to get it done

    quickly.

    Since school hadn¡¯t started yet, the year-end didn¡¯t feel festive to her at all. Miranda had also mentioned

    that she wanted to spend the holidays at Wesley¡¯s ce.

    Now that Miranda and Thomas had gotten back together, they were constantly showing off their

    rtionship.

    In the family group chat, everyone was praising how sessful Eva was.

    When Miranda suddenly announced in the group that Skr was going out with Eva¡¯s boss, everyone

    ignored her.

    They felt that she was just being salty.

    Before Skr left, she asked Tobias, ¡°How are you going to celebrate Christmas?¡±

    He loosened his tie before looking at her thoughtfully. ¡°Baby, are you nning to spend it with me in

    bed?¡±

    With his chiseled features, he gazed intensely at her, causing her to swoon.

    She replied, ¡°You will likely be extremely busy¡ªto the extent that I won¡¯t be able to see you. Hence, I¡¯m

    not expecting for us to be together.¡±

    Tobias was ambiguous in his reply. ¡°I¡¯ll try my best to spare some time for you. However, it will definitely

    be a busy time at the Ford residence.¡±

    As Skr was runningte, she quickly waved goodbye to Tobias.

    She had wanted to spend the holidays with him. But, there was no way she would be allowed to step foot

    in the Ford residence.

    Tobias then walked her to the door. When she got him to make way, he obedientlyplied.

    She then pecked him on the cheeks. ¡°I¡¯m apanying Penelope for her checkup. Anyway, I¡¯m running

    late. See you!¡±

    Tobias wasn¡¯t keen on interfering with Skr¡¯s circle of friends.

    However, he still reminded her, ¡°There¡¯s a limit to how much you can help someone. You can¡¯t go all out.

    You should advise your friend that she will regret it next time.¡±

 Chapter 331

    Chapter 331

    Skr understood what Tobias was trying to say and was certain that things would end badly for

    Penelope.

    However, there was little she could do as Penelope had sunken too deep into the rtionship.

    It wasn¡¯t like she could force Penelope to get an abortion.

    Meanwhile, Penelope had been waiting at the hospital entrance for Skr. When she saw Skr in

    sunsses and a face mask, she could hardly recognize her despite knowing her so well.

    ¡°Why are you dressed like a spy?¡±

    Skr even scanned her surroundings to see if anyone recognized her. Shemented, ¡°What if someone

    takes a picture of me at the maternity ward and spreads rumors of me being pregnant? I¡¯m still a budding

    actress who hasn¡¯t lived up to my potential yet. Are you going to let me fade away just like that? Hence,

    it¡¯s better I keep a low profile.¡±

    Penelope clicked her tongue. ¡°You¡¯re not that famous yet. You¡¯re just a second-rate actress; hardly

    anyone recognizes you when we go out.¡±

    Skr patted Penelope on her shoulder. ¡°My dear, you are overestimating my capabilities. I¡¯m not a

    second-rate actress. I¡¯m actually third-rate.¡±

    Penelope was appreciative of Skr¡¯spany. It did wonders for her nerves. She had been really

    stressed out during her pregnancy.

    She was worried that something would happen to the baby. Given that it was a boy, she intended it to be

    her trump card.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    She expected Brayden to love her more because she bore him a son.

    Watching Penelope saunter down the corridor with her pregnant tummy, Skr couldn¡¯t imagine herself

    as a mother.

    But it was going to be some time before she even got pregnant. After Penelope went in, Skr sat on the

    bench along the corridor.

    While waiting, she downloaded an app that could predict how one¡¯s baby looked like. She then uploaded

    her own photo together with one she took of Tobias without his knowledge to generate the image of their

    future baby.

    It generated a picture of a baby with an angelic face. Although the app was just meant for fun, she felt a

    sense of bitterness in her heart while looking at it.

    After a long checkup, Penelope came out with a medical report. She told Skr that everything was

    normal and that she could go home to wait out the pregnancy.

    Puzzled, Skr asked, ¡°Where will you return to? Since your dad is still angry with you, why don¡¯t you

    stay over at my ce?¡±

    Penelope replied slyly, ¡°I have a home now. Brayden has arranged for me to stay in a townhouse, and

    I¡¯ve been staying there for a while.¡±

    Skr realized that she had gotten ahead of herself. Of course, Penelope would have a ce to stay.

    At the very least, Brayden gave Penelope all the financial support she needed. As for the rest, they can

    be dealt with at ater stage.

    Penelope even asked Skr, ¡°Do you think I should buy a house near his future school? It would be

    good for him next time. After all, Brayden¡¯s family needs someone to inherit their massive assets. My son

    will be rich the moment he is born.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t bear to break Penelope¡¯s bubble as Brayden wasn¡¯t the only son. Hence, it wasn¡¯t going

    to be easy for her son to inherit the family business.

    As of now, Penelope can still gain his affection with her youth and beauty. Once she has given birth and

    loses her figure, she will no longer be as attractive.

    I¡¯m afraid Brayden¡¯s feelings for her would also change.

    In the evening, after Skr had sent Penelope home, she took a cab back. Along the journey, a headline

    popped up on her phone.

    It read: Station manager of Channel 3, Maverick Sullivan,mits suicide by jumping off a building.

    Skr¡¯s heart dropped. On the night of the celebratory dinner, Maverick had tried to take advantage of

    her but the n was foiled by Kai.

    After that, she had repeatedly received threatening phone calls from Maverick, asking her if the video

    had been deleted.

    Despite Skr telling him many times that it had been deleted, Maverick didn¡¯t believe her.

    He even threatened to nder her to the press and described to her over the phone everything he

    nned to do, causing her to feel perturbed.

    Hence, for him to have suddenly died, Skr broke out in cold sweat. She wasn¡¯t sure if it was an

    ident or if Kai was behind it. After all, only the three of them knew about the matter. Also, Kai didn¡¯t

    seem like someone vicious. Murder is a crime, and he wouldn¡¯t have gone that far for my sake.

 Chapter 332

    Chapter 332

    The news of Maverick¡¯s sudden death went viral.

    His death came as a sudden shock. Nevertheless, it allowed Skr to heave a sigh of relief as she no

    longer had a crazy person stalking her.

    Meanwhile, Skr saw Miranda at the entrance when she returned. She was holding two big bags filled

    with vegetables and fruits.

    When she saw Skr, she quickly handed her the bags before stretching her arms to relieve the

    soreness in them. ¡°My arms are killing me. Why are you back sote, and why are you alone? Where¡¯s

    Tobias? Have the both of you broken up? I haven¡¯t seen him in a while. He seems to be fine with leaving

    a young girl like you here alone.¡±

    After receiving the bags, Skr didn¡¯t invite Miranda in. Just when she was about to shut the door,

    Miranda stuffed her leg in between the gap.

    Skr almost mmed the door on her foot. By then, she had no choice but to let Miranda in.

    As Miranda hadn¡¯t seen Tobias in a long time, she began to feel fearful. If Skr and Tobias broke up,

    she wouldn¡¯t be able to carry out Thomas¡¯ instructions.

    After putting the groceries in the kitchen, Skr replied, ¡°He¡¯s busy.¡±

    Miranda scoffed at her exnation. She felt that it was Skr¡¯s ipetence that had caused Tobias to

    grow distant.

    Skr asked, ¡°Since you have just reconciled with that ex-husband of yours, why are you here?

    Shouldn¡¯t you be striking while the iron is still hot? Stop wasting time here.¡±

    Miranda admonished her, ¡°That¡¯s really rude of you. He¡¯s your dad for goodness sake.¡±

    Skr squirmed as that was already her best attempt at being civil. Are you expecting me to address him

    as Dad?

    However, she didn¡¯t correct herself. At the same time, she gave Miranda advanced notice. ¡°This year, I¡¯m

    not going with you to Uncle Wesley¡¯s ce. I don¡¯t feel like going anywhere.¡±

    Miranda rejected her outright. ¡°How can you not go? It¡¯s a family gathering and it would be rude of you to

    be absent.¡±

    Skr asked, ¡°What can I do to avoid it then?¡±

    Miranda replied, ¡°Of course, if you are going to spend it with Tobias, I will definitely support your

    decision.¡±

    Skr shrugged as she exined in a powerless tone, ¡°Mom, you are getting ahead of yourself. Didn¡¯t

    you understand a word Tobias said to you? He does not n on getting married. In other words, he

    doesn¡¯t n to marry me at all. Who do you think I am to cling to him shamelessly? Aren¡¯t you worried

    about being chased out?¡±

    Miranda felt that Skr was uttering nonsense. After all, Thomas had told her that Tobias had fallen for

    her daughter.

    Why is she being so secretive?

    When Miranda left after receiving a call from Thomas, Skr quickly shut the door and ended their

    conversation.

    The moment Miranda returned to her vi, Tobias stopped her at the entrance. He asked impatiently,

    ¡°Have you talked to Skr about Tobias¡¯ takeover of thepany? It¡¯s a lot better that you talk to her

    than I do.¡±

    Miranda pped herself on her forehead and remarked, ¡°Oh, I forgot. You should see how messy things

    are now. Tobias hasn¡¯t visited in a long time, and Skr doesn¡¯t seem to be in a good mood. Who knows

    if they have broken up or not.¡±

    The moment he heard the words ¡°broken up,¡± Thomas¡¯ expression drastically changed.

    As the new year approached, Skr¡¯s drama, Unrequited Love, was broadcasted over Channel 3 at

    primetime. Despite it being her first drama, she managed to snag the female lead¡¯s role.

    When the first episode was screened, the ratings went through the roof.

    Skr finally felt that she was bing famous. Her social media followers grew by half a million

    overnight.

    When her fans broke one million, her agent paid for her name to be promoted as the top trending topic.

    However, there were many die-hard fans that were critical of her performance after the drama had been

    screened. They felt she was too flirtatious and wasn¡¯t as innocent as the original character.

    The most poprments online were the ones that disapproved of her appearance.

    She looks too coquettish. What an insult to the original work.

    She looks like a b*tch. I¡¯ll pass.

    Winnie¡¯s acting is good. Why is she the supporting actress?

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    I don¡¯t like how the female lead looks. She¡¯s just too mean¡­

    Skr was universally epted to be beautiful. Thements showed just how unforgivingdies can

    be to pretty women.

    When she saw thements disparaging her, Skrughed. The most she could do was to check her

    face in the mirror. It¡¯s not a crime to be born beautiful.

 Chapter 333

    Chapter 333

    At the same time, many other fans loved her and Harry as a couple in the drama. Those who weren¡¯t die-

    hard fans felt that she was pretty and had good chemistry with Harry.

    From then on, Skr and Harry were promoted in a way that made them look like they were developing

    feelings for each other.

    Kate had even received an invitation for Skr and Harry to model as a couple for the cover of Harper¡¯s

    Bazaar.

    For a budding actress, it was a great honor indeed.

    Meanwhile, Tobias had be more prudent and would consistently send her a message every day.

    However, it would only contain a concise sentence: I¡¯m doing fine today.

    Thest time they met was half a month ago.

    During this period, it was the text messages that confirmed the existence of their rtionship.

    At the rate it was going, Harry had be her boyfriend in the rumor mill. There wasn¡¯t any truth to it

    other than to satisfy the fans¡¯ fantasies.

    When Skr was waiting to do her makeup in the studio, Harry arrived earlier than usual. Unlike before

    where they hardly spoke in private, he gifted her a box of expensive choctes.

    Skr replied with a smile, ¡°I didn¡¯t prepare anything as a gift in return.¡±

    When he saw the conflicted look on her face, Harry suggested, ¡°Just treat me to dinner. After we¡¯re done

    with work, let¡¯s go grab a bite. Just the two of us.¡±

    Skr lifted her gaze at him. ¡°Why just the two of us? Have you contacted the press to take some

    photographs? Is this your managementpany¡¯s idea or your own?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s their idea. They want to capitalize on our poprity right now to elevate it one step further.¡±

    Skr smiled in response and looked just as stunning doing so.

    In the entertainment industry, it was difficult to rely on one¡¯s capabilities alone. One couldn¡¯t avoid dipping

    their toes into the rumor mill.

    The world was fair; no one would ever get anything without sacrifice.

    At that moment, Kate entered and whispered something to Skr. Only then did she agree to have

    dinner with Harry.

    She too wanted to test the waters and see what Tobias¡¯ reaction was. When they first got together, he

    was actually quite petty.

    But now, he seemed to be so open-minded that he didn¡¯t care about the rumors at all.

    Thest time he apologized was for not maintaining a proper distance with the opposite sex. At that time,

    Skr realized that the bnce of power wasn¡¯t in her favor and she had nothing to threaten Tobias with.

    She recalled someone telling her that the honeymoon phase of a rtionship was three months. During

    that time, the man would love her to bits, and she could hardly tell whether they were trulypatible.

    After three months, most men would show their true colors. A rtionship would always start with the

    man being passionately in love and ending with the roles reversed.Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    Harry found a ce that served spicy food which was his favorite. Coincidentally, Skr loved spicy food

    too.

    Both of them dressed were casually in baseball caps. They sat by the full-length windows of the

    restaurant. As Skr nced out of the window, she saw paparazzi taking photos of them discreetly

    from their cars, just as expected.

    Skr recovered her gaze and looked in Harry¡¯s direction.

    He remembered the first time they met was also under equally unassuming atmosphere. The feeling was

    bothfortable and soothing.

    At that moment, he understood why someone as powerful as Tobias could fall head over heels for Skr.

    Or in fact, fall into bed with her.

    ¡°Do you have a girlfriend?¡± Skr asked.

    Harry was briefly stunned before he calmly replied, ¡°I do, but she doesn¡¯t work in showbiz. I have to keep

    it under wraps for the sake of my career.¡±

    ¡°Do you have a boyfriend?¡± Harry asked in return.

    Skr took a sip of coffee. ¡°You can say so. Isn¡¯t your girlfriend angry that both of us are having dinner

    alone?¡±

    Harry looked conflicted as this was his management agency¡¯s decision. Therefore, he had no say in

    them. As for his girlfriend, she would definitely be upset. After their meal, he would have to rush over to

    her ce to pacify her.

    He replied, ¡°No, she won¡¯t. She¡¯s someone sensible.¡±

 Chapter 334

    Chapter 334

    Skr hated it whenever a man said that a woman was sensible. Who doesn¡¯t want to vent once in a

    while? Besides, men are just forcing women to be more understanding.

    When her phone suddenly rang, Skr assumed it was the same word she received from Tobias every

    day.

    Tobias: Where are you? I¡¯m already home.

    Skr gasped at once. Of all days, why does he have toe back today?

    She replied: I¡¯m having dinner and will be backte. Mr. Ford, it¡¯s not my safe period tonight. But I have

    made the necessary preparations.

    Her reply was candid.

    By now, she took more initiative than Tobias when it came to sex. They were both adults and there was

    no need to pretend to be shy.

    Tobias didn¡¯t reply after that.

    During dinner, a few fans came to ask for their autographs. Skr assumed that they were here for

    Harry. But, she didn¡¯t expect them to hand her their notebooks instead.

    Surprised by the attention, she not only signed her autographs but also took photos with them.

    By the time she reached home, it was three hourster. Reeking of the smokey smell from the

    restaurant, her hands were ice-cold as she fumbled for her keys in her bag.

    Before she could find them, Tobias opened the door from inside.

    Having not seen each other for half a month, Tobias looked as charming as always. With his tall figure

    towering over her, he was dressed in his ck shirt and pants. He had a cold expression on his face.

    The lights of the vi opposite had been turned off. When Tobias came home earlier, he saw Miranda

    staring out the window, just like a stalker.

    The moment Skr entered, she threw herself into his embrace. When her attention turned to the table,

    she saw that it was full of supplements and red wine.

    ¡°Did you bring me gifts for the new year? But I have no one to gift them to.¡± Skr snuggled in his arms.

    It had been a long time since she smelled his familiar scent. Sometimes, she wondered if Tobias had

    added musk to this white sandalwood fragrance as it always stimted the lust in her.

    Furthermore, she wondered how many other girls had smelled that scent too.

    ¡°You can give them to whoever you want, or keep them for yourself. Did you miss me?¡± As he leaned in

    closer to her, he was annoyed by the smell of smoke in her hair.

    After letting her go, he took her bag and hung it by the door.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    ¡°I was so busy that I didn¡¯t have time to miss you. Mr. Ford, what brings you here to visit this lonelydy

    tonight?¡± Skr teased seductively.

    Sensing that she was in the mood, he replied softly, ¡°I saw you thest time because I missed you. But

    tonight, I¡¯m here to bed you.¡±

    Skr was cognizant that Tobias resented the smell of smoke on her. Hence, she quickly went to take a

    bath. After all, a night of passion was priceless to her.

    When she returned to the bedroom, she noticed Tobias was checking the trending topics on social

    media. In the era of big data, news traveled extremely fast. Before she had time to digest her dinner, her

    date with Harry was the top trending topic.

    It read: Skr and Harry develop feelings for each other.

    The title couldn¡¯t be any clearer.

    Skr watched Tobias quietly as she didn¡¯t try to exin.

    Putting his phone down, Tobias closed his eyes in deep thought. Contrary to what she expected, his

    response was extremely calm.

    She had imagined that he would question her in anger. Or at least, the Tobias early in the rtionship

    would definitely do that.

    Finally, she couldn¡¯t bear it any longer and wanted to exin to him.

    However, before she could say a word, Tobias kissed her. She then wrapped her arms around his

    shoulders and kissed him back.

    In the midst of the passionate kiss, they were out of breath in no time. However, neither of them was

    willing to let go of the other. As their tongues curled around each other, they sucked the souls out of one

    another.

    Pressing his body on top of her, Tobias breathed heavily as he asked, ¡°Baby, which position do you

    prefer?¡±

 Chapter 335

    Chapter 335

    Skr was disappointed as she assumed Tobias would ask about Harry. Instead, he had expressed his

    jealousy via his kiss.

    Now, instead of bringing up the topic, he asked her what her preferences were instead.

    Skr didn¡¯t reply as she was still specting about what was going through his mind. Does he really

    not mind anymore?

    Just as she was distracted, Tobias carried her from the bed. With her body facing the white wall, she

    could see the muscr silhouette behind her from the full-length mirror by the side. He grabbed onto her

    hips steadily, worried that she would fall.

    Skr didn¡¯t like doing it standing up nor kneeling on the carpet as she felt that those positions were

    ufortable for her.

    As she had squandered the opportunity to choose earlier, he had then chosen on her behalf.

    Just when they achieved climax, Tobias leaned in toward her ear and moaned along with his thrusts. He

    then remarked in a deep husky voice, ¡°I won¡¯t restrict your freedom in any way. You are free to do

    whatever you want as I have to be fair to you. However, you have to know your boundaries. I hope you

    won¡¯t disappoint me. After all, one will always follow the path to one¡¯s destiny.¡±

    Right after he spoke, Skr had the urge to argue with him. Since you¡¯re aware that we will all follow our

    destiny one day, why did you ensnare me in the first ce?

    However, Tobias was so confident in himself that he only responded to the rumor with a smirk.

    The next morning, he left early. Right after he was gone, Skr noticed some movement in the bushes

    opposite when she was taking out the trash.

    ¡°There hardly is any wind,¡± she mumbled softly.

    When Skr walked over, she was given a fright. There was a man hiding there with an SLR camera. He

    was dressed like a special forces soldier.

    As he didn¡¯t expect Skr to notice, he didn¡¯t even have time to flee.

    Skr tapped the man on the shoulder. ¡°What did you capture?¡±

    The paparazzi climbed out of the bushes as he swept the leaves off his head. Clearing his throat, he

    replied, ¡°I have captured everything that¡¯s worth publishing. Your personal life is indeed interesting. That

    mysterious man is definitely not Harry.¡±

    Skr reached out her hand. ¡°Since you have been discovered, shouldn¡¯t you delete the photographs?¡±

    The paparazzi shamelessly sneered, ¡°I will never delete something as valuable as this. In fact, you

    should be thanking me for pushing you up the trending topics again. You can even save yourpany

    the money they spend on promoting you.¡±

    ¡°Whichpany are you from?¡±

    The paparazzi didn¡¯t reply. Instead, he gave her a taunting look.

    Skr wasn¡¯t in a hurry as she folded her arms and scrutinized the man who was about the same height

    as she was.

    His height makes him a good stalker. He can hide anywhere without being noticed.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t want to tell me. But, aren¡¯t allpanies nowadays suppressing the news with the

    right price? If you don¡¯t tell me whichpany you belong to, how am I going to pay you?¡±

    Skr was well versed in what they do. Paparazzi were always desperate for money. Once they had the

    scoop, they would ckmail the management agency for profit. Therefore, most scandals were only

    exposed because negotiations behind the scenes had failed.

    The paparazzi handed Skr a name card. ¡°I work for IEE Magazine. There¡¯s definitely room for

    negotiation for this scoop. Since it¡¯s your first time, I will give you a special discount. I¡¯m sure Royal

    Entertainment can afford it. With Ford Group financially supporting them, they can afford to cover up any

    scandal they want.¡±

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    Slinging his camera over his shoulder, the paparazzi left. All he needed to do now was to wait for

    Skr¡¯s call.

    The moment she got back into the house, there was no time to waste. Skr called Kate at once.

    As Kate didn¡¯t pick up the call, and time was of the essence, she had no choice but to call Tobias.

    ¡°A reporter from IEE Magazine has taken pictures of us. What do we do?¡± Skr sounded anxious.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take care of it,¡± Tobias replied before ending the call. Just a moment ago, Skr could hear the noisy

    environment in the background. There were a lot of people talking, and he didn¡¯t sound like he was in a

    meeting room at all.

 Chapter 336

    Chapter 336

    Having not been contacted by IEE Magazine all day, Skr went to call on Kate at thepany.

    Winnie¡¯s outsized poster adorned the wall at the entrance to Royal Entertainment. Needless to say, this

    must, again, be the result of Sheldon¡¯s artfulness.

    Skr paused briefly before the poster. Conspicuously showy and unabashedly audacious, Sheldon was

    considerably more adept at charming women than Tobias ever was.

    The monumental photo-editing job on Winnie¡¯s shot which transformed her five-foot-two frame into a

    leggy five-foot-ten could not have been more contrived.

    Amelia and Kate were both inside the office when Skr pushed through the doors, and something

    about the atmosphere felt a little off.

    With her feet crossed, Amelia leaned back on the couch as she waited on Kate¡¯s response, but was

    asked to leave by thetter when Skr walked in. Amelia was then told that discussions over her

    concerns would resume the next day.

    That did not please Amelia, who shot Skr a look on the way out, intimating that there was no love lost

    between them.

    The acute sense of crisis had only intensified for Amelia who became keenly aware of the fact that she

    had fallen out of favor with Kate.

    All these could be attributed to Kate¡¯s focus on Skr¡¯s development which in turn, neglected that of

    Amelia¡¯s.

    Skr plopped herself down in the seat and said, ¡°I¡¯ve tried to call you several times to tell you that I was

    photographed without my consent, but wasn¡¯t able to reach you.¡±

    Kate was not surprised that this happened, as it would be impossible to keep things under wraps

    indefinitely.

    Skr then continued, ¡°I¡¯ve already told Tobias about it, but IEE Magazine still hasn¡¯t reached out yet.

    Does that mean that the issue has been resolved? I¡¯m still a little worried.¡±

    Kate shrugged and replied, ¡°If the matter has been resolved then, of course, they won¡¯t be looking you

    up nor contacting the agency. But still, dating during this time will have massive repercussions on your

    career prospects, so you have to be careful whenever you go out with Tobias.¡±

    Skr wanted to tell Kate that she and Tobias mostly met up in bed only ofte because he had been far

    too busy to take her anywhere else.

    Nodding, she said, ¡°I¡¯ll be more mindful next time. By the way, am I taking away many of Amelia¡¯s

    resources? I heard that thest Fendi advert was originally meant for her, and she seems quite upset

    about that.¡±

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    Kate smiled calmly at Skr¡¯s question. ¡°It¡¯s a dog-eat-dog world¡ªsuch is the nature of the

    entertainment industry. Amelia¡¯s television series has yet to be aired, so naturally, the spotlight will be on

    you instead. All in all, I¡¯ll say that it¡¯s quite normal to be supnted. Why, is that something you are not

    willing to do?¡±

    Skr shrugged. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say that, since you put it that way. Besides, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m the one who¡¯s

    being reced. I¡¯m just a little concerned that there might be friction between her and myself going

    forward.¡±

    Kate had noticed Skr¡¯s evolution from an easy-going, unassuming, and wide-eyed girl to an ardent

    woman driven to sess.

    That was understandable, seeing how she had fallen for a powerful man like Tobias, who would have

    likely lost all patience with her were she to continue in her meekness.

    Wild mares were born to ze across the grasnds, not to wallow in ditches.

    ¡°Have you met up with Tobias?¡±

    Skr was taken aback. ¡°How did you¡­ Ah, I just told you we were photographed.¡±

    Kate¡¯s eyebrows perked up slightly. ¡°Well, there¡¯s that hickey on your neck.¡±

    Skr reflexively reached for the spot where she had applied a gratuitous amount of concealer.

    Apparently, there was no escaping Kate¡¯s wickedly discerning eyes.

    ¡°What did he have to say about Harry and yourself?¡±

    ¡°Not much. He doesn¡¯t seem too bothered.¡±

    ¡°You could take it that he¡¯s either being supportive of your work, or he¡¯s very confident that you¡¯ll never

    leave him.¡±

 Chapter 337

    Chapter 337

    The perceptiveness of Kate¡¯s words had Skr thinking that the former could have easily been a

    rtionship coach if she ever stopped being a manager.

    Kate then retrieved an envelope from the drawer which she passed to Skr. ¡°Merry Christmas. Take the

    festive season to rest and recharge. I¡¯m confident that you¡¯ve got a shot at bing the hottest starlet in

    the country.¡±

    Skr had never gotten a Christmas present from anyone before; Kate was the first to give her.

    Kate may be a tough talker, but inside, she was a real teddy bear. That gesture alone had Skr

    profoundly moved, so she did not mind whatever was inside.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    Every year, she always felt left out when Eva and Timothy gathered around the Christmas trees, waiting

    to open up their presents. As for her, her name would never be found tagged onto any of the presents.

    Miranda¡¯s life sentence was a source of shame for friends and family who knew about it, and the

    disparity in treatment was obvious from those who had redirected their vitriol toward her mother onto her.

    Kate¡¯s envelope opened to reveal one-thousand-and-one dors in cash¡ª a symbolic and powerful

    angel number.

    Skr appreciatively tucked that away inside her own pocket.

    On the way home, Skr stopped over to get some festive decorations which she hoped to embellish

    her empty house and add to the festive cheer with. She was determined to have herself a good time,

    even if she were to spend it alone.

    The goodies on the coffee table that Tobias got for her were collecting dust exactly where he left them.

    Amongst these were several bottles of reds of which she was not knowledgeable about, though the

    packaging might suggest that they could be quite pricey.

    On Christmas Eve, Skr was called several times by an insistent Miranda to head over to Wesley¡¯s, so

    she randomly picked out a few of those things Tobias got for her and made her way there.

    Miranda was present to receive her at the door, but not Thomas.

    The former was simrly not in the best of moods. ¡°Where¡¯s he?¡± Skr asked. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose that he

    has gone home to be with his wife and children for the holidays.¡±

    Miranda was visibly annoyed by that. ¡°Well, excuse me. I¡¯m his wife now, remember? He said that he¡¯ll

    be backte because something cropped up at work.¡±

    Skr could only smile at Miranda¡¯s ir for self-deception.

    It was particrly lively inside Wesley¡¯s home. Eva was there showing off her new coat when Skr

    stepped in.

    Fendi¡¯s Spring Collection. Skr was able to recognize it at first nce because that was the exact piece

    she wore for the shoot.

    ¡°It¡¯s absolutely gorgeous, Eva.¡±

    ¡°I bet it costs quite a bit. Kudos to Eva to be working under a great boss.¡±

    ¡°Is your boss married?¡±

    The rtives were fawning all over Eva and doing a fine job sucking up to her.

    Skr had only learned that Eva had recently broken off with the boyfriend she was expected to be

    marrying, citing ipatibility in their personalities; but everyone knew that the truth may be closer to

    thetter setting her sights higher since joining the Ford Group.

    Unlike in the past, the rtives came up to greet Skr warmly this time round.

    Her younger cousin, Timothy, was especially thrilled to see her. He dashed into the room and came back

    out with a notebook which he passed along.

    ¡°Could I have your autograph, Skr? There are many girls in my ss who would like to have it.¡±

    Skr did not expect that she would be that popr amongst high-school students.

    Eva rolled her eye at Timothy and seized him by the cor. ¡°Why¡¯s a kid doing all this nonsense and not

    focusing on his studies? There are no decent people in the entertainment business these days.¡±

    The mouthy Eva could always be counted on to say something irksome.

    Skr frowned as she retorted, ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you like to know how many office scandals involving female

    secretaries or assistants cozying up to their own bosses? It¡¯s hard to say whether secretaries are all

    good people either.¡±

    The tension in the air was positively vtile.

    Miranda nudged at Skr with an elbow to get her to shut up.

    Skr was unhappy with those rtives who asked about the marital status of the boss, as though they

    were hoping for Tobias to marry Eva. In your dreams, people.

 Chapter 338

    Chapter 338

    Sharon really pulled out all the stops when it came to the dinner fare. With a ss in hand, Skr quietly

    ate at her seat next to Miranda.

    ¡°What¡¯s next for you, Skr? Are you seeing Harry right now?¡± Eva asked.

    Skr smiled. ¡°Not much. I¡¯m leaving everything to the agency, and just going with the flow.¡±

    Eva sneered, ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to think about your own future? You¡¯ve quite a lot of people online getting

    on your case right now.¡±

    ¡°Really? I recall receiving quite a lot of praise as well.¡±

    Eva mumbled under her breath, ¡°Unambitious good-for-nothing. Some things just never change.¡±

    Then, ine butted in, ¡°I¡¯d say, Skr, you should be looking for a boyfriend as you aren¡¯t getting

    younger. You¡¯d do well to temper your expectations, and just find someone who treats you good.¡±

    Miranda mmed down her cutlery and nced over to ine, ¡°Whoever said that Skr doesn¡¯t have

    a boyfriend? Haven¡¯t I mentioned before that she¡¯s dating Eva¡¯s boss, Tobias Ford?¡±

    That had Eva scoffing, ¡°How could I not know whether my boss is seeing anyone when I¡¯m at his side all

    the time? I bet Skr must be bluffing, Aunt Miranda. It¡¯s not as though she¡¯ll automatically be able to

    snag someone like Mr. Ford just because she¡¯s some small-time celebrity.¡±

    Skr had enough of Eva¡¯s constant heckling which showed no signs of letting up even during dinner on

    Christmas Eve. ¡°What am I to do should I snag him by ident, I wonder.¡±

    No one else believed her, save for Wesley and Sharon who had met Tobias before.

    With a sly smile, Eva fished out her own cellphone. ¡°I¡¯ve my boss¡¯ private number right here and am

    about to call him to exchange festive greetings. How would you like to say a few words to him, Skr? It

    should be pretty normal to chat with your own boyfriend, no?¡±

    Skr shrugged nonchntly. She reckoned that Eva must be thinking that she would only be fitting for

    someone like Jeremy.

    Eva boldly dialed Tobias¡¯ number in full view of all the rtives present and went on to switch her phone

    to hands-free.

    The phone rang for a protracted period before someone picked up.

    ¡°Hello?¡± A deep voice came back from the end.

    Eva was a bundle of nerves as it was the first time she initiated a call to Tobias outside of work.

    ¡°Hi, Mr. Ford. It¡¯s Eva.¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡± There was a lot of chatter on Tobias¡¯ side, from which Skr was able to pick out udia¡¯s

    speaking voice.

    She supposed that his family was at the dining table too.

    ¡°I just wanted to wish you a Merry Christmas.¡± Eva¡¯s heart was almost pounding at her throat.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    ¡°A Merry Christmas to you as well.¡±

    Eva took a deep drawl. Her breathing was a little disheveled and her expression was akin to that of a

    love-struck adolescent.

    ¡°Might you, by any chance, know Skr Jones, Mr. Ford? She¡¯d like a word with you.¡±

    A wintry disconnect-tone emanated chillingly from the receiver end¡ªTobias had hung up.

    Skr was stunned. What¡¯s wrong with Tobias? Is he not even going to humor me? She had already

    figured out what she wanted to say to him as well.

    Miranda startedining, ¡°What¡¯s with Tobias? That¡¯s a bit of an overreaction, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    That only gave the sniggering Eva more ammunition to work with. ¡°Hmm, I wonder why your own

    boyfriend doesn¡¯t recognize you. How about you start exining to everyone why you tried to lie? We¡¯re

    family, so must you keep trying to show me up?¡±

    Skr acted with restraint even though she was seething inside. ¡°There¡¯s nothing I can do if you don¡¯t

    believe me, but since when was I able to show you up? What am Ipared to the apple of everyone¡¯s

    eye?¡±

    ine said sardonically, ¡°Can¡¯t you tell your cousin¡¯s just showing her concern, Skr? What do you

    hope to aplish by lying? Do you take all rich people for fools? He must prefer smart and learned

    women who could be assets to him.¡±

    Skr regarded those trenchant rtives with scrutiny. ¡°So, all of you are in the opinion that I ought to be

    settling for some average Joe, huh.¡±

 Chapter 339

    Chapter 339

    Skr went to the side to answer when her cellphone rang, away from those nosy rtives who were

    already convinced that she was a blowhard.

    Eva could not resist taking another potshot at her. ¡°Why are you sneaking off like that? Is that Mr. Ford

    looking for you?¡±

    Unable to stop Miranda from remonstrating fervently on her behalf, Skr decidedly left her to it.

    ¡°Why did you hang up just now?¡± Skr¡¯s tone was not very gracious as she was quite affected by

    everything that has transpired.

    ¡°I called instead because your cousin said that you have something that you wanted to talk about. Is

    something wrong?¡±

    Skr had sealed herself off after being besieged but cooled off quite a bit upon hearing Tobias¡¯

    passable exnation.

    ¡°What did you wish to tell me?¡±

    After some consideration, Skr asked, ¡°Are you avable right now? Do you want toe over to my

    ce for dinner? My mom insisted that you¡¯re my boyfriend and that made things embarrassing for me.

    Now, everyone thinks that I¡¯m lying.¡±

    ¡°Well, am I not your boyfriend?¡± Tobias mused as he countered with a question of his own.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you get it? The point is, no one believes me.¡± Indignant at her treatment by the others, Skr¡¯s

    inflection raised a notch even if she had not intended to.

    Tobias more or less picked up on Skr¡¯s foul mood and asked that she wait for him at home, stating

    that he would only be done over on his end in half an hour or so.

    ¡°Forget it then.¡± Skr was not optimistic that Tobias would be able to make it and hence hung up.

    The older men in the household were drinking, and the disparaging voices filled her ears once again

    when Skr returned to the dining table.

    One ss after another, the increasingly disinterested woman left her own cutlery well alone. She sat by

    the side while she idled her time away.

    The love-lives of their progeny continued to be the preupation of the older women. Tobias¡¯ was the

    one name that hung often on Eva¡¯s lips while she called someone else out for being delusional.

    She told them that her pitiable boss was so busy that he often crashed overnight in the office, and was

    without anyone beside him to warm his heart.

    An animated Sylvia said, ¡°How old is Tobias Ford? You should pay more attention to him if he¡¯s single.

    As he must surely think quite highly of your talents, who knows whether you might end up marrying up?

    Your ex-boyfriend¡¯s family background isn¡¯t too shabby, but they were never quite the match for someone

    of your capabilities.¡±

    Eva twitched her lips. ¡°No no no. I¡¯m not as audacious as my dear cousin here as to make such

    oundish ims, nor to even fantasize about something like that.¡±

    When Wesley heard knocking from the outside, he tottered over to answer the door, thinking that it could

    be the neighbor or some other acquaintance making a courtesy call.

    He was positively stunned to see that it was Tobias. Eva, whose seat directly faced the entrance,

    loosened her grip on her fork which slipped and nked upon the floor.

    The rest of the rtives who did not recognize the neer simply stared with eyes transfixed.

    ine¡¯s mouth was agape. ¡°Wow. This kid¡¯s so tall that he needs to bow his head when he enters.¡±

    His appearance caused Eva to shoot up from her seat, and left her so nerve-wracked that she seemed

    unsure where to ce her own hands.

    ¡°What are you doing here, Mr. Ford?¡± Eva asked, secretly hoping that Tobias might be here expressly to

    see her.

    At the same time, she wondered how he found out where she lived. Did he look it up in the employee

    form?

    An anomalous blush crept across Eva¡¯s face.

    Tobias did not seem to have heard Eva¡¯s squeaks and walked straight toward Skr instead. ¡°I hope that

    I didn¡¯t arrive toote.¡±

    Skr could detect the alcohol off his breath when he neared and assumed that he must have quite a lot

    to drink.

    To her, that was not a good sign, as he could be a real pain in the ass at night whenever he was under

    alcohol influence.Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

 Chapter 340

    Chapter 340

    Skr shook her head. ¡°Your timing¡¯s perfect, cause I¡¯m afraid I¡¯d bebeled as a liar on Christmas if you

    didn¡¯t show up.¡±

    Skr caught Eva¡¯s shell-shocked expression at the corner of her eye. There was probably no way the

    latter could ever conceive that all these could be true.

    As much as Skr disliked the notion of ying a damsel in distress, or instrumentalizing her man to

    inte her own prestige, she felt like she had to make apelling statement in response to the years of

    repression she had endured.

    This time, it was Skr¡¯s moment in the sun. She wrapped her hands around Tobias¡¯ arm and proceeded

    to introduce him. ¡°Everyone, meet my boyfriend, Tobias Ford. He is the CEO of Ford Group as well as

    Eva¡¯s boss.

    Tobias understood Skr¡¯s intended role for him here as a living prop.

    Eva smiled awkwardly as her world came crashing down around her, while the rtives whoughed

    along earlier all mmed up.

    When Tobias settled down next to Skr, Miranda astutely relocated herself to make way. Her face was

    beyond smug. ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯ve been telling you all along. Believe it or not, Tobias and Skr have been

    together for a long time. And Eva, you have your cousin to thank for being so well treated by him.¡±

    Eva felt a tightness in her own chest and nearly died inside.

    Skr held Tobias¡¯ hand and ced it upon her own thigh. ¡°Have you been taking good care of my

    cousin? You know, you really don¡¯t have to worry too much for her, cause she¡¯s actually very

    independent and has her entire future nned out and all that.¡±

    ¡°What are you suggesting, Skr?¡± Eva finally broke her silence as this was driving her nuts.

    Skr looked perplexedly at Eva. ¡°I wasn¡¯t saying anything. Just making conversation, that¡¯s all. Isn¡¯t that

    what you said so yourself? That you always have a n for everything? I was just reminding my darling

    here not to be too nosy.¡±

    The manner by which the word ¡°darling¡± rolled off Skr¡¯s tongue bordered on shamelessness.

    Tobias said staidly, ¡°Not sure how you¡¯d define good, but I treat all my staff equally.¡±

    Eva was rather sheepish in her reply. ¡°Maybe I didn¡¯t quite express myself properly. What I meant to say

    is that Mr. Ford has never made things difficult for his employees.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d never make things hard on anyone for no reason. Anyway, I¡¯m just here for a friendly visit as well as

    to acquaint myself, so let¡¯s not talk about work, shall we?¡±

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    His move to wrap up the topic finally saw the mood see some reprieve.

    Tobias¡¯ appearance was a significant face-saving gesture for Skr. Be it liquor or beer, he did not turn

    down a single offer from her elders.

    Skr tried umpteenth times to stop him from continuing, but Tobias insisted that he was fine.

    After a few rounds, the clock struck twelve to rapturous cheers, and the morously dressed hosts lined

    up to thank Ford Group for its generosity.

    It felt surreal for Skr to have the biggest sponsor for the televised Christmas Eve Special sit smack-

    dab in the middle of the old manor¡¯s living room and drink in thepany of her own family.

    Wesley asked, ¡°How much did it cost to sponsor the program, Mr. Ford?¡±

    After a brief pause, Tobias replied, ¡°Not much. Around twelve million, maybe? I¡¯m not exactly sure.¡±

    There was a unified and audible gasp from those listening in.

    Tobiasid slump upon the table with a hand on his abdomen. She had never seen him this smashed

    before.

    Skr ced a hand on his shoulder and leaned in softly. ¡°Are you okay? Stop drinking and let me send

    you home.¡±

    Only then did Tobias prop himself up right. ¡°I want to go over to your ce tonight.¡±

 Chapter 341

    Chapter 341

    After all the guests had departed, the expressionless Eva sat at the table peppered with leftovers and

    stared vacuously at the wall.

    Wesley asked his daughter cautiously, ¡°Are you alright, Eva? I told you before that I wasn¡¯t sure, but who

    could have guessed Skr would still be seeing Tobias?¡±

    Eva looked back angrily and snarled, ¡°How could you be so muddle-headed, Dad? Why didn¡¯t you tell

    me when both of you knew it all along? Now you got me looking like aplete idiot.¡±

    Wesley mumbled, ¡°I couldn¡¯t have known that they were still together. I assumed that a big-shot like Mr.

    Ford would only be fooling around with her.¡±

    Eva bit her lip, and her eyes burned at the seats previously upied by Tobias and Skr. ¡°Yeah, not

    like she¡¯s good enough for him. She really made me look so bad today.¡±

    Sharon was heartbroken to see her own precious daughter so aggrieved. ¡°This isn¡¯t going tost for

    Skr. Didn¡¯t you see how nobody knew about her? If Tobias was serious about being with her for the

    long haul, why would he be so secretive about it?¡±

    Eva could not stand listening to the mention of Skr¡¯s name, as hearing that name once more might

    send her over the edge.

    She had no idea how she was going to face Tobias back in the office.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Over the years, Skr was like an unwanted weed that would never amount to anything even if left to its

    own devices.

    ¡°Were you unhappy with the way I handled the situation?¡± Skr asked.

    She was unsure if Tobias minded being called away from his family reunion to be a tool for her little

    tantrum.

    Tobias was seated by the bed, seemingly in great difort after having one drop too much.

    ¡°Why would I be unhappy over such a trivial matter? I¡¯ll be there anytime you need me to.¡±

    Skr passed along a hot towel to Tobias which he used to wipe down his own face. He then retrieved

    an envelope from his suit pocket and handed it over to her.

    ¡°Merry Christmas!¡±

    Skr examined the paper-thin envelope before she opened it up to find a check. The number of zeroes

    on it was too many to count.

    ¡°This gift is a little too weighty for me,¡± Skr said before she reced the check and slid the envelope

    back.

    ¡°Why not? Keep it¡­¡± Tobias furrowed.

    ¡°It¡¯s too much. Besides, I don¡¯t need this because I¡¯m already able to earn my own keep.¡±

    ¡°How much can you possibly make? Just hang on to it.¡± Tobias¡¯ tone had an almost condescending

    quality to it.

    Skr was a little exasperated and disconcerted by his scornfulness. It would seem that no matter how

    hard she tried, her efforts were never good enough for Tobias.

    Meanwhile, his phone kept ringing away. A quick peek at the number disyed on the screen made

    Skr a little nervous, as one call from udia could prompt him to leave at any given moment.

    Tobias picked up and grunted twice with his deep inflection.

    Skr said in disappointment as she leaned against the wall, ¡°Will you be heading back thiste? It feels

    kind of like your wife¡¯s checking in.¡±

    Tobias did not take well to her casual quibble. ¡°Know your ce and think before you speak.¡±

    Not knowing how to respond to that, Skr handed him his coat.

    Tobias slipped on his coat the moment he received it, but after some thought, removed it and leaned

    back weakly against the bed. ¡°I¡¯m not going anywhere else. I shall keep youpany tonight¡­¡±

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    Chapter 342

    Hearing that, Skr threw herself into his arms. The scent of sandalwood he used to carry had already

    been overpowered by the stench of alcohol.

    Nothing else happened. The couple merely held each other and slept through the night.

    Owing to the effects of alcohol, Tobias slept particrly soundly.

    It had been a while since Skr saw him manage without sleeping pills.

    As Tobias fell asleep sooner than Skr the night before and with his phone set to silent, udia was

    unable to reach him despite calling three times in a row.

    Skr saw them but dared not answer, as it could prove quite problematic should she let the elderly

    woman hear her voice on Christmas Eve.

    Kai did a rather impressive job spying and had sent her some photos via WhatsApp.

    The potential future daughter-inw udia had her eye on was there with her alongside her own family,

    and it was a different woman this time.

    udia was very concerned about her son¡¯s marital arrangements and almost obsessive about ensuring

    that the candidate was one whom she approved of.

    Skr no longer bothered to keep tabs as it had be a little tiresome. She was sufficiently satisfied

    that Tobias stayed by her side through the night.

    When Tobias heard a knocking at the door, he opened it to see Thomas with bags bothrge and small

    in hand, and Miranda in tow.

    The way the door mmed shut behind these two uninvited guests drew a frown from Tobias, whose

    demeanor betrayed his displeasure. ¡°Could you keep it down? Skr¡¯s still asleep.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s that girl still doing in bed at this time? If she¡¯s not even going to get up to prepare breakfast,

    how¡¯s she going to be somebody¡¯s wife?¡±

    Miranda was eager to coax any sort of assurances out of Tobias for Skr¡¯s sake.

    Tobias was a little conflicted about the word ¡°wife,¡± as thest time he used that word was during his

    schooling days.

    He had no idea where the woman whom hest hailed that way from that ill-fated rtionship had gone,

    but that was both the first andst time that he thought about building a future together with anyone.

    ¡°Actually, Mr. Ford, I came by today hoping that we¡¯d be able to discuss the issue of Quest Group. I¡¯m

    sure you already understand the situation, so you should know that I cannot afford any more dys.¡±

    When Thomas heard that Tobias would be staying over here the night before, he was apprehensive

    about calling in too early for fear of disturbing his rest, while simultaneously afraid that thetter would be

    gone should he arrive toote.

    That was why Thomas stayed up all night waiting for the right time toe over.

    ¡°I understand, but I¡¯ve no interest in Quest Group. The process of restructuring a family business like this

    one and trying to make it viable is just too tedious. I¡¯m afraid that I won¡¯t be able to help solve this

    pressing problem of yours.¡± Tobias declined it rather assertively.

    ¡°I know that you aren¡¯t bullish about Quest Group¡¯s potential, but as an establishedpany, we have a

    solid reputation in the industry and awork of clientele that¡¯s second to none.¡±

    Tobias remained unmoved. ¡°No deal. We¡¯ve been through this three times already, so I hope that this will

    be thest.¡±

    At the side, Miranda swallowed and appeared lost in thought. Tobias was a tough customer. Whenever

    he had his mind made up, there was nothing anyone could say even to cause him to flinch.

    Skr was halfway down the steps when Tobias¡¯ words reached her ears. ¡°Do your daughter a favor? I

    guess y¡¯all must be mistaken cause I don¡¯t think she¡¯s deserving of such a huge one.¡±

    As reasonable as that was, it was a hard pill to swallow.

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    Tobias¡¯ eyes were drawn to thending of the steps by the sound of Skr¡¯s approach and remained

    transfixed upon her.

    He beckoned for her toe over, but she chose to sit next to Miranda. He had no idea how much of

    their exchange she had overheard.

    Thomas was disappointed at Tobias¡¯ upromising stance and how this was turning out to be much

    harder than he thought.

 Chapter 343

    Chapter 343

    He even sacrificed his marriage just so he could return to Miranda¡¯s side and get the help he needed

    from Skr. It seemed like he had overestimated Tobias¡¯ love for Skr.

    Guess I¡¯ll have to wait a few more days before handing over the letter of intent to Tobias.

    After the others had left, Skr got up and went to the kitchen, with Tobias following behind her.

    Skr had a sullen look on her face as she was washing the vegetables. Tobias closed the faucet and

    queried, ¡°Are you angry with me? I only did it in order to avoid being threatened like this again.¡±

    Skr smiled and replied, ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right. There was nothing wrong with what you did. I¡¯m not going to

    be angry over trivial matters. If I were that petty, I would¡¯ve left you a long time ago.¡±

    Watching as Skr took the ingredients out of the refrigerator, Tobias changed the topic of the

    conversation. ¡°It¡¯s just the two of us. You don¡¯t need to cook so much. I¡¯ll be fine with just a dish or two.¡±

    ¡°Penelope is alsoing over to eat with us.¡±

    Tobias shrugged his shoulders. I thought the reason she was cooking personally for me.

    Skr spent the whole morning cooking in the kitchen. Tobias was originally assisting her but was

    pushed out of the kitchen after a while.

    Skr was shocked to see Tobias being so meticulous in washing the vegetables. It took him more than

    half an hour to finish washing a stack of spinach.

    Tobias¡¯ mysophobia is getting out of hand.

    It would¡¯ve taken a whole day for him just to finish washing the ingredients.

    A whileter, Tobias heard a knock on the door while he was watching TV in the living room. He opened

    the door and was greeted by Penelope and Brayden.

    Brayden was rather surprised to see Tobias showing up on Christmas day given how strict and

    complicated the family rules of the Fords were.

    He was incredulous that Tobias would choose to spend the festive day here.

    Could it be that Mr. Ford has be gentler and more carefree now?

    Skr, who was still in her apron, walked out of the kitchen. The smile on her face disappeared when

    she saw Brayden.

    As much as she disliked Brayden, she didn¡¯t kick him out of the house for Penelope¡¯s sake.

    Brayden lighted a cigarette in front of Penelope as he was ncing over the interior of the house.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    Hanging on the wall was a painting worth millions named ¡°Sunflowers,¡± painted by Van Gogh.

    This painting must be the real deal. There¡¯s no way someone as proud as Tobias would deign to buy a

    counterfeit.

    Meanwhile, Penelope was covering her nose with her hand as the smoke from the cigarette was making

    her queasy.

    ¡°She¡¯s currently pregnant with your child. How can you be so callous?¡± uttered Tobias.

    Unperturbed, Brayden exhaled a cloud of smoke. ¡°What¡¯s the big deal? A little smoke won¡¯t hurt anyone.

    My father also smoked when my mother was pregnant with me.¡±

    Miffed, Tobias took Brayden to the balcony upstairs and let him smoke there instead.

    Thus, Penelope was left alone in the living room.

    ¡°Your wife didn¡¯t say anything about this?¡± Tobias looked concerned.

    Brayden replied, ¡°We had an argument as I was leaving the house just now. She wanted to know who I

    am going out with.¡±

    Tobias queried, ¡°So what do you n to do next? It¡¯s toote for her to get an abortion now. Whether you

    like it or not, you¡¯re going to have another son. I swear, even a pig can¡¯t produce offspring as fast as you

    do.¡±

    After hearing Tobias¡¯ question, Brayden was stupefied.

    He let out a chuckle before answering, ¡°What more can I do? I can¡¯t exactly divorce my current wife and

    marry her. It was her own choice to get pregnant. I didn¡¯t force it upon her.¡±

 Chapter 344

    Chapter 344

    Having already predicted Penelope¡¯s future, Tobias didn¡¯t show any sympathy toward her. He was more

    worried about Skr getting affected by all of this.

    This friend of hers is definitely plotting something.

    If Skr knew that Brayden wasing, she wouldn¡¯t have put in the effort to cook so much.

    She wouldn¡¯t even let Brayden in if it weren¡¯t for Penelope.

    When Skr walked into the living room, she saw that Penelope was sitting on the couch by herself.

    With the remote control in her hand, Penelope was aimlessly switching between the TV channels.

    ¡°Where are they?¡± Skr brought a ss of freshly squeezed orange juice over to Penelope. She even

    added some sugar as Penelope preferred sweet drinks.

    ¡°They went upstairs to smoke.¡± Penelope took a sip on her orange juice.

    What could they be talking about right now? The thought of Tobias hanging out with a guy like Brayden

    was bothering Skr.

    Just like how the thought of Skr hanging out with Penelope had bothered Tobias before.

    That being said, they were respectful enough to restrain themselves from interfering with each other¡¯s

    personal rtionships.

    When Tobias and Brayden came back downstairs, the dishes were served on the table.

    Gazing at the various dishes on the table, Tobias was astonished. I didn¡¯t know Skr was this good at

    cooking.

    This is a big step up from the pasta she usually makes.

    Grilled salmon, pot roast, lobster stew¡­

    Tobias was getting ravenous just from the appearance of the dishes.

    ¡°Not too shabby. So my girlfriend can indeed cook if she puts her mind into it, huh?¡± Tobias

    complimented Skr.

    Penelope replied proudly, ¡°Skr¡¯s skills are on par with that of the chefs in restaurants. Back when she

    was still dating Jeremy, she was the one who transformed him from a scrawny man to the plump man

    that he is today.¡±

    Skr red at Penelope with her eyes wide-opened. This girl is bbering on again.

    Peeved, Tobias had a sulky expression on his face. Penelope immediately realized that she had

    inadvertently offended him. Why did I bring up Skr¡¯s ex? How can I be so daft and stupid?

    Tobias responded with a chilly voice, ¡°I got a different treatment thought. All I got was pasta.¡±

    After hearing Tobias¡¯s statement, Skr was riled up. What is he getting so frustrated? Back when I got

    into a fake rtionship, he didn¡¯t even bother.

    She replied, ¡°I didn¡¯t have much to do back then. Now that I have to work, I don¡¯t have the energy to cook

    when I get home. Plus, it¡¯s not like you¡¯reing home for dinner every day. There were a few instances

    where I had to finish all the dishes on my own because you stood me up!¡±

    Fraught with guilt, Tobias was reticent. Brayden poured a ss of wine for him before uttering, ¡°Now,

    now. We shouldn¡¯t let the food on the table go to waste. Let¡¯s enjoy the food and drinks!¡±

    Tobias pushed the ss of wine away. ¡°I¡¯m feeling a bit under the weather today. I won¡¯t be drinking

    tonight.¡±

    Brayden rubbed his nose and sighed. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since west had a drink together. I really

    thought that we could finally get the chance to drink together again, but I guess not.¡±

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    Tobias seems quite cautious around liquors. And yet, he was willing to drink the wine offered by my

    parents yesterday. Did he do it out of respect for my family? If so, that¡¯s pretty considerate of him.

    Brayden finished most of the dishes. He was showering Skr with incessant praises on her cooking

    skills.

    At the same time, he was also grumbling about how useless Penelope waspared to Skr.

    Infuriated, Penelope retorted, ¡°I¡¯ll get Skr to teach me her cooking skills and make you eat your words!

    Once I be better at cooking, I¡¯ll then be able to make you stay by my side forever.¡±

    Brayden feigned ignorance on her statement and remained silent.

 Chapter 345

    Chapter 345

    Hearing Penelope¡¯s words, Skr¡¯s mouth twitched. This is not good. She almost burned the whole

    house down during her previous cooking lesson with me.

    ¡°Oh, by the way, what should we name our baby? Help me think of a name, darling.¡±

    Surprised, Skr choked on her water. She even calls him darling now?

    How can she say it out loud so tantly? I¡¯ve only ever called Tobias darling once or twice on the bed.

    Being the perverted guy that he is, Tobias would force me to call him usingscivious nicknames like

    darling or master when we¡¯re in bed¡­

    ¡°Just call him Scooter. Get it? Scoot-er.¡± Brayden gave a facetious response, showing no concern toward

    the baby in Penelope¡¯s belly.

    Skr was enraged by his apathetic attitude.

    On the other hand, Penelope seemed rather unperturbed. She patted Brayden¡¯s shoulder before uttering

    in a cutesy voice, ¡°You¡¯re so mean.¡±

    Tobias murmured into Skr¡¯s ear, ¡°When can you start behaving coquettishly like her?¡±

    Skr answered, ¡°Never. This just isn¡¯t me.¡±

    Growing up, I wasn¡¯t as feminine and gentle as the other girls.

    I did try to act cute before but it just didn¡¯t seem right.

    After Penelope and Brayden finished eating, they were quick to excuse themselves. The dining table was

    left in a huge mess.

    Just as Skr was getting ready to clean the table, Tobias embraced her and pressed her against the

    couch. ¡°The cleaning can wait. First, I¡¯d like to hear you call me darling, just like how your friend was

    calling Brayden.¡±

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    Under that circumstances, Skr couldn¡¯t bring herself to call him darling.

    Being pressed down by Tobias, Skr was finding it hard to breathe.

    Just as she was about to suffocate, Tobias finally let go of her. ¡°You should really learn to act cuter and

    girly. That is how you get a man to be captivated by you.¡±

    Using her incredible acting skills, Skr put on a cute fa?ade. ¡°I can only pretend to be cute and girly. If

    you want me to do it naturally, I can¡¯t¡ª¡±

    Tobias gave Skr a kiss on her forehead. Skr¡¯s words evoked his memories of Idania, the woman

    whom he once swore to protect and cherish.

    Gazing at Tobias¡¯s troubled face, Skr reached out her slender hands and wrapped them around his

    neck. ¡°The dishes ain¡¯t going to wash themselves. Can you excuse me for a moment?¡±

    Tobias released her from his arms before uttering, ¡°Go and take a rest. Let me handle the dishes. I¡¯ll join

    youter.¡±

    Skr, who was exhausted, happily epted his offer and went upstairs.

    Tobias watched as she was getting up the stairs. He seemed to be lost in his thoughts.

    She does kind of resemble Idania. Is that the reason why I¡¯m so fixated on her?

    Skr took a quick bath to remove the pungent smell of cooking odor from her body. Her face was beet-

    red when she exited the bathroom.

    She opened her closet, which was mostly filled with lingerie, and took out a set pajamas that she bought

    recently.

    The pajamas she chose had a cute design that didn¡¯t really match Tobias¡¯s preference.

    I¡¯ll be the one to choose what I want to wear and who I want to be. A woman must have her own sense

    of identity. We can only ever rely on ourselves.

 Chapter 346

    Chapter 346

    I even told Penelope before to have a backup n for when Brayden decides to leave her, but she

    refused to listen. How naive can she be?

    Skr waited for almost three hours on the bed for Tobias, but he was still nowhere to be seen.

    She went downstairs to check on him. The dining table was already cleaned up and so were the

    dishes. Wow, he¡¯s way better at this than I am.

    Skr called out Tobias¡¯ name, but there was no response.

    Suddenly, footsteps were hearding from the stairs. Skr turned her attention toward the sound and

    saw Tobias treading down the stairs.

    He had a ck suit on and looked rather dashing.

    ¡°It¡¯s already sote. Where are you going? You even changed into your suit.¡± Skr lost count of the

    number of times she had asked him this same exact question.

    ¡°I forgot to visit my ancestors¡¯ graves. It¡¯s currently that time of the year. udia gave me a call and told

    me to hurry over. I need to go now. There¡¯s about an hour left. I might still be able to make it in time.¡±

    Skr was rather perplexed. What kind of family visits their ancestors¡¯ graves during festive seasons?

    ¡°Are youing home tonight?¡±

    Tobias murmured, ¡°I¡¯ll try¡­¡±

    ¡°Do you want to apany me?¡± he added on.

    Skr replied indifferently, ¡°I don¡¯t think your mom would like that idea very much. As you already know,

    your mom isn¡¯t exactly fond of me.¡±

    Tobias smiled and responded, ¡°It¡¯s going to be fine. You can just wait for me in the car. We can head

    home together once it¡¯s over.¡±

    With her curiosity piqued, Skr agreed to go with him. I¡¯ll just stay in the car. I¡¯d like to avoid seeing

    udia if possible.

    In order to match Tobias¡¯s outfit, Skr wore a ck coat paired with ck leggings, which

    complemented very well with her slender physique.

    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    Tobias caressed her face. ¡°You should refrain from wearing this type of pants again. It¡¯ll be hard for me to

    remove them on the car.¡±

    I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s making lewd jokes at a time like this! Is there anything else on his mind besides sex?

    Skr replied, ¡°It won¡¯t be that hard. You¡¯ll just have to untie the strings here and it¡¯lle right off.¡±

    ¡°Really? I¡¯d rather you not wear anything at all,¡± Tobias teased her.

    After that, Skr got into Tobias¡¯ car and they took off to their destination.

    ¡°Are we allowed to visit during festive seasons? Or rather, will it be opened?¡±

    ¡°This entire mountain is my property. So, it¡¯s fine.¡±

    After hearing Tobias¡¯ response, Skr was speechless. As a girl who had lived a frugal life, she couldn¡¯t

    rte to his statement.

    Waiting in the car, Skr looked through the window and saw a copious amount of people at the site.

    In the meantime, udia was speaking to Tobias. ¡°Where have you been? I can¡¯t even reach you. Why

    didn¡¯t youe home?¡±

    ¡°Something came up at work.¡± Tobias gave a terse exnation.

    In the car, Skr saw a line of people in ck suits, including Tobias, kneeling in front of his ancestors¡¯

    graves.

    It¡¯ll be nice if I can proudly kneel beside him right now.

 Chapter 347

    Chapter 347

    The ceremonysted for more than an hour. After the ceremony ended, Tobias was called upon by one

    of the priests.

    The priest was highly revered by his mother, udia.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, I wish you peace and happiness.¡±

    Tobias put his palms together before leaving.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    udia caught up to him and uttered, ¡°Drive me home. I¡¯ve prepared some food at home. We can eat

    together.¡±

    Tobias gave her a smile. ¡°You should ask your driver to send you back instead. I can¡¯t have dinner with

    you tonight.¡±

    udia was well-aware of where he was rushing off to. That woman has my son wrapped around her

    finger.

    I told him countless times before to prioritize his responsibilities over his rtionships, but he just won¡¯t

    listen.

    Everything started going awry ever since she came along¡­

    When Tobias got in the car, the vise that was gripping Skr¡¯s chest finally loosened up.

    Having spotted Winnie in the crowd just now, Skr queried, ¡°Did Winnie get permission from your mom

    to attend the ceremony?¡±

    Tobias exined, ¡°There were a lot of people at the ceremony. My mom wasn¡¯t able to recognize every

    one of them.¡±

    Skr understood the meaning behind his words. So he never even introduced Winnie to udia in the

    first ce.

    On their way back home, the traffic was rather smooth.

    During the holidays, therge city they lived in would be lifeless and empty. This was due to the

    people in the city returning back to their hometowns.

    Tobias dialed down the air conditioner in the car to prevent Skr from catching a cold.

    Bored, Skr was humming a song to herself. I must admit, this is rather peaceful. If only I could

    preserve this moment forever.

    She was delighted to have Tobias by her side.

    Tobias continued to stay beside her for the rest of the week. The two of them didn¡¯ty a single foot

    outside the house during that entire week.

    At night, they would make love in the bed; and in the daytime, they would watch movies together.

    As for the movies that they watched, Tobias preferred ssical movies while Skr was more into

    comedies.

    Their tastes in movies were quite different.

    Skr asked Tobias, ¡°Do you like dramas?¡±

    ¡°No, they take way too long to finish. Dramas tend to stretch the story longer than it needs to be.¡±

    ¡°What about the drama that I acted in?¡± Skr was curious to know if Tobias had watched her drama

    ¡°Unrequited Love.¡±

    Tobias responded, ¡°Oh, I forgot to watch it. I¡¯ll take a look at it when I¡¯m free. What¡¯s the name of the

    drama again?¡±

    Are you kidding me? Even my acquaintances knew the name of the drama I acted in.

    When will he start paying attention to me?

    Vexed, Skr got up from the couch and sat further away from Tobias.

    The movie ¡°Roman Holiday¡± was ying on the TV. What kind of stupid movie is this? Ugh, I¡¯ve had

    enough!

 Chapter 348

    Chapter 348

    Tobias was holding a ss of red wine as he uttered, ¡°Would you like to act in a movie produced by my

    company? I¡¯ll let you be the main lead. You can choose any script that fancies you.¡±

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t this count as special treatment?¡±

    Tobias turned off the TV before answering, ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll even provide you with the best director and crew. I

    guarantee that you¡¯ll be satisfied.¡±

    Skr was pensive. What if my role ends up being reced again? Just like when Katrina reced my

    main role in Daryl¡¯s movie.

    At the end of the day, money is everything in the entertainment industry. No matter what position you

    have in the entertainment industry, you¡¯ll need money to be able to do anything at all.

    Skr got up from her seat to stretch herself. Since today is thest day of the holiday, Tobias will

    definitely leave tonight.

    ¡°More people will recognize me now when I go out. Do you find that troublesome?¡± Skr wanted Tobias

    to have dinner with her outside.

    Tobias responded calmly, ¡°Yes. I don¡¯t like to be bothered.¡±

    I¡¯m afraid that¡¯s inevitable. With a face like his, he¡¯ll draw the attention of the pedestrians on the street

    whether he wants it or not.

    ¡°Take some time off tonight to apany me. I want to go shopping. We should enjoy ourst day of the

    holiday. After today, I¡¯ll be going on a tour around the world.¡±

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°What?¡±

    Skr further exined, ¡°I¡¯ll be going on a tour to promote mytest movie. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll make sure to

    do a good job. You will get your money¡¯s worth.¡±

    Tobias seemed uninterested in the movies produced by Royal Entertainment as he knew that he wasn¡¯t

    going to profit from them anyway.

    The investment that he made on Skr just wasn¡¯t paying off.

    If it weren¡¯t for Tobias, Skr would¡¯ve already been weeded out from the entertainment industry.

    Even though it was already quitete, some of the smaller shops along the street were still in business.

    They were selling various kinds of food.

    Skr was surprised to see so many of the shops around the school still open.

    The shops reminded her of her student days. She used to visit these shops a lot back when she was still

    a student.

    Every Friday, Jeremy would bring her to eat here. Ahh, Those were the good old days¡­

    Even though they had broken up for quite a while now, some remnants of their love still remained.

    Skr dragged Tobias over to one of the small shops. The shop measured about six to seven square

    meters. Inside the shop was a rectangr-shaped stove. A variety of dishes were being cooked on the

    stove.

    Tobias and Skr took a seat and were given two stic bowls. The owner of the shop then inserted two

    spoonfuls of sauce into the bowls.

    It was the first time Tobias came to a minuscule shop like this. Since he had quite a big body, he felt

    rather cramped in his seat.

    However, since Skr was rather obstinate with her decision to dine here, he had no choice but to

    endure his difort.

    Skr took some meatballs out from the pot on the stove before uttering, ¡°One bowl of beef tendon,

    please. Oh, and please add more sauce to it.¡±

    Ahh, I feel right at home here. This is so much better than eating in those fancy restaurants. The

    etiquettes rules at those restaurants are just so galling.

    Not to mention, the food here is also way superior. The beefsteak that is served at those restaurants

    can¡¯t evenpare to the cheap meatballs that they sell here.

 Chapter 349

    Chapter 349

    ¡°I loved dining here when I was still a student. Back then, I told myself I¡¯de here and eat to my

    heart¡¯s content without worrying about my budget if I were to be rich someday!¡± Skr shared while

    stuffing her mouth full of food.

    Having eaten much healthier and luxurious meals his entire life, Tobias couldn¡¯t bring himself to

    appreciate the charm of such cheap food.

    ¡°Your dreams sure are simple.¡±

    Yes, they are indeed simple. I dream of graduating from university, getting married, having kids, and

    taking care of my family. I used to think it was the easiest dream to turn into reality, but that feels kind of

    far-fetched now¡­

    ¡°What sort of dream do you expect a person like me to have? My life was practically crap before I met

    you!¡± Skr replied and decided to keep her actual dreams a secret from him.

    Tobias topped up her te with two sticks of kebabs, and Skr found it hrious when she saw the

    contrast between his fancy watch and the cheap kebab he was holding.

    ¡°What was your favorite snack during your school days? Fries? Burgers? Or do you not have one at all?¡±

    she asked.

    Although his school days were far behind him, Tobias had an excellent memory. ¡°Nothing in particr.

    Besides, isn¡¯t snacking something girls do?¡±

    What the hell is that logic? I don¡¯t understand this guy at all! She ced her cutlery down when she saw

    that the man hadn¡¯t touched his food at all.

    She then asked for the bill and paid for it herself, only to receive a bank transfer from Tobias a few

    minutes after leaving the ce.

    The kebab had only cost a little over ten, but the amount she received from the transfer was a thousand

    times more.

    If money was all it took to win a woman¡¯s heart, Tobias would have no issues ruling over them all.

    Skr transferred the money back to him and bade him farewell as she knew he would be leaving that

    night.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    He didn¡¯t say much before leaving either. He simply left the keys to a Porsche at her front door and told

    her that the car had already been parked in her garage.

    As Skr didn¡¯t have a driver¡¯s license, she kept the keys in an envelope instead.

    A driver¡¯s license is a must-have for every young adult. I wanted to get myself one when I graduated high

    school if I could afford it¡­ Now that I¡¯m finally able to, I don¡¯t have the time for it¡­

    The next day, Skr was taken to the office by a new driver who seemed to be in his early twenties.

    ¡°You¡¯ve put on some extra pounds! I know you¡¯ve been living a life of luxury and all, but it¡¯s about time

    you start losing some of that weight!¡± That was the first thing Kate said when she saw Skr at the office.

    Skr looked down at her t tummy and wondered if the change was really that serious.

    Tobias and I haven¡¯t been using any protectiontely¡­ I know he said it¡¯s safe since he ¡®pulls out¡¯ each

    time, but I found that method unreliable and secretly took birth control pills anyway¡­ I wonder if my face

    has gotten visibly chubbier because of its effects on my hormones¡­

    Kate eyed her from head to toe and said, ¡°No female celebrity should weigh over a hundred and ten

    pounds these days, and you¡¯re heavier than that! You¡¯d better watch your diet over the next two weeks!¡±

    I¡¯m only ten pounds away from that limit! Skr clenched her teeth in embarrassment and swore, ¡°That¡¯s

    it, I¡¯m going on a low-carb diet starting today and lose that weight within two weeks!¡±

    Amelia, who happened to be in Kate¡¯s office at the time as well, said coldly, ¡°You¡¯re going to have a hard

    time in the entertainment industry if you can¡¯t even control your body weight.¡±

 Chapter 350

    Chapter 350

    Ugh, Amelia has seriously been picking on me out of jealousy because she thinks I stole her

    sess¡­ Skr rolled her eyes at her and replied, ¡°You and I are not that far off, you know? And here I

    thought having the right proportions is all that matters for celebrities.¡±

    Although Amelia had a pretty face, she had a veryrge frame. It made her look like a bag of bones

    whenever she slimmed down.

    It got so bad that there were even rumors online about her going as far as getting bone contouring

    surgeries.

    It wasn¡¯t until Kate told Amelia to get back to work that she finally left the office.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Kate waited for her to leave before turning towards Skr with a stern look on her face. ¡°Your ratings are

    out, and they don¡¯t look good at all. Despite having A+ grade resources at your disposal, your

    performance was a C grade at best. Had it not been for Tobias, you wouldn¡¯t have made the cut at all.

    You really have to step up your game, Skr.¡±

    I didn¡¯t know thepany had such a grading system¡­ And here I thought I had actually made a name

    for myself¡­

    ¡°Does Tobias know?¡± Skr felt depressed as she had worked hard for it, but things hadn¡¯t turned out as

    she expected.

    Kate let out a sigh. ¡°Of course he does. He¡¯s the one who stood up for you, after all. Since thispany

    belongs to Ford Group, he has thest say in everything. Unrequited Love is quite a popr show, but it

    lacksmercial value. Seeing how you barely have anypanies approaching you for

    advertisements or endorsements, your current objective should be getting your name out there. Do you

    understand what I mean?¡±

    The look in Skr¡¯s eyes turned gloomy as she realized she had caused Tobias losses.

    After that chat with Kate, she met up with Harry at a caf¨¦ in hopes of masking the scent of his pungent

    perfume with the fragrance of the coffee beans being brewed.

    Harry sat with his legs folded and a frown on his face as he sipped on a cup of ck coffee.

    Damn it, I just can¡¯t get used to this bitter taste¡­ I would¡¯ve ordered a cappino if it weren¡¯t for the

    stereotypical image of badass men drinking ck coffee!

    ¡°There¡¯s something I need your help with, Skr.¡±

    ¡°What is it? I have no money if that¡¯s what you need.¡± Skr asked tiredly while stirring her coffee with a

    gold-colored teaspoon.

    Harry let out a chuckle at how straightforward she was.

    He then leaned in closer and whispered, ¡°Rumors about us are spreading like wildfire now, and my

    girlfriend is going nuts thinking that you and I have something going. I need you to exin the truth to

    her.¡±

    Skr raised an eyebrow at him in surprise. Wow, I didn¡¯t know Harry cared so much about his

    girlfriend¡¯s feelings! She got all worked up about the rumors between us, while Tobias brushed it all aside

    coldly and told me to keep my distance¡­

    With that in mind, Skr quickly agreed to his request. ¡°Sure, how do you want me to exin it? Do you

    have a script or something for me to read off?¡±

    Harry handed her a piece of paper with his messy handwriting all over it.

    At that moment, the door to the caf¨¦ opened.

    Skr was so focused on going through the script that she didn¡¯t realize what was going on until

    someone sshed a cup of coffee on her face.

    Thinking it was Harry, she was about to yell at him when she saw the look of panic on his face and

    noticed an angry young woman standing next to their table.

 Chapter 351

    Chapter 351

    The woman had her hands on her hips and a taunting look on her face as she said, ¡°You shameless

    b*tch, how dare you go on a date with my man?¡±

    Skr stared nkly at the young woman before her in confusion. She had blonde hair, an average-

    looking face, and a slightly chubby figure.

    Huh¡­ To think I¡¯ve always imagined Harry¡¯s girlfriend as a stunning beauty¡­ Her thighs are twice as

    thick as mine! I bet that huge palm of hers would have me seeing stars if she were to p me with it, so

    there¡¯s no way I¡¯m going to beat her in a fight¡­

    The woman snatched the script out of Skr¡¯s hand and tore it to shreds as the surrounding customers

    watched on.

    ¡°So, you two were nning on lying to me, huh? Do you really take me for a fool, Harry?¡±

    Skr felt ufortable from how sticky her face was and wiped the coffee off with a paper towel before

    saying, ¡°He was asking me to exin the truth to you. We didn¡¯t have a choice in that matter, and you¡¯ve

    only made things worse by causing a scene like this.¡±

    Skr, too, was angry from having coffee sshed all over her, especially since she was wearing a white

    jacket.

    ¡°Keep it down, will you? I told you, there¡¯s nothing going on between Skr and I. Why¡¯d youe all

    the way here?¡±

    Harry quickly tried to calm his girlfriend down, but she shoved him off and shouted, ¡°You two spend so

    much time with each other on set, and now you¡¯re even having coffee with her behind my back! Do you

    seriously expect me to believe that nothing is going on between you two? You think you¡¯re so great now,

    huh, Harry? Tell you what, you¡¯d be nothing without me!¡±

    At that point, Skr was able to kind of piece the puzzle together. Harry¡¯s girlfriend must be really rich¡­

    He wouldn¡¯t be so afraid of her if otherwise! Could it be that he¡¯s found himself a sugar mommy?

    ¡°We¡¯re just partners at work! Don¡¯t believe us? Go through his phone, and you¡¯ll see that we barely even

    contact each other! Now, how about we put an end to this pointless argument before it gets really out of

    hand?¡±

    Harry nodded in agreement. ¡°That¡¯s right, babe! Come on, let¡¯s go home before someone starts snapping

    pictures of us!¡±

    Consumed by rage, the woman pointed at Skr and shouted angrily, ¡°You there with the face of a b*tch!

    If I catch you anywhere near my boyfriend again, I¡¯ll make damned sure to kick you out of the

    entertainment industry! Don¡¯t think for a second that I won¡¯t do it!¡±

    The woman then dragged Harry out of the caf¨¦ while Skr stood there watching them go.

    She noticed the surrounding customers talking about what they had just witnessed, and one of them was

    speaking so loud that she could hear him. ¡°Man, the entertainment industry sure is wild! This is the first

    time I¡¯ve seen two women fighting over a guy! If I were Harry, I¡¯d take them both in! Imagine how

    amazing it would be to sleep with two women at the same time!¡±

    Skr stopped in her tracks and shot him a fierce re as she said, ¡°Sorry, did your mother squeeze out

    a person or a septic tank?¡±

    The man shut up instantly; he couldn¡¯t afford to piss off a celebrity.

    Hannah came over momentster with a change of clothes. Noticing traces of coffee stains on her rosy

    lips, Skr tossed her lipstick into the trash.

    This lipstick isn¡¯t waterproof! What a piece of garbage!Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    ¡°What happened to you, Skr? Did you get harassed by some pervert or something?¡± Hannah

    questioned worriedly.

    Skr wasn¡¯t in the mood to entertain her, so she carried on scrolling through Instagram in silence.

    My goodness, word got out way faster than I thought¡­

 Chapter 352

    Chapter 352

    #HarryxSkr

    #HarryCheatsOnSkr

    #Starbucks

    Well, so much for that n of his¡­ After that stunt his girlfriend pulled, I don¡¯t even know what to expect

    anymore¡­ I can¡¯t believe this little ¡°ship¡± of ours has sunk before it has even set sail¡­ Skr thought to

    herself as she stared at the screen.

    It wasn¡¯t until the next day that she found out who Harry¡¯s girlfriend was, and she couldn¡¯t help but

    wonder just how many sisters Tobias had.

    The woman¡¯s name is Ingrid Ford, and she¡¯s Tobias¡¯ paternal half-sister. She has been living abroad and

    only returned two years ago because of Harry¡­ Okay, that exins her arrogance and why Harry was

    so afraid of her¡­

    Skr sent Tobias a text with an emoji waving goodbye as she boarded her flight: How many sisters do

    you have?

    To which Tobias replied: ???

    Skr then switched her phone off for takeoff and never bothered to reply any further after that.

    Meanwhile, Tobias got a notification on his phone and saw pictures and videos of Skr and Harry from

    yesterday.

    He immediately understood what Skr meant when he saw Ingrid in the video.

    Heh, I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d ever see Ingrid and Skr standing next to each other like this¡­ People are saying

    they¡¯re fighting over Harry? What a joke¡­ As if starting a rumor with him wasn¡¯t enough, she¡¯s even

    meeting up with him time and time again¡­

    Skr went straight to the event venue after getting off the ne, and a makeup artist helped apply a

    dark red colored lipstick on her.

    Lipstick truly does make a huge difference for women! I look so much more elegant now! She thought to

    herself as she admired her looks in the mirror.

    Kai ced a hand on her shoulder and teased her by saying, ¡°Wow, we look like a perfect match

    together.¡±

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    Skr rolled her eyes at him in response, but Kai didn¡¯t mind as he had gotten used to her cold attitude

    at that point.

    As there were other people in the dressing room, she motioned at him to lean closer and whispered,

    ¡°Come with me. There¡¯s something I need to tell you.¡±

    Kai did as he was told and followed her to the corridor outside. However, the corridor was quite crowded;

    people were scurrying around, going about their business.

    Having no other choice, Skr had to take their conversation somewhere else and dragged Kai to the

    stairwell instead.

    ¡°What the hell happened to Maverick?¡± Skr felt Maverick¡¯s death wasn¡¯t an ident.

    Kai pursed his lips. ¡°What, you think I had something to do with his death? You think I killed him?¡±

    The woman kept quiet and made no effort to deny it.

    Instead of getting mad at her, Kai chuckled at how hrious her usation was. ¡°You overestimate my

    capabilities, Skr! I wouldn¡¯t even hurt a fly, so what makes you think I¡¯d kill Maverick, someone I don¡¯t

    even hold a grudge against? If anything, you should be suspecting Tobias! That man is so cruel and

    merciless. There¡¯s nothing he wouldn¡¯t do!¡±

    Kai is the only one who knows about Maverick threatening me for the video. I¡¯ve never mentioned a word

    about it to Tobias, so how could he possibly have anything to do with this?

    She decided not to ask any further as Maverick didn¡¯t really affect her much, to begin with, and she was

    simply probing about the topic out of curiosity.

 Chapter 353

    Chapter 353

    The journalists soon arrived at the scene. Skr hadn¡¯t seen the lead actress Katrina ever since they

    finished filming.

    However, seeing her at the promotional event was unavoidable as Katrina was bound to show up for it.

    Despite the two of them not wanting to see each other, they had no choice but to greet each other and

    act like they were friends anyway. They both needed to maintain a positive image in the entertainment

    industry ¨C a ce everyone could be your friend as long as you were popr.

    Kate didn¡¯t want Skr getting too much attention, so thetter she didn¡¯t have a lot of scenes in the

    show. Her character was designed to be very low profile with her costumes.

    Even so, the video of her and Harry in the caf¨¦ spreading all over the inte had resulted in Skr

    gaining even more poprity than Katrina.

    During the interview session, one of the journalists asked, ¡°Skr, what is your rtionship with Harry?¡±

    ¡°How about you try asking about my rtionship status instead?¡± Kai tried to change the topic for her, but

    Skr shed the journalists a warm and friendly smile as she responded to the question herself.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    ¡°Harry and I are just friends. I believe it is perfectly normal for friends to meet up for a cup of coffee.¡±

    She wanted to clear her namepletely; she wasn¡¯t going to gain any more poprity out of their

    rumors.

    ¡°Who is the woman in the video? Is she Harry¡¯s ex-girlfriend?¡±

    The journalist pressed on, refusing to let her off easily as it was her first time addressing the issue

    directly.

    Skr shook her head and replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know her, so I¡¯m not too sure about that. Maybe she¡¯s an

    obsessive fan of his?¡±

    That was the only logical exnation she coulde up with as it was perfectlymon for obsessive

    fans to do such a thing.

    I¡¯ve witnessed some of Harry¡¯s fans going as far as setting up camp near the film set for days on end,

    and that¡¯s mild inparison to the crazier things they¡¯ve done. The more extreme cases include

    disguising themselves as cleaners at the hotel Harry stayed in just so they could go through his trash.

    ording to the filming crew, they even stole his used toilet paper! Why would anybody do that? Do they

    find the poop of celebrities good or something? Honestly, I don¡¯t even know what makes Harry so

    attractive to them¡­ I fangirl over my idols too, but I wouldn¡¯t go that far!

    Although Katrina was the lead actress of the show, the journalists barely put any effort into her

    interviews. It was as if they wanted to end her session as quickly as possible.

    Things had been rather quiet for Katrina as she had no rumors nor scandals going on. The lie she had

    fed the journalists about her intimate rtionship with Tobias hadn¡¯t been enough to fool them.

    Everyone could tell that she was making it all up in hopes of boosting her poprity through the use of

    his fame.

    Kai had been standing next to Skr since the start of the event, and he would have remained there if it

    weren¡¯t for the director instructing him to go stand with Katrina instead.

    Despite his reluctance, Kai had no choice but to do as told.

    As the event came to an end, Skr looked into the crowd and saw Kai¡¯s name on most of the signs

    instead of hers or Katrina¡¯s.

    Thank you, those of you who actually came for me! She thought to herself while casting a grateful look at

    the small group of fans with her name on their signs.

    Skr had originally nned on catching the overnight flight home, but Kate stopped her and asked,

    ¡°Why are you in such a hurry to head back? Is there someone waiting for you?¡±

    She¡¯s right¡­ Even if I head back to that cold and empty house tonight, I¡¯d still only arrive in the wee

    hours of the morning anyway¡­

    With that in mind, Skr canceled her flight and checked in at the hotel that the filming crew had booked

    them.

    It was a five-star hotel with incredibly luxurious decor and the fragrant scent of perfume everywhere.

    After stepping out of the shower, Skr remembered that she had yet to reply Tobias¡¯ message that had

    come in when she boarded the flight.

    She tried giving him a call and even sent him a text message asking if he was there, but she received no

    response whatsoever.

    An image of him being very busy with his work popped into her head, and she put her phone down as

    she decided not to waste her time waiting for him.

    There was a sudden knock on the door, and she opened it thinking it was Kate returning from her spa

    session downstairs. However, Kai was the one who greeted her at the door.

    Noticing the two bottles of wine in his hand, Skr was about to close the door on him, but he was

    quicker and squeezed through before she could do so.

 Chapter 354

    Chapter 354

    Skr then decided to keep the door open as she didn¡¯t want to risk having journalists snooping around

    getting questionable pictures of them.

    With all the rumors surrounding them, she couldn¡¯t afford to have people going around saying he visited

    her in her hotel room.

    Kai then retrieved two wine sses and poured them both some red wine. ¡°My goodness, you should

    see how haggard you look right now! I knew you wouldn¡¯t be happy dating Tobias!¡±

    Skr shot him a cold re. ¡°You seem to have some serious problems with him. You two have a grudge

    against each other or something?¡±

    ¡°Tobias is not a good guy, okay? My instincts are telling me that you should stay away from him if you

    know what¡¯s good for you. There¡¯s plenty of fish in the sea, so why waste your time on him?¡± Kai scowled

    with a disdainful look on his face.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never expected anything to happen between us. He doesn¡¯t care about getting married, and neither

    do I,¡± Skr replied.

    She was ying it off way too casually, and Kai knew she wasn¡¯t the type to fool around like that.

    ¡°Looks like you don¡¯t know Tobias at all! I remember him bringing a woman home and iming he wants

    to marry her, but that was a really long time ago. You were probably still in school at the time.¡±

    Skr tensed up for a brief moment but was quick to regain herposure. ¡°Are you kidding me? If so,

    that was not funny at all.¡±

    It was then that Kai realized Skr was like any other ordinary girl who dreamed of getting married and

    having a family with the man they loved. The only thing that set her apart from those girls was her

    beautiful appearance, but that was all there was to it.

    ¡°If I recall correctly, her name is Idania Gand¡­ Yes, that¡¯s her all right. She was the only woman

    Tobias brought home to meet his family. I heard he even got into a fight with his mother over her. I¡¯m not

    sure what happened in the end, but rumor has it that Idania decided to leave on her own ord. It¡¯s

    obvious that Tobias doesn¡¯t love you for who you are, but because you and Idania look very simr to

    each other.¡±

    Skr thought back to the time when she had gone to see Tobias the other day.

    His friend had asked him if she looked like her, and Tobias had said no.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    She found herself filled with both curiosity and envy towards the woman named Idania. What kind of

    woman is she? Why would Tobias want to marry her willingly when he wouldn¡¯t even let me stay

    anywhere that was within a few minutes¡¯ drive from his family home? I thought I knew him like the back

    of my hand¡­ I was under the assumption that he cared about nothing but his career, and that all I had to

    do was satisfy his needs in bed¡­ Well, guess I was wrong¡­

    ¡°I am my own person, not some recement,¡± Skr stated calmly after downing her entire ss of wine

    in one go.

    Kai let out a chuckle. ¡°I sure hope so!¡±

    He stayed around for about another half an hour before leaving awkwardly when he saw how depressed

    she looked.

    Skr finished the entire bottle of wine he had left behind that night. She then took the first flight home

    the next morning with a severe hangover.

    Upon arrival at the airport, she donned a face mask and baseball cap before making her way towards

    customs.

    Even with that disguise, some of her more hardcore fans who hade to see her off were able to

    recognize her and gave her bouquets. Her main objective was to avoid being seen by her fans, and it

    would be really difficult if she walked around with those flowers in hand.

    ¡°You can throw them away if you have to. There¡¯s a trash can over there,¡± Hannah suggested.

    Skr took a good look at the flowers that were blooming brightly and decided to keep them. They were

    the first flowers she had ever received from anyone, after all.

    She was stopped by a few burly men dressed in ck the moment she got off the ne. They all had

    stern looks on their faces, and Skr would¡¯ve thought they were sent by the FBI to arrest her if it

    weren¡¯t for the fact that she hadn¡¯t done anything illegal.

    ¡°Are you guys from airport security?¡± she asked with an eyebrow raised.

    One of the men replied rudely, ¡°Our boss wants you to go see her. Come with us!¡±

 Chapter 355

    Chapter 355

    Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t remember knowing any woman who can afford bodyguards like these¡­ With that in mind,

    Skr refused his request, ¡°I don¡¯t know your boss. I¡¯ll go see her only if I feel like it.¡±

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    The bodyguard then made a phone call before turning towards her again. ¡°She¡¯s waiting for you in the

    parking lot.¡±

    The next thing Skr knew, she was being forcefully taken away. Her assistant was told to stay behind.

    Upon arriving at the parking lot, Skr saw Ingrid step out of a white Lincoln limousine, dressed in a

    white wool sweater and a ck dress underneath.

    The woman had very exquisite makeup on, but her short and chubby figure ruined the look.

    She actually came all this way just to catch me right after I get off the ne? Talk about dedication¡­

    Skr thought to herself as she asked, ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of this? Didn¡¯t we already sort things out

    between us back at the caf¨¦? I don¡¯t care what your rtionship with Harry is, okay? It has nothing to do

    with me!¡±

    ¡°You called me an obsessive fan during the interview!¡± Ingrid snapped back at her.

    Skr lowered her gaze in an attempt to hide her nervousness. ¡°That was just a joke! Don¡¯t take it so

    seriously! Besides, you never actually told me about your rtionship with Harry, so I had to make a wild

    guess!¡±

    This is bad¡­ Even if I somehow manage to run past Ingrid, I¡¯ve still got these big strong bodyguards to

    worry about, and they¡¯ve been eyeing me like a pack of hungry wolves the whole time¡­ Wait¡­ Since

    Ingrid is Tobias¡¯ half-sister, I can call him for help!

    Skr hurriedly pulled out her phone and gave Tobias a call.

    Ingrid taunted her when she saw her calling for help. ¡°Are you trying to call the police? You really think

    they¡¯ll help a sl*t like you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m in a meeting right now¡­¡± Tobias¡¯ familiar voice came on the phone when the call got through, and

    he sounded rather annoyed at being interrupted.

    In order to save her own skin, Skr couldn¡¯t care less about that and ced him on speaker before

    shouting out loud, ¡°Hey, Tobias! I¡¯m with your sister right now, and there seems to be a misunderstanding

    between us!¡±

    Ingrid felt her heart skip a beat when she heard that.

    Tobias stepped out of the meeting room and asked, ¡°Where are you? I¡¯ll go pick you up¡­¡±

    The smug look on Ingrid¡¯s face vanished the moment she recognized his voice.

    Skr then told him her location, and he said, ¡°Pass Ingrid the phone. I¡¯ll have a word with her.¡±

    Having ensured her own safety, Skr mustered up the courage and walked up to the other woman.

    ¡°Listen up, Ingrid. If you so much asy a hand on her before I get there, I¡¯ll make you pay a hundred

    times over!¡±

    Ingrid had no choice but to keep her emotions in check and remain silent as she knew she couldn¡¯t afford

    to defy Tobias until her father¡¯s return to the country.

    She then warned Skr to stay away from Harry and threatened to disfigure her face if she didn¡¯t before

    leaving with her bodyguards.

    If looks could kill, Skr would¡¯ve died several times over from the vicious look in Ingrid¡¯s eyes when she

    made her threat.

    Tobias arrived sometimeter, and Skr threw herself into his arms the moment she saw him.

    Had it not been for that phone call I made, I might have been taken and raped by those men long ago!

    One of them was even holding a thick rope in his hand!

    ¡°Jeez, look at you all shaken up¡­ Don¡¯t worry, she won¡¯t dare hurt you now,¡± Tobias said while holding

    her tightly in his arms.

    After taking a moment to calm down, Skr mumbled, ¡°Man, why do I have such bad luck? All I wanted

    was to boost my poprity, but all it did wasnd me in all sorts of trouble!¡±

 Chapter 356

    Chapter 356

    Seeing that Tobias was reluctant to speak for a long while, Skr nudged herself gently in his embrace

    like a kitten. ¡°Are you mad at me? I only did so because I had no choice.¡±

    As she spoke, she lifted her head and started kissing his jaw affectionately.

    Even though Tobias was reluctant to kiss her back, the anger within his eyes started to fade.

    Tobias sullenly sent Skr back home after the incident was settled.

    People always said that absence made the heart grow fonder. If it were before, whenever Tobias met

    her, he would stare at her like a hungry beast, eager to take her to bed.

    With that, his current indifference really concerned Skr a lot.

    The man wanted to leave soon after Skr got out of the car. When the woman asked if he woulde

    over again, he only gave a short response. ¡°We¡¯ll see when the timees.¡±

    Skr did not hold much expectation anymore, as she figured that concluded their meeting for the day.

    The moment she entered her house, she was startled to see Miranda sitting on the couch waiting for her.

    Only then did she remember that Miranda knew her password.

    Spotting Miranda¡¯s decadent expression, Skr asked casually, ¡°Did you quarrel with your husband

    again? Please don¡¯t whine in front of me. I couldn¡¯t care less about your marriage problem.¡±

    Upon hearing that, the other woman choked on her words and startedining in a low voice, ¡°Could

    you please care more for me? After all, I¡¯m still your mother. Even if I didn¡¯t raise you, I was the one who

    gave birth to you.¡±

    Skr shot her a self-deprecating smile. ¡°If I knew my parents would be you, I would not havee to

    this world.¡±

    As expected, Miranda could not suppress the troubles in her heart. ¡°Your dad¡¯spany got into trouble,

    and Tobias refused toy a hand. Your father had no choice but to beg Irene for help. I¡¯m afraid they

    won¡¯t be able to get a divorce if so.¡±

    Feeling utterly annoyed, Skr uttered, ¡°They haven¡¯t divorced, yet you¡¯ve moved in with him. Isn¡¯t this

    considered illegal cohabitation? You¡¯re not a young teenager anymore. Could you please be wiser with

    your life decisions?¡±

    Not to be outdone, Miranda shot back at Skr. ¡°You¡¯re also living with Tobias without any clear

    commitment. Why don¡¯t you school yourself?¡±

    Skr was lost for words. Nobody can wake someone who¡¯s pretending to sleep.

    Her head was still spinning from the incident at the parking lot. She was dying for some rest to clear her

    head from the conflict with that b*tch.

    Just then, Miranda opened her mouth again. ¡°Since Tobias is not helping, you¡¯re the only one I have left.

    How much money do you have right now? Could you please help Dad to ovee this crisis?¡±

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Skr¡¯s lips curled into an unnatural smile, for the money she possessed would only be a drop in the

    bucket for Quest Group.

    Even if she had enough money, she would never help Thomas.

    With a cold tone, she rejected, ¡°I can¡¯t help you. Please find someone else.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Miranda bawled her eyes out in front of Skr. ¡°The only reason that got me through

    those years in prison was the hope to see your dad getting back together with me. You won¡¯t want me to

    grow old and die alone, will you?¡±

    Skr¡¯s eyes furrowed. ¡°You went into the prison as a scapegoat, didn¡¯t you? You and Thomas knew

    who was the one that murdered Irene¡¯s sister. I bet he would not leave you if you use that as your

    bargaining chip.¡±

    Miranda stopped crying instantly, as she had expected Skr to figure out the whole case.

    Nevertheless, the former refused to admit the truth. ¡°What nonsense are you talking about? Do you think

    you¡¯re an actress inside a crime film?¡±

    Skr shrugged. ¡°No crime film would want me as their actress.¡±

    Miranda had made a wrong move. Even if she threatened Thomas with the murder, it would be

    meaningless if the man failed to solve the crisis of Quest Group. He would end up in jail too.

    Thomas was, without a doubt, a mean man. As he was confident Miranda would never let him face the

    sentence of thew, he requested her to solve the current problem in Quest Group as a condition to

    resume their rtionship.

    With that, the woman was left with no choice but to approach Skr.

    Miranda had been pushed to the edge of the cliff. ¡°I don¡¯t care. You¡¯ve got to help me with this. If not, I

    will die in front of you.¡±

 Chapter 357

    Chapter 357

    Upon saying that, Miranda left the house abruptly.

    However, Skr did not take her mother¡¯s threat seriously. What a joke. Who would dare to end their

    own life so quickly?

    Skr was still in the middle of her diet n to lose weight within half a month. Thus she did not eat

    anything after six in the afternoon.

    She could not forget how Amelia looked down on her weight. Who says I can¡¯t control my weight? I¡¯ll

    prove that I¡¯m qualified for this entertainment industry.

    She took a short nap and got ready to head down to the living room for her daily exercise routine.

    Just then, she noticed Tobias was sitting in the living room, busy replying to messages on his phone.

    The man had no idea that Skr had woken up and was standing right behind him.

    She peeped from behind Tobias¡¯s phone screen without making a sound, spotting that he was

    messaging with a woman.

    The woman from the other end kept sending lengthy messages, while Tobias merely sent back brief

    responses.

    After sending thest message, only then did Tobias realize Skr¡¯s existence.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    ¡°Online dating?¡± Skr joked purposely.

    Compared to the morning, Tobias¡¯ expression had be more rxed. ¡°It¡¯s just work. Plus, do I look

    like I need online dating?¡±

    Skr rolled her eyes internally. Yeah. You don¡¯t need it. You only need to say a word. Many women will

    offer themselves to you.

    ¡°I thought you weren¡¯ting over tonight, so I didn¡¯t prepare your dinner.¡± Skr leaned forward as she

    spoke. As she was not wearing any bra, the upper half of her body could be seen by Tobias.

    She knew how to seduce Tobias perfectly these days.

    The man patted his thigh, and she automatically sat on it, with her arms wrapping gently around his

    neck.

    Even though she did not know how to act coquettishly, she had mastered the art of seduction.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need dinner. I just need to eat you,¡± Tobias teased with an utterlyposed tone.

    Skr could not wrap her head around it, seeing Tobias acting unusually calm. If it werest time, they

    would be entangling in the bed by now.

    Trying to clear her thoughts, she got down from his thigh, wanting to prepare something for him. There

    should be some frozen meatloaf in the fridge.

    Before she could walk away, however, Tobias grabbed her hand and pulled her into his embrace. ¡°Stay

    away from Harry in the future, regardless of what reason you have. I didn¡¯t want to stick my nose into

    your work, but it doesn¡¯t want I can tolerate you being close with another man. Meeting at the workce

    is fine, but you even went for a drink with him alone.¡±

    Skr was momentarily stunned when Tobias finally mentioned that topic. She was secretly ted for at

    least now she knew the man still cared for her.

    ¡°It was only a working rtionship. I didn¡¯t expect that it would cause Ingrid to misunderstand. Maybe

    you should exin to her if you have the chance so that it won¡¯t be awkward in the future.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ eyes filled with disdain. ¡°Why should I exin anything to her? We¡¯re not very close. Plus, a

    human like her should never exist in this world. Before she fell in love with Harry, he had a girlfriend and

    a child. But Ingrid forcefully made Harry leave his girlfriend. And I have no idea what she has done to the

    girlfriend¡¯s child.¡±

    Skr¡¯s heart skipped a beat upon hearing that. What kind of human would harm an innocent child?

    The situation was moreplicated than she expected.

    She recoiled in fear. ¡°I wonder if she will do anything to me too?¡±

    Out of a sudden, Tobias cast a deep kiss upon her lips. ¡°As long as you listen to me, no one will be able

    to do anything to you. But if you meet with Harry again, it¡¯ll be over between us. I¡¯ve been indulging you

    too much.¡±

 Chapter 358

    Chapter 358

    It was the first time Tobias threatened to break up with Skr, making thetter hit rock bottom.

    In the world of love, whoever took it seriously would be the loser. When Skr first started dating Tobias,

    she had always wanted to escape from him.

    Never had she thought that one day she could not bear to lose him.

    Even though they did not see each other daily or even through video calls, she would feel uneasy if she

    did not meet him for a few days.

    For the next half month, Skr¡¯s schedule was fully packed. She flew almost every day, diligently

    promoting hertest film.

    Whenever the journalists asked about Harry, initially, she would still try to answer. But eventually, she

    gave up on responding and left it entirely to her agent.

    Needless to say, she was scared to identally step on Ingrid¡¯s tail.

    No one would want to fool around with Ingrid¡¯s arrogance.

    On the other hand, Harry got entirely under the radar recently ¨C histest Instagram post was still the

    poster of Unrequited Love.

    On the day the film was released, Skr arrived at the premiere in an elegant white dress. Her long hair

    rxingly covered her bare shoulder while her ears were decorated with two, heavy, white pearls.

    Recently, she tended to attend such asions with only light makeup, which was in line with the recent

    public¡¯s aesthetics towards female stars.

    It was aplete contrast to her previous appearance with heavy makeup, which gave people an

    impression of offensive arrogance.

    At that moment, Kai was engaging in a conversation with Katrina. But as soon as he spotted Skr, he

    immediately got up and took the seat beside her.

    He was secretly ted as the premiere turned out to be a precious opportunity to watch a movie with

    Skr.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    Honestly, if Skr were to rate her performance, she would not give herself more than five out of ten.

    Even though she had tried her best, the oue did not reach her expectations.

    On the other hand, Kai¡¯s performance was rtively impressive.

    Nevertheless, Kai still could not get his head over the fact that many predicted him to have a failed acting

    career. He had been predicted to go back to live on his father¡¯s tremendous heritage.

    However, the more sarcastic thosements might be, they were more ttering in some ways.

    At this thought, Skr started to imagine her option if her acting career were to fail. She would be a

    housewife doing household daily while waiting to be pampered by Tobias asionally.

    What a pathetic life it would be.

    She got on thest flight heading towards Mojo as soon as the premiere ended. Kai was coincidentally

    on the same flight.

    By the time the ne arrived at the destination, it was already eleven in the evening. Kai courteously

    offered, ¡°Let me send you home¡­¡±

    Skr would not have epted the offer since her driver was already waiting for her at the parking area.

    Whenever she walked past a parking area, she could feel a chill from her back, as Ingrid¡¯s incident had

    left a massive trauma inside her.

    The story of Ingrid and Harry had made her lose her trust totally in humans.

    Just then, she thought she heard someone calling her name. She turned around and spotted Kai running

    towards her with heavy luggage on his back.

    ¡°Looks like I need a ride. My MPV has a t tire.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Skr tried hard to disguise her reluctance. But indeed, Kai had helped her

    numerous times. It would seem highly petty for her to refuse to give him an easy ride.

    As Skr did not know where he lived, she asked him on behalf of her driver.

    The address sounded extraordinarily familiar. ¡°Hold on a second. Are you living with Tobias¡¯ mother?¡±

 Chapter 359

    Chapter 359

    Kai let out a smile. ¡°It¡¯s just a temporary fix. It¡¯s normal for my aunt to take me in, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    If that was the case, Skr could only send him until one kilometer within the area. He would have to

    walk the remaining distance by foot.

    After all, she did all this to prevent unnecessary trouble.

    Skr stared outside her car window, looking at the busy street and endless vehicles on the road. She

    was especially fond of the freezing night wind as it helped her clear her mind effectively.

    She was not joking about the one-kilometer distance when she asked the driver to stop by a

    convenience store located exactly one kilometer away from udia¡¯s house.

    Kai started walking rxingly after getting dropped off, while Skr left without any hesitation.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    It was past midnight when she arrived home, but her sleepiness disappeared when she spotted a blue

    Porsche parked outside the house.

    She hurriedly keyed in the door¡¯s password and entered the house, tingling with anticipation, but to her

    dismay, she was weed with deserted quietness.

    Tobias was not there. He had only parked the car outside.

    Not long after Skr sat down, she received a call from Tobias asking her to get to the top floor of Tower

    132 in Zachary Lane.

    Before Skr could ask why, Tobias had ended the call.

    Recently, she had watched many videos on TikTok about how a man would surprise his woman. There

    were all sorts of creative acts, ranging from a gift nted in the car¡¯s trunk to a candlelit dinner on the

    balcony.

    On her way there, she kept on imagining what sort of surprise Tobias had prepared for her. Since when

    did he know to express romance? He¡¯s changed.

    Little did she know that what was awaiting her was not a surprise but a bombshell.

    The moment Skr saw some police cars parked in front of the building, she sensed that something

    terrible had happened. When she arrived at the top floor, she saw barricade tapes cordoning the whole

    floor.

    Skr could see Miranda standing at the edge of the balcony. A few cops were nervously persuading her

    to stop moving. Tobias was there too.

    ¡°I won¡¯te down unless the problem¡¯s solved. I want to see my daughter.¡± Miranda¡¯s emotion was

    vtile, and she would fall off from the twenty-third floor if her hand got off the handrail.

    Skr had never expected that what her mother said to her earlier was not a joke; Miranda she actually

    meant to end her own life.

    The woman was willing to bet on her life for the sake of Thomas and Quest Group.

    ¡°What do you want me to do? Come down now. Let¡¯s talk properly.¡± Skr paled in fright, trembling

    incessantly,

    Seeing Skr arrive at the scene, only then was Miranda willing to step behind the railing. ¡°Why didn¡¯t

    you answer any of my calls? And your dad is also the same. Why are you all forcing my hand?¡± She

    sounded as though she was the only victim.

    Tobias recalled what udia said to him, that he was stepping into a messy family.

    At that moment, a feeling of despise rose within his heart.

    Skr responded helplessly, ¡°How do you want me to help you? I can¡¯t do what you¡¯re asking for.¡±

    Looking that her daughter was still unwilling to help, Miranda yelled in despair. ¡°Fine! Just let me die

    then. Skr, you¡¯re the one who will make me die! Remember that!¡±

    Skr fell into deep despair upon hearing that, but all the threats looked like a joke in Tobias¡¯ eyes.

    He could no longer endure this ridiculousness, so he finally opened his mouth. ¡°Stop all this nonsense. I

    will help you. But if you jump down now, I won¡¯t even let Skr handle your funeral. Make your choice.¡±

    Finally, Miranda decided toe down from the balcony. Fortunately, there were not many residents in

    that building, so it did not cause much fuss.

    Skr was also relieved that it did not attract any press, as this kind of headline would be a giant stain in

    her life.

 Chapter 360

    Chapter 360

    It would be great if money could buy out the family rtionship. After Miranda caused such a mess one

    after another, Skr got utterly disappointed in her.

    Tobias sent someone tofort Miranda and promised he would help Quest Group. However, the

    woman was still skeptical and insisted he leave a written pledge.

    Tobias could not have felt more offended by her gesture. ¡°If you don¡¯t trust me, then go ahead and

    continue with your act ofmitting suicide.¡±

    Miranda was left speechless, while her heart was bewildered by how disrespectful Tobias treated her.

    After all, there was a chance for her to be his mother-inw in the future. With that thought in mind,

    she suddenly felt unsatisfied with her daughter.

    This problem can be easily solved if Skr is willing to beg Tobias. She¡¯s the only reason I have to go

    this far.

    Meanwhile, Skr was standing by the pond in the garden with Tobias opposite of her.

    ¡°I think you should not help her. It would be an endless entanglement. Let me figure this out myself,¡± she

    spoke after pondering over the situation for a long while. Her voice sounded extremely tired.

    Tobias let out a long sigh. ¡°If money can solve the situation, even if temporarily, it would be considered a

    win for me.¡±

    Skr wanted to suggest that she would pay back the amount Tobias gave, but she knew there was no

    way she could afford it.

    Initially, Tobias had gone to Skr¡¯s ce purposely to wait for her, but after Miranda¡¯s unexpected

    episode, all his mood for intimacy had vanished. Both of them slept on the same bed that night, but

    nothing happened between them.

    The man woke up early the next morning. His mind was upied with the n to rebuild Quest Group.

    In fact, he had long expected that he eventually would need to take over the mess.

    On the other hand, Skr had woken up early too and was busy preparing breakfast in the kitchen. At

    that moment, she was determined to try everything she could think of to make up for Tobias.

    She was making meatloaf from the beef and other ingredients that she had bought at the market that she

    went to before sunrise.

    By then, Tobias had finished taking a shower. He walked into the kitchen in the new grey pajamas Skr

    bought for him.

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    Skr had just finished preparing the meatloaf and was washing her hands at the basin when he entered

    the kitchen area.

    Tobias greeted her casually and grabbed her hand, pulling her into the bedroom.

    The second they entered the bedroom, he pushed her down on the bed and started kissing her with

    tongue forcefully like a beast.

    She immediately responded to his touch with passion, and the two of them clung to each other intimately.

    Skr was satisfied with Tobias¡¯ zeal. He must have gotten a good restst night.

    The kisssted for around half an hour before Tobias was finally willing to let go of her lips. Looking at

    her radiant eyes, he let out a satisfied smile. ¡°Seems like you owe me a big debt now. How do you n

    to pay it?¡±

    Skr hesitated to say she would pay him back with her body. She felt that her body was worthless when

    compared with the debt from the Quest Group.

    ¡°I will try my best to pay back as much as I can.¡±

    Tobias shifted his gaze away from her and said, ¡°Then I¡¯m afraid I will be your debtor this whole life.

    Are you free now? I feel like going to y sports.¡±

    Skr propped herself upright with her arms, her expression somewhat puzzled. Tobias had even

    unzipped her pants but did not proceed to the next step.

    She looked at him and joked, ¡°Is your kidney failing?¡±

    He chuckled before teasing, ¡°You want to have sex, right?¡±

    Skr¡¯s face instantly blushed red.

    ¡°It¡¯s unlike your usual style,¡± she defended.

    Tobias smiled. ¡°Maybe I¡¯m too tired from work recently. Just need to have a rest.¡±

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    Chapter 361

    Skr acted as she believed him, but she could not help but suspect deep down in her heart. When I¡¯m

    not around, has he been seeing another woman?

    She had no idea what type of sport Tobias had in mind, so she casually changed into some activewear.

    Her face looked even tinier under the baseball cap.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    The minute they were heading out, she suddenly remembered something. ¡°What about the meatloaf?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not eating that!¡±

    Tobias¡¯ unthoughtful response broke her heart.

    Later, they arrived at the golf club, where Skr saw Brayden and a few more strangers around the

    same age as Tobias.

    All of them had the same charisma of passion and wealth.

    Almost all of Tobias¡¯ friends had heard about his new girlfriend, and one of them recognized Skr right

    away.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect Mr. Ford to have gotten into the entertainment industry.¡± The man who recognized Skr

    was John Carson, the owner of Countryfuse Pictures.

    Compared to thest hangout with Tobias¡¯ friends, Skr noticed this bunch of people seemed civilized;

    they were especially more polite towardsdies.

    To Skr¡¯s amazement, Brayden had also brought along a femalepany.

    She could not help but whisper curiously into Tobias¡¯ ear, ¡°Who¡¯s that woman with Brayden?¡±

    ¡°His wife¡­¡± Tobias replied.

    Skr could not imagine how Penelope, pregnant at home, would feel if she found out Brayden was

    bringing his wife to y golf.

    After all, when rich people came to the golf club, their real intention was not to y golf most of the time.

    Their primary purpose would usually be the business conversation over the dinner table after the golf

    session.

    And so when Skr overheard them mention Quest Group, she turned extraordinarily interested.

    One of them said provocatively, ¡°Thomas seems desperate this time. I heard that he is going to marry his

    daughter to the rich to rescue the fate of Quest Group.¡±

    Tobias asked, ¡°Which daughter?¡±

    The others were puzzled by his question. ¡°Thomas has only got one daughter, doesn¡¯t he?¡±

    Skr tried hard to disguise her emotions. Thomas has hidden his secret well. Who would¡¯ve believed

    that he has two daughters?

    At that moment, Tobias suddenly added, ¡°I¡¯m nning to take over Quest Group.¡±

    His statement left the whole room speechless. That was, without doubt, an investment that would provide

    no returns. It was hard to believe someone would actually considering investing in a rotten industry.

    Brayden was the only one who knew the real reason behind Tobias¡¯ investment ¨C to please his woman.

    But Brayden doubted if the price was overly unworthy.

    A big boss always ys big.

    While everyone present was advising Tobias to reconsider his decision, he suddenly said faintly, ¡°I¡¯ll need

    all your help to resolve the mess in Quest Group. It shouldn¡¯t be a big issue as long as we find a

    profitable way to clear the debts.¡±

    Skr moved away from the group then, not being able to bear listening further on the topic.

    She randomly picked up a golf club and stared into the vast field. She had no idea how to hit the golf ball.

    Just then, Tobias appeared by her side and pulled her into his embrace gently, whispering in her ear. ¡°Let

    me teach you. Don¡¯t feel bored while you apany me here. You should try to blend in with my social

    group so that we can all have a simr lifestyle. We still have a lifetime ahead of us.¡±

    At the dinner table, Brayden was busy putting food on his wife¡¯s te. He recalled that Penelope

    mentioned his wife looks old and faded after giving birth to a few children. Penelope had even

    commented that no man would ever be attracted to his wife.

    Brayden had no clue how Penelope had gotten to this conclusion. He wondered if she merely intended to

    induce conflict into their marriage.

    Brayden¡¯s wife, namely Zelda, was a gorgeous woman with an elegant look and the perfect body. No

    wrinkle of age could be observed on her face, and her behavior was modest, given that she was

    someone from a family of status.

    In fact, Penelope was like a speck of dust ifpared with Zelda.

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    Chapter 362

    Penelope was evidently still living in the past, dreaming that her children would pave the way for her

    sess.

    After three rounds of drinks, Tobias excused himself and Skr, unwilling to linger.

    After the two of them had left, Zelda sniggered, remarking, ¡°I keep seeing that girl featured on the

    entertainment newstely. She¡¯s thinner than she appears on television and very pretty indeed. I never

    thought I¡¯d finally get to meet a woman with enough charm to melt Mr. Ford¡¯s heart of stone. She has a

    bright future ahead of her.¡±

    Jovially, Brayden retorted, ¡°Would she be able to capture Tobias¡¯ heart if she wasn¡¯t pretty? Off the top of

    my head, theirs is the most stable rtionship that Tobias has had thus far.¡±

    Zelda grinned. ¡°Men are all the same. They¡¯ll always fall for youth and beauty. Old women like us spend

    every waking moment on skincare, but a smooth, pretty face like that instantly throws us out of the

    running. She¡¯s got such an alluring scent, too.¡±

    Sensing that the conversation was verging on dangerous territory, Brayden hastily volunteered, ¡°Well, in

    my heart, my wife is the most beautiful woman of all. No one else evenes close.¡±

    Zelda bestowed a gracious smile on him. ¡°I¡¯m d you know that.¡±

    As the car sped past a cafe Skr frequented, Tobias¡¯ earlier words sprung unbidden to mind, in which

    he¡¯d persuaded her to give up on eating food frommon ces.

    Skr felt foolish. She had naturally wanted to share the things she loved with Tobias.

    However, she wondered if he would think it immature or naive of her. Even worse, he might despise her

    as someone who had no taste or sophistication.

    Tobias¡¯ daily lifestyle consisted of golf, fine dining, toting designer goods, and wearing bespoke clothing.

    He was not a part of high society ¨C he luxuriated in it.

    Skr, however, consistently felt like an imposter amidst these gorgeous trappings. Her constant unease

    made her feel a sense of suffocation.

    Instead of heading straight home, Skr ordered the chauffeur to make a detour to the cinema. Even if

    Tobias was reluctant, she was determined to have him watch hertest film, Virgo.

    She¡¯d bought tickets to the midnight screening. Lit only by the dim glow of the aislemps, she was

    virtually unrecognizable in the darkness of the cinema.

    Once they¡¯d settled into their seats, Tobias immediately vigorously pulled the armrest, transforming the

    seats into one long seat. Clutching a bucket of popcorn in her hand, Skr rested her head against his

    chest, deeply inhaling the fragrance of white sandalwood that was tinged with a faint whiff of alcohol.

    Before the film could begin screening, however, Skr heard a young couple chatting behind them. They

    spoke loudly with no consideration of cinema etiquette whatsoever.

    From their raised voices, Skr guessed that they were teenagers, probably no older than twenty.

    The boy was dering loudly, ¡°Don¡¯t go home tonight. Let¡¯s go to the cybercafe first. We¡¯ll head over to

    the hotel at six in the morning. It¡¯ll be a new day then, and we can save a day¡¯s worth of fees.¡±

    The girl was enthusiasticallymending his proposal. ¡°Honey, you¡¯re really clever! It¡¯s such a good

    n. Which hotel should we go to?¡±

    There was a pause before the boy spoke again. ¡°Let¡¯s go somewhere cheap. We¡¯ll be able to spend the

    amount we¡¯ve saved on better food then. Haven¡¯t you been cravingsagna? We might even be able to

    get a steak to share!¡±

    If Skr hadn¡¯t met Tobias, she feared that she might very likely have been in their shoes. After all, the

    biggest obstacle to young love was very often theck of money to fund it.

    Even after the movie began, however, the couple did not pipe down. Skr distinctly heard the girl quip,

    ¡°Skr¡¯s very pretty. With that vixen-like face, she¡¯s managed to make this retro movie rather refreshing

    to watch.¡±

    Amused, Skr couldn¡¯t decide if she should be ttered to receive such a double-edgedpliment.

    She turned her attention to Tobias. Throughout the movie, however, his face remained utterly

    expressionless. At the climax of the film, even she could not resist dabbing at her moist eyes.

    Tobias, on the other hand, lookedpletely unmoved. A casual observer would not have guessed that

    he was watching the same movie as Skr.

    After the lights came on, both Skr and Tobias stayed to watch the credits roll as the cinema gradually

    emptied. Witnessing her name on the big screen, Skr felt a renewed sense of aplishment rise

    within her.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Turning to Tobias, she eximed gleefully, ¡°Do you think I¡¯ll get an award for this?¡±

    Patiently, Tobias replied, ¡°Sure.¡±

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    Chapter 363

    At his answer, she raised an eyebrow skeptically. Tobias was evidently uninterested in the entire affair.

    They remained in their seats until the janitor looked at them meaningfully, prompting them to leave.

    Skr hurriedly followed Tobias out of the cinema.

    She held out her hand, but the man adamantly refused to take it. Inwardly, she marveled at Tobias¡¯

    audacity. Throughout the film, he¡¯d copped multiple feels in the darkness of the cinema. However, he¡¯d

    returned to his callous self right after the lights came on.

    Can¡¯t he even hold my hand? Skr agonized.

    At the exit, they ran into the pair that had been blissfully announcing their ns to the entire cinema. The

    girl was now squatting in a corner earnestly convincing her mother, saying, ¡°Mom, I¡¯m going to stay over

    at my ssmate¡¯s house for the next two days. I won¡¯t being home.¡±

    Skr felt a grudging sense of admiration for this young girl¡¯s dedication to her rtionship. Not only did

    they have tost the night at a cybercafe, but they would also have to drag their wearied bodies, stained

    with the smell of beer and cigarettes, to a cheap hotel at the crack of dawn. The thought of the journey

    they would have to undertake was fatiguing enough.

    Ruefully, she supposed that the happiness the young couple got out of being together would be worth all

    that toil.

    Seeing Skr thus distracted, Tobias challenged her rudely, ¡°Why are you always staring at other

    people? Are you envious of them? She¡¯s got a boy toy to spend the weekend with. Is that what you¡¯re

    lusting after?¡±

    Undeterred, Skr replied with a toss of her head, ¡°Well, is mine willing to spend the weekend with me?¡±

    At her words, Tobias froze, wrinkling his handsome brow.

    He was not troubled by the fact that Skr had referred to him so dismissively, but rather that he was

    indeed unable to dedicate the entire weekend to her.

    They descended by elevator in silence. When the two of them stepped out into the chilly night air, a gust

    of cold wind blew past them. Tobias instinctively drew Skr into his warm arms, murmuring in a tender

    tone, ¡°I know I don¡¯t spend much time with you. I promise it¡¯ll get better once this year is over.¡±

    Skr smiled but did not allow herself to be taken in that easily. After all, the year had only just

    begun. Who knows if I¡¯ll still be with Tobias next year?

    Her mind shed back to the food she¡¯d been preparing halfway that had since been left to grow cold.

    Unwilling to let it go to waste, she yearned to head back home toplete her preparations.

    Simrly, Tobias was ready to head home. He, too, had work left unfinished. The two of them thus

    agreed to proceed straight back.

    When they stepped into the house, however, Tobias immediately swept Skr up in his arms, hoisting

    her up into the air before setting her down on the top of a low dresser. He then spread her legs open and

    stood before her expectantly.

    In a hoarse voice, he said, ¡°What are you waiting for? Do you need me to teach you how to share what¡¯s

    on your mind? I was afraid that if I didn¡¯t do something tonight, you¡¯d be wondering if I was having

    somebody else on the side all over again.¡±

    Tobias had evidently taken Skr¡¯s look of unhappiness throughout the day to heart.

    Skr wreathed her arms tightly around Tobias as he pressed himself against her.

    The next day, Skr visited Penelope at her home. ¡°Skr, I need to tell you something. Brayden said

    he¡¯s going to gift me this apartment,¡± Penelope whispered conspiratorially as she leaned in towards her

    friend.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    Skr was certain that men who proimed that women looked their best when they were pregnant

    were telling the most barefaced lie possible.

    Surveying her best friend critically, Skr noted that Penelope had grown plump. Her greasy face was

    dotted with spots and her nostrils red.

    Dressed in dowdy, loose maternity clothing, Penelope looked a whole ten years older than the attractive

    girl Skr knew her to be. Compared to Zelda, Brayden¡¯s wife, Penelope was worlds apart.

    Instead of congratting her, Skr prodded, ¡°Do you think Brayden will marry you? Your belly is

    growingrger day by day. It isn¡¯t easy being a single mother! You¡¯re still young. Why don¡¯t you look for

    someone faithful and reliable? Married men are dangerous creatures to get involved with.¡±

    Skr was not much older herself, but she spoke with the worldly wisdom of her elders. After all, with

    matters of children being born out of wedlock, the one who suffered the most was inevitably the mother.

    Thus, despite Tobias¡¯ reassurances to the contrary, Skr always ensured that she dutifully took her birth

    control pills. The possibility of side effects was one she was more willing to risk than having to raise a

    child alone.

    Penelope smirked, maintaining her confidence. ¡°You¡¯re right. I¡¯m young, so I think I¡¯ll be able topete

    with his old hag of a wife! I¡¯ve already decided that after this baby is born, I¡¯ll immediately invest heavily

    in cosmetics to regain my youthful, radiant look. So what if Brayden¡¯s married? He can always get

    divorced,¡± Penelope concluded contemptuously.

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    Chapter 364

    Seeing that her efforts at wresting Penelope from her daydream were futile, Skr left the topic at that.

    She hastily swallowed her next few words of caution.

    Penelope sprawled on the sofa, scrolling through her phone and enthusiastically picking out clothes for

    her unborn child. Skr snuck a nce over her shoulder.

    Seeing that the other woman was browsing luxury brands such as Burberry and Gi, each item of

    clothing exhibiting a minimum price tag of a thousand, Skr suggested kindly, ¡°The baby will grow up

    really fast. There¡¯s no need to buy such expensive clothes if he outgrows them every few days.¡±

    Scornfully, Penelope answered, ¡°My family was too poor to buy me good clothes when I was young. I

    won¡¯t let my son suffer from the same fate! His father¡¯s a rich man. We¡¯ll spare no expense for his child,

    I¡¯m sure.¡±

    Helplessly, Skr replied, ¡°All right. I have to be on setter, so I¡¯ll head back now. Tobias is waiting for

    me downstairs.¡±

    Spitefully, Penelope said, ¡°Why didn¡¯t hee up here? Does he not want to see me that badly?¡±

    Skr heaved a sigh. ¡°You¡¯re overthinking things. He¡¯s smoking in the car. Besides, he doesn¡¯t really

    know you, either, and might be afraid to make things awkward.¡±

    Penelope happily replied, ¡°Well, he¡¯s Brayden¡¯s friend. I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll have plenty of opportunities to get to

    know each other in the future.¡±

    Skr massaged her temple in despair. No matter how awful Penelope¡¯s desires were, she nheless

    loyally wished the best for her.

    However, Skr decided to refrain from advising Penelope based on any sort of moral standards, seeing

    as to how thetter was clearly unfazed by them.

    As she waited for the elevator to rise, Skr felt the insistent buzzing of her phone in the bag. She

    immediately fished it out and held it to her ear without bothering to note who the call was from.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but perhaps we shouldn¡¯t contact each other anymore. I don¡¯t want any trouble,¡± Harry¡¯s voice

    blurted out over the line. He sounded as if he was in a great hurry to end the call. ¡°I called to know if

    Ingrid has caused you any problems.¡±

    Skr bit her lip. She was touched that amidst Harry¡¯s difficulties, he¡¯d nheless thought to spare

    some concern for her wellbeing.

    ¡°Nope,¡± she replied, then hung up the phone quickly. She had never doubted the arrangements that Kate

    made for her. This imaginary affair between Skr and Harry, meant to captivate public interest and

    generate publicity, had been the only dubious move.

    Instead of reaping the supposed rewards of this partnership, Skr had only suffered as a result.

    The mention of Ingrid sent a shiver down her spine.

    Kai had warned Skr about Ingrid in particr, vehemently contending that Ingrid was a most fearsome

    match.

    When Ingrid had still been a teenager in school, she¡¯d gotten into multiple fights. One of her notable

    achievements included sending her opponent into the ICU.

    Even though years had passed since then, the other teenage girl was still relying on a respirator for life

    support.

    The other girl¡¯s parents, naturally, demanded blood. Discontent with the settlement offered them by the

    Fords, they sought a reprisal in court.

    However, the might and wealth of the Fords were unrivaled. They won the suit effortlessly, and the

    incident even added to Ingrid¡¯s bragging rights of being absolutely untouchable.

    Compared to his sister, Sheldon¡¯s low profile was considered the preferred choice. He was useless, but

    even if he failed to help the Fords, at least he did not hinder them.

    When Skr got downstairs, Tobias¡¯ car was already waiting for her. She slid into the passenger seat

    and waited to recollect herself.

    With one hand on the steering wheel, Tobias darted a sideways nce at Skr. ¡°That was quick,¡± he

    commented. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you had things to discuss?¡±

    Skr looked down, twisting her hands together. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to say too much and agitate Penelope.

    She still thinks Brayden will marry her. I¡¯m afraid she won¡¯t be able to ept the truth.¡±

    Tobias contemted their surroundings. Penelope¡¯s dwelling was somewhat in the outskirts of the city.

    The apartments here, based on Tobias¡¯ keen eye, were approximately five hundred thousand square

    feet.

    The man scoffed. ¡°Brayden¡¯s rather stingy, setting her up here. Is the apartment bought or rented?¡±

    ¡°Rented,¡± Skr replied.

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    Chapter 365

    Skr vaguely recalled Penelope once boasting to her that Brayden had paid three months of rent all at

    once, which added up to a grand total of nearly one thousand seven hundred.

    Tobias gave a low whistle. ¡°The bar¡¯s really getting lower and lower these days, isn¡¯t it? All you have to

    do to buy a woman over is to rent her an apartment, and she¡¯ll dly carry a child to term for you.¡±

    Skr felt her dislike for Brayden swell into intense hatred. No amount of wealth was enough to conceal

    the fact that he was fundamentally a loathsome character.

    Annoyed by Tobias¡¯ flippant response, she snapped, ¡°Do you want to get out there too, then? Since

    women nowadays aren¡¯t as much of golddiggers as they were before, you definitely won¡¯t becking in a

    supply of young girls for your harem.¡±

    Tobias wisely refused to allow himself to be drawn into such a conversation. He had never treated his

    women meanly. Besides, ever since meeting Skr, he had never considered putting himself back out on

    the dating scene.

    They drove inpanionable silence to the set, where Tobias dropped Skr off. Hannah was already

    waiting for her in the dressing room.

    As Tobias drove away, his secretary called to inform him that udia had arrived at the office.

    Tobias hurried into the office to find the woman seated by the side, her long legs crossed elegantly. She

    was wearing an emerald-green dress that showed off a slender figure despite her age.

    ¡°You left the office already so early in the afternoon?¡± udia chided teasingly.

    ¡°No one said I have to be here all the time. Did youe here just to interrogate me about my working

    hours?¡± Tobias curtly replied.

    ¡°Everyone¡¯s having a field day with the news that you¡¯re taking over Quest Group. I really can¡¯t

    comprehend how you can absorb such a liability just for that woman. You must be mad,¡± udia

    answered frankly, delving right into the heart of the matter.

    Tobias had not imagined that the news would travel so quickly.

    ¡°It has nothing to do with her. Nobody can force me to do things I¡¯m not willing to. I was fully on board

    with taking over Quest Group,¡± Tobias said gruffly.

    udia decided not to pursue the matter. Knowing her son¡¯s obstinacy, challenging him would only

    harden his heart further.

    ¡°Bring her back home tomorrow. We can have dinner together,¡± she suggested in a milder tone.

    Tobias raised his head and met udia¡¯s eyes with a piercing gaze before he said evenly, ¡°It¡¯s not

    convenient. She¡¯s very busy¡­¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve dated for quite a while now. Is it so difficult to persuade her to meet your mother?¡± udia

    interrupted.

    Unbothered by the note of warning in udia¡¯s voice, Tobias continued, ¡°Rx, we¡¯re not preparing to

    marry each other just yet. We can have dinner with or without her.¡±

    ¡°Why are you being so defensive of her? Are you afraid I¡¯ll drive her away?¡± udia sniffed, looking hurt.

    She had meant it as a joke, but Tobias immediately agreed. ¡°I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll skin Skr alive. I don¡¯t

    want to upset her. She¡¯s young and might not be able to withstand your vicious words.¡±

    A look of discontent appeared on udia¡¯s face. Whenever the conversation veered towards a sensitive

    subject like this, a dead-end was inevitable.

    ¡°Ingrid¡¯s back home. I think Dad¡¯s attention will be fully focused on her for a while,¡± Tobias remarked. He,

    too, was all too familiar with the tension that hovered over both their heads and was anxious to change

    the subject.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    Disdainfully, udia replied, ¡°Having a daughter like Ingrid is just retribution for Xander.¡±

    Tobias merely shrugged, reserving his opinion.

    Xander had a terrible habit of spoiling Ingrid. Hevished a tremendous amount of affection and gifts on

    his daughter; Ingrid could do no wrong in his eyes.

    Tobias, however, privately wondered if Ingrid was a discement of the love Xander had wanted to pour

    into his marriage instead.

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    Chapter 366

    Xander had never disyed much affection for either Tobias or Sheldon. Neither had he done much by

    way of his role as a father. In all of Tobias¡¯ childhood memories, not a day went by without Xander and

    udia getting into one fight or another.

    udia radiated an air of sophistication outwardly but resembled a demon at home. Xander¡¯s temper

    only served to add oil to the hellfire.

    Whenever Tobias meekly crept up to his parents and begged them to stop fighting, Xander would

    inevitably direct his rage towards him. Bellowing with tremendous fury, Xander had, on numerous

    asions,mbasted Tobias with all sorts of abuse, saying that he was a bastard who should never

    even have been born.

    Tobias had since thoroughly internalized this school of thought, often feeling that he didn¡¯t deserve to

    live. People who had borne witness to Xander¡¯s cruelty had often called him inhumane ¨C even worse

    than an animal.

    It was Skr¡¯s first appearance on a reality show.

    Before the filming again, no one knew that Harry would be featured on Battle of Stars until he showed up

    on set.

    The man had grown leaner. Attired in a jacket and shorts ¨C from which his thin legs jutted out like sticks ¨C

    along with a white baseball cap, his appearance waspletelycking in masculinity.

    Having just hung up on him earlier that afternoon, Skr felt a little awkwarding face-to-face with

    Harry again.

    Harry sat a little way off from her in the dressing room. Atst, he brought his chair over and sat next to

    her.

    ¡°Are you OK?¡± he asked in a low voice.

    Skr slowly took off her earrings and reced them with small pink studs before replying to Harry

    deliberately, ¡°I¡¯m fine. I didn¡¯t lose any limbs, so I think I¡¯ll still survive.¡±

    Harry¡¯s face was thin and wan in Skr¡¯s mirror. Looking at this ghost of his past self, he brooded over

    how long he would have to remain under Ingrid¡¯s vengeful clutches.

    Outside, Harry¡¯s fans had swarmed in and surrounded the set. In order to generate a little more buzz,

    Kate had helpfully exposed Skr¡¯s filming schedule and location to various fan clubs.

    Hearing the crowd mor for her, Skr felt both ttered and overwhelmed. She straightened her face,

    however, nodding and waving politely to her fans.

    She intentionally drew nearer to Winnie, keeping her distance from Harry. It did not stop her from fearing

    the watchful gaze that might be scrutinizing her every move behind the screen, though.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    On the other hand, Winnie was obviously displeased with the fact that Skr¡¯s fans outnumbered hers.

    During the games segment, the contestants sat in a circle, guessing the lyrics of songs that were ying

    in turn. Each of them sat on special copsible chairs, holding a bucket of water. If they gave the wrong

    answer, the chair would immediately tip backward andunch the bucket of water onto the helpless

    contestant.

    The actors from Unrequited Love were on one team, while the hosts were on the other.

    Skr worried a little if the makeup artist had received the memo and used waterproof makeup.

    Eager to prove herself, Winnie fought for a chance to answer only to fumble.

    Her entire team was punished ordingly. The chairs tipped backward and Winnie seized the

    opportunity to pour her bucket of water over Skr as well.

    Skr was utterly drenched from head to toe. Presuming that this was part of the show¡¯s entertainment,

    the audience roared withughter.

    Skr shook herself off, but her wet hair clung like tendrils to the side of her face. As she had predicted,

    her makeup, too, had run.

    Winnie smiled patronizingly, dering, ¡°I was going to pour it on the floor! My hand just slipped.¡±

    Skr scowled at her. She had no doubt that Winnie had done so on purpose.

    The next few rounds yielded the same result. Winnie promptly gave wrong answers and continued

    pouring water onto Skr.

    Skr, however, refused to retaliate. The filming took a technical break when water entered her

    microphone. When the crew ran over to change it, they kindly offered her a few towels for her to dry

    herself off.

    She hung the towel over her head to cover her face. Her mascara had streaked, and so had her lipstick.

    Unable to stand by idly any further, Harry rushed over and draped his dry towel over Skr¡¯s shoulders.

    Turning off his microphone, the man asked softly, ¡°Are you stupid? Why don¡¯t you pour your water on

    her?¡±

    Skr could not reject Harry¡¯s gesture in front of such arge crowd.

    Even though the weather was warm, her wet clothes stuck to her skin. She let out a gigantic sneeze.

    After the filming session had finally ended, she charged straight back to the dressing room to warm

    herself.

    Hannah, meanwhile, was fuming. ¡°Winnie was clearly sabotaging you! Didn¡¯t you see that look of glee on

    her face?¡±

 Chapter 367

    Chapter 367

    Winnie, who was standing bone-dry behind them in the dressing room,ughed delightfully. ¡°I¡¯m really

    sorry. I¡¯m rather weak, and I can¡¯t bnce very well. I hope you¡¯re OK, Skr. The audience seemed to

    have really enjoyed themselves because of you, though. We can credit today¡¯s sess entirely to you.¡±

    Skr was in the midst of removing her mascara when she looked coolly at Winnie, who was stifling a

    giggle behind her manicured hands. ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s just a show.¡±

    Winnie patted Skr¡¯s shoulder encouragingly. ¡°That¡¯s the right attitude! I was worried that you might

    take offense. You look just like a panda with your smudged eyeshadow and mascara. You¡¯d better

    remind your makeup artist to use waterproof makeup next time.¡±

    Skr refused to dignify the woman¡¯s condescending remarks with a reply, and merely gazed at her

    steadfastly until Winnie turned away uneasily.

    By the time Winnie and her assistant had exited the dressing room, Skr had finished changing.

    When that episode finally aired the same week, Winnie emerged on social media sites as a trending

    topic. Skr persuaded Kate to buy over multiple verified ounts, who whippedizens up into a

    frenzy with a few notable hashtags: #SoreLoserWinnie #IStandWithSkr

    Winnie was right. The episode was a sess, but not in the way she had hoped. It went viral for the

    purported story of Winnie deliberately sabotaging Skr. Netizens filled in the rest of the nks with their

    own gossip.

    Skr¡¯s refusal to retaliate was heralded as amendable disy of sportsmanship. Her public image

    instantly did a 180-degree about-turn whenizens fussed over her graciousness in the face of defeat

    even though they hotly demanded why she had allowed Winnie to bully her.

    The entire debacle resulted in propelling Skr¡¯s Instagram followers to nearly one million.

    Kate was over the moon. She continually praised Skr for her self-restraint when Winnie had been

    stomping all over her.

    Skr lowered her gaze modestly. Scrolling through her phone, she smiled, saying, ¡°Social media sites

    love siding the victim.¡±

    On the other hand, Winnie was the recipient of the torrent of abuse that poured in from all over the

    Inte.

    What a b*tch! How could she treat Skr that way?

    She¡¯s a terrible person. Winnie obviously nned the whole thing.

    Disgusting. She¡¯s evil.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    The onught of harshments filled every one of Winnie¡¯s posts on Instagram and flooded her direct

    messages. Winnie read a few, then flung her phone away from her in vexation.

    She finally understood how Skr had managed to keep her cool despite her repeated torments. Skr

    had even maintained her demure smile, refusing to change out of her sodden clothes.

    Skr had wanted the image of her pitiful self to be seared in everyone¡¯s minds, knowing thatizens

    would pounce on it with their pity and indignation. There was no need for her to retaliate as theizens

    would rip Winnie to shreds for her.

    It was no coincidence that multiple verified ounts had been able to expose so many of Winnie¡¯s

    questionable acts simultaneously. Winnie¡¯s reputation had been thoroughly dragged through the mud

    practically overnight.

    Winnie was certain that Skr had bought over those influential social media ounts.

    Intent on getting her revenge, Winnie and her manager, Cindy, stormed over to Valerie, the CEO of Royal

    Entertainment.

    Even though Winnie and Skr were managed by the samepany, the former was prepared to fight

    tooth and nail to prove that Skr¡¯s behavior was akin to betraying thepany.

    Just as Winnie barged into Valerie¡¯s office, she was greeted by the sight of Tobias already seated within.

    Dumbfounded at the sight of thepany¡¯s owner, Winnie halted in her tracks, then stammered, ¡°Tobi¡­¡±

    Tobias frowned as he remarked sharply, ¡°Who are you to call me that?¡±

    Winnie gaped at the man uprehendingly. Floundering, she exined, ¡°I¡¯m Sheldon¡¯s girlfriend, don¡¯t

    you remember?¡±

    Tobias leered at her. Winnie was indeedpatible with Sheldon. Neither of them seemed very bright.

    The woman¡¯s next statement confirmed that to be true. Before Tobias could say another word, she

    immediatelyunched into a long rant.

    ¡°Ms. Fey, Skr¡¯s totally evil! We¡¯re colleagues, yet she stepped all over me to give herself a boost in

    poprity. Everyone¡¯s cursing me on Instagram now, calling me a sore loser. Skr sabotaged me on

    purpose! I did nothing to her. She¡¯s so jealous of me,¡± Winnie whined.

    Seeing that the owner of Royal Entertainment was present, Winnie thought she would maximize the

    opportunity to expose Skr¡¯s true self to Tobias. Winnie was determined to let Tobias know just how

    much of a b*tch Skr was.

    Valerie, however, cleared her throat sharply, indicating that the conversation was over.

 Chapter 368

    Chapter 368

    Winnie, however, did not get the hint. She continuedmenting, ¡°I¡¯m losing fans like crazy! Everyone¡¯s

    saying that I¡¯m a terrible person. All I did was try to boost ratings and make the show a sess. Skr

    agreed with me! Now she¡¯s turned around and backstabbed me without caring about how thepany

    looks. She¡¯s so selfish!¡±

    In a stern voice, Valerie replied, ¡°Enough. I don¡¯t want to hear another word from you. Mr. Ford and I

    have work to discuss.¡±

    Winnie froze. Relying on her rtionship with Sheldon, Winnie arrogantly retorted, ¡°Ms. Fey, how can

    you say that? Don¡¯t you care about me? Can you really stand by and watch your artists behave

    maliciously without doing anything?¡±

    Tobias grinned at Winnie. ¡°What¡¯s going on? Tell me, then.¡±

    The woman paused, realization dawning upon her. Tobias doesn¡¯t know what¡¯s going on! That must be

    why he didn¡¯t take me seriously at first.

    Winnie recalled Sheldon having once told her offhandedly that Tobias liked Skr because he found her

    innocence enchanting.

    Sheldon had also emphasized that Tobias didn¡¯t like women who wereplex and maniptive,

    particrly those domineering and career-driven ones.

    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

    Winnie fished for her phone, then yed the episode for Tobias to view. The number of viewers had now

    climbed to a staggering few hundred thousand.

    Tobias finally caught a glimpse of Skr being wickedly doused by Winnie¡¯s buckets of water. Skr

    looked rather delicate when she was soaking wet, rubbing her eyes as if in extreme difort. However,

    she soldiered on bravely until the end of the episode.

    Beside Tobias, Winnie was chattering on. ¡°This was all for the show, of course. Afterward, Skr

    privately went to get several verified ounts on Instagram to nder me by saying that I had done it

    intentionally.¡±

    Valerie swiftly tried to rescue Winnie. ¡°It was just acting. Besides, the ratings this week were excellent.¡±

    Tobias, however, remained silent as he watched the entire episode to the end. He then turned towards

    Winnie, his gaze unfathomable.

    Winnie, interpreting his silence as agreement, continued to denigrate Skr.

    As she spoke, Tobias reached for a cup of hot tea that was still steaming on the desk beside him. He

    looked intently at Winnie, then raised his cup.

    The stream of hot tea soon cascaded down Winnie¡¯s head and back. Fortunately, the tea had been left to

    cool for a while ¨C the woman would certainly have been scalded if otherwise.

    As thest drops of tea trickled down Winnie¡¯s face, she gaped with mute horror at Tobias.

    ¡°It¡¯s just acting. Don¡¯t take it to heart,¡± Tobias said cheerfully. His eyes, however, were venomous.

    Looking at the dazed look in Winnie¡¯s eyes, Valerie reflected that the woman¡¯s outstanding talents and

    looks were surely nature¡¯s way ofpensating for herck of intelligence.

    Otherwise, how could she not have had the patience to wait just a little while longer before condemning

    Skr? Had Winnie totally forgotten that Tobias was sweet on Skr?

    Before Tobias left, he solemnly reminded Valerie to look after Skr. It didn¡¯t matter whether she was

    popr; he didn¡¯t want her to be put under too much pressure.

    Valerie naturally had no objections and was bent on showing Tobias her newest marketing strategies.

    Tobias waved Valerie¡¯s enthusiasm aside dismissively. ¡°I¡¯ll leave matters in your capable hands. Other

    than anything concerning Skr, you can inform me of everything else via email.¡±

    Valerie nodded, privately envying Skr of her good fortune.

    Tobias sauntered out of the office only to find Winnie squatting in the hallway outside, sobbing into her

    phone. ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything wrong! Why is everyone out to get me?¡±

    His¡¯ towering figure loomed over her. Realizing that he was next to her, Winnie hastily raised her head to

    look at him, still sniveling.

    In an unhurried manner, he informed her, ¡°There¡¯s no use you crying to Sheldon. He won¡¯t be able to do

    anything for you.¡±

    Winnie wiped her face on her sleeve. It did nothing much to improve her tearstained face and swollen

    eyes.

 Chapter 369

    Chapter 369

    ¡°Tobias, Skr isn¡¯t as innocent as you think. She¡¯s a malicious person! She¡¯s going all out to achieve

    fame right now regardless of what it takes, even if it means trampling all over everyone else. Everything I

    said in the office was true,¡± Winnie insisted brokenly.

    Whether out of sheer defiance or stupidity, Winnie stood her ground. Tobias eyed her as he lit a cigarette

    and spewed out a mouthful of smoke, sneering, ¡°Don¡¯t call me Tobias. We¡¯re not rted, and neither are

    we on intimate terms with each other. Who said I liked innocent women? They always end up being quite

    foolish like you.¡±

    Winnie cringed when she remembered that Sheldon was still on the other end of the line, hanging onto

    every word.

    Tobias headed downstairs to wait for Skr, who had excitedly told him earlier that day that she would

    be in the studio recording her new single, Demon.

    Tobias had never heard Skr sing. He thought she should focus on honing her acting skills rather than

    embarking on a whole other endeavor entirely, but he didn¡¯t have the heart to say so.

    After all, as the saying went, a jack of all trades was very often a master of none.

    Skr¡¯s emerged breezily from the office, carrying only a thermos sk in one hand.

    Tobias drew another long puff of his cigarette. Ash drifted onto his pants, which he dusted leisurely off.

    Watching Tobias from afar, Skr paused to admire the fine silhouette his handsome profile cut against

    the night sky.

    When the man turned to look in her direction, she hurried over, waving wildly to him. ¡°Are you here to

    fetch me home?¡± Skr asked, her eyes shining.

    Tobias, however, had urgent matters to attend to at the office. Since he had promised to spend the day

    with Skr regardless, he had no choice but to bring her to the office with him.

    Even though it was nearly midnight, the fluorescent office lights in the Ford Group building were still

    aze. Skr groaned inwardly. Don¡¯t these people have anything better to do than to work? I¡¯d rather

    be sleeping! She recalled reading somewhere that working long hours and not getting sleep increased

    one¡¯s risk of getting a stroke.

    Skr had long bemoaned the amount of time she dedicated to her work. The employees at Ford Group,

    however, were on a whole different level ofmitment.

    Only the very young and able-bodied could possibly hope to keep up in this intenselypetitive and

    draining environment.

    Eva was still in the office. She¡¯d always been jealous of her cousin. They¡¯dst met each other at their

    family dinner but had not been in contact since.

    Eva caught a glimpse of Skr¡¯s resentful face as thetter sat in the office. If not for Tobias sitting next

    to Skr, Eva would have hurried past without saying a word.

    Skr set her thermos sk and brown coat down on Tobias¡¯ desk. The Hermes logo gleamed under the

    harsh white glow of the fluorescent office lights. Not too long ago, Eva had haughtily presumed it to be a

    fake. s, she had been quickly proven wrong.

    As Eva tidied up the documents that had been scattered all over the table, she watched Skr and

    Tobias out of the corner of her eye. Skr was sitting rigidly on the sofa while Tobias coaxed her, ¡°Are

    you tired? If you¡¯re sleepy, I can get the chauffeur to send you home. I did keep my promise of

    apanying you today, after all, so don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t.¡±

    Peevishly, Skr retorted, ¡°I sound like a task you¡¯re way too eager to tick off your to-do list. If you¡¯re that

    unwilling, or you think that I¡¯m a hindrance to your work, I¡¯ll leave, then.¡±

    Undeterred, Tobias continued in a meeker tone, ¡°Why would you say that? That¡¯s not what I¡¯m thinking at

    all. I¡¯ll head off to my meeting first. I¡¯ll do my best to be back as soon as possible.¡±

    Eva raised her head slightly, sneaking a look at Tobias stroking Skr¡¯s hair in an effort to pacify her.

    Watching that, she felt a growing bitterness rise within her.

    Despite the woman that Skr had grown to be, she was still that unwanted, unhappy girl in Eva¡¯s

    mind. Skr was a mediocre performer with nothing especially worthy about her.

    Eva thus could not even begin to fathom why Tobias was so enamored with Skr. Wasn¡¯t like supposed

    to attract like? Eva thought cattily.

    Tobias, in the meantime, straightened his tie and headed out of the office.

    This left Eva with Skr. It was so quiet that one could hear the minute rustling of the pages as the

    former flipped through them.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr did not even nce at Eva. She took out her phone and began scrolling flippantly through social

    media, asionally breaking into a yawn. Her bent head exposed the creamy white skin at the nape of

    her neck. At that moment, unconsciously, Skr looked the very image of alluring femininity.

    On her screen, Skr saw that Penelope had posted a new Instagram story.

 Chapter 370

    Chapter 370

    Why don¡¯t you treasure what I give you? Penelope had written feelingly in small, white text against a

    in ck background. She had evidently done so with the intention of solicitingfort from her

    friends on social media.

    Skr pondered this for a while but ultimately scrolled away without reacting to it.

    ¡°We¡¯ve been continuously working overtimetely because of your father¡¯spany,¡± Eva intoned,

    breaking the hush in the office. She picked up thest document and added it to her neat stack, then

    strode over to Skr.

    Skr turned to look at Eva, then said quietly, ¡°Eva, what are you ming me for? I don¡¯t get a single

    cent from Quest Group, you know.¡±

    Eva was dressed in a rather risqu¨¦, fitting blouse and mini-skirt. She¡¯d left the top three buttons of her

    blouse undone, exposing a peek of the smooth white skin on her chest for all to see.

    Skr realized that Eva had a rather impressive figure, being treated as she was to a rather expansive

    view of Eva¡¯s body through the plunging V-neck that the blouse now afforded.

    So this is the view Tobias sees every day! Skr mused.

    Eva replied coldly, ¡°You know very well what I¡¯m talking about. You made such a scene during the family

    dinner. Everyone was so upset.¡±

    Skr reclined against the sofa and batted off a yawn. ¡°Do you mean that you were upset, wondering

    how on earth I could have managed to snag Tobias? You don¡¯t think I¡¯m good enough for him, do you?

    Are you upset that I¡¯m doing better than you?¡±

    Skr¡¯s jeers had urately pierced right to the heart of Eva¡¯s disgruntlement.

    The other woman snorted. ¡°In real life, ugly ducklings don¡¯t magically turn into swans. Tobias¡¯ mother

    came over to the office today, and I overheard them talking about you.¡±

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    From the exultant look on Eva¡¯s face, Skr instantly perceived that it had not been a pleasant

    discussion.

    She looked at Eva with distaste. ¡°Keep whatever you heard to yourself. I¡¯m not interested.¡±

    Eva smiled slyly. ¡°I suppose you know just as well as I do what transpired during that conversation. I

    have to say it was pretty generous of his mother, though, inviting you to dinner.¡±

    Eva¡¯s words struck Skr like a bolt of lightning. Racking her brains furiously, Skr struggled to

    remember if Tobias had raised this matter with her. Was it because there wasn¡¯t time?

    In her mind, she had already begun frantically ransacking her wardrobe for suitable clothes to wear to

    this meeting.

    Eva grinned unkindly. ¡°Mr. Ford refused, though. He said that the two of you weren¡¯t getting married

    anytime soon and that there was no reason to bring you home to meet his family.¡±

    At that, Skr felt a wave of disappointment wash over her. However, she had to admit that that was a

    more likely response of Tobias¡¯.

    Determined not to let Eva get the better of her, she shed a dazzling smile in return. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you

    to be in the habit of eavesdropping, Eva. It¡¯s true, though. We¡¯ve decided to take things slowly.¡±

    Eva shrugged carelessly. ¡°Good luck, then. When you eventually get married, if you do, I¡¯ll be the first to

    congratte you.¡±

    A whileter, Tobias stepped out of the meeting room wearily. His mind was throbbing with the seemingly

    infinite number of emergencies he would have to attend to. His thoughts, however, were arrested at the

    sight of Skr sitting forlornly on the sofa. She was waiting for him.

    The man¡¯s tense features softened. He crossed over to Skyler and ran his fingers through her hair

    lovingly. ¡°Come on, I¡¯ll send you home. You haven¡¯t eaten anything yet, have you? What would you like?¡±

    Skr shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t eat anything after six in the evening. It¡¯ll make me gain weight.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ attention was abruptly drawn to the fact that Skr did look a lot thinner than she had a while

    ago. She had always been slender, but now, she was on the verge of appearing bony.

    After all, part of Skr¡¯s job, being in the entertainment industry, was to conform to their beauty

    standards, no matter how oppressive.

    ¡°What¡¯s the point of living if you don¡¯t get to eat good food?¡± Tobias said, trying to tempt Skr.

    It didn¡¯t take much for him to persuade het. She, too, was of the firm conviction that food was one of the

    things that made life enjoyable.

    Skr thus relented quickly. Her first thought was of having a simple te of pasta to satisfy her hunger.

    However, she stifled her craving in consideration of Tobias¡¯ refined taste. She thus suggested boldly,

    ¡°Let¡¯s eat seafood. The kind that costs no less than a thousand per person.¡±

    As she¡¯d expected, Tobias didn¡¯t bat an eyelid. As long he could do so, Skr could consider all of her

    wishes granted.

    She had imagined supper to be an intimate affair between herself and Tobias. As they were driving

    towards the restaurant, however, a car stopped before them. It was Sheldon.

 Chapter 371

    Chapter 371

    Sheldon did not greet her as enthusiastically as he usually did. Instead, he had a grave expression on

    his face as he remained silent.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Skr had never seen Sheldon that way before.

    ¡°Skr¡¯s thinking of having some seafood. You¡¯re okay with that, right?¡±

    In a sarcastic tone, Sheldon answered, ¡°I thought we were going to have tacos, but it seems like Skr¡¯s

    preferences are changing, huh? It seems like her tastebuds now crave better food.¡±

    Skr gave him a small smile. ¡°I¡¯m just worried that you might be upset about eating tacos with me all

    the time. Won¡¯t it demean your status as a rich man?¡±

    Skr knew why Sheldon was acting in this way; she knew Winnie must have said something to

    Sheldon.

    ncing at Sheldon, Tobias uttered, ¡°You should appreciate the fact that you¡¯re getting to eat. Why are

    you so picky?¡±

    Sheldon was in a foul mood. Ever since Skr appeared, his ce in his brother¡¯s heart had been

    plummeting.

    Thus, heined, ¡°Tobias, can¡¯t you be fairer? Stop acting bias toward Skr. Skr was mean to

    my girlfriend, but you didn¡¯t even bat an eysh at it. Don¡¯t you know how embarrassed I was in front of

    Winnie?¡±

    By then, the trio had arrived outside a Ferropenian restaurant.

    Sheldon¡¯s expression was as dark as the night, and it was as if he was a sulky child.

    He keptining in the car, and Tobias ignored him the entire way.

    Upon thinking about how Tobias looked down on her stingy ways, Skr pursed her lips. She was not

    one who did not mind troubling others.

    When others treated her to a meal, she dared not order expensive dishes so that they would not need to

    spend so much on her. She did the same even when the other person is a rich man.

    However, under Sheldon¡¯s watchful eyes, she ordered six tes of lobsters.

    At that, Sheldon grunted, ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid of getting a gout attack if you eat that much? You¡¯ll get an

    early death if you eat much more than others.¡±

    Skr furrowed her brows and uttered, ¡°I¡¯m still young. What does gout have anything to do with me?¡±

    Sheldon then pointed at Tobias, who was pouring wine into his ss. ¡°Your man¡¯s old. You can¡¯t just

    think about yourself.¡±

    Hearing him, Tobias narrowed his eyes and hissed, ¡°None of my foot is in the grave yet.¡±

    Putting one of the lobsters on his te, Sheldon then said, ¡°Tobias, my bar¡¯s business is doing quite well.

    Don¡¯t you think you should reward me for it?¡±

    In response, Tobias frowned. ¡°It¡¯s been so long, but you haven¡¯t gotten much profit. Yet, you¡¯re asking me

    for a reward?¡±

    Sheldon grumbled, ¡°Your standards are too high. It¡¯s already an improvement that I¡¯m not losing any

    money in my business. I want a house. I¡¯ve recently fallen in love with a mountain vi. It¡¯s not that

    expensive. It¡¯s only around fifty million.¡±

    No wonder Tobias looks down on my stingy ways. Fifty million is a lot to me, but it¡¯s barely anything to

    Sheldon.

    No wonder others always talk about how you should marry someone of a simr status. If you¡¯re born

    into a different world, you think differently.

    However, Skr knew it would be a bad idea to have a falling out with Sheldon, so she did not voice out

    loud about how the house he wanted must be for Winnie.

    In the past, Winnie often talked about how she wanted to buy a house in the area for her parents in

    interviews.

    To her fans, she was a hardworking girl who wanted the best for her parents. Yet, Winnie was actually

    hinting at Sheldon.

    Skr thought Sheldon was a yboy, but she now realized she was wrong. A man in love was a man

    blind.

    Hearing Tobias¡¯ silence, Sheldon panicked and pleaded, ¡°Tobias, just say yes to me. Look at how

    hardworking and reliable I¡¯ve been recently. I¡¯ll be even more motivated with rewards.¡±

    Skr thought, Chances are, Tobias won¡¯t say yes.

 Chapter 372

    Chapter 372

    ¡°Okay. Tell Susan which house you like.¡±

    His answer made Skr screamed in her mind, He¡¯s spoiling his brother!

    With what Sheldon was earning recently, Tobias was sure that he would not be able to even buy the

    bathroom of the vi.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    Finally, Sheldon revealed the first smile of the day. Seemingly gloating, he then nced at Skr.

    For the rest of the meal, Sheldon happily ate three lobsters. By the end of it, his stomach was filled, and

    he even gained a vi. In other words, he was in a great mood.

    When he left, he was even humming a tune. A short distance away from the restaurant, he hurriedly

    called Winnie and told her about how he had gotten the vi.

    Meanwhile, the driver was already waiting by the doorway. When they came out of the restaurant, Skr

    and Tobias then entered the car.

    After returning home, Skr headed straight to the bathroom to shower and wash up, for the scent of

    lobster was still in her mouth.

    When she was done and in the middle of brushing her teeth, she heard the sounds of televisioning

    from the living room. However, there were no lights on downstairs.

    When she went downstairs, she saw the light from the television casting a blue glow on Tobias¡¯ face.

    Walking closer, she realized Tobias was not watching a ssic movie that she originally thought he was.

    Instead, he was watching her television show, Unrequited Love.

    The character she yed in the show was much younger than her actual age. On-screen, she was

    wearing a blue and white school uniform as she and Harry sat on a rock, talking about their ns for the

    future.

    When Tobias spotted Skr, he turned off the television andmented, ¡°It looks boring.¡±

    Skr shrugged. ¡°Shows like these aren¡¯t your taste. These are for the young people.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ brows knitted. ¡°I¡¯m not in my seventies. Is my age troubling you?¡±

    At that, Skr quickly added, ¡°I¡¯m just joking. What I mean is that shows like these aren¡¯t meant for

    people who prefer meaningful shows.¡±

    Tobias did not disagree with her. No wonder Skr¡¯s reputation in the entertainment industry isn¡¯t high.

    It¡¯ll be tough for her to climb up the ranks in the industry with soap operas.

    Noting that she had yet to change into her pajamas, Tobias reached out to take her chin and kiss her. At

    the end of the day, a woman was the best cure for a man¡¯s boredom.

    Skr¡¯s bathrobe was only loosely on her frame, and Tobias¡¯ hand snuck inside. Touching her smooth

    skin, he praised, ¡°You¡¯re quite sensible to not wear your undergarments once I¡¯m back.¡±

    His hand remained in the same ce as Skr took off her bathrobe. Then, Tobias kissed that spot.

    At his bite, Skr winced.

    With his hand wrapped around her thin waist, Tobias whispered, ¡°Eat more. Stop losing weight.¡±

    He had a neutral look on his face when he said those words, but Skr could hear his concern.

    However, she only gave him a half-hearted nod, as she knew Tobias did not know how important body

    shape was for a female celebrity.

    Just before their passionate act reached its peak, Tobias carried her upstairs.

    Skr panted, ¡°Someone¡¯s looking for you.¡±

    One of Tobias¡¯ hands was around her waist as he undid his belt with his other hand. ¡°Ignore it.¡±

    Nevertheless, the phone kept ringing. Annoyed by the constant noise, Tobias pressed a pacifying kiss on

    her cheek and said, ¡°I¡¯lle back to deal with you in a bit.¡±

    When he picked up the call, an endearing smile crept upon his lips, for he had seen the way Skr was

    using the nket to cover herself.

    However, that smile dropped the moment he heard the voice in the call.

    ¡°It isn¡¯t convenient for me right now. We¡¯ll meet tomorrow.¡±

    Skr had good hearing, and she heard the soft female voice from the other end of the line. After all, the

    room had been quiet.

    She had heard how the woman had called Tobias; she had called him Tobi.

 Chapter 373

    Chapter 373

    At that moment, she realized she always called Tobias either Tobias or Mr. Ford.

    After the call ended, Skr muttered with a hint of displeasure in her tone, ¡°A woman is calling youte

    at night, and she¡¯s talking to you so intimately, too. Although I¡¯m no one of yours, you can¡¯t pretend as if

    I¡¯m not in the room.¡±

    Tobias touched her lips and replied, ¡°Just an old friend. Don¡¯t take it to heart. Shall we continue?¡±

    Lying down on the bed, Skr said, ¡°My passion died when I heard Tobi.¡±

    Tobias then pulled the nket away and exposed Skr¡¯s body to the air. His hand trailed down the side

    of her body as he murmured, ¡°Are you a dog? Why is your hearing that good?¡±

    By the time Tobias saw Idania again, ten years had passed.

    Idania had never thought that Tobias had not changed his number in ten years. When she made the call,

    she did not have high hopes for him to pick up. Yet, it was Tobias who took the call.

    When the two met again, the moment felt awkward. However, unlike her, it seemed like Tobias was

    completely unaffected, for he still looked calm as ever. He still looked like the same man in her

    memories.

    ¡°How have you been?¡± Idania¡¯s voice was as gentle as it always was.

    With one hand twirling a cigarette, Tobias replied, ¡°Neither good nor bad. It¡¯s just life as always.¡±

    Idania raised her head to look at him. Tobias was Ford Group¡¯s CEO. Life as usual was an

    understatement for the great life he was having.

    That was the Tobias she knew. No matter how great he was, he never gloated about it. He always kept a

    low profile.

    Idania thought she would have many things she wanted to talk to Tobias about. Yet, only when they met,

    then did she realize what it meant to feel reserved and fearful.

    ¡°I heard you¡¯re getting married soon. I didn¡¯t get the chance to congratte you.¡±

    ¡°The engagement has been called off,¡± came Tobias¡¯ reply.

    Almost immediately, delight was in Idania¡¯s eyes. ¡°You¡¯re single now? Why did you change your mind so

    suddenly?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not single. I have someone I¡¯m dating.¡±

    Bitterness rose in Idania¡¯s heart upon hearing his response. In the end, Tobias has forgotten about our

    promise. I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m the only one who¡¯s trying to cling to that promise of ours.

    Forcing a smile on her face, she said, ¡°I¡¯m not going to leave this time; I¡¯m nning to stay here.¡±

    Tobias did not know where Idania had been all these years, but he was not interested in asking what her

    ns would be either. To him, she was just a small part of his life, and he felt that her n was part of

    her privacy.

    Tobias knew her well. Idania was someone who nned out almost every part of her life, and she knew

    what she wanted. Back then, he was evidently not included in her ns.

    Subconsciously, he wouldpare Skr and Idania. Skr lived her life somewhat in a daze, and she

    took everything one step at a time.

    That was something Tobias did not like.

    Right then, the server brought a te of foie gras with cherry to their table. The color was a beautiful

    creamy white.

    Idania took a small piece, but just as she raised the fork to her lips, she lowered her arm.

    Softly, she said, ¡°I can¡¯t finish all of it. I¡¯m on a diet. Is it okay if you take half of it?¡±

    It was then Tobias recalled that Idania had always been like that. She always gave him half of her food,

    and she always fed him the food.

    Lifting a brow, he smiled. ¡°Do you still need to be on diet with that figure of yours?¡±

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Do I not?¡± Idania raised her head and puffed up her chest. ¡°Which parts of me do you think have

    changed?¡±

    Tobias only smiled in response. Idania had barely changed. Time had barely left its mark on her, and the

    only thing she gained was a stronger sense of feminine maturity.

    She was smart, and she knew how to tease him.

 Chapter 374

    Chapter 374

    From the start to the end, Tobias never touched the foie gras.

    Outside the restaurant was a drizzle that soon passed. It was as if it had never rained.

    Staring at the untouched te of foie gras, Idania thought, It¡¯s been ten years. If I had tried harder back

    then, we might have a kid by now.

    When she saw the loving family enjoying their meal beside them, Idania averted her eyes. I have a great

    career, but I¡¯ve sacrificed my love life for it.

    The meal ended earlier than Idania had expected it to. When they were done, Tobias stood up and

    folded his ck jacket over his arm.

    Right then, the child by the next table identally smeared his ice cream on Tobias¡¯ pants while ying

    with his sister.

    Instantly, Tobias frowned.

    Holding onto the melting ice cream, the boy mumbled, ¡°Mister, I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t mean to do it.¡±

    It seemed like Tobias was frustrated, for he left with a sour look almost immediately.

    On the other hand, Idania crouched down as she looked at the boy with gentle eyes.

    ¡°Here, wipe your hands. You won¡¯t like how sticky your hands are,¡± she said as she gave him a piece of

    tissue.

    At the same time, she watched Tobias leave from the corner of her eyes. As always, he did not like

    children.

    At the suburban district, Skr stared at the gloomy skies when the cold wind blew. A storm is about to

    come.

    Hurriedly, she rushed to the elevators. She was there to deliver food to Penelope.

    When Skr pressed the doorbell, Penelope was slow to get to the door, for she was pregnant.

    ¡°I¡¯ve gotten everything you wanted, and you can actually order delivery, but you just had to insist for me

    toe.¡±

    Skr¡¯s arms were sore from carrying the things. She had bought everything from the supermarket

    ording to the list Penelope had given her, and Skr knew the amount of groceries wouldst a

    week. However, Penelope seemed unfazed by Skr¡¯s words.

    As she poured her a ss of water, she replied, ¡°I¡¯ve run out of money, so I can¡¯t order delivery.¡±

    At that, Skr hastily asked, ¡°Where did all your money go? Why are you living so terribly? How could

    you not have enough money to buy food?¡±

    It was then Penelope told Skr where she had spent her money on¡ªprenatal checkups, medical fees

    for delivery, and baby necessities.

    As Penelope was nning to give birth to her child at Concord Hospital, her medical fees had been

    terrifying to look at. Without getting a package deal there, every visit cost her several thousand.

    The more Skr listened to her, the more confused she became. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t Brayden be the one paying

    for all these? You¡¯re giving birth to his child. Although that doesn¡¯t mean he has to pay for everything, he

    still should be paying for part of it. You don¡¯t even have a job right now; where would you get your money

    from?¡±

    A few days ago, Penelope had just been telling her how Brayden was going to buy her a house. Now,

    she could not even afford to get delivery.

    Yet, Penelope was still forgiving with Brayden. ¡°He¡¯s too busy recently. He¡¯ll pay me back for all these in

    the future.¡±

    At that, Skr then transferred fifty thousand to Penelope.

    She was not actually someone who would do anything for others. If Penelope was not her best friend,

    she would not have bothered herself with her matters.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Penelope was quick to thank her as she promised to give her back the money as soon as she could.

    However, Skr rejected her. ¡°Just think of it as a gift for you to buy clothes for my godson. It won¡¯t be

    right for you to pay me back for a gift I¡¯m getting for your child.¡±

    However, Penelope had noticed how much skinnier Skr was inparison to herst visit. Thus, she

    was sure that Skr was hectic at work.

    Hence, she insisted, ¡°No. This is your hard-earned money. I¡¯ll pay you back when Brayden gives me

    money.¡±

    When Skr realized Penelope was going to pay her back with Brayden¡¯s money, she subtly flinched.

    Not wanting to continue the topic, Skr put on an apron and went to the kitchen. She felt bad that

    Penelope was ignored by others even when she was about to give birth soon.

 Chapter 375

    Chapter 375

    In fact, Penelope had told her earlier that she had yet to have anything to eat since the morning, and it

    was already three in the afternoon.

    After making a simple dish for Penelope, Skr left in a hurry.

    Although she had made sure her cap was covering her face, Zelda, who came down from a blue

    Porsche, still recognized her.

    Skr knew it was not a coincidence for her to encounter Zelda here. After all, it was impossible for

    someone like Zelda to appear in a small residential area like this. The only reason for her visit would be

    that she was here for Penelope.

    When the two locked eyes, Skr looked away guiltily before saying, ¡°Ms. York, what a coincidence.¡±

    Taking out a cigarette from the box, Zelda ced it between her red lips before answering, ¡°Yes, what a

    coincidence. Ms. Jones, do you live here? This doesn¡¯t seem like Mr. Ford¡¯s style. This ce doesn¡¯t suit

    your current status.¡±

    Skr chuckled. ¡°My friend lives here, so I came to visit her.¡±

    At that, Zelda stared at Skr and uttered, ¡°Then, it is such a coincidence. I¡¯m not going to go in. Please

    tell your friend, Ms. Jones, that I know there¡¯s nothing to do now that the baby is too big. She can have it

    if she wants to. However, I¡¯d say she¡¯ll be losing more than gaining.¡±

    Skr froze as Zelda shed her a smile. Zelda knows everything. She just never said anything until

    now.

    It seemed as though she did not care about anything, but actually, she knew everything about what

    Brayden was doing.

    Hence, Skr did not exin on behalf of Penelope. After all, Penelope was the one who had done

    wrong in this matter. No exnations would be able to make her the one in the right.

    That was why Skr said, ¡°I¡¯ll convey your message to her. Ms. York, are you going back now? My friend

    isn¡¯t at home.¡±

    There were many videos of wives beating up mistresses circting on the inte. Skr did not want

    the same to happen to Penelope.

    Penelope¡¯s stomach was gigantic by now. If anything physical were to happen, she might die along with

    her baby.

    Zelda snorted. She knew Skr was afraid that she would make things difficult for the mistress. How

    foolish. I¡¯ll be dirtying my hands if I were to deal with that b*tch myself.

    The words ¡°let me leave¡± were written all over Skr¡¯s face, so Zelda turned to go back into the car.

    Before she left, she wound down the window and reminded, ¡°Don¡¯t assume that youth is everything for a

    girl. None of these men are good people. You think they¡¯re in love with you, but you¡¯re wrong. They¡¯re all

    heartless men.¡±

    Skr knew what Zelda meant. Thetter was reminding her that the chances for her to have a bad

    ending were high.

    After the other woman left, Skr took out her phone and searched for Penelope in her contacts.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    With her head lowered, she rapidly typed out a whole paragraph of words, persuading Penelope to n

    for her future and warning her against thinking that Brayden would give her anything. Skr even told

    her not to destroy someone else¡¯s marriage.

    However, just as her finger hovered over the send button, she deleted everything.

    Penelope would not heed her words, anyway.

    Winnie was suffering because of what Skr had done. Winnie debuted in a talent show, and those who

    entered the entertainment industry through talent shows were known to be exceptionally resistant to

    scandals.

    When her fans realized she was getting bullied, they began attacking others online. They had been lying

    in wait when Winnie¡¯s haters were thriving. Once the rumors died down, they reemerged.

 Chapter 376

    Chapter 376

    Skr¡¯s such a pretentious bitch. She¡¯s deliberately making Winnie use her of something before

    pretending to be pitiful. Disgusting.

    Our Winnie doesn¡¯t know how to stand up for herself. Poor girl. She doesn¡¯t know that she has to tell

    others about it.

    Winnie¡¯s boyfriend is Sheldon Ford. I¡¯m sure Skr¡¯s going to be boycotted soon.

    Get out of the showbiz, Skr Jones!

    Skr clicked into their ounts when she saw theirments. I¡¯m not dead yet, but someone¡¯s taken

    a post-mortem photo of me. I can¡¯t believe they even said that they¡¯re going to send me a memorial

    wreath if I keep bullying Winnie.

    It was a familiar sight to Skr, and she was sure that someone was stirring the pot in Winnie¡¯s fanbase.

    There was no point getting frustrated over the mess, so Skr put her phone away. Well, it¡¯s free

    poprity. I might as well enjoy it.

    In fact, Skr even thought, Thanks, Winnie¡¯s fan, for tagging me in your post. I¡¯m actually gaining more

    followers on my Instagram. Who cares if they¡¯re haters. They¡¯re all people at the end of the day.

    Instead, she waited quietly for Kate to introduce the director to her.

    Kate arrived in a rush. She then kept the door open for the man behind her, Josiah Zimmermann, to

    enter.

    Promptly, Skr stood up to greet the man with a smile.

    When she stared at Josiah¡¯s signature mustache, she wondered, Won¡¯t pieces of his sd get stuck on

    that?

    Josiah was the stereotypical stern director. He was unimpressed by Skr¡¯s greeting with a smile as he

    snapped, ¡°What¡¯s the point of having a mouth?¡±

    Then, he turned toin to Kate, ¡°All young people are like her. They don¡¯t even know to greet

    properly.¡±

    Instead of panicking, Skr greeted, ¡°Hello, Mr. Zimmermann, I¡¯m Skr Jones.¡±

    With a smile on her lips, Kate nced at Skr with displeased eyes. She had always found Skr¡¯s

    communication skills to be dissatisfactory. Her shy personality was exceptionally annoying to her, for the

    smarter ones would have acted enthusiastic from the start.

    Kate found her insensible, as Skr was not as good in buttering others up as the other girls.

    ¡°We actually had an actress in mind, but the producers weren¡¯t satisfied with her. Instead, they wanted

    Skr to be in it. I was wondering if you¡¯ve had a hand in this matter.¡±

    Josiah was disgruntled about the matter. The producers had insisted on having Skr as one of the main

    characters, and she did not even need to audition for the role. That was something directors despised

    most.

    Hearing him, Skr frowned. She knew nothing before hearing his words. In fact, Kate had been the one

    who abruptly asked her to meet the director.

    Kate was quick to refute Josiah¡¯s words. ¡°Royal Entertainment aren¡¯t investing in this. The producers

    must have chosen her to cater to the market.¡±

    At that, Josiah rubbed his temples. ¡°Avery, the poor girl. She¡¯s such a great actress, and she¡¯s been

    training for this for three months. She hasn¡¯t even found out she¡¯s been reced yet.¡±

    Skr then sat down on the opposite of Josiah, thinking, What a small world. While it¡¯s normal to fight for

    a role in the entertainment industry, I never thought I¡¯d ever snatch the role from my sister.

    Skr was actually uninterested in the show. It did not matter to her whether she would be in it or not.

    After all, media franchises like these were risky to be in. If anything went wrong, the novel fan would be

    screaming and cursing at her for ruining the role.

    That was what happened in Unrequited Love. Even now, the novel fan still said that her character was

    too pretty to be kind.

    Somehow, they made it seem like being beautiful was her fault.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    At the start, she was not enthusiastic about Josiah¡¯s appearance. However, things were different a

    momentter.

    Skr was quick to change her expression into a miserable one. ¡°Mr. Zimmermann, this is the

    company¡¯s decision, so I can¡¯t intervene in it. The only thing I can say is that I¡¯ll do my best not to

    disappoint you. I¡¯ll join the training.¡±

    Josiah was silent as he stared at Skr for a long time. Then, he said, ¡°You look quite like Avery, but

    Avery looked more innocent.¡±

    In response, Skr said, ¡°When I take off my makeup, the others say I look like a junior high student. My

    makeup¡¯s a little heavy today.¡±

 Chapter 377

    Chapter 377

    Since things had already concluded, there was nothing more Josiah could say. He was forced to give in

    to money. ¡°I¡¯ll negotiate your next job with your manager. I hope you don¡¯t cause trouble for me.¡±

    Skr looked at him with sparkly eyes as she said countless words of gratitude and expressed her

    determination.

    The sight made Kate dumbfounded. Moments ago, she had thought that Skr was not being

    enthusiastic enough. However, in a split second, she seemed to have be a different person.

    It¡¯s pretty hard to guess this littledy.

    Just then, Valerie called on Skr to head upstairs.

    Concerning Valerie, Skr did know quite a bit about her matters. Apparently, she had been beside

    Tobias when he was first starting his own business.

    Simrly, he also attached great importance to Valerie. For instance, he had directly made her the

    executive president of Royal Entertainment.

    As soon as Skr entered the office, Valerie asked, ¡°Have you been through the discussion with Mr.

    Zimmermann?¡± She then turned off theputer and leaned back on the chair. As usual, her gaze was

    aggressive.

    In Skr¡¯s eyes, Valerie¡¯s appearance looked mean. They say that one¡¯s appearance determined about

    a third of one¡¯s personality. Thus, there was perhaps no artiste in thepany who was not afraid of

    Valerie. In secret, they were calling her Madam Killer and Devil.

    The title of ¡°Madam¡± tantly mocked Valerie¡¯s single status, for she was already in her thirties but had

    no man. Some said that even male flies did not go near her.

    Skr replied, ¡°It¡¯s basically confirmed. I haven¡¯t received the script yet though.¡±

    Valerie then said, ¡°There¡¯s no hurry. It will take some time for the project to begin, for nning to start,

    and for the actors to receive special training. As for you acting as the female protagonist, I¡¯m not

    optimistic about it.¡±

    Even though Skr had to hear such frustrating words, there was still a signature fake smile on her face.

    ¡°If my acting is bad, I can practice. My acting skills have to be good enough for me to pass.¡±

    Valerie sneered. She had on a sarcastic, contemptuous smile as she said, ¡°I quite hate people who rely

    on rtions. I came from the countryside and worked hard to get myself to where I am today. But others

    can easily get what someone else wants. It¡¯s no different from getting something without doing anything.

    This time, Mr. Ford specifically said he wanted you to act in it. ording to your market ratings, many

    others in thepany surpass you. So technically, this role shouldn¡¯t be yours¡­ Do you understand?¡±

    Upon hearing her words, Skr felt embarrassed. Her entire body heated up, and it felt like she had

    nowhere to hide.

    However, she had no way to rebut Valerie. If it were not for Avery, she would never have epted

    something she had not gained by herself either.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Avery had snatched too many things away from her¡­

    Skr took a deep breath and replied, ¡°I¡¯ll remember your words, Ms. Fey. I won¡¯t give up on this role. If

    we only blindly follow the market ratings, those at the bottom will never make it in the industry. In the first

    ce, it is a very unfair model.¡±

    Valerie sneered. ¡°There¡¯s not a lot of fairness in the world. Did you get that role fairly? I hope Mr. Ford

    doesn¡¯t hear about whatever I told you today. But even if he knew, it¡¯s no big deal. We¡¯ve gone through a

    lot together for so many years. You¡¯ve only been beside him for a short white. I think we have to be self-

    conscious.¡±

    Little by little, the sky darkened outside, just as Skr¡¯s mood did.

    Unable to hide her emotions, Skr¡¯s bad mood and unhappiness were all written on her face.

    As soon as Skr came out from Valerie¡¯s office, Kate had noticed the clues and sensed that something

    was wrong with her. She appeared to have taken a blow.

    Thus, Kate asked, ¡°What did Valerie say to you? You look so lifeless.¡±

    Skr replied, ¡°Nothing much. It¡¯s not anything pleasant, but you can¡¯t find any reason to argue back too.

    I¡¯ll just listen and forget it.¡±

    Kate smirked. ¡°You can also interpret it as she¡¯s jealous of you.¡±

 Chapter 378

    Chapter 378

    Skr took a sip of coffee, for she was desperately in need of some energy right then. She was in a

    terrible mood, was hungry, and even had a headache.

    ¡°What¡¯s she jealous about? She¡¯s in her thirties and has already got everything she wants. There¡¯s

    nothing about me that she¡¯d be jealous of.¡±

    However, as an experienced person, Kate had already seen through everything. She got straight to the

    point and asked, ¡°What do you think Valeriecks right now?¡±

    Skr pondered and replied, ¡°A man?¡±

    Kate then patted her on the thigh in acknowledgment. ¡°She¡¯s jealous of Tobias¡¯ kindness to you. She¡¯s

    been beside him for so many years and definitely has some feelings for him. For a man like Tobias, you¡¯d

    be hooked even if you only saw him once, much less if you¡¯ve been by his side for so long.¡±

    In reality, Skr had never considered such a thing before and had never thought that Valerie¡¯s single

    status for so many years had anything to do with Tobias.

    Isn¡¯t that stupid? She wasted most of her youth waiting for someone but still ended up lonely?

    That day, after she left thepany, Skr immediately got a taxi home. If it were the past, she would

    have taken the subway instead.

    However, more and more people were starting to recognize her. Thest time she took the subway,

    someone had taken a photo of her and posted it online. In thements, some had said that she was

    putting up a front.

    Moreover, others also said that she had no morals and wanted to disrupt public order.

    Skr was speechless about such keyboard warriors.

    Since when had my poprity gotten to that extent?

    When she eventually arrived outside her house, she noticed that the lights were switched on

    inside. Tobias didn¡¯t say he¡¯d be over tonight.

    She then entered her password and opened the door only to see Tobias reading in the living room. As

    soon as he saw her, he put the book down on the coffee table.

    There were also many yellow-colored containers atop the coffee table.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t text that you¡¯d be over today,¡± she said as she bent over to take off her stiletto heels.

    She had no idea why such international big-name high heels were so expensive. They rubbed against

    the feet and were ufortable, clearly not caring for the user¡¯sfort at all.

    ¡°I suddenly decided toe and see you.¡±

    Moving over to the sofa, she then sat down and nced at the book he was reading. It was neither a

    book about sess nor was it a self-help book.

    The title read: War and Peace. As soon as Skr noticed the title, she lost interest, for she did not read

    such literary masterpieces. At the age when she loved to read, she mostly read romance novels.

    Of the books she read, Sense & Sensibility was one that left arger impression on her. Back then, she

    envied Marianne Dashwood a lot because she met John Willoughby. He was attractive and was the man

    of all women¡¯s dreams.

    However, once she grew up, Skr came to realize how distorted her views were back then. As a result,

    sheter came to dislike John and instead supported Colonel Brandon.

    Noticing that she seemed to be absent-minded, Tobias asked, ¡°Why? Am I not wee? If I¡¯m not, I can

    leave.¡±

    Only upon hearing his question did she snap back to reality. She smiled and replied, ¡°It¡¯s all written on

    my face. You¡¯re very wee here.¡±

    He then pointed at the several ss containers on the table. ¡°My chef made a few dishes tonight that

    were quite good, so I got them to make another serving for you. Just heat it in the microwave, and you

    can eat it.¡±

    In reality, such details made her touched, even more so than receiving diamond nes did.

    After all, it showed that he had thought of her. However, he had forgotten what she previously said. She

    did not eat after six o¡¯clock.

    For some reason, Tobias often neglected a lot of her words.

    Yet, to prevent him from thinking that she was putting up a front, she took the containers and headed into

    the kitchen to warm the dishes up.

    From the living room, he said, ¡°There¡¯s some spaghetti in the pot. It¡¯s already cooked. Just heat the other

    dishes.¡±

    Skr then stuck out from behind the wall and replied, ¡°I just got home and haven¡¯t even had time to

    take a breath. Why can¡¯t you help me warm them up?¡±Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

 Chapter 379

    Chapter 379

    She had only suddenly thought of it and simply wanted to casuallyin about it.

    Outside, the winds were raging, but it was warm in the vi. She was afraid she would ruin the good

    atmosphere that night.

    Whenever she interacted with Tobias, she always told herself not to be silly and to forget it. However,

    there was always some anxiousness present, and she could never be fully rxed.

    Once she said those words, Tobias, who had picked up his book again, put it aside and went to the

    kitchen to help her.

    After all, if she had not mentioned anything, he would never have thought of it and would have felt that

    she was too hypocritical.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    Moreover, such a small matter was ultimately within his power and was not tiring to do at all.

    He did not understand what was going on in women¡¯s minds and what they were thinking. However, he

    did not want to understand them either.

    When he entered, Skr had already heated the dishes. She then opened the pot and took out a serving

    of spaghetti.

    Something doesn¡¯t look right about this spaghetti.

    She asked, ¡°Do you want to eat? Should I get another set of utensils out?¡±

    ¡°I already ate. These dishes are for you,¡± he replied as he helped to open the boxes and ced them on

    the table.

    Moreover, he was afraid that she wouldin about working all day and being tired but having no

    one to give her some water. As a result, he poured her a ss of warm water before she could even

    think about it.

    Afterward, Skr sat down and scanned the array of dishes on the table. They all looked delicious and

    smelled heavenly. His home chef must also have a star chef background.

    There were barbecued pork ribs, roasted asparagus, grilled salmon, and even steak sd. Although they

    were simple dishes, they were cooked to restaurant standards.

    She first took a bite of the spaghetti. However, Tobias seemed to have cooked it for too short a time.

    Resultantly, the raw spaghetti had a hard, grainy texture that made it difficult to swallow.

    ¡°Does it taste bad?¡± he asked, thinking that there was a problem with the dishes.

    She then pushed the te over to him.

    ¡°The spaghetti¡¯s too hard. I can¡¯t eat it.¡±

    Tobias had always been a determined, confident person. Up to the point that he ate the spaghetti, he did

    not think there was an issue with it.

    Only after he took a bite did he realize that there was a weird taste. Although the outside was cooked,

    the inside was not.

    He said, ¡°Forget it, don¡¯t eat it anymore. I don¡¯t really cook, so I have no experience. I¡¯ll take note next

    time.¡±

    Nodding, she then bit into a pork rib before noticing that Tobias¡¯ eyes were on her. It felt as if she were

    doing an eating show.

    By that time, she had already gradually gotten used to others¡¯ gazes. On the filming set, one always had

    many cameras focused on them and would not know which of their expressions wouldter be shown on

    screen. Thus, even when eating a simple sd, she would always be worried that food would get stuck

    on her teeth.

    Although she was not afraid that others would stare at her, it did not apply to Tobias.

    Consequently, she slowed down her eating, chewing so slowly that she could be described as a gentle

    lady.

    ¡°Eat quickly! You¡¯re eating as if you¡¯re at a slow wedding banquet.¡± Upon hearing thatment, she

    almost choked on her food.

    She had thought that all men liked women who ate elegantly while sitting upright.

    However, after staring at her for a long time, he instead thought that she was eating too slowly.

    After the meal, Tobias began reading War and Peace again. Meanwhile, Skr headed upstairs to take a

    shower. When she went back down again, he was still reading his book with a solemn expression on his

    face.

    It was one of his habits that she admired a lot. That is, he was very dedicated no matter what he did.

    Finding afortable position, she then leaned into him. In response, he freed an arm and put it around

    her shoulders, rubbing it for a while.

    ¡°Why did you let me act in Josiah¡¯s show? I found out that it¡¯s one of this year¡¯s biggest shows,¡± she

    asked.

    He smiled at her words, although the meaning behind the smile was unclear.

    She then continued, ¡°Is it because you really think I¡¯m suitable or because you simply want to use such

    resources to carve a path out for me. Now everyone in thepany¡¯s discussing why I even got to

    be the female lead.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you want this role?¡± he asked. He only wanted to know the result, so others¡¯ opinions were not

    important to him.

 Chapter 380

    Chapter 380

    Skr smiled slightly. ¡°If Avery weren¡¯t the female lead, I wouldn¡¯t want it. I don¡¯t want to use such a

    method to be the lead. It¡¯ll only make me feel even more like I¡¯m getting rewarded for nothing¡­¡±

    She did not deny that Valerie¡¯s words did affect her.

    He looked into her beautiful eyes with an indifferent gaze. ¡°You put in the effort as well, so it doesn¡¯t

    count as getting rewarded for nothing. If I¡¯ve given you something you want, you should ept it. Act

    well in the show and see if you can seize the opportunity and be famous. You can also take it as I¡¯m

    investing for my benefit. You said it yourself, after all. You¡¯re going to make money and take care of me

    next time.¡±

    Wow, he¡¯s incredible. Often, Tobias did not know what she wanted to do or why she was having certain

    emotions. Yet, despite that, he still knew what she desired.

    He understood that she was not so kind and carefree to let Avery offpletely.

    After all, it was Avery who made her experience so much despair and disappointment.

    Back when she was in school, her ssmates all knew that she was the daughter of a murderer.

    Everyone isted her and talked about her behind her back.

    Some even refused to touch whatever she had touched before because they said she was dirty.

    In reality, all of it was because of Avery. Even if they were not in the same school then, Avery had found

    different ways to spread such information to those around Skr.

    As long as Skr did not live happily, Avery did.

    She had even gone as far as to say that Skr had criminal genes, then asking everyone to be careful of

    her.

    Just like that, school bullying affected Skr¡¯s entire student life.

    She smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s a bit hard for me to be the breadwinner. Just one of your watches is enough to

    pay me for several of my shows.¡±

    Tobias took off his watch and replied, ¡°Then it¡¯s fine as long as I don¡¯t wear it. It¡¯s easy to take care of

    me. Just give me food and clothes.¡±

    Suddenly, she felt a vibration under her bottom. Looking below, she realized that she had sat on his

    phone.

    The instant she saw Idania¡¯s name on the screen, her heart sank.

    Isn¡¯t this the woman that Kai mentioned? The only time that Tobias brought a girl home and said he

    wanted to marry her? Why is she appearing again?

    She pointed to the phone and asked, ¡°You have a call. Do you want to answer it?¡±

    He nodded, taking the phone from her before heading upstairs to answer the call.

    Looking at his leaving back, she yelled, ¡°Do you have to avoid me like this?¡±

    He nced back and said lightly, ¡°It¡¯s okay, my friend¡¯s just looking for me.¡±

    She then ordered, ¡°Hang up. I have a headache. The phone¡¯s giving off too much radiation.¡±

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    She¡¯s being unreasonable and causing trouble for no reason.

    He then replied in a cold voice, ¡°Rest early then. I¡¯ll go to the terrace to answer it. It won¡¯t affect you.¡±

    However, his attitude made Skr disappointed. Therefore, sheined, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you?

    You¡¯re contacting your ex-girlfriend right in front of me. What do you even take me as? Am I nothing to

    you? If you don¡¯t even respect me, why don¡¯t we break up.¡±

    He frowned and hung up before replying coldly, ¡°I¡¯ll take it as you¡¯re saying that in a moment of anger.

    Don¡¯t say such a thing in the future. I don¡¯t like hearing it. Also, how do you even know that she¡¯s my

    ex?¡±

    She was speechless upon hearing his question. After all, she could not betray Kai.

    ¡°I guessed,¡± she exined casually.

    Tobias then threw the phone onto the coffee table. When he spoke, there was an additional impatient

    tone. ¡°Don¡¯t spoil tonight¡¯s atmosphere and argue with me over a baseless phone call. We have nothing

    to do with each other. Everyone has their past.¡±

    He then pushed her to the cab in the hallway and leaned in to kiss her before she raised her hand to

    block him. ¡°I¡¯m tired and want to rest. If you¡¯re busy, you can go back first. Of course, you can have a

    past. I was the one who couldn¡¯t find a virgin to date. If I did, I wouldn¡¯t have to deal with so many

    emotional disputes and worries.¡±

 Chapter 381

    Chapter 381

    ¡°You¡¯re bing more and more dramatic. How else should I coax you, hmm?¡± His gaze darkened

    gradually, and his hands were already in her skirt.

    Skr gripped his wrist. ¡°I need to read the script tonight, as I won¡¯t have much time. Feel free to find

    something to pass the time, Mr. Ford. You haven¡¯t finished reading the book, right? Read it then.¡±

    Afterward, he no longer forced her. He knew that she was upset and needed time to calm down.

    Therefore, if he still fussed about that matter, it would make him seem unkind.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Regarding the question of how Skr knew about Idania, he already somewhat guessed. Kai was a

    loose-tongued person, after all.

    It seems like he still refuses to give up on her. I have probably been too lenient on him, and now he¡¯s

    bing more daring and audacious.

    Skry on the bed with the script in her hands. Her mind was in a mess, causing her to be unable to

    process anything she read.

    She had naively thought that Idania was merely one of Kai¡¯s casual stories. However, that one phone call

    made her realize the dangers lurking around her.

    If Tobias didn¡¯t care about her, why would he save her number?

    She was very curious about Idania, for that woman had made Tobias want to marry her.

    When Skr had returned to her room, she did not close the bedroom door, for she wanted to be able to

    hear what was going on downstairs.

    The moment she heard the sound of the door closing, she instantly felt empty. He left.

    She did not get much sleep that night. As a result, she woke up the next day with a terribleplexion,

    her face and lips both pale.

    After heading downstairs, she noticed that the ss of water Tobias had drunk the previous night was

    still on the coffee table. It had already turned cold. He had also left the book he was reading behind.

    Casually, she flipped through a few pages but could not understand it and did not want to process the

    text. Ultimately, she was not someone who would research such masterpieces simply to cater to Tobias¡¯

    hobby.

    Only just before she left the house did she notice that there was an unread WhatsApp message

    notification.

    Tobias texted: Cooled down?

    In reality, it was precisely such a casual attitude that made her angry. Skr was a trusting person. Thus,

    if he had coaxed her the previous night, things would not have turned out the way they did.

    Consequently, without replying to his message, she left for the hospital.

    All the while, Miranda was still in the hospital, refusing toe out. However, in actual fact, she was fine

    and had even gained some weight from lying there all day.

    Of course, Skr knew why Miranda did not want to leave. She was waiting for the day where Thomas

    would pick her up while pretending to be pitiful to gain his sympathy.

    After Skr arrived in the inpatient area, she headed to her mother¡¯s ward. It was an expensive ward

    that Skr had paid for but did not tell Tobias about.

    The reason was that she did not want to cause trouble for Tobias. She understood that even if others did

    not talk about it, it did not mean that one could always feign ignorance.

    In reality, Skr could long tell that he had strong conflicting feelings toward her family.

    Nevertheless, she understood his feelings. After all, anyone would dislike her family. In addition, Tobias

    also had to take over the Quest Group mess from Thomas.

    Upon pushing the ward door open, she saw Miranda lying on the bed, looking healthy as she ate an

    apple.

    Then, as soon as Miranda noticed Skr¡¯s entrance, she dropped the apple andy on her side, then

    pulled the sheets over herself. Afterward, she constantly made sounds of pain to garner pity.

    Skr stood by the foot of the bed as she watched her mother pretending to be ill. ¡°Enough, stop

    pretending. It¡¯s not as if you really jumped. The doctor said there¡¯s nothing wrong with you now, so you¡¯re

    getting discharged today. I¡¯m here to pick you up¡­¡±

    The moment Miranda heard about getting discharged, she pulled the sheets off of her and sat up. She

    said angrily, ¡°Who¡¯s getting discharged? I¡¯m not unless your Dades to pick me. I won¡¯t move if you¡¯re

    picking me¡­¡±

    Skr then took out a payment slip and ced it in front of her mother. ¡°Do you know how expensive this

    ward is per day? Ten thousand. It hurts me to spend so much every day. If something¡¯s really wrong with

    you, you can stay as long as you want. But what are you doing right now? Do you take this as a resort?¡±

 Chapter 382

    Chapter 382

    Why would someone as wealthy as Tobias care about such a small amount of medical fee? Miranday

    on the bed again. Her reluctance to leave was written all over her face.

    One thing Skr regretted the most was to let Miranda know about her rtionship with Tobias. Now her

    mother regarded her as a money tree.

    ¡°I¡¯m the one paying for it, and I don¡¯t have much money to splurge on this. Why are you waiting for

    Thomas? Are you afraid that he¡¯s noting back?¡± Skr emphasized.

    Miranda grimaced at her words. Ever since Ford Group took over Quest Group, Thomas kept

    procrastinating, reluctant to keep his words.

    Every time she questioned when he wasing back, he would ask her to wait a little longer, and that

    would be another two weeks.

    Later, she lectured her daughter. ¡°You¡¯re so silly. It¡¯s normal that a woman spends her boyfriend¡¯s money!

    Why do you even feel shy about asking him? If you don¡¯t have money, I¡¯ll call and get Tobias to pay for

    the medical fee.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re acting as though he¡¯s your son. If you want to pretend to be sick, you can do it at home as well,

    but not necessarily in the hospital.¡± Skr sneered.

    Despite her disagreement, Miranda remained adamant about waiting in the hospital. Sometimes, the

    woman could be as stubborn as a mule.

    Skr nced at her watch. She didn¡¯t have much time to spare, as she had to go to the office in the

    afternoon.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Seeing that her mother had no intention of getting out of the bed and packing her things, she threatened,

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell the hospital that you¡¯ll pay for the medical feeter, so you can stay here as long as you¡¯d like to.¡±

    Initially, Miranda thought Skr was only trying to scare her. Unexpectedly, a nurse came into her ward

    in the afternoon to urge her to pay for the medical fee.

    ncing at the total amount on the bill, she gasped in shock. No wonder Skr was so desperate to get

    me home¡­

    Immediately, she dialed Tobias¡¯ number. As a man, he should bear the responsibilities.

    In the meantime, Tobias was having a meeting. He brought his phone into the meeting room as he was

    waiting for Skr¡¯s message.

    Much to his surprise, her mother called him instead. Ignoring her calls, the man turned off the vibration

    on his phone and put it on silent mode.

    Yet, the phone screen kept flickering. His brows snapped together in annoyance.

    The atmosphere in the meeting room became tense. All his subordinates dared not make a sound during

    the meeting, watching in trepidation as Tobias strode out of the room with his phone.

    He swiped to answer the call, and Miranda¡¯s voice came from the other side of the phone. ¡°Mr. Ford,

    pleasee over to help me out. I¡¯m still admitted to a hospital, but Skr doesn¡¯t care about me. The

    hospital is going to stop supplying me with medicines. If you don¡¯te by tonight, they¡¯ll kick me out.¡±

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll be there right after the meeting,¡± Tobias replied in a courteous tone. Buttoning up his suit

    jacket with one hand, he was about to leave.

    The weekly meeting came to a halt as the man announced, ¡°The meeting is adjourned.¡±

    Meanwhile, Skr was signing a contract with the filming crew of Empyrean Sword.

    The book was the blockbuster of the year. The author rose to fame overnight and was taxed up to

    millions. As a result, this particr genre of fiction became popr on the Inte again.

    Now that I¡¯ve gotten the female lead role in this sought-after show, I bet Avery wishes she could kill me

    now. This was her first piece of work, yet I beat her to it. Yesterday, Valerie tore down my fig leaf and

    pointed out that I got this role because of my rtionship with Tobias.

    At this thought, her cheeks heated and flushed crimson red in shame as she was signing the agreement.

    My sess is not earned, but I receive it by riding on Tobias¡¯ coat-tails.

    After they sealed the deal, Skr took a copy of the agreement, staring at the amount of her sry on it.

    Because of the increased exposure, her status and worth soared as well.

 Chapter 383

    Chapter 383

    Though her pay was that of a C-list celebrity, Skr dared not overestimate herself, knowing that being

    in her prime right after her debut was only wishful thinking.

    It had been proven that she was right. The movie and the TV series only made the audience more

    familiar with her.

    The movie was still ying in the major theaters right now, but it only boosted the female lead, Katrina¡¯s

    poprity.

    ¡°This movie will be your masterpiece, and it might still be in another ten years. You must seize this

    golden opportunity.¡± With her eyes on the signed agreement, a contented smile broke across Kate¡¯s face.

    Skr was the easiest actress she had ever worked with. Not only was the woman gifted and

    cooperative, but it also saved Kate a lot of hassle of securing jobs for her painstakingly.

    Tobias is such a keeper. He has paved the way for Skr, ensuring that she has a bright future.

    Before Skr could give Kate her word of honor, Tobias called and summoned her to the hospital.

    Like a cat on a hot tin roof, she rushed over to the hospital and found the man and her mother sitting in

    the cafeteria, facing each other.

    With exaggerated bodynguage, Miranda rambled on with much excitement, waving her hands

    vehemently in the air.

    Meanwhile, Tobias sat silently in utter stillness, as if he was an emotionless sculpture.

    Standing a few steps away from the man, Skr locked eyes with him. She had been trying to pull

    herself together on the way to the hospital, as she was afraid that she mightsh out at Miranda

    uncontrobly.

    ¡°I¡¯ve activated auto debit for your medical fee. You can stay here as long as you wish. I¡¯ve done

    everything I should, so I¡¯m taking my leave now.¡±

    Standing up, Tobias wanted to give Skr a reassuring pat on her shoulder. As the man lifted his hand,

    he suddenly realized that quite a number of people in the cafeteria were stealing nces at them.

    He was reminded that many knew Skr now. In order to keep their rtionship in the dark, he had to

    avoid any intimate interaction with her in public.

    Dropping his hand, he kept a distance from the woman.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Skr was still holding a grudge against him, so she was eager to set the boundaries between them. ¡°I¡¯ll

    pay you back. I¡¯ve signed the agreement, so the filming crew will pay me thirty percent of my sry in

    advance, and it¡¯ll be more than enough to cover the medical fee.¡±

    Tobias gave her a dry smile. ¡°No worries, it¡¯s just a trivial matter. There¡¯s no need to draw the line

    between you and me. Keep your sry. It¡¯s your hard-earned money. Besides, you haven¡¯t even

    received it. How can you think of spending it already?¡±

    He¡¯s leaving me with no choice. I¡¯ll have to give it back to him straight away afterward.

    As she watched him stride away, he didn¡¯t even nce at Miranda, let alone saying goodbye.

    In fact, the man couldn¡¯t wait to leave, reluctant to spend another second in Miranda¡¯s presence.

    Skr took the seat where he sat earlier, facing her mother with her arms folded. The woman was

    fuming rage, yet she had to keep her cool in public.

    ¡°You¡¯re really something. I never expected you to get Tobias here and make him pay for your medical

    fee.¡±

    Miranda pursed her lips with displeasure. ¡°How could you say that? We¡¯re a family.¡±

    Skr gave the woman a death stare. ¡°Dream on! You can stay here if you want to, but don¡¯t you disturb

    Tobias ever again, or else you¡¯ll put me in a tight spot.¡±

    Miranda shrugged nomittally without agreeing with her daughter. Thetter was on the verge of

    flying off the handle.

    In the evening, the sun turned red, casting a pinkish glow across the sky. Coming out of the hospital,

    Skr put on a pair of sunsses, and her head tilted up slightly.

    Instinctively, her gaze fell on Tobias, who was dressed in a well-cut ck suit. He¡¯s still here.

    The woman then sauntered over to him in her high heels with a frigid expression. She had yet to get over

    yesterday¡¯s argument.

    Though he came over because of Miranda, it didn¡¯t mean that she was going to forgive him. What he

    does today cannot make up for the fact that he called me fake with a stern facest night. Women have

    the right to be unreasonable sometimes. Why not me then? Besides, I wasn¡¯t being unreasonablest

    night.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, are you waiting for me? I didn¡¯t know you¡¯re so free.¡±

 Chapter 384

    Chapter 384

    With one hand in the pocket, Tobias replied, ¡°I can¡¯t let you go back alone. How about having lunch

    together and watching a movie afterward?¡±

    Strutting past him, Skr bumped his shoulder forcefully with hers. ¡°No, I need to go home and

    memorize the script. It all depends on this movie whether I can make a name for myself. I can¡¯t let you

    down, since you¡¯ve put in so much effort to pave the way for me.¡±

    Finally, a faint appeared on Tobias¡¯ face. ¡°I can give you a hand. I¡¯ve brought some learning materials for

    your reference.¡±

    Later, Skr got into the car with him. The man took a DVD out of the armrestpartment. ncing at

    it, Skr realized that it was an X-rated movie of the nies.

    ¡°What a pervert¡­¡± she said with her brows drew together.

    Tobias remained nonchnt as he spoke in a steady voice, ¡°Nothing is perverted about it. You can still

    learn something from this.¡±

    ¡°Where did you get it? Is it from those stalls on the street?¡±

    Right then, the traffic turned red. His slender finger tapped gently on the steering wheel. ¡°Someone left it

    in my car.¡±

    The man knew that Skr was not going to believe his exnation, though he was telling the truth, he

    didn¡¯t mention that owner of the movie was his brother.

    The second they were home, Tobias closed the curtains, and Skr could tell that he was up to

    something.

    Since when did I say that I¡¯ve forgiven him for what he did yesterday?

    In the meantime, Tobias wasn¡¯t too enthusiastic, nor did he ignore her.

    Seeing that he was still holding the DVD in his hand, she covered her eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t want to watch it. It¡¯s

    such an eyesore.¡±

    Her terrified face made his expression soften. ¡°I¡¯ve never watched this. It¡¯s been a long while since I

    watched an X-rated movie. Why don¡¯t we watch it together? It¡¯s boring to do this alone. Why are you so

    scared of it?¡±

    The truth was that Tobias didn¡¯t have such a fetish, and all he wanted to do was to frighten the woman.

    Before six in the evening, Skr cooked up some pasta and brought it out of the kitchen. When Tobias

    saw that she only made a single portion of pasta for herself, he knew she was still mad at him.

    ¡°What illness does your mother have? Why does she have to stay in the hospital?¡± The man struck up a

    conversation to lighten the atmosphere.

    ¡°She¡¯s lovesick¡­.¡± the woman answered without lifting her head.

    He chuckled at her words. ¡°It¡¯s rare that someone of her age stays loyal to her spouse. What passion do

    couples have left after getting married? Holding hands no longer make their hearts flutter. Besides, she

    and Thomas were divorced once.¡±

    Skr resented his views on marriage. He seemed to have envisioned marriage as something petrifying.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to marry Idania back then? Why weren¡¯t you afraid of losing passion for her? Perhaps

    I¡¯m not the right person for you. That¡¯s why I can¡¯t make you yearn to marry me.¡± Skr¡¯s heart sank as

    she spoke.

    Tobias¡¯ brows raised at her words. Skr seems to know quite a lot about my past. I¡¯m afraid Kai has

    told her everything about Idania.

    ¡°I was young and foolish then. At that time, I wanted to get married because she kept urging me to do so.

    I gave her everything I could, yet she left all of a sudden when my Mom disapproved of her,¡± he

    described nonchntly, as though he was talking about someone else¡¯s story.

    ¡°You must have been broken-hearted. I¡¯ve never seen you get upset because of any woman though.

    Why does she get in touch with you out of the blue? Is she trying to get back together with you?¡±

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    Putting down her fork, Skr studied his face spectively.

    The man¡¯s expression was gloomy. His brows knitted together, and his jaw clenched.

    ¡°I¡¯m not one who will get back together with my ex-girlfriends. The past remains the past. If you break up

    with me, we¡¯ll never reconcile afterward.¡±

    Skr looked away from his ice-cold gaze, which was entirely devoid of warmth and emotion.

 Chapter 385

    Chapter 385

    ¡°Are you trying to warn me that I¡¯ll never get a second chance once we break up? The only thing you

    want from me is a docile and malleable woman, who¡¯s willing to stay by your side without a whimper.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ expression turned even grimmer. What does she mean by malleable? Have I ever mistreat

    her? Other than Idania, Skr is the woman whom I¡¯ve been with for the longest, and I treat her well. No

    one else has ever enjoyed such a privilege.

    Ever since she got a role in Empyrean Sword, Skr had been feeling stressed out. All eyes were on her

    as it was the most anticipated show of the year.

    Valerie¡¯s words made her feel pressured as well.

    She got in through the back door. If she still couldn¡¯t gain poprity, she would be too ashamed to

    receive any other help from Tobias.

    In the meantime, the man never came out of his study and didn¡¯t disturb her when she read the script.

    In the middle of the night, Skr had a nightmare and jolted awake, drenched in sweat. Her heart

    pounded frantically.

    The woman was worn out because she hadn¡¯t rested well for days.

    The spot next to her on the bed felt cool. She fished her phone from under her pillow and nced at the

    time. It was already three in the morning, but Tobias hadn¡¯te into the bedroom.

    Wearing her indoor slippers, she ambled out of the bedroom. The light in the study was still lit, and the

    door was ajar.

    Sitting in front of aputer, the man stared nkly at the screen. His hand rested motionless on the

    keyboard.

    Gradually, she pushed the wooden door open. Hearing the sound, Tobias gave her a sideways nce.

    ¡°It¡¯s alreadyte. Why aren¡¯t you asleep yet? You can¡¯t sleep without me, can you?¡±

    Skr shook her head in disagreement. She was being honest, as she didn¡¯t have such a habit of falling

    asleep with him.

    In fact, she suffered from insomnia for up to three weeks within a month.

    ¡°I had a nightmare¡­ Someone was after me with a knife and closed in on me in a corner. Then, I was

    stabbed countless times.¡±

    The woman narrated the terrifying, bloody scenes in her nightmare, but she didn¡¯t mention that the

    person who stabbed her was Avery.

    Turning off theputer, Tobias rubbed the bridge of his nose. ¡°Didn¡¯t you dream about me? I thought I

    would protect you in your dream.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t even try to tter him, but answer honestly, ¡°No¡­¡±

    He shrugged. ¡°This shows that in your subconscious mind, you¡¯re unwilling to rely on me.¡±

    Tobias was spot on. She indeed refused to depend on a man like a parasite.

    ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. Go back to sleep.¡± He lifted his hand to caress her cheek, which used to be chubby

    previously. Her now bony face appeared even smaller than usual.

    She was reluctant to return to the dark bedroom alone. The soothing, dim light in the study put her at

    ease.

    Holding his hand, she pleaded, ¡°Please go to bed with me. The wind is quite strong outside tonight.

    There¡¯ll probably be a thunderstorm. I¡¯m scared of the thunder. It makes me tremble.¡±

    ¡°Why are you afraid of the thunder if you¡¯ve never done any evil deed?¡± Standing up, the man pulled her

    into a hug and nibbled her ear.

    ¡°You won¡¯t be scared if you moan louder than the thunder¡­¡± His husky voice was full of desires.

    He put his hand on the small of her back, while she went with the flow, parted her legs, and sat on his

    laps.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    ¡°Have you done it with that woman?¡± Skr¡¯s words ruined the tantalizing atmosphere.

    ¡°Yes, I did, when I was in my teenage years. Why did you even ask when you already knew the answer?

    I¡¯m sorry that my first time wasn¡¯t with you.¡± He apologized wholeheartedly.

    It¡¯s normal that a man has a few women before, as most of us are driven by desires, which are

    completely unrted to love.

 Chapter 386

    Chapter 386

    Tobias still vaguely remembered the night before Idania left. With her hands around his waist, she asked

    if he could stay the night to keep herpany.

    However, he left in the end, so herst wish wasn¡¯t fulfilled.

    Later, Tobias carried Skr into the bedroom, knowing full well that a couple¡¯s quarrel could be easily

    resolved in bed. That was when the twomunicated with one another the most.

    Later, the two got too aggressive, so Skr was exhausted the next day.

    The sun had risen when she opened her eyes, lying feebly in Tobias¡¯ embrace. Her hair was damp, and

    there were hickeys all over her pinkish, glowing skin. Tears were glistening in her eyes, making her look

    pitiful.

    Yet, the man¡¯s eyes were gleaming. His voice was croaky as he said, ¡°Don¡¯t fight with me just because of

    jealousy.¡±

    She then put herself into a morefortable position with her back facing him. ¡°You went all outst

    night. Why didn¡¯t you just say sorry to me instead? You were so rude to me.¡±

    However, Tobias was perplexed. Since when did I treat her rudely?

    Suddenly, a beeping sound from her phone diverted the woman¡¯s attention. Reading the text message,

    she tossed her phone aside indifferently.

    How punctual! This person curses me at the same time every day.

    Taking her phone, Tobias and nced through the text message and found it full of death threats.

    His brows drew together right away. ¡°Who sent you this?¡±

    Skr let out a yawn. ¡°Who knows? It could be one of my anti-fans.¡±

    Though the threatening text message didn¡¯t bother her, the man took note of the phone number. After

    looking into the matter, he found out that all the text messages were from Ingrid.

    My half-sister is as irritating as ever.

    Over the past few years, he had heard so much about Ingrid¡¯s bullheaded and ruthless behavior.

    Nheless, he turned a blind eye, as it didn¡¯t concern him.

    However, she had gotten on his nerves by picking on Skr.

    Hearing a knock on the door, she ordered Harry to answer it.

    Nevertheless, thetter was ying Mobile Legends and was about to lose the game. Sitting on the

    couch, he didn¡¯t move an inch.

    Ingrid then grabbed the remote control on the table and hurled it toward his head.

    After getting hit by the remote control on the head, Harry put down his phone, rubbing his aching

    forehead while simmering with rage.

    Messing around with a woman like Ingrid was the decision that he regretted the most.

    The living hell that he was in now made him feel like he would rather kick the bucket.

    He didn¡¯t even have the guts to see his wife and children, as Ingrid threatened to finish him off.

    When he saw Tobias standing behind the door, his usually dull gaze glinted with astonishment.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    Ingrid saw the man as well and greeted him with a smile. ¡°Tobias, what a rare guest! What brings you

    here? Are you here with the news of a business coboration?¡±

    Stepping through the door, he replied coldly, ¡°Do you think you deserve to coborate with me?¡±

    The man had always been harsh toward her.

    Ingrid¡¯s countenance fell. ¡°Why not? We¡¯re half-siblings, after all. Dad asked about you the other day.

    He¡¯s going to return from overseas soon. Let¡¯s have a meal together when you¡¯re free. We¡¯re a family.¡±

    Instantly, Harry sensed something seemed off. The atmosphere in the vi made his skin crawl. Tobias¡¯

    piercing gaze was oozing malice.

    ¡°What are you trying to do by sending Skr those text messages? Are you trying to threaten her or

    challenge me?¡±

 Chapter 387

    Chapter 387

    Serving Tobias a cup of tea, Harry quickly stepped aside because he dared not meddle in their affairs.

    I just got to know that Ingrid still refuses to let Skr off. What a madwoman. What about my next movie

    or show?

    ¡°Tobias, what are you talking about? I don¡¯t get it.¡± With a grin, she feigned ignorance.

    Tobias shot daggers at the seemingly innocent woman. His icy voice made everyone¡¯s skin crawl. ¡°I don¡¯t

    care if you get it or not. Don¡¯t think that everybody has to tolerate you solely because of your capricious

    way. If you ever mess with Skr again, I¡¯ll chop off your hand that sends her the text messages.¡±

    Harry felt oppressed in the face of such a high-handed man. Should I kneel before Tobias and beg him to

    save me?

    Ingrid¡¯s breath hitched at his words. In a split second, she became agitated and shrieked, ¡°Your woman

    seduces Harry first! I did that only to put Skr in her ce. Isn¡¯t it a good thing for you as well?¡±

    Marching over to her, Tobias nced down at the woman. A few secondster, he bent forward to stare

    into her eyes with a vicious gaze. ¡°Cut the nonsense. Since no one taught you how to behave these

    years, I¡¯ll do it then.¡±

    With that, he stood up. Unrepentant, Ingrid let out augh brazenly. ¡°Since young, Dad doted on me and

    never once wronged me. He still treats me the same now. Are you sure you want to burn your bridges?¡±

    The corner of Tobias¡¯ lips twitched up. His fingers gripped the cup handle as he replied slowly, ¡°It¡¯s alright

    that Dad didn¡¯t teach you well. Someone else will do it for him once you leave home.¡±

    Behind Ingrid, Harry¡¯s palm was covered with cold sweat. The tall and burly man appeared timid and

    cowardly.

    Staring at Harry, Tobias felt sorry for him.

    I can¡¯t think of any reason why a man like Harry is fond of Ingrid unless she intimidates and lures him into

    this. They¡¯re poles apart and have nothing inmon. Besides, she has put on much weight

    again. Even an ordinary man will be reluctant to be with an overweight woman like her.

    Meanwhile, Ingrid didn¡¯t have the nerve to blow a fuse in Tobias¡¯ face, shrugging nomittally. Still, her

    eyes flickered with fury as she simmered in bitterness.

    After Tobias left, she grabbed the vase and smashed it onto the floor, venting all her rage on Harry.

    ¡°What right does he have to say those words to me?¡± she bellowed hysterically.

    Startled, Harry took several steps backward because he was afraid that Ingrid might take her fury out on

    him.

    Picking up her phone, the woman sprawled on the couch. In the meantime, Harry was disgusted at the

    sight of her plump figure.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Other than being rich, Ingrid ispletely worthless¡­

    This was the first time he had ever seen her crying. Holding the phone, she was aggrieved while whining,

    ¡°Dad, Tobias bullied me! He said he¡¯s going to chop off my hand¡­¡±

    On a private balcony, a waiter ced two sets of utensils and a six-tier dessert stand on a table.

    Skr, who had just sneaked out of her office, picked up a piece of cake and popped it into her mouth.

    However, the cake didn¡¯t taste as delicious as she expected.

    ¡°The issue about the text messages has been solved. Ingrid is the one behind it. I remember telling you

    to keep a distance from Harry. Have you listened to me?¡±

    His voice was melodious, yet the woman misunderstood that he looked for her so abruptly in the

    afternoon because she got on his nerves.

    She smirked. ¡°I see. She just can¡¯t stop pestering me. I think she needs a psychiatrist, but not a man.¡±

    Tobias squinted his eyes at her. ¡°You seem to be involved in scandals with every actor you worked with

    before. Is it going to be the same this time?¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t tell if he was feeling jealous. He sounded as if he was only casually asking about it. The

    man had been lenient with her currently.

    ¡°I really have no idea what mypany is doing. Have you seen the trending news on Twitter today? I¡¯m

    going to be attacked soon.¡±

 Chapter 388

    Chapter 388

    With that said, she sipped the tea and took out her phone to hand it to Tobias.

    Skr¡¯s name was trending. Ever since the public found out she was going to be one of the main

    characters of Empyrean Sword, there had been an uproar on the inte.

    In fact, theizens began digging for information as they tried to find an exnation for why she could

    get such a great show at a young age. Most of them were talking about how she must have had a

    rtionship with Maverick Sullivan.

    They were saying that Maverick was her sugar daddy.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    Curling his lips, Tobiasmented, ¡°They¡¯ve got quite the imagination. Maverick¡¯s already six feet under,

    but somehow, he¡¯s still someone¡¯s sugar daddy.¡±

    Tobias rarely bothered himself with news of the entertainment industry, and Maverick¡¯s death had not

    been anything major.

    That was why Skr paled and asked, ¡°Did you have anything to do with Maverick¡¯s death?¡±

    He did not disagree with her as he smiled. In a nonchnt tone, he replied, ¡°Of course he had to die, but

    don¡¯t feel guilty about it. I just don¡¯t like the sight of him.¡±

    Skr could not find the words to describe what she was feeling. She could only grit out, ¡°He was wrong

    to molest me when he was drunk, but that doesn¡¯t mean he deserves to die. Tobias, how could you be

    cruel?¡±

    The smile was still on Tobias¡¯ face as he replied, ¡°Cruel? This isn¡¯t cruel. I¡¯m just cleaning up trash.

    Moreover, this has nothing to do with you. Don¡¯t get yourself all sensitive and think that Maverick died

    because of you.¡±

    Skr¡¯s brows drew together. ¡°Heid a hand on me when he was drunk previously, but you¡¯re telling me

    his death has nothing to do with that? He doesn¡¯t deserve death for that.¡±

    Tobias only sighed. ¡°So you¡¯ll just let your bullies off the hook? He hired someone to stalk you. He found

    out about our rtionship and tried to ckmail me. Truthfully, I don¡¯t mind it. After all, the exposure of

    this rtionship won¡¯t affect me, and reputation matters not to me. However, I hate others threatening

    me. I hope you understand what I mean.¡±

    Tobias felt that he was already patient in his exnation. Whether or not Skr would overthink the

    matter was none of his business.

    After hearing him, Skr nearly shrieked. Maverick¡¯s insane. He really was pushing his luck by

    threatening Tobias.

    Before the man left, he reminded, ¡°Be smarter when I¡¯m not with you. Tell me right away when you

    receive those messages and stay away from Harry. I¡¯m starting to get sick of repeating myself. Ingrid is a

    tough woman, so it¡¯s best to keep a distance from her man. I actually came to tell you about this, but I

    don¡¯t know why we ended up talking about Maverick.¡±

    Skr shrugged, about to leave after taking her bag. She, too, was worried that disaster woulde if

    she could not exin her rtionship with Harry.

    Skr forced herself not to think about Maverick, for Tobias had told her that Maverick¡¯s death had

    nothing to do with her. However, she could not help but wonder, If not for me, how would Maverick ever

    encounter Tobias.

    Deep down inside, she was afraid that she would end up in hell.

    Before Tobias¡¯ words, she never thought that Tobias had anything to do with the matter; she always

    thought Kai had been the one to do it.

    Tobias was right. It was time for her to be smarter. She then messaged her assistant, Hannah, asking her

    to buy some supplements that helped with boosting brainpower.

    After her afternoon tea, she returned to the office. Tobias had not chosen to return with her, and Skr

    knew why¡ªhe wanted to avoid the public from finding out about their rtionship.

    In their rtionship, Tobias was the one who wanted to conceal the other party.

    Just as she stepped foot into the office, she spotted Winnie and Sheldon in the lobby. Recently, the two

    of them had been going everywhere together. Knowing that Winnie was in a rtionship with Sheldon,

    the staff in the office were careful around her.

 Chapter 389

    Chapter 389

    When the two came over, Skr stered on a fake smile and greeted them.

    By now, her fans and Winnie¡¯s were in an intense fight online. Skr¡¯s fans were losing, for there were

    not as many of them.

    Winnie smiled at Skr and said, ¡°I haven¡¯t gotten the chance to congratte you for starring

    in Empyrean Sword. Your name is all over the now. Skr, you¡¯re going to be popr soon. I¡¯m sure

    countless people are envious.¡±

    Her smile was as fake as Skr¡¯s. A while ago, everyone in the dance room had beenining about

    how a lowly Skr was getting so many offers.

    Skr¡¯s smile widened. ¡°It¡¯s too early to say that. It seems like I¡¯m fated to have more haters than fans.¡±

    At that, Sheldon said, ¡°Don¡¯t be so humble. Look at the way my brother¡¯s investing in you. It¡¯ll be a waste

    of his money if you¡¯re still not popr. Skr, did you know that you¡¯re still not profiting? If not for my

    brother, I¡¯m sure that you¡¯ll be forgotten by the masses by now. In fact, Valerie even said you can¡¯t even

    carry a show by yourself and that it¡¯s time for you to stop embarrassing him.¡±

    Skr lowered her eyes, misery flitting past her mind. Truthful words always hurt.

    However, she soon recollected herself. ¡°You can think of me as someone with potential. Maybe there¡¯ll

    be a day where I¡¯ll be rich and famous, and that¡¯ll stun everyone. All right, I need to get going. I¡¯ve got to

    attend the table-read upstairs since I¡¯m about to join the filming.¡±

    Displeased, Winnie grumbled to Sheldon, ¡°Your brother managed to get such a major role for Tobias, but

    I¡¯m still a side character until now. No one¡¯s offering any roles to me. Darling, my career isn¡¯t progressing.

    What do we do about the interior of the vi? I don¡¯t even have the money to install an elevator in the

    house!¡±Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Sheldon had long transferred the mountain vi that Tobias had given to him to Winnie. He thought that

    was enough to express his sincerity in the rtionship.

    Yet, Winnie was now telling him that she did not have enough money for the renovation. Irked, he

    uttered, ¡°Are you asking me to pay for the renovations? My brother is strict on my money, so I can¡¯t help

    you much. I¡¯ve given you all I can. You should learn to be grateful for what you have and stop asking for

    more.¡±

    My brother, my brother, my brother. Everything he says is about his brother.

    He isn¡¯t a mama¡¯s boy; he¡¯s his brother¡¯s boy. Annoyed on behalf of Sheldon, she snapped, ¡°Are you

    stupid? You own half of Ford Group. Your brother just wants to take the family assets all for himself.

    Tobias¡¯ such a cunning man. It¡¯s embarrassing that you¡¯re not doing anything about it. If I were you, I¡¯d

    have wanted to split the assets and get what I deserve. You¡¯re not young anymore. It¡¯s time for you to

    n for your future.¡±

    At a point in time, Skr¡¯s earphones had dislodged from her ear. While she was returning to look for her

    earphones, she overheard Winnie trying to convince Sheldon to go against his brother. You really can¡¯t

    talk someone¡¯s back, huh?

    When Sheldon noticed Skr, he panicked and shot a re at Winnie before hastily saying, ¡°What are

    you talking about?¡±

    With his eyes looking at everywhere but Skr, he mumbled, ¡°Did you¡­ What did you hear what we said

    just now?¡±

    In response, Skr drawled, ¡°Nothing much. Something along the lines of your girlfriend wanting to split

    the assets. Yes, that¡¯s all I heard.¡±

    Flying into a panic, Sheldon hurriedly tried to appease Skr before telling her not to say strange things.

    The way he was panicking was as if Skr was about to report to Tobias about what she overheard

    instantly.

    At that thought, Skr felt a tinge of sadness for Tobias. He did everything for his brother, yet his

    brother¡¯s girlfriend was still trying to pit Sheldon against him.

    Thus, she said, ¡°If you really heed your girlfriend¡¯s words, Tobias will be sad. Think about it.¡±

    That was all she said to Sheldon; she did not promise him that she would not say anything to Tobias.

 Chapter 390

    Chapter 390

    Sheldon even told her that as long as she said nothing to Tobias, he would help her keep an eye

    on Tobias to make sure his brother did not cheat on her.

    It did not pique Skr¡¯s interest, as she thought, It¡¯s pathetic if a man is only loyal when someone

    is watching.

    Sheldon was furious. Once Skr was gone, he spun around and cursed, ¡°I don¡¯t want you to stick

    your nose into my business. I hate women who speak nonsense most. If you say this again, you

    get lost!¡±

    Winnie¡¯s only response was to let her tears fall as she mumbled, ¡°Why are you so angry with me?

    I¡¯m just concerned about you. I don¡¯t want your brother to oppress you.¡±

    As Skr had not been on Instagram for days, thousands of messages were in her inbox. Some

    were giving her words of encouragement, and some were cursing at her. All she did was skim

    through them without taking any of their words to heart.

    When the character posters for Empyrean Sword were released, Skr was trending again. Kate

    was prepared this time, for she hired ghostwriters to pour praises to Skr.

    She¡¯s so beautiful!

    Skr¡¯s gorgeous! She looks beautiful in the costumes.

    Skr¡¯s my favorite forever. She¡¯s charming and pretty.

    Skr felt uneasy with thements. Since young, there were people more cursing at her than

    praising her, so receiving praises was something she was not good at.

    After hiring the ghostwriters, thement section on Instagram was a peaceful sight. Moreover, it

    helped that Skr¡¯s good looks made her look desirable and cool in the poster.

    In the dressing room, Skr had her head hung as she scrolled through her Instagram. The stylist,

    who was making an updo for her, had just finished putting on the hair essory when she abruptly

    said, ¡°Mr. Zeller.¡±

    Raising her head and keeping her phone, Skr greeted, ¡°Mr. Zeller, you¡¯re quick to join the

    filming. The director said you were going join us two dayster.¡±

    At the start, she barely had any social skills, and she often had trouble looking for a topic to chat

    about with strangers. However, after joining the entertainment industry, she had improved greatly.

    Largo Zeller was much older than Skr. When he was in his teens, he had debuted. The moment

    he debuted, he had risen to fame. In the industry, he was one of the veteran actors. When Skr

    was still in school, the girls in ss would think of Largo as their husbands, including Penelope.

    Back then, they were obsessed with Largo. They would buy his songs even if that meant they had

    to skip meals to save up. Whenever there was news about Largo, she would cut out that particr

    section to stick it in a hardcover book. That book had been her treasure.

    Largo upheld a positive image. He was already in his thirties, but he was still a popr man. In

    fact, in the current everchanging entertainment industry, he remained one of the top actors.

    In Empyrean Sword, he was ying the role of the main female character¡¯s mentor. The story was

    a romance between the mentor and the mentee, and it was the most interesting story in its series.

    That was why the book readers of Empyrean Sword¡¯s series looked forward to the show the most.

    A powerful and gentle pair of hands held hers, and Skr realized Largo¡¯s voice was equally

    gentle. ¡°I wrapped earlier, so that¡¯s why I¡¯m here. I look forward to working with you. Everyone said

    Skr¡¯s beautiful, but I realized you¡¯re much more beautiful than your photos. I was even talking to

    my manager earlier about how you might not look like your photos.¡±

    Skr was unfazed by praises that focused on her appearance. However, the polite way Largo

    presented himself made her feel that he was a much nicer person than Harry was.

    Right then, the fragrance of white sandalwood wafted across her nose, and for a moment, Skr

    lost herself in her thoughts. Why does it smell like Tobias¡¯ cologne? Do they use the same one?

    Throughout many years since Largo¡¯s debut, he had never been involved in any scandals. As

    such, many spected about his [email protected]</a> from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

 Chapter 391

    Chapter 391

    At that very moment, Skr thought, The cologne is meant for women too. Maybe Tobias swings both

    ways. At that thought, a chill ran down Skr¡¯s spine. Tobias will be furious if he reads my mind.

    Pushing those thoughts aside, Skr then chatted briefly with Largo.

    On the first day of joining the filming, Skr btedly realized Avery had yet to leave the crew. As it

    turned out, Josiah refused to let her go; he had given her a role as a side character who was slightly

    more important. It seemed like Josiah truly liked Avery.

    Both Skr and Avery went to the filming site on the same day. There, she encountered Thomas, the

    man Miranda thought about all day and night.

    Miranda was still lying in bed, pretending to be ill. She was miserably waiting for the day Thomas would

    take her home. Yet, what he was doing was sending her daughter to the filming site as if she was a child

    who needed her father to send her to school.

    When they encountered, Thomas had still been reminding Avery not to tire herself out and to take care of

    herself. Avery only nodded half-heartedly.

    At that moment, Skr wondered if she should have bought a lottery ticket. What kind of sh*tty luck do I

    have to witness this scene? Or are they deliberately pretending to be sweet in front of me?

    Skr did everything alone. No one sent her to the filming site, and no one reminded her about taking

    care of herself. Even Tobias did not know she had joined the filming crew.

    Avery was wearing the same dress as Skr was in the show¡ªred. However, Skr still looked better

    than Avery in it.

    When the three of them locked eyes, none tried to make small talk nor did they greet each other. In fact,

    Avery looked as if she wanted to skin her alive.Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Avery had sensed something amiss with Thomas. Generally, Thomas would at least stick around to chat

    since Tobias had taken over Quest Group. Yet, he did not.

    After finding out about Skr and Avery¡¯s rtionship, Kate finally knew why Skr was only interested

    in the show after finding out Avery was one of the main characters.

    Moving the chair to the doorway of the motorhome, she frowned and said, ¡°Your rtionship with your

    dad and your mother¡¯s background is a ticking time bomb.¡±

    At that, Skr only forced a smile to her face and replied, ¡°Society isn¡¯t that nice to people like us. I even

    thought about having a peaceful quiet life working for the government, but unfortunately, some things are

    out of my control. The government checks the background of every employee they hire, and with my

    background, they won¡¯t hire me even if I¡¯m excellent with everything else who knew that I¡¯d still have to

    worry about everything after joining the entertainment industry. I¡¯m scared that someone will expose

    every part of my history and leave me bare for everyone to attack. I know it¡¯ll happen eventually, but I just

    hope that theizens will be more merciful when they attack me.¡±

    Hearing that, Kate fell silent. It was a tough matter to deal with. It was one thing to have someone who

    had a bad credit history in the family, but it was a whole different matter to have a murderer in the family.

    Skr¡¯s mother was a murderer, and her biological father was a man with a negative credit history. If

    someone were to find out about her family background, Skr¡¯s career was destined to be negatively

    affected.

    It was rare for Skr to see Kate stumped. She could see that it would be a grueling matter for her to

    deal with the ticking time bomb.

    With a smile, she mumbled, almost to herself, ¡°I¡¯m not popr enough for them to investigate my history

    yet. If that day reallyes, we¡¯ll see what we can do. It¡¯s not like we can do anything about it now.¡±

 Chapter 392

    Chapter 392

    After brief contemtion, Kate muttered, ¡°There is a way. You can announce your rtionship with

    Tobias. It¡¯ll stop them from talking about your family history.¡±

    Skr immediately rejected, ¡°He won¡¯t agree to do this. You¡¯ve overestimated my ce in his heart. That

    way won¡¯t work.¡±

    The condition of Skr¡¯s skin was quite well, despite how she wore makeup every day.

    Many celebrities in the industry looked great on camera but less-than-average off camera. Moreover, as

    most of them wore makeup all year long, the condition of their skin was bad. An individual like Skr

    was an outlier.

    Still, Kate had to remind Skr to take good care of her skin. She had just joined the industry, so she

    might not see the side effects of wearing makeup all day yet.

    However, those warnings from Kate only happened after Kate saw Skr¡¯s luggage.

    As it turned out, Skr did not even have skin toner. Even basic moisturizing masks were missing from

    her luggage.

    Her luggage looked nothing like a celebrity¡¯s luggage.

    Still, Kate continued to rummage through her suitcase. ¡°Where are your masks? Why didn¡¯t you bring

    them?¡±

    Tilting her head to the side, Skr answered solemnly, ¡°Thest time I used moisturizing masks was

    when I was in high school. I remember that I bought ten pieces back then.¡±

    Pinching the bridge of her nose, Kate groaned at Skr¡¯s honesty. She¡¯s really the inest and humblest

    celebrity I have to manage.

    Then, she grumbled, ¡°Avery¡¯s assistant just moved a mini fridge into her room meant for masks. Can¡¯t

    you care a little more for your skin? Learn to live a more refined life.¡±

    At that, Skr shed her a smile. ¡°I¡¯ll ask someone to buy it for me tomorrow. I¡¯m not very

    knowledgeable in terms of skincare, but¡­¡±

    All of a sudden, she blushed. She had suddenly thought about what Tobias had said to her in the past.

    Tobias had told her men¡¯s semen was good for the skin, so he had forced her to swallow it in the past.

    Back then, she had been disgusted by it, and she had a huge fight with him.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    After that, Tobias stopped mentioning it. Instead, he only told her how she was still immature for being

    reserve in bed.

    Even now, Skr was still unsure what Tobias¡¯ size was.

    Irritated, Kate went to her room to get half of her masks to Skr before reminding her to use them

    before she sleep every night.

    As Skr yawned, she trudged her way to the bathroom to use the mask. The moment she ced it on

    her face, pricking sensations spread across her face.

    Oh, my face is quite dry.

    Right then, someone knocked on the door. Thinking that it was Kate who had left something behind in

    her room, she opened the door without asking who it was.

    When Thomas saw the mask on Skr¡¯s face, hemented, ¡°Aren¡¯t you living a great life now? You¡¯re

    even putting on masks.¡±

    Skr could hear the sarcasm in his tone.

    So his daughter can bring a whole fridge into his room just to store her masks, but I can¡¯t even do some

    skincare routine?

    Skr replied, ¡°I¡¯m doing fine enough to at least use some masks. Why is Mr. Jones looking for me so

    late at night? Are you here to ask about Miranda, or are you here to ask if I¡¯ve split up with Tobias.¡±

    The moment Thomas heard Miranda¡¯s name, Skr noticed a look of disgust emerge in his eyes.

    Taking a chair to sit on it, he then frowned and said, ¡°The main role was meant to be Avery¡¯s. Skr, why

    do you have to make life difficult for our family? Did you know Avery is taking antidepressants ever since

    she lost the role?¡±

 Chapter 393

    Chapter 393

    Skr chuckled, realizing that Thomas was here to demand an exnation for his daughter¡¯s

    situation. Gosh, look at his hateful scowl and rude tone.

    Her lips curled into a wicked grin. ¡°I don¡¯t know. What does Avery¡¯s being on anti-depressants have to do

    with me? Actors often lose their roles to others who are far superior; that¡¯s just the way the entertainment

    industry works. I lost my first ever leading role that way too. If Avery can¡¯t take the hit, then perhaps she¡¯s

    too weak-minded for the industry.¡±

    ¡°You should stop picking on Avery. She¡¯s a sensitive child. I¡¯ve always been around to take care of her,

    so she¡¯s not as mentally tough as you are, nor does she think twice before jumping into things as you do.

    That said, I want you to look out for her since you guys are in the same group,¡± Thomas¡¯ words sounded

    heavy. He had put on a gloomy expression, perfectly feigning the image of a benevolent father.

    Skr let out a disdainful sneer. ¡°You think I wanted to be mentally tough? What child doesn¡¯t want to be

    protected and loved by their parents as they grow up? You¡¯ve never once taken me seriously as your

    daughter, apart from when you begged me to convince Tobias into taking over Quest Group. A word of

    advice, Mr. Jones, never forget those who have helped you in life. So is this how you treat your

    benefactor?¡±

    At the mention of his past begging, Thomas became emotionally turmoiled. He snarled, ¡°How can you

    expect me to thank you? Tobias cruelly took everything from me. I was a fool then, thinking that he would

    help me on your behalf. Well, look how that ended; I yed right into his hands.¡±

    Seeing how Thomas behaved up till this point, Skr knew that he was definitely up to something fishy.

    Regardless, Skr didn¡¯t know much about how businesses worked. So she opened the door and

    motioned for Thomas to leave. ¡°There¡¯s no point in telling me this because I¡¯ve already done what I can

    to help. Even if you did fall for his trap, you have no one to me but yourself. You were the one who

    eagerly went along with things.¡±

    She couldn¡¯t be bothered with what Thomas had to say. After all, there was no telling whether his words

    were chock full of lies.

    Thomas¡¯ face turned purple with rage. ¡°If you truly are a good person, then don¡¯t pick on Avery. Don¡¯t

    take after your sinister, rotten-hearted mother.¡±

    In a fit of fury, Thomas mmed the hotel door on his way out. Skr jolted a little from this sudden

    impact.

    She then went to the washroom to remove her mask. As she rinsed her face, she thought long and hard

    about Thomas¡¯ words.

    What exactly did Tobias do to put Thomas in such a foul mood?

    After drying her face, Skr noticed the satiny glow of her skin. There was also a pinkish tint to her

    cheeks as if champagne roses had flowered on them. Herplexion had improved so much that she

    looked wless.

    Skr quickly put on a shower cap and took the perfect selfie at a forty-five-degree angle for her

    Instagram.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    The best part was that her bathroom selfie was unfiltered, and her skin still looked phenomenal.

    Such a photo had an irresistible charm; its innocent yet alluring beauty was well-suited for most female

    audiences online.

    Hence, Skr¡¯s Instagram photo blew up with over a hundred thousand likes the next day. Her photo

    also ranked first as the most downloaded phone wallpaper on several websites.

    All this took Skr by surprise. She had miraculously increased her poprity and exposure through that

    photo of her face.

    Clicking into the notifications tab, Skr saw a never-ending list of usernames that had liked her photo.

    Including Tobias.

    Skr¡¯s eyes locked onto Tobias¡¯ profile picture. Among her Instagram followers, she had always

    assumed that Tobias was the least interested in her photos.

    He had never liked her photos before; this was the first-ever like Skr had received from him, so she

    took a screenshot of this momentous event.

    She texted him and teased: I see you¡¯ve been snooping on my social media. Should I upload more

    photos in the future then?

    Then she anxiously waited on the edge of her seat for his reply.

 Chapter 394

    Chapter 394

    However, Tobias took his sweet time before finally texting Skr back around breakfast time.

    Tobias: ?

    Skr gripped tightly on a soymilk bottle with one hand and typed out a response with the other.

    Skr: Didn¡¯t you like my Instagram photo yesterday?

    Tobias: I don¡¯t bother with social media. Sheldon was on my phonest night, so what¡¯s the fuss about

    this liked photo?

    Skr downed the soymilk. It washed down her throat like stale, powdered milk due to her foul mood.

    She mentally sneered at herself, repulsed by how she had taken the whole thing so seriously. I even took

    a screenshot! Ugh!

    Well there goes my good mood.

    Elsewhere, Tobias noticed that Skr had ignored his message. He became lost in deep thought as he

    tapped on the sides of his phone.

    Curious, he opened up Skr¡¯s social media page and found the photo in question, a bathroom selfie. It

    showed off Skr¡¯s porcin skin and rosy cheeks as if she had just hopped out of a shower. His eyes

    roamed on the photo and eventuallynded on her plump, delectable lips.

    She¡¯s good-looking, I¡¯ll give her that.

    Sheldon had slept in till now. He came downstairs in his crinkled pajamas, and his hair looked like an

    overgrown bush. Sheldon seemed disgruntled and worn-out as he kept on yawning, despite having slept

    for over twelve hours.

    ¡°Good morning, Mom, Tobias. Why didn¡¯t you guys wake me up for breakfast?¡± Sheldonzily slumped

    onto the chair opposite Tobias with his legs crossed.

    udia grumbled in response, ¡°It¡¯ste. Must you sleep in every day? Look at how you¡¯re indulging in

    hedonism and wasting away like some bum. Do you intend to rely on your brother forever?¡±

    At her nagging, Sheldon shoved two-thirds of toast into his mouth.

    He then mped his mouth shut and feigned a quick choke, motioning that he wasn¡¯t keen on talking.

    udia shook her head disapprovingly but said nothing about his antics.

    Eventually, udia answered a phone call from her best friend and left the room. Tobias had waited for

    this moment to speak up. He asked Sheldon, ¡°Why did you use my phonest night? Who said you

    could?¡±

    Sheldon¡¯s back straightened at once. ¡°I was bored, so I scrolled through your stuff to pass the time. Then

    I saw Skr¡¯s photo and liked it. By the by, that photo is all over the inte now.¡±

    Although Sheldon kept a straight face, he was sweating buckets inside.

    I can¡¯t believe Skr texted Tobias so quickly after I used his ount to like her photo. She seems pretty

    enthusiastic over something petty like a photo.

    Although¡­ if Skr rats out about how Winnie wants me to split half the family¡¯s assets, then it¡¯s

    certainly not a petty matter.

    I¡¯ll be skinned alive if Tobias finds out about that.

    Besides, Winnie is overestimating my abilities with all that talk about splitting assets. I haven¡¯t done

    anything to deserve even a penny¡¯s worth of Ford Group¡¯s earnings. And even if I wanted to start my own

    company, I¡¯m just not capable enough to do so.

    Sheldon could only hope that Skr wouldn¡¯t rat him out.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Tobiaster saved Skr¡¯s photo onto his phone. After hesitating for some time, he set it as his

    wallpaper.

    ¡­

    Avery felt inferior now that she was working alongside Skr. It unnerved her that Skr had gone

    through some magical transformation; Skr was no longer the meek and poor little wretch that begged

    Avery¡¯s family for tuition fees all those years ago.

    ¡°How does it feel to y this character, knowing that you¡¯ve stolen it from someone else?¡± Avery

    sneered.

    Skr responded to this with a wicked grin. ¡°It¡¯s not too shabby. But to be fair, I was given this role. They

    wouldn¡¯t take no for an answer, so how could I refuse? Besides, weren¡¯t you always stealing my things

    when we were growing up? Now you know what it¡¯s like to be on the receiving end.¡±

    Avery¡¯s face scrunched up into a hideous frown. Skr¡¯s smugness made her feel worse about losing

    the role.

    Avery couldn¡¯t hold it in any longer. She shed all pretenses of amiability and turned violent against

    Skr. ¡°We¡¯ll see about that. Some things will never be yours, no matter what scheming methods you

    use to obtain them. You¡¯re just as shameless as your mother; she stole someone else¡¯s man while you¡¯re

    stealing career opportunities from me!¡±

    Avery¡¯s heart simmered for the despicable mother-daughter duo. She hated how her family had been in

    tatters ever since Miranda got out of prison.

 Chapter 395

    Chapter 395

    Skr scoffed. She would have dly knocked some manners into Avery. However, she couldn¡¯t

    because they were on set; and because Largo was standing right across the room. So Skr turned and

    left Avery to her own devices.

    At this, Avery shed a vicious gleam at the female lead¡¯s costume that Skr wore. Then she asked her

    manager, Jane, ¡°Have you contacted everyone? There cannot be any slip-ups when executing this n.¡±

    Jane nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve discussed everything with Daniel from props. He named his price¡ªa hundred

    thousand.¡±

    Avery¡¯s brows drew closer. ¡°That much to remove a couple of screws? That¡¯s basically a rip-off.¡±

    Eyes darting around, Jane cautiously leaned in and murmured, ¡°Daniel said that removing those screws

    might cost someone¡¯s life, so a hundred thousand is only the deposit. It will cost us two hundred

    thousand if she ends up crippled, and half a million if she dies.¡±

    Delight smeared across Avery¡¯s face as she listened to these possible oues. Her vicious grin

    deepened as she pictured a stone b crushing onto Skr¡¯s body.

    Meanwhile, Skr and Largo were going through their scripts together. They knew that fans would go

    crazy over the tiniest romantic details between a female and male lead. Hence, they wanted to

    incorporate this into their scripts.

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but feel drawn to Largo¡¯s amorous voice as they bounced ideas off of each other.

    Largo always kept a friendly smile each time he spoke. He was the kind of man that lit up an entire room.

    Because of this, Skr found him to be such a gem.

    Skr realized that she wasn¡¯t entirely a masochist. While she found gratification from Tobias¡¯ torture,

    she was also receptive to gentler men like Largo.

    She and Largo had to film their current scene with a massive green screen in the studio, then special

    effects would be addedter on.

    Skr caught sight of Avery lingering around the set. She felt that Avery¡¯s eyes were glued onto her the

    whole time.

    So Skr motioned Hannah over during makeup touchups. She asked, ¡°Are we filming Avery¡¯s scenes

    today? Why has she been in the studio this whole time?¡±

    Hannah then flipped through the day¡¯s filming schedule. ¡°Nope. Filming for her scenes will be done at a

    muchter date.¡±

    At this, Skr felt unnerved. Avery hates being around me. So why would she show up on set to watch

    me film my scenes? That¡¯s very unlike her.

    Skr¡¯s eyelid kept twitching like a bad omen.

    Before they started shooting the scene, Skr had to put on her safety harness. She tugged at the

    harness rope to test its durability, just in case.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    Daniel from props noticed this and grumbled, ¡°Do you not trust the work of our props crew, Ms. Jones?

    Quit worrying. It¡¯s a sturdy harness. There¡¯s no chance of you falling.¡±

    Despite his attempt to calm her nerves, his voice sounded indifferent. Even his gaze was devoid of

    warmth.

    Skr chuckled tensely. ¡°I tend to worry when my safety is involved. You see, I¡¯m a very unlucky person.

    So please bear with me while I check things thoroughly. After all, it¡¯s better to be safe than sorry.¡±

    Nevertheless, Daniel shed an urged look. ¡°It¡¯s almost time to shoot. You should put on your harness

    now.¡±

    As he spoke, his sleeve lifted and revealed a well-crafted watch with an unmistakable logo¡ªa Rolex.

    Skr noticed and casually pointed it out. ¡°Your watch is superb. I had no idea that members of the

    props crew earned so much. My friend has the same model, by the way.¡±

    Daniel covered his watch at once. He averted her gaze and muttered, ¡°It¡¯s a parallel import.¡±

    For some reason, Skr felt that the man seemed familiar. Yet, she couldn¡¯t quite recall where she had

    seen his face before.

    Regardless, Skr and Largo were about to film a battle scene.

    Largo had already gotten his makeup done and was ready to start. Seeing this, Skr reluctantly

    fastened the harness and took a deep inhale. Her eyelid twitched more furiously.

    Then Josiah¡¯s voice red through the walkie-talkie, ¡°What the hell are you doing, Skr? Focus! I don¡¯t

    have time for you to daydream on set.¡±

    Skr quickly motioned an okay gesture, indicating that she was ready to begin.

    At that moment, Avery and Daniel locked gazes. He nodded slightly to inform her that things were going

    as nned. Avery instinctively looked up to the harness¡¯ ceiling track. It appeared at least five meters off

    the ground; if Skr fell from that height, she was sure to be disabled, if not dead.

 Chapter 396

    Chapter 396

    Brimming with delight, Avery cracked a twisted smile to Jane. ¡°Skr won¡¯t be using her legs anytime

    soon; she¡¯ll be disabled after that fall. Let¡¯s see who the director chooses as the female lead then. It¡¯ll be

    more than kind if she ends up dying instead.¡±

    Jane pursed her lips. Deep down, she was appalled by Avery¡¯s psychotic n. It¡¯s not umon to find

    dirty politics between actresses in the industry. Still, Avery is pure evil for killing off her enemy without

    hesitation.

    As the harness lifted higher, Skr suddenly asked to halt the shoot. She requested to the director, ¡°Can

    we pleasey down some stunt mats? I¡¯m afraid of heights¡­¡±

    Josiah¡¯s clutch white-knuckled on the script, nearly tossing it. He let out an ear-splitting roar to Skr,

    ¡°What the hell are you doing? We don¡¯t have time to fetch the stunt mats simply because you need them.

    I¡¯ve shot many films, and no one has ever fallen from their harnesses. So why are you insisting on

    special treatment?¡±

    Desperate, Skr ced a hand over her forehead. She feigned a frail voice, ¡°Mr. Zimmermann, I have

    vertigo. I tend to experience dizziness after reaching a certain altitude. Please, you must find me some

    stunt mats to catch me if I fall. I¡¯m sure it won¡¯t take too long toy down some mats¡­¡±

    Earlier, she noticed Avery and Daniel exchanging nces. It looked like there was something suspicious

    going on between them. Hence, she was worried that Avery had pulled a dirty stunt and messed with the

    harness.

    Anger thrummed in Josiah¡¯s veins. He mercilessly barked at Skr in front of the filming crew, ¡°I have

    never met a more troublesome actress apart from you. How dare you barge into the show and demand

    that I, the director, to amodate you?¡±

    Despite his jeering, Skr refused to exin her suspicions about the harness¡¯ safety. Because she

    couldn¡¯t risk being wrong, yet she also couldn¡¯t recklessly gamble with her life. After all, Daniel looked

    extremely pale and nervous when she inspected the harness earlier. Thus, requesting stunt mats was

    her safest bet.

    The film crew moved quickly andyered some stunt mats under Skr. Meanwhile, Avery¡¯s brows

    furrowed tightly at this. If this keeps up, there won¡¯t even be a scratch on Skr when she falls.

    Once they finished cing down the stunt mats, Skr was hoisted into the air by her harness. She

    wielded a wooden sword in one hand. Her gaze was strikingly sharp in her expertly executed makeup.

    The gorgeous pink dress flowed down her body, exuding a graceful aura. ording to the script, this

    was the female lead, Saoirse¡¯s first time properly wielding a sword after receiving basic training.

    ¡°You have to wield the sword in a more poised manner. Skr, don¡¯t slouch. What kind of rubbish did

    your etiquette trainer teach you? How could your posture be so horrid, despiteing from a

    professional film academy background?¡± Josiah barked through the loudhailer.

    Mischief flickered across Avery¡¯s eyes when she heard this. She casually approached the director¡¯s side

    and spoke in a honeyed voice, ¡°She hasn¡¯t even graduated film academy. I heard it¡¯s because she failed

    her major.¡±

    Josiah frowned. ¡°Didn¡¯t she apply to defer her course since she¡¯s not yet of age to graduate? What does

    her deference have to do with failing a major?¡±

    Avery merely shrugged her shoulders in response.

    Skr was never one to use vulgarities. However, her mind went nk when the massive green screen

    set up toppled toward her. Hence, she uttered the first thing that came to mind, ¡°Sh*t!¡± Suspended in a

    harness next to Skr, Largo tried to grab her but failed. He watched helplessly as the green screen

    crashed onto her. Because of this impact, her body jerked backward and made her harness loosen.

    Silence ensued as Skr fell from high above and plopped right on the stunt mats.

    Seeing that an ident had urred, every staff member and film crew gathered anxiously before

    Skr.

    Even Josiah tossed aside his earpiece and ran towards Skr.

    ¡­

    Skr¡¯s eyes had mped shut after the fall. All at once, an uproar of panicked voices sounded around

    her. This chaos made her head pound furiously.

    Once she finally opened her eyes, everyone let out a heavy breath of relief. Kate immediately dashed

    forward. She inspected every inch of Skr¡¯s arms and legs, leaving no stone unturned. She fretted,

    ¡°Can you still move your body? The ambnce is on its way.¡±

    To this, Skr ignored her sore muscles and propped herself upright with her arms. Then she cast a

    knowing look at Daniel.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Not wanting to worry the others, Skr massaged her aching arm and forced out a smile. ¡°I think I¡¯m

    fine. What an uncanny coincidence that the green screen fell over and my harness loosened, huh?¡±

 Chapter 397

    Chapter 397

    Kate became alert at this statement. Her eyes darted around the set as she questioned the director, ¡°Mr.

    Zimmermann. You should thank your lucky stars that Skr requested for stunt mats. And to think you

    were throwing a tantrum over that simple request. Without these mats, Skr would have suffered either

    physically crippling injuries, or worse, brain damage. Your props crew is truly first-rate for this to even

    happen. Need I remind you that we¡¯re here to film a show, not to risk our actress¡¯ life?¡±

    Josiah knew he was in the wrong. He exined in a gentler voice than before, ¡°I swear this has never

    happened. Perhaps we¡¯ve used too many props for this scene. Maybe the usual safety standards have

    not been met.¡±

    Skr shifted her head from left to right. She let out a sigh of relief after confirming that her neck wasn¡¯t

    injured. Thank God. At least I don¡¯t have any spinal or severe injuries.

    She quickly saw Avery standing in amongst the crowd. Disappointment smeared across Avery¡¯s face as

    her brows twisted into a miserable frown.

    ¡­

    News about Skr¡¯s incident spread like wildfire amongst filming crew members. It wasn¡¯t long before

    every single crew member at the filming site had heard about it. So now, Skry in her motorhome

    and was slurping on some chicken soup. Kate had someone deliver the soup earlier asfort food to

    soothe Skr¡¯s rattled nerves.

    Kate sat opposite Skr in the motorhome. She cast a worried gaze at Skr, who seemed unbothered

    by the whole incident as if it had never happened.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get you some protective crystals someday. Literally, how can you be so unlucky? I bet Tobias uses

    protective charms as d¨¦cor in his office too. It¡¯smon for most businesses. Maybe you should ask him

    to acquire something for you.¡±

    Skr put a spoonful of the soup into her mouth. It was nice and warm until she tasted the yucky parsley.

    Seeing that they were finally alone, she disclosed her suspicions to Kate. ¡°I think someone tampered

    with the harness. It doesn¡¯t make sense that Largo¡¯s functioned normally, but mine loosened. Kate,

    please look into this for me. The culprit could be anyone around us. I¡¯m sure this won¡¯t be their only

    attempt to harm me. And like you said, I¡¯m not risking my life just to film a show.¡±

    Yet, Kate dismissed her, ¡°You¡¯re reading too much into the situation. It genuinely seems like an ident

    to me. Besides, who would do such a spiteful thing to you?¡±

    Skr was quick to respond. ¡°Avery, duh. There¡¯s no doubt that she would do something like this. When

    we were younger, she threw herself down a flight of stairs so that she could me it on me. Why

    wouldn¡¯t she be behind this? She obviously wants me to suffer.¡±

    Kate still refused to believe her. ¡°She was standing at the sidelines when you fell. Plus, she doesn¡¯t look

    like the evil scheming sort. I bet you¡¯re jumping to conclusions simply because you don¡¯t like her.¡±

    At that moment, Skr found a striking resemnce between Kate and Tobias; the two only trusted

    themselves. They refused to be swayed by the opinions of others when making a judgment.

    This content belongs to N?/velDra/ma.Org .

    Skr couldn¡¯t understand the logic behind their actions. Are all sessful businessmen and women so

    stubborn? Do they all think their judgment is best while everyone else¡¯s is wrong?

    Later at the hotel, Skr had taken a shower and was sitting on the bed. She hesitated on whether she

    should ask for Tobias¡¯ help. Her hair was still dripping wet when she caved in and video-called Tobias.

    Couples normally video-called one another on a whim. It was often rxed and casual. However,

    Skr¡¯s situation was different; she had battled herself mentally before finally pressing on that dreaded

    video-call button.

    Tobias immediately answered. Oddly, Skr could only hear his voice. His camera seemed to be leaning

    against the desk, so his face was off-screen.

    Pushing away her doubts, Skr sprawled on the bed and ced the camera up close to her face. She

    ranted, ¡°I was injured today. I fell from high up and got crushed by the green screen.¡±

    ¡°Is there anything else you need to say? If not, I¡¯m hanging up because I¡¯m busy right now. I¡¯ll call you

    later.¡± Tobias¡¯ voice was as swoon-worthy as usual. It could easily beat Largo without question. The only

    negative was that Tobias¡¯ dismissive tone was enough to ruin one¡¯s mood.

    Skr¡¯s face darkened to a hideous purple as she scowled at him.

 Chapter 398

    Chapter 398

    Anger thrummed in Skr¡¯s chest after listening to Tobias¡¯ uninterested words.

    She hissed, ¡°Can¡¯t you at least pretend to care? You could have asked if I was fine. Is that so hard to

    do?¡±

    An exasperated sigh sounded from the other end of the call. ¡°I¡¯m busy, Baby. Besides, you wouldn¡¯t be

    talking back so harshly if anything serious happened to you. Isn¡¯t that right?¡±

    Then Skr hung up. She fumed at how Tobias wasn¡¯t taking her seriously. Forget it. I¡¯m not going to ask

    for his help anymore.

    He¡¯s clearly too busy to make time for me.

    Meanwhile, Tobias sat behind his desk in a ck suit. His expression turned grim as he looked at the

    phone in his hands. Why must the video call¡¯s audio st through the speakers? Couldn¡¯t it just be

    subtle like a regr call?

    Various executive members sat on the sofas around. A tense atmosphere permeated the air around

    them.

    They represented different departments in thepany and were giving detailed status reports to

    Tobias. It was halfway through this when Tobias¡¯ phone rang. Then they sat ufortably as the woman

    on the phone threw a fit at Tobias.

    That got them curious. Who¡¯s this woman that is currently involved with Mr. Ford?

    Eva, who took down the meeting notes with the other assistants, could tell that it was Skr¡¯s voice on

    the call.

    Delight swelled in Eve¡¯s chest. Tobias is way harsher to Skr than I thought.

    It looks like he no longer finds Skr interesting.

    ¡°Let¡¯s resume. We¡¯ll adjourn this meeting after weplete the reports.¡± Tobias fastened the buttons on

    his suit and checked the time.

    If I rush over to the filming site now, I¡¯ll likely arrive by dawn. What¡¯s the point of going on a hectic journey

    to see Skr, who¡¯s uninjured and perfectly fine?

    I¡¯m not the type to indulge in such romantic gestures.

    After every executive member hadpleted their reports, Tobias dismissed the meeting. Everyone got

    up and left ordingly. They assumed that tonight¡¯s meeting was simply routine work.

    Shortly after, Tobias¡¯ spacious office returned to its usual silence.

    Then Sheldon entered. He promptly closed the door and turned on his heel to see what Tobias was up to

    ¡ªscribbling something. He heard the sound of Tobias¡¯ pen scratching ferociously against the paper.

    Sheldon approached the paper on Tobias¡¯ desk. It was a name list of thepany¡¯s executive members.

    Tobias had struck off several names, such as Spencer Campbell, Dn de, and others.

    He immediately recognized these people. These were some of the older employees who had been in the

    company for the longest time. Confused, Sheldon asked, ¡°Why¡¯d you strike off their names? Shouldn¡¯t

    you at least acknowledge that they¡¯ve served us for a long time? Surely you¡¯re not that heartless to

    remove them from thepany?¡±

    Tobias stopped striking out names. He looked up at Sheldon and said, ¡°Thepany will be undergoing

    a reform. Mypany is not a nursing home forx employees.¡±

    An inexplicable feeling lingered at the back of Sheldon¡¯s throat. He was worried that someday, Tobias

    would discard him like those employees.

    Winnie might be right. I should start thinking about my future. I can¡¯t allow myself to waste away as I¡¯ve

    been doing this whole time.

    Tobias leaned deeper into his chair. He pulled at his tie to loosen it, then looked at Sheldon. ¡°Why have

    youe to see me? Are you short on money?¡±

    At this, Sheldon shrugged off his original intention of asking for money. He shook his head and replied,

    ¡°I¡¯m introducing Winnie to Mom. I¡¯m counting on you to be there too. We can¡¯t have the spotlight shine on

    only me.¡±

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Tobias¡¯ face fell disapprovingly at Winnie¡¯s name, yet he didn¡¯t want to interfere with Sheldon¡¯s

    rtionship. He eventually grunted, ¡°No promises. I¡¯ll be there if my schedule isn¡¯t too packed.

    Otherwise, you¡¯ll have to figure it out yourself.¡±

    ¡­

    At the hotel, Skr¡¯s spine was killing her. On top of that, her heart was inplete tatters after that

    video call with Tobias.

    The next day, Skr¡¯s mind was still a jumbled-up mess. She was anxious about re-filming the harness

    scene from yesterday. I can¡¯t trust anyone after that disaster. I¡¯m never putting on another harness unless

    it is fully inspected and proven to be safe.

    Josiah was too embarrassed to say anything to Skr. After all, Skr¡¯s melodramatic request had

    saved her life yesterday. If he had stubbornly insisted on not having the mats, then his female lead would

    be bedridden in a hospital by now. He could never live with that guilt.

    ¡°How are you doing? Do you feel any difort anywhere?¡± Largo ced two bottles of freeze spray

    beside Skr, offering them to her.

    Skr hadn¡¯t expected Largo to be so considerate. He¡¯s thoughtfully asking about my pains after the fall,

    and he even brought medicine!

    He¡¯s way more of a gentleman than that cold-blooded monster, Tobias.

    Ultimately, women yearned to be cared for by someone special; Skr was no exception. However, she

    had lost all faith that Tobias would ever be a gentle and considerate man.

 Chapter 399

    Chapter 399

    ¡°Thanks. It¡¯s not a big deal. in fact, I¡¯m as fit as a butcher¡¯s dog,¡± Skr joked, realizing that it sounded

    funnier in her head.

    Largo said gently, ¡°That¡¯s great. I hope you don¡¯t get traumatized by this. It¡¯spletely normal to get

    injured on set. Acting itself is a high-risk profession, but there¡¯s nothing toin about, to be honest.

    After all, we get paid so much. That¡¯s why we have to do our best to make sure we are worth the money.¡±

    At that, Skr wondered how much Largo was paid. After some mental calction, she surmised that

    the figure on his paycheck probably had exceeded hers by a few zeroes.

    When Largo left to get changed, the faint smile on Skr¡¯s face vanished. If it wasn¡¯t for the sake of

    forming connections, she hated going out of her way to smile.

    Largo stood tall in a white robe that billowed around him. The look in his eyes was not of this world, and

    an aura of immortality epassed him.

    Skr swooned slightly. Whoever styled him is a genius! Be it the makeup and clothing, everything

    deserved praise.

    Avery was ying the role of a maid working for the male lead, Titus Lancaster. She had followed him

    since she was a child, and endured the torment of unrequited love.

    The appearance of the female lead, Saoirse Hafford, made her go crazy with jealousy because of how

    much Titus favored her. Hence, she plotted against Saoirse every step of the way, all so that Titus would

    come to resent her.

    Skr felt that Avery was the perfect person to y such a b*tchy character.

    Due to her status as a maid, the character yed by Avery, Yh Mandell, did not look outstanding

    both in terms of makeup and clothing.

    Skr was in a very good frame of mind. After Josiah gave her a tongueshing the previous day, she

    paid special attention to her expressions and demeanor. This time, she was the one carrying the sword

    and not the other way around.

    When Josiah shouted ¡°action¡±, Skr got into character effortlessly. As the camera moved with her, there

    wasn¡¯t a single w in sight.

    Avery, on the other hand, messed up several times. Thus, Skr had no choice but to cooperate,

    reshooting the scenes with her.

    Enraged, Josiah directed his anger at Avery this time. ¡°Are you serious? You only have a few lines. Is it

    that hard to say them properly?¡±

    Avery was scratching her left arm vehemently, the action drawing blood.

    ¡°Director, my arm is really itchy,¡± she cried out in anguish.

    Right then, Skr frowned and whispered into Avery¡¯s ear, ¡°You know, my costume was torn open

    slightly in the back. Before that, it was stained with some mango powder. If I remember correctly, you¡¯re

    allergic to mangoes.¡±

    Avery¡¯s expression froze and she gritted out, ¡°What the hell is your problem, Skr? Why are you

    targeting me at every turn? You obviously know that I¡¯m allergic to mangoes. Yet, you did this?¡±

    Skr smiled. ¡°I¡¯m merely reminding you to keep your hands off what doesn¡¯t belong to you.¡±

    Averypletely lost it, shouting for her assistant to bring her some Cetirizine, but not before hissing,

    ¡°Don¡¯t go too far. Everything you have now won¡¯t stay yours for long.¡±

    Avery was so angry she pped the thermos cup her assistant brought for her to the ground.

    ¡°Idiot. Did I say wanted water?¡±

    Jane jumped in fright, quickly bowing her head to apologize, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I should¡¯ve asked you if you were

    thirsty first.¡±

    Avery was filled with regret and frustration. I should¡¯ve asked Dad to burn bridges with Skr back then.

    A b*tch like her shouldn¡¯t be allowed to live.

    She red at Jane who was discreetly wiping her tears away. ¡°What the hell are you crying for? You¡¯re

    acting like Imitted a crime against you. Ugh, look at you. You¡¯re oozing with bad energy. Shoo! Stay

    away as far from me as possible!¡±

    Hannah had witnessed this entire scene. Later on, both Skr and she felt angry on behalf of Jane.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Hannah even marveled about how lucky she was to meet such a good boss who was unbelievably

    gentle and never once lost her temper at her.

 Chapter 400

    Chapter 400

    Skr chuckled and said, ¡°Oh, stop ttering me. You should engage with Jane whenever you¡¯re free. I

    feel bad for her. She doesn¡¯t have much experience and was unfortunate enough to be Avery¡¯s

    assistant the moment she joined this industry. I¡¯m afraid she¡¯d be traumatized if this goes on. If she¡¯s

    interested, she can switch under me.¡±

    Skr was pulling no punches. She did not feel the need to take care of Avery¡¯s image because her goal

    was clear. She was going to destroy Avery¡¯s reputation, so that she would know what it feels like to get

    everything robbed from her.

    She was too arrogant for her own good, but this wasn¡¯t why Skr wanted revenge.

    It was because Avery had made her childhood a nightmare, and she could never bring herself to forgive

    her.

    In the past, Avery said she didn¡¯t like her long hair because it looked trashy and annoying.

    On the way home from school, she and her sidekicks surrounded Skr, then forcefully cut off her long

    hair. The result was a head of ugly short hair which apanied her throughout junior high school.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    When she returned home, her grandmother kept asking her what happened to her hair. Afraid that she

    would feel sad, Skr lied, saying that her hair was too long and it was a waste of shampoo, so she cut it

    short since it would be easier to take care of.

    It was also out of consideration for her grandmother that she came up with this reason. Meredith had

    always lived frugally. She used normal soap to wash her own hair and only bought special shampoo from

    the supermarket for Skr to use. A wistful smile formed on Skr¡¯s lips at this memory.

    After wrapping up for the day, Largo announced that he wanted to treat the filming crew to a meal. Skr

    declined to join, using the excuse that she wasn¡¯t feeling well.

    Since the gathering was also to wee the second female lead to the crew, Skr did not want to hog

    the limelight.

    A scowl formed on Kate¡¯s face when she saw Skr lying in bed at the hotel with a facial mask on right

    after getting off work, while everyone else had posted photos of the meat fondue they were having on

    their respective social media.

    ¡°Skr, can you stop being so antisocial? The filming crew is having fun right now, but here you are, all

    alone. Don¡¯t you feel bothered by that?¡±

    Rolling off the bed, Skr peeled off the mask and rubbed the remaining essence from the mask onto

    her neck.

    Then, she turned on the faucet, bent down, and washed her face before answering.

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t feel bothered in the least, neither am I interested in joining the hype. They can eat whatever

    they like because I¡¯m on a diet. Recently, I feel like I can gain weight just by breathing.¡±

    Kate scanned Skr¡¯s slim frame. Indeed, she had lost weight recently. She was close to five feet six,

    but only weighed about ny pounds.

    ¡°Try not to get into an argument with Avery in public. It¡¯d be bad if word got out,¡± Kate said worriedly.

    Due to her empty stomach, Skr was more clear-headed and sensitive. Pursing her lips, she spat, ¡°I

    just can¡¯t stand the sight of her. It ruins my mood every single time. I¡¯m positive she¡¯s the one who

    caused me to fall from the wire. I just don¡¯t have evidence.¡±

    Kate felt that Skr was being a tad paranoid. Oh, c¡¯mon. They¡¯re sisters by blood. Why is she treating

    Avery like her archenemy?

    Sensing Kate¡¯s skepticism, Skr gave up trying to exin to her. She believed that Avery would slip up

    sooner orter. For now, she would focus on winning Jane over to her side.

    Kate sighed before saying, ¡°I don¡¯t think Avery is the one you should be worrying about. Rather, you

    should watch out for Cassidy. She¡¯s a real headache.¡±

    Skr had also just found out that the fashionablyte second female lead was Cassidy Gardner.

    She debuted a few years earlier than Skr, and her career had been smooth-sailing since then. These

    few years, other than being cast as female leads in famous movies, she was also a frequent guest on

    reality shows. Besides that, her love life was constantly a hot topic of discussion amongizens.

    Skr had always found Cassidy a little odd. Before debuting, she would asionally join in the

    keyboard warrior troop.

    Once, she left ament below a reality show Cassidy was invited on, asking if she was mentally

    disturbed because of how she was afraid of looking into the eyes of whoever she was talking to. Not to

    mention, it seemed like she was in her own world sometimes as she mumbled things that made no

    sense.

    On that day, she was cursed to hell and back by Cassidy¡¯s fans. It was so bad that she turned off her

    private messages.

    Recalling this, Skr became slightly apprehensive, fearing that herment from three years ago

    would be dug out by all those scarily resourcefulizens.

 Chapter 401

    Chapter 401

    However, she did not share this matter with Kate as she felt that the chances of it happening was slim to

    none.

    Following that, Kate brought up something even more important.

    ¡°Your grades are out. All the artistes have been assessed.¡± Kate took out a list and waved it in front of

    Skr.

    This reminded Skr of the feeling when her exam results were about to be announced. She was so

    nervous she felt as though an invisible hand was gripping her heart.

    Taking a deep breath, she lifted her gaze to look at Kate.

    ¡°You got a C.¡±

    The results were far behind her expectations. Even though her grading wouldn¡¯t really affect her much

    while she was here, she was still upset that her grading had dropped rather than increased.

    To make matters worse, she did not even know the exact criteria for the grading system.

    She took the list full of names and saw that Amelia, another artiste under Kate, was still a grade A.

    Heaving a dejected sigh, she muttered, ¡°I¡¯m sorry for letting you down. I was overconfident and thought

    people regarded me as some kind of national idol just because many of them recognized me on the

    streets.¡±

    ¡°This grading is only temporary. Once this film is released, you¡¯ll definitely be a top actress,¡± Kate

    comforted.

    ¡°But what if I still remain a grade C?¡± Skr asked in a small voice.

    Kate was never one to mince her words. ¡°Then it means showbiz isn¡¯t for you and it¡¯s time for a career

    switch. But honestly, it¡¯d be ridiculous if you still remain a grade C after starring in such a huge film. I

    mean, just how much does the audience have to hate you for that to happen, right?¡±

    Skr shrugged, feeling slightly miserable. Despite that, there was still some fight left in her. ¡°I believe

    that everything is possible as long as I put my mind to it. Besides, I¡¯m already used to being disliked

    anyway.¡±

    Kate just couldn¡¯t understand. Skr obviously has the looks, but why does sheck confidence? Did

    something happen to her when she was a kid?

    It¡¯s like she was traumatized and is too afraid to even dream.

    Out ofpassion, Kate pointed a way out for her. ¡°Or, you can marry Tobias and live as the daughter-

    inw of a wealthy family. Do you know how many female celebrities dream about having that kind of

    life?¡±

    Skr huffed out augh. ¡°This is even more difficult than bing famous. There¡¯s no way he¡¯ll marry

    me.¡±

    Kate quipped, ¡°Then get a new man. Easy.¡±

    Skr shook her head in response. ¡°My standards in men have skyrocketed after meeting Tobias. It¡¯s

    impossible for me to date other men because I keepparing them to him.¡±

    Kate thought that Skr was overthinking it. Although she wasn¡¯t that popr, she wasn¡¯tcking in

    admirers.

    She had the feeling that the gradings this time had been tampered with, and only someone from Royal

    Entertainment¡¯s upper management could do something like this.

    I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if it was Valerie. She¡¯s clearly jealous of Skr for receiving such special care,

    and wants nothing more than to trample on her dignity.

    But then again, Valerie¡¯s quite pitiful. She¡¯s been quietly guarding Tobias for so many years, but she¡¯s

    probably never even held his hand.

    Skr, on the other hand, has a unique sort of beauty. Logically speaking, she could easily rise to fame

    by merely showing her face.

    Photos of the gathering were posted on social media by the filming crew, andizens quickly noticed

    that Skr wasn¡¯t present.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    #FussyMissAttentionSeekerAlienatedByCrew

    Skr appeared in the trending searches because of this hashtag by theizens. Although her name

    wasn¡¯t specified, everyone could guess who it was referring to.

    Skr: Suffered an injury during filming yesterday. Doctor strongly advised to rest.

    A brief rification on her social media helped to keep the bacsh to a minimum.

    Miss Attention Seeker, huh? How absurd. Just who am I seeking attention from?

    Skr took the doctor¡¯s advice very seriously. After Kate left, except for toilet breaks, she did not leave

    her bed at all.

    ¡­

    She always checked her phone for messages from Tobias first thing in the morning. Taking out her

    phone from underneath her pillow, she only saw a single WhatsApp notification.

 Chapter 402

    Chapter 402

    Skr initially thought that it was Tobias checking in as usual. Sometimes when he was busy, he would

    still send her a short message. Truth be told, Skr was rather impressed with his consistency.

    Upon seeing that it was from Penelope, she tapped to listen to her voice message.

    ¡°Skr, can you lend me some more money? I don¡¯t have enough for my prenatal checkup.¡± Penelope

    asked for money early in the morning.

    Skr sensed something wrong from her voice. Even through the phone, she could feel Penelope¡¯s

    depression.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Brayden? Hasn¡¯t he given you money?¡± Skr sent back a voice message.

    Penelope¡¯s reply only came after a few minutes. ¡°No. He told me to settle it on my own because he¡¯s too

    busy with worktely.¡±

    Skr resented irresponsible men like Brayden who used work as an excuse.

    Although Penelope was pregnant with Brayden¡¯s child, she wasn¡¯t given a proper title. But then again,

    she insisted on conceiving his child through deception. Thus, she had no one but herself to me.

    ording to Brayden¡¯s financial standing, it wasn¡¯t too far-fetched to say that he could afford to buy the

    entire hospital, let alone pay for a prenatal checkup. Yet, he was brushing off Penelope.

    ¡°How much do you need? I¡¯ll transfer the money to you,¡± Skr replied.

    After Penelope informed her of the amount, Skr immediately wired the money to her. Well before she

    even started work for the day, a few thousand was already deducted from her bank ount.

    People often said to help the needy and not the poor. Penelope was both.

    After she got pregnant, she stopped working and ruthlessly severed ties with her family. Hence, she had

    zero ie.

    Skr did not expect Penelope to pay her back either. They had been friends for many years, and

    Penelope had always shared her things with Skr during their schooling days.

    Most importantly, she never minded that Skr¡¯s mother was a murderer. Thus, Skr saw this as a

    chance to repay her kindness.

    After transferring the money, she chatted a while with Penelope, telling her that she would visit in a few

    days since the filming crew was given a short break.

    By then, it was probably close to Penelope¡¯s due date.

    Skr only went to the set in the afternoon to get her makeup done as they were shooting a night scene.

    Largo came up to show his concern for her as soon as he arrived on the set, asking if she was feeling

    better.

    Skr had almost forgotten that she was still injured. Upon Largo¡¯s question, her mind registered the dull

    pain in her back which was covered with ointment.

    There was no denying that she got lucky this time because she could very well have lost her life.

    ¡°I¡¯m feeling much better. Thank you for your concern, Mr. Zeller.¡± As usual, Skr was polite and

    respectful toward Largo because this was the best way to keep him at a distance.

    Avery, however, did not seem to have any regard for professionalism. Skr heard the crew members

    having an animated discussion about Avery getting drunk the previous night and leaving with Largoter

    on.

    Not only that, the two of them seemed to have even stayed in the same room for the entire night.

    Needless to say, a man and a woman alone in a confined space while being under the influence of

    alcohol had everyone¡¯s imagination running wild.

    Skr squinted slightly, noticing the faint nail marks on Largo¡¯s neck, seemingly left by a woman.

    Cassidy made an appearance after changing into her costume. She was so thin that a kite could

    probably lift her into the sky.

    She was d in a bright yellow tulle dress with a turquoise lining. Herplexion did not look very good

    even with makeup on. Perhaps it was because of the overly white foundation.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Skr heard that Cassidy starved herself for the sake of losing weight. Right then, she noticed how the

    latter swayed on her feet slightly as she walked.

    Still, she had many die-hard fans who said that she was the most beautiful girl in the entertainment

    industry.

    Skr greeted Cassidy warmly, but thetter merely hummed a response and avoided eye contact.

    Skr¡¯s outstretched hand hung awkwardly midair, and she did not know if she should withdraw it or hold

    it there.

    A few secondster, she retracted her hand with pursed lips. By then, Cassidy and her manager had

    already walked away.

    Skr changed into a flowy white to pink ombre chiffon dress. Its waistline and hemline were adorned

    with beautiful roses, giving the entire dress a dreamy vibe.

    Several crew members were busy sprinkling flower petals all over the ground from an elevated tform.

    Her first scene that night was a dance scene with Largo.

    Thick trees surrounded a wooden cottage. A short distance away was a bridge over a river. The moon

    was shining brightly that night, its silvery rays illuminating the set.

    This scene was absolutely mesmerizing.

    The moment Josiah shouted action, Largo ced his hands on Skr¡¯s waist, gazing longingly at her.

 Chapter 403

    Chapter 403

    Skr raised her eyes to meet his, and she found herself entranced by his gentle gaze.

    The camera captured this scene beautifully, and Skr¡¯s side profile was so alluring she looked like an

    enchantress.

    As Saoirse, Skrmented, ¡°Master, I don¡¯t want to leave the mountain. Can I stay by your side and

    serve you forever as your disciple?¡±

    Largo as Titus replied, ¡°Go and fulfill your purpose. You said you wanted to avenge your mother and find

    your father¡­ Can you really live in peace on this mountain for the rest of your life? All good things must

    come to an end. I can¡¯t possibly be with you forever.¡±

    Skr was slightly dazed upon hearing this line because Tobias had also said something simr before.

    Following her momentary hesitation was Josiah¡¯s loud voice shouting cut.

    Skr shot Largo an apologetic smile, feeling bad that he had to retake this scene because of her.

    Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

    Largo¡¯s smile was as gentle as the spring breeze. ¡°It¡¯s okay. You did really well. In fact, you¡¯re the most

    versatile actress I¡¯ve worked with so far.¡±

    The makeup artist scurried over to touch up Skr¡¯s makeup right then. Tilting her head to the sky,

    Skr looked at the moon and marveled, ¡°The moon is so beautiful tonight.¡±

    Largo broke into another smile. ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s also romantic.¡±

    Skr asked Hannah to bring over her phone, nning to send a voice message to a certain someone.

    Right then, she had no idea where he was or what he was doing.

    ¡°Look up. The moon is really beautiful tonight.¡±

    Soon came Tobias¡¯ deep voice. ¡°I guess so. I¡¯m in a meeting. I¡¯ll talk to youter.¡±

    Skr lost the desire to continue the conversation after that. She did not even know what she was

    expecting.

    Tobias picked up the cup of coffee on his desk and looked out the magnificent floor-to-ceiling windows

    even as his mind processed stringsplicated digits. He couldn¡¯t remember how many years it had

    been since he had the time to gaze at the sky.

    Thinking of this, he sent Skr a WhatsApp message.

    Tobias: It really is beautiful. I miss you.

    After ving away on the set for a few days, it was finally time for a short break. Wanting to give Tobias a

    surprise, Skr did not inform him about this.

    The first thing she did was check up on Penelope at her rented house, luggage and all.

    Skr never stopped worrying about her. Recently, Penelope had been updating her social media

    caption very frequently.

    In fact, she had probably used up all the typical emo quotes. One of them went something along the lines

    of ¡°love feels like a freight train running right over your heart¡±.

    When Penelope, who was wearing a maternity dress, opened the door and saw Skr, a smile finally

    appeared on her face that was lined with exhaustion.

    ¡°What took you so long? I missed you to death!¡±

    Skr took out the supplements she bought for Penelope, cing them on the coffee table before

    exining, ¡°I only just got some time off from filming. I literally came directly from the set. It¡¯s a good

    thing we have the whole week off. Do you still have enough money?¡±

    Feeling emotional, Penelope¡¯s eyes stung and she sniffled slightly, blinking back her tears. Skr is still

    the one who cares most about me.

    After a while, she rasped out, ¡°Yes, I still have enough. I¡¯ve paid the hospital fees with the money you

    gave me. Can you do me a favor, Skr? I can¡¯t get in touch with Brayden now. Can you ask Tobias to

    tell him to answer my calls?¡±

    Skr frowned at the thought of all the trouble Penelope had to go through just to get ahold of her child¡¯s

    father. In a voiceden with disappointment, she said, ¡°Why bother? But it¡¯s toote to say anything

    now.¡± Heaving a sigh, she continued, ¡°Can¡¯t you see, Penelope? Brayden doesn¡¯t want to be responsible

    for you at all. You might as well put a stop to it while you still can and raise the child alone.¡±

    Penelope held her belly while cautiously shuffling further into the house. Then, she gingerly lowered

    herself onto the couch before countering with a displeased pout, ¡°Why should I put a stop to it? The child

    isn¡¯t born yet. That¡¯s why he doesn¡¯t feel anything yet, but it¡¯ll be a different story once the child is born.

    Brayden is probably really busy with work. That¡¯s why he doesn¡¯t have time for me.¡±

 Chapter 404

    Chapter 404

    Skr¡¯s face seemed to be covered with ayer of frost. ¡°Why do you keep lying to yourself? Why put

    yourself through this torture? Is he so busy that he can¡¯t even spare one minute to return your calls or

    stop by on the way ande up to check on you? It doesn¡¯t make sense.¡±

    As if cing all her hope in Skr, Penelope grabbed her hands and pleaded in a desperate voice, ¡°You

    have to help me, Skr. Ask Tobias to tell Brayden that I¡¯m due any time now. How can the father not be

    the first person my child sees after being born?¡±

    Skr¡¯s heart ached upon seeing the state Penelope was in. ¡°Even if hees, the first person the child

    would see is the doctor in charge of your delivery.¡±

    In the end, she begrudgingly agreed to Penelope¡¯s simple request, but after some deliberation, thetter

    had a change of heart.

    Struggling to her feet, she demanded, ¡°You know what? Take me to see Brayden now.¡±

    ¡­

    Penelopepletely messed up the surprise Skr was nning to give Tobias as she was forced to

    call and tell him that she was in hispany¡¯s basement parking.

    Then, she apanied Penelope to wait in the car. Thetter seemed restless, her eyes darting around

    the ce as though she was expecting Brayden to appear at any second.

    After a while, a figure in a body-hugging V-neck business suit with styled hair and professional makeup

    showed up.

    Skr rolled down the car window to greet Susan, Tobias¡¯ most trusted and capable secretary.

    She could still remember that the first time she met Susan was at her university dormitory. At that time,

    this woman had walked with so much swagger even the wind seemed to still in her presence.

    Susan spoke courteously, ¡°Ms. Jones, Mr. Ford asked you to go right up to his office. He¡¯s still in a

    meeting and will probably be done after half an hour or so.¡±

    With that, Skr opened the door to get down, then supported Penelope who had difficulty walking due

    to her protruding belly.

    Examining her with an inquiring gaze, Susan asked, ¡°And this is?¡±

    Her tone and question clearly implied that Tobias only asked for Skr to go up.

    ¡°This is my friend. We came together,¡± Skr exined.

    Feigning ignorance, she held Penelope¡¯s hand and strode in.

    Instead of going in through the lobby and drawing attention to herself, Skr led Penelope to the private

    elevator in the basement parking which ascended straight to the highest floor.

    As Penelope¡¯s swollen feet sank into the soft, thick carpet with every careful step she took, her gaze

    darted everywhere in awe.

    This was her first time visiting Ford Group. Thus, she was instantly attracted by the luxurious interior

    design. Even the air had an expensive fragrance to it.

    Only when Susan pushed open the door to Tobias¡¯ office did Skr realize that there were quite a lot of

    people inside. It turned out that the meeting wasn¡¯t being held in the conference room.

    Tobias was sitting quietly behind his desk, but he exuded amanding aura nheless, so much so

    that everyone present was afraid to even breathe too loudly.

    Skr caught him massaging his temples after cing the document in his hand to the side. His eyes

    turned constantly flickered, as though he was immersed in deep thought.

    Upon noticing Skr¡¯s presence, the chill in his eyes diminished significantly. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me you

    wereing back? I would¡¯ve allocated some time to go pick you up.¡±

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr did not hope for Tobias to pick her up. Besides, he said so himself. He had to specifically allocate

    time for that. Of course she had to be smart about it, lest she wasted Tobias¡¯ time.

    At once, everyone¡¯s gazended on Skr. Among them, only two people did not know who she was,

    but the rest immediately recognized her.

 Chapter 405

    Chapter 405

    Tobias ended the meeting ahead of time, sweeping his cold gaze across everyone as he signaled for

    them to leave.

    When they left, they made sure to smile and nod at Skr, not missing the chance to get acquainted with

    her.

    As soon as they disentangled themselves from the somber atmosphere in the office, they began

    discussing animatedly among themselves.

    ¡°No wonder Skr Jones became so poprtely. It¡¯s because she¡¯s Mr. Ford¡¯s woman.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe Mr. Ford would get together with an actress, but I have to admit, Skr is absolutely

    gorgeous. Mr. Ford is a red-blooded man, after all, so I can¡¯t say I me him.¡±

    As they were talking quite close to the door, Skr, who stood on the other side of it, could hear bits and

    pieces of their conversation. Upon hearing this, she felt her ears burn up.

    Tobias nced fleetingly at Penelope before asking in a nd voice, ¡°Why did you bring your friend

    here? With such a big belly, she should be resting at home instead. What if her water breaks? I doubt

    any of us would know how to deliver a baby.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here to ask for your help, Mr. Ford,¡± Penelope answered before Skr could, the resolve in her voice

    a stark contrast to her haggard appearance.

    After Penelope stated her purpose foring here, she seemed to be slightly out of breath, probably

    because pregnant women were slightly hypoxic during theirst trimester.

    Upon realizing that Tobias¡¯ gaze had been on Skr the whole time, Penelope was filled with envy.

    Brayden had never looked at her like that.Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    She wasn¡¯t even sure if Tobias had heard what she said with the way he was staring at Skr.

    Just when she was about to repeat her statement, the corners of Tobias¡¯ mouth lifted imperceptibly and

    he said, ¡°Since you can¡¯t get in touch with him, it means he doesn¡¯t want to get in touch with you, so why

    waste your time?¡±

    Penelope stared at him with determination. ¡°That¡¯s not true. He definitely has his reasons for doing this.¡±

    Tobias shifted his gaze back to gauge Skr¡¯s expression, wanting to know her thoughts on this. After

    all, she was the one who brought Penelope here.

    Wanting to speak privately with Tobias, Skr made up an excuse to get away from Penelope. ¡°I need to

    use the washroom.¡±

    However, Tobias remained seated even when she shot him a meaningful wink.

    A crease appeared between his brows. ¡°What? Don¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t how to take off your own pants?¡±

    Skr felt exasperated. After all this time, how can we still have zero chemistry?

    Clearing her throat, she continued, ¡°My hand is injured, so yeah, it¡¯s quite difficult for me to take off my

    pants.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll help you!¡± Penelope chirped.

    Skr pinched her nose bridge, utterly speechless.

    Fortunately, Tobias got up and followed Skr to the bathroom in his office. After he came in, Skr

    circled around him to lock the door from inside.

    Tobias grasped her chin with a mischievous smile. ¡°Your friend is still here. Are you that eager to get it on

    with me? Be patient. I¡¯ll give it to you tonight.¡±

    ¡°Get your head out of the gutter. I¡¯m not that desperate. Can you help Penelope, please? She¡¯ll never

    give up unless Brayden makes things clear.¡±

    Tobias released her, then leaned against the sink and folded his arms across his chest. ¡°Even if he

    makes things clear, would your friend ept it? Just don¡¯t bother about this matter. Let her reap what

    she sowed.¡±

    Skr knitted her brows together. ¡°So, does this mean you¡¯re not going to make the call?¡±

    Tobias shrugged. ¡°Yeah. Why should I? It¡¯s not like this has anything to do with me.¡±

    Skr initially thought that he would agree to grant this small favor. To her chagrin, he was so adamant,

    there was no room left for discussion.

    Faced with this predicament, she started to get anxious. ¡°I¡¯ve already brought her here. If you refuse to

    help with this, what would that make me?¡±

    Tobias picked up a white petal on the sink top with his slender fingers, studying it as he replied, ¡°I wasn¡¯t

    the one who brought her here. She ruined someone¡¯s marriage and got herself knocked up, so tell me,

    which part of her deserves my help?¡±

    Skr looked away to stare at the vase on the sink top, noticing that the jasmine flowers in it had

    withered.

    The corners of her mouth twitched slightly. ¡°Funny, I never noticed when you¡¯d be so righteous. I

    understand where you¡¯reing from, but what happened can¡¯t be undone.¡±

 Chapter 406

    Chapter 406

    Tobias frowned slightly. ¡°If you want my help, you¡¯ll have to give me something equal in exchange.¡±

    Like a cat that had gotten her tail stepped on, Skr¡¯s hackles rose and she immediately put her arms

    akimbo. ¡°Well, if you insist. You can hit me or strangle me tonight. Just do as you wish.¡±

    Skr acted like she was ready to face a death sentence, and Tobias found it ratherical.

    The amusement gleaming in his eyes became more pronounced as he replied, ¡°How could I bear to hit

    you or strangle you? At most, I¡¯ll p your a** a couple of times.¡±

    ¡­

    Meanwhile, Penelope stood alone in the office. After looking around for a while, her gaze fell on a name

    card on Tobias¡¯ desk.

    Picking it up, she saw that printed on it was the name ¡°Lina Queen¡±, along with her phone number.

    Penelope ced it back on the desk with a look of disdain. Even masseurs have name cards now, huh?

    Thest time she saw Lina was during the afternoon tea session. After that, they did not contact each

    other anymore.

    She wasn¡¯t even familiar with Lina in the first ce and only agreed for Skr¡¯s sake.

    Why does Tobias even have her name card? Don¡¯t tell me he visited her for a massage again?

    Just when she positioned the card back to its original spot, an unpleasant voice asserted from behind,

    ¡°Not just anyone is allowed to touch Mr. Ford¡¯s things.¡±

    Penelope jolted in shock and her hand flew to her chest as her heart pounded against her ribcage.

    Spinning around on her heels, she realized that it was Skr¡¯s cousin, Eva.

    Penelope and Skr had been friends for a very long time. Hence, she knew that thetter and her

    cousin had never been on good terms.

    Eva would never miss the chance to gloat in front of Skr, always seizing the high ground

    Although Penelope had put on weight during her pregnancy, Eva recognized her at first nce. Right

    then, the former was holding her protruding belly with one hand on her hip.

    ¡°When did you get pregnant?¡± Eva scanned Penelope up and down.

    Penelope had wanted to ask her since when she had started working here. She constantly looks down

    on Skr, but here she is, working for Tobias?

    ¡°Do I need to report to you about my pregnancy? What? You wanna be my child¡¯s godmother or

    something?¡±

    Faced with Penelope¡¯s hostility, Eva scoffed in contempt and countered, ¡°Acting all high and mighty,

    aren¡¯t you? Well, you look like sh*t.¡±

    Skr and Tobias emerged from the bathroom, one behind the other. Almost instantly, they sensed the

    tension between Eva, who had a folder hugged to her chest, and Penelope, who was supporting her

    belly.

    Right then, Penelope couldn¡¯t be bothered about Eva and went over to grab Skr¡¯s arm. ¡°You were

    gone for so long. Did you guys call Brayden?¡±

    Upon hearing Penelope mention Brayden¡¯s name, Eva¡¯s brows drew together. Brayden just came here to

    visit Tobias yesterday.

    He even asked for my number before he left, and we chatted well into the night.

    With a nagging suspicion in her mind, she rudely interrupted, ¡°Does the child in your belly belong to

    Brayden?¡±

    Skr rushed to answer, ¡°No. When are you going to break your habit of believing what other people

    say, Eva?¡± Her behavior only served to show that she was trying to cover up the truth.

    As Tobias watched in silence, he found that these three women made a rather good drama.

    He hadn¡¯t gotten the chance to tell Skr that Brayden even told him he found Eva pretty the previous

    day, which was also part of the reason why he knew that calling Brayden would be useless.

    Eva¡¯s expression changed subtly, but since she couldn¡¯t make a scene when Tobias was around, she

    schooled her features and stated, ¡°Mr. Ford, I¡¯ve ced all the documents you asked for on your desk. If

    there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯ll take my leave first.¡±

    ¡°You have dark circles. Didn¡¯t sleep wellst night?¡± Tobias¡¯ question stopped her in her tracks.

    Eva was over the moon to receive Tobias¡¯ concern, in front of Skr at that. Bowing her head shyly, she

    replied, ¡°I worked untiltest night. Thank you for your concern, Mr. Ford.¡±

    Skr pinned Tobias a hard stare, as though she was going to skin him alive.

    ¡­

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

 Chapter 407

    Chapter 407

    Later on, Penelope was sent away by a few words from Tobias as he waszy to even entertain her.

    In the end, he still did not make the call. Skr realized that she couldn¡¯t force him to do something he

    did not like at all. She wasn¡¯t that important to him.

    Skr wore a sulky look on her face throughout the journey home.

    ¡°Wanna go for a drink? I need to unwind. Drink with me, hmm?¡± Tobias asked her, seemingly oblivious to

    her emotions.

    Skr was still seething over the fact that Tobias managed to notice Eva¡¯s dark circles but did not even

    think about asking how she was doing recently.

    Absence makes the heart grow fonder, huh? Well, I beg to differ!

    Pursing her lips unhappily, she snapped, ¡°No, thank you. I have dark circles because I didn¡¯t sleep well. I

    want to go home and rest.¡±

    Tobias turned a deaf ear to Skr¡¯s refusal, and ordered the driver, ¡°Find a barbeque restaurant with

    fewer people. Ms. Jones isn¡¯t a fan of fine dining.¡±

    The driver was quite well-informed as he easily found a restaurant located in a more secluded area.

    Thus, Skr got down without needing to wear a mask or cap.

    Before entering the barbeque restaurant, Tobias wrapped an arm around her waist and pressed his lips

    against her ear to whisper in a gentle voice, ¡°A little alcohol can help set the mood. You should drink

    more to loosen up forter at night.¡±

    Skr stepped away and broke free from his grip. ¡°Since you didn¡¯t agree to help me find Brayden, don¡¯t

    even think about it.¡± With that, she strode purposefully into the restaurant.

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    The owner brought up a few bottles of beer and skewers to their table.

    The bottle opener provided by the restaurant was slightly faulty. Thus, after several failed attempts,

    Tobias simply used his palm and the edge of the table to open the beer bottle cap.

    Skr gasped when she saw how effortlessly he opened the beer bottle. ¡°Just how much beer have you

    drank to be so experienced?¡±

    Skr deliberately ordered a lot of oysters to annoy Tobias.

    ¡°Make sure you eat more of this. It¡¯s good for your libido,¡± she said in a singsong tone.

    Tobias picked up an oyster and stared at it, but did not seem inclined to eat it.

    Then, he picked up his ss of beer and polished it off before drawling, ¡°Are you seducing me by talking

    about this? I¡¯ve stayed celibate during the two months you were gone, but don¡¯t worry, everything¡¯s still

    functioning very well. You can give it a spin tonight if you don¡¯t believe me. I always save the best for

    you.¡±

    Skr propped her head on her hand andughed upon hearing that. ¡°You could¡¯ve visited me, or maybe

    you didn¡¯t want to. I mean, I already dropped you many hints, yet you acted cluelessly. What else could I

    have done? Beg you?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ was momentarily stunned. He did have time to visit her. He could have, but he didn¡¯t want to.

    Skr was only going to be away for two months, not two years. He felt that since they were adults,

    being apart from each other for a short period of time wasn¡¯t all that umon.

    ¡°I think it¡¯s good for couples to asionally maintain a distance between each other. This way, we won¡¯t

    get sick of being together even after a long time,¡± he justified in a calm voice.

    Skr imitated Tobias, chugging down her ss of beer. Kate would probably kill me if she found out

    about this.

    After drinking, she would usually gain weight and also have a puffy face the next day.

    Being a woman was hard, and being a woman in the entertainment industry was even more so.

    What Tobias said about maintaining a distance from each other stabbed right into her heart, and she

    consecutively downed several sses of beer, wanting to drown out those hurtful words.

    Tobias started to worry when he lost count of how many sses she had downed. Raising his hand, he

    snatched away the ss in her hand and chided, ¡°Slow down. You¡¯re a pain in the a** when you¡¯re

    drunk, you know?¡±

    Without realizing it, Skr had finished three bottles of beer all on her own.

    Tobias checked one of the bottles and noticed that the alcohol concentration was fourteen percent

    instead of the usual five percent.

    He lifted his hand to call the waiter over. ¡°Do you have the normal five percent beer?¡±

 Chapter 408

    Chapter 408

    Upon hearing his question, the waiter promoted enthusiastically, ¡°Our boss only provides the best. In this

    case, it¡¯s the Firestone Walker Parab, an imperial stout with intense vors of ck cherry, dark

    chocte, and roasted coffee. This Parab beer pours with ck color and has a silky finish and sweet

    profile.¡±

    Tobias waved him away and nced at Skr whose face had already gone red. She plonked her ss

    heavily on the table, the action causing the beer to slosh over the rim.

    ¡°Tobias Ford, you¡¯re a jerk. You know that? It¡¯s bad enough that you always treat me like a ragged doll,

    but aren¡¯t you a man? Out of thirty days in a month, it¡¯s like you¡¯re in a bad mood ny percent of the

    time. That¡¯s even worse than a PMS-ing woman. But you know what? It¡¯s fine. I understand that you

    don¡¯t wanna fullymit. That¡¯s why you string me along like that. You said you don¡¯t wanna get married

    and don¡¯t like kids. I¡¯m fine with all that. Really. But aren¡¯t you worried that I might kick you to the curb

    one day if you keep taking me for granted like that? I¡¯ve been very patient with you, you know? But just

    you wait. One day, when I¡¯ve finally had enough of this, I won¡¯t let you walk all over me like that

    anymore.¡±

    Skr was slumped in her seat as she used the liquid courage coursing through her veins to pour out all

    her pent-up frustrations, forcing Tobias to listen.

    Even after Tobias finished the remaining beer in Skr¡¯s ss, she grabbed the empty ss, ced it

    against his lips, and tilted her head back, unwilling to waste even a single drop.

    ¡°It seems like you¡¯re very dissatisfied with me. What else are you dissatisfied with? Say it all out while

    you still can.¡±

    By then, Skr was already sprawled on the table. ¡°Oh, there¡¯s plenty more. Couples call each other

    sweet things like baby or darling. But you? You always force me to call you daddy in bed.¡±

    Tobias closed his eyes and took a deep, calming breath because Skr had spoken in a loud voice, as

    though she was afraid the other patrons couldn¡¯t hear her.

    Opening his eyes, he denied in a t voice, ¡°You must¡¯ve confused me with someone else. I¡¯ve never

    made such a dirty request.¡±

    Skr snapped in an agitated voice, ¡°Who said you could speak? Just shush it and listen to me. You¡¯re

    mean, cold, and heartless, and I have zero sense of security being with you. It¡¯s good to maintain a

    distance, you said? Well, screw that. That¡¯s not love. Love is when you can¡¯t stand the thought of being

    away from each other. How can what we¡¯re doing be considered dating? I¡¯m just your f*ck buddy. You

    don¡¯t know sh*t about dating.¡±

    Skr¡¯s voice grew more slurred toward the end.

    Tobias merely listened in silence, not refuting at all.

    He only came to realize just how dissatisfied Skr was with him.

    Skr was already fast asleep, looking like an angel as shey quietly on the table with her longshes

    prettily fanned out against her cheeks.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Compared to the way she was verbally attacking him earlier, Tobias preferred this quiet version of her.

    She was truly a nuisance when drunk and he began to regret taking her out for a drink.

    Despite that, he still couldn¡¯t stop himself from leaning toward Skr until their faces were only a hair¡¯s

    breadth away.

    Then, he ced a chaste kiss on her cheek.

    Instead of bringing her home, he instructed the driver to bring them to a nearby hotel and not to bother

    about how many stars it had, as long as they could sleep there.

    The driver nced through the rearview mirror at Skr who had just been carried into the car, stifling a

    smile. Mr. Ford¡¯s little girlfriend is really a handful.

    Skr was dead drunk. To avoid being photographed, Tobias used a handkerchief to cover her face

    when he carried her down the car.

    When checking into a room, the front desk employee nched in horror, thinking he was carrying a

    corpse over his shoulder.

    Tobias threw Skr onto the bed and loosened a few of his buttons before wiping her face clean with a

    hot, wet towel.

    After he was done, the snowy-white hotel towel came away red and ck due to the lipstick and

    mascara.

    After throwing the towel into the dustbin, Tobias went to the bathroom for a smoke and dialed Brayden¡¯s

    number.

 Chapter 409

    Chapter 409

    Brayden should have just woken up at this hour.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    He yawned as he was still drowsy from his sleep.

    ¡°Penelope wants to see you. She is about to deliver soon. When are you going to give her a straight

    answer?¡± Tobias puffed out a cloud of smoke, turning the venttion fan on in the restroom to prevent the

    smell of his cigarette froming into the room.

    Brayden burst intoughter after listening to his words. ¡°So, is Penelope the royalty now? Since Mr. Ford

    is backing her up, can you please pass her this message? After much deliberation, I¡¯ve decided not to

    keep the baby. Look at how ugly she has be now. She is as fat as a pig. It just made me sick to my

    stomach when I saw her.¡±

    The mes of anger sparkled in Tobias¡¯ eyes. ¡°Tell her that yourself. It¡¯s between you and her. What does

    that have to do with me? By the way, you better stop messing with people around me. You¡¯ve been

    having somete-night talk with Eva every night. Don¡¯t you have anything better to do? It¡¯s so annoying

    to see her having the blues all the time especially when she is working.¡±

    Brayden could feel Tobias¡¯ anger, immediately replied, ¡°We were just chatting. I haven¡¯t taken any action

    yet. Fine, I¡¯ll make myself clear with Penelope.¡±

    ¡°Tobias, I¡¯m thirsty. Get me a ss of water.¡±

    Skr sat up in the dimly lit room. She shouted as she was having a dry throat. Even Brayden could

    hear her clearly.

    ¡°Let¡¯s have a chat.¡± Tobias ced a chair and sat down in front of Skr.

    She had been awake for quite a while. She had a ckoutst night. Hence, her memories were

    scattered. She couldn¡¯t even recall exactly how much she drank, and how did she get back to the hotel.

    Skr looked around the hotel and realized that it was totally not Tobias¡¯ style. It was a normal budget

    hotel. Judging from the pink bedsheet, it should be Home Inn.

    Tobias looked especially stern, as if Skr was on trial in court.

    She avoided his gaze. ¡°What¡¯s there to talk about? Did I act crazyst night? It shouldn¡¯t be. I always

    have a good drunk personality.¡±

    Tobias smirked. Is she not ashamed of saying stuff like that? It¡¯s amazing how little self-awareness she

    has.

    ¡°Are you sure that you were soberst night?¡±

    Skr nodded firmly and repeatedly. ¡°I was just a little tipsy, but I was still conscious.¡±

    She was getting better at lying through her teeth. Her life in the entertainment industry wasn¡¯t that long,

    but she did improve a lot on that.

    ¡°You made a list of allegations against mest night. It seems like you were not drunk talking. Are you

    feeling aggrieved at being with me?¡±

    Subconsciously, Skr clenched her fists tightly. Her mind waspletely nk. I must have said

    something that I shouldn¡¯t have!

    ¡°Not at all. You¡¯re so nice to me. I¡¯ve been constantly getting new scripts because of you. You¡¯ve been

    paving the way for me to a brighter future. Besides, you took me in back then when I was homeless.

    You¡¯re my muse! You¡¯ve discovered my talent. I¡¯ll prove that your choice is right.¡±

    Skr ttered Tobias and winked at him.

    Tobias¡¯ eyes were lifeless. ¡°Stop buttering me up. we should be content with what life gives us. I¡¯ve been

    kind enough to you. Don¡¯t settle for anything if you feel that you¡¯ve been taken advantage of.¡±

    Skr looked strained. It seemed that sugar-coated words were useless to Tobias. She leaned against

    the head of the bed. Indeed, she felt wronged.

    Tobias was probably a narrow-minded guy to be upset at a drunk and defenseless woman.

    It seemed that he was trying to drive Skr to the wall with his words.

    ¡°Are you leaving me?¡± She mustered up her courage and asked.

    Tobias¡¯ thin lips parted and answered, ¡°I won¡¯t be separated from you before you be famous and

    sessful. Didn¡¯t you say you were going to kick me to the curb someday? I¡¯m looking forward to that

    day.¡±

    Skr curled her lips and forced out a smile. In fact, she was just sulking over Tobias. She tended to

    shoot from the lips whenever she was drunk.

    ¡°If I kick you out of my life, would you stille back to me?¡± Skr massaged lightly between her

    eyebrows.

 Chapter 410

    Chapter 410

    Tobias answered determinedly, ¡°I won¡¯t. I¡¯m not turning back. It is what it is. I won¡¯t backslide after a

    breakup.¡±

    Skr had kept that firmly in mind for future reference.

    Tobias must be too confident and egotistical to humble himself in front of any woman.

    Tobias gave her a cold-eyed stare, looking grim. Skr quickly finished up her free breakfast provided by

    the hotel under his eyes.

    ¡°I called Braydenst night. He promised that he will sort things out with your friend.¡±

    Skr immediately stopped touching up her makeup in front of the mirror. Then, she hurriedly covered

    the lid of Chanel foundation powder and put it into her bag.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you were not willing to deal with this kind of nonsense? Your bark is definitely worse than

    your bite.¡± Skr pretended to be a victim after gaining an advantage.

    Tobias said calmly, ¡°I¡¯m having a business rtionship with Brayden. I guess he is considered one of my

    friends.¡±

    As far as Skr knew, Brayden had been telling Penelope that he and Tobias were sworn friends for life

    or death. Why did it sound so different from what Tobias had just said?

    Brayden was only an acquaintance of sorts to Tobias.

    Judging from Tobias¡¯ power and financial ability, she could easily tell who was telling the truth. Brayden

    must be bluffing.

    Skr listened quietly. It was probably the first time Tobias had revealed something about other people.

    He had always been tight-lipped. It was almost impossible to draw anything out of him.

    ¡°I¡¯ve brought this up earlier. Being together with him just won¡¯t end well. People always say that one can

    be adies¡¯ man without being despicable. But Brayden is a despicable yboy. He can easily date any

    woman that he wants. Your cousin is likely to be his next target.¡±

    Skr was dumbfounded upon hearing that. Penelope was looking forward to living happily ever after

    with her family of three. On the other side, Brayden was interested in Eva now.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Eva really enjoyed unting. When they were young, she always bragged about her grades by shing

    her certificates from the semester in front of the rtives during festive seasons. At the same time, she

    would pretended to be worried about Skr¡¯s bad grades.

    After graduation, she always loved to unt her abilities and resources. She was feeling extremely smug

    and proud of her boyfriend that she brought over previously.

    However, everything had changed since Eva joined Ford Group. She set her bar higher and became

    pickier about men. Immediately, she dumped her boyfriend and got back to single. She thought she was

    out of his league now.

    She was overly vain. As long as Brayden was willing to spend money on her, it was hard to say that Eva

    would have the strong willpower to resist the temptation.

    Skr asked, frowning, ¡°He¡¯s been with so many women. Can he handle it?¡±

    Tobias gazed deeply at her. ¡°This has nothing to do with you. He himself should know best.¡±

    Skr had a worried look on her face. She didn¡¯t care much about Eva. In fact, she was worried about

    how Penelope was going to ept it.

    Later, they walked out of the hotel. Last night was such a terrible night for Skr. She spent a night

    together with Tobias at the hotel, but it was without the warmth and romance of reunion. The feeling of a

    bad hangover was killing her.

    Her head still hurt, as if shecked oxygen. Skr pursed her lips and sat on the passenger seats.

    ¡°There¡¯s a dinner tonight. You need to apany me there.¡± When the traffic light turned red, Tobias

    gave a side nce at Skr. She looked too casual in that outfit.

    His mother didn¡¯t like girls who dressed inappropriately. She believed that dressing well is a form of good

    manners.

    On the contrary, Tobias didn¡¯t make so many rules. He just thought it would be better if Skr could

    dress more maturely. She was already youthful-looking. People might think that she was still a student.

    However, that was the truth. Skr was not only a student, but she was also a college dropout.

    Deep down, Skr was reluctant to attend such gatherings.

    Tobias always stood out in a crowd at any banquets.

    Business owners would give anything to be closer to him, even if it was just a word with the CEO of

    Ford Group. They would do anything to get some familiarity with Tobias.

    She asked reluctantly, ¡°What kind of dinner is it? for tonight? Let me know the time, location, and theme.¡±

 Chapter 411

    Chapter 411

    ¡°It¡¯s just a dinner with my mother at my house. As for the theme, it¡¯s not a formal dinner. It¡¯s just a casual

    family dinner.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Skr spat out the water she had swallowed in. She almost coughed her lungs out.

    She tilted her head to the side and spat out a mouthful of water on Tobias¡¯ pants, and it was an awkward

    spot.

    Immediately, Skr took out a tissue from her bag and wiped it hurriedly.

    Tobias grabbed her wrist and stopped her movements. ¡°Stop wiping. You might get yourself into trouble.

    Did you do that on purpose?¡±

    Skr thought Tobias was definitely out of his mind. Is he wired wrong or something? What¡¯s gotten into

    him?

    She was afraid that udia would drug her through the food send her to hell.

    Skr repeatedly asked him for confirmation.

    ¡°Do I have to go? Do I really have to go? I wouldn¡¯t get kicked out, would I? Should I prepare some

    gifts?¡±

    Tobias was clearly annoyed by her questions. Hence, he stopped her mouth with his lips. He gently bit

    her tongue and shut her mouth quickly.

    Tobias was actually taking his chances this time. Skr was the one who pulled the trigger for it as she

    had been saying things about a sense of security all the time.

    Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    How to make her feel more secure? Meeting the parents? Acknowledging her existence? Tobias didn¡¯t

    know what exactly Skr wanted either.

    He remembered it wasn¡¯t his first time telling Skr that the sense of security was self-growth, not given

    by others. One must be stronger and increase self-confidence in order to feel secure.

    However, Skr didn¡¯t understand the meaning. Of course Tobias wouldn¡¯t make things difficult for her.

    Perhaps, her family of origin had a huge impact on her. She had been yearning for love and warmth.

    Few days ago, Sheldon introduced Winnie to udia.

    Surprisingly, she behaved uncharacteristically. She didn¡¯t care much about Winnie¡¯s background nor her

    job. Instead, she liked Winnie a lot.

    In her opinion, Winnie was such a thoughtful and understanding girl despite being young. She was the

    one who earned a living for her family. A child from a poor family often matured at an early age. She felt

    sorry to see Winnie working so hard at this age.

    Winnie reminded udia a lot of her younger self. As she spoke, Winnie even felt emotional and wiped

    away her tears. It touched udia¡¯s heart even more to see her that way.

    Besides, she reminded Sheldon to get along well with his girlfriend and not to let her down.

    Tobias was hoping that udia would think it through and ept Skr, or at the very least, not

    behaving strongly against her.

    Skr appeared at the wrong time. udia was suffering from emotional trauma due to Tanya¡¯s incident.

    She was determined that Skr was the homewrecker who destroyed Tobias¡¯ marriage. udia hated

    those who ruined others¡¯ rtionships to her core.

    Tobias was afraid that their unexpected visit was too hard for udia to ept. Therefore, he had

    already given her a shot in the arm by informing her in advance that he was going to bring Skr over for

    dinner.

    Tobias¡¯ intention was clear. He wanted to stop udia from putting Skr in a difficult position anymore.

    udia didn¡¯t say anything.

    Skr¡¯s clothes were scattered all around the floor in her closet. Meanwhile, she took out the eighth

    dress and checked herself in front of the mirror.

    Her skin looked as fair as snow in that ck dress. The hemline was below her knees, simple yet

    elegant without any excessive design, looking ttering on her figure. She matched an emerald ne

    with the dress, which brought out the maturity in her.

    Skr looked at herself in the mirror; she looked like a richdy.

    All of a sudden, she thought of udia¡¯s sarcasticments about her, saying that she spent all his

    son¡¯s money on luxury items.

    Without a second thought, she took off the emerald ne and reced it with a cheap pearl

    ne. Nheless, the pearl was perfectly round and beautiful.

    Skr took a deep breath in front of the entrance, holding a cake that she made beforeing over.

    The moment was way more intense than filming the highlight of a movie.

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    Chapter 412

    Tobias gently patted Skr¡¯s head. ¡°What are you afraid of? An ugly daughter-inw will have to face her

    parents-inw sooner orter. Besides, you¡¯re only going to meet mother-inw today. Come on, it¡¯s not

    your first time meeting my mom.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t know much about Tobias¡¯ father as he rarely talked about him. The only information she had

    was Tobias¡¯ father was still alive. He had a daughter and a son, and her daughter was Ingrid, the crazy

    woman.

    Patricia opened the door for them. Skr nodded and smiled at her.

    She was a little surprised to see Winnie behind Patricia.

    The two of them had been ripping on each other maliciously on the inte, and paying verified

    Instagram ount to nder each other. But, on the surface, they still manage to pretend to be polite.

    udia came down from upstairs. She was wearing a dark blue dress, with a hairpin on her hair. She

    didn¡¯t look her age. Obviously, she had been taking good care of her skin.

    Skr wondered if udia had gotten an anti-wrinkle injection before. People would definitely believe

    she was in her fifties.

    Winnie immediately held her arm lovingly as soon as udia got down. From the corner of her eyes, she

    gave Skr a provocative stare.

    ¡°Mrs. Ford, it¡¯s almost dinner time. Today, I¡¯ve prepared pan-seared steak, scalloped potatoes, and grilled

    salmon for you. Sheldon told me that you like to eat fish. I specially learn to cook grilled salmon, thinking

    to impress you with my cooking skill.¡±

    udia rested her hand on the back of Winnie¡¯s hand. ¡°That¡¯s very kind of you. It¡¯s not easy to make

    grilled salmon perfectly. Looks like my son could satisfy his taste buds in the future. How lucky!¡±

    Skr could remember Winnie¡¯s public persona clearly. In a reality show, she presented herself as

    someone who didn¡¯t know how to cook. She was even scared to turn on the stove and ended up

    covering her ears. Bullet screenments flew across the screen.

    Winnie is so adorable.

    Don¡¯t be scared Winnie. I will cook for you for the rest of my life.

    Sob¡­ Winnie, you did a great job.

    Someone who didn¡¯t even know how to turn on the stove knew how to cook grilled salmon. The phony

    b*tch was obviously putting on an act.

    udia didn¡¯t even bother looking at Skr from the moment she entered the house. It was such an

    ufortable feeling to be treated differently.

    However, she felt a little relieved. At least, udia wasn¡¯t overreacting like she how she did before. Back

    then, she couldn¡¯t wait to chase her out anytime.

    There was a total of five people, but only three dishes were on the dining table. It was all prepared by

    Winnie. Besides, the portion was small. It was the first time they officially met the elders. udia¡¯s

    attitude was obvious towards Winnie and Skr.

    Before sitting down, Skr had already noticed that there were only four sets of cutlery on the table.

    Tobias ced his cutlery in front of Skr. Then, udia immediately got Patricia to take out another set

    of cutlery.

    ¡°I thought Ms. Jones is on diet.¡±

    Skr¡¯s brows drew together. How did she know that I¡¯m on diet? Or perhaps it was Winnie who told her

    about it.

    But how could they not prepare her cutlery? Even if she was on diet.

    Skr was very polite. ¡°Mrs. Ford, I¡¯m not intentionally losing weight recently. Girls should take care of

    their bodies. It¡¯s not good to be too skinny, it looks unhealthy.¡±

    Sheldon remained silent until he cut off a slice of the steak and put it in his mouth. He gave Winnie a

    thumbs up and said, ¡°Dear, you cook really well. The steak is very tender.¡±

    Winnie said, ¡°Mrs. Ford, I¡¯ve included lemon juice in my marinade and left it for a few hours to soften the

    steak. So that it wouldn¡¯t be too tough or too chewy for you.¡±

    Skr stood up and took out her handmade mille crepe cake, hoping that udia would show her some

    respect. She said, ¡°Mrs. Ford, I made this dark chocte peanut butter crepe cake. It has dark

    chocte, peanut butter, and whipped cream in between.¡±

    Skr had a talent for cooking. The cake she made looked beautiful. It was even better than those from

    the bakery.

    udia showed an indifferent look at the cake on the table. She didn¡¯t even bother to taste it.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    She twitched her lips. ¡°You really love those fancy things. Do you know how unhygienic it is? Did you

    wear disposable gloves when you were making the cake?¡±

 Chapter 413

    Chapter 413

    Skr was stunned for a few seconds. Then, she nodded. ¡°Yes, I did. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s clean.¡±

    Nobody touched the cake. Winnie even covered her nose and said in an exaggerated tone, ¡°Whipped

    cream is bad for our health. It contains too much saturated fat. Mrs. Ford, it¡¯s too greasy and sweet for

    you.¡±

    Tobias cut out a piece of the cake and put it on his te. Otherwise, Skr¡¯s effort would go to waste.

    udia refused to taste it. She imed that she didn¡¯t eat cake.

    Finally, Tobias couldn¡¯t help but say, ¡°Mom, are we still going to have dinner together? I respected you as

    my mom. That¡¯s why I brought Skr over today. But, don¡¯t you think respect is mutual?¡±

    Skr remained silent. All she had to do at the moment was to stay quiet.

    She was in a disadvantaged position. In that case, silence is more eloquent than words. udia would

    probably be annoyed if she said too much.

    Winnie hurriedly pretended to be kind and said, ¡°Mrs. Ford, Skr is a very kind person. She¡¯s always

    been down-to-earth and friendly all the time. Besides, she is ambitious when ites to her career. She

    is even cast as the female lead in a lot of popr movies and dramas recently. Many actors would give

    anything to work together with Skr. She has fascinated a lot of homebodies with her beauty. Recently,

    she has been chosen as a goddess to men of all ages with the highest votes.¡±

    udia looked at her indifferently and said, ¡°Someone is enjoying the fruit of other¡¯sbor. How could

    she not be sessful with the help of Tobias? The entertainment industry is frivolous. The circle itself is

    messy, dirty, andplicated. Do you enjoy being popr among so many men? Is that really

    something to be proud of?¡±

    Skr was at a loss for words throughout the dinner. However, she answered politely, ¡°I¡¯m very grateful

    for what Tobias has done for me. I wouldn¡¯t havee so far if it wasn¡¯t for him. There are all kinds of

    different people in every industry. Most importantly, we must remain unfazed. My grandma always

    teaches me to keep my feet on the ground. Apart from career, we should also take our rtionship

    seriously. In the blink of an eye, I¡¯ve been together with Tobias for almost two years. How time flies.¡±

    Skr reminded udia of how long she had been with her son.

    It had been almost two years. And yet, they still had not made a clean break.

    udia understood clearly that Tobias had fallen head over heels for this vixen. He was determined to

    be with Skr no matter what.

    Skr remained her cool and spoke calmly. She was indeed soft on the outside but tough on the inside.

    Tobias let out a sigh. ¡°I bring Skr over today to let her familiarize herself here. After all, we are going to

    meet each other quite often in the future. Mom, please don¡¯t put her in a difficult position. It would be

    embarrassing if the outsiders found out about it.¡±

    Reputation meant everything to udia. In addition, she didn¡¯t want to be on bad terms with Tobias as

    their rtionship had just gotten bettertely. Therefore, she had no choice but to turn a blind eye.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Skr took a mouthful of grilled salmon and casually said, ¡°Winnie, you¡¯re really good at cooking. The

    salmon tastes exactly the same as Breeze Bar and Grill. They always score their salmon by cutting three

    shallow shes through the skin. That is their specialty. Did you learn that from them too?¡±

    Winnie gave Sheldon a dirty look, grumbling in her heart that he didn¡¯t even know how to order takeout.

    Tobias had brought Skr to Breeze Bar and Grill several times. It was not too far from there. Tobias

    also mentioned before that their salmon was udia¡¯s favorite.

    Sheldon immediately covered for Winnie, ¡°Winnie knew that mom loves dishes from Breeze Bar and

    Grill. So, she purposely visited and learned for a week. Their chef personally taught her their specialty.¡±

    Skr smiled, looking innocent. ¡°Oh really? I¡¯ll pay a visit too. I¡¯m going to cook it for Mrs. Ford in the

    future. But I¡¯m not as smart as Winnie. She only took a week to master the skill. It tastes exactly the

    same.¡±

    Winnie clenched her fists tightly under the table. Skr was obviously trying to humiliate her in front of

    everyone.

    udia was just taking a bite of the salmon. She gave Winnie a knowing look and spat out the salmon

    on the napkin. A look of displeasure crossed her face, but she didn¡¯t say a word.

 Chapter 414

    Chapter 414

    Winnie was on pins and needles. She thought everything was perfectly nned and under control. But

    little did she know, Skr was such an expert when it came to food. She had such a discerning pte.

    How could she even know that? Her sense of smell is as good as a dog¡¯s.

    After dinner, Tobias let the housekeeper cut the cake into few pieces. Skr put the te in front of

    udia.

    She didn¡¯t insist on forcing udia to eat the cake. Anyway, she had shown her sincerity.

    udia pointed at the sofa opposite her. ¡°Have a seat.¡± She acted like a queen who was issuing an

    order.

    Skr did as she was told respectfully. She sat upright, resting her feet firmly on the ground and both

    feet close to each other. She didn¡¯t seem overcautious.

    She put every theory she learned from her lessons into practice.

    Tobias was about to sit down as he was afraid that udia would make things difficult for Skr. Before

    he could sit down, Skr purposely gave him a nudge and smiled. ¡°Mrs. Ford and I are having some

    women talk. What are you doing here?¡±

    She could see from udia¡¯s eyes that she didn¡¯t want Tobias to be there.

    Skr simply sent Tobias away with some random excuses.

    Before he walked away, he caressed her hair gently. His eyes were full of affection. udia had only

    seen that kind of gaze when Tobias was looking at Idania.

    Speaking of Idania, udia heard that she was back recently. She was an executive president of a

    foreignpany. Back then, udia didn¡¯t like Idania very much.

    She disliked Idania for another reason. She had different feelings towards Skr. Women knew women

    better.

    Idania was a scheming one. She looked soft and weak on the outside, but her gaze was ruthless and

    tough. udia could never forget that look.

    At that time, the Fords weren¡¯t as good as they were today. Ford Group was not that sessful either

    back then. Idania once revealed to udia from their conversation that she wanted to take over Ford

    Group after their marriage.

    udia sized Skr up from head to toe. She admitted that Skr was naturally beautiful. How could a

    man even resist a pretty woman like her? ¡°Do you know the reason why I don¡¯t like you?¡±

    She nodded her head. ¡°I know, Mrs. Ford. I understand that you don¡¯t actually care much about my

    family background. You thought it was me who ruined Tobias¡¯ marriage. In fact, I have my own reasons

    and it wasn¡¯t that easy for me to tell. I¡¯m not as bad as you think. My parents got divorced because of the

    other woman. Since then, my father left my mother and I behind. I never have the chance to experience

    the feeling of being loved by a mother or a father. Therefore, I won¡¯t do something that is against my

    conscience.¡±

    Skr could only defend herself by telling her history. She could not be possibly telling udia that it

    was Tobias who pushed her to the corner. She had no other choice but topromise.

    udia knew that much about her background. She pinched the bridge of her nose and replied weakly,

    ¡°You¡¯ve already reminded me about being together with my son for quite a long time. If I were to forcibly

    break you guys apart, it would only make me an immature and inconsiderate parent. However, even if I

    don¡¯t object to your rtionship, that doesn¡¯t mean I can ept that willingly.¡±

    Skr was relieved to hear that. It was such a load off her mind. Nothing was worse than udia being

    furious and iming to cut off all ties with Tobias.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    She smiled at her. ¡°Mrs. Ford, I don¡¯t know how to make a promise either. I really like Tobias a lot. I¡¯m

    willing to give my everything for him. But who knows what the future holds? Anyway, I¡¯m just a person

    who stays by his side and keeps himpany. He is a lonely soul. He doesn¡¯t let others into his heart.

    To be honest, he is not going to marry me too. All I could do is to be by his side silently and make every

    day counts. If he gets tired of me someday, I will leave no matter how painful it is. Hence, Mrs. Ford, you

    don¡¯t have to worry about the Ford family being aughingstock should I marry into the family. There isn¡¯t

    always a happy ending even we love someone with all our heart and soul.¡±

    udia¡¯s gaze gradually darkened. She closed her eyes and smiled bitterly after hearing Skr¡¯sst

    sentence. ¡°It¡¯s always the woman who suffers in a rtionship. You¡¯re going to regret it someday for

    betting on your youth.¡±

 Chapter 415

    Chapter 415

    ¡°Isn¡¯t love about makingpromises?¡±

    ¡°I used to think so too. But I ended up with nothing.¡±

    Thest conversation she had with udia kept reying in Skr¡¯s head on her way back as she

    stared out from the car window.

    Back at udia¡¯s residence, Winnie was helping out at the dining table. ¡°Just leave this job to the maid,¡±

    said udia.

    ¡°That¡¯s alright, Mrs. Ford. I¡¯m used to doing this back home anyway. My parents are in poor health, so I¡¯ll

    try to help them out as much as I can. I¡¯m not sure if I can say the same about Skr though, since she

    just excused herself right after dinner,¡± Winnie remarked casually while wiping the same area on the

    dining table.

    Upon hearing that, udia got one of her maids to fetch a mop for Winnie. ¡°In that case, please also

    mop the floor after you¡¯re done with the dishes. It¡¯s gettingte, I¡¯m going to rest now.¡±

    Despite feeling wildly insulted, Winnie forced a broad grin on her face. ¡°Sure, Mrs. Ford. Good night.¡±

    Having seen through Winnie¡¯s deception, udia¡¯s attitude toward her had taken a sharp turn from being

    warm and cozy to aloof and dismissive.

    Even though Skr had kept quiet about it, udia could easily taste the difference between restaurant-

    bought and a home-cooked grilled salmon.

    She must take me for a fool!

    ¡°Sheldon, make sure you send Ms. Moore back after she¡¯s done mopping the floor. It¡¯s bad for a girl¡¯s

    reputation to stay overnight here.¡±

    ¡°But Mom, it¡¯s quitete now,¡± Sheldon protested.

    udia shot her son a look before she replied coldly, ¡°Just do as I say.¡±

    As soon as udia was out of sight, Winnie pushed the mop into Sheldon¡¯s hand and flew into a rage.

    ¡°Sheldon Ford, you are unbelievable! Didn¡¯t you see how Skr humiliated me in front of everyone just

    now? Your brother was so protective of her, but you just sat there and let them walk all over me?¡±

    Equally annoyed, Sheldon tossed the mop aside and raised his voice, ¡°Well, whose fault is that? Instead

    of having a peaceful dinner like everyone else, you had to keep boasting about your non-existent

    cooking skill. I couldn¡¯t stop you from shooting yourself in the foot, could I?¡±

    Tears started to roll down from Winnie¡¯s cheeks as she was hurt by Sheldon¡¯s tone of voice.

    ¡°I don¡¯t care. You promised that you¡¯ll move in with me. Tobias is basically living with Skr anyway. If he

    can do that, why can¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°They are not living together. Tobias spends most of his time at home and only stays over at Skr¡¯s

    every now and then. For God¡¯s sake, I don¡¯t understand why are you so jealous of that!¡± cried Sheldon.

    While Winnie tried to lower her voice, fearing that someone else might hear them, Sheldon was talking at

    the top of his lungs.

    Upstairs, udia¡¯s expression increasingly darkened as she listened to the couple¡¯s heated exchanges.

    So, she¡¯s trying to take my son away from me. I¡¯ve underestimated this maniptive woman. It seems

    like I have to re-evaluate my way of reading people.

    udia was not against the idea of cohabitating. The reason she had kept Sheldon close to her was

    because she could not trust him to be independent as well as making responsible life decisions.Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    Meanwhile, Tobias¡¯ car pulled up outside Skr¡¯s house. But he made no movement to get out of the car.

    ¡°Goodnight. Off you go if you¡¯re busy,¡± Skr said thoughtfully.

    As she reached for the car door handle, Tobias held onto her hand and said, ¡°Don¡¯t you want me toe

    in? After all, we didn¡¯t get to do anythingst night.¡±

    Skr gave him an innocent look.

    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t remember rejecting youst night. So you can¡¯t me me for that.¡±

 Chapter 416

    Chapter 416

    A glint of delight shed across Tobias¡¯ eyes. ¡°You were so wasted and reeked of alcohol. I couldn¡¯t do

    it.¡±

    Pfft! Skr rolled her eyes and flung his hand away.

    Just as she stepped out of the car, she heard a beeping sound of the car being locked, followed by

    Tobias¡¯ footsteps behind her.

    Skr was exhausted from their dalliance well into the night, hence she was reluctant to get out of the

    bed the next morning when she was woken up by a crying Penelope¡¯s call.

    This rtionship of hers has taken a heavy toll on my well-being as well. Luckily I don¡¯t have that many

    close friends. In fact, Penelope is the only one.

    With one hand holding the phone, Skr struggled to put on some clothes with the other.

    Having slept naked for the whole night, Skr feared she might have caught a cold.

    She med Tobias for not waking her up and reminding her to put on a sleeping robe.

    Still lying next to Skr, Tobias was also awakened by the call. ¡°Just hang up already. It¡¯s so annoying,¡±

    heined in a slumber.

    Skr could not make out what Penelope was trying to say in between her sobs, so she told Penelope

    she would meet her in an hour¡¯s time.

    Tobias pulled Skr back into his arms. His thin lips were now inches away from her neck as he

    breathed into her ear, causing her heart to race uncontrobly.

    Being ady-killer, seducing women was second nature to Tobias.

    Skr had seen some of Tobias¡¯ high school photos and felt a twinge of envy. Some people are just

    blessed with good looks their whole lives.

    Skr turned over so that she was facing him and rested her hand on his chest.

    Tobias had been a punctual person. Since Skr had promised to meet Penelope in an hour¡¯s time, he

    was willing to tweak his working schedule in order to spend more time with her.

    After skipping breakfast, Skr wore a mask and a cap before hopping into Tobias¡¯ car.

    Tobias took a side nce at her but could not bring himself toment that her current poprity did

    not warrant such extremity in masking herself.

    Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    Even inside the car, Skr also covered herself up from top to toe.

    Before long, the pair arrived at Penelope¡¯s rental apartment. Her door was left ajar and they could clearly

    hear noises of an argumenting from the inside.

    When they pushed open the door, they saw Brayden sitting on the sofa. The air in the apartment was

    filled with thick smog.

    Brayden still had a cigarette in his hand while sitting with his legs crossed next to a pregnant Penelope.

    ¡°She¡¯s pregnant with your child. Can¡¯t you be a little more considerate?¡± Tobias reminded.

    Upon hearing that, Brayden threw the cigarette butt into a half-full water bottle.

    Brayden scoffed. ¡°So, you called for backup,¡±, his tone full of condemnation.

    This woman will run andin to Skr about every little thing like a big baby. Just my luck that

    Skr is involved with Tobias.

    ¡°Come now, stop crying. I¡¯m here,¡± Skrforted a puffy-eyed Penelope.

    Agitated, Penelope pointed at Brayden and cried, ¡°He has changed his mind and doesn¡¯t want the baby

    now. He¡¯s leaving me and our baby to our own devices after today! What do I do, Skr? The baby is

    due soon!¡±

    ¡°Pay up,¡± Skr enunciated each word slowly.

 Chapter 417

    Chapter 417

    Brayden stared at Skr, trying to figure out when did he owe her money.

    Skr then showed Brayden all the transaction records on Penelope¡¯s phone.

    ¡°You think you can just walk away from this without paying a cent? Since Penelope started her

    rtionship with you, you have paid nothing other than her rent. You didn¡¯t even bother to concern

    yourself with all the prenatal checkups. If you want to break up with her, we have to start talking about

    repayment.¡±

    ¡°Skr, what are you doing?¡± Feeling embarrassed, Penelope tried to stop Skr.

    ¡°Be quiet. Breaking up with him will finally set you free. But you¡¯ll still need the money to raise your baby.¡±

    Penelope was momentarily stunned by the resolve in Skr¡¯s eyes. She had never seen such a look in

    her friend.

    ¡°Since when have you be so hard up you can¡¯t repay your debt, Mr. Scott?¡± Tobias shot Brayden a

    nce andmented.

    Brayden is not without the financial means to support Penelope. Unless he thinks that Penelope isn¡¯t

    worth his time and he is so eager to invest in a ¡°new project¡±, or he simply doesn¡¯t care anymore.

    Meanwhile, Brayden was still lost in sorting out all the transaction records on Penelope¡¯s phone.

    Tobias nced at the transactions and uttered, ¡°Thirty-two thousand.¡±

    Skr was in awe. She thought Tobias¡¯ speed of calction wasparable to that of a calctor,

    whereas making sense of numbers was never one of her strong suits.

    She was insensitive to numbers and had always struggled with the subject of math since her school

    years.

    Skr then held out Penelope¡¯s phone with her bank ount number disyed on the screen, ready for

    Brayden to transfer the money.

    It turned out that Brayden¡¯s bank ount had a daily transfer limit of twenty thousand dors, hence he

    transferred the maximum amount to Penelope on the spot, and promised to clear the bnce by the next

    day.

    Skr had no doubt that Brayden would do as he said. After all, what was twelve thousand when his

    watch alone cost tens of thousands?

    She felt sorry for Penelope who was now left with a broken heart and a fatherless child.

    Penelope¡¯s eyes were filled with despondent when she turned to Brayden. ¡°Have you ever loved me? As

    long as you still love me, I don¡¯t need you to marry me. All I ask for is that youe to visit me every

    now and then. Can you do that?¡±

    Brayden waspletely unmoved by her plea. ¡°What we had was only a casual fling. We are not suited

    for each other,¡± he replied tly.

    Penelope let out a rueful smile upon hearing those hurtful words.

    After which, Tobias left the apartment with Brayden. Fearing that Penelope might harm herself, Skr

    decided to stay back to keep herpany.

    ¡°Now that this matter has been settled, you should really take a break,¡± Tobias said.

    Brayden sighed in exasperation and said defiantly, ¡°This woman is a nutcase and she sticks to me like a

    gum that I can¡¯t get rid of! I¡¯m just so d that I¡¯m finally free.¡±

    Tobias saw through what Brayden was nning in his head. ¡°She¡¯s just a bit naive and foolish. Skr¡¯s

    friends are not very bright, so please stay away from Eva. She¡¯s Skr¡¯s cousin. I¡¯m really not keen on

    meddling in this kind of business again.¡±

    Brayden has done his research. He knew that the cousins¡¯ rtionship was acrimonious at best. The

    man smirked and said, ¡°Mr. Ford, are you nning to use your advantage to date both cousins? That¡¯s

    saucy.¡±

    A menacing glint shed across Tobias¡¯ eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t you ever say that again to me. Some jokes are off-

    limits.¡±

    Cough! Cough! Brayden cleared his throat without saying another word.

    Just then, Skr called out for Tobias from upstairs and asked him toe back up again as Penelope¡¯s

    stomach was in sudden pain and needed to go to the hospital right away.

    Despite having heard the conversation, Brayden resumed his strides downward without any hesitation.Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

 Chapter 418

    Chapter 418

    Penelope was rushed to the hospital in an ambnce. Her beige-colored pants were already dyed deep

    purple from her blood.

    Once they arrived at the hospital, she was sent into the delivery room.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to contact her family members about this?¡± Sitting on a long bench outside the delivery

    room, Tobias asked nonchntly.

    Skr, on the other hand, had not sat down since their arrival at the hospital. She had been pacing up

    and down the corridor anxiously the whole time.

    ¡°Penelope said that her family had cut ties with her because of that bastard Brayden Scott. I¡¯m not sure if

    they wille over.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s up to them if they want toe over. But if something happens to her in there and you fail to inform

    her family, you will end up in a worse position. Don¡¯t do this to yourself.¡±

    Skr scowled at him. As blunt as he puts it, he has got a point. I haven¡¯t considered all the important

    aspects.

    When Penelope¡¯s parents rushed to the hospital, the doctor hade out with a baby in her hand.

    ¡°Congrattions, it¡¯s a baby girl.¡±

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr was puzzled for a few seconds. But Penelope has been expecting a baby boy from her prenatal

    checkups. This unexpected turn of events is going to upset her.

    Skr looked at the pasty pink baby with a tiny nose and mouth. Her heart melted as the baby¡¯s little

    hands balled up into two small fists.

    While Skr marveled at the arrival of a new life, Tobias was still sitting on the bench with his eyes glued

    to his phone.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to take a look at your baby instead of spending time on the phone?¡± the nurse said

    sarcastically.

    Tobias turned to the nurse and replied coldly, ¡°You¡¯re mistaken. I¡¯m not the father.¡±

    It seems like I have overestimated Tobias¡¯ curiosity. He is not interested at all to know what the baby

    looks like. Maybe he doesn¡¯t even like kids at all.

    Just as Penelope¡¯s bed was pushed through the delivery room¡¯s door, her father, Marvin cried at the top

    of his lungs, ¡°Look at what you¡¯ve done! Have you learned nothing from the school that your family sent

    you to? What are you going to do with a child in your life?¡±

    Feeling exhausted from the childbirth, Penelope was too weak to retort before she was brought into a

    ward.

    Tobias just walked into the room after paying the hospital bill when Marvin charged at him and grabbed

    onto his shirt cor.

    ¡°Get your hands off me! What¡¯s wrong with you?¡±

    Skr hurried over to intervene. ¡°Mr. Quinn, you¡¯ve misunderstood. He is my boyfriend.¡±

    When Marvin finally let go of Tobias, thettery the hospital bill by the headboard and left the ward

    without saying a word.

    Skr chased after him and called out to him in the corridor.

    Tobias stopped in his tracks and turned around.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the troubles my friends have caused you today. Please don¡¯t be mad.¡±

    Tobias drew a deep breath and replied, ¡°You¡¯ve done everything you can. You can stay back to look after

    Penelope. I¡¯m heading back to the office.¡±

    Skr was crestfallen. Knowing that Tobias did not like to meddle in other people¡¯s matters, she felt bad

    for having dragged him into this mess today.

    But what else can I do? Skr let out a sigh.

    If only Penelope had learned her lessons.

    Not long after, a new hashtag of #SkrIsPregnant started trending on Instagram.

    The cost of spreading rumors nowadays is so cheap that a few blurry images of me sitting in the

    maternity unit are all it takes to conclude that I¡¯m pregnant. Skr clicked into thement section and

    found all sorts of mixed opinions.

    If she¡¯s pregnant, who is the father?

    Skr Jones has been in a secret long-term rtionship with Harry Reid. But Harry chooses to keep a

    tight lid on their rtionship to protect his career.

    Another maniptive publicity stunt.

    This marks the end of the career of my goddess.

    Skr sneered at thements. It¡¯s so easy for anyone with ess to the inte to be a

    keyboard warrior.

 Chapter 419

    Chapter 419

    Skr immediately contacted the public rtions department, asking them to rify and clear up the

    rumors.

    Meanwhile, shemented under a few popr posts with her main ount.

    Are you telling me that I¡¯m pregnant just because I went to a gynecologist? What if I was at the

    crematorium? Does that mean that I was incinerated?

    Soon enough, people started noticing herment, and its poprity skyrocketed. Everyone was

    impressed by her response.

    News of the incident spread like wildfire, and udia caught wind of it, calling Tobias back straight away.

    When Tobias returned, before he could even sit down, udia was already in his face. ¡°Tobias, is it true?

    Is Skr pregnant? Why didn¡¯t you tell me! I was against your rtionship, but there¡¯s a child involved

    now! I certainly want the child!¡±

    Tobias snickered. ¡°The news has reached so far, but it¡¯s not true. She¡¯s not pregnant.¡±

    udia¡¯s had a perplexed expression on her face after hearing that, relieved but disappointed at the

    same time as she had wanted a grandchild for a long time.

    Nevertheless, her two sons did not seem to have any intentions of granting her wish.

    ¡°Can you give me a grandchild before I pass on?¡± udia asked.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really like kids,¡± Tobias answered ruthlessly. ¡° If you want grandchildren, you should just go and

    adopt one from the orphanage.¡±

    udia sighed at Tobias¡¯ indifference. ¡°How could you not have kids? What are you going to do with the

    family fortune in the future? Give it away?¡±

    Tobias, however, had never thought about what she said. ¡°That sounds good. I should find a way to

    redeem myself aftermitting so many sins.¡±

    While all that was going on, Sheldon was upstairs eavesdropping with a bitter smile. Is he actually going

    to give thepany away? Winnie was right, then. I¡¯m just trash to him.

    Despite that, when Sheldon came down, the emotions he had were all perfectly hidden as he smiled.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Did you upset Mom again, Tobias?¡±

    ¡°This doesn¡¯t concern you.¡± Tobias red at him. ¡°You and I have some unfinished business to settle.¡±

    Hearing that, Sheldon lowered his head and went to sit on the sofa, awaiting his brother¡¯s reprimanding.

    ¡°Now that the bar I gave you shut down for repairs, don¡¯t you have anything to tell me?¡± Tobias¡¯ gaze

    filled with disappointment.

    Sheldon expected the question since he knew Tobias had eyes everywhere monitoring him.

    ¡°There was a minor issue with fire safety. We¡¯ll be back in business in no time.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ gaze was cold as ice, watching the lying Sheldon as it sent chills down his spine.

    ¡°Why did I hear rumors about the bar being involved in some shady businesses, then? No wonder the

    profit had been increasing. You are so useless! Why can¡¯t you do anything right? What have you actually

    aplished besides fooling around with women all the time?¡±

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    Right then, Sheldon closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. At that moment, all his pent-up emotions

    could no longer be contained.

    ¡°Yes! I¡¯m useless! I can never achieve what you achieved, Mr. Tobias Ford! Wealth, status, and power.

    You have it all! And me? All I¡¯ll ever be is a joe! Can you stop controlling everything I do? I¡¯m a piece of

    shit, so just let me rot, you hypocrite! You say that I¡¯m fooling around with women, but what about you?

    You¡¯ve had plenty of women around you too! Are you going to cut them off when you don¡¯t need them

    anymore? I¡¯m sure some women would even jump off of a building for you. Do you know why I¡¯ve not

    aplished anything? It¡¯s all thanks to you! You¡¯re the one restricting my potential everywhere I go!¡±

    As the confrontation unfolded before udia¡¯s eyes, she immediately walked towards Sheldon, flinging

    her arm towards his face, pping him right on the cheek. She had teary eyes when she said,

    ¡°Apologize to your brother right now! How could you say something like that, Sheldon? Tobias has done

    so much for you throughout all these years! Have you lost your mind?¡±

 Chapter 420

    Chapter 420

    Sheldon held his cheeks with one hand, staring at his mother. ¡°Why should I? Everything I said is true.

    We¡¯re both your sons, but you¡¯re biased towards Tobias. If, by any chance, you picked me up from the

    streets, let me know now! At least I would have some closure when I leave.¡±

    Tobias just stood there quietly. His eyes were riddled with disappointment as he let out a deep sigh. ¡°So,

    this is what¡¯s bothering you. Tell me, what do you want then?¡±

    At that moment, Skr was lying on the sofa, exhausted. She felt that her holiday was more tiring than

    when she was with the filming crew. On top of that, it would be ending soon.

    It felt like nothing was done, yet she still did a lot.

    After Tobias left the hospital that day, Skr had not seen him since. Thus, she took out her phone and

    called to appease him.

    ¡°Are you still mad?¡± Skr asked. She could tell that it was unexpectedly quiet on the other side of the

    phone.

    ¡°I¡¯m not. Why did you call me? Is the issue with your friend all sorted out?¡± There were no signs of any

    emotion in Tobias¡¯ tone.

    Skr felt perplexed, knitting her brows when she heard a knock on the door. It was Tobias, raising the

    phone in his hand at the door.

    With that, Skr ended the call and went on to tip her toes, wrapping her arms around his neck. ¡°I

    thought I won¡¯t get to see you before I head back to work. I didn¡¯t even get to spend time with you during

    this holiday.¡±

    Tobias was silent and kissed her forehead. ¡°I¡¯m not in a good mood today, so stay with me for a bit and

    don¡¯t say anything.¡±

    That¡¯s a strange request. Skr was stunned.

    ¡°Have you gone bankrupt?¡± she asked.

    Tobias smiled. ¡°Maybe in my next lifetime.¡±

    After hearing that response, Skr had nothing more to say. She took his coat from him and headed to

    the kitchen to prepare some food, even though she never asked if Tobias had eaten.

    When Skr came out, she noticed that the ashtray already had three cigarette butts in it, indicating that

    Tobias smoked that much in such a short span of time.

    Thus, she quietly picked up the lighter he left on the coffee table and put it in her pocket.

    ¡°The food is ready. Do you want some?¡± Skr ced the spaghetti she made on the table.

    With that being said, Tobias had no appetite. ¡°Go and take a shower. I¡¯d rather have you instead.¡±

    ¡°I already did.¡± Skr frowned. ¡°I work hard to make this, so at least take a few bites and show some

    appreciation.¡±

    However, Tobias grabbed her arm and pulled her in, pressing her onto the sofa. ¡°Since you already took

    a bath, let¡¯s enjoy the night with me, show me some passion.¡±

    Skr did not know what had upset Tobias, but she responded by endearingly wrapping her arms

    around his neck.

    She figured she should give Tobias something to remember before she returned to the filming crew.

    Momentster, Skr¡¯s nose was bright red. Her eyes, bloodshot as tears formed inside. Despite that,

    she bit her lip, enduring the pain she was going through.

    Noticing that, Tobias paused. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Is it too much? Is it your butt or somewhere else that¡¯s in

    pain?¡±

    Skr kept quiet. Even though this was not the first time she experienced Tobias¡¯ special treatment, she

    felt an inexplicable sense of indignant.

    Her butt was bright red from the spanking that Tobias issued. That was one of his fetishes.

    ¡°You girls are too dramatic,¡± Tobias snorted. ¡°This should be enjoyable, but you¡¯re making it look like it¡¯s a

    sort of torture. You¡¯re inexperienced, so you don¡¯t know the real pleasures of the flesh.¡±

    Skr¡¯s face prickled as Tobias was, without a doubt, in a bad mood that night.

    Usually, he would haveforted Skr if something simr urred.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    But people like him would never understand how one¡¯s word might hold so much influence over another

    individual.

 Chapter 421

    Chapter 421

    The next day morning, Tobias woke up very early. So early that Skr suspected he never actually slept

    since she noticed that he was not in bed during the night and that the lights were on in his study.

    The smell of nicotine filled the corridor, so Skr had to wonder, How much did Tobias smokest night?

    She went back to her room and proceeded to look up news regarding the Ford Group. There was

    nothing but articles singing praises and awe about thepany, which meant that thepany was not

    why Tobias was in a bad mood.

    What could it be, then? Skr was puzzled, unable to figure things out.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was quietly sitting on the sofa.

    Skr could see that his navy blue pants distinctly outlined the curves on his legs, showcasing the

    muscrity of his thighs and calves.

    It reminded her of the line on how people would bow down before him, right in front of those pants.

    All her luggage was packed, and she was ready to report back to the crew. The rest of the scenes would

    take another two months to film, so she had mixed feelings when she was about to leave.

    She was reluctant, yet at ease at the same time.

    Before Skr left, she asked Tobias, ¡°Is there something wrong with the Quest Group? Why does

    Thomas look at me as if I¡¯m his arch-nemesis?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a long story since it involves money. Besides, he never liked you in the first ce,¡± Tobias answered

    nonchntly.

    With that, Skr had nothing more to add. He¡¯s right. I forgot about that since Thomas was very eager a

    while ago.

    Tobias only walked her to the door, where the driver was already waiting for quite some time.

    All of a sudden, he grabbed Skr¡¯s arm. ¡°Am I giving you the life that you wanted?¡±

    ¡°Why are you asking this?¡± Skr was caught off guard and stood still.

    ¡°Just answer the question.¡±

    ¡°Of course not.¡± There was no hesitation. ¡°You only gave me what you think I want. I doubt you know

    what I actually want, but I don¡¯t think that matters. Maybe I¡¯ll slowly forget about it.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ hands loosened, and Skr noticed a hint of sadness in his gaze.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    However, it was an expression that Tobias never wore, so she dismissed what she saw as her

    hallucination.

    After Skr left, the estate felt even emptier.

    Tobias sat at the dining table, staring at the food that Skr prepared before she left.

    She even prepared some extras and left them in the fridge for him to heat up. She was worried that

    Tobias might get hungry when he came over, as there was no one else in the house.

    However, Skr knew fully well that Tobias never visited the ce if she was not there.

    Tobias proceeded to pick up a fork and started eating.

    He thought about the times when he was young when he used to look after Sheldon. The family was still

    in heavy debt back then, so the food they had was all the cheapest options out there, nd and

    tasteless. What he was eating now would usually appear only on Christmas eve.

    udia would cook up a storm, and Sheldon would feast like a king.

    Tobias would always eat less, just so Sheldon could eat more.

    He remembered how the three of them would surround the TV and watch the Christmas Eve Special

    together. They were poor, but those were some of the fondest memories Tobias had.

    Nevertheless, Sheldon¡¯s words the night before were like sharp knives stabbing into Tobias relentlessly,

    bleeding him out.

    When he asked Sheldon what he wanted, the answer he heard was even crueler. I want you out of my

    life!

    Tobias was scared that one day, Skr might want the same.

 Chapter 422

    Chapter 422

    It was apparent that the things that Tobias imposed onto them, thinking it was for their own good, was

    never what they actually wanted.

    When Skr arrived at the set, the whole crew was already there. The only one missing was Avery, who

    was away for amercial shoot.

    It took Skr no time to find out whichmercial Avery was in, as Hannah was very close with Jane

    recently, the assistant that Avery often bullied. She was an innocent girl, so it was easy to get an answer

    from her.

    Skr was able find out a lot about Avery through her.

    ¡°How did she get into that?¡± She was surprised to hear that Avery was going to do amercial for a

    major brand.

    ¡°I heard Largo was the one that rmended her to them,¡± Hannah whispered into Skr¡¯s ear. ¡°Even

    the contract was written up in a hurry.¡±

    Skr scoffed, ¡°No wonder I heard rumors about something going on between those two. People are

    really nosy in this industry. Even the cleaner will catch wind of it from the smallest of gossip.¡±

    ¡°They say that Largo and Avery slept together the day we had the meat fondue,¡± Hannah added. ¡°Some

    even said that they might actually announce their rtionship since Largo liked Avery quite a lot.¡±

    Nevertheless, Skr was skeptical. Largo never had any scandals, so she doubted that he would

    change just for Avery.

    Largo was a thirty-year-old bachelor who had zero scandals, either because he was gay and was

    extremely cautious about it, or he dedicated his life to his work, so he did not have time for rtionships.Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    Speaking of the devil.

    Right then, Largo appeared at the set and approached Skr, who just got changed. His manager was

    behind him as well.

    Largo was quite casual and easygoing whenever he was not filming, always wearing a bright smile on

    his face.

    ¡°This is for you to boost your energy.¡± Largo offered Skr some choctes, and she epted them

    with open arms.

    ¡°Thank you, Mr. Zeller. How thoughtful of you,¡± she responded with a delightful smile.

    Largo also prepared a box of chocte for Cassidy, but she was someone who had a social anxiety

    disorder, so her only response was, ¡°Sorry, I don¡¯t eat choctes. I¡¯m scared it might affect my figure.¡±

    Skr gulped when she heard that. You are already looking like a stick! Even the smallest-sized clothing

    would seem huge on you!

    The rejection left a bitter taste in Largo¡¯s mouth, but his smile was unwavering.

    At the bar, Tobias saw Sheldon resting his head on a woman¡¯sp in one of the private rooms. He was

    dead drunk.

    When Sheldon saw Tobias, there was no more fear in his eyes like how it was back then. ¡°Mr. Ford! Did

    youe to see me¡ªthe trash?¡± He weed Tobias with a big smile, dead drunk.

    Tobias proceeded to point to the safety exit, signaling Sheldon to follow him.

    However, Sheldon was not budging. So, Tobias waved his hand, gesturing for the bodyguards to carry

    Sheldon out.

    Sheldon was resisting as much as he could, but he was too drunk to stand. He had to support himself

    using the stair rail.

    He reeked of alcohol and had a cigarette between his fingers, looking like someone that slept on the

    streets.

    Meanwhile, Tobias took a deep breath and closed his eyes. ¡°I¡¯ll grant you your wish. Give me a figure.¡±

    He understood that it was inevitably his fault for letting Sheldon do as he wished throughout the years. In

    the end, he still wasbeled as the person that held Sheldon back.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want money,¡± Sheldon replied with a drunken smile. ¡°I want the Ford Group. Didn¡¯t you always

    say that I can¡¯t do anything right? That I have nothing to show? Let me prove myself then. If you truly see

    me as a brother, give me a chance. Let me show you what I¡¯m capable of.¡±

 Chapter 423

    Chapter 423

    Sheldon had so much pent-up frustration within him. In his opinion, he had beenbeled as ¡°trash¡±

    because of Tobias. He had never approved of his actions, sometimes even condemning him for it.

    I would have seeded if you never existed! Everyone said that I was destined to achieve something

    big!

    ¡°Alright,¡± Tobias said monotonously. ¡°If that¡¯s what you want, you can have it. I¡¯ve done all I could for you,

    so you have to walk down this path alone from now on. If you think you can handle it, then go for it.¡±

    After Tobias left, Sheldon finally copsed, deted with his knees on the floor, crying his lungs out.

    After a few days, the Ford Group held a shareholder¡¯s meeting, and Tobias announced that he would be

    stepping down due to health reasons, appointing Sheldon as the person to take his ce.

    Everyone was dumbfounded, as though an emperor had passed away, and in his stead sat a young kid

    on the throne.

    The board of directors was in an uproar. People were upset. Quite a number of them left the room

    immediately after mming the table.

    Meanwhile, Sheldon smirked. He was disgusted by the sight of those higher-ups.

    At the same time, Tobias sat at his office desk, stiff and quiet as a statue but exuded immense presence.

    All of a sudden. Susan came knocking on the door. She could not ept the change that was going on

    in thepany.

    She had been beside Tobias for years, so she would usually ept all of his decision with no hesitation.

    Nevertheless, what happened was too much for her this time around.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, are you really going to hand thepany over to your brother?¡± Susan asked. ¡°Sheldon has

    zero experience! The whole board of directors is vying to take a shot at him, making things even more

    arduous for him!¡±

    ¡°Everyone needs to experience some hurdles at least in life in order for them to grow.¡± Tobias¡¯ eyes

    narrowed. ¡°I¡¯m giving him that chance right now. So, you stay close to him and report back to me if

    anything goes wrong. I¡¯m exhausted, and I need to take some time off.¡±

    His words gave Susan necessary affirmation as she needed to know that Tobias was not going to hand

    the fruits of hisbor over for free.

    ¡°Mr. Ford. Where do you intend to go then? How long will it be?¡±

    Tobias turned towards her right away and gave her a side-eyed re, thinking that Susan had too many

    questions.

    ¡­

    Every time Skr saw Cassidy, she would feel ashamed. She only left one meanment for her years

    ago, but the guilt she felt showed no signs of weakening, even though she was naive back then and was

    only writing whatever was on her mind.

    Skr was anxious, terrified at the notion of herment about Cassidy¡¯s sanity being dug out and

    revealed to the world. It was like she had a ticking time bomb that would explode without a moment¡¯s

    notice.

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    But s, her nightmare came through, and someone actually did it and proceeded to post it on the

    inte.

    When Kate saw the Twitter post, she immediately contacted Skr. ¡°Is thatment an edit, or did you

    post something like that for real?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not edited,¡± Skr came clean. ¡°It¡¯s as real as it¡¯s gonna get. I was afraid that this would happen, but

    no one could escape the tenacity of theizens.¡±

    Kate massaged her temples. ¡°You¡¯re name has been trending on Twitter very frequently now. What I¡¯m

    worried about right now is that things might get blown out of proportion. Putting a statement out there

    won¡¯t do any good since people could literally trace thement back to your ount. It¡¯s my fault for

    not asking you to delete your ount to start a new one. This wouldn¡¯t have urred if I did.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to make a response either.¡± Skr had epted her fate. ¡°Things usually die down in less

    than a week. As long as I stay quiet, people will forget about it soon enough. Though things will be

    awkward between Cassidy and me when we¡¯re filming together since I did call her crazy.¡±

    Kate agreed with what Skr said, as she too thought that there was something wrong with Cassidy. She

    heard that Cassidy cursed at her fans a few days ago, and it was all recorded.

 Chapter 424

    Chapter 424

    Kate told Skr about the rumor with Cassidy and that some details were left out. ¡°Fans nowadays

    would go overboard. I only just found out that the fan who gave her the present used the money that her

    father needed for chemotherapy to purchase it.¡±

    Having said that, Cassidy still took the gift after raging at the fan, reprimanding her for what she did.

    ¡°If I raised a daughter like that, I reckon ending my life would be the better choice.¡± Skrughed.

    Coincidentally, Skr and Cassidy had a scene to film together that afternoon, so she had no choice but

    to face the awkwardness head-on.

    The scene was set inside a double-story restaurant that the crew built. Rumor had it that the whole set

    cost thirty million.

    However, the inside looked elegant, but further evaluation would reveal the low quality of the furniture.

    Not only did it not have proper chairs inside, the chairs there all looked like they were purchased from a

    discount store somewhere.

    This cost thirty million? Aren¡¯t they just pocketing the filming budget? Skr thought.

    Compared to Cassidy, Skr looked so much better with her smooth skin, exquisite face as well as

    beautiful eyes.

    Skr did some prep work before the shoot started and found out that they would be drinking actual

    alcohol this time around as the director wanted the actors to be genuinely drunk for the scene to look

    real.

    She knew her tolerance to alcohol very well and knew how she would act when she was drunk. Thest

    time Skr got drunk, she listed out everything she did not like about Tobias. This time, she was afraid

    the director would be the target.

    Thus, she informed the crew about her low alcohol tolerance in advance and requested to change it to

    water instead.

    ¡°You are such a hassle.¡± Cassidy sneered. ¡°Why are you the only one faking it when we¡¯re all doing it for

    real? It looks like someone wants to stay sober so they could continue to post nderousments

    about other people.¡±

    Cassidy was clearly directing that insinuatingment at Skr. However, Skr knew that she was at

    fault, so she acted like she didn¡¯t hear anything.

    During the shoot, Cassidy would deliberately make mistakes, forgot her lines, and spaced out. It was

    torturous for Skr.

    Josiah was going mad because of it and questioned Cassidy multiple times about what was going on.

    But she stayed silent, quietly wiping her tears away like she had been unreasonably wronged.

    Skr was at a loss since her calling Cassidy crazy was a fact, and everyone in the filming crew knew

    about it.

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    People would only believe what they saw, and that was Skr bullying Cassidy.

    It was verymon in the industry for seniors to make things difficult for the neers. But this time, it

    was the other way around.

    The same situation continued until the filming was finally done. By then, everyone had a clear

    conclusion.

    ¡°Skr is outrageous! She has no respect for the seniors, willfully changing the script. She thinks she¡¯s

    all that just because she brought in sponsors for the show and because she¡¯s Harry¡¯s girlfriend?¡±

    Hannah reiterated everything she heard to Skr. Skr knitted her brows. Now that¡¯s nder! Nothing¡¯s

    true about that! Cassidy was the one who did all that! Why is everyone giving her the pass just because

    of a few drops of tears? Well, it seems like babies who cry always get what they want!

    At that moment, Skr was taking her meal in the motorhome. It was still warm, thanks to Hannah. She

    kept it in a thermal food jar as soon as she got it.

    It was ten minutes to six when Skr took a look at her phone. I can¡¯t eat after six, so I better hurry up.

 Chapter 425

    Chapter 425

    ¡°Cassidy¡¯s still crying,¡± Hannah said scornfully. ¡°What¡¯s going on with her? Everyone¡¯s there trying to

    comfort her.¡±

    Skr twisted open the food jar and saw that the food the crew prepared was surprisingly decent.

    ¡°Maybe I should shed some tears too tomorrow,¡± she remarked while eating. ¡°Everyone now looks at me

    like I have bullied my senior, and they¡¯re all sympathizing with Cassidy.¡±

    Hannah actually believed her and wanted to dissuade her from doing so. ¡°Don¡¯t do it, Skr. I don¡¯t think

    you can even if you tried, since youck the proper experience. Just let her be. I doubt she¡¯d be able to

    keep it up for too long.¡±

    Suddenly, Skr¡¯s phone rang, and it took her a while before she managed to dig it out. During filming,

    she would often hide her phone inside her boot if she could not find Hannah.

    Seeing that it was Tobias calling, Skr raised an eyebrow. She remembered everything she said to

    Tobias before she left.

    Skr had a bad memory, but Tobias was an exception as she could recall anything rted to him well.

    ¡°Send me your location. I¡¯ll be there in half an hour.¡±

    That was the first thing Skr heard when she picked up. She could distinctly hear the sound of the car

    speeding on the road, and her grip tightened around her phone. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you won¡¯te for

    visits? Why the change of heart all of a sudden?¡±

    ¡°Just send me the address.¡±

    It was a touching notion, but Tobias¡¯ tone destroyed her mood, as though he could not stand Skr¡¯s

    voice whatsoever.

    Hence, Skr put down her spoon and sent him her location, reminding him to drop by secretly as she

    was already the center of attention in the crew.

    Skr got out of the motorhome, wanting to wait for Tobias in the room. Instead, she bumped into

    Cassidy, whose eyes were swollen from all the crying.

    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Skr asked. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for what I did back then. I was young and stupid. I had no ill will

    towards you at all.¡±

    She bowed towards Cassidy as soon as she finished.

    ¡°How could you do that? Is it because I stole the spotlight even though you were the main character? I¡¯m

    your senior, so how can you bully me? Have you no conscience?¡±

    Skr frowned as she never had that thought in mind. Cassidy was not the same actresspared to

    when she debuted. Sadly, her bad acting, spacing out, mumbling and fumbling lines, and all sorts of

    mistakes gued Cassidy¡¯s performance. On top of that, she looked unhealthily skinny and lost the vigor

    of her youth.

    There was no way anyone would think that Cassidy could outshine Skr.

    Hence, Skr apologized to Cassidy again. At the same time, she vowed to be more grateful for her

    current achievement and not to leave any more sarcasticments on social media ever again. Back

    then, she had never thought that her name would one day be trending on Twitter.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Sh*t! I should¡¯ve never done that.

    Largo came by with his assistant and saw what was going on. When Cassidy noticed them, her tears

    started pouring out once again. Skr was amazed by the capacity of her tear nds, as she was able

    to cry within seconds and could go on for hours.

    It was something Skr could never do.

    Largo approached them and acted as a mediator,forting Cassidy. Nevertheless, all she did was

    continued crying.

    Her sobbing made Skr feel increasingly ufortable, so she wanted to leave, forgetting that Tobias

    was waiting for her at the hotel.

 Chapter 426

    Chapter 426

    Thus, she made up an excuse that she had to discuss the script with Largo and got Largo into her

    motorhome.

    Hannah was surprised to see Skr back in the motorhome again, and she even brought Largo along.

    She wanted to remind Skr that she was supposed to go to the hotel, but she had decided to keep

    quiet after giving it some thought.

    It was the first time Largo visited Skr¡¯s motorhome. It was one of the models that he had been eyeing.

    Largo liked it a lot, but the price was a little steep that he had not made his move. Moreover, Skr had

    all the best essories equipped in it, which made him wonder if the rumors online were true since

    Skr was only in her early twenties¡ªtoo young to own something like that.

    He read from the inte that Skr was a toy for some big shots. To those people, she was nothing but

    a doll with a pretty face. It¡¯s difficult to stay pure and innocent within the entertainment industry.

    ¡°Do you have anything going on tonight, Mr. Zeller?¡± Skr smiled as she took out the script. ¡°Am I

    holding you up by any chance?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m always free during the night. You could alsoe to my room for this. It should be much more

    comfortable,¡± Largo said as his assistant passed him his script.

    Skr¡¯s gaze slowly darkened when she heard what he said, staring at his innocent smile. Is he hinting

    at something? Or am I thinking too much?

    ¡°I¡¯ll pass on that.¡± she smiled. ¡°I don¡¯t want to get you involved with all the negative news I have at the

    moment, Mr. Zeller. Besides, running through lines in a hotel room doesn¡¯t sound too good. Do you do

    this with Avery, Mr. Zeller?¡±

    It was quite obvious where Skr was heading with her question, so Largo immediately rified the

    matter, ¡°Please don¡¯t listen to what the others say. She only came to me to borrow a charger.¡±

    His reasoning was a little too over the top for Skr to believe, but she did not probe any further as it

    was none of her business.

    She figured that Largo had a lot of secrets and was not the man that the media portrayed him to be.

    Having said that, Largo was very patient with Skr when they were going through the script, as she

    would immerse herself in the role quite often.

    That was also why acting was one of the jobs that had the highest divorce rate. A lot of celebrities would

    get too much into certain roles and developed feelings for each other, mixing up what was real with what

    was not.

    Moreover, the character that Largo yed was indeed a very charming man.

    When they were done, it was already prettyte.

    The hotel was quite a distance away from where they were, but Largo had other things that he needed to

    attend to, so he did not apany Skr back.

    In the lobby of the hotel, Tobias sat on the sofa at the window, looking as handsome as ever, with a fresh

    haircut that Skr did not know.

    The short hair made him look much more masculine.

    When their eyes met, neither of them approached each other, a rare sense of chemistry between them.

    Skr walked straight towards the elevator, and Tobias followed suit, carefully distancing himself.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Tobias¡¯ sudden appearance was a surprise that Skr really appreciated, as she always thought that the

    next time they met would be after all the filming was done.

    When Skr got into her room, she instinctively left a small gap at the door without even looking.

    When she heard the door close, she could also hear footsteps closing in on her. Skr turned around

    wrapped her hands around his neck. ¡°Sorry for making you wait. I had to run through some lines, and it

    took quite some time.¡±

 Chapter 427

    Chapter 427

    Tobias never once looked at Skr since he came in.

    His attention was all on the condition of the hotel room.

    It was in total disarray.

    So women can be this messy? From the outside, they are morous celebrities, but their rooms are no

    different from a pig¡¯s den.

    Clothes were scattered all over the bed, with unfinished snacks on the bedside table. Skr¡¯s luggage

    was wide open and left on the floor.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask room service to clean the room? Isn¡¯t this too much?¡± Tobias asked. ¡°You should be

    more diligent with your living space, not just your looks.¡±

    Skr felt embarrassed after hearing what he said. If I knew you wereing, I would¡¯ve cleaned

    everything up!

    Hence, she immediately motioned to pick things up, but Tobias stopped her. ¡°Let me do it. It¡¯s too messy

    to even sleep in.¡±

    While he was tidying things up, Skr tried to exin herself, saying that she had little to no time to

    clean up as she always left early and returnedte.

    When she got back, the only thing that she wanted to do was take a bath and sleep, so that was why the

    room looked the way it was.

    ¡°I doubt this has anything to do with you being busy,¡± Tobiasmented.

    Skr just shrugged. Tobias was very efficient, so it did not take long before everything was cleared up

    and put away neatly. As for Skr¡¯s dirtyundry, she ced them in a bag.

    ¡°Have you eaten?¡± Skr asked when she noticed howte it was.

    Tobias was currently trying to match the socks that she scattered all over the ce. ¡°Not yet. Are you

    cooking again?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t do that here.¡± Skr took out her phone and smiled. ¡°Let¡¯s order some food. Will braised chicken

    rice be okay?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±

    Skr snickered. ¡°It¡¯s just some greasy Chinese takeaway. And I thought rich people like you would have

    seen more and knew about this. I used to love eating this. It¡¯s cheap and delicious. Sorry to say, but

    that¡¯s the best option we have around this area.¡±

    Tobias knew that their taste buds were wildly different from one another, so he might not enjoy anything

    that Skr deemed delicious.

    Nevertheless, Skr took things into her hand and ced an order for the smallest portion avable.

    Out of all the men she knew, Tobias had the tiniest stomach. Everyone else would generally eat triple the

    portion Tobias usually had.

    No matter what Tobias was having, he would always eat it as slowly and elegantly as possible. If she did

    not know any better, it would look like he either had no appetite or was a picky eater.

    The truth was that he merely preferred a clean diet.

    When Tobias got out of the washroom, the delivery person arrived at the door. It wasmon for

    celebrities to order food there, so the deliveryman got used to it, leaving the food to Skr as soon as

    she opened the door, and went on with his next task.

    However, when Skr opened up the bag, it was not their order that she saw; it was something else

    entirely.

    Seeing that there was a mix-up for her order, she took a look at the receipt on the food. It was for Largo.

    Some parts of the name were blurred out, but Largo¡¯s name was special enough for Skr to recognize

    it immediately.

    The difference in the cost of the food they ordered was tremendous. It¡¯s too bad. Largo just got robbed.

    Tobias, on the other hand, walked out while drying his hair with the towel. He did not have his pajamas

    with him, so the only thing he wore was his underwear.

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    His body was enveloped in the fragrance of the shampoo as well as the steam of the shower.

    Nheless, before he could pick up the cutlery provided, Skr had already repackaged the delivery.

    ¡°I can¡¯t eat that?¡±

 Chapter 428

    Chapter 428

    ¡°It¡¯s the wrong order. They gave us someone else¡¯s food. I¡¯m going to swap it back.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t mind. It¡¯s just food,¡± Tobias felt indifferent.

    ¡°Their order cost ten times more than ours. Can you actually eat it? Won¡¯t you just be robbing them by

    doing that?¡±

    It was right at that moment that Tobias found out about the price of Skr¡¯s takeaway. You¡¯re really

    something else. A measly thirty for dinner? That¡¯s ridiculous!

    Skr proceeded to leave her room, still wearing the slippers that the hotel provided, and headed two

    levels below via elevator and found Largo¡¯s room.

    She knocked on the door with the food in hand, and to her surprise, it was Avery who opened the door

    for her.

    Avery took a few days off from themercial shoot, but did not appear at the set. Instead, she was in

    Largo¡¯s room.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Why are you knocking on the door thiste into the night?¡± Avery sounded hostile. ¡°You are here to find

    out who¡¯s in Largo¡¯s room?¡±

    Meanwhile, Largo slowly approached the door when he heard themotion.

    Skr smiled. ¡°That doesn¡¯t concern me. I¡¯m just here to get my order.¡±

    Largo had a yful yet awkward look on his face as he exined to Skr. ¡°Avery¡¯s here to return my

    charger. I was at a loss when I saw the braised chicken. But aren¡¯t you on a diet right now? Why are you

    eating in the middle of the night?¡±

    Avery immediately took the bag that Skr had with her. ¡°I still have lines I need to run through with Mr.

    Zeller, you can leave now, or do you want to take a bite before you go?¡±

    Skr¡¯s lips curled as she took her order from Largo, leaving right after. She did not want to bother the

    two any longer as she had confirmed what she wanted to know.

    After Avery closed the door, she turned towards Largo, gritting her teeth as she spoke, ¡°Is being with me

    that embarrassing to you? Why did you have to tell her that I¡¯m here to return something? Are you afraid

    that she might misunderstand? Are you interested in her too? No wonder people say she¡¯s just like her

    mother, a slut that goes around seducing men. She must be on heat every time she sees one.¡±

    ¡°Do you know her?¡± Largo stopped eating and asked casually. ¡°You look so delicate, but the way you talk

    is the pr opposite.¡±

    Right then, Avery realized how vulgar she was, she changed her expression immediately and looked

    towards Largo with innocent eyes. ¡°I despise her. There¡¯s something I¡¯ve never told anyone about, so

    please keep it a secret. The truth is, Skr is my half-sister. Her mother tried to seduce my father but

    failed, causing her tomit murder. Her mother killed my aunt. How could I not hate her?¡±

    Hearing that, Largo raised an eyebrow. He never expected that Skr and Avery had such a

    complicated rtionship.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get fooled by her appearance. She¡¯s a terrible person. She never had friends in school and was a

    petty thief.¡± Avery¡¯s tone would be riddled with resentment whenever she talked about Skr. ¡°She was

    just a teenager when she started walking the streets because her family was poor. Can you imagine the

    number of men she slept with to reach her current status?¡±

    When she finished, Largo threw the food that Skr returned into the trash can. ¡°What a waste of such a

    beautiful face. Then again, to each their own. She made her choice, so there¡¯s no point in judging her for

    it.¡± Largo¡¯s eyes were gentle yet hinted with disgust.

    Avery wrapped her arms around his waist from behind and rested her head on his back. ¡°Maybe I¡¯m the

    only one that can¡¯t stand it. My mother taught me that girls need to have self-respect. Skr wasn¡¯t really

    educated, so it¡¯s to be expected.¡±

 Chapter 429

    Chapter 429

    ¡°Isn¡¯t your father a rich man? Why didn¡¯t he look after this daughter?¡± Largo asked.

    With that, Avery noticed how Largo was unusually interested in anything rted to Skr.

    ¡°He did,¡± She told him. ¡°Until he gave up. After letting her into our home, she always brought strangers

    over every two to three days. Who could handle this sort of disrespect?¡±

    However, Largo was a little disappointed, as Skr seemed to have be more reserved. Otherwise,

    she would not have ignored his invitation toe over to his room. If it was a few years back, would it be

    Skrying in bed with me right now instead of Avery? Too bad she¡¯s famous now and has to be

    cautious about what she does.

    Back at Skr¡¯s room, she opened up the now cold braised chicken rice and handed the spoon to

    Tobias. ¡°Eat up for now. I¡¯ll treat you to something good tomorrow. I have money now.¡±

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr felt delighted as she knew she would receive arge sum of money once the filming concluded. It

    would be enough for her to invest and snowball her wealth.

    She wanted to buy a small house of her own.

    Meanwhile, Tobias kept quiet, not wanting to burst her bubble.

    Right before he took the spoon from Skr, there were knocking on the door, catching her off guard. She

    panicked as there were the police at the door.

    ¡°Do you want to hide first?¡±

    ¡°Am I that unsightly? Why do I need to hide?¡± Tobias gave Skr a cold stare.

    ¡°The crew has a lot of people in it. Most importantly, they can¡¯t keep their mouths shut.¡± Skr replied in

    a whisper. ¡°If they found out about you and me, the news will spread for sure. Aren¡¯t you the one who

    wants to keep our rtionship a secret? You don¡¯t want paparazzi bothering you, right?¡±

    With that, Tobias let out a sigh and put down his spoon. He then went into the washroom and pulled the

    curtains over him.

    The design of the room was rather strange as the washroom was beside the bed, and the walls were all

    tempered ss. Hence, Tobias would still be visible from the outside if he did not pull the curtains.

    After that, Skr opened the door to see Cassidy, who was crying throughout the day, and her manager,

    Sandra. Sandra had one arm on her waist, looking exceedingly intimidating.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, Cassidy is not in the right headspace now. And it¡¯s all because of you calling her crazy on

    the inte. I know you¡¯re signed under Royal Entertainment and have Kate behind your back supporting

    you. But don¡¯t you go thinking that you can bully our artists.¡±

    Sandra was very aggressive with the way she spoke, but Skr could do nothing but stay quiet. After all,

    she was the one at fault.

    ¡°Maybe I can go on Twitter and say that I¡¯m crazy as well? That way, I can atone for my nder towards

    Ms. Gardner. Will you be okay with that?¡± She backed down.

    ¡°I know you don¡¯t like me. But as a public figure, how could you mock me like that? I cannot ept this

    humiliation. What have I ever done to you? Why do you treat me like this? Aren¡¯t you afraid of going to

    hell?¡± Cassidy was still crying.

    Skr raised her head slightly. Isn¡¯t she going a little overboard with this? Is hell that easy to get in?

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t a public figure back then.¡± She pursed her lips. ¡°And I have already apologized. If you can¡¯t

    ept it, then tell me a better way to resolve this situation. I¡¯ll do my best toply.¡±

    ¡°I want you to apologize,¡± Sandra was extremely rude. ¡°Not just verbally. I want you to live-stream your

    apology and bow to her, admitting your wrong-doings.¡±

 Chapter 430

    Chapter 430

    Skr chuckled when she heard their unreasonable request. ¡°Why don¡¯t I just get on my knees?¡±

    ¡°That works too,¡± Sandra replied while Skr took a glimpse at the washroom with the corner of her

    eyes.

    Is it soundproof? I never actually checked! She was worried because she did not want Tobias to hear

    what was going on.

    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Then, she smiled at the two women at the door. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t do that. Everyone has a keyboard at

    home. I wasn¡¯t the only one that said something bad about you. So why am I the only one being med?

    It¡¯s so obvious that you¡¯re trying to use me as a warning. Are you trying to tell the world that you would

    only ept praises and nothing else?¡±

    Cassidy took a step forward. ¡°Apologize to me on Twitter then. You might not know how things work in

    this industry because you¡¯re new, but I¡¯m your senior, so people might say that I didn¡¯t take good care of

    you.¡±

    At that moment, Skr was gritting her teeth, trying hard to force her voice out. ¡°I¡¯ll only ept solutions

    that are behind closed doors. A public apology does nothing for me and will affect my image as a whole.

    Do you think I¡¯d do that?¡±

    Meanwhile, Tobias heard everything from inside the washroom. It¡¯s lively out there. These women are

    getting louder and louder as they speak, and there¡¯s even someone crying.

    ¡°You shut your trap, you bi***! Show some respect! Don¡¯t go assuming that everyone¡¯s going to put up

    with your sh*t just because you¡¯re the main character!¡± Cassidy eximed.

    What she said was way nastier than calling someone crazy.

    On top of that, Skr never liked her after hearing how Cassidy treated her fans from Kate.

    You even epted a gift that your fan bought using the father¡¯s treatment fund for the chemotherapy.

    How much more pathetic can you be? Even now, you¡¯re still acting like you¡¯re weak and helpless,

    squeezing every bit of tear you have out for everyone to see. Do we live in a day and age where anyone

    who cry was considered the oppressed? I can¡¯t cry at all! Does that make me the evilest person to walk

    this earth?

    Skr figured that Tobias most probably heard everything.

    She knew that Tobias would be disappointed to see her back down like that, as she remembered him

    telling her that innocent girls did not suit him.

    All of a sudden, there was a glint of sharpness in Skr¡¯s eyes. ¡°Initially, I thought that we could sort

    things out peacefully. But seeing that you two are hell-bent on humiliating me, I¡¯ve decided that an

    apology will no longer be an offer. I could tell the public that someone hacked my ount. You¡¯re more

    than wee to y this game with me.¡±

    As soon as she finished, Sandra secretly stopped the recording that she had going on. All that she

    needed to do now was go back and edit it. Things will get interesting real soon.

    She reckoned that it was enough to destroy Skr¡¯s career before it even took off.

    However, she was not doing this for Cassidy. It was more for Avery¡¯s mother, Irene, because they were

    close friends.

    Sandra could not sit still and watch as Avery¡¯s role was taken from her. Moreover, Irene had promised

    her a lot of benefits if she could find dirt on Skr.

    All of a sudden, Cassidy¡¯s crying stopped, and her expression froze as Tobias appeared.

    No wonder the crying sounded so familiar. Tobias thought.

    ¡°Long time no see, Ms. Gardner.¡± He wore a chilly grin.

    When Cassidy snapped out of it, her face paled. Her hands covered her ears, looking as though she was

    having a mental breakdown.

 Chapter 431

    Chapter 431

    Skr was shocked to see Cassidy acting like that, she considered apologizing as Cassidy really looked

    like she had lost her mindpared to how she was moments ago.

    Eventually, Cassidy¡¯s hands dropped, and she pointed at Tobias. ¡°What do you people want from me! Is

    death my only way out! Please don¡¯te looking for me! Please! I have already quit!¡±

    ¡°Your life¡¯s not worth it.¡± Tobias narrowed his eyes, cold and piercing. ¡°No one¡¯s forcing you to do

    anything. You¡¯re the one who can¡¯t get over it.¡±

    From what he said, Skr assumed that Tobias had seen Cassidy¡¯s naked body before this. Did he sleep

    with Cassidy?

    On the other hand, Sandra also recognized Tobias because she saw him at a tendering event. Once was

    enough to leave a vivid impression.

    With Tobias¡¯ appearance, a lot of questions Sandra had on her mind finally made sense. How a

    neer like Skr could snatch Avery¡¯s role from her and how quickly she gained fame.

    It¡¯s all because she has him backing her up!

    Sandra instantly realized that she should restart the recording, so her hand slowly shifted towards her

    purse. Nevertheless, Skr had sharp eyes, as she spotted her movement, and approached her. ¡°Ms.

    Morrison, can I take a look at your purse? You¡¯ve been fiddling with it ever since you arrived.¡± She was

    quiet but exuded immense pressure.

    Sandra felt goosebumps from hearing that. ¡°This is my belongings. You have no right to go through it.¡±

    Skr snickered, proceeding to take off her ring and tossed it on her bed. ¡°Oh my. I think I lost my ring.

    Where could it be? Maybe I should call the police. With only the four of us here, do you think they will

    search through that purse of yours?¡±Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    Just as Sandra was hesitating, Skr seized the opportunity and took her purse away from her. A mini

    recorder!

    She took a look at Cassidy, who was crouching on the floor. Her hands covered her head as she kept on

    mumbling. ¡°It¡¯s not like this. Please don¡¯te near me. I¡¯m not like this.¡±

    So, Skr yed the recording and listened to their prior conversation.

    After that, she dropped the recorder into Tobias¡¯ pocket, right in front of Sandra, before taking out her

    phone to record Cassidy¡¯s current condition.

    ¡°I¡¯ll keep the recorder for now. You¡¯ll get it back once the content is wiped. Ms. Morrison, this isn¡¯t the first

    time you did this, right? When Cassidy broke up a while ago, the boyfriend got into trouble because of a

    leaked voice recording. This happened every time Cassidy broke up with someone. Maybe you should

    have joined the filming crew since you loved recording so much, Ms. Morrison. ¡°

    Sandra gulped. She felt like a clown who just got exposed. The awkwardness was so intense that she

    could barely breathe.

    Tobias had his arms crossed with Cassidy crouching right by his legs, still mumbling the same things

    repeatedly.

    Soon enough, Skr got annoyed at the sight of the two women. ¡°Take her back and get some rest. She

    must be exhausted by now. I don¡¯t think she¡¯ll be able to cry anymore tomorrow.¡±

    Sandra did not know why Cassidy turned insane when she saw Tobias, but she slowly picked Cassidy up

    and supported her back to her room.

    After they left, the smile on Skr¡¯s face gradually faded.

    Tobias took out the recorder from his pocket and handed it to her. She said that she would return it after

    wiping the content. Nevertheless, she regretted her decision and snapped the recorder in half before

    throwing the SD card into the toilet.

    ¡°If you have anything to ask, feel free to shoot your questions.¡± Tobias went and sat on the bed.

    ¡°Have you slept with Cassidy before? Why did she go crazy the moment she saw you?¡±

 Chapter 432

    Chapter 432

    Skr was sweating profusely during the brief moment where she waited for Tobias¡¯ answer. She knew

    he did not like to hide things, so he would never lie to her, even if it meant hurting her.

    ¡°Nope. I just met her a few times at some private gatherings.¡±

    Skr was relieved. She would be disgusted if Tobias slept with Cassidy, and she definitely would not be

    able to ept that fact.

    Skr knew it was unrealistic to assume that Tobias was still a virgin, but she could never tolerate him

    getting involved with people she hated.

    With that out of the way, Skr waited for Tobias to continue, but he remained silent.

    ¡°Is that all?¡± Skr was puzzled at the abrupt stop of their conversation.

    ¡°I¡¯m exhausted from a whole day of work. Can I rest for now?¡± Tobias gestured for her to get in bed.

    ¡°Talking is very tiring too. Let¡¯s continue tomorrow morning.¡±

    Tobias realized that he had underestimated a woman¡¯s nosiness when morning came. As soon as they

    woke up, Skr continued hounding him, wanting to know more about the things between Cassidy and

    him.

    Tobias did not get a good night¡¯s sleep, so he was still dazed. ¡°Cassidy is famous within the rich men¡¯s

    circle. God knows how many men she slept with at this point. I reckon something happened along the

    way, and she was traumatized by it.¡±

    Skr recalled how Cassidy wasst night. It looked like she got forced to do something against her will,

    and Skr felt a little sympathy for her. What has she gone through?Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    ¡°You men have no respect for women.¡± Her sense of justice welled up from within. ¡°You guys only want

    women to be your toys and have your way with them. Money can¡¯t buy everything!¡±

    Tobias was a little more awake by now. Skr¡¯s generalization of men made it sound like hemitted

    some grave sins, even though he did nothing of the sort.

    ¡°I never thought of it that way,¡± he replied. ¡°These things are usually consensual. Cassidy must have

    been desperate because she needed support. She wanted to gain fame, so she made that choice

    willingly. There¡¯s no one to me.¡±

    Hearing that made Skr realized that Cassidy was very popr a few years back. Shended roles

    after roles even though her acting skill was infamous. Despite that, she was selected as the main

    character on multiple asions.

    It was only recently when her poprity started going downhill that her mental health started

    deteriorating. She was always on the headlines for the most bizarre reasons.

    Just the other day, she was caught stealing in a shoppingplex.

    All the proof was posted on the inte for the world to see, but her fans would always pop up ande

    up with excuses for her. They even requested an apology from the shoppingplex for ndering her.

    Cassidy was the one at fault, but the shoppingplex eventually caved in due to the pressure from the

    public and put up an announcement to publicly apologize to Cassidy.

    Skr suddenly felt energized, so she asked Tobias to guarantee that he and Cassidy never had

    anything going on.

    Tobias did not want to entertain the childish notion, but he saw that Skr was treating it seriously.

    Therefore, he raised his hand and swore that there was nothing between him and Cassidy, adding, ¡°My

    standard isn¡¯t that low.¡±

    ¡°Well you wanted me, so your standard is mediocre at best.¡±

    Skr said that so that she could bait out apliment from Tobias so that he would tell her how great

    she was.

    However, Tobias actually agreed with her. ¡°True enough. I definitely did not think things through when I

    made that decision. But it¡¯s toote to regret it. We¡¯ve been together for so long now. I doubt anyone

    could rece you.¡±

 Chapter 433

    Chapter 433

    Skr had built a high tolerance toward criticisms because of Tobias¡ªalmost everything he said was

    insufferable.

    Hence, she was able to stay calm. ¡°Of course you can. Just let me know beforehand so I can prepare

    myself mentally.¡±

    Tobias wanted Skr to find security within herself, to grow stronger, so he yed along. ¡°How long in

    advance then? Does a minute before count?¡±

    ¡°Hmm. At least three days, I reckon. Three days should be enough for me to pack up and move out. I

    can¡¯t be staying there after getting dumped, right? I¡¯m not the type that would drag things out.¡±

    ¡°Alright then. Deal!¡±

    Tobias¡¯ response made Skr grit her teeth. Everything he said gave him the necessary leeway in case

    something went wrong.

    Suddenly, someone knocked on the door. Skr threw the nket over Tobias¡¯ head right away and

    asked him to stay there.

    But instead, Tobias took off the nket and went inside the washroom.

    Kate stood at the door without going in and scanned the room. ¡°Did you asked for room service? I¡¯m not

    used to seeing your room so tidy. It was such a mess. I have told you many times to always keep things

    tidy. A messy room can affect your good fortune.¡±

    Skr responded with a nod.

    Truth be told, Kate was there to rush Skr as she was almostte for the shoot.

    So, Skr forwent doing makeup and immediately left, wearing a mask. The scene that day was going to

    be intense as it involved stunt wires.

    Thest time she did that, the wire snapped halfway through the shoot and she was traumatized. Skr

    would still be in the hospital, or even dead, if she had not asked the crew to add more cushions as a

    safety precaution.

    While she was doing her makeup, Skr kept yawning, causing the makeup artist¡¯s hand to shiver and

    almost stuck the eyeliner right on her eyeball.

    That day, Largo and Avery appeared on set together, not bothered with what others might say.

    Look at her happy face. She must feel like she¡¯s officially Largo¡¯s girlfriend right now.

    Skr approached them and greeted Largo with a warm smile on her face.

    ¡°Good morning, Mr. Zeller. The food must have gone cold when it reached you. So sorry about that.¡±

    Largo gave Skr a profound look, remembering what Avery said about her. He felt pity for her as she

    was a neer but was already involved in those unsightly affairs.

    ¡°Let¡¯s have a private moment. I need to run through the script with you,¡± Largo said.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Skr did not think much of it and followed Largo to the bamboo forest set. Even though they weren¡¯t in

    their costumes, Largo¡¯s facial features still very much resembled that of a swordsman¡¯s.

    ¡°I have something to ask you, but I don¡¯t know whether you¡¯re okay with answering them.¡± Largo¡¯s smile

    was gentle and irresistible.

    ¡°Fire away, Mr. Zeller. I¡¯ll tell you as long as I know about it.¡± Skr smiled.

    ¡°Please don¡¯t get mad when you hear what I have to say.¡±

    Skr raised an eyebrow after hearing that. What¡¯s going on?

    ¡°I know you¡¯ve gone through a lot to snatch Avery¡¯s role from her¡­ ¡°

    ¡°Mr. Zeller,¡± Skr interrupted. ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

 Chapter 434

    Chapter 434

    Largo cleared his throat in embarrassment, then said mildly, ¡°You should be aware of this. Why don¡¯t you

    let me introduce you to someone? If he takes a liking to you, your sess in the entertainment industry

    is guaranteed. Cassidy¡¯s a prime example. She owes her opportunities entirely to this sponsor. We can

    settle our scores this way too.¡±

    Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    Skr gaped at Largo. Is this bas*ard moonlighting as a pimp?

    A look of disdain flitted across Skr¡¯s face. Scornfully, she said, ¡°Should I be thanking you for the favor

    you¡¯ve bestowed on me then, Mr. Zeller? What an opportunity you¡¯re giving me!¡±

    Unable to detect Skr¡¯s sarcasm, Largo gleefully epted what he misinterpreted as Skr¡¯s ready

    consent. Enthusiastically he replied, ¡°You don¡¯t have to thank me. This sponsor has been experiencing a

    dry spelltely and hasn¡¯t seen a pretty face in a while. I told him about you yesterday and he seemed

    very interested.¡±

    Skr crossed her arms, looking defensively at Largo. Enraged, she said coldly, ¡°What right did you

    have to give away my contact details to a stranger without my permission? What made you assume that

    I would agree?¡±

    The sudden iciness in Skr¡¯s tone confounded Largo. A transactional man, Largo assumed that Skr

    was merely bargaining, thus he eagerly advised Skr, ¡°This man definitely has the wealth to support

    you. In fact, money isn¡¯t even an issue for him. You¡¯re free to buy any Hermes products you want, or

    even the brand itself if you really fancy it. Many women live their whole lives dreaming of being in your

    position! Besides, I¡¯m only telling you all this because I see you as a friend and don¡¯t want to see you

    squander this opportunity.¡±

    A cool breeze blew through the trees, rustling the leaves and stirring Skr¡¯s spirits. Skr took a deep

    breath of the crisp, clear air, and decided that this business was not worth losing her temper over.

    Skr thus replied frankly, ¡°I¡¯m already living my best life. After this show airs, my career will almost

    certainly get a boost if all goes well. Hence, your offer doesn¡¯t interest me at all.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be so stubborn, Skr. How much do you get paid for your acting? Where can that take you,

    anyway? I¡¯ve never met an actress who¡¯s had the courage to demand more for herself. All I¡¯m trying to

    do is get you the reward you deserve,¡± Largo wheedled.

    Who knew that Largo¡¯s kind face was all just a facade? Skr thought ruefully. It must have taken an

    incredible amount of dedication and care for Largo to have sessfully operated his side business

    without being exposed all these years while maintaining his honorable reputation.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me, Mr. Zeller. If you really need help, I¡¯d rmend Avery. We look rather alike and

    you¡¯ve even personally put her to the test before. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re familiar with her with her ability to

    perform,¡± Skr retorted.

    Largo sensed that Skr was quickly slipping out of his grasp. Frantically, he coaxed, ¡°These

    opportunities don¡¯te by often. Think about how famous Cassidy was at the peak of her stardom!

    This sponsor has the power and influence to dictate the trajectory of your career. Besides, it¡¯s not as if

    you haven¡¯t done this before. There¡¯s no need to put on a pretense of modesty.¡±

    Skr refused to dignify Largo with a response. I must have been blind to take him as a friend.

    Skr reflected that it was her fault to believe that Largo was a sympathetic and gant gentleman.

    When Skr got injured, Largo even brought first-aid supplies to the set. It was both maddening and

    upsetting to Skr to think that all of Largo¡¯s previous acts of kindness had been performed with ulterior

    motives.

    It was no wonder that Largo and Avery got on like a house on fire. Both of them were equally despicable

    characters.

    Skr¡¯s curiosity, however, was thoroughly piqued by this encounter. Who exactly does Largo work

    for? Skr wondered. He evidently possessed a considerable amount of wealth and influence, enough

    to inspire such confidence and desperation in Largo.

    Skr and Largo¡¯s disappearance from the set had rmed both their assistants, who were by now

    whipping themselves up in a frenzy trying to contact both of them.

    The coincidence immediately roused suspicions of a secret affair between the two.

    Hearing the giggles and whispers flying around her, Avery could hardly contain herself. She dialed

    Largo¡¯s number incessantly but to no avail.

    Skr almost sprinted her way back to the set, fervently trying to set as much of a distance between

    herself and Largo as possible.

    Skr and Largo had only been gone for a mere half-hour, but rumors were already spreading like

    wildfire on Instagram. At that moment, Tobias was reading the scandal with a leer on his face.

    Skr really doesn¡¯t let up, does she? Tobias thought to himself grimly. However, he could not me

    Skr after having firsthand experience of how irresistible she was.

    Tobias ultimately found himself sympathetic. Men were naturally helpless in the face of beauty.

    Apparently, Skr¡¯s allure was far more formidable than Tobias had assumed.

 Chapter 435

    Chapter 435

    Kate bolted over to Skr the moment she saw her reappear on set. ¡°What on earth happened to you?

    We are going to start filming soon, and you haven¡¯t even changed! How could you have vanished just

    like that? Where did you and Largo go?¡± Kate demanded.

    Skr frowned. ¡°How did you know that I was with Largo?¡±

    Kate drew in a deep breath sharply, then exhaled, trying to contain her annoyance.¡± Avery was telling

    everyone that she couldn¡¯t find Largo and came to harass us, believing that you were with him. She told

    everyone that Largo was her boyfriend too, so everyone thinks that Largo has been cheating on Avery

    with you.¡±

    Skr snorted derisively. ¡°Let her tell all the lies that she wants. She has everything to lose. Anyway,

    there¡¯ll be someone to pick up the pieces for her. Largo cares too much about his image to allow Avery to

    run wild with her delusions. He definitely won¡¯t let this fly. We can sit back and wait for them to break up

    now.¡±

    Kate was all too familiar with Largo¡¯s ways of preserving his reputation. When he had burst out onto the

    acting scene, his fans had eagerly matchmade him with various female co-stars and celebrities. These

    pieces of gossip, however, were always rigorously denied and suppressed by Largo¡¯s publicity team.

    Skr quickly donned the outfit set aside by the film crew for her next scene. The gown cost an

    extravagant sum of money and its intricate designs were entirely embroidered by hand. Lightly

    shimmering with every move that Skr made, the gown looked fit for royalty.

    Its measurements, on the other hand, were slightly on the small side. Even with Skr sucking in her

    stomach, the gown would still be a little tight.

    As Skr was having the finishing touches done to her gown, the door flew open and Avery stormed in

    like a hurricane, blustering in her rage.

    Kate jumped in fright at the abruptness of Avery¡¯s entrance. In a simr fashion, Hannah, who was

    squatting next to Skr arranging the hem of her gown, staggered and almost fell.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Avery was clutching her phone so hard that her knuckles had turned white. Her eyes zing, Avery

    bellowed, ¡°Why didn¡¯t Largo answer any of my calls? You¡¯re just as unscrupulous as your mother! You

    must have inherited her cheating nature.¡±

    Avery¡¯s deliberate insult to Miranda infuriated Skr immensely. It was an unjust usation, given that

    all Miranda had done was to get her man back rightfully after he had been snatched away from her.

    Skr was seething but quickly regained herposure. She put on her violet earrings without deigning

    to even nce at Avery¡¯s angry face.

    ¡°Tell me, who¡¯s going after your man? You came here looking for him, didn¡¯t you? Where is he, then?¡±

    Skr demanded.

    Avery was so vexed by Skr¡¯s reply that she began quivering with rage. ¡°You still haven¡¯t gotten over

    Jeremy, have you? You¡¯re still ming me for him breaking up with you! Aren¡¯t you trying to seduce

    Largo to get back at me?¡±

    Skr slowly turned to face Avery. Her memory of Jeremy seemed so vague like he was someone she

    had met in a previous life. There was no way Skr would remember such a person if Avery did not

    bring his name up.

    Ironically, the mention of Jeremy only served to as a reminder to Skr on how she hadpletely

    gotten over him. Instead of hanging on to him, Skr realized that she had thought of Jeremy for a very

    long time.

    Skr strode over to Avery, then said mockingly, ¡°Thanks for the reminder. I¡¯d forgotten all about that

    piece of trash. I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t know that you and Largo were even in a serious rtionship. I was so

    caught up with his confession to me that I¡¯d forgotten to ask.¡±

    Avery stood rooted to the spot. Didn¡¯t Largo say just the night before that he¡¯d treat me well? She¡¯d even

    persistently probed him as to when she could meet his family and announce their rtionship.

    It was unfathomable to Avery how Largo could make a headlong dash over to Skr and profess his

    feelings for her the very next day. There was nothing in Avery¡¯s life that Skr would not rob her of¡ªfirst

    the lead role, then her boyfriend

    Skr added provocatively, ¡°I told him that there was no way he could get me to take my sister¡¯s

    happiness away from her! Even though we aren¡¯t usually on good terms, I wouldn¡¯t go to such an extent

    to hurt you, at least for now.¡±

 Chapter 436

    Chapter 436

    ¡°If Largo confessed his feelings to you, what will you do about Tobias? Did the two of you break up?¡±

    Kate broke in, springing forward in her anxiety.

    Skr¡¯s bluff had evidently confused the room. Even Kate seemed to have fallen for it hook, line, and

    sinker.

    Skr lowered her gaze, fiddling with her dress. ¡°We didn¡¯t break up. He¡¯s currently sleeping in my room.

    I don¡¯t know what his ns are for today.¡±

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    ¡°Tobias is here? Why didn¡¯t you ask him to make an appearance on set? His presence would make

    everyone, even the producers, a lot warier,¡± Kate earnestly continued, believing.

    Skr hastily retreated. ¡°Forget it. Tobias doesn¡¯t like to draw attention to himself. I¡¯m not too sure why

    he came over to visit me today, either.¡±

    At that moment, Jane ran into the dressing room to inform Avery that Largo had returned. Thunderously,

    Avery stomped out of the room to seek him out and confront him.

    Largo was in his motorhome replying to messages when Avery entered. cing his phone down on the

    table with its screen face down, Largo replied, irritated, ¡°What are you doing? Didn¡¯t we agree to keep

    our distance on set? Why did you have to follow me around so closely today? You¡¯re being childish.

    What¡¯s so urgent that you have toe over right now?¡±

    Avery was beside herself. She was used to men fawning over her and hanging onto her every word, not

    this disrespect that she was now receiving from Largo.

    Avery mmed her fist onto the table and almost spat at Largo, saying, ¡°Largo! You said very clearly that

    you were serious about being in a rtionship with me. We even talked about going public to let

    everyone know that we¡¯re together!¡±

    Largo remained calm in the face of Avery¡¯s vehemence. Smiling cidly, he replied, ¡°Don¡¯t get so

    excited. You¡¯re acting as if I have bullied you! Of course, I¡¯m serious about being with you. There¡¯s no

    reason for you to doubt it. We¡¯ll find an appropriate time to announce our rtionship, but not now.¡±

    Largo¡¯s words, however, were unable to appease Avery. Who does he think he¡¯s talking to? I¡¯m the heir

    to Quest Group! Avery thought indignantly.

    She thus challenged Largo hotly, ¡°What were you thinking of when you confessed your feelings to

    Skr? How could you do that, knowing full well that she is a red hot piece of ass any man can get?

    She¡¯s gotten you totally wrapped around her little finger with that vixen-like face of hers!¡±

    Largo clenched his jaw. ¡°What are you bbering on about, Avery? When did I confess my feelings for

    Skr? Why are you making a scene here now? You might as well consider this rtionship over.

    There¡¯s no need to discuss anything else. We¡¯re evidently not a good match for each other.¡±

    Dumbfounded, Avery gazed at Largo. Ever since they started dating, she relished the day she would be

    publicly acknowledged as Largo¡¯s girlfriend. Avery had already dreamt of that scene many times over,

    both of them holding hands and standing in the spotlight. The media would proim Avery and Largo as

    the hottest couple in the entertainment industry.

    Most importantly, Largo was the first man with whom Avery had fallen head over heels in love. The

    moment Avery set her eyes on Largo, she knew instinctively that their fates would be intertwined.

    Now, Largo had crashed Avery¡¯s fairytale romance before anything happened.

    ¡°How can you break up with me? I have given you everything including my virginity!¡± Avery¡¯s eyes

    brimmed with tears. Avery had pinned every single one of her hopes onto Largo and could not ept the

    fact that her fairytale world was going to end just like that.

    Largo knitted his brow in annoyance. The sight of Avery¡¯s forlorn face only served to aggravate his

    displeasure, and he said impatiently, ¡°So what? I¡¯ve treated you well all this while. Now that you¡¯ve

    created such a fuss over nothing, I¡¯m not in the mood to continue this rtionship anymore.¡±

    Through her tears, Avery doggedly said, ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid that I¡¯ll expose our rtionship then? I¡¯ll say

    that you took my virginity and that you¡¯re irresponsible! I¡¯ll thoroughly tear you and your reputation to

    shreds. Are you willing to forsake everything for Skr? Don¡¯t you know who her real sugar daddy is?¡±

 Chapter 437

    Chapter 437

    Impatiently, Largo threatened Avery, ¡°I have no objection if you want to drag me down with you. I don¡¯t

    care if you¡¯re the heir to apany. I¡¯ll see to it that you¡¯ll never be able to set foot in the entertainment

    industry ever again. If you think you can take me on, then go ahead. I¡¯m warning you. Don¡¯t bite off more

    than you can chew.¡±

    Avery looked at Largo fearfully. He towered over her and the cruel expression on his face made his

    features nearly unrecognizable. He was aplete stranger from the man who held her so tenderly the

    night before.

    Avery broke down, shuddering sobs racking her body. However, Largo just watched her, entirely

    unmoved. He truly regretted having gotten himself into this mess.

    On the bright side, Largo was rather amused with Skr as she had helped to resolve one of Largo¡¯s

    headaches. At least, she had gotten rid of Avery for him. That was all thanks to Avery¡¯s stupidity.

    There weren¡¯t many scenes for Skr to shoot that day. While being attached to the harness, Skr

    noticed that Daniel was nowhere to be seen and asked the props manager about him.

    He scratched his head, then replied thoughtfully, ¡°Since the ident, Daniel handed in his notice of

    resignation even without the director requesting for it. I think he would have joined another filming crew. If

    I were him, I wouldn¡¯t dare to show my face around here either.¡±

    Skr had someone investigate Daniel¡¯s bank ounts. He had received a staggering five hundred

    thousand from a private ount under Hayden¡¯s name.

    It confirmed Skr¡¯s suspicions that her fall had not been purely idental but the work of an evil

    machination.

    She guessed that Daniel had left the filming crew out of fear that his malicious act would be revealed. He

    must have fled as soon as he could and as far away as possible.

    The harness had left abrasions on Skr¡¯s delicate skin even through her clothing. After the filming was

    done, Skr realized that a blister had formed on her shoulder from the constant rubbing.

    By the time Skr returned to the hotel, she had almost popped it from the scratching almost every other

    minute.

    Tobias was seatedfortably in a chair when she entered the room. Propping his chin upzily with an

    arm, he greeted Skr, asking, ¡°What were you up to this afternoon?¡±

    ¡°I was filming. What else would I be doing? What about you?¡± Skr retorted.

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    Tobias smiled, but it was clear that it wasn¡¯t out of friendliness. ¡°I was reading the news. They were going

    on about how you¡¯d disappeared with the male lead for one whole hour. That¡¯s enough time for you to

    aplish quite a bit.¡±

    Skr lifted her chin defiantly and looked Tobias straight in the eye. ¡°Are you jealous? It looks like I have

    a more important ce in your heart now. At least you¡¯ve restrained yourself from being a jerk this time

    around.¡±

    Tobias arched an eyebrow. ¡°When was I ever a jerk to you?¡±

    Skr clenched her jaw. ¡°You said that if we dated, I am not allowed to cheat on you physically, but I can

    stray emotionally.¡±

    Tobias had absolutely no recollection of having said that before. He dismissed Skr¡¯s words with a

    sneer.

    ¡°You were gone for an hour. That¡¯s enough time for anything to happen,¡± Tobias replied menacingly.

    The tension that hung between Tobias and Skr was so thick that one could almost cut it with a knife.

    Without uttering a word, Skr gestured for Tobias to stand up. Heplied.

    Skr then invited Tobias to examine her.

    As his keen gaze lingered over every curve of her body, Skr replied boldly, ¡°Look at me. Do I look like

    a woman with anything to hide? Do you think I¡¯d dare to keep you waiting here while I cheat on you with

    someone else? How could you think that I¡¯d do such a thing?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ piercing gaze remained transfixed on Skr¡¯s face, a distinct look of possessiveness and desire

    in them.

    ¡°I¡¯ll need to really take a good look. If there¡¯s even a whiff of another man on any part of you, I¡¯ll cut it off.

    Do you agree to that?¡± Tobias said smoothly.

    Suddenly, a loud creak came from underneath the bed.

    Both Tobias and Skr whipped around in tandem, staring at the direction from which the sound had

    unmistakably emerged.

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    Chapter 438

    The moment felt surreal to Skr, and she wondered if her ears were ying tricks on her. Her

    suspicions, however, were confirmed when Tobias immediately shielded Skr with his body as they

    both continued staring at the bed. An abrupt hush had descended upon the room, leaving only the sound

    of their anxious breathing.

    Tobias crept over to the bed, then bent over slowly to peer under it. Another pair of eyes instantly met

    his. Tobias barely flinched, but Skr was so taken aback that she gave an ear-splitting scream.

    Skr watched, stupefied, as a man crawled out from under the bed. Fortunately, the entire room was

    brightly lit, and the scene looked more absurd than horrifying.

    Tobias held onto Skr protectively, his watchful gaze never leaving the body of the man who had

    wriggled his way out from underneath the bed. The man was short and of a small frame. The camera

    and voice recorder that he sped in one hand instantly betrayed his profession.

    ¡°I think I have entered the wrong room and fell asleep! I¡¯m so sorry for disturbing you. I¡¯ll head back to my

    room now,¡± the man mumbled foolishly, already threading his way to the door at top speed.

    Tobias marveled at the audacity and persistence of these tabloid reporters. He¡¯d only left the room once

    in the afternoon, so the reporter must have snuck in then and hidden ever since. What if I hadn¡¯t been

    around? Tobias fumed.

    Skr would have unwittingly gone to bed with a man lying below her. What if he was a pervert? What

    would stop him from having his way with this helpless woman?

    Skr had barely recovered her wits. Her heart was still thumping wildly as she said hoarsely, ¡°Where

    did youe from? What the hell were you doing beneath my bed?¡±

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    The reporter immediately took to his heels, preparing to flee. Tobias had anticipated this and raised his

    leg to deliver a sturdy kick on the reporter¡¯s knee. Thetter copsed with a howl of agony and

    crumpled to the floor clutching his knee. The entire room had heard the audible sound of bone breaking.

    Tobias squatted beside the reporter, casually observing as he shook and whimpered in pain and fear.

    ¡°Tell me. What were you doing hiding down here? You paparazzi really know no bounds.¡±

    Gasping, the reporter stammered, ¡°Mr. Ford, I didn¡¯t want to do this either, I swear! I didn¡¯t take any

    pictures. Let me go, I beg you! I¡¯ll never do it again.¡±

    Skr frowned. Anger had now reced her initial shock, and she took a step forward. ¡°How did you

    know that he was Mr. Ford? Who sent you here? Which mediapany do you work for?¡±

    Tobias delivered a heavy blow to the reporter¡¯s face. ¡°If you already knew who I was, you should know

    what I do to people who don¡¯t tell the truth. I¡¯ll give you onest chance. Why are you here?¡±

    The reporter trembled in submission. He knew full well Tobias¡¯ reputation for brutality.

    Reluctantly, the reporter replied, ¡°The other Mr. Ford sent me, asking me to report everything you did,

    right down to every single word you said. I¡¯m a private detective! You came back just as I was fixing my

    cameras in the room. I¡¯m just a pawn! I¡¯m begging you to let me go, Mr. Ford. I¡¯ll never take on a job like

    this again.¡±

    Skr could scarcely believe her ears. How can Sheldon, always so frivolous and careless, be the

    mastermind behind this evil scheme?

    The thought that Sheldon had actually stooped to spying on his own brother was more perplexing than

    the reporter¡¯s presence in the room. Based on Skr¡¯s impression of Sheldon, he neither had the means

    nor motive to carry out such a cunning plot. Or was Sheldon fooling us all along? Skr wondered.

    Beside her, Tobias burst into a bitterugh.

    Skr turned to Tobias and glimpsed in his eyes a mix of rage and utter disappointment.

    Tobias stood up, then spat, ¡°Go back and tell Sheldon that he¡¯s making a big mistake. He¡¯d better learn

    to stay in his ownne.¡±

    Tobias stalked off. Without a moment to lose, the reporter stumbled out of the room. In his haste, he

    collided heavily with the door frame. Reeling, he nheless pressed forward blindly, hell bent on

    escaping from Tobias.

    Skr¡¯s mind was now in a tumult. Upon sensing the gloomy aura that surrounded Tobias, the questions

    that had rushed to her lips died away just as quickly.

    Skr slipped her hand into Tobias¡¯ tentatively and offered meekly, ¡°Why don¡¯t we go out for a walk? The

    nights here are really serene and beautiful.¡±

    Tobias looked unmoved, his expression entirely nk. The only trace of emotion he revealed was in the

    barest quiver of his voice as he replied, ¡°You should get an early rest. Don¡¯t bete tomorrow.¡±

    Skr said nothing. Unlike his blunt self, Tobias now seemed defensive, secretive almost. Tobias was

    not usually in the habit of expressing his emotions, but he appeared even more guarded now.

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    Just then, Skr¡¯s phone screen lit up with a WhatsApp message from Largo.

    Have you considered my offer?

    The corners of Skr¡¯s mouth curled in incredulity. Largo was a pretty diligent pimp, persevering

    undaunted even after being rejected so irrefutably.

    ¡°Who¡¯s texting you? You¡¯ve been staring at your phone for the longest time,¡± Tobias remarked.

    Skr hesitated, then decided not to tell Tobias the truth. It wasn¡¯t anything to boast about and would do

    nothing good for Tobias¡¯ current frame of mind.

    Besides, what would I say? That Largo¡¯s trying to pimp me out? Skr thought, grimacing.

    Casually, Skr answered, ¡°It¡¯s just spam. You can see for yourself if you¡¯d like.¡±

    Tobias arched an eyebrow. ¡°Is there a need to do that? I still have several nude photos of you in my

    phone. Do you want to see what you look like naked?¡±

    Skr¡¯s face turned crimson with embarrassment. She prodded Tobias sternly, saying, ¡°You¡¯d better

    delete them. This is such a despicable hobby.¡±

    Tobias grinned at Skr and ruffled her hair yfully, saying, ¡°What¡¯s so despicable about me keeping

    nude photos of my own wife?¡±

    Skr stood stock still. It was the first time that Tobias had ever addressed her as his wife. Tobias always

    called Skr by name. Terms of endearment were few and far between.

    ¡°What did you call me?¡± Skr gaped at Tobias in disbelief.

    Tobias leaned towards Skr, pressing his lips against her ear. Sensually, he whispered, his breath

    tickling her ear, ¡°I said, my wife. Didn¡¯t you hear me?¡±

    Sheldon sat perched on the CEO¡¯s chair in front of his desk. Night had fallen, but the floor-length blinds

    behind him had entirely obscured the splendid view the window otherwise afforded of the city.

    Susan stood behind Sheldon, primly smoothing out the minute creases in her outfit.

    ¡°Does Tobias review these documents every day? Is he able to finish looking through everything?¡±

    Sheldon asked, furrowing his brows.

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    Susan eyed the piles of documents thaty scattered across the huge desk. They were almost

    insignificant, however,pared to the towering stacks on Tobias¡¯ desk.

    Susan replied frankly, ¡°Mr. Ford is very efficient. He wouldn¡¯t take long to clear this amount of work.¡±

    Sheldon flung his pen onto the desk. Leering at Susan unkindly, Sheldon scoffed, ¡°I know you¡¯re on

    Tobias¡¯ side! Your Mr. Ford is the one who requested for you to stay. That¡¯s how little he trusts me.¡±

    Susan politely answered, ¡°If you¡¯re unhappy with me, I¡¯ll resign. Without me, though, you¡¯ll have great

    difficult navigating the ins and outs of thispany.¡±

    Contemptuously, Sheldon asked, ¡°Did Tobias brainwash you? Why are you so obstinately loyal to him?

    Why don¡¯t you leave him and join me, I¡¯ll triple your current sry.¡±

    Susan did not even bother to conceal her revulsion. ¡°If there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯ll be taking my leave first,

    then. You can decide whether you want me to keep me employed.¡±

    For the sake of Ford Group¡¯s stocks, the news of Tobias¡¯ illness had not been announced publicly. Skr

    had scoured the news for information about Tobias¡¯ resignation from Ford Group but to no avail. Tobias

    himself was not helping by providing her anything useful.

    When Skr woke early the next morning in preparation for the day¡¯s filming, Tobias was already

    packing his luggage. It was nearly empty save for toiletries and a few sets of clothes.

    ¡°Are you leaving already? I thought you¡¯d stay for at least a week,¡± Skr said, pouting. She clung to

    Tobias, reluctant to let him go. In all the time Skr and Tobias had been dating, they¡¯d spent more time

    apart than together.

    ¡°Do you want me to give you a souvenir before I go?¡± Tobias said, grinning at Skr.

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    Chapter 440

    Skr had felt that something was amiss during this visit of Tobias¡¯, when they¡¯d barely had any physical

    contact. It worried her, knowing that Tobias wasn¡¯t one to restrain himself. However, Skr found herself

    too bashful to approach the subject if he did not initiate it for fear that she might look desperate.

    ¡°I¡¯m in a rush to leave. My assistant¡¯sing over in less than fifteen minutes. Is that enough for you?¡±

    Skr said hesitantly.

    It was as if Skr¡¯s words had triggered something in Tobias. His eyes darkened, and he grabbed her

    roughly, kissing Skr with such violent passion that he seemed almost intent on swallowing her whole.

    It felt like he was releasing his pent-up emotions.

    Suffused in her yearning, Skr was rudely yanked out of the moment by a brisk rapping on the door.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, have you woken up yet? It¡¯s time to leave,¡± Hannah¡¯s voice called faintly from behind the

    door.

    Skr and Tobias disentangled themselves regretfully. Tobias looked at Skr critically, then said, ¡°Don¡¯t

    use green tea-vored toothpaste anymore. I don¡¯t like the taste of it.¡±

    Skr wiped her mouth surreptitiously. ¡°It¡¯s better than the smell of cigarettes. I¡¯ll change my toothpaste

    when you quit smoking,¡± she teased.

    Skr knew how addicted Tobias was to smoking. He used to be able to finish a pack in two days.

    Tobias patted Skr on her behind. ¡°Stop arguing. Go ahead with your work. Be patient, though. I won¡¯t

    have the time to visit you before the filming ends.¡±

    Skr seized Tobias¡¯ hand in hers, sulking. ¡°How do you expect me to be patient? I won¡¯t physically

    cheat on you, but I might stray emotionally. Will that do?¡±

    Tobias took in Skr¡¯s lovely, irresistible face, then replied evenly, ¡°It¡¯s up to you. I don¡¯t like other men

    touching my women, but I don¡¯t think I have to teach you that.¡±

    The romantic atmosphere that had drenched the room earlier evaporated instantly. Skr found herself

    wishing that Tobias could revert to his original self and resolutely dere her to be his.

    Now that they had been together for some time, Skr wondered if Tobias¡¯ feelings for her had grown

    cold. He no longer hungered for her as much as before.

    The set was open to the media that day. Dressed in their filming outfits, both Skr and Largo presented

    themselves before a sea of reporters to field questions.

    Avery had covertly snuck up next to Largo and insisted on standing next to him throughout the entire

    event. Before the interview began, Avery had warned Largo that if he refused to give her another

    chance, she¡¯d expose their rtionship to the media that very day.

    The original media duo thus expanded to amodate an unwanted third.

    Skr had not received any advanced notice on the interview. Hence, she was cast immediately into

    deep waters without even a change of clothes. Skr had just finished shooting an action scene, and her

    clothes were in disarray, with stray leaves still caught in her hair. On the contrary, Avery seized the

    opportunity to stand out in striking contrast to Skr, with her carefully made-up face and hair.

    ¡°Hello everyone, I¡¯m Avery,¡± Avery announced, worming her way in between Largo and Skr.

    The reporters exchanged uncertain looks. Is she a new lead? They whispered amongst themselves,

    puzzled.

    ¡°We don¡¯t have to stick to these conventions. Don¡¯t ask me questions like that,¡± Avery replied breezily

    with a toss of her head. She had been crowned the prom queen back in school and was used to hearing

    ¡°As a neer, how does it feel to be co-stars with Skr?¡± A reporter piped up.

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    Avery bit her lip, ncing at Skr. She nonchntly shrugged her shoulders, then replied, ¡°Skr is not

    very professional, but that makes me feel morefortable around her. Besides, having to reshoot so

    many scenes gives me more chances to refine my acting.¡±

    Dramatically, Avery mimicked Skr, her eyes widening exaggeratedly. ¡°Can I really do this? Can I say

    that?¡±

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    Chapter 441

    Largo felt ashamed of Avery. Her mincing ways made her look childish, almost like a low-grade actress

    from a budget film.

    Several microphones were thrust into Skr¡¯s face all at once. She was busy rolling her eyes at what

    Avery had said. She refused to dignify Avery¡¯s ims with a response, merely letting her eloquent

    expression speak for itself.

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    Skr and Largo watched Avery¡¯s performance in mutual silence. Largo regretted ever having gotten

    involved with a stupid woman like her. He felt tainted by every interaction he¡¯d ever had with such a

    loathsome woman.

    Skr and Largo coasted through the rest of the reporter¡¯s eager questions rather superficially. Unlike

    Avery, they were unwilling to expose themselves unnecessarily.

    At the end of the interview, however, Skr gave the reporters a courteous nod, saying, ¡°Thank you for

    your time.¡±

    Avery looked annoyed by Skr¡¯s winning gesture of humility, telling herself jealously that it was all an

    act. The sight of Skr and Largo pictured together in the media, albeit for a work reason, enraged

    Avery.

    Avery seemed to have totally forgotten about her own vile behavior in the past. She was instead entirely

    obsessed with highlighting Skr¡¯s ws.

    ¡°So, have you decided?¡± Barely five minutes after Skr had returned to her motorhome, Largo strode in

    without knocking.

    Skr, who had just drank a mouthful of hot tea, almost choked.

    She made no effort to disguise her resentment towards Largo. Skr felt repulsed by him. Largo had

    shot to fame early in his career and had undoubtedly umted millions by now. Why, then, was it

    necessary for him to moonlight as a pimp? Skr considered. He¡¯d even dragged Cassidy into his

    perverse sales pitch.

    Skr guessed that Cassidy¡¯s wild, reckless behavior could be attributedrgely to the maniptions of

    this enigmatic sponsor.

    She set her thermos sk down on the table, then crossed her legs and stared insolently at Largo. ¡°Who

    exactly is the sugar daddy you keep referring to? Shouldn¡¯t I get to know his identity as proof of his

    sincerity first?¡±

    ¡°Do you know Tobias?¡± Largo replied.

    Skr gaped at him. What kind of ruse is this? She thought, rm bells ringing in her head. Has Tobias

    been secretly sponsoring women behind my back? Didn¡¯t he say that he had nothing to do with Cassidy

    at all?

    In an icy tone, Skr demanded, ¡°Are you saying that the man who wants to sponsor me is Tobias? Was

    he the one who tormented Cassidy?¡±

    Largo was evidently perplexed by the vehemence of Skr¡¯s response. He had not expected her to be

    capable of such ire.

    ¡°I¡¯m talking about Xander, Tobias¡¯ father. Think about what he¡¯s capable of with his wealth and influence

    before you decide to reject my proposal,¡± Largo said hurriedly.

    This revtion was no less appalling to Skr than the previous one. She felt relieved that it wasn¡¯t

    Tobias. However, it was entirely absurd that she would chance upon Xander¡¯s heinous deeds so

    casually.

    Skr feverishly wanted Largo to get out of her motorhome and leave her alone with her thoughts. She

    thus reproved, ¡°Why are you offering me to an old man? Do you think I¡¯d be tempted by that? Get out of

    my motorhome! Don¡¯t ever bring this up to me again.¡±

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    Chapter 442

    Like a dog with a bone, Largo was unyielding. If he sessfully convinced Skr, Largo would likely

    appear on the big screen in his next film. Having already invested a few hundred million in Largo, it was

    rare that Xander would take a further interest in Skr. Largo had sent Skr¡¯s photo to Xander and

    received instant approval from thetter. Xander had been so pleased that he had promised to grant

    Largo whatever he desired.

    Largo thus pressed on. ¡°Older men tend to be more caring and affectionate. Young and sessful men

    don¡¯t usually know how to treat women well. Anyway, it¡¯s a mutually beneficial arrangement.¡±

    Skr lifted her sk and, in one graceful motion, threw the rest of the hot tea onto Largo¡¯s surprised

    face. ¡°If you say another word, it won¡¯t just be the tea that I¡¯ll be pouring at you. Get out!¡± she roared.

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    Largo had sprung to his feet in dismay. Seething, he yelled, ¡°What the hell are you doing? All I wanted

    was to give you a chance. If you don¡¯t take it, don¡¯te crying to me in the future.¡±

    Skr looked at Largo pityingly. ¡°If you¡¯re so interested, why don¡¯t you do it, then? It¡¯s just sex, isn¡¯t it? If

    you don¡¯t leave, I¡¯ll report you for harassment. Everyone will know what a pervert you are.¡±

    Skr¡¯s threat had far more effect on Largo than Avery¡¯s had had.

    In all her subsequent scenes with Largo, Skr did her absolute best to keep her distance. In contrast to

    what Avery had imed, Skr maintained her professional veneer while acting. Skr¡¯s on-screen

    chemistry with Largo was still as effusive as ever. The moment the director dered ¡°Cut!¡±, however,

    Skr would leave as quickly as she could, avoiding the possibility of any interaction with Largo.

    When the filming for Empyrean Sword finally ended, neither the lead actor nor actress was present at the

    filming crew¡¯s celebratory party. Despite Kate¡¯s urging, Skr had immediately had her chauffeur drive

    her straight home.

    She felt that it was too soon to set aside her disgust for Largo. At the risk of appearing arrogant for not

    gracing the party, Skr escaped as soon as she could.

    Skr picked up her phone to call Tobias the moment she entered her room. Over the line, he informed

    her that he was at home.

    ¡°Which home?¡± Skr asked hopefully.

    Her heart sank when Tobias named his childhood home. It didn¡¯t seem possible that they would be able

    to meet that night. As Skr hung up with a heavy heart, she realized that the car was no longer heading

    in the direction of her own home.

    ¡°Willie, did you take a wrong turn? We¡¯re heading in the opposite direction!¡± Skr cried nervously.

    She was immediately thankful that she wasn¡¯t in a taxi. If this had happened in an unfamiliar car with a

    strange driver, it usually portended something disastrous like a kidnapping.

    Willie, however, calmly replied, ¡°Mr. Ford gave me instructions to drive you over to his childhood home.¡±

    Skr leaned against the seat and closed her eyes, muttering, ¡°He¡¯s always making decisions without

    consulting me. It¡¯s fine if he¡¯s alone, but what am I supposed to do if his parents are around? Isn¡¯t it rude

    of me to show up empty-handed?¡±

    Skr was well-versed in matters of courtesy and etiquette. A fruit basket was the meanest gift she

    could bring herself to offer. To turn up at someone else¡¯s doorstep without a gift in hand, as oft advised

    by her Grandma, was unbing.

    She thus insisted that Willie pulled over at the nearest grocery store for her to purchase a fruit basket.

    The fruits avable at that hour were on discount, evidently as a way of clearing the shelf for the next

    morning¡¯s fresh batch of arrivals.

    As Skr stepped into the cozy store, numerous curious gazes greeted her, all of which belonged to

    shoppers who recognized her. Skr knew that she had made it to fame.

    Skr selected a few seasonal fruits, knowing full well that udia would probably not even nce at

    them. As she weighed them in her hand, Skrforted herself by murmuring, ¡°It¡¯s the thought that

    counts.¡±

    When Skr finally slid back into the car, Willie spoke up a little awkwardly, ¡°Ms. Jones, we should hurry

    ahead. Mr. Ford¡¯s already beginning to question me about why we haven¡¯t arrived yet.¡±

    Skr frowned. ¡°I didn¡¯t think he was in that much of a hurry. Can¡¯t he wait just a little?¡±

    When Skr finally stepped through the door of Tobias¡¯ home, udia and Tobias were sitting in the

    living room with the television ring in the background. Neither of them seemed to be paying any

    attention to it. Instead, udia and Tobias were conversing in low voices with looks of evident

    displeasure on their faces.

    Neither Tobias nor udia heeded Skr¡¯s entrance. Dismally bncing her bag in one hand and the

    fruits in the other, Skr felt as invisible as a ghost.

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    Chapter 443

    Skr stood awkwardly at the door of the living room.

    Did Willie get it wrong? Am I even invited? Skr reflected. Gritting her teeth, she felt a surge of

    exasperation rise within her. Is it too much of me to expect to be treated as a guest?

    Incensed, Skr dumped her fruit basket unceremoniously onto the dining table. Raising her voice, she

    announced brightly, ¡°Mrs. Ford, my apologies foring over sote.¡±

    Skr¡¯s smile was entirely stiff and insincere. She already deeply regretted allowing Willie to drive her

    over.

    Tobias¡¯ head suddenly snapped in Skr¡¯s direction, alerted only at the sound of Skr¡¯s voice. He

    turned to udia and exined, ¡°Mom, Skr¡¯s here. I won¡¯t be staying here tonight, then. Have a good

    rest.¡±

    udia turnedzily to face Skr, scanning her from head to toe.

    The smile on Skr¡¯s face faded, and she met udia¡¯s eyes stonily. Respect was mutual, and if

    udia did not even show Skr the courtesy of inviting her to take a seat or offering her a drink, Skr

    would take no pains to be polite, either.

    ¡°It¡¯ste. Why don¡¯t you stay here with her? Aren¡¯t the two of you already in a rtionship?¡± udia

    finally said with a disdainful sniff.

    Skr was momentarily bewildered by the change in udia¡¯s attitude.

    If that had urred before, Skr would have stayed without hesitation. Nevertheless, she resented

    beingmanded by udia¡¯s whims. Even though Skr loved Tobias, she was not willing to sacrifice

    her dignity.

    Skr thus simply answered, ¡°It¡¯ste, Mrs. Ford. I¡¯ll be heading back home. It wouldn¡¯t be good for me

    to stay here when I¡¯m not married to Tobias. I came for a quick visit, but I¡¯m going home now.¡±

    Tobias finally spoke. His tone was solemn as he said, ¡°Stay with me tonight. My mother¡¯s feeling unwell

    and I have to remain here.¡±

    Realization dawned upon Skr. Tobias had summoned her here because he could not tear himself

    away. If not for udia¡¯s condescension, Skr would have stayed in her own ord. However, she

    could not endure the fact that she had just stood there and being neglected, in front of Tobias and

    udia for a whole half an hour.

    Skr was determined not to bow her head to the Fords. She thus lowered her eyes, avoiding Tobias¡¯

    probing gaze.

    udia then asked witheringly, ¡°Are you sure? I guess you¡¯re more conservative than I expected, Ms.

    Jones. If you¡¯re not staying, you may take your leave.¡±

    Without another word, Skr turned to go.

    ¡°Stay. Don¡¯t leave,¡± Tobias called, a new note of urgency in his voice. Skr, however, refused to take

    the insult of being ordered around.

    Tobias watched her departing figure, glowering. Suddenly, a dryugh escaped him.

    It looks like she¡¯s Little Miss Independent now. She¡¯s intent on making her own decisions, Tobias thought,

    smirking to himself.

    udia sighed. ¡°All that poprity must have gone to her head. She has totally disregarded you.¡±

    Tobias chuckled. ¡°We were rude to her. I didn¡¯t want her to overhear what we were saying about

    Sheldon, so I treated her coldly on purpose. Skr must have gotten offended. It¡¯ll be alright. I¡¯ll give her

    a callter to coax her a little.¡±

    An unhappy expression hung over udia¡¯s face. ¡°When are you nning to put a stop to Sheldon¡¯s

    foolish act? What can he actually do? Will he only stop only after creating havoc?¡±

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    Thoughtfully, Tobias replied, ¡°Everyone must be given a chance to figure things out on their own. We

    need to give him some space to grow.¡±

    udia never expected that her two sons woulde to be at odds with each other. As children,

    Sheldon had clung to his elder brother. The two had been inseparable when they were young.

    In order to pay off her debts, udia had worked from dusk to dawn. She barely had any time for her

    sons. Therefore, udia felt that she had not fulfilled her responsibility as a mother to both of them even

    until now.

    When udia was absent, Tobias had taken on the mantle of raising Sheldon during the family¡¯s darkest

    days of battling poverty. udia hated being reminded of that period. The suffering she had undertaken

    was still raw in udia¡¯s mind. She med Xander and hated him squarely for it.

 Chapter 444

    Chapter 444

    As the years passed, the wealth and sess of the Ford family business increased slowly but steadily.

    Meanwhile, the Ford brothers had also grown into intelligent, capable young men. It was only when

    Tobias took up the reins of the Ford family business, that it began skyrocketing.

    udia had single-handedly shouldered every burden in the Ford family throughout Sheldon and Tobias¡¯

    childhood. It was the reason why she fretted so over Tobias¡¯ marriage. udia had worked her whole life

    to bring her children happiness. She would now have to hand over that task to another woman.

    udia was the only person who could empathize with Tobias¡¯ struggles. The seemingly endless stretch

    of work thaty before Tobias was an image that no ordinary person was capable of grasping.

    Skr had arrived at Tobias¡¯ home eager to discuss several matters. She now copsed onto the sofa,

    feeling deted. The silence and emptiness of her home seemed to be taunting her.

    Looking out the window, Skr saw the soft glow of lights dotting thendscape. A feeling of destion

    overcame her.

    As Skr was indulging in her self-pity, a faint noise came from upstairs. Skr sat up, immediately wary

    of another potential spy.

    Did he follow me home? Skr worried.

    She heaved a sigh of relief when she saw Miranda descending the stairs.

    ¡°Why are you here? Why didn¡¯t you wait for Dad to fetch you from the hospital? Has he sold off his

    house?¡± Skr asked sarcastically.

    Miranda rested a hand on the railing. After a few months of not having seen her daughter, Miranda

    thought that Skr had grown prettier.

    She kept this to herself, however, and said sharply, ¡°Look at your pathetic state! Who bullied you this

    time?¡±

    Skr did not reply. She could not possibly admit that she had gone all the way to Tobias¡¯ house sote

    at night only to have Tobias and udia spurn her. It was a rather humiliating experience.

    Miranda sat down on the sofa next to Skr. Neither of them said a word, both ruminating on their own

    troubles.

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    ¡°I couldn¡¯t wait for Thomas toe. He only visited me once, saying that Tobias took ny-five percent

    of Quest Group¡¯s profits. When Tobias took over, he left us with nothing. I thought he would help us out

    of the kindness! It turned out that he was merely riding on our vulnerable situation,¡± Mirandained,

    her toneced with bitterness.

    Skr had guessed as much. Thomas¡¯ visible change in attitude was due to a discrepancy in the

    allocation of profits. Frantic at his loss, Thomas had resorted to the only method he knew how.

    Derisively, Skr retorted, ¡°What are you nning to do, then? To head up to the rooftop and threaten to

    jump if Tobias doesn¡¯te? You¡¯ve seen for yourself that it doesn¡¯t work. I¡¯m only a pawn in this game.¡±

    Miranda covered her face with her hands and bent over in grief. She suddenly looked like a defenseless

    young girl, unable to deal with the harshness in her life.

    Skr felt difited. After all, Tobias had only intervened in Quest Group because of her. She¡¯d initially

    been grateful for his help, but time had proven that she had been too naive and idealistic.

    She clumsily patted Miranda on the shoulder and said soberly, ¡°You can find a man anywhere you look.

    Why stick so irrevocably with one? Dad never consults you about anything. Isn¡¯t his family supposed to

    be his top priority? Why don¡¯t you look for someone else? It¡¯s never toote to start dating again.¡±

    ¡°Shut up! I¡¯ll only love your father. You¡¯d better not say anything like that ever again,¡± Miranda said hotly.

    The inconsble expression on her face was instantly reced by wrath.

    Frustrated by Miranda¡¯s fickle changes in attitude, Skr massaged her temple, saying, ¡°Fine, I won¡¯t

    say anything then. Where will you be spending the night? Here, next door, or Uncle Wesley¡¯s?¡±

    Miranda stared at Skr, then said, ¡°We¡¯ve already moved out. There isn¡¯t enough money for us to

    continue renting the ce next door.¡±

 Chapter 445

    Chapter 445

    Skr nodded at Miranda. ¡°I got it. Just sleep in the guest room for now. I¡¯ll look for another house for

    youter on.¡±

    Miranda looked at her daughter begrudgingly. ¡°I¡¯m moving to Wesley¡¯s ce tomorrow, so don¡¯t worry. I

    won¡¯t get in your way.¡±

    ¡°Since when are you so understanding? Tobias doesn¡¯te over often, so you can just stay here for

    the time being. It¡¯s not like Uncle Wesley and his family love having you over.¡±

    The determination in Miranda¡¯s gaze showed her disagreement. ¡°Of course, I can go over. I own half the

    house technically. Besides, Eva adores me. She is always so nice to me.¡±

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    Skr rolled her eyes looking at the proud smile on Miranda¡¯s face. She was not even that happy for

    Skr when her movie was released. Actually, Skr suspected that Eva was the reason why Miranda

    got caught, but she decided to keep her spection to herself.

    Skr turned and went upstairs to take a shower, but Miranda dashed in front of her, looking at her

    vigntly.

    ¡°You¡¯d better stay away from Penelope. I know she¡¯s your best friend, but she¡¯s in a desperate situation

    now. There¡¯s nothing you can do to help her anyway.¡±

    A frown spread across Skr¡¯s face. ¡°Have you met Penelope? Where did you see her?¡±

    ¡°I found out about her when I went to Wesley¡¯s house. Penelope gave birth to a baby girl without even

    getting married. The man refused to admit it was his child. The whole neighborhood knows about her

    situation, so you¡¯d better stay away from her.¡±

    Skr clenched her fists in agitation.

    So she still went back? Gosh, I can¡¯t imagine what kind of a mess she is in now. Did she even get the

    money from Brayden? That should be hundreds of thousands. It¡¯s enough for her to raise the kid.

    ¡°You really need to pick your friends wisely. You can¡¯t risk being seen with people like her or you¡¯ll lose

    everything.¡±

    Skr smirked listening to Miranda. You sound like I¡¯ve achieved all this on my own. I wouldn¡¯t be where

    I am today if not for Tobias.

    She tossed and turned in her bed worrying about Penelope after she got upstairs. She shot Penelope a

    message, but she did not reply, so she just went on Instagram instead.

    As usual, Winnie was being a total show-off. She had luxury brand items littered all over her pictures.

    Even her umbre was branded. It seemed like she was having the time of her life after Sheldon became

    the CEO.

    He used to be under Tobias, and Tobias would control all his spendings.

    She switched off the lights andy in the bed silently. A wave of emotions washed over her as snippets of

    the time spent at the old house came shing back in her mind. She had been through so much growing

    up. Even when the family and rtives had gatherings, she would just sit aside alone. It was not like they

    would pay attention to her anyway.

    She felt so out of ce hearing them talk about buying houses and cars. They busied themselves

    discussing the huge balcony of the house someone just bought, how much the down payment of a house

    cost, the model of the car another person bought with one-off payment¡ªeverything Skr was clueless

    about. Their snobbish attitude seeded an entrenched antipathy in her toward them, but it also plunged

    her deeper into a vortex of jealousy and anger.

    That was when she realized how bitter someone manacled by jealously could be.

    To her family, she was always just a piece of trash to augment Eva¡¯s shining character.

    She pulled a nket over but soon heard approaching footsteps. She clenched the nket, thinking it

    was Miranda. ¡°What are you doing here at this hour? You should at least knock.¡±

 Chapter 446

    Chapter 446

    ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me I need to knock beforeing in.¡± A deep and maic voice pierced through the

    nket. Skr turned and saw Tobias standing beside the bed. She could vaguely see his chiseled face

    under the moonlight.

    ¡°I thought you¡¯re at your mom¡¯s ce? Why are you here?¡± She quickly sat up and looked at his

    emotionless face.

    ¡°She¡¯s fine, so I came over. Are you still mad at me?¡± Tobias did not switch on the light but sat down by

    the bed, running his coarse fingers across her smooth cheeks.

    Skr gestured to switch on the lights, but Tobias grabbed her by her hand and stopped her.

    ¡°Why should I be angry? I know my ce very well.¡± It was obvious from her tone that she was

    disgruntled.

    Tobias sighed. ¡°Come on, I¡¯ve alreadye over to find you. What else do you want me to do?¡±

    Skr chuckled at his answer. She knew what he meant. She should just forgive him when he was still

    trying to be nice.

    ¡°I¡¯m not expecting anything from you. I just prefer sleeping in my own bed, so I left.¡±

    Tobias had no idea what got into her. He lifted the nket and hugged her, running his hands across her

    body. ¡°Come on, Baby. My mom is nice enough to you already. She¡¯s already epted you. Just stop

    thinking too much and stay by my side.¡±Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Although Skr was touched by his words, she knew that Tobias was not someone who would settle for

    serious rtionships. He just needed someone he could dispose of at his will.

    Tobias fondled her body and their breathing intensified as the night drew nigh.

    Miranda, who happened to be up to get a drink heard them as she was going to the kitchen.

    She thought Skr was already asleep, so she went over to knock on her door.

    Skr whipped her head toward the door and pushed Tobias aside, but there was no way he was letting

    go of her.

    ¡°Skr, are you still awake?¡± Miranda called out.

    Over on the bed, Skr became tense all of a sudden as she struggled to pace her breathing. ¡°I¡¯m

    sleeping soon!¡±

    Tobias dipped his head and kissed her.

    Miranda curved her lips downward and turned away hesitantly before going to the kitchen.

    Back in the room, Skr felt her body was on fire. ¡°Why are you so quiet? Doesn¡¯t it feel good?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ question made her cheeks flushed. She wanted to talk back, but words failed her, so she bit him

    on the shoulder.

    Tobias¡¯ brows stitched together in pleasure and kissed her harder as he went faster.

    It was not until Miranda came downstairste in the morning and saw Tobias the next day that she knew

    what happenedst night.

    ¡°Morning, Ms. Watt,¡± Tobias greeted.

    Miranda acted as if she did not hear him. She still had her doubts about this man.

    Skr had already made some soup and bacon strips for breakfast, but Miranda did not seem to be

    pleased with it.

    ¡°I want spaghetti.¡±

    Back when she was in prison, all the inmates would be exhrated every time they knew they were going

    to have spaghetti. They only got to have it once in a while. That was why Miranda loved spaghetti.

    Meanwhile, Tobias took up the cutlery and started having the soup.

    ¡°Stopining. I woke up at six to make breakfast. Spaghetti is too heavy for breakfast anyway.

    When are you going back to Uncle Wesley¡¯s house?¡±

 Chapter 447

    Chapter 447

    Miranda spotted the bite mark on Tobias¡¯ neck as she sat down opposite him reluctantly. She obviously

    knew how he got that.

    Miranda quickly retracted her gaze. ¡°I called your uncle a few times but he didn¡¯t pick up. I¡¯m not sure if

    they¡¯re home, but anyway, I¡¯ll go over to their ce right after breakfast.¡±

    ¡°They have probably blocked you already, that¡¯s why your calls are not getting through.¡±

    Miranda¡¯s eyes widened in surprise. ¡°That¡¯s impossible. He¡¯s my brother. Stop thinking the worst of

    people.¡±

    Skr zipped her mouth. It was no use trying to make her see the truth.

    Tobias shifted his gaze between the two women as he ate. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just move in next door? I

    thought you¡¯ve always wanted to do that?¡±

    Anger surged in Miranda¡¯s heart at the mention of the issue. ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll just stay with my brother for

    now. That stupid Thomas has only paid for a month. Thendlord came and asked me to pay the rent for

    the next month and it is fifty thousand a month! I don¡¯t have the money to pay for that!¡±

    ¡°You can just ask Skr to buy you a house. She¡¯s signing the contract for a film soon, so she will be

    able to afford a nice house. I can even give you a twenty percent off if the house is under Ford Group.¡±

    Skr looked at him from the corner of her eyes. What is he trying to do? I know how much money I

    have in my bank. Why do all the rich people act the same?

    Skr knew just how much money she had in her bank. It was true that she could afford to buy a vi,

    but after factoring in real estate tax and everything, she would not have much left. In fact, she might even

    be in debt.

    She quickly put an egg on Tobias¡¯ te, hoping he would just shush and eat.

    To her dismay, Miranda took Tobias¡¯ suggestion seriously and a smile curved on her lips. ¡°That¡¯s a good

    idea. A house is an appreciating asset. Besides, the projects under Ford Group are all high-end. Come

    to think of it, it¡¯s better I don¡¯t stay with Wesley. It¡¯s an old neighborhood and everyone knows me. I bet

    they will point fingers behind my back too. I¡¯m already old, so I should have a home of my own. What do

    you think, Skr?¡±

    The daughter swallowed her food hard and almost choked.

    ¡°Why do you want such a huge house? You¡¯re staying on your own.¡±

    Not only did Tobias not keep quiet, he further fanned Miranda¡¯s greed. ¡°It¡¯ll be nice to live in a huge

    house. Your mom will feel proud everyone knows that her daughter bought it for her. We should just

    settle this quick and get a house for her.¡±

    His proposal definitely sat well with Miranda. The friends she had before she went to jail were all leading

    good lives. She was the only one who had nothing. None of them believed her when she told them her

    daughter was dating Tobias Ford.

    With that in mind, Miranda decided to take up the offer.

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    Tobias was already done eating. He looked at the clock and wiped his mouth clean. Since he had

    already gotten what he wanted from Skr, it was time he left. Thepany had justunched a new

    project, so Tobias took it on himself to go and check everything out at the site. He still did not trust

    Sheldon fully.

    Besides, it was not like the people working there werepletely trustworthy.

    ¡°Take your time to think about it. A twenty percent discount is not an offer you alwayse across.¡±

 Chapter 448

    Chapter 448

    Skr got up to send him off. She leaned closer, sticking up an angry thumb at Tobias as she lowered

    her voice. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing? I know you want to empty my bank ount so I have to ask

    for money from you like before.¡±

    Tobias shot her a gentle smile. ¡°Then, you¡¯ll have more motivation to earn money. I still remember what

    you said when you got drunk the other day. You said you¡¯ll leave me once you¡¯re independent. You can

    do with a few obstacles.¡±

    After he left, Skr went to the bank to check her bank ount. She was pleasantly surprised to find

    she had saved up more money than she expected.

    She could actually refuse to buy Miranda the house, but she could not bring herself to reject her. She

    had a soft spot for that woman. Miranda often talked about how difficult it was to raise her up. Back then,

    she would even sell her blood for money just so she could afford treatment for Skr when she was sick.

    Skr¡¯s memory of her childhood was rather vague. She did not verify if what Miranda told her was true

    or not, but even if it was not, Skr could only say that Miranda was really good at shedding crocodile

    tears.

    Skr decided to just dismiss that thought. After all, just as Miranda said, she was getting old and it

    would be better to have a home of her own.

    Ring! Tobias called just as the ATM machine ejected her card.

    ¡°I am just about to call you. I have a few questions. I think I have enough to buy a house. Is a twenty

    percent discount the best offer you can give? What do you think is a good location? Can I make a down

    payment first and then pay my loan on a monthly basis? How many years do you think it¡¯ll take for me to

    clear the loan? Does social security cover a house purchase?¡±

    Skr bombarded him with a litany of questions as if he was a real estate agent.

    ¡°We can sort this out when we meet. Do you have time for lunch? I¡¯m not full from breakfast.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll see you after work. I need to go check on Penelope. Her baby is already three months old and I

    haven¡¯t seen her even once.¡±

    ¡°Alright then.¡±

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    Tobias did not insist and hung up swiftly.

    Skr hailed a cab and got in after wearing a cap and a face mask so no one would recognize her. As

    long as she did not dress too mboyantly, no one would take a second look at her.

    She first dropped by a baby store to get some items for Penelope¡¯s child. Since this was her first time

    shopping for baby stuff, she had no idea what she should get. She took a cursory nce at the products

    and finally made up her mind to get a few sets of clothes. She figured it would be best to make her

    shopping trip quick. It would just be a matter of time before shepulsively bought all the cute and

    small pieces in the shop.

    I wonder when will I get to shop for my own baby though, but if that happens, the father won¡¯t be Tobias

    for sure.

    Skr came out of the store with a handful of shopping bags and went over to Penelope¡¯s ce. She

    climbed up six fleets of stairs before she finally reached. She finally understood why Miranda insisted on

    installing an elevator in her new house.

    Knock! The door opened to a haggard old man. Penelope¡¯s dad did not look well. His brows furrowed

    when he saw Skr.

    He moved aside and ushered her in. When Skr saw Penelope, she was dressed in her pajama and

    sses, and she had her hair tied up in a bun.

    Skr could still remember how her friend used to say she wanted to just leave her child to the nanny

    after she gave birth and focus on getting back in shape.

    Her current state was far from that.

 Chapter 449

    Chapter 449

    Skr put the bags on the shoe rack as she took off her shoes. It took a while for Penelope to gather her

    thoughts before she weed her friend.

    She put her baby down in the crib and quickly came over. Skr spotted the breastmilk stain on her

    clothes and even noticed she reeked of an unpleasant smell.

    ¡°You don¡¯t look good. Have you been resting?¡±

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    Penelope had been shouldering the burden quietly ever since she gave birth to the baby. When she

    finally saw Skr again, incipient tears welled up in her eyes as she buried herself in Skr¡¯s arms.

    ¡°What should I do, Skr? I really should¡¯ve just listened to you. What should I do with the kid now?

    Brayden refused to give me a single cent. What should I feed the baby with? I¡¯ll never meet another man

    again¡­¡±

    Skr patted her on the back and tried hard not to cry. ¡°You have to get yourself together. Since you¡¯ve

    brought the baby to this world, you¡¯ll have to take up the responsibility.¡±

    Tears streamed down Penelope¡¯s cheeks as remorse overwhelmed her.

    She bit her jaw and told herself that she would make sure Brayden paid for what he did.

    ¡°Skr, I want to get into the entertainment industry. Could you help me?¡±

    Skr was shocked. Penelope¡¯s request came out of nowhere. Skr thought she would ask for money,

    but she asked for something else instead.

    ¡°You know how hard it is to survive in showbiz. Why did you want to get in the game?¡±

    Penelope looked at her with determination glistening in her eyes. ¡°I need money. You¡¯ve earned so much

    just after a short time. Could you help me, please? I know you have some connections. I really need to

    start anew. I will make sure Brayden regrets what he did to me.¡±

    ¡°Yes, I do know some people, but that¡¯s not enough to help you start a career in the industry. Even if you

    really get it, you have no experience. Besides, you¡¯ll also need time to recover before you can start

    acting. Being an actress is not as easy as you imagine it to be.¡±

    A sad smile spread across Penelope¡¯s face as Skr dissuaded her. ¡°Do you still remember what you

    promised me? You said you¡¯ll go through the worst and best times with me.¡±

    Of course, Skr remembered what she said.

    Back then, Penelope paid for her rent using her own savings after Skr was chased out by her uncle.

    A friend in need was a friend indeed. Skr knew she owed everything to Penelope, so she finally caved

    and promised to discuss the matter with her manager.

    Penelope held her hands tight and nodded. ¡°I know you¡¯ll be able to find a way. I simply have to get my

    act together. I will make sure those people who look down on me get a taste of their own medicine.¡±

    Skr could feel her pain. Anyone in Penelope¡¯s shoes would do the same.

    Skr shifted her gaze and looked at the baby behind Penelope. ¡°Aw, look at her! Isn¡¯t she cute? She¡¯s

    chubby like a marshmallow!¡±

    The gloom on Penelope¡¯s face faded once Skr mentioned the baby. ¡°I know. She¡¯s just so adorable.

    You and Tobias should also have a baby too. It doesn¡¯t matter even if you guys break upter on. I¡¯m

    sure Tobias is much more responsible than Brayden. He¡¯ll take care of the child.¡±

    The smile on Skr¡¯s face became rigid. ¡°Don¡¯t be too sure. He doesn¡¯t like kids. I bet he¡¯s gonna find

    them annoying and troublesome.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. Someone has to take over Ford Group eventually, so I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll want a kid. It¡¯s just a

    matter of who he has a child with.¡±

 Chapter 450

    Chapter 450

    After what Penelope had been through, she had lost all trust in men. She did not even think Tobias and

    Skr¡¯s rtionship wouldst.

    ¡°Whatever, I don¡¯t really care. I can¡¯t have a child now that my career is starting to take off. Only

    celebrities who are really famous can afford to get married and have a family. People like me still need to

    maintain an image in public.¡±

    Penelope nodded in agreement. It was not easy for Skr to be where she was today. If she had a child

    now, it would be the end of her career, but what worried Penelope was Tobias.

    He never once talked about making their rtionship official. Penelope did not want her friend to end up

    like her. If Tobias turned his back against her after she was with a child, Skr would be the one who lost

    everything.

    Skr left after a short visit. She saw Sharon talking to the neighbors when she passed her uncle¡¯s

    house. It was easy as pie for Skr to guess what they were talking about.

    Sharon would either be talking about cars, houses, her perfect daughter, or Skr herself and how she

    was still a little-known actress.

    Skr turned and left through another way.

    She finally convinced herself to buy the house for Miranda the moment she saw Sharon bragging with

    her neighbor.

    Skr knew people looked at her mother differently ever since she came out of prison.

    Thomas obviously loathed her presence, and Miranda waspletely clueless about it. She still thought

    they would get married again.

    It was not like Skr really wanted anything to do with Miranda. She just thought that Miranda was

    pathetic.

    Although she had no idea what happened back then, she knew enough to know that it was not entirely

    Miranda¡¯s fault that she ended up in jail. She wasted her youth behind bars for years for someone who

    did not even cherish her.

    Even after she was released, Thomas still set her up after all she had been through. Although Miranda

    might sound cold, Skr knew she would not do anything to reveal what actually happened then.

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    Not long after she left Penelopes¡¯s house, Skr bumped into Tobias. Since he did not get to have lunch

    with Skr, he came over so they could have dinner together.

    Skr stopped and eyed him from top to toe when she saw him.

    On usual days, he would be immactely dressed, but he was dressed in a ck shirt and denim jeans

    today. She could even see some dust on his ck shirt.

    This was the first time he appeared before her so unkempt.

    ¡°Were you building houses at the site?¡± she asked, passing him a packet of wet tissue.

    ¡°Well, I have to. I still have to make a living to feed you.¡±

 Chapter 451

    Chapter 451

    Skr smirked hearing his words. ¡°I don¡¯t need you to do that. I¡¯m financially independent now.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± Tobias looked at her from the corner of his eyes as he held out the purchase contract.

    ¡°The house is about ten thousand square feet and the garden is seven thousand square feet. It¡¯s in the

    city center. It¡¯s just been renovated, so your mom can move in right away. The only condition is that you

    have to pay in full amount.¡±

    Skr stared at him with her eyes wide like saucers. She had not even looked at the house and here

    Tobias was, asking her to sign the contract.

    The address shown on the contract was indeed at the heart of the city. If the price was two thousand and

    two hundred per square foot, it meant Skr had to pay twenty-two million before tax.

    She gave the contract back to Tobias, shaking her head. ¡°I¡¯ll just go hire an agent and look for a house. I

    can¡¯t afford a house like this, what more when I have to pay everything up front.¡±

    ¡°Hold your horses. I¡¯m not done yet,¡± Tobias interrupted, ¡°The full amount is three point two million. You

    have to make a one-off payment and you can put the house under whoever¡¯s name you like.¡±

    Tobias had everything within his calction. He knew Skr had three point three million in her bank. He

    had everything nned out in such a way that she would still have one hundred thousand left in her

    bank, but Skr was still not buying it.

    ¡°You¡¯re not even selling me the house at a discount, you¡¯re giving it to me, so I won¡¯t take it. My mom

    doesn¡¯t need such a big house anyway, so I won¡¯t sign this contract.¡±

    Tobias had expected that Skr would turn him down, so he went forward and put his arm around her

    shoulder. ¡°Well, you can either buy the house yourself, or I can go and convince your mother to buy it.

    Then, she¡¯ll have to take up a whole load of loan on her own.¡±

    ¡°Seriously, what are you trying to do? Why not you just give me the house without charging me anything

    then? What¡¯s the point of sucking me dry so you can control my life?¡±

    Tobias did not tell her the reason why he wanted to charge her for the house. Despite the amount being

    minuscule, he was still asking her to pay because he did not want to hurt her ego.

    He had always wanted to do something for her. He knew there was a warm heart behind her cold facade.

    He knew she wanted to give her mother a home in her old age.

    He intended to give her the house she was living in a few times, but she refused and did not even give

    him the documents he needed for the paperwork.

    Even when they quarreled, Skr would pack her things and leave.

    She was a woman with dignity, and Tobias respected that. This was the only way he could gift her a

    house without making her feel ufortable.

    Skr did not understand where he wasing from, but it was not like Tobias cared about that. He was

    totally fine with her thinking that he just wanted to corner her so she had no other choice but to depend

    on him.

    ¡°It¡¯s three point two million. You either take it or leave it. You won¡¯t be able to buy any other house if you

    reject this one. You know what I¡¯m capable of.¡± Tobias was set on being the bad guy to the very end.

    Skr knew just what he could do. He would do everything within his capacity to make sure she did not

    get her hands on any house she intended to buy, so she took up the pen unwillingly and signed her

    name.

    It reminded her of the time when they first met near a convenience store. It waste at night when Tobias

    came to her with a contract. That was when she first became his sugar baby.

    She had long forgotten where she kept that document, but one thing for sure was Tobias really treated

    her well.

    After signing her name, Tobias handed her the contract.

    ¡°Congrattions, you own a house now. You can either stay with your mom at your house or continue

    staying at our ce. I¡¯m okay with either one.¡±

    Skr opted to stay with Miranda without a second thought.

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    Since distance made the heart grow fonder, she figured it would be good to keep some distance between

    them, although staying with Miranda would mean Skr had to listen to her sob stories all the time.

 Chapter 452

    Chapter 452

    The news about Skr buying a house for Miranda reached Wesley and the neighbors¡¯ ears in no time.

    None of them expected a shy and quiet girl like Skr would grow up to be someone so capable. She

    used to hang her head low wherever she went and would not interact with anyone.

    Everyone started envying Miranda. Even after spending so many years in jail, she still managed to get

    her life together.

    Some of the nosy neighbors even searched up the price of the house. They were bbergasted when

    they found out it cost three thousand five hundred every square foot.

    Since the house was ten thousand square feet, which meant Skr paid thirty-six million in total.

    Sharon was all jealous whenever the neighbors started talking about Skr, she even showed

    displeasure when theyplimented Skr.

    Eva, who had just got out of the bathroom, beckoned her home. ¡°Mom, it¡¯s time we eat! I still need to go

    back to thepanyter. The new CEO is so useless that everybody has to go back and do overtime.¡±

    Sharon was thrilled to hear that. ¡°I didn¡¯t know Ford Group has a new CEO. Does that mean Tobias was

    sacked by thepany?¡±

    ¡°Pfft, sacked? No way. The new CEO is Mr. Ford¡¯s younger brother, but he doesn¡¯t really do anything.

    Although nobody knows what¡¯s with the new arrangement, I don¡¯t think anyone will be able to really oust

    Tobias.¡±

    Gloom settled over Sharon¡¯s face. The image of Miranda¡¯s beautiful house came to her mind, making her

    blood boil. She was so upset two sores popped up in her mouth and her throat started feeling burning.

    She looked at her daughter and anger shot up her head. ¡°Can¡¯t you just work harder? We should buy

    ourselves a vi too. It¡¯s not like we want to stay in this small ce forever.¡±

    Beside her, Wesley chomped away as he gave his daughter a thumb¡¯s up. ¡°I think Eva is doing a good

    job already though. You should appreciate her. It¡¯s not like everyone is as lucky as Skr.¡±

    Sharon mmed her cutlery against the table at the mention of Skr¡¯s name. ¡°Don¡¯t even talk about

    her. Didn¡¯t you see your sister¡¯s face when she bragged about her new house? It¡¯s not like she bought it

    on her own. The neighbors are all talking about how nice of a daughter Skr is.¡±

    ¡°Of course, Skr bought it for her. I heard she even paid for everything in one go.¡± Wesley did not see

    anything wrong with it.

    Eva broke outughing. ¡°Do you think she really has that much money on her own? She became rich

    because she¡¯s been sleeping with Tobias. She¡¯s only started acting for a while, there¡¯s no way she¡¯ll be

    able to afford a house like that.¡±

    Sharon nodded fervently and said in a jealous tone, ¡°Exactly. Eva will never do something like this. She

    doesn¡¯t earn money with her body but with her brain. Miranda and Skr just make me want to puke.¡±

    Eva could not ept how things were going so well for Skr, who was undoubtedly living a sessful

    life while she was still desperate to get things to work out between her and Brayden.

    She knew Brayden was already married. Although Eva might also get a vi if shetched on to

    Brayden, he would never divorce her wife since it would mean his business would suffer tremendous

    loss.

    She did not want to end up like Penelope. She gave birth to Brayden¡¯s child, but he did not even help her

    out financially.

    Penelope took the wrong step and failed to see what would really help her keep Brayden by her side.

    Meanwhile, Sharon was still feeling jealous of Skr.

    ¡°Eva, aren¡¯t celebrities afraid of scandals? You should post something online. I¡¯ll see how long she can

    hang in there.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that easy. I¡¯ll be good as dead if I do that. All the IP addresses are traceable. Skr¡¯s agency will

    definitely know it¡¯s me.¡±

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Sharon ground her teeth in agony as her resentful gaze darted around her house. She really wanted to

    move out of this shabby ce.

 Chapter 453

    Chapter 453

    Sheldon was not even at the office when Eva got back to thepany. He came inte at night with his

    body reeking of alcohol. He slumped on the office table and ignored the pile of documents on his table. It

    did not seem like he wanted to deal with them.

    His work schedule was just there for the sake of formality.

    If it were not for Tobias who had been backing someone like Sheldon, the executives of Ford Group

    would have kicked a huge fuss out of this.

    Eva poured the drunk man a cup of coffee. ¡°Mr. Ford, I¡¯d like to take leave tomorrow. Skr is moving

    tomorrow and I¡¯m helping her with that.¡±

    Sheldon pulled his tie impatiently at her request. ¡°Talk to human resource. This is none of my business.¡±

    It did not take long before he came back to his senses. ¡°What did you say? She¡¯s moving?¡±

    ¡°Yeap. I heard she got a house worth thirty over million. Didn¡¯t you go for a house tour?¡±

    ¡°Why do I know nothing about this?¡±

    Eva feigned surprise looking back at him. ¡°You didn¡¯t know about this? I thought you were celebrating

    over a drink because she moved to a new ce.¡±

    Sheldon rolled his eyes in disbelief. Back when he wanted a vi, he had to do so many things to please

    Tobias just to get him to agree to his request.

    Tobias was always so generous with Skr, but he was always stingy and calctive with him.

    Meanwhile, Skr was almost done with the shoot for Empyrean Sword. She had been working out

    every day after she got back to make sure she was in her best to meet the press.Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    She had high hopes for Empyrean Sword. Compared to herst two movies, this one would be able to

    propel her career to greater heights.

    It took more than just a pretty face to be recognized in the industry. A celebrity would eventually be

    forgotten without producing a masterpiece. She was still a C-list actress, so she had to work her way up.

    She could not just waste the resources she had.

    She needed a chance to showcase her acting skills before the audience and make a good impression.

    Therefore, the Empyrean Sword was her best bet.

    Kate had not contacted hertely. She was busy getting new contracts for Amelia.

    There were a lot of rookies under Kate, so it was understandable that she needed to focus her time on

    the most important person who would be able to bring in more money for thepany, and that was

    Amelia.

    Kate came looking for Skr when she was finally free.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think you and Harry are getting enough publicity. Why not we try Largo?¡±

    It did not even take Skr a split second to reject the idea. ¡°Do I really have to do publicity stunts like

    this? Largo has a good reputation though. I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll agree to this, but regardless, I¡¯m not doing it.¡±

    Kate took out a cigarette and lit it. ¡°Cool then. By the way, I actually nned on getting you to cast in a

    movie, but Winnie got herself involved and messed things up. Even Valerie can¡¯t do anything about it.

    Seriously, how does Winnie¡¯s boyfriend even be the CEO? Is Tobias really gonna leave everything

    in his charge now?¡±

    Skr finally understood why she had been seeing Tobias almost every daytely.

    ¡°I have no idea. We don¡¯t really talk about work though, and I don¡¯t ask either. I don¡¯t want to pry.¡±

    Kate shot her a reigned look and sat back in the chair. ¡°Valerie has made some arrangements for you.

    You will be cameoing as a host in a kid¡¯s show. There¡¯s really nothing I can do now that Winnie has her

    eyes fixed on the best resources in thepany. The executives have made their decision.¡±

    Skr was left speechless. She had seen grown-ups wearing cartoon clothes and acting cute in front of

    a bunch of children in those shows. ¡±Hello, everybody! I¡¯m Skr!¡±

    She shook her head to dismiss the cringy scene in her mind. ¡°I can¡¯t do that. I¡¯ve never hosted any

    shows before.¡±

 Chapter 454

    Chapter 454

    ¡°I¡¯ve already told Valerie. Thepany is fixed on this. It¡¯s not like you can just disregard their decision.¡±

    Skr finally snapped. ¡°Is Valerie behind this, or Winnie?¡±

    Kate tapped her cigarette against the ashtray and sat up. ¡°I think it¡¯s Winnie. She¡¯s really close to Valerie

    lately. Didn¡¯t you see the photos they posted on Instagram? They have been hanging out a lot.¡±

    Since Kate had already epted things as they were, Skr decided to just fight for herself. Hosting

    kids¡¯ shows was no easy task. This was not something thepany should entrust to a rookie, but

    somehow, it justnded on her.

    ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing? There¡¯s no use making a huge fuss out of it. You should just talk to

    Tobias instead. He¡¯ll be able to help you.¡± Kate stopped her before Skr did anything rash, but thetter

    insisted.

    When Skr barged into Valerie¡¯s office, Winnie was also inside. Both of them were discussing which

    gown Winnie should wear for the g that evening.

    Skr was also attending the event, but her outfit was switched at thest minute. She would be wearing

    a piece sponsored by Zara.

    As for Winnie¡¯s outfit, it went without saying that the price was exuberant.

    Skr invited herself in and sat down on the couch before Valerie could say a word.

    ¡°I¡¯m not hosting the kids¡¯ show. I just finished filming Empyrean Sword, so by right, I should take time

    away from the screen. I don¡¯t see why I should be on set with a group of kids every day.¡±

    Over on the other side of the room, Winnie crossed her leg and looked at Skr smugly. ¡°A kids¡¯ show?

    I¡¯m so sorry to hear that. Are you gonna wear a mascot costume then? It must be hot though.¡±

    ¡°You still don¡¯t have what it takes to choose which show you go on. People are choosing you instead and

    thepany has decided on that,¡± Valeria said sternly.

    Beside her, Winnie shed Skr her sweetest smile and blinked her eyes at her. Skr felt an urge to

    just go up to her and rip her face apart.

    ¡°Thepany has decided on this? It¡¯s more like both of you want to make things difficult for me. There

    are so many other suitable candidates in thepany, so why does it have to be me?¡±

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Who knows? The kids might like you more,¡± Winnie interrupted.

    Skr shot her a death re and studied her face. ¡°I bet they like you more. With your big t face and

    toad eyes, you look just like a cartoon character yourself.¡±

    Winnie pped the table and got on her feet. She took Skr¡¯s insult to heart because she really was

    not as attractive as she was.

    Skr had a face that any girl would covet.

    ¡°You¡¯d better watch your mouth and be grateful you¡¯re getting a job. This is not some market where you

    bargain for a good deal.¡±

    Sensing an imminent fight, Valerie intervened. ¡°You can choose not to go for the show, but that will mean

    you¡¯ll have no assignments until Empyrean Sword is aired. You have no one else to me since you¡¯re

    the one who turned this opportunity down.¡±

    Skr looked at the two of them with burning anger in her eyes. She wondered since when did the two

    women got so close. It was apparent that Valerie was being nice to her because of Sheldon.

    ¡°So you¡¯re saying I won¡¯t be given a new task other than this one? I won¡¯t host the kids¡¯ show anyway. It¡¯s

    only going to affect the rating for Empyrean Sword.¡±

    Skr made her stance clear and left.

    Valeria heaved a sigh of relief, but a frown quickly settled on her face again. ¡°Do you think Mr. Ford will

    me me for this?¡±

    ¡°Come on, my boyfriend is in charge of Ford group and the whole family now. Skr is just a nobody.

    Besides, Tobias has always been nice to you. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re more important to him than Skr. She¡¯s

    only been with him for such a short timepared to you.¡±

 Chapter 455

    Chapter 455

    Valerie felt assured hearing Winnie¡¯s words. She had worked with Tobias at Ford Group since the very

    beginning and they had weathered through storms together. She had an important ce in his heart, so

    there was no way he would do anything to her because of a woman.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    She called her assistant to clear Skr¡¯s schedule, including the g that night.

    Skr was unemployed now that thepany had not arranged any work for her. Despite the

    predicament, Skr was sure that things would change for the better after Empyrean Sword was aired.

    It was not her style toin to Tobias just to get help.

    As Tobias had said¡ªshe always faced everything on her own.

    As for Winnie, she only had the audacity to step on Skr¡¯s toes because she had Sheldon at her back.

    Now that even Valerie was on her side, she thought she could do anything she liked.

    Things were really going on phenomenally for her. She was now Gi¡¯s brand ambassador in the Asia-

    Pacific and would even be featured in Paris Fashion Week. She would also be attending the Asia-Pacific

    Film Festival too. With Winnie stealing all the spotlight,izens were beginning to gossip on social

    media.

    Winnie is the next emerging star.

    Winnie is the next hit.

    Skr¡¯s light dimmed under another star.

    Skr knew things were going out of hand when she saw these trending topics on social media.

    Netizens were not letting go of every single chance they had to blow things up. Her name was mentioned

    in almost every article of Winnie.

    From how things were at the moment, it was clear as day that Winnie was on the winning end.

    She was getting all the resources she could from thepany, while they cklisted Skr.

    Since it was Midsummer, Tobias asked Skr to join him for a meal.

    Before Skr could even turn him down, he had already hung up.

    As a caring son, Tobias would always spend all the festive seasons with his mother. It did not matter if

    Skr was his girlfriend.

    Tobias would not stay over at her ce every night. Rather, he spent a great deal of his time with his

    mother and at thepany.

    She understood that it was not easy for a woman to bring up two children on her own. From what she

    knew, udia raised them singlehandedly after she divorced their father.

    Skr could not wrap her head around the reason why she never got married again. It could be that she

    had lost all interest in men, or she did not want the boys to have a stepfather.

    At first, Skr thought only Tobias, udia, and some servants would be at the house, but it turned out

    that Sheldon, Winnie, and some other rtives were there as well.

    Skr did not know who those elderly were, and neither had Tobias told her that there would be so many

    people.

    So I¡¯m seeing his family now? Is he¡¯s making our rtionship official?

    Skr would have been astonished if this had happened when they first got together, but after knowing

    Tobias¡¯ family and having both good and bad encounters with them, she was not perturbed anymore.

    As usual, Tobias¡¯ outfit was as casual and monotonous as it could get. He was dressed in a pair of gray

    cks and a ck shirt.

    As for Winnie, she seemed to be blending in well since she was already talking to family members when

    Skr arrived.

    Unlike thest time, when Tobias saw Skring in, he quickly came over.

    Right after Skr got there, Kai arrived too. Skr had not met him for some time since he had been

    filming in Turlen. When Skr saw him again, he had be more well-built and tanned.

    Kai was equally shocked to see Skr. He totally did not expect Tobias to invite her over to meet his

    family as his girlfriend.

    To him, Tobias was not someone who would take any rtionship seriously. Neither did he think Skr

    had what it took to capture Tobias¡¯ heart.

    ¡°You¡¯re not introducing your girlfriend, Tobias?¡±

 Chapter 456

    Chapter 456

    Skr turned toward the source of the voice and saw a kind-looking old man. Despite his gray hair, he

    still looked strong and healthy. Under a closer look, his features resembled Kai¡¯s.

    Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    ¡°This is my girlfriend, Skr Jones,¡± Tobias said as he held her hand, ¡°Skr, meet my uncle, Zachary

    Stokes.¡±

    Ah, so he¡¯s really Kai¡¯s father.

    Zachary came forward and shook her hand. ¡°Nice to meet you. You look familiar. I¡¯m sure I¡¯ve seen you

    somewhere before.¡±

    ¡°Of course, you¡¯ve seen her before. She¡¯s an actress.¡±

    Zachary¡¯s face froze as Kai interjected. It was obvious that he did not have a good impression of

    showbiz.

    He had tried countless times to persuade Kai to quit the entertainment industry ande home to take

    over the family business, but Kai had a mind of his own.

    He disliked businessmen like Zachary and Tobias. All they could think of was money and their own

    benefits.

    Tobias introduced Skr to everyone present and the family members were pleased to meet her.

    All eyes were on her because of her dashing appearance. Winnie was no match for her.

    Even udia had epted her as Tobias¡¯ girlfriend.

    As a mother, she did not want to ruin her rtionship with her son, especially when things were not

    looking good at home.

    Tobias had been particrly tolerant of Sheldon, and udia knew Tobias must have felt frustrated.

    Winnie nudged Sheldon and pouted her lips. ¡°Look at your family. All they care about is your brother and

    Skr. You¡¯ll never be the center of attention with him around.¡±

    Sheldon swallowed hard and grunted. ¡°They are just a bunch of looksists. Why not you go do something

    to your face and help me out a little? Everyone isplimenting how beautiful Skr is, so she naturally

    gets all the attention.¡±

    Little did he know, Winnie had put in a lot of effort just to look good for the family gathering. She hired a

    makeup artist to do her makeup for her and even had her outfit tailor-made half a month ago. She

    treated this gathering a lot more important than any other events she attended, but she only ended up

    making a joke out of herself.

    She looked like a sore thumb sticking out.

    Tobias was dressed casually, and so was Skr.

    Her jeans and coat made a simple style. She had her hairbed neatly and tied up in a ponytail. Her

    casual style was exactly everyone¡¯s cup of tea.

    On the contrary, Winnie looked like she was trying too hard to impress.

    Although there was not much to talk about, Skr greeted each and everyone in the family courteously.

    Just as Skr was done greeting them, udia came over. ¡°Skr, are you good at cooking? Some of

    the servants are on leave today, so we need some help in the kitchen. Do you mind helping out a little?¡±

    This was the first time udia requested Skr¡¯s help.

    Skr shook her head in embarrassment. ¡°I¡¯m really bad at cooking, Mrs. Ford, but I don¡¯t mind trying. I

    can use some help from Winnie though. I really enjoyed the food she madest time.¡±

    ¡°Right. udia, why don¡¯t you help out as well? There¡¯s still some time before we finish our card game,

    so you two can take your time.¡±

    Tobias came over and held Skr by her waist in front of everyone. ¡°Do you want to join us for a game? I

    don¡¯t mind not eating though.¡±

 Chapter 457

    Chapter 457

    Skr shook her head. She grew up seeing Meredith betting.

    Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    Although Meredith would only put in a small amount of money, it was still enough to make her feel happy,

    but Skr was theplete opposite.

    She had never yed card games before, but Tobias was fixed on getting her to try.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯ll pay if you lose, and you can keep the money if you win.¡±

    His offer sounded tempting, but Skr felt it would not be nice to take advantage of him so tantly.

    ¡°Don¡¯t force her if she doesn¡¯t want to. We still need help in the kitchen. All the ingredients are ready.

    We¡¯ve got some meat, eggs, flour, beans, and some vegetables. You guys can go generous on the meat

    since Tobias is a meat-eater,¡± udia said, patting Tobias on the shoulder, ¡°Why don¡¯t you guys make

    something different? What about some dumplings?¡±

    Skr knew in her heart that udia did not like both Winnie and her, else she would not throw them a

    difficult task.

    Although she was still polite to them on the surface, Skr knew udia disliked her from the very

    beginning.

    Things were even worse for Winnie. She ordered some food over and lied that she prepared them

    herselfst time.

    She tried really hard to get on udia¡¯s good side, but all her efforts were futile.

    Skr squeezed Tobias¡¯ hands and got ready to go to the kitchen. ¡°I¡¯ll go help out in the kitchen. You

    have fun.¡±

    Skr was dumbstruck when she entered the kitchen. The space was much more capacious than most

    rooms in most ces.

    Not long after they got in, Winnie leaned against the fridge and startedining. ¡°Why do I have to

    cook? I have no idea how to do that. Why not you just do everything on your own?¡±

    Skr gave her an indifferent shrug. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not like I know how to. You think of a way to solve the

    problem.¡±

    Winnie was getting nervous. ¡°They are still waiting to eat outside, so you¡¯d better do something!¡± She

    raised her voice as if she was giving an order.

    ¡°Why not you spend some money and get food delivered? It¡¯s not gonna take a long time anyway.¡±

    Winnie¡¯s eyes shone sinisterly. That¡¯s doable. There are so many servants here anyway. No one will

    realize if there¡¯s a delivery man.

    She pulled out her phone and contacted a chef from the nearest hotel while Skr started surfing the

    for tutorials.

    ¡°Are you really gonna cook? Please don¡¯t say I made that foodter on. Don¡¯t even dream about saying

    you¡¯re the one who cooked the delicious food I ordered.¡±

    ¡°Well, just do whatever you want.¡±

    Skr cut everything and mixed them together before wrapping them patiently, although the dumplings¡¯

    shape turned out weird.

    The chef Winnie hired arrived in no time. He worked diligently and also made some dumplings.

    Meanwhile, Winnie sat on one side and started going through Twitter. She was furious when she found

    out that topics about Skr were getting more public attentionpared to her.

    Her anger was not unfounded. She was Skr¡¯s senior, and as a rookie, Skr had not acted in a lot of

    movies, but she had gained a lot of poprity.

    Therefore, Winnie really looked down on Skr. In her opinion, Skr had nothing more than just a

    pretty face.

    Ring! Winnie¡¯s phone rang and she went out to talk just as Skr was checking the time.

    Skr seized the chance and approached the chef, who was busy preparing food.

    ¡°How much did she pay you toe over?¡±

    The man¡¯s face was flushed the moment he looked at Skr in the eyes. This was the first time he had

    seen someone so attractive.

    ¡°Three hundred,¡± he muttered.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you one thousand five hundred to do something for me. That¡¯s five times her price.¡±

 Chapter 458

    Chapter 458

    The young chef looked at her, perplexed. ¡°I¡¯m not doing anything illegal.¡±

    Skr smiled at him. ¡°It¡¯s just a simple task and it¡¯s not illegal. I¡¯ll transfer you the money now.¡±

    The man nodded and took out his phone. Skr sent him seven hundred and fifty and promised to

    release the rest of the payment after he fulfilled his end of the bargain.

    Skr put her phone back in her pocket as she whispered in his ear.

    The man listened attentively and nodded away.

    Truth be told, even Skr herself did not know since when did she be so sly.

    Life had taught her a lot ever since she left school. After what she had gone through because of Jeremy,

    Skr came to realize that those who were kind would only be taken advantage of.

    The more she wanted to run away from trouble, the more got into them.

    Over on the outside, udia was in a very good mood after winning a few rounds.

    Tobias, who had been sitting on the couch, realized that Sheldon¡¯s phone had not rung once throughout

    the evening.

    Not many people at thepany took him seriously after he assumed office. If it were not for Tobias,

    there was no way Sheldon could stay there for even a day.

    ¡°It¡¯s time you stop all the petty tricks behind my back. There¡¯s no use having people tail me and reporting

    back to you. Nothing will happen as long as I don¡¯t do anything, but let me warn you, it¡¯s entirely up to me

    whether I want to return to Ford Group. There¡¯s nothing you can do to stop me.¡±

    Tobias drilled his confident gaze through his younger brother.

    Sheldon closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm down. ¡°I finally understood why you gave

    this position up to me so willingly. I¡¯m nothing but a puppet and you¡¯re the one who is pulling the strings.

    You have absolutely no trust in me. Do you really not believe I can achieve something great on my own?¡±

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    Tobias had no intention of backing down. ¡°I¡¯ve been going easy on you. I¡¯ve allowed you to have a cozy

    life and you¡¯ve never really had any problems in your life, but since mom and you are my only family, I

    will try not to make things too ugly. I¡¯ve always pampered you since you were a kid. I tried my best to give

    you everything you wanted, but you¡¯ve done nothing but created trouble. Come to think of it, your

    ipetence is partly my fault, but you should also know your ce and stop testing my patience.¡±

    Sheldon¡¯s fists clenched tightly on his knees as he listened to his brother. Instead of reflecting on himself,

    he was consumed by wrath listening to Tobias¡¯ admonishment.

    Meanwhile, Skr and Winnie had just finished preparing food.

    Winnie had a whole te full of dumplings while there were only a few in-looking dumplings in

    Skr¡¯s.

    Winnie stole a nce at her te and smiled proudly.

    Ha! Do you actually think you can learn everything just from a few tutorial videos?

    Kai took up a dumpling from Skr¡¯s te and teased her. ¡°Gosh, how did you wrap them? They are so

    ugly and even the filling is dropping out.¡± Despite his snarkyments, he still took up one from Skr¡¯s

    te.

    Their interaction caught Tobias¡¯ attention. When Sheldon saw his brother looking at the two, a smirk

    yed on his lips. ¡°Kai and Skr seem really close. I can still remember Kai calling her name when he

    was drunk.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ face stiffened and his eyes glistened with enmity. ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you to watch your tongue? Don¡¯t

    you know when¡¯s the right time to speak? You¡¯d better stop talking about Skr.¡±

    Sheldon instantly shut up when he caught his brother¡¯s icy re. He was not expecting him to react so

    strongly. He figured Tobias must have fallen for her.

    Perhaps Tobias was the only person who did not realize how much he cared about Skr. Sheldon could

    tell from theirsting rtionship that Skr had a special ce in Tobias¡¯ heart.

 Chapter 459

    Chapter 459

    With two tes disyed on the table, it was obvious that Skr¡¯s food was in no wayparable to

    Winnie¡¯s.

    From Winnie¡¯s well-wrapped dumplings and appealing presentation, anyone would think that she was a

    seasoned cook.

    Skr smiled coyly at everyone and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry you guys have to bear with me. I did a quick search

    online on how to make dumplings before I tried making them myself. I hope the taste is fine.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s actually very easy. You should¡¯ve listened to me when I was teaching you just now.¡±

    Winnie thought she had the upper hand since Skr did not even expose her.

    Everyone who tried Winnie¡¯s dumplingsplimented her. They were impressed that a young woman

    like her could cook so well.

    As for Skr, only Kai and Tobias reached for her dumplings after the first try.

    It went without saying that Sheldon was savoring this moment of victory and was milking it. ¡°Winnie has

    always been this good at cooking. In fact, she¡¯s perfect in every respect. She¡¯s just like my mom.¡±

    Beside him, Winnie yed the humble card. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m not even close to Mrs. Ford. She¡¯s my role model.

    Making dumplings is actually not that difficult. You¡¯ll definitely be able to wrap them nicely if you put your

    heart to it.¡±

    Meanwhile, udia seemed to be having a good time listening to all the praises.

    Tobias sat on the couch eating the dumplings Skr made. Well, it really doesn¡¯t look great, but it¡¯s

    cooked at least.

    Just as everyone was busy eating, a young man came into the dining area.

    Since no one seemed to have noticed him, he cleared his throat audibly before speaking. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to

    disturb you, but I¡¯m here to collect my remaining payment.¡±

    Winnie¡¯s face turned pale at the sight of the young man. She widened her eyes and raised her brows

    repeatedly, trying to hint at the young man to leave, but the chef simply looked at her cluelessly and

    walked toward her.

    ¡°Miss, I¡¯m afraid you forgot to pay me. You promised to pay me three hundred for making the dumplings.¡±

    The young man¡¯s words struck everyone like a lightning bolt.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Kai was the first to chuckle out loud. ¡°Woah, that¡¯s ying dirty, Winnie. No wonder it tastes exactly like

    those sold in restaurants. You should juste clean with us from the very beginning. I can ask

    someone to get the dumplings delivered, then you don¡¯t have to spend so much asking the chef toe

    over.¡±

    Winnie was astonished looking at the young man. She had certainly paid him just now. She even asked

    him to leave right after he was done cooking.

    There was nothing she could do so she gritted her teeth.

    As for udia, she finally lost it when she found out Winnie had used such an underhanded trick on her.

    She had tolerated her once, and there would not be a second time.

    ¡°It¡¯ste, please send the guest out, Sheldon,¡± udia seethed pointing at the te in front of Winnie,

    ¡°Throw all the dumplings away.¡±

    Winnie scrambled to exin herself, but Sheldon did not even give her a chance to speak. He caught

    her by her arm and red at her furiously. ¡°That¡¯s enough! I can¡¯t believe you lied to all of us.¡±

    Skr watched everything from the side. Winnie had always been unscrupulous that she had forgotten

    that ¡°what goes aroundes around¡±.

    Tobias had been looking at Skr for some time. When Skr sensed his gaze, she looked back at him

    as if what happened had nothing to do with her.

    Tobias had realized earlier on that Kai kept looking at Skr when everyone was eating.

    He put down his cutlery and stood up. ¡°Skr and I are making a move first. Have a wonderful night,

    everyone.¡±

 Chapter 460

    Chapter 460

    Not long after that, Tobias took her away.

    Before they reached the door, udia¡¯s housekeeper, Patricia, rushed toward them with a lunch box in

    her hand. ¡°Mrs. Ford asked both of you to take this back for dinner tonight.¡±

    Skr took the lunch box in both hands. I wonder why udia gave this to us. Is she simply giving her

    son food? Or is this an olive branch to me? Only in the presence of another¡¯s failure can I truly stand out.

    I don¡¯t feel sorry it was Winnie.

    In the car, Tobias had his eyes fixed on the road ahead quietly, his jaw clenched. His side profile was

    stoic, yet handsome.

    Skr could no longer stand the suffocating silence between them. ¡°Why are you so quiet?¡±

    Sighing, he turned to her in displeasure. ¡°What do you want me to say? You were the one who did that,

    weren¡¯t you? You did that simply to make yourself look better than Winnie. Am I right? I never knew

    you¡¯re such a conniving person.¡±

    His words were like daggers in her heart. She pursed her lips and replied, ¡°Are you feeling aggrieved on

    her behalf? Or are you just trying to express your shock at discovering that I¡¯m a wicked woman? Aren¡¯t

    you the one who encourages me to be cruel to others?¡±

    ¡°Oh, should I give you a gift for being so obedient?¡± He let out a scoff. ¡°Why did you do that? Is it

    because you want to please my mother?¡±

    She could not help butugh wryly at the word ¡®please.¡¯ Of course. He always looks down on me.

    Fed up with the argument, she crossed her arms and leaned back against the seat. ¡°Whatever you say.

    After all, I was the one who did it.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ eyes dimmed in disappointment. She suddenly feels like a stranger to me. She used to be as

    innocent as amb, but now, it¡¯s as if she¡¯s turned into a serpent.

    All of a sudden, he stopped his car. Skr looked at him, baffled. ¡°What are you doing? Are you going to

    chase me out of the car and leave me by the roadside in the middle of the night? Guys who do that are

    straight-up trash.¡±

    He nced at her sideways and curled his lips mercilessly. ¡°Don¡¯t you know that I¡¯m ruthless? It¡¯s just

    that I¡¯ve always been kind to you.¡±

    No doubt Skr had heard of his infamous deeds in the past. There was once a woman who stood on

    the rooftop of a high-rise building as she wailed for Tobias toe and meet her.

    She said that if he did note, she would jump right away.

    Therefore, her family went to Tobias and got down on their knees to beg him to save the woman¡¯s life.

    In the end, it was to no avail and the story ended with her plunging off the 24-story building. The news

    about the incident spread like wildfire that year.

    Sometimes, Skr could not help but wonder if Tobias had ever regretted his decision.

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    When she was about to get out of the car, he gripped her wrist immediately and snapped, ¡°I never asked

    you to go out. There¡¯s a red light in front of us, Skr. I don¡¯t even know whether you¡¯re smart or dumb

    right now. You¡¯re unfathomable.¡±

    Grinning, she drew close to him and nted a kiss on his lips. ¡°Same to you. I¡¯ve never understood you

    either. A sense of mystery keeps a rtionship alive. Don¡¯t you think so, Mr. Ford?¡±

    As she spoke, her breath fanned his lips, and they were so close that they could feel each other¡¯s

    breaths.

    Skr¡¯s breath became shorter and she started to tremble a little.

    As for Tobias, he shook his head and smirked yfully. ¡°You¡¯re hopeless.¡±

    Infuriated that he saw through her, she bit his lips in revenge.

    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t bite so hard.¡± He teased, ¡°If my mouth gets injured, you¡¯d have less fun at night.¡±

    She blushed as soon as she heard that and hurriedly got back to the passenger seat. This guy is

    impossible! He was upset with me just a few minutes ago, and yet, he is now cracking a dirty joke.

 Chapter 461

    Chapter 461

    Even though Tobias had seen through her cheap tricks, Skr had no intention to exin anything to

    him.

    Needless to say, she did not do that to please udia.

    I¡¯m not that despicable. Had Winnie not mistreated me, I would not have been so cruel. Perhaps I might

    ruin her rtionship with Sheldon by doing so, but I couldn¡¯t care less.

    Once they were back in their house half an hourter, Tobias saw many toys and clothing for infants

    piled up at the side of the bed.

    As he unbuttoned his shirt, he eyed Skr curiously and asked, ¡°Are you pregnant? Why are there so

    many kids¡¯ stuff here?¡±

    With a gleam in her eye, she questioned back, ¡°If so, what would you do?¡±

    ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t like kids. Besides, I don¡¯t feel like I would be a good dad, but the decision is yours.¡± He

    shrugged nonchntly.

    His answer was just as Skr had expected.

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    Back then, when they were still lovey-dovey, he had mentioned having kids with her. I knew that he didn¡¯t

    mean it. If I really get pregnant, I don¡¯t think he would be kind to me.

    ¡°Are you really pregnant? But I¡¯ve always been cautious,¡± he said, picking up the baby products and

    putting them into the cab.

    Then, he turned around and wrapped his hand behind her neck, pulling her into his arms. Taken aback,

    she froze for a moment before hugging his waist in return.

    A whileter, she finally said, ¡°No, I¡¯m not pregnant. These baby products are for Penelope¡¯s cute little

    baby. By the way, Brayden is heartless. He has never visited Penelope and their baby ever since the

    child was born. Do the bad truly sleep well at night?¡±

    He stroked her hair and ced his chin on her head. ¡°We can never imagine how cold-blooded people

    can be. Not everyone is qualified to be a parent. Take me for example. I can¡¯t even begin to imagine

    what it¡¯s like to have children or bear the responsibility of being a father.¡±

    Skr could not help but sigh. It¡¯smon for people nowadays to refuse to have a child, especially in

    developed countries. For some people, having a baby is a kind of luxury they can¡¯t afford, but for rich

    people like Tobias, I wonder what¡¯s his reason to remain childless.

    With that thought in mind, she asked, ¡°What¡¯s the point of earning money then? You¡¯ve got everything

    you want, and definitely have enough resources to raise a child. I believe money is just a number for you,

    and the money you have now is enough for several lifetimes. Why not retire early and travel the world

    instead?¡±

    He nced away and looked outside the window. ¡°Some things are not as simple as they seem. Maybe I

    just have an insatiable desire.¡±

    Looking at his side profile, Skr believed that he was telling the truth. It¡¯s not hard to see that he¡¯s

    an avaricious person. He¡¯s always been goal-oriented in everything he does.

    The next day, Skyler stayed at home from morning till noon. She did not call anyone, nor did her phone

    ring.

    Coming down the stairs, Tobias saw her exercising in the living room to a workout video online.

    Now, she seems to have endless energy. If she¡¯s so energetic in bed like this, I¡¯d be very

    pleased. Whenever we¡¯re making love, she¡¯ll alwaysin that she¡¯s tired, and if I force her, she

    might even bite me. What she¡¯s doing now seems way more tiring than what we do between the sheets.

    Most of the time, she was the one lying in bed and enjoying herself while I did all the work.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going out? It¡¯s noon already.¡± Tobias felt ufortable with how free she was.

    Upon hearing him, she paused the video and used the towel around her neck to wipe the sweat on her

    face. ¡°I don¡¯t have much work at the moment. I¡¯m still waiting for the post-production of the film to

    complete. Basically, mypany has stopped all my activities.¡±

    He held up his hand and said, ¡°Wait, say that again.¡±

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    Chapter 462

    Skr frowned. I¡¯m pretty sure I didn¡¯t stutter. Did he not hear me well? ¡±Thepany has somehow

    cklisted me, so I don¡¯t have any work to do at the moment. Nomercial to shoot, no performance

    to do.¡±

    Tobias took out his phone from his pocket and scrolled through his contacts to find Valerie¡¯s number.

    Skr immediately stopped him. ¡°No, I don¡¯t need your help. Thanks, but I can handle it on my own. I

    don¡¯t think she can do that for long. If I still don¡¯t have any job opportunity once the film is aired, that¡¯s

    considered abuse of power. I¡¯m not cklisted without reason. It¡¯s because I refused to be the host of a

    children¡¯s show and defied thepany¡¯s arrangement for me, so it¡¯s not her fault.¡±

    He rested his chin on his hand and looked at her. ¡°What the hell? A host for a kids¡¯ show? Is she out of

    her mind?¡±

    Skr put up a tough front and insisted that she could handle it by herself.

    He eventually relented and let her be as he also wanted to give Valerie a chance toe to her senses

    before he took action.

    One day, inte November, the cold wind swept across the city, and the temperature dropped sharply.

    The weather changed quickly. It felt like early spring yesterday, but the city was as cold as ice on the next

    day.

    Since Tobias had nothing much to do at home, he apanied Skr to have some paperwork done at

    the university.

    She wanted to get back to ss as soon as possible, but winter break was around the corner, so she

    had no choice but to extend her leave of absence before her authorized leave came to an end.

    Now that her poprity had increased, she beat Avery and became the campus diva. Unfortunately, as

    the most popr girl, she spent very little time at the university.

    To avoid any hassle, she did not want Tobias to enter the university building with her. Therefore, she

    asked him to park the car nearby as he waited for her in the car.

    Looking through the window, Tobias saw a young couple not far away from him. They were wearing

    matching T-shirts with jeans and canvas shoes of simr color.

    The girl was sipping on her coffee while the guy took a muffin out of the paper bag in his hand and

    brought it to her mouth.

    Watching them did not make Tobias feel nostalgic or sentimental, but it did remind him of Idania, whom

    he dated when he was a student.

    Everything was much simpler back then. Even our love for each other was pure and true.

    Now that several years have passed, I still have no idea who was the one who caused us to break up.

    That time, I knew that she was going to leave me, and I let her go. I guess I got fed up with the

    rtionship, so that was why I hadn¡¯t bothered to get her back.

    To be honest, I know that I have the same scary thoughts crossing my mind asionally when I¡¯m with

    Skr as well.

    Sometimes, I feel like being single is much more rxing than having a partner because having a

    girlfriend usually takes up a lot of my time and even holds me back from pursuing greater things in life.

    Luckily, Skr is tolerable. She is not clingy and gives me the privacy that I need. Therefore, so far, we¡¯re

    quitepatible, and I don¡¯t n on leaving her just yet.

    Since Skr was a celebrity now, the university staff had a 180-degree change in their attitude toward

    her. They prepared all the documents required for her extension of leave, so all she needed to do in the

    office was to put her signature on those forms.

    After she settled everything, she stepped out of the office with a face mask and a beanie. A gust of chilly

    wind swept over her, and she instinctively tugged her chin into the scarf around her neck and walked

    briskly across the campus.

    As the autumn wind continued to blow, the fallen leaves swirled and danced in the air, lifting up the dust

    on the ground. She sneezed, suddenly feeling weak and sluggish in the cold weather.

    Since she was a child, she tended to catch a bad cold whenever there was a change in season. Despite

    that, she was rarely admitted into the hospital. Whenever she was sick in the past, Meredith would

    always give her plenty of medicine and said that going to the hospital was just a waste of money.

    After she walked out of the campus, neither Tobias nor his car could be seen. She tried to search for him

    within the vicinity but to no avail.

    Therefore, she took out her phone and sent him a voice message. ¡°Tobias, where are you? I can¡¯t find

    your car.¡±

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    A few secondster, he replied, saying, ¡°Walk two hundred meters southeast from the gate, and I¡¯ll be at

    your three o¡¯clock.¡±

    Frowning in displeasure, she responded, ¡°Can you please be clear? Which direction is the southeast?

    What is the three o¡¯clock direction? How do I know if I¡¯m facing north or south?¡±

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    Chapter 463

    Tobias got out of his car to look around and saw a supermarket behind him. He then told her that he was

    in front of Jaya Jim Supermarket.

    Skr rolled her eyes and threw her hands in the air, exasperated. Why didn¡¯t he say that earlier? Why

    make thingsplicated?

    Five minutester, as soon as she hopped into his car, he handed her a bag of roasted chestnuts.

    Grinning widely, she could not help but imagine the scene of him, tall and imposing, standing in front of a

    street food stall.

    Her heart felt strangely touched by his sweet gesture.

    Tobias thought Skr would go home with him, but she said, ¡°I¡¯m going to meet a friendter. She¡¯s

    someone you know as well. It¡¯s Lina. We sent her home before. Do you remember her?¡±

    He nodded. ¡°Yup, her business card is still with me. I wonder why it¡¯s with me. Anyway, since you¡¯re

    going to hang out with your friend, what about me then?¡±

    She knew that he was pretending to be pitiful. A businessman like him always had something to do.

    Skr caressed his chiseled jawline, deep in thought. He just shaved this morning. Why is his jaw

    peppered with stubble already?

    A momentter, she answered, ¡°You can go somewhere nearby and wait for me, and I¡¯ll meet you once

    I¡¯m done. You can even watch a movie while you wait for me.¡±

    After Skr arrived at the mall, she got off the car and rushed to a caf¨¦ on the second floor with a spring

    in her step. I can¡¯t wait to see Lina. Gosh, it¡¯s been such a long time since I have been able to hang out

    with a friend. As soon as Lina asked her out for a coffee, she was thrilled and said yes immediately.

    When she saw Lina sitting at a table near the window, she could hardly recognize her. She wore a ck

    business suit with her hair tied into a sleek low bun. Her demeanor did not look like a masseur at all, but

    more like a white-cor worker.

    Lina waved at her and cracked a joke. ¡°It¡¯s so hard to invite a celebrity out.¡±

    Putting down her bag on the chair, Skr sat down across from her and rolled her eyes yfully. ¡°Stop

    teasing me. I¡¯m not a celebrity yet.¡±

    Lina chuckled and looked around before asking, ¡°Where is your boyfriend?¡±

    Skr decided to y dumb, ufortable with her question. ¡°Huh, which one are you talking about? I

    have many boyfriends.¡±

    Fortunately, Lina did not probe further. She then told Skr that she had quit her job as a masseur and

    became a salesperson.

    Skr was shocked at her radical career change. Why did she change her job all of a sudden? I thought

    she was doing fine at the massage parlor.

    Concerned, she asked, ¡°How¡¯s your work? It¡¯s quite tough being a salesperson, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Lina took a sip of her coffee before answering, ¡°I¡¯ve chosen this job because it doesn¡¯t require any

    qualifications and has better pay than my previous job. I believe I can cope with it. By the way, Skr, I

    have a favor to ask you. Can you help me? Besides you, I can¡¯t think of anyone else from whom I can

    ask for help.¡±

    ¡°Fire away. We¡¯re friends after all. I¡¯ll do whatever I can do to help.¡±

    Hearing her reply, Lina was overjoyed. ¡°Can you rent me a room? I¡¯ve just changed my job, and my

    ie is not stable for now. Besides, your ce is very close to where I work. After I get paid, I¡¯ll find

    another ce to live. I promise I won¡¯t bother you for too long.¡±

    The smile on Skr¡¯s face faded gradually as Lina¡¯s question had put her in a tight spot. She pondered

    for a while and suggested, ¡°Why don¡¯t I lend you some money first while I help you to find a ce to live?

    It¡¯d be inconvenient if you move to my ce.¡±

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    ¡°I promise I won¡¯t bother you. It¡¯ll take some time to find a ce to rent.¡± Lina pouted and shed a tear.

    ¡°Let me stay for a couple of days first. If it¡¯s really inconvenient for you, I¡¯ll move out and find a motel to

    stay at temporarily. I don¡¯t want to cause you trouble either.¡±

    Skr was a tad bit upset with Lina. She¡¯s the kind of friend who seldom contacts me, and whenever she

    does, it¡¯ll be to ask for help.

    But, she also helped me out a lot in the past. We also often went to school together and shared tater tots

    with each other during lunch.

    Hearing that Lina was going to stay at her ce for only a few days, Skr eventually yielded to her

    request.

    However,ter on, she realized that Lina had even brought her luggage with her. It was as if she had

    expected that Skr would not refuse to help her.

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    Chapter 464

    Since Lina hade prepared, Skr was left with no choice but to bring her home that day.

    As they walked out of the mall, Lina spotted Tobias in the parking basement from a distance away. He

    seems so near yet so far and unattainable.

    She would never tell Skr the reason why she resigned.

    Ever since he brought Skr to the massage parlor, he had never visited there again. What¡¯s the point of

    staying at that ce when I know that he won¡¯t be showing up anymore? If I continue to stay there, I¡¯ll

    just be like an abandoned dock that will never have any ship to anchor.

    I want to make myself better, in the hopes that he will notice me one day.

    Although Skr had epted Lina¡¯s request to stay together with them, she still needed to ask for

    Tobias¡¯ permission. ¡°Do you mind letting my friend stay with us for a few days?¡±

    He shrugged without making any remark. I don¡¯t care much for Skr¡¯s social circle. Besides, it¡¯s good

    that she has a friend to chat with whenever she feels lonely.

    Once they were back, the three of them got out of the car together and headed inside the house.

    Tobias walked in front of them with the keys dangling on his fingers with Skr and Lina following behind

    him.

    Even when he saw that Lina needed help to carry her heavy luggage, he did not even offer to help,

    which was typical behavior for Tobias¡ªhe was unchivalrous.

    Seeing thevishly decorated vi in front of her, Lina was green with envy. Even the air smells good in

    this house. Compared to the slum I¡¯m residing at, this vi is more suitable for me.

    Later on, Skr showed her to the guest room, saying that all the things inside were brand new.

    Lina hugged Skr and buried her head into the crook of her neck, pretending to be touched. ¡°I won¡¯t

    stay here for too long. After everything is settled, I¡¯ll definitely move out after some time.¡±

    Skr smiled and said nothing in reply. Previously, she said she was just going to stay for a few days.

    Why is she saying she¡¯s going to live here for a period of time now?

    After weing the guest to the house, she did not get any rest. Instead, she went straight to the kitchen

    to prepare a meal.

    Tobias was going to stay the night, so Skr decided to cook a few vegetarian dishes for him as she

    knew that he did not enjoy eating meat.

    Meanwhile, Tobias and Lina were in the living room. While he watched television with his legs crossed,

    she could not help but stare at him with her burning gaze. We¡¯re even closer now.

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    Oh my, look at his long legs. Even when he¡¯s sitting, he still looks perfectly poised and graceful. What

    does it feel like to be in this man¡¯s embrace?

    Due to their social ss difference, it was impossible for Lina to meet Tobias by chance. Thus, she had

    no choice but to coax Skr to let her live here so that she could see the man she had been longing for.

    Besides, Lina thought living in the vi with Skr was much better than staying at her own ce.

    As they stayed in the warm, quiet house, the weather outside was gloomy and windy. After a while, Lina

    suddenly heard Skr¡¯s voice from the television.

    It was amercial for MM Beans, and Skr appeared on the screen for about ten seconds.

    ¡°Skr is very pretty nowadays, but I remember she was quite unattractive when we were in high school.

    I guess an ugly duckling can really be a beautiful swan. Many of our ex-ssmates also joked

    around, saying that she had gone under the knife to be prettier,¡± Lina said, intending for Tobias to

    hear it.

    However, he heard none of it as he had left his seat and gone to the kitchen.

    Over on the other side, Skr was still busy in the kitchen. She was washing vegetables robotically at

    the sink. She hung her head low and stared nkly at the running water of the faucet, seemingly

    distracted and troubled.

    Seeing the frown on her, Tobias went forward and hugged her waist from behind. ¡°Let¡¯s hire a

    housekeeper, Skr. I can¡¯t help you much in the kitchen. Why do you want to do house chores when we

    can hire a housekeeper?¡±

    She turned around to face him and winked. ¡°It¡¯s fun to prepare a meal, especially for the ones I love. The

    way to a man¡¯s heart was through his stomach.¡±

 Chapter 465

    Chapter 465

    Tobias lowered his head and nted a kiss on her forehead. He raised his brows when his lips sensed

    the burning sensation on her skin. cing his big palm on her forehead, he frowned and asked, ¡°Your

    forehead feels unusually hot. Are you not feeling well?¡±

    Skr was feeling a bit feverish and giddy, yet she just replied casually, ¡°Nothing serious, maybe just a

    cold.¡±

    In the meantime, Lina pressed herself against the wall outside the kitchen, trying to eavesdrop on the

    conversation between Tobias and Skr. She dared not even let out a deep breath as she did not want

    to be discovered by them. She was green with envy when she saw Tobias embrace Skr and kissed

    her forehead.

    Pfft! Even when preparing dinner in the kitchen, Skr doesn¡¯t let go of the chance to flirt with Tobias.

    Her coquettish tone really gives me goosebumps!

    When it was time for dinner, Lina sat next to Skr deliberately at the round dining table so she could

    see Tobias clearly.

    At the sight of the roasted asparagus, baked prawns, grilled sausages, pumpkin soup, and steak sd

    on the dining table, Lina sniffed andplimented exaggeratively, ¡°Wow, all these look yummy! Skr,

    your cooking skill has improved a lot. Ah! If I¡¯m not mistaken, Jeremy¡¯s dad has guided you in cooking,

    hasn¡¯t he? He¡¯s a chef, right?¡±

    Skr was handing Lina a fork. Upon hearing her words, her hand stiffened.

    Is Lina bringing up the topic intentionally to drive the wedge between Tobias and me? My goodness! How

    can she mention my ex-boyfriend now? After all, he¡¯s the only ex-boyfriend I have had all this while. Why

    can¡¯t the others let me off and keep provoking me on this?

    Suppressing her displeasure, she replied cidly, ¡°Tobias is more health-conscious and prefers food that

    is less greasy. So, I actually browsed through the menu posted by others online and tried to prepare

    something which suits his taste.¡±

    Lina put on a guilty look and nced at Skr as if she felt sorry for being blunt with her words.

    Tobias did not chime in and started having his meals silently. In fact, it was his habit to eat in silence.

    Lina changed the topic and talked about her career instead. ¡°Mr. Ford, I¡¯ve just resigned and switched to

    sales line now. What do you think about this line? I¡¯m looking forward to having new career advancement

    and be a sessful entrepreneur. I¡¯m convinced that it can be achieved within these few years.¡±

    Knowing that Tobias would have some negativements on her confidence, Skr replied on behalf of

    him by encouraging her, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter which line you are in. As long as you are conscientious with

    your job, I¡¯m sure you will be sessful.¡±

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    Tobias really disliked people who were overconfident and tended to sound boastful. He narrowed his

    eyes and was obviously repulsed by her demeanor. As expected, he finally opened his mouth and

    commented indifferently, ¡°Doing sales and marketing is a rathermon job. It¡¯s actually even more

    challenging to excel in this line of job. However, it¡¯s definitely not as simple as what you think to fulfill

    consumers¡¯ high expectations. Hence, it¡¯s too early for you to talk about being a sessful

    entrepreneur.¡±

    My goodness! He¡¯s really straightforward! Skr gulped at Tobias¡¯ oppression and pinched him lightly on

    the thigh to stop him from blurting out more words.

    In an instant, there was a slight change in Lina¡¯s expression. Intimidated by the coldness in Tobias¡¯ eyes,

    she lowered her head to eat the prawn on her te in order to conceal her awkwardness.

    When Tobias was cleaning up the dining table after dinner, Skr grabbed the chance to cheer Lina up

    by consoling her, ¡°Tobias is very straightforward. He never really gives words of encouragement to

    anyone. Don¡¯t take it seriously and be discouraged by what he said earlier.¡±

    Lina asked her curiously, ¡°He¡¯s really fierce. How can you stand him?¡±

    Skr shrugged her shoulders and said, ¡°Well, I have gotten used to it.¡±

    Later, Skr went up earlier for a rest as she was feeling under the weather. Initially, she actually thought

    of asking Lina how long she nned to stay over at their ce. However, she felt awkward raising the

    topic. Tobias knew her well and evenmented that one of her weaknesses was having difficulty in

    rejecting others¡ªwhich was due to her family background.

    Tobias was surprised when he noticed that Skr was already in bed even before the clock struck eight

    at night. She tucked herself under the nket and was watching the reality show with her phone.

    In the video, Kai was ying games with the host. He looked eye-catching in his pure white costume for

    his character in the movie Empyrean Sword.

    Tobias¡¯ face turned grim when he recalled what Sheldon said about how Kai kept mumbling Skr¡¯s

    name when he was drunk. He pursed his lips and snatched her phone instinctively. ¡°Stop watching the

    show. The battery of your phone is almost t.¡±

    Skyler knitted her brows and refuted, ¡°It¡¯s not true. There¡¯s still more than eighty percent left. I can always

    recharge the batteryter as well. Other than watching the reality show, there¡¯s nothing I can do now. It¡¯s

    not like I have any script to go through.¡±

 Chapter 466

    Chapter 466

    Tobias twitched his lips and replied, ¡°Huh! More than eighty percent? It canst for quite some time.

    Instead of wasting your time watching the reality show, you can use the time to do something else. Oh

    yeah, you don¡¯t have to step into the kitchen again from tomorrow onwards. Someone wille and

    prepare our meals.¡±

    Skr had voiced her opinions earlier on in the kitchen, yet he refused to take them into consideration.

    The adamant man still decided to stick to his opinion.

    Skr knew at once that the meals she prepared failed to meet Tobias¡¯ requirements. Even though he

    did not say anything during dinner, she noticed that he was eating unusually little. Nheless, she was

    d that she would not have to struggle again in thinking of what to prepare for his meals anymore.

    Before she could tell Tobias that she was actually not feeling well, her pajamas were already ripped off

    by him. She shuddered at the sudden coldness when her body was exposed to the cool air.

    When they were both indulged in the passionate session, she stared into his dark eyes as they locked

    gazes with each other. Right that instant, she was dazzled by the possessiveness and burning desire in

    his eyes. The moment after the highest peak of pleasure, she clung tightly to him and finally heaved a

    sigh of satisfaction.

    Tobias suddenly felt that Skr¡¯s body temperature was rising gradually. He started to sense something

    amiss and asked in great concern, ¡°Your body temperature is unusually high. Are you having a fever?¡±

    Skr nodded and replied, ¡°Yeah, looks like I¡¯m a bit feverish. It¡¯s alright, I¡¯ll be fine after taking some

    medicer. It¡¯s nothing serious.¡±

    ¡°Do you have a thermometer?¡± he asked again.

    She shook her head and replied, ¡°No, I don¡¯t have one.¡±

    Tobias furrowed his brows and nagged at her, ¡°It¡¯s one of the essential household tools, yet you don¡¯t

    have one here. How many times have I told you to lead a healthy lifestyle, but you¡¯re eating so little just

    because you want to maintain your figure. Do you know that your immune system will be affected when

    youck nutrition? I¡¯m worried that you will copse due to health issues first even before you gain

    poprity. You¡¯re an adult, yet you are still not aware of the importance of taking good care of yourself.¡±

    Skr¡¯s heart was greatly touched by Tobias¡¯ nagging. Tears started to well up in her eyes. Out of a

    sudden, he sounded more like an elder brother or a father to her.

    Struggling to grow up in a family without much love and attention, Skyler ended up having a sense of

    insecurity and inferiority. Nobody had ever showered her with love and care like how Tobias was treating

    her at the moment. It was sort of a fatherly love which she had been yearning for throughout her life.

    Sensing that Skr was gazing at him nkly, he urged her, ¡°What¡¯re you thinking now? Get changed

    quickly. I¡¯ll send you to the hospital now.¡±

    Skr was reluctant to move as she was sustaining muscle pain all over. Thinking of following her

    grandma¡¯s traditional method, she tried to convince Tobias. ¡°It¡¯s really nothing serious. I¡¯ll be fine after

    taking some medicine. You don¡¯t have to send me to the hospital. After all, it¡¯s already quitete. I bet all

    the doctors are off duty at this hour.¡±

    Tobias snapped at her, ¡°Imagine if there are emergencies at midnight, do you think that those patients

    can wait till the doctors report to work the next morning? Do you know that there¡¯s an emergency

    department? You have no clue why you have a fever out of a sudden. How dare you act smart by simply

    taking any medicine?¡±

    Skr was at a loss for words and could only give in to him. She put on her clothes and spent quite a

    long while wearing her socks. Meanwhile, Tobias had already gone downstairs with the car key.

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    All of a sudden, Lina emerged and asked curiously, ¡°Are you going out now? It¡¯s quitete now.¡±

    As Tobias had already started the car engine, Skr replied hurriedly, ¡°I¡¯m not feeling well and need to

    go to the hospital now. Don¡¯t worry, just go to bed first.¡±

    Lina looked worried and offered, ¡°Let me apany you. At least I can help to look after you.¡±

    Skr turned her down nicely, ¡°Thanks, but I¡¯m just having mild flu and fever. It¡¯s nothing serious. You

    don¡¯t have to apany me.¡±

    Lina pretended to sound concerned as she saw her off. When Tobias¡¯ car was out of her sight, she

    turned and went upstairs. A wave of loneliness swept over her again.

    When she was alone at her rented house previously, she had often imagined what it would be like if

    Tobias was by her side. How nice if such a stunning man like Tobias can be by my side! As a caring

    partner, he would definitely keep mepany and do whatever I feel like doing. By then, I won¡¯t be

    feeling lonely again.

    It only took a second to fall for someone. Nevertheless, she was aware of the vast gap between Tobias

    and her.

 Chapter 467

    Chapter 467

    All this while, Lina was convinced that she would be able to win Tobias¡¯ heart if she was persistent in

    pursuing him. Even so, she had to rely on Skr in order to minimize the vast gap between her and

    Tobias. She knew that she was just putting on a cheerful smile to conceal the throbbing pain in her heart

    at the sight of Skr and Tobias being loving together.

    As both Tobias and Skr left in a haste a while ago, they did not even close the door of their bedroom.

    Lina suddenly felt the urge to have a look at it. The moment she entered the room, the unfolded nket

    and the heavily creased bedsheet of the luxury European bed came into view. A glint of ferocity shed

    across her eyes at the sight of the used condom in the trash can. A mixture of unmissable sensuality and

    lust in the air implied that the two were engrossed in a passionate steamy session a while ago.

    Suppressing the great jealousy within herself, Lina proceeded to open the closet in the room. To her

    surprise, there were only a few of Tobias¡¯ custom-made suits. It seems that he seldom spends his time

    here.

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    Her eyes lit up when she saw his shirts. She took one out and pressed the tip of her nose lightly against

    it. Ah! This is my favorite white sandalwood cologne! She sniffed with her eyes tightly shut. There was

    even a dreamy look on her face.

    Skr was reluctant to go to the public hospital, fearing that the others would recognize her and gossip

    about her. Thus, Tobias sped off to Concord Hospital which was nearby. It was one of the most popr

    public hospitals in the city, partly due to how they ensured the confidentiality of their patients.

    This was actually the second time Tobias sent Skr to the hospital at midnight due to fever. When the

    nurse took her temperature, Tobias was relieved as the reading indicated that she was just having a mild

    fever.

    Skr was not in time to go to the washroom as they left home in a hurry. She suddenly felt the urgency

    to answer nature¡¯s call and told Tobias that she needed to use the washroom.

    Tobias asked with great concern, ¡°Are you sure you can go by yourself? How about I arrange a private

    ward for you? You can use the washroom there. Besides, I can apany you there as well.¡±

    Skr was speechless upon hearing his words. What¡¯s the matter with this man? He¡¯s overreacting! I

    can barely wait for another second to pee!

    The next moment, she made a dart toward the public washroom as she could not hold back any longer.

    ¡°Skr Jones is in our hospital at the moment. Did you see the man by her side? You should see how

    close she is to him! Harry Reid is obviously not her boyfriend! She must be bluffing about her single

    status.¡±

    ¡°Ah! It¡¯s verymon for female celebrities to twist their words. You shouldn¡¯t trust their words easily.

    Anyway, the man looks far more handsome than Harry Reid. He even gives off a vibe of dignity. I really

    wonder who he is!¡±

    ¡°I heard that she will be acting in a movie alongside Largo Zeller. Largo is warm and gentle. How can

    they match up a vixen and such an outstanding actor?¡±

    In the toilet, Skr overheard a few youngdies gossiping and mocking her.

    The moment she stepped out, those youngdies in nurse uniforms were dumbfounded and zipped their

    mouths at once.

    She turned on the tap and washed her hands casually. ncing obliquely at those young nurses, she

    scoffed, ¡°Do I really look like a vixen? What apliment! I never knew that I¡¯m actually an alluring

    woman!¡±

    In a split second, pin-drop silence ensued the ce. Those young nurses lowered their heads and did

    not dare to spare any nce at her. They left hastily in embarrassment.

    Skr turned off the tap and looked intently at the mirror. Even without any makeup, the woman who

    stared back at her had sharp prative eyes with glistens of charm. She was somehow unfamiliar with

    her look at the moment. Since when there is such a change in my look?

    Not long after Skr stepped out of the washroom, her blood test result was out. The doctor exined

    that her difort was due to mild infection, and prescribed a few types of medicine. They left the

    hospital right after collecting the medicine from the dispensary.

    Skr grumbled, ¡°See, the doctor just ended up prescribing a few types of medicines. If I knew it, I would

    just take some medicine and sleep, so I won¡¯t have to waste my time here.¡±

    With one hand on the steering wheel, Tobias ced another palm on her forehead to check her

    temperature. He could feel that her temperature seemed to have subsided a bit.

    He red at her and advised, ¡°Don¡¯t act smart by assuming that you can treat yourself with your own

    medicine. I haven¡¯tined about the running around, yet you¡¯re the one grumbling.¡±

    Skr leaned her head against the window and repliednguorously, ¡°I don¡¯t mean anything. I¡¯m just

    feeling sleepy and really need a good sleep now. I need to wake up early tomorrow for a photo shooting

    session of thepany. Everyone must turn up as it¡¯s a group photo.¡±

    Tobias stroked her hair and mocked, ¡°You still have the mood to go for the group photo? Since you¡¯re not

    feeling well, just stay at home tomorrow and get some rest. It won¡¯t make any difference if you are not

    there.¡±

    Skr just remained silent. She could foresee that theizens would start gossiping about her being

    cklisted if there was no sign of her in the group photo.

 Chapter 468

    Chapter 468

    When they reached home, Skr flung herself on the bed straight away and drifted into sleep without

    getting changed.

    Tobias¡¯ instinct told him that someone had entered their room and touched his clothes in the closet. He

    could remember vividly that there was a shirt next to his jacket when he took it out before stepping out

    for the hospital, yet it was gone.

    When Skr was sleeping soundly, he went down to pour himself a ss of water. To his surprise, Lina

    was still seated in the living room.

    Lina asked him coyly, ¡°Why are you still awake at this hour?¡±

    ¡°Did you enter our room just now?¡± Tobias asked her back instead.

    Lina¡¯s heart skipped a beat before she exined hastily, ¡°Ah! I saw that the door of your bedroom was

    not closed, so I just helped to close it. I¡¯m sorry for that. I didn¡¯t mean to interfere in your privacy.¡±

    Tobias pursed his lips and asked her directly, ¡°How long do you n to stay here? To be frank, it¡¯s quite

    inconvenient for us when you are around.¡±

    It was out of Lina¡¯s expectation that Tobias would be so straightforward. She suspected that Skr was

    the one instigating Tobias to do so as she felt awkward bringing up the topic herself.

    She took a deep breath to restrain her displeasure and answered courteously, ¡°I will move out at once

    when my new job stabilizes, and I can afford to pay rent for a room. Do you feel that I¡¯m interrupting

    you?¡±

    ¡°Since you could sense that you are interrupting us, I hope you can move out soon. I don¡¯t mind paying

    for your rental at the new ce,¡± Tobias added coldly.

    Lina was stunned and looked at him pitifully. Things had not turned out the way she had expected.

    She put on a pitiful look and mumbled, ¡°Are you feeling bad for me? I don¡¯t need your sympathy and I

    don¡¯t wish to rely on anyone. I want to depend on myself to get the matters resolved.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re relying a lot on Skr at the moment, aren¡¯t you? If you¡¯re really as tenacious as what you think,

    you can move out tomorrow.¡±

    Lina clenched her fists at his words. She had just decorated her room a while ago in order to give Tobias

    a good impression that she was an innocent woman, she even pasted a big sticker of an adorable bear

    on the door of her room. What? Does he intend to chase me out now? No way! I haven¡¯t even started

    with anything! How can I be kicked out right away even beforepeting with Skr?

    She became agitated and raised her voice. ¡°Mr. Ford, why do you seem to be repulsed by me? I don¡¯t

    have any bad intentions. I¡¯m just thinking of keeping Skrpany. She has actually sent me

    WhatsApp messages, telling me that she feels lonely and there is nobody she can talk to. If you really

    dislike me a lot, I will move out tomorrow.¡±

    Lina¡¯s eyes were red-rimmed as tears started to trickle down her cheeks, yet she did not wipe them at all.

    Tobias was unmoved by her tears; there was not even a slight change in his expression. He reminded

    her indifferently, ¡°I hope that you can move out before Skr wakes up tomorrow morning.¡±

    Lina could not believe that Tobias was not the least bit touched by her tears. She stood up and darted

    toward him abruptly.

    Wrapping her arms around his waist, she pleaded, ¡°I don¡¯t want to leave. If I move out, I won¡¯t have the

    chance to see you anymore. Do you know how much effort I have put in to catch up with your pace? I¡¯m

    trying my best to enhance myself so I would be worthy enough for you. That¡¯s why I resigned and have a

    new job. You¡¯re the only purpose for me to work hard in my life!¡±

    There was an utter abhorrence in Tobias¡¯ cold eyes. He was numb with countless women who went after

    him all this while.

    He answered in a very cold tone, ¡°Let go of me and stop setting me as your target. No matter how much

    effort you put, you will never be able to achieve it this lifetime!¡±

    Lina tightened the grip around his waist as she wailed, ¡°I won¡¯t let go of you. Can you understand how

    much pain I¡¯ve been enduring all this while? I shouldn¡¯t have fallen for you. I can¡¯t help imagining how

    wonderful my life will be if you can be by my side. My life is meaningless without you! Please give me a

    chance to be with you. I promise that I would keep mum about our rtionship, so Skr won¡¯t find out.¡±

    Tobias gripped her arms and sneered, ¡°Since your life is meaningless, just end it at any moment.¡±

    Lina felt the pain and loosened her arms.

    She looked at him hopelessly and pleaded, ¡°Please let me spend the night with you, even if it is just for

    one night!¡±

    Tobias snickered at her ridiculous pleading. He was never short of women, and would not be easily

    aroused by them even if they stood naked before him.

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    ¡°I¡¯ve changed my mind. I take back my words now as I can¡¯t let you stay till tomorrow. I¡¯ll let my driver

    send you out now. Just go wherever you like. Don¡¯t ever think of staying here again.¡± His tone was icy-

    cold.

    In an instant, Lina shrieked hysterically and kept calling out Tobias¡¯ name.

 Chapter 469

    Chapter 469

    Skr could still hear the faint sound of a woman crying in her sleep. Initially, she thought that she was

    dreaming. She was finally awakened by the sound that was growing louder.

    Without any hesitation, she walked out of her room and hid at a blind spot that could not be seen by both

    Lina and Tobias. She cupped her hand over her mouth when she witnessed how Lina tried to lure Tobias

    shamelessly.

    She mocked herself for being innocent and overconfident. It was unexpected of her to see such a great

    change in Lina. In her opinion, Lina was still her old self during her school days. Little did she realize that

    she had turned into such a scheming woman. Skr only had herself to me as she had given Lina a

    chance to take advantage of her since she was too soft-heartened to reject her request. She finally saw

    Lina¡¯s true colors and her heart sank at how she had deceived her.

    After a while, the living room was back to silence again after Lina was dragged away by the driver. Skr

    moved back to her room andy down in her bed again quietly. What a show! If Tobias did not reject her

    firmly just now, there would certainly be another scene!

    The next morning, Skr woke up early as nned. She was surprised to find Tobias gazing at her with

    his bloodshot eyes. It seemed that he had stayed awake the whole night by her side!

    Stretching out her arms, she told Tobias, ¡°I¡¯m going out for the group photo session. Why did you wake

    up so early?¡±

    Tobias ced his palm on her forehead to check her temperature. To his relief, the temperature was

    back to normal again. How nice! she is young and tends to be stronger and recovers quickly.

    He looked at her sternly. ¡°You need to rest today. You¡¯re not going to go anywhere.¡±

    Skr insisted, ¡°I¡¯m fine. There won¡¯t be any problems for me. It¡¯spulsory for everyone to turn up for

    the session.¡±

    When she started to select clothes for her photo session, Tobias could only give in to her. Before she

    stepped out, he handed her the box of medicine and reminded her gently, ¡°Remember to take your

    medicine after your lunch.¡±

    Skr suddenly felt that it was actually a blessing in disguise for her when she was not feeling well.

    Tobias seemed to be exceptionally gentle to her under such circumstances.

    She mumbled deliberately, ¡°Where is Lina? Has she left for work?¡±

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    Tobias smiled meaningfully and replied sarcastically, ¡°You really don¡¯t know? Or, you¡¯re just pretending

    so you can see my reaction?¡±

    Skr was stunned and asked sheepishly, ¡°Why did you say that?¡±

    Tobias raised his brows and chuckled. ¡°I thought you have witnessed everythingst night? How dare

    you ask me that? Didn¡¯t you see how your friend was trying to throw herself at me shamelessly? I don¡¯t

    understand why you just remained silent and did note down to my rescue. Now, you¡¯re even being

    pretentious by asking me such a ridiculous question!¡±

    Skr¡¯s cheeks were flushed red. The man is too smart. Does he have a pair of X-ray eyes? How did he

    find out that I was hiding somewhere and saw everything? This is really embarrassing!

    She shrugged her shoulders and replied, ¡°What¡¯s the point for me going downstairs? It would be really

    embarrassing. Do you wish to see two women having a scuffle in front of you? Certain things are better

    handled by men. I¡¯m d that you manage to make her move out. I really don¡¯t know how I could tell her.

    Anyway, I¡¯ve been kind enough to her all this while, so I won¡¯t be feeling sorry for her.¡±

    Tobiasplimented Skr silently when he sensed that her mindset had gradually changed. It is

    actually a good sign. She has finally realized that others will not give a hoot about her and only think of

    taking advantage of her if she continues to be submissive. My girl has finally grown up!

    Skyler looked tired and a little pale as she was sickst night. When she reached the studio, the makeup

    artist shook her head at the sight of her pale lips. She gasped, ¡°Skr, did you have a sleepless night?

    You look terrible! Your lips are so pale!¡±

    Skr nced at her own reflection in the mirror and told the makeup artist, ¡°Choose the lipstick with a

    brighter color. I did not have a good rest yesterday as I was not feeling well.¡±

    ¡°I have given you such a long break, yet you still didn¡¯t get enough rest? Look at your current state, how

    are you going to start working again? I¡¯m here to tell you that there¡¯s a shoot for you tomorrow. It¡¯s a

    guest appearance in a movie.¡± Valerie¡¯s voice could be heard from behind.

    Everyone there stood up to greet her courteously. She was indeed one of the brightest rising stars on the

    management team.

    Skr nced at her with a frown. ¡°What ast-minute notification. Do I need to get anything prepared?

    Is that the kid¡¯s program again?¡±

    Valerie narrowed her eyes and sneered, ¡°I¡¯ve nevere across any artist who is as fussy as you.

    Based on your current status, you don¡¯t have any right to choose what you do. No matter how much the

    company has invested in you, you still get a low rating of C in the grading system. Do you know that the

    others are envious of you and im that thepany is biased toward you? Thus, you should be

    thankful for any arrangements made for you. You just need to y your part well by following the

    instructions. If I were the manager who brought you to this line, I would surely give you two ps to wake

    you up!¡±

 Chapter 470

    Chapter 470

    On the instant, Skr¡¯s face was flushed red in utter embarrassment. It was as if Valerie¡¯s oppressive

    words had turned into countless needles, poking her back constantly.

    Skr refuted doubtfully, ¡°I thought I¡¯ve gained a certain level of poprity. After all, the grading system

    is still set by the management. By right, I shouldn¡¯t be given such a low rating.¡±

    Valerie reprimanded her coldly, ¡°You¡¯re overconfident. Since you¡¯ve signed up as our artist, you must

    follow the arrangements made by thepany strictly.¡±

    When Skr received her script for the guest appearance, she was overwhelmed to find out that it was a

    rape scene. To make things worse, there was only one short line for the scene!

    As a wave of fury surged from within Skr, she tossed the script to Kate and grumbled, ¡°What does

    Valerie mean? It¡¯s really obvious that she is setting me up intentionally. I bet everyone in thepany

    knows that she looks down on me. What have I done wrong?¡±

    Kate opened the script and was stunned to see the exceptionally short line. She frowned again when

    Skr emphasized to her that it was a rape scene.

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    Pinching the bridge of her nose, Kate exined patiently, ¡°Skr, I¡¯m just your manager. I don¡¯t have the

    authority to go against the arrangement made by thepany. Even if Valerie is setting you up

    deliberately at the moment, you have no right to reject as well. You should have gone with them silently

    when they assigned you to host for the kids¡¯ reality show previously and wait patiently for Empyrean

    Sword to be aired. By then, Valerie won¡¯t be able to do anything because of your contribution to the

    company. Yet, you have wasted a golden opportunity!¡±

    Skr leaned her head against the sofa with her eyes tightly shut. Her fingers knocked lightly on the sofa

    as her mind drifted into contemtion. Valerie hasmbasted me in front of everyone intentionally today.

    If I refuse to ept thepany¡¯s arrangement again, I would surely be criticized by the others. Anyway,

    they should at least brief me more on the rape scene so I can be prepared emotionally.

    It struck Skr why Cassidy was sort of having a mental disorder. A rape scene was repulsive enough

    for her, yet Cassidy had to sell her body in order to secure her status and squeeze any chance to act in

    the movie.

    Largo never gave up asking whether she has thought it through on his business proposal. Ever since he

    knew that she was cklisted by thepany, he tried to talk her into giving in to his proposal.

    No doubt she could tell Tobias about what was bothering her and get his help, yet this would surely

    cause the others to look down on her. She really disliked how others criticized her for relying on Tobias to

    cover her back.

    She gazed at Kate and asked in bewilderment, ¡°What do you think? Should I go with the arrangement

    this round? I suppose the reputable director won¡¯t go beyond the limit for the rape scene, right?¡±

    Kate added, ¡°If you refuse to follow their instruction again, I¡¯m sure Valerie won¡¯t let you off easily. She is

    an assertive and domineering woman. Both Susan and her used to be Mr. Ford¡¯s trusted aides. They are

    undoubtedly no ordinary people who are easy to deal with. Thus, you will only put yourself in hot soup by

    challenging them and going against their wishes!¡±

    Skr smile bitterly as she replied in sarcasm, ¡°Does it mean that I¡¯m not an ordinary person as well?

    Perhaps I¡¯m stillparable to the two of them? At least I have been by Tobias¡¯ side for quite a long

    time.¡±

    Kate twitched her lips and teased her, ¡°Needless to say, you are iparable to them. Both of them

    have gone through a lot more than you. Youngdy, you still need more exposure to polish yourself in all

    aspects.¡±

    Eventually, Skr made up her mind to attend the shooting session for the guest appearance. Fine,

    Skr Jones, just go ahead! No pain no gain! It¡¯s a really short guest appearance, not that I have to strip

    every single piece of my clothes for the whole movie.

    Once Amelia knew about Skr¡¯s guest appearance, she jeered at Kate, ¡°I guess she must have gotten

    used to it. I¡¯m shocked that she dares to go for the guest appearance! If any renowned director looks for

    her to strip off all her clothes and act in an obscene movie, I bet she will go for it without a second

    thought!¡±

    Kate nced obliquely at Amelia and taunted, ¡°Talking about stripping off the clothes, I personally feel

    that you¡¯re just the same. Have you forgotten about those seductive photos you took for the men¡¯s

    magazine? It seems that you are stripping off more and more clothes.

 Chapter 471

    Chapter 471

    Amelia was upset that Kate was always siding with Skr and said, ¡°Kate, you¡¯re too biased. You are

    giving all the good jobs to Skr. All that¡¯s left for me are just some random magazine shoots.¡±

    Kate let out a self-deprecatingughter and answered, ¡°You think too highly of me. Do you think I have a

    say in the cast of Empyrean Sword? You should be asking the higher-ups for an opportunity to be in it

    instead of me.¡±

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    Amelia replied awkwardly, ¡°It doesn¡¯t seem like the higher-ups truly treat Skr well anyway, letting her

    star in that kind of show. If her poprity shoots up after the show is broadcast, it wouldn¡¯t be surprising

    if her next step is to star in R-rated films.¡±

    Sensing Amelia¡¯s jealousy, Kate replied smilingly, ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be assuming what her stardom journey

    would be like. Skr has God-given good looks that are meant for this industry, and you shouldn¡¯t feel

    indignant over that. It would only be unfair if the both of you were equally attractive but she¡¯s being

    favored.¡±

    Meanwhile, Valerie had asked Susan out for a meal. The two of them had known each other for a long

    time. Having worked closely together previously, they had always maintained a good rtionship.

    After Royal Entertainment was set up by the Ford Group, Valerie was appointed as the executive

    president.

    Even though Valerie was reluctant to take up the position, Tobias did not give her an option. As such, she

    had no choice but to leave Tobias¡¯ side.

    When Valerie saw Susan in the afternoon, she noticed how tired the woman looked and couldn¡¯t help but

    ask, ¡°Is it that busy at the office? You have lost so much weight! You were already very skinny, to begin

    with. If this carries on, I¡¯m worried that you¡¯ll be left with bones the next time I see you. How are you

    doingtely? You haven¡¯t been replying to my messages.¡±

    Susan added some ice cubes to her lemonade and gulped the entire ss down at one go in order to

    quench her thirst.

    Then, she starting ranting, ¡°How can I not be busy? It¡¯s all Sheldon¡¯s fault. Not only is he inefficient at

    work, but he¡¯s always ying games in the office. I have to go through every single document once

    before I can let him sign on them.¡±

    Having a hard time understanding, Valerie replied, ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t know what Mr. Ford is thinking. How

    can he appoint that trash as CEO? After bing a couple with thatss from ourpany, he has

    been acting without logic sometimes.¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not possible for us to understand what Mr. Ford is thinking. He¡¯s been with Skr for quite a

    while. That girl must be quite something to be able to stay by his side for that long. Mr. Ford would even

    pick up her calls during meetings,¡± Susan said.

    Valerie sneered and replied, ¡°What a bit*h! She¡¯s abusing her power in thepany just because she

    has a pretty face. She probably thinks she¡¯s the one calling the shots in thepany. I arranged for

    some work for her today, but she refused to cooperate. Ugh, the nerve! She really thinks she¡¯s the

    queen, doesn¡¯t she? Let¡¯s see how long she canst with Mr. Ford!¡±

    Susan cautioned Valerie worriedly, ¡°I think you shouldn¡¯t make things difficult for Skr on ount of her

    rtionship with Mr. Ford. If he knows that you are giving her trouble, he might not let you off easily.¡±

    However, Valerie replied confidently, ¡°What¡¯s there to be afraid of? I¡¯ve been with Mr. Ford for so many

    years. How can shepare to me? Mr. Ford and I are like family, meanwhile, she¡¯s just an outsider.¡±

    Susan felt that ever since Valerie left theirpany, she became shier and more seemed to always

    behave haughtily. As she gained more authority, she had also be full of herself.

    In the past, Valerie read situations well and would not behave in such a brash manner. Perhaps her

    reaction was also because she was used to seeing Tobias being surrounded by countless women who

    were gone as soon as they came. As such, she was aware that Tobias wasn¡¯t someone who had a soft

    spot for women.

    Susan felt that she had done her part to caution Valerie and if Valerie insisted on seeking her doom,

    there was nothing she could do.

 Chapter 472

    Chapter 472

    At the film set, the lights were shone on Skr. When the director told her the requirements for that

    scene, Skr¡¯s immediate reaction was to back out.

    That scene was way more obscene than what the woman had initially thought. She was also required to

    dress so skimpily that it was as good as not wearing anything.

    That director was notorious in the industry for being a maniac. Due to that reason, he had a reputation

    for offending people.

    His most famous quote was, ¡°Even if my works don¡¯t make sense to the world, they are all pieces of art.¡±

    Skr wondered if Hugo had even considered whether the scene would be approved for screening.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know that the scene would be so explicit. I don¡¯t think I will be able to continue filming.¡± The

    woman raised her objections.

    Hugo looked towards the assistant director and yelled at him angrily, ¡°What¡¯s going on? Didn¡¯t you make

    it clear to her previously? If she can¡¯t do this scene, why is she here in the first ce?¡±

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    The assistant director immediately tried to talk to Skr, hoping to change her mind. He was panicking

    so badly that he was almost kneeling down to beg Skr to continue filming.

    sping his hands together, he tried his best to persuade the woman, ¡°My dear Skr, I¡¯m begging you.

    Please don¡¯t back out now. Didn¡¯t we agree on it previously? Filming is already behind schedule now. If

    you suddenly pull out, we won¡¯t be able to find a recement on such short notice. Can you please just

    compromise a little?¡±

    Faced with the assistant director¡¯s begging, Skr remained firm. ¡°Unless the script is amended, my

    decision is final. We dide to an agreement previously, but no one told me that I¡¯ll have to strip to my

    underwear. I¡¯m not even the main cast, and I won¡¯t be benefiting much from this film. Hence, there¡¯s no

    reason why I should make such a huge sacrifice.¡±

    The assistant director replied anxiously, ¡°But your agency had agreed, and we¡¯ve already signed the

    contract. Besides, you are getting paid for it.¡±

    Skr cast a contemptuous gaze at the man and said, ¡°Thirty thousand for a scene like that? Do you

    think I¡¯m that cheap? Don¡¯t try to threaten me by bringing up my agency. I¡¯ve already made up my mind

    that I won¡¯t continue filming.¡±

    After a lengthy negotiation, Skr got increasingly annoyed and left with Hannah directly.

    When they were outside of the studio, Hannah asked, ¡°I¡¯m sure Ms. Fey won¡¯t be happy with this. It¡¯s not

    easy to get a chance to work with Hugo after all.¡±

    Skr frowned and replied, ¡°I don¡¯t mind passing up on this opportunity. Given the degree of obscenity of

    that scene, even if it doesn¡¯t pass the screening requirements, it would definitely spread like wildfire on

    the Inte if leaked.¡±

    ¡°Skr¡­¡± While Skr was still talking away, she suddenly heard someone calling her name. When she

    turned around, she saw that it was Kai but did not respond to him.

    Kai was the male lead who was specially appointed by the director himself. On such a cold day, the man

    was wearing just ankle pants and canvas shoes. He had also gotten a crew cut and dyed his hair yellow.

    That image reminded Skr of the hooligans she used to see at her school gate when she was still

    schooling. During that time, girls tended to be attracted to guys who spotted a ¡°bad boy¡± image like that.

    Aspared to Tobias, Kai was much less mature. Full of energy, he always walked with a skip in his

    step.

    Even though the man ran towards Skr, given his strength and fitness level, he did not even need to

    catch his breath.

    ¡°I just heard that you¡¯re here too. Do you not filter the jobs you take up? Does Tobias really let you do

    whatever you want to?¡±

    Before Skr could give her reply, Kai answered his own question. ¡°Oh right, why would he care? He

    doesn¡¯t care about anything anyway.¡±

    Skr was not aware of any feud between Kai and Tobias, but she realized that it frustrated Kai

    whenever Tobias was mentioned.

    ¡°My agency had arranged for it, but when I knew the requirements of the scene, I pulled out of it right

    away. So, please don¡¯t say that I have no filters.¡±

    The conversation with Kai had aggravated Skr¡¯s initial irritation, and she was burning with anger right

    then.

    Kai was rather surprised to hear that. Isn¡¯t Valerie afraid of offending Tobias by doing that?

    As such, Kai came to a conclusion as he said, ¡°Valerie has no respect for you at all. She¡¯s getting too

    pampered and is bing arrogant. Even though you are Tobias¡¯ woman, she did not spare a thought

    for you at all.

 Chapter 473

    Chapter 473

    Skr pulled the zip of her jacket all the way up as a gush of cold wind blew past. As the woman was not

    warmly dressed, she was shivering from the cold.

    ¡°I¡¯m already freezing, so stop adding on to my misery,¡± she replied.

    Kai scratched his head and said, ¡°I¡¯ll get you some coffee. I can tell that you¡¯re in a bad mood. Maybe

    some caffeine would help to boost your mood.¡±

    Skr shook her head and replied, ¡°I¡¯m in a rush. Besides, I¡¯ll have to get prepared to be criticized when

    I get back.¡±

    Kai could tell that Skr was just brushing him off. Feeling disappointed, he merely replied, ¡°You are

    looking more haggardtely. You¡¯ve lost weight too. If you need someone to talk to, I¡¯m always here for

    you. You know that my shoulder is always ready for you to lean on.¡±

    Standing at one side, Hannah could easily tell that Kai had feelings for Skr. However, Skr did not

    return any of that.

    If she were Skr, Hannah would definitely choose Kai over Tobias. Kai was always bright and cheerful.

    His easygoing mannerisms also made itfortable for others to be around him.

    On the other hand, Tobias always had an air of authority to him and was unnerving to be around.

    Skr already expected a storm to be brewing back at the office. Before she returned, the higher-ups

    had already received a call, informing them that the woman refused to film that scene and was putting on

    airs.

    Skr headed straight towards the dance studio when she got back. The trainees, who were all youthful

    and pretty, were staying upte to practice their dance moves.

    However, Skr could easily tell that most of those girls had undergone stic surgery with one look at

    those high cheekbones and perfect nose bridges.

    Skr was acquainted with all of them, but none of them could be considered her true friends. That was

    the way the entertainment industry worked.

    She simply stood at one side and observed their practice distractedly. Kate had given instructions for her

    to do that to learn the ropes, as the agency had ns to cut an album for her in the future.

    Even though Skr was a talented actress, she was not that gifted in singing and dancing. When she

    was in school, the teachers had also advised her that she wasn¡¯t made to be a singer.

    Currently, Kate¡¯s focus was all on Amelia. Kate was a realistic and shrewd woman. Thus, there was no

    way that she would pit herself against the higher-ups and defend Skr. She was just waiting for

    Valerie¡¯s further instructions.

    A whileter, Skr was called into Valerie¡¯s office. She knew that it was inevitable since Valerie had

    been making things difficult for her and pushing her as hard as she could.

    When Skr entered Valerie¡¯s office, Valerie showed her a recording of her quarreling with the assistant

    director at the film set and chided, ¡°Can you exin this to me? Thepany had fought for such a

    good opportunity for you, but you just had to ruin it.¡±

    Skr suspected that Valerie had specially gotten someone to film her argument with the assistant

    director, rendering her defenseless.

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°My image had always been an innocent one. Don¡¯t you think it isn¡¯t very fitting for me to remove my

    pants in front of the camera? If I¡¯m single, I probably wouldn¡¯t mind following thepany¡¯s instructions,

    but I think it wouldn¡¯t be worth it if my rtionship is affected by it. My boyfriend wouldn¡¯t be happy if I do

    that,¡± Skr answered.

    Valerie¡¯s temper sparked as she replied, ¡°Are you using Mr. Ford to threaten me now? I can give you the

    answer right away ¨C he wouldn¡¯t mind it at all. Please do not think so highly of yourself.¡±

    Skr smiled cidly and replied, ¡°Seems like you¡¯re pretty close to my boyfriend, Ms. Fey. You even

    know his thoughts so well.¡±

    Valerie was indeed proud of her rtionship with Tobias. After all, she had been with him for eight years.

    Narrowing her eyes, she raised her hand slightly and fiddled with the beads on her wrist as she replied,

    ¡°Mr. Ford knows that I keep having nightmarestely, so he bought me this crystal bracelet. He heard

    that crystals have calming properties. After I started wearing it, I stopped having nightmares, but

    unpleasant people started to appear in my life, polluting the air I breathe in.¡±

 Chapter 474

    Chapter 474

    A hint of displeasure shed past Skr¡¯s face when she heard that. No woman would like to know that

    her man had bought a gift for another woman, no matter how valuable that gift was.

    ¡°Since I¡¯ve breached the contract, I¡¯ll be responsible for the damages and won¡¯t let thepany suffer

    any losses. I hope that in the future, you can be more careful when arranging jobs for me. It doesn¡¯t

    matter if my career is affected by the frequent breaches of contract, but it wouldn¡¯t be desirable if others

    think that our agency doesn¡¯t manage its artistes well. Besides, some might even speak poorly of you,

    Ms. Fey.¡±

    Valerie could tell that Skr was a smart woman who had good control over her emotions. She had

    tactfully managed to use thepany¡¯s reputation to threaten her. It was also obvious to Valerie that

    Skr was not pleased with her close rtionship with Tobias, but she did not mention a single word

    about it.

    With a scornful smirk, Valerie replied, ¡°You do know that you¡¯re risking your future in this industry, right?

    Since we can make you a sess, we can also bring you down easily.¡±

    Skr shrugged nonchntly and said, ¡°Well, doesn¡¯t matter to me. I don¡¯t see much potential in myself

    currently. I only know that my days won¡¯t be easy as long as you¡¯re around.¡±

    After Skr decided to speak openly about the situation, Valerie replied coldly, ¡°Not everyone has the

    right to be picky. Don¡¯t assume that you will be sessful just because you are pretty. You still have a

    long way to go. If you continue to be so greedy, you might end up with nothing.¡±

    Before Skr turned around and left, she said, ¡°I¡¯ll remember you¡¯re teachings, Ms. Fey. Thanks for your

    kind reminder too. I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll get everything I want in the end. I have nothing much to do now and have

    all the time to wait for good things toe to me.¡±

    The woman heaved a sigh of relief as she walked out of Valerie¡¯s office. At the same time, the forced

    smile on her face disappeared at once. Even though she was unsure previously, after that encounter,

    she could confidently conclude that Valerie¡¯s attitude towards her was because of love turned into hatred.

    Skr knew that she had done nothing wrong. Her only mistake was that she had unknowingly snatched

    Valerie¡¯s man.

    Valerie and Tobias had worked closely together for many years, and no one, apart from the both of them,

    knew the extent of their rtionship.

    If it was just Valerie¡¯s unrequited love towards Tobias, she must be quite a sentimental woman.

    Skr did not get to see Kate before she left thepany. ording to Hannah, Kate had apanied

    Amelia to an audition for a drama that was also set in the ancient past, with time travel as the theme.

    Hannah thought that Kate was being too realistic and could not help but feel unjust for Skr.

    However, Skr was hardly bothered by the situation. ¡°It¡¯s a fact that I do not have any jobs now. I can¡¯t

    expect Kate to wait around for me, impeding her own development.¡±

    While Skr was digging for her keys when she reached home, someone opened the door for her from

    the inside. It was a kind-looking and chubby middle-ageddy. She was wearing an apron and smiling

    warmly at Skr.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, you¡¯re back. I¡¯m the new housekeeper, Madelyn. By the way, you¡¯re so pretty! You truly are a

    good match for Mr. Ford.¡±

    Faced with Madelyn¡¯s warm wee and enthusiastic greeting, Skr felt a little awkward as she was

    not used to having another person at home.

    Her first thought was that Tobias was sick of her cooking, and as such, he waited no further to find them

    a housekeeper.

    ¡°Where is he? Is he back yet?¡± Skr asked. When she bent forward to remove her shoes, Madelyn

    knelt down to help her with them.

    Shocked by the new housekeeper¡¯s enthusiasm and excellent service attitude, Skr quickly retreated a

    few steps and said, ¡°I can do that myself. You can carry on with whatever you were doing. I¡¯m fine here.¡±

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    Madelyn replied smilingly, ¡°Ms. Jones, you don¡¯t have to be so courteous towards me. It¡¯s my job to serve

    you well. Mr. Ford had instructed that I take good care of you as you have a weak body.¡±

    Skr took a few more steps back and was almost out of the door as she replied, ¡°There¡¯s really no need

    for that. I can do that perfectly fine. I¡¯m actually really healthy, Madelyn. He¡¯s just overly worried.¡±

 Chapter 475

    Chapter 475

    Just then, Tobias came down from upstairs. He was still wearing the same light gray casual wear he had

    on before Skr left home earlier. It seemed like he hadn¡¯t left the house the entire day.

    After changing into slippers, Skr went upstairs with Tobias. Her footsteps were heavy, and her

    thoughts were written all over her face.

    Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    As Tobias could easily tell that Skr was upset, he lifted her chin with one hand and asked, ¡°Do you not

    like Madelyn? Even though she¡¯s a little chatty, she¡¯s an efficient worker and has a warm personality.

    She¡¯s a great cook as well. I¡¯ll get her to make a good meal for us tonight.¡±

    Skr sat down in front of her dressing table and removed her earrings. When she looked at herself in

    the mirror, she noticed that her makeup started creasing as she was so busy the entire day that she did

    not have time to touch up.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine with any arrangement you make,¡± the woman replied cidly.

    Tobias, who was standing behind Skr, noticed the displeasure on her face. He leaned forward, and

    putting his face next to hers, he said, ¡°You can tell me right away if you¡¯re not happy with this

    arrangement. You know I¡¯m bad at reading thoughts.¡±

    Skr met the man¡¯s gaze and noticed a hint of impatience in his eyes. ¡°I just haven¡¯t been resting well

    lately and keep having nightmares. Do you have any solution for that?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll get you a crystal bracelet. Crystals have calming properties. After wearing it, you should stop having

    nightmares. However, it might also be something psychological, and oveing that aspect would

    depend on yourself,¡± Tobias replied.

    Upon hearing his words, Skr knew that Valerie did not lie to her. Her crystal bracelet was indeed given

    to her by Tobias.

    ¡°It¡¯s the thought that counts. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll need that bracelet. I guess there¡¯s nothing I need to be afraid

    of since I haven¡¯t done anything against my conscience.¡±

    Tobias moved towards one side and said inly, ¡°You were the one who asked if I had a solution, but

    you rejected it. Well, I can¡¯t help you then.¡±

    Skr picked up a cotton pad and started removing her eye makeup slowly while asking, ¡°Would you

    allow me to film a rape scene?¡±

    Obviously, Tobias was no longer paying attention to the woman¡¯s words and replied, ¡°Were you thinking

    of don¡¯t that tonight? I can consider that, but I¡¯m not very fond of these acts now that I¡¯m getting older.¡±

    The corners of Skr¡¯s lips curved into a smile as she said, ¡°I know you prefer women removing your

    clothes and having them doing all the work as it feels good for you. I¡¯m sorry that I wasn¡¯t sensible

    enough and always make you exert yourself.¡±

    Tobias frowned and replied, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you today? You¡¯ve been speaking in such a sarcastic

    manner. If you¡¯ve suffered grievances and you¡¯re venting on me right now, I¡¯m sorry, but I¡¯m not the right

    person for that.¡±

    Madelyn, who was outside the door, could clearly hear the two of them arguing. As such, even though

    she already had her knuckles on the door, she did not dare to knock.

    ¡°It¡¯s not easy to be the woman of a rich man,¡± the housekeeper muttered to herself.

    Seeing that Skr was upset, Tobias started kissing her on her lips softly. He was so gentle that she

    could feel her nerves tingle as her body went weak. Her heart was pounding madly, and her mind went

    nk as she gasped for air.

    It wasn¡¯t often that Tobias kissed her in such a manner, gently yet firmly and passionately. It was as if he

    wasforting her while coaxing her to remove her clothes.

    ¡°Did I offend you? I don¡¯t remember doing any of that,¡± the man asked as he traced his hand down

    Skr¡¯s blouse.

    Even though Skr ced her hands in front of her chest instinctively, Tobias had still managed to lift up

    her blouse, and at the same time, removed her bra.

    Finally, Skr could not help but ask, ¡°What¡¯s the rtionship between you and Valerie?¡±

    Tobias lost his mood at once when he heard that. He picked up Skr¡¯s blouse from the floor and put it

    on her before replying, ¡°What rumors did you hear? We don¡¯t have any kind of rtionship. Skr, I

    remember telling you that I would never cross the line with people who work with me, including my

    secretaries or business partners. I¡¯ve told you the same thing multiple times. Why do you have to

    question me on that? Do you think it¡¯s even meaningful to throw a tantrum and harp over such senseless

    matters?¡±

 Chapter 476

    Chapter 476

    Skr froze for a moment and was upset with herself for being so impulsive. She knew that even if she

    had asked the question, unlike other men, Tobias would not make her any promises or vow that she

    would be the only woman he loved.

    He was still being his lofty self and had an unrelenting attitude.

    The man had made himself very clear. Skr knew that since he had already exined to her once, he

    had no intention to reassure her multiple times. If she kept harping on the same issue, he would just find

    her immature and not sensible.

    Skr suddenlyughed, hiding her true emotions. ¡°I¡¯m heading downstairs for dinner. I won¡¯t be asking

    you any questions ever again.¡±

    That was obviously what women would say when they were upset.

    However, Tobias had already gone downstairs before Skr, and he was behaving in an extremely cold

    manner towards her.

    Madelyn had indeed prepared a very sumptuous meal. Yet, the atmosphere at the dining table was

    rather tense. No one was talking, and the only sounds that could be heard were that of the utensils

    nking against each other.

    ¡°Did Valerie make things difficult for you? You can tell me if you have any problems.¡± Tobias finally broke

    the silence and took the initiative to show Skr concern.

    Even though he was not pleased with Skr¡¯s confrontation, he knew that she must have a reason for

    asking that, and he wanted to get to the bottom of the matter.

    Skr poked around her food and replied cidly, ¡°Nope, I¡¯m fine. Our boss is really nice. I¡¯m the one

    who¡¯s being petty and making unfounded assumptions.¡±

    It would be obvious from one¡¯s eyes if there was love. With everything umted so far, Skr looked

    up and met Tobias¡¯ gaze.

    However, the look in Tobias¡¯ eyes was one that she had never encountered before. His pitch dark eyes

    were like an abyss, cold andplicated, without a single trace of warmth.

    At that moment, Skr was convinced that even his asional gentleness and thoughtfulness was just

    him being charitable towards her.

    Two dayster, Skr received a small parcel that was delivered from overseas, but she did not

    remember ordering anything from overseas.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    After severing the adhesive tape with a pen, she saw a letter and a small box inside the parcel. As the

    letter was written in a foreignnguage, she did not understand a single word of it and merely put it

    aside.

    When she opened the small box, she saw that it contained an obsidian bracelet that sparkled in the

    afternoon sun.

    That bracelet was identical to the one Valerie wore on her wrist. As such, Skr put it back into the box

    without even trying it on.

    That other night, Tobias left immediately after dinner. Skr had thought that she would feel really

    depressed over that, but it wasn¡¯t as bad as she expected it to be.

    In fact, she was even feeling relieved and at ease.

    Just then, Tobias texted: Did you receive the bracelet?

    It was when Skr saw the message on her phone that she realized that Tobias had changed his disy

    picture.

    His new picture was that of a cypress tree in the garden. If he had the time to change his disy picture,

    why didn¡¯t he have the time to drop me a message during the past two days?

    At that thought, Skr texted back: I don¡¯t think I need that. You can give it to someone who needs it.

    Tobias replied: You can do whatever you want with it.

    Skr did not understand how the man could type out such a cold reply to her. ¡°Whatever¡± was one word

    Skr hated most, but it was also the word Tobias used most often when he was running out of patience.

    It seemed like that was the extent of his patience towards her.

    Meanwhile, Valerie was walking past the corridor toward the caf¨¦ on the ground floor of her office

    building. It was 8 p.m., the prime time for dating.

    After receiving Tobias¡¯ call, she had specially gone home to change into a different set of outfit as she

    knew that Tobias preferred dark colors. After working alongside him for eight years, she had always

    dressed in gray-scale or ck-and-white. However, she had always arranged for Skr¡¯s outfits to be

    bright and colorful.

    When Valerie reached, she saw that there were two cups of ck coffee ced on the table in front of

    Tobias. After smoothing her dress out carefully, the woman sat down opposite him.

    Valerie remembered that the previous time they had coffee together was three years ago and said, ¡°It¡¯s a

    surprise that you still remember that I like ck coffee, Mr. Ford.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t. I didn¡¯t order any coffee. It has been busy at the caf¨¦, and the staff didn¡¯t have time to clear the

    tables. These were left behind by someone else. Anyway, let¡¯s speak outside. It¡¯s too warm in here,¡±

    Tobias replied curtly.

    Feeling awkward, Valerie stood up and followed Tobias out of the caf¨¦ before they walked up an

    overhead bridge.

 Chapter 477

    Chapter 477

    The weather was growing increasingly colder. As the cool breeze swept past, it mussed up Valerie¡¯s hair.

    Even as she tucked her hair behind her ear, she considered whether her gesture would be beautiful in

    Tobias¡¯ eyes. After all, she had always been careful to maintain the perfect side of her before him.

    Leaning against the railing, Tobias gazed down at the bustling crowd below as he exhaled a cloud of

    cigarette smoke. ¡°How long have you been working for me?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s been eight years now,¡± Valerie replied. ¡°If you hadn¡¯t asked me to go to Royal Entertainment, I

    would¡¯ve really liked to continue working by your side.¡±

    Tobias flicked his cigarette beforementing, ¡°I trust you, and I think this position really suits you. I

    know how difficult it¡¯d been for you to attain everything you have today from nothing. Susan doesn¡¯t have

    your tenacity and gutsiness, and that¡¯s why I¡¯ve been holding you in high regard.

    At his rarepliment and apud, Valerie¡¯s heart started racing. She appeared particrly stunning as

    the sunlight shone in and illuminated her face through the dome made of transparent ss.

    ¡°But then, you applied that gutsiness of yours onto my woman. She¡¯s only twenty-two years old, yet you

    keep making life difficult for her. Back then, I told you to take good care of her, and the way you¡¯re doing

    so has really been an eye-opener to me. You even coerced my woman into a skin flick, asking her to

    bare her body before everyone else. Was that you, Valerie Fey?¡±

    The moment his words fell, Valerie¡¯s face nched, and a chill enveloped her. Nheless, she forced a

    chuckle. ¡°All the arrangements I made for her are the pick of the bunch. Many female celebrities can only

    hope to coborate with Hugo Lemer¡­¡±

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°That¡¯s enough,¡± Tobias interrupted, cutting her off. ¡°You know the reason better than anyone else, so

    stop giving far-fetched excuses. How could Skr be your match when you¡¯re using your power to

    oppress her? Have you forgotten that she has me backing her up? Or do you think that you¡¯re above

    me?¡±

    Valerie opened her mouth, but no words came. After a long while, she queried, ¡°Are you here to

    reprimand me, Mr. Ford?¡±

    ¡°If not? Did you think that I¡¯m here to chat with you?¡±

    Hearing that, the color gradually drained from Valerie¡¯s face.

    ¡°If you don¡¯t trust me, I don¡¯t mind handing in my resignation, Mr. Ford. I didn¡¯t deliberately make things

    difficult for Skr. The jobs arranged by thepany are all based on market analysis. I don¡¯t think I did

    anything wrong. She nitpicked several of the jobs I arranged for her and even took off moments before

    the filming started. It¡¯d be disastrous if this got out, making it harder for me to manage thepany¡¯s

    artists. I¡¯m also in a difficult position here since I¡¯ve got to consider the responsibilities of my role. It

    wouldn¡¯t be fair to the other artists if I were to tantly give her special treatment.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ gaze was cold and sharp, his expression aloof and indifferent. That was precisely the kind of

    expression she once idolized and loved.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t the market analysis determined by the management itself? Is Skr¡¯s market value really only at

    the C-list? Although I¡¯m not very familiar with the entertainment industry, I still know that much. And she

    did nothing wrong in taking off moments before the filming started, for no one else wouldpromise

    blindly either. Also, don¡¯t use your resignation to threaten me. Valerie Fey, this is the final chance you¡¯ve

    got. If you continue making life difficult for Skr, you can leave your post immediately. Having propelled

    you to your position today, I can also bring you down in the same manner.¡±

    With every single ruthless word out of his mouth, Valerie inwardly writhed in pain.

    Ouch! How could he? This is theplete opposite of what I imagined would happen. Never had I

    thought that mypany of eight years would lose to the brief time Skr Jones spent with him! I

    thought I knew him inside out since he had always focused all his ambition on his career, with romantic

    rtionships taking a backseat. But at the end of the day, the allure of women and sensual

    pleasure triumphed over that of power. Nevertheless, his interest in her will fade sooner orter!

 Chapter 478

    Chapter 478

    But still, Skr Jones has stayed rather long by his side now. I keep hoping that I¡¯ll be the one filling the

    vacant space beside him but to no avail. Valerie¡¯s illusions gradually disappeared alongside the despair

    that came time and again.

    Tobias then told Valerie to ponder upon it, saying that he¡¯d send someone to take over tomorrow if she

    truly felt that she wasn¡¯t suited to the job. Humans were an ambitious bunch, and plenty of people

    coveted the position of executive president of Royal Entertainment.

    When he left, Valerie stared at his retreating figure that appeared tall and strong.

    That night, Skr was notified that she was to attend a red carpet event the next day. It was a charity

    g by Harper¡¯s Bazaar.

    At this time every year, female celebrities quivered in excitement as they contended for opportunities to

    attend red carpet events.

    That charity g was basically attended by A-list celebrities.

    When Skr suddenly received the invitation, she skeptically confirmed it with Kate.

    Kate then affirmed her attendance before adding, ¡°Your schedule will be packed in the days toe.

    There are a few good scripts for you now, and Empyrean Sword has already been approved.¡±

    Whoa! This is a one-eighty in thepany¡¯s attitude toward me. As Skr stared at the ceiling, she

    could seemingly see Valerie¡¯s face projected there. She definitely wouldn¡¯t have changed her mind all of

    a sudden, so Tobias must have understood my hesitance that day and spoken to her.

    That night, Tobias also asked her out for coffee. She hung up on him twice, but in the end, she still

    wrapped herself in a coat and braved the freezing wind.Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    The illumination of the streetlights elongated her silhouette, reflecting it onto the road that was carpeted

    with golden maple leaves.

    She then arrived at the location Tobias sent her. It was a caf¨¦ that operated 24/7. When she pulled open

    the door and stepped in, she caught sight of him waiting for her in a ck coat in the corner.

    The lighting was dim in the corner, so much so that she couldn¡¯t discern his expression. But still, he

    commanded attention despite his face being obscured.

    ¡°Don¡¯t ask me out sote next time. I was just about to go to bed.¡± Taking her seat across from him,

    Skr blew a few warm breaths into her hands.

    A white heart adorned the coffee before her. Tobias had ordered her favorite cappino, and the cup

    was still warm to the touch.

    ¡°You were about to head to bed when it¡¯s not even ten o¡¯clock? You¡¯re a night owl, Skr. The night is

    just starting for you.¡± Tobias knew her habits like the back of his hand.

    What do you know! I could¡¯vein on the bed two hours earlier with my cell phone in hand and watched

    short videos!

    ¡°I wanted to go to bed earlier today since thepany arranged for me to attend a charity g

    tomorrow. If I don¡¯t have enough rest, I¡¯ll be bloated and look unsightly on camera.¡±

    Tobias then added two sugar cubes into her coffee, knowing that she would still find it rather bitter even

    though it was a cappino.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me when you suffered so much out there? And you were so gutsy that you even

    dared join the cast despite the script having a rape scene!¡±

    Stirring her coffee with her head lowered, Skr countered, ¡°Would it have made any difference? Is

    Valerie dismissed now that you¡¯re aware of it?¡±

    ¡°No, thepany needs her. But she has promised that it won¡¯t happen again, and she won¡¯t have the

    guts to make life difficult for you anymore.¡±

    Hah! And here I was, foolishly hoping that he would go on a rampage for my sake! Well, I was the fool to

    think that, but this p in my face has rid me of all my delusions! Valerie Fey¡¯s position is still as secure

    as ever.

    Snickering, Skr remarked, ¡°I thought you¡¯d dismiss her without any qualms. Isn¡¯t love supposed to be

    blind? Of course, it might just be my wishful thinking; after all, you¡¯ve probably never even loved me.¡±

    Tobias stared at her dejected expression for a long while. ¡°That¡¯s not my perception of love. Every single

    person is an individual entity, so thoughts naturally differ. I merely hope that you¡¯ll grow to be better. I

    only stepped out and helped you because you couldn¡¯t handle this on your own. I hope that you¡¯ll be able

    to stand on your own feet, and our rtionship wouldn¡¯t have been in vain.¡±

    Hmph, look at this! He¡¯s speaking as though he¡¯s breaking up with me. In truth, Skr knew him well

    enough after all the time she spent with him. Ah, but that¡¯s not surprising, no? After all, he gives out

    signals that he might leave anytime, even when we¡¯re lying in the same bed. He always offers me a

    carrot after the stick, but I pitifully finish the carrot with relish every single time.

 Chapter 479

    Chapter 479

    Ah, I¡¯m the one who bears the brunt of the torment in this rtionship! He isn¡¯t even giving me the right

    to question him or get jealous! How absurd! Despite it all, a ball of aggrieve lodged within Skr.

    ¡°Are things fine with us now? I don¡¯t like the silent treatment.¡± Tobias reached out and ced his hand on

    hers, his palm warm and rough.

    However, Skr said nothing. Well, if I say nothing, he¡¯ll still take it as a tacit acquiescence. He said he

    doesn¡¯t like the silent treatment, but doesn¡¯t he know that he¡¯s best at doing that to me?

    ¡°I¡¯ll be very busy in the uing days, so I won¡¯t be able to make much time for you. But before that,

    I¡¯ve resolved your problem.¡± Tobias warned her in advance that she wouldn¡¯t be seeing much of him.

    ¡°What are you busy with when you¡¯ve retired from Ford Group temporarily?¡±

    Speaking of that, Tobias¡¯ gaze gradually darkened. ¡°I¡¯ve given Sheldon a chance, but he¡¯s not utilizing it.

    Ford Group is now in chaos, and no one pays him the slightest mind. He can¡¯t even keep them in line

    with the power he wields. How useless¡­¡±

    Skr, on the other hand, pitied Sheldon. Well, he¡¯s not inherently bad, but Tobias has been too strict

    with him. With all the pressure, it¡¯s only natural that he has a vtile temper. Anyway, it¡¯s truly a shame

    that he doesn¡¯t have the capability to lead thepany. To tell the truth, their love-hate rtionship

    boggles my mind.

    When they exited the caf¨¦, a young man ran smack into Skr, almost causing her to fall down.

    Fortunately, Tobias steadied her with a hand around her waist.

    Having gained her bnce, Skr then looked at the young man, only to see an intoxicated Hayden

    staggering to his feet.

    She stared at her half-brother with a frown.

    The words he spat at her back when she asked Tobias for money to pay her school fees echoed as

    though having been burned in her mind.

    ¡°You¡¯re filthy, so don¡¯t even step a single foot into our house! Avery doesn¡¯t like you either, you mooch!¡±

    he snarled in contempt and derision.

    When Hayden saw Skr with Tobias beside her, he snorted drunkenly and drawled, ¡°Oh, our high and

    mighty celebrity is still wandering around outside at this hour, huh? It really tarnishes your status to

    frequent such a slum!¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t want to bicker with him or have anything to do with the Joneses. After all, it was all an

    exercise in futility.

    Chuckling, she retorted, ¡°No matter, for I don¡¯t have much status. Instead, it¡¯s you who shouldn¡¯t be

    frequenting the outskirts out of fear that your status as a rich heir will be tarnished.¡±

    Subsequently, Hayden took advantage of fact that Tobias had gone to retrieve his car to totter over to

    her. Lowering his voice to a mere whisper, he muttered, ¡°My biggest regret in life now is not killing you

    before you were sixteen and allowed you to live until this day. Let me warn you that I¡¯ll definitely make

    you pay tenfold if you pick on my sister again.¡±

    Shock swamped Skr at his words. While Hayden¡¯s character was indeed despicable, it was

    undeniable that he was a good brother to Avery. And it was precisely because Avery was pampered like

    a princess by the entire family that she grew up to be spoiled and overbearing.

    Skr didn¡¯t even notice when Tobias drove his car over, only snapping back to reality when he had

    honked twice.

    In the blink of an eye, the menace on Hayden¡¯s face vanished, to be reced with a smile. ¡°So long,

    then.¡±

    When Skr had gotten into the car, Tobias was uncharacteristically curious and asked, ¡°What did he

    say to you? Hayden is by far smarter than your father. s, your father wasn¡¯t willing to hand the

    company over to him back then. Even when Quest Group copsed, he wasn¡¯t willing to give his son the

    opportunity to salvage the situation.¡±

    ¡°That has always been the way he does things. In the face of material interests, everything else doesn¡¯t

    matter. Well, just like you,¡± Skr replied nonchntly.

    Tobias was silent for a moment. Then, he said, ¡°You indeed know me very well. This is an era of greed,

    so why should I act as though I¡¯m above everyone else? In fact, even the priest in the confessional said

    that I¡¯ve sinned. Since I¡¯m a sinner in the first ce, why not just continue sinning?¡±

    Meanwhile, when Hayden got home, he saw Avery watching a movie starring Largo on her iPad in the

    living room.

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    He knew that Avery had been dumped by Largo, what with the way she would begin wailing incessantly

    every single time she saw any news rted to him ever since she came home after the filming wrapped

    up.

    cing the burrito he bought next to her iPad, he sat down beside her.

 Chapter 480

    Chapter 480

    ¡°Here, eat it before it gets soggy. I bought it just for you since you had been craving this particr ce¡¯s

    burrito.¡±

    However, Avery had no appetite. ¡°Hayden, Largo is still ignoring me. Before this, he promised me that

    he¡¯ll publicly acknowledge me as his girlfriend,¡± she griped aggrievedly.

    ¡°There¡¯s plenty of fish in the sea, so why fixate on him? When you¡¯re in a better mood, I¡¯ll introduce a few

    friends of mine to you,¡± Hayden coaxed.

    ¡°I only want Largo. I have no interest in anyone else,¡± Avery asserted stubbornly. ¡°This is all Skr¡¯s

    fault! That damn woman seduced Largo! Ever since young, she has always been jealous of me, wanting

    to steal whatever I have!¡±

    At the mention of Skr, her eyes brimmed with rancor. Ugh! If Skr Jones is standing right before me

    now, I¡¯d truly strangle her to death!

    ¡°I bumped into her earlier, and she was with Tobias Ford. I thought they broke up long ago, but I seem to

    have been mistaken,¡± Haydenmented.

    At that, Avery seethed, ¡°That b*tch is just like her mother, both fond of seducing men! In fact, she¡¯s so

    adept that even Tobias Ford couldn¡¯t resist her and fell prey to her!¡±

    Nevertheless, Hayden merely crossed his legs, looking as though he had a card up his sleeve. ¡°How

    could I possibly allow them both to be so arrogant? I¡¯ve already bribed the media and ordered them to

    write about her mother being a homewrecker and murderer. I¡¯ll have her experience how painful it is for

    her mask to be ripped off in public.¡±

    Frowning, Avery countered, ¡°But if you do that, everyone will know about her rtionship with our family,

    and I¡¯ll also be dragged into the mess. If this method works, I would¡¯ve done it ages ago.¡±

    ¡°At present, her poprity surpasses yours, so this will also put you in the limelight. After having stolen

    so many things from our family, it¡¯s time for her to return it all to us.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Avery sniffed. With her eyes stinging, she dered, ¡°You¡¯re always so good to me,

    Hayden. Hmph! That b*tch simply needs a lesson every few days for her to know her ce!¡±

    #TheShockingBackgroundOfSkrJones

    #AnIllegitimateDaughter

    #FormerssmatesOfSkrJones

    The moment Skr woke up, she snagged her cell phone while sprawled on the bed. Her brows

    furrowed in puzzlement when she saw all the missed calls from Kate.

    Yawning, she returned Kate¡¯s call. As she waited for the call to be connected, she swept her gaze over

    the mess on the floor.

    Hmm¡­ Tobias must have been in a hurry this morning. After all, it was usually Tobias who cleaned the

    mess. At that moment, however, there were wads of white tissue paper littering the floor. To top it off,

    they all emanated a salty smell of semen.

    ¡°Skr, go and look up the trending list on Twitter, quick! Everything about you is out there, and

    someone even uploaded your mother¡¯s photo to the Inte!¡±

    When Skr heard that, her hands started shaking. As soon as she clicked on the trending list on

    Twitter, she was greeted by the sight of her name upying the top three ces.

    The fourth ce was news about the demise of an elderly artist.

    Ah well, there¡¯s no escaping the inevitable. Despite having braced herself for the possibility of her

    backgrounding to light since being in the entertainment industry was akin to living under a

    microscope, she was still rather shaken.

    After all, even Jeremy¡¯s photo was dug up.

    Skr then watched one of the videos. The interviewee wasn¡¯t only hiding behind a flowerpot, but his

    face was also blurred.

    ¡°I was a ssmate of Skr Jones¡¯ during junior high school. Her conduct in school had always been

    terrible. She was always flirting around despite having a boyfriend, acting promiscuously. And she even

    took advantage of her beauty to persuade her male ssmates to pick on the females. When sheter

    rose to fame, she cklisted all her friends in the past and exited our group chat altogether.¡±

    After watching this two-minute video, Skr was so livid that she almost burst a blood vessel.

    Ugh! How could they simply pass him off as my former ssmate when his face is blurred and his voice

    modified? Admittedly, I had few friends when I was in school, but they did really have to stoop so low?

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    Scrolling further down, it was then news about her being an illegitimate daughter and Miranda resorting

    to murder to ruin someone else¡¯s family.

    In essence, it was one scandal after another.

    Slowly, Skr realized that something was off. Huh? Why do they have my unsavory photos during my

    schooldays? While I concur thatizens are indeed resourceful, only the part about my biological father

    is conveniently left out.

 Chapter 481

    Chapter 481

    Well, I can¡¯t think of any other possibilities for that other than this being the doing of the Joneses. After

    all, they want to drag my reputation through the mud without tarnishing the reputation of the Jones

    Family. And it just so happens that I¡¯ve got to attend a charity g tonight. If I guess correctly, I¡¯ll

    definitely be the center of attention there, with reporters hounding me.

    ¡°So, this is the kind of woman you fancy?¡± udia, who just had a change of attitude toward Skr, was

    presently foaming at the mouth.

    Tobias himself had only learned about Skr¡¯s scandal having spread like wildfire overnight moments

    ago. As such, he could understand why she was so worked up.

    After all, the elderly believed everything they read. No matter how shrewd udia was, she still sent him

    some asinine news every so often, such as ims that cotton candy was made of cotton and how Coke

    couldn¡¯t be drunk with Red Bull.

    ¡°The news is fake. Considering Skr¡¯s personality, she would never pick on someone else. Besides,

    her mother¡¯s affairs have nothing to do with her. She¡¯s also a victim,¡± he mollified.

    ¡°Hmph! You¡¯re always defending her! I don¡¯t quite believe in her character,¡± udia huffed. ¡°Say, how is

    she better than Tanya? s, luck wasn¡¯t on Tanya¡¯s side. She went off her rocker, and she couldn¡¯t tie

    you to her with a child either. If it weren¡¯t for the ident back then¡­¡±

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    At the thought of that, she became dispirited. How greatly had I sinned in my previous life that everyone

    has grandchildren, yet I¡¯m still all alone here in this huge mansion?

    Sick of her nagging, Tobias interjected, ¡°There¡¯s a charity g I¡¯ve promised to attend tonight, so I won¡¯t

    be having dinner with you.¡±

    Only then did udia remember about the charity g, and it was an event that Tobias was only

    attending because of her.

    Nheless, she felt that the hefty sum he donated every year was also for his benefit since it would

    amass blessings for himself.

    When Tobias arrived at the venue, he skipped walking down the red carpet since he wasn¡¯t a celebrity.

    And even if the organizer had wanted him to do so, they didn¡¯t have that much sway with him.

    He went straight up to the VIP seating on the second floor. Before he came over, he learned that Skr

    would also be attending the event tonight.

    After her scandal broke out, he didn¡¯t call her tofort her at once because he felt that she should be

    aware of what she would face in the future since she had chosen this path.

    When he lifted his hand, his assistant immediately handed him a pair of binocrs that enabled him to

    see the red carpet clearly.

    That night, Skr wore an emerald-green evening dress with balloon sleeves. Such a dress was very

    demanding on its wearer, necessitating a slim figure and a tall stature.

    Nevertheless, Skr¡¯s slim and tall built fit the bill perfectly.

    As for her hair, the stylist put it up. However, it appeared rather awkward since it was too high.

    Her stylist had an emergency, so Kate got someone to stand in. Thus, she was borrowing

    Amelia¡¯s stylist.

    The moment Skr entered Tobias¡¯ line of sight, the corners of his mouth lifted.

    Haha, her appearance today reminds me of a huge crown of broli! Of course, she¡¯s still beautiful, but

    it seems rather strange.

    Thanks to her scandal, all cameras swung in Skr¡¯s direction and started shing away as soon as she

    made her appearance.

    In the face of the frenzy, she merely smiled cooperatively. When she went in, she took a seat on the sofa

    where her name was written.

    A long sofa seated three celebrities. Largo was one of her seatmates, while the other was a currently

    popr actress, Faith Halliday.

    Largo sat in the middle, and he handed a ss of wine to Skr. ¡°Are you okay? I told you long ago that

    you need someone backing you up when you¡¯re in the entertainment industry. What are you nning to

    do now? Whatever it is, don¡¯t affect the viewer ratings for Empyrean Sword. I don¡¯t want the audience to

    boycott the movie because they hate the female lead.¡±

    He spoke in a mere whisper, afraid that Faith would overhear him.

    Meanwhile, Skr pinned her gaze on the stage. At that moment, the host had already started

    introducing the items that would be auctioned that day.

    Unlike previous years, the charity g was switched to a charity auction that year. And everything that

    would be auctioned was provided by the families that required financial help.

    The uing item that was going to be auctioned was a teddy bear.

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    Chapter 482

    Upon seeing that Skr was ignoring him, Largo straightened and sat ramrod straight even as he ced

    a hand on the button of his suit briefly.

    The teddy bear was auctioned at a starting price of fifty thousand. Skr didn¡¯t raise her paddle since

    she had little money left after buying a house. She wanted to give to charity, but s, she couldn¡¯t afford

    it.

    Never would she buy a teddy bear that she could purchase on Amazon for forty-five, considering the

    paltry savings in her bank card. Well, unless she lost her mind.

    Content property of N?velDra/ma.Org.

    Nheless, she did understand that the significance was different.

    Largo, however, raised his paddle and generously called out a bid of two hundred thousand.

    Well, well¡­ I can tell that he¡¯ll definitely be breaking the bank tonight to establish his goody-goody

    image! Skr reckoned.

    Even after Largo had offered a bid of two hundred thousand, there were still others who upped his bid.

    But in the end, it was still him who won the bid. After going on stage, he dered in a gentle and

    pleasant voice, ¡°This is all for public welfare and charity. The children in the mountainous areas are really

    pitiful. In the past year, I¡¯ve built dozens of hope primary schools in hopes that the children can head

    toward a better future with their own efforts.¡±

    As Skr listened to his speech, she would¡¯ve rolled her eyes if not for fear that the camera would

    capture it.

    Wow, his ostentatiousness is truly impressive! Unlike those phnthropists who truly donate their riches,

    those hope primary schools he mentioned were built with the money raised by his fans every month. It

    was all his fans¡¯ effort, and he didn¡¯t put in a single penny, yet the credit went to him at the end of the

    day. Despite him putting on such a show, they maintained it without a single word ofint, gushing

    about the kindness of their idol!

    Since she was now in the eye of the storm, the live television director kept shifting the cameras on her.

    Thus, she maintained a smile throughout it all. Despite the chagrin within her, she still had to apud

    Largo and gracefully hug him when he stepped down from the stage since they were co-stars.

    Meanwhile, the weasel was very careful about his image in the public. Even when they hugged, he

    gentlemanly held his hands a hair¡¯s breadth away from her.

    When Faith excused herself, Skr finally couldn¡¯t hold her silence anymore. Speaking without moving

    her mouth, she murmured, ¡°There¡¯s a character that¡¯s tailored for you if you act in Hamlet.¡±

    Hearing that, Largo arched an eyebrow. ¡°Oh? And what character is that?¡±

    ¡°udius,¡± Skr murmured.

    In Hamlet, udius was a hypocrite of the highest order. But despite her snubbing him in such a

    roundabout way, Largo merely smiled instead of blowing his top. ¡°You¡¯re going down the drain before

    you¡¯ve even risen to fame. Skr, I don¡¯t mind however you disdain me, but you¡¯ve really wasted my

    good intentions. You¡¯ve got such an excellent hand of cards, yet you¡¯re ying them really badly. ¡°Craig

    ising back very soon, so you can opt for his son if you¡¯re really so averse to him. To tell you the

    truth, Craig has plenty of women out there, all pandering to him. Money talks in the entertainment

    industry, so every single female celebrity ismitted to finding a sugar daddy to back her up.¡±

    ¡°His son? Who do you mean?¡± Skr questioned,tching on to that right away.

    Having misunderstood that her interest had been piqued, Largo leaned in closer to her, so much so that

    they were almost touching. ¡°Craig¡¯s son is usually in Anndur, but he¡¯sing back with him this time.

    He¡¯s the epitome of young and rich.¡±

    Upon seeing this scene, Tobias flung the binocrs in his hands away. I didn¡¯t know when she became

    so close with Largo Zeller! Why does she keep talking to him, and why are they getting closer and closer

    by the minute?

    Whipping out his cell phone, he gave Skr a call.

    However, his call couldn¡¯t get through. In fact, Skr didn¡¯t even bring her cell phone along.

    Frustrated, Tobias tossed his cell phone onto the sofa in his booth.

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    Chapter 483

    ¡°What¡¯s so interesting that she¡¯s talking to him for such a long time? She never talks that much to me,¡±

    Tobias muttered.

    Although his voice was a mere whisper, Susan could still hear him loud and clear since she was right

    next to him. Upon hearing that, she pursed her lips to stifle herughter.

    Well, well¡­ Mr. Ford is really different when ites to Skr.

    Thest item to be auctioned was a painting by ude M. It was a contribution from the organizer

    as the finale of the charity g.

    At that moment, the atmosphere in the room reached its zenith, and many of the top-notch A-list

    celebrities started raising their paddles.

    Watching with gging interest, Tobias lifted his hand and beckoned Susan closer.

    ¡°Have someone bid on it as a gift for Ms. Jones,¡± he ordered.

    Susan instantly took out her cell phone and made the arrangements. In the end, the winning bid for the

    painting was an exorbitant fifty million by a mysterious buyer.

    At that, Skr felt that she was truly a hick who had no appreciation for art and famous paintings. After

    all, it was merely a piece of paper in her eyes, no matter how costly it was.

    Hmm¡­ But Tobias really likes such artistic things. Ah, what a shame that I don¡¯t have the money to buy

    it for him since the pittance I was paid has all been used to buy the house!

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    ¡°Since Skr Jones is going downhill before she has even been popr, Royal Entertainment will

    probably cklist her.¡±

    ¡°I heard that she has just bought a house for her mother. What a nice change of scenery for a murderer

    to live in a vi in the city after a stint in prison!¡±

    ¡°How could she possibly afford to buy a vi in the city? She must have had a devil of a timeing up

    with the downpayment. Hah! She¡¯s simply biting off more than she can chew. She won¡¯t be able to pay

    the loan when she¡¯s in the gutter.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re unlucky to have the same manager as her. I heard that Kate thinks quite highly of her. This is the

    first time she has ever made an error in judgment.¡±

    ¡°If I were her, I wouldn¡¯t dare to show my face here today. After all, it¡¯s so humiliating!¡±

    Speak of the devil! Xena and Amelia were so absorbed in gossiping at the dressing room backstage that

    they didn¡¯t notice that Skr, who came in after them, had been standing behind them for a long time.

    Xena Quantrill was renowned in the entertainment industry as a rich heir. She debuted in her teenage

    years, yet she had been mediocre in terms of poprity. She had starred as the female lead in several

    movies, but all of them merely garnered lukewarm responses from the audience.

    With her strong family background and the exposure she enjoyed, she could be considered a local diva,

    albeit grudgingly. Also, she had a close rtionship with Amelia.

    Not only were their Twitter ounts filled with photos of them together, but their rtionship was intimate

    to the point that they would also photoshop the other in those photos.

    ¡°The two of you seem very much interested in my affairs,¡± Skr remarked with a smile though her eyes

    were zing with rage.

    The two of them turned back simultaneously. At the sight of her, embarrassment showed on Amelia¡¯s

    face. Hastily pivoting to face the mirror, she then proceeded to take off her earrings.

    Conversely, Xena was much more unabashed.

    ¡°It¡¯s rude to eavesdrop on someone else¡¯s conversation. I was chatting with my best friend, but we can¡¯t

    do anything if you insist on assuming that we were talking about you.¡±

    Quirking an eyebrow, Skr chortled. ¡°I heard my name loud and clear. Or are you going to tell me that it

    was merely a case of having the same name?¡±

    Amelia said nothing, for she knew that Xena was the kind of person who would always have thest

    word.

    Sure enough, Xena simply couldn¡¯t ept defeat. ¡°Well, we have the freedom to say whatever we want!

    Or are you simply giving up and can¡¯t be bothered about your problem anymore, considering its

    magnitude? If I were in your shoes, I wouldn¡¯t have the time to eavesdrop on someone else¡¯s

    conversation. Instead, I¡¯d be racking my brains to concoct an exnation for theizens,¡± she sneered.

    ¡°Why should I exin things when I didn¡¯t do anything wrong? Oh, and do carry on with the

    conversation. Don¡¯t mind me since I merely came over to kindly offer a word of caution. The thing is, my

    elders always told me that gossipinges with swollen lips.¡±

    When Xena heard that, she instinctively touched her lips with a hand.

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave you two to your conversation, then. Please excuse me while I get changed. Oh yes, if your lips

    get swollen, remember to take some vitamins. Such a paltry scandal of mine is no business of yours

    anyway,¡± Skr dered nonchntly.

    Only when she left did Amelia finally put down theb in her hand and let out a sigh of relief.

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    Chapter 484

    When Skr walked over to the door, she spotted a man in a ck suit and white gloves standing there

    stiffly.

    Holding a painting that had been rolled up with both hands, he presented it to her.

    ¡°Here, this is a gift from my boss.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t ept gifts from fans, so please return it to your boss,¡± Skr declined tactfully.

    Her words fell into Xena¡¯s ears, and she scoffed, ¡°Hah! You don¡¯t ept gifts from fans? Just drop the

    high and mighty act! If I were you, I would ept it gratefully. After all, there¡¯s no point acting all

    generous when you already have your back to the wall. You¡¯d be better off thinking about your future

    since no one can help you, what¡¯s more with that family background of yours. If you ept the gift and

    sell it offter, the money will help you out a bit so that you won¡¯t be so hard-pressed.¡±

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    Hearing that, Skr turned and threw her a nce. Jeez, this woman is really pping her lips too much

    without any reservations!

    Meanwhile, the man kept his hands outstretched, so Skr had no choice but to take the painting from

    him. The moment she opened it, she sucked in a breath.

    What the hell? Isn¡¯t this thest item that was auctioned earlier? All at once, the painting in her hand felt

    like a hot potato.

    Amelia and Xena were stunned as well. Thetter, especially, was seized by jealousy. What? Who on

    earth is so extravagant to buy a fifty-million painting as a gift?

    Feigning calmness, Skr deliberately mused, ¡°I don¡¯t know how much it will sell, but it¡¯ll probably be

    enough to pay off my housing loan.¡±

    Carefully putting away the painting, she then held it with a hand. Nheless, she didn¡¯t dare use too

    much force, afraid that she would damage the painting. After all, she couldn¡¯t afford to pay for the

    damages.

    It was only after they had gone out did Skr ask the man, ¡°Who is your boss? This is too costly, so I

    can¡¯t ept it. Please return it to your boss.¡±

    ¡°Ms. Jones, please keep it since Mr. Ford asked me to hand it to you,¡± the man replied conflictedly. ¡°Also,

    he instructed me to tell you this ¨C a pegasus has great staying power, so there¡¯s no need to be harrowed

    by the present.¡±

    Skr was entirely stumped upon hearing that. So, this is from Tobias. And he must be aware of my

    brewing scandal since he¡¯s saying such a thing to me. Well, this is quite a surprise! I never expected him

    to be the mysterious buyer.

    But still, she was reluctant to ept the painting. She had the man convey her words to Tobias, saying,

    ¡°One never knows which horse will win the race before the veryst moment.¡±

    Xena, on the other hand, was still feeling shocked. Even with her family background, the painting was

    still out of her league.

    She indeed wanted to show off in front of others by winning the bid, but she had no choice but to admit

    defeat after having raised her paddle thrice.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard of men doing all sorts of things to win the favor of women, but never had I seen any man

    buying a woman a fifty-million painting as a gift. I wonder who is so crazy about that vixen, Skr Jones,¡±

    she groused resentfully.

    Leaning close to her ear, Amelia whispered, ¡°I heard that she is in a rtionship with Tobias Ford. It¡¯s not

    at all surprising that he did such a thing, considering his financial capabilities. How did you think she got

    a role in Empyrean Sword?¡±

    However, Xena smacked her shoulder hard. ¡°Don¡¯t joke with me, girl! How could Tobias Ford possibly

    take a fancy to her?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s just a rumor I heard, so I don¡¯t know whether it¡¯s true. Anyway, she¡¯s definitely using underhanded

    methods since she¡¯s rising to fame so quickly. I wouldn¡¯t bepeting with her for resources if she has

    no sugar daddy backing her up,¡± Amelia asserted.

    Sometimeter¡­ The lights in the room were turned off, plunging the room into pitch-darkness. And so,

    Skr fumbled along the wall for the light switch. The moment ring lights flooded the room, Miranda

    instinctively lifted a hand and shielded her eyes.

    Right away, Skr was greeted by the sight of beer bottles scattered all over the floor. The room was so

    messy that it appeared as though a tornado had hit. Miranda was sitting on the bed in a disheveled state

    with the covers a tangled mess even as the stench of alcohol emanated off her.

    ¡°You¡¯re a grown-ass woman, yet you¡¯re still using alcohol to drown your sorrows? You should at least

    clean up a bit when I bought such a huge house for you.¡± Skr then heaved a sigh.

 Chapter 485

    Chapter 485

    Covering her face with both hands, Miranda whined, ¡°I don¡¯t even have a single shred of dignity left now.

    Everyone looks at me as though I¡¯m a leper when I go out to buy groceries, all shying away from me and

    condemning me formitting murder when I failed to steal the man.¡±

    ¡°Is that not the truth? Oh, that doesn¡¯t seem to be the case. The narrative should be youmitting

    murder in a fit of rage after your man was stolen by someone else. But no matter what it is, it¡¯s still a fact

    that you killed someone, and a murderer will never be able to hold her head up for the rest of her life.

    You know what? I was actually dreaming of going into the military or bing a civil servant back then,

    but it required a spotless family background. You should feel guilty toward me,¡± Skr drawled.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t kill her! Why won¡¯t they just give me an opportunity to start over?¡± Miranda¡¯s voice rose a few

    decibels.

    Having finally railroaded her into speaking the truth, Skr immediately grasped onto that to get to the

    bottom of things. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s worth having taken the me for Thomas Jones? Although I have no

    idea what exactly happened between the two of you, he has been living the high life all these years.

    Irene spends millions a year just for her beauty treatments, and she has people fawning all over her

    whenever she goes out. In short, she¡¯s the envy of all women. And what about you? You were doing time

    and ended up in such a sorry state,¡± she mocked.

    Those words of hers were a sharp de that stabbed Miranda right in the chest.

    ¡°So? What can I do about that? Am I supposed to give him up when I¡¯ve already served such a long

    sentence? I can¡¯t bring myself to do that,¡± shemented helplessly. ¡°Back then, Irene¡¯s sister, Tara, found

    out that Thomas had embezzled a lot of money from the Ziegler family and transferred it to his ount

    overseas to set himself up for life. That day, I went to beg him not to break up with me, but nothing I said

    made a difference. He even insulted me, saying that I couldn¡¯t give him anything. ¡°It so happened that

    Tara came over to confront him about the money right then. She had always been arrogant and looked

    down upon him, so she uttered a lot of unsavory remarks to his face, including how he wasn¡¯t a man but

    a useless piece of shit who sponged off women and would only be disdained all his life. As he listened,

    he grew incensed and also terrified that he would be exposed. In the next moment, he snagged a

    baseball bat and swung it at her as though having lost his mind. He hit her in the back of her head, so

    she died instantly. ¡°He was beside himself with terror back then since the penalty for murder is

    imprisonment. Thus, he beseeched me to do him a final favor. I loved him so much then that I would¡¯ve

    given my life for him. Unsurprisingly, I was taken in by his false promise of marrying me when I¡¯m

    released from prison.¡±

    At longst, Skr had unraveled the truth of the matter. Oh my God, she was too foolish to have staked

    her youth just for a promise Thomas Jones never had any intention of fulfilling!

    ¡°There¡¯s a simple solution ¨C expose him. He truly needs to experience some hardships after his easy life

    all these years. Have him walk in your shoes and travel the path you once took, spending his twilight

    years in prison!¡± Skr¡¯s gaze was flinty without a hint of empathy for Thomas.

    However, Miranda was dead set against it. Scrambling off the bed, she stopped Skr, who was leaving,

    without even putting on her shoes. ¡°No, you can¡¯t do that, Skr! It¡¯s been so many years, and he¡¯s your

    father at the end of the day. You can¡¯t be so ruthless!¡±

    Ugh! I simply hate it when she keeps harping on the fact that he¡¯s my father! If I can choose my parents, I

    definitely won¡¯t choose such parents in my next life!

    Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.

    Miranda wailed sorrowfully, tears and snot staining her face while she wore a tortured expression.

    Damn it all to hell! In the face of her refusal, the only thing I can do to sway the public opinion now is to

    make myself into the victim. I¡¯ll have to publish a long and eloquent post on Twitter, ying it up for

    sympathy! But then again, I won¡¯t really have to ¡°y it up¡± since I will appear pitiful anyway if all those

    things are truly bared to the public.

    That was Skr¡¯s final resort, for, given the choice, no one wanted to bare themselves to others.

    She left in a hurry without even sparing the time to have a good look at her new house, ordering the

    driver to head to Jones residence.

    Ultimately, someone had to take the initiative, and she was determined not to allow Thomas the chance

    to be a coward once again.

    Before she went over, she didn¡¯t consider that she would be interrupting dinner. When she stepped into

    the house, the entire family was eating.

    Thomas was taking a piece of pork cutlet for Avery, and the smell of grilled fish hung in the air.

 Chapter 486

    Chapter 486

    Skr had always been unweed by the Joneses, so they were all irked upon seeing her. mming

    her cutlery on the table, Irene sprang to her feet.

    ¡°Why are you here? And when did you be so ill-mannered that you simply walked in without

    permission?¡±

    Avery shot daggers at her while Hayden pinned a vicious look on her. Thomas was the only one who

    wore a grim expression, and he was only the only person with hisposure intact.

    ¡°I have something to say to him,¡± Skr dered with a thoughtful expression.

    Without any regard for seniority whatsoever, she pointed her finger at Thomas.

    Thomas put down his cutlery. ¡°I have nothing to say to you. Also, has no one ever taught you manners

    that you¡¯re pointing a finger at your elder?¡±

    Ignoring his reprimand, Skr murmured, ¡°I¡¯ve just gone home earlier and had a good chat with my

    mother. I found out that the two of you actually have a lot of history. I wonder if¡­¡±

    ¡°Zip it! Follow me to the garden, and I¡¯ll teach you some manners,¡± Thomas blurted, cutting her off.

    In truth, Skr was traumatized by the garden in Jones residence. On that particr rainy night, Thomas

    threw a paltry two hundred at her feet as though she was a beggar and warned her to stay far away from

    him.

    As Meredith looked on at her drenched self, who was still clutching the bills in her hand, she hugged her

    and wept with her.

    Her grandmothermented her difficult life, bemoaning the fact that the affluent Jones family would even

    begrudge taking her in.

    Ever since then, she never again asked her to go to Jones residence for money.

    At that moment, there was a hint of guilt in Thomas¡¯ eyes. ¡°What did your mother tell you? How could

    you possibly believe her when she isn¡¯t in her right mind?¡±

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    ¡°She told me a lot of things about Tara Ziegler. Some things can never remain a secret forever, after all. If

    that matter gets out, your reputation will inevitably be ruined.¡±

    Despite the stricken expression on his face, Thomas still tried to deny it, snapping, ¡°Stop ndering me!

    Tara¡¯s incident has nothing to do with me. If you don¡¯t believe me, just lodge a police report!¡±

    Fishing out her cell phone from her handbag, Skr started tapping her long and slender fingers on the

    keypad. ¡°What¡¯s the number again? Something along the lines of 911?¡±

    Finally, Thomas snapped and moved to snatch the cell phone out of her hands. At that, Skr¡¯s gaze

    suddenly turned cold. ¡°Fine by me if you want this matter to remain a secret, but you¡¯ve got to do

    something for me right now, Thomas Jones. Don¡¯t feel aggrieved, for you¡¯re only cleaning up the mess

    your precious son and daughter created.¡±

    She then threatened to lodge a police report and expose him for having murdered Tara back then if he

    refused to issue a statement revealing the truth that he abandoned his wife and daughter back then.

    She also lied and imed that Miranda had agreed as well.

    Although many years had passed since the incident, Thomas wasn¡¯t certain whether he could get off

    scot-free if the case was overturned and reinvestigated.

    Skr pressured him relentlessly, giving him no room to decline. She also saved him considerable

    trouble, sending him the script she had prepared and ordering him to type it out and post it on Twitter.

    Kate, on the other hand, had contracted the top ten Twitter marketing ounts with the greatest number

    of fans to have them sway the public opinion by sharing Thomas¡¯ post.

    When Avery saw the script in Thomas¡¯ hands, she eximed incredulously, ¡°Dad, how could you

    promise Skr this? Did you consider your reputation and my future? If you publish such a post, I¡¯ll

    be the illegitimate daughter while she bes the most innocent victim!¡±

    With his face a mask of worry, Thomas hissed through gritted teeth, ¡°This was all your doing! It was you

    who brought all that to light, yet you¡¯re now asking me whether it¡¯ll affect your future? Don¡¯t think I¡¯m

    unaware that the two of you paid the media off to sabotage her!¡± His voice was colored with rage.

    Hayden rushed forward at once and shielded Avery behind him. He couldn¡¯t understand why his father

    was adamant about speaking up for Skr at the cost of his sister being hurt and his own reputation

    being tarnished.

    ¡°Why would you do this, Dad? You love Avery most! Did she use Tobias Ford to threaten you and

    browbeat us?¡±

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    Chapter 487

    Thomas was tortured and distressed, feeling as though a thorn was simply stuck in his flesh, prickling

    him every so often. However, he couldn¡¯t exin the matter to his son and daughter.

    Indeed, Skr and her mother had dirt on him. He had been gued with uneasiness ever since

    Miranda was released from prison. And now that Skr was aware of the truth of the matter, no one

    knew how much longer it would remain a secret.

    Irene red at her husband with eyes filled with fury and disappointment. ¡°Thomas Jones, I¡¯ll divorce you

    if you dare publish that post! Are you trying to announce to the world that I was the third party who

    wrecked your marriage back then? I have no objections to you proiming yourself as the modern Julius

    Caesar, but how am I supposed to hold up my head in public henceforth? The Ziegler family is a

    prominent family, so I was already lowering myself when I married you. I¡¯m now up in years, yet you¡¯re

    not even leaving me my reputation?¡±

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    ¡°Just put up with it for a bit, okay? The public will quickly lose interest, anyway. Besides, it won¡¯t do us

    any good to offend Tobias Ford,¡± Thomas gently coaxed, looking morose and dejected.

    Sneering, Irene stared at him coldly. ¡°You¡¯re really a coward. I¡¯ll have awyer prepare the divorce

    agreement. The choice is in your hands.¡±

    After Thomas had published the post, Skr then published her long Twitter post half a dayter.

    As for Miranda havingmitted murder in the past, she portrayed it in such a way that it was self-

    defense.

    She weaved a long story on Twitter about a woman who was betrayed by her husband and threatened

    by his mistress. The mistress moved into the house and threw her and her daughter out into the streets

    in the freezing winter without even a penny, leaving them to starve.

    Later on, the pitiful mother was ced in shackles and went to prison, leaving the abandoned little girl to

    be taken in by her elderly grandmother.

    Being poor, the little girl matured faster than her peers, living a hand-to-mouth existence with her

    grandmother. Before she attended high school, she had never worn any new clothes. And the year she

    took her college entrance examination, her grandmother passed away¡­

    Meanwhile, the mother thought life would be better after being released from prison, but people hurled

    abuses at her without giving her an opportunity to turn over a new leaf.

    The final sentence Skr wrote was this ¨C The little girl asked her mother, ¡°What exactly did we do

    wrong, Mommy?¡±

    After she published that Twitter post, many of theizens who were previously calling for her to leave

    the entertainment industry did a one-eighty. The female fans on Twitter cried at the post and condemned

    Thomas for being a cheating b*stard, even going so far as to stamp him as a spineless coward.

    #AHugForSkr

    #HangInThereSkr

    #AHappyEndingForTheLittleGirl

    In the blink of an eye, Skr¡¯s sensational news shot up to the top of the trending list. In fact, its

    poprity wasparable with the news of a popr actress going to Anndur to be a surrogate back

    then, the number of hits skyrocketing.

    This time, she didn¡¯t take an aggressive stance and issue any statement about suing for defamation.

    Instead, she merely portrayed herself as the victim, yet her poprity actually soared.

    Naturally, Avery was also dragged into the mess. Theizens had zero tolerance for a homewrecker, so

    her daughter was also disdained.

    After all, no matter how inadequate the wife was, she still had the upper hand.

    As Tobias scrolled through his Twitter page, the corners of his mouth lifted. Well, well¡­ I wonder what

    Skr did to coerce the cunning Thomas Jones into doing this, ruining his own reputation.

    When Skr received his call at the office, he didn¡¯t even ask her whether she was free but told her

    outright that he had made a reservation for dinner.

    And the moment she arrived, she noticed that he had already ordered the dishes. However, there wasn¡¯t

    a single dish that was to her taste. The fare was mostly nutritious in nature, with several being downright

    nd, in fact.

    Disappointed engulfed her. Ah, we¡¯ve been dating for so long, yet he still doesn¡¯t know my likes and

    dislikes, huh?

    ¡°Congrattions on your recent shot to stardom.¡± Tobias poured her a cup of green tea.

    Skr, however, didn¡¯t drink it. Instead, she asked the waiter for a ss of fresh orange juice.

    shing him a faint smile, she replied, ¡°Well, adversity made me stronger. While I¡¯m no pegasus, I¡¯m still

    an old thoroughbred. Despite being weak, I still aspire to reach greater heights though it takes time¡­¡±

 Chapter 488

    Chapter 488

    ¡°I heard that you resolved the matter by yourself. You¡¯ve truly grown a lot. This is exactly how people

    should be, being ruthless when the situation calls for it,¡± Tobiasplimented.

    Haha, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve even learned a tenth from him. He¡¯ll probably be disappointed if he knows what

    paltry method I employed.

    ¡°Everyone pities me now, but this isn¡¯t what I actually wanted. I didn¡¯t want to y the victim, but I had no

    other choice,¡± Skrmented with her chin propped against a hand.

    If I truly have to establish a public persona, I¡¯d hoped to have a more positive image ¨C a wealthy family

    background, a smooth-sailing life, as well as a cheerful and upbeat personality. s, all those had never

    been mine.

    Chuckling, Tobias asserted, ¡°You¡¯ve got to work harder to change the pity to adtion, then. By the way,

    didn¡¯t you miss me after having not seen me for half a month?¡±

    Skr had been so busytely that shepletely lost track of time. If he hadn¡¯t said that, she actually

    thought that they had only seen each other a few days ago.

    ¡°Oh, has it really been that long? Times really flies,¡± she replied in bewilderment.

    At that, Tobias¡¯ heart sank slightly. In the past, Skr used to send him WhatsApp messages when they

    didn¡¯t see each other. Back then, he found it rather clingy at times and didn¡¯t reply to her.

    But now, he checked his cell phone every so often, yet there hadn¡¯t been anything from her.

    She had the time to change her profile photo on WhatsApp multiple times, yet she didn¡¯t have the time to

    say a few words to me? What the hell?

    ¡°Was there a problem with your cell phone? Why didn¡¯t you contact me?¡± he demanded indignantly.

    Skr, on the other hand, was surprised. ¡°Wasn¡¯t it you who told me not to keep sending you WhatsApp

    messages, saying that a phone call would make things much clearer? There was nothing important on

    my side, so I didn¡¯t call you. Did I do something wrong?¡±

    ¡°Do you think you did nothing wrong?¡±

    Hearing that, Skr¡¯s brows knitted together. ¡°What did I do wrong? You were the one who told me not to

    message you for no reason, preferring a phone call instead. I didn¡¯t message you since I had no reason

    to do so. Isn¡¯t that just what you wanted?¡±

    Tobias shed her an exasperated smile in response. ¡°Since when were you so glib?¡±

    At that point, Skr changed the topic. With a stiff smile on her face, she remarked, ¡°Later, I¡¯ll return the

    painting you gave me. I¡¯m not a person who knows how to appreciate art, so I don¡¯t have much use for it.

    Also, it was too expensive. It¡¯s courtesy to reciprocate, but I¡¯ve never given you anything. So, I can¡¯t give

    you anything in return when you give me a gift.¡±

    Exasperation swamped Tobias. Jeez, she¡¯s really blunt. Or perhaps she just can¡¯t be bothered. If she¡¯s

    truly sincere, she can just give me a small token. I won¡¯t mind. But the bottom line is, she¡¯s simply too

    stingy with me!

    The nd and nutritious feast wasn¡¯t to Skr¡¯s liking, but she wasn¡¯t as rude as to show it on her face.

    Nevertheless, she would be much happier eating a bowl of pasta right then.

    ¡°You¡¯re already full?¡± Tobias asked.

    Skr nodded and even put on a show of wiping her mouth. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m really stuffed now¡­¡±

    Conversely, Tobias was a tad chagrined. Good grief! She¡¯s really a light eater. I didn¡¯t even see her eat

    that much. In reality, he had specially ordered the tableful of nutritious dishes to enhance her health.

    When they were walking along the corridor of the restaurant, Skr and Tobias kept a distance between

    them. Her poprity was soaring now, so they wanted to avoid another scandal that might break out if

    she were to unt her rtionship with Tobias.

    They had been photographed several times in the past, but Tobias had the news suppressed. However,

    he couldn¡¯t stopizens from doing so.

    ¡°Tobi¡­¡± A gentle female voice drifted into their ears.

    Tobias didn¡¯t stop, but Skr was rooted to the spot. Tobi? Even I couldn¡¯t bring myself to address him so

    intimately!

    Halting, Skr cast her gaze in the direction of the voice, only to glimpse the clearly visible expression

    on Tobias¡¯ face. His usual forbidding mien had been wholly transformed with a faint smile.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    She then shifted her gaze to the woman across from him. Judging from her appearance, the woman was

    gentle and slim, her features exquisite and delicate with long hair that flowed past her shoulders.

    Skr¡¯s frank impression of the woman was pure, and her features were pleasant to the eye. In

    comparison, she appeared sensual to the point of being skanky.

 Chapter 489

    Chapter 489

    ¡°What a coincidence! I didn¡¯t expect to bump into you here. I was nning to ask you out for a meal, but

    you didn¡¯t reply to my message.¡±

    ¡°I was too busy, so I didn¡¯t see it,¡± Tobias replied.

    Idania then turned her gaze on Skr beside him. At a single nce, she recognized the celebrity who

    frequently appeared on the trending list on Twitter recently.

    Just yesterday itself, she spoke of Skr with her colleagues and expressed her sympathy for her tragic

    background.

    ¡°And this is¡­¡± Idania inquired with an inquisite gaze.

    ¡°A friend,¡± Tobias nonchntly answered, leaving it at just that.

    Upon hearing that, the courteous smile on Skr¡¯s face faded. Her expression froze and turned taut.

    Subsequently, the woman graciously extended a fair and slender hand. ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Idania

    Gand.¡±

    Skr had only ever heard of her name but had never seen her in person. Never had she expected to

    bump into Idania here, the only woman whom Tobias told his family he wanted to marry.

    She stared at her for a few seconds before retracting her gaze. ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Skr Jones,

    Tobias¡¯ girlfriend.¡±

    Idania froze upon hearing that. Is this for real? Did he really find a girlfriend from the entertainment

    industry? But isn¡¯t he big on chastity? So, she is the girlfriend he mentioned to me the other day, huh?

    How ironic that I¡¯d just pitied her today itself!

    Then, she shed them a gentle smile. ¡°I¡¯ll leave the two of you to your date, then. I¡¯ve got a meeting

    with a client here, so we¡¯ll get together next time.¡±

    After she had left, Skr put away the fake smile on her face. Anguish surged within her. He imed that

    we¡¯re just friends, and he did that before his ex-girlfriend to boot.

    Noticing her dejected expression, Tobias caressed her hair. ¡°What are you thinking that you¡¯re spacing

    out here? You¡¯ve got to satisfy me tonight. I¡¯ve got half a month¡¯s worth of repressed desire to sate.¡±

    Long since immune to his crude remarks, Skr countered, ¡°That¡¯s your problem. You should just keep it

    for yourself since your ex-girlfriend is really beautiful.¡±

    Tobias stared at her sharply. ¡°She¡¯s passable.¡±

    Snorting, Skr deliberately bumped him with a shoulder and stalked ahead.

    Meanwhile, Idania was exceedingly distracted after returning to the private room. As the meal went on,

    the sound of cutlery hitting the tes irritated her greatly.

    Her mind kept going back to Tobias¡¯ answer of Skr being his friend. What did he mean by that? Was

    he worried that I¡¯d misunderstand, or was it out of concern for me?

    She had always harbored the hope that they would reconcile one day, confident that the wonderful

    memories between them could never be reced by anyone else.

    ¡°You seem preupied today, Ms. Gand. I haven¡¯t seen you raising your wine ss even once.¡± Her

    business partner, Andy Waldo, started urging her to drink.

    Upset, Idania guzzled her wine in a single go.

    Her chest was now aching fiercely, and it was a long-term sequ thanks to Tobias having pissed her off

    back then. Of course, there were good memories, but she was simply unwilling to recall the pain in the

    past.

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    After several rounds of drinks at the table, someone suddenly brought Tobias up.

    Even after so many years, the mention of his name still felt like a stab in the heart to Idania every single

    time, the pain excruciating.

    Speaking of him, it could be none other than business. She listened attentively since she had once

    contemted jumping ship to Ford Group.

    Nheless, she had also considered the fact that it wouldn¡¯t do her any good. After all, it was difficult to

    guarantee that she would bump into him when Ford Group was such a huge corporation.

    ¡°How does it feel to have bumped into an ex-girlfriend?¡± Skr teased with a snicker.

    Tobias merely threw her an indifferent look. ¡°I¡¯ve got too many ex-girlfriends, so she doesn¡¯t really matter

    to me.¡±

    However, Skr felt that he was lying. Hah, as if! The look in his eyes when he gazed at her was

    obviously different. His tenderness in that instance couldn¡¯t have been fake.

    As soon as they stepped into the house, Madelyn brought them both a ss of hot chocte to warm

    them up.

    Skr seldom cooked ever since Madelyn came to be the housekeeper. Madelyn was a decent person,

    her only ws being too talkative and nosy besides getting off work too punctually.

    She was so intrusive that she even asked Skr where she graduated from.

    Nevertheless, Skr still chatted with her to assuage her boredom.

    After loosening the tie around his neck, Tobias patted the sofa and gestured for Skr to sit beside him.

 Chapter 490

    Chapter 490

    When Skr sat down beside Tobias, he pulled her into his arms. Madelyn looked on with a grin, not at

    all embarrassed to be the third wheel.

    ¡°Did Valerie do anything else to make things difficult for you?¡± Tobias asked. ¡°If she did, don¡¯t just keep it

    to yourself. I¡¯m now allowing you to voice your grievances.¡±

    ¡°Well, she hasn¡¯t made things difficult for me, but she looks down on me. After all, I stole her man, so it¡¯s

    only natural that she hates me.¡±

    At that, Tobias ruffled her hair gently. ¡°What nonsense are you spouting? There¡¯s nothing between the

    two of us.¡±

    ¡°But she likes you,¡± Skr countered.

    ¡°Many women like me, but that doesn¡¯t mean anything,¡± Tobias replied nonchntly. ¡°If you want people

    to look up to you, work hard and seize the opportunity you have with Empyrean Sword. If you can¡¯t make

    a name for yourself, it only means that you¡¯re not suited to this career path and should just give up.¡±

    Madelyn was truly considerate, for since she went shopping, they had never run out of condoms in the

    house.

    Skr had no idea whether she was overzealous or Tobias had ordered her to do so, but it had never

    happened again.

    In the past, Tobias even went out to buy condoms in the middle of the night when he was suddenly

    gripped by passion, but sometimes she would fall asleep by the time he came back.

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    When they returned to the bedroom, Tobias tightened his arms around Skr and hugged her tightly,

    instantly stering their bodies together.

    Having been apart for half a month, he was much more eager than before in expressing his desire for

    her body with his actions.

    As their lips came together and their tongues intertwined slowly, their clothes were already in much

    disarray.

    It felt as though their bodies were burning with infinite attraction, making them both frenzied and wild.

    ¡°Who owns your body?¡± he demanded in a hoarse and low voice.

    Her face flushing bright red, Skr kept mum. She abhorred answering such a flirtatious question while

    being intimate, finding it too much of an embarrassment.

    Despite herck of reply, Tobias had already impatiently moved his hands to her waist and caressed her

    t stomach. ¡°You¡¯re too thin, so eat more in the future. Bones and skin aren¡¯t a good look on you. Don¡¯t

    consider the audience¡¯s preferences. Instead, consider the fact that I love having some meat to hold

    onto.¡±

    ¡°Did you ask me out because you missed me or missed being intimate with me?¡± Skr¡¯s voice was

    shaky from arousal.

    ¡°What do you mean by being intimate?¡± Tobias queried, deliberately acting obtuse.

    Skr merely kept quiet without bothering to reply.

    Ah, forget about it! What¡¯s the point of asking further when I know what his answer will be? He¡¯s a very

    realistic person who knows full well what he wants. He never asks me out because he misses me.

    Rather, it¡¯s because of his physiological need for release and pleasure.

    In the next moment, Tobias hugged her tenderly and blew into her ear. ¡°Moan louderter. If I hurt you,

    Baby, you can even scream.¡±

    He then carried her to the bed, and they became a tangle of limbs. Their bodies bounced up and down

    as they became one entity.

    As Skr propped herself up on the bed, the moonlight outside the window appeared particrly

    deste that night. She saw that Tobias had alreadye out of the bathroom and was choosing a suit

    from the closet. So, he¡¯s leaving.

    ¡°Are you not staying here tonight? It¡¯ste, so what other important business do you have?¡±

    ¡°No. I¡¯m going on a business trip tomorrow, and it¡¯ll be too far if I were to depart from your ce. Do you

    want me to stay?¡±

    Skr weakly shed him a smile beforenguidly lying back on the bed. ¡°Nah, just leave, then. It¡¯s just

    that I feel really perturbed by the way things are. I read from the Inte that if a man really loves a

    woman, he won¡¯t immediately pull away after being intimate with her. Instead, he¡¯ll hug her tightly. So, it¡¯s

    rather dastardly of you to pull on your pants and leave right away.¡±

    Tobias noticeably stilled while buckling his belt with his head lowered. ¡°Stop reading so many deceptive

    articles on the Inte. What¡¯s the point of hugging when both people are sticky with sweat? If you want

    me to hug you, I¡¯ll hug you when I¡¯m free during the day.¡±

    I wonder if there are any sses for insensitive men that I can enroll him in. But then again, he¡¯ll

    definitely demur.

 Chapter 491

    Chapter 491

    Skr didn¡¯t see Tobias off, as she was not in the mood to move at all. She was no courtesan, so there

    was no need for her to act like one by feigning coyness after having served a client and murmuring

    coquettishly, ¡°Do hit me up again next time, handsome.¡±

    Noticing that Tobias was leaving just after a few hours, Madelyn felt sorry for Skr as a woman who

    had experienced much herself.

    Good heavens! He¡¯s making it clear as day that he just came over to seek his gratification! No woman

    will be able to remain unfazed when the man simply leaves after using her body for pleasure. It would¡¯ve

    been better if he¡¯d just stayed the night. I wonder if he¡¯s already married and has a wife and kids, so he

    can¡¯t stay out overnight, she mused.

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    Meanwhile, Skr was scrolling through her Instagram page. A former ssmate of hers during junior

    high school uploaded a picture of a newborn baby.

    Oh well, another person has gotten married and has a baby, aplishing all that¡¯s important in

    life. She could feel her friend¡¯s happiness radiating off the screen. Others¡¯ rtionships have alle to

    fruition, but mine hasn¡¯t even budded. I wonder how Penelope, who did things the other way round, is

    doing.

    She was currently burying her head in the sand, afraid to contact Penelope since she kept hounding her

    like a dog with a bone about joining the entertainment industry.

    She had gone to Kate, but thetter threw Penelope¡¯s photo to the side after a single nce. Then, she

    went on to say that Penelope wasn¡¯t beautiful enough besides having had a baby. The entertainment

    industry was no charity institution, so the requirements were much higher than that.

    The group chat with her former ssmates started pinging with messages again, but Skr rarely

    chimed in since she had nothing much to say.

    Nheless, some would still ask whether she was there, for they all thought that she was now rolling in

    money after joining the entertainment industry and was eager to ask her for a loan.

    Even those who never had a conversation with her asked for a loan to repay their credit card debts,

    housing loans, and so on.

    In short, there were various reasons for that. In the beginning, she lent them some money within her

    ability, but not a single person paid her back. At that, she realized their true colors and no longer did so

    most of the time.

    And that was precisely why there were rumors on the Inte that she became arrogant after bing

    famous and cklisted most of her former ssmates.

    As Empyrean Sword was set to be broadcasted soon, Skr was going to another city to promote the

    movie early next morning. She got up at five o¡¯clock in the morning and arrived at the airport at almost

    seven o¡¯clock.

    She deliberately applied no makeup in hopes that pictures of her barefaced at the airport would leak out.

    After all, Kate once said that her countenance was exquisite without any makeup.

    Theck of makeup gave her an innocent lookpared to her usual enchantress appearance. While

    there were few fans at the airport, there were quite a number of people who were there to take

    photographs for sale.

    Those people often kept watch at the airport and boldly aim their cell phones at celebrities¡¯ faces,

    snapping away before selling the pictures to fans.

    Skr¡¯s photos weren¡¯t quite valuable, priced at only two hundred per piece on the Inte.

    She wore a mask and a baseball cap, but the brim of the cap wasn¡¯t so low as to conceal her beautiful

    eyes.

    When she went to the VIP lounge, she coincidentally bumped into Tobias, who was also waiting for his

    flight.

    As there were a few crew members with her and a dozen imposing men in suits and standing beside

    Tobias, they merely exchanged a nce wordlessly.

    While doing so, Skr whipped out her cell phone and brandished it before Tobias.

    She then found a seat and sat down. The gazes of the men beside Tobias instinctually fixated on Skr

    since a beauty always attracted attention everywhere she went.

    Subsequently, Skr texted Tobias: I didn¡¯t expect us to be on the same flight.

    To which Tobias replied: Is this destiny or coincidence?

    Well, I think it¡¯s merely a coincidence since our destinies aren¡¯t so intertwined, Skr inwardly reckoned.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you go and ask her for her Instagram ount? There¡¯s no need to be shy since celebrities

    are human, too. She¡¯s beautiful and gentle, so she¡¯ll make a good match with you. You might even be

    her type. I heard that Skr Jones doesn¡¯t have a boyfriend, so why are you afraid when you¡¯re so

    handsome and capable?¡±

    At his colleagues¡¯ encouragement, Hector was emboldened.

    But a heartbeatter, Tobias lifted his cold eyes and stared at Hector. ¡°Are you here to go on a business

    trip or to pick up girls? And you dare do it right before me?¡±

 Chapter 492

    Chapter 492

    Startled, Hector immediately put the phone back into his pocket and dared not to move.

    Meanwhile, a young and cheerful man in jeans and a Supreme jacket suddenly showed up and stood

    beside Skr.

    ¡°Lady, can I have your phone number?¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t look at him as she answered, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I can¡¯t give it to you.¡±

    Tobias never thought that Marcus would be here.

    The moment their eyes met, Marcus shed a wry smile at Tobias.

    Then, he continued to pester Skr. ¡°I saw your photos on your Instagram. I mean, you look even better

    than in your photos. No wonder my brother loves you so much.¡±

    Skr looked at the young face in a daze. Although Marcus was smiling, she couldn¡¯t help but feel

    disturbed.

    Meanwhile, a staff near them stood up and said, ¡°Sir, please don¡¯t disturb our passengers. If you persist,

    we have no other option but to call the security of the airport.¡±

    At this moment, Marcus could feel that the atmosphere turned chilly. He turned around and realized that

    Tobias was staring at him coldly.

    After standing up, Tobias came up to Marcus and instructed, ¡°Stay away from her.¡±

    Instantly, everyone, including the top management of Ford Group, was stunned.

    Why is Tobias so kind toe to Skr¡¯s rescue? Could it be that he is fond of Skr as well?

    Marcus chuckled frivolously and said, ¡°I heard from my sister that you broke her leg before for a woman.

    Well, well, I finally got the chance to see her in person. Do you know from where I saw her photos? They

    were on my dad¡¯s phone, stating that she¡¯s priced at thirty thousand per night. I wonder how much Mr.

    Ford spent for her.¡±

    Since Largo mentioned it before, Skr instantly realized that the young man was Tobias¡¯ brother,

    Marcus.

    Marcus was Tobias and Sheldon¡¯s paternal half-brother. Judging from the way they talked, Skr could

    tell that they didn¡¯t get along well.

    Since Tobias didn¡¯t prefer socializing with people, Skr didn¡¯t think he would be very nice to his half-

    brother.

    However, she wasn¡¯t in the mood to ponder over their bond of brotherhood. She stood up and red at

    Marcus. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare nder me. Besides, I don¡¯t even know you.¡±

    Marcus raised his brows as he said, ¡°You¡¯ll know me eventually. Ms. Jones, we can meet up when you¡¯re

    free. I can tell you a lot of interesting stories about your boyfriend.¡±

    Everyone around was bewildered upon hearing it, particrly Hector, who wanted to get Skr¡¯s

    Instagram ount earlier on. At that moment, he was bbergasted.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    What¡¯s going on? Isn¡¯t Skr single? He almost made the biggest mistake in his life by flirting with his

    boss¡¯ girlfriend.

    Suddenly, Tobias threw a punch at Marcus. As Marcus was caught off-guard, he was hit and took a few

    steps back. Also, the corner of his mouth began to bleed.

    Although Marcus¡¯ face was in pain, he said coldly, ¡°Well, well, you¡¯re still the Tobias I know, for you never

    go easy on your brother. Anyway, the punch is less powerful than the one I had years ago.¡±

    After grabbing Marcus¡¯ cor, Tobias red at him and said ferociously, ¡°Stay away from Skr. You and

    your sister shouldn¡¯t even be alive¡­ a bunch of useless trash.¡±

    When the staff began to make an announcement with the PA system, Skr persuaded, ¡°It¡¯s fine. He

    only wanted my number. You don¡¯t have to beat him up.¡±

    ¡°Shut up and do your work.¡± Tobias berated. Upon that, Skr¡¯s expression turned grim.

    Then, she asked the crew members to leave the ce. She was irritated deep down, for she persuaded

    Tobias out of kindness but was reprimanded by him instead.

    A momentter, Marcus wiped away the bloodstain on his mouth with his hand and said, ¡°Your girlfriend

    has left. She¡¯s a good-looking one, and I like her personality. Anyway, I suggest that you ask her to stop

    involving herself in those types of activities. Why is she working so hard to get more customers even

    though she¡¯s already with a rich man? Besides, just looking at her small frame, I don¡¯t think she¡¯s able to

    stand numerous rigorous activities. Also, I think she doesn¡¯t filter her customers, for she didn¡¯t mind

    taking the old pervert¡¯s order.¡±

    If Tobias had a gun, he would have shot and killed Marcus right then and there. Nevertheless, Tobias

    understood that Marcus wouldn¡¯t be who he was today if the incident didn¡¯t happen back then.

    As the thought shed through his mind, Tobias calmed himself down and instructed, ¡°Get out of my

    sight, and go back to Anndur.¡±

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    Chapter 493

    Marcus said with a grin on his face, ¡°I¡¯ve been hiding from you for a long time. How long do you want me

    to continue hiding? I¡¯ve had enough to be a fugitive. So, you might as well finish me off to end my

    suffering.¡±

    Skr failed to pretend that she didn¡¯t know Tobias. After the incident, the assistant director, who sat

    next to her on the ne, asked a series of questions. ¡°Skr, are you dating Tobias now? No wonder

    you signed a contract with Royal Entertainment. When will you make it public? I can imagine the envious

    looks on the actresses¡¯ faces the moment you make it public.¡±

    Skr shed him a wry smile. Deep in her heart, she intended to say that it probably wouldn¡¯t happen

    for the rest of her life.

    When people were gossiping, there would always be someone who said unpleasant things. ¡°I think she

    is merely his acquaintance. We¡¯re lucky to meet the lucky one today. Anyway, a prominent family like the

    Fords won¡¯t ept an actress. Winnie used to be arrogant when she was dating Sheldon, but look at her

    now! It¡¯s clear that Sheldon had forgotten her.¡±

    As Skr couldn¡¯t stand listening to the gossips, she put on the earplugs given by the air stewardess to

    have peace of mind.

    Skr hadn¡¯t seen Winnie for a long time but only heard that udia made Winnie and Sheldon break

    up.

    Back then, the rtionship between Sheldon and Winnie was ambiguous. After all, he never made it

    public that they were dating. This time, his attitude toward her was entirely different, for he broke up with

    Winnie straightforwardly.

    On the other hand, no one believed Skr could marry a prominent figure because the public persona

    that she built was of a pitiful actress.

    Initially, Skr thought that Tobias would board the same ne with her. It turned out that she

    overthought it.

    It was true that Tobias was in the VIP airport lounge with her earlier on. Soon, she was startled to find out

    that he was boarding his private jet instead, to Dellmoor.

    Apparently, he had no intention of inviting her.

    Due to the flight¡¯s dy, Skr was nearly an hourte to the event.

    Meanwhile, the reporters got impatient and began to grumble about her tardiness.

    Skr was in her sportswear, which was her attire when she boarded the flight. Due to time constraints,

    she didn¡¯t change her clothes and went up to the stage directly. Meanwhile, Largo, who was in a formal

    suit, stood on the stage handsomely.

    Once she got up, she bowed to the reporters and apologized, ¡°My sincere apologies for beingte. My

    flight was dyed at thest minute. I¡¯m so sorry for keeping you waiting.¡±

    Given that Skr was sincere and didn¡¯t even get to change her clothes, the reporters were satisfied and

    decided not to condemn her through their writings.

    Rumors about Skr and Avery had been widely spread for a few days. Since both of them were present

    now, they naturally came under the spotlight.

    Today was the trailer premiere of Empyrean Sword, a TV show set in ancient times. A few hundred

    million was spent on its special effects, while the team spent three years from scene construction to post-

    production to produce the masterpiece.

    In the trailer, Skr, who was in a green dress, looked cute but slightly rebellious. Besides, the cherry

    blossom headdress matched her perfectly, making her look gorgeous but a little cheeky.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    As Avery was watching the trailer, she clenched her fists in anger. This stage and the female lead were

    supposed to be mine!

    Meanwhile, exmations and praises filled the air, for everyonemended Skr for her beauty.

    Even though the trailer was merely 10-minute-long, its plot, movie characters¡¯ costumes, and special

    effects were enthralling.

    Avery couldn¡¯t help but feel dispirited. I will be the center of attention right now if Skr doesn¡¯t exist in

    the first ce. The b*tch has ruined everything!

    ¡°Do you guys feel awkward with one another?¡± One of the reporters began to ask.

    Knowing that she couldn¡¯t avoid such questions forever, Skr gazed at Avery smilingly and replied, ¡°Not

    really. As they say, let bygones be bygones. We can¡¯t choose our parents, after all. Moreover, Avery

    couldn¡¯t dictate her mother¡¯s choice back then.¡±

    On the other hand, Avery¡¯s face darkened, for Skr kept suggesting that her mom was a homewrecker.

    Besides, Avery still couldn¡¯t understand why her father would reveal what happened in the past.

    ¡°Avery, what do you have to say in response to Skr¡¯s remark?¡± Another reporter asked.

 Chapter 494

    Chapter 494

    Avery calmed herself down and responded, ¡°We¡¯ve talked about everything privately. As such, I don¡¯t

    wish to answer simr questions anymore.¡±

    Since Avery was reluctant to reply, Skr answered on her behalf, ¡°Because Avery¡¯s parents

    overindulged her when she was young, she was inevitably capricious. Nevertheless, after cooperating

    with her in this TV show, I realized that she has grown up a lot.¡±

    Skr acted like a good person throughout the interview. On the other hand, Avery almost couldn¡¯t

    control her emotions, and her smile looked worse than her crying.

    After a while, she gazed at Largo helplessly. When their eyes met, Largo only shed a gentle smile at

    her, implicitly telling her that it had nothing to do with him.

    Earlier, when Largo had dated Avery briefly, he made a lot of promises before her. Now, he appeared like

    a total stranger to her instead.

    After the interview, Skr and Avery got into an MPV to leave the hall.

    As Skr wanted to enjoy looking at the scenery of Dellmoor from the window, she realized that the sky

    was gloomy and foggy.

    ¡°Today¡¯s female lead was supposed to be me, but you snatched it from me,¡± Avery growled. Now that

    reporters weren¡¯t around, she could vent her feelings out as she pleased.

    ¡°Just in case you forgot, you took a lot of things away from me before. Now that you only have to return

    them to me little by little, you should be grateful about it.¡± As Skr red at Avery, Avery pursed her lips

    as though she would cry at any second.

    As far as Skr remembered, Avery wasn¡¯t that fragile. The spoiled brat was always arrogant and often

    told her friends that Skr¡¯s mom was a murderer and had seduced her dad.

    Since Avery clenched her fists too tightly, her knuckles became pale-colored, while fingernails sank into

    her flesh. ¡°Who do you think you will be if Tobias isn¡¯t there for you? You got the female lead merely by

    selling your body. Hmph! I will never be that shameless!¡±

    Nheless, Skr wasn¡¯t thin-skinned. Although the driver was peeking at them from the rearview

    mirror, Skr repliedposedly, ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about how I got the female lead. As long as

    I¡¯m here, you can only be a supporting cast.¡±

    Avery yelled all of a sudden upon hearing it. Meanwhile, the driver was scared to death and almost

    mmed on the brakes.

    Deep down, Avery swore that she would never let Skr off the hook. Regardless of the costs, I will

    never lose.

    When they arrived at the hotel, Cassidy was already waiting in the lobby to meet up with them. Skr

    could tell that Cassidy was more emotionally stable than before.

    Once they arrived at the lobby, Avery and Cassidy hugged. Skr was shocked to know that they

    suddenly became good friends.

    Perhaps the enemy of one¡¯s enemy was one¡¯s friend. Cassidy still held a grudge against Skr because

    Skr used to criticize her on the inte.

    After the incident, Skr had learned the lesson and refrained from talking too much.

    ¡°Cassidy, was your ne dyed? Have you had dinner? How about going to John¡¯s Roast Duck

    tonight?¡± As soon as Avery hopped out, she behaved differently. The woman who was hysterical in the

    car just now didn¡¯t resemble the Avery now in any way.

    Cassidy replied in a local ent, ¡°Sure. I¡¯ll ask my assistant to book a room. Also, bring the director and

    Largo along to the restaurant.¡±

    Avery felt a little uneasy once she heard Largo¡¯s name.

    Since Skr was ignored, she chose not to disturb them. After all, they probably didn¡¯t wish to see her at

    all.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    On the other hand, Cassidy kept avoiding Skr¡¯s gaze. She was worried that Tobias had probably told

    Skr about her dishonorable actions in the past.

    Now, Skr was only curious about whether Cassidy slept with Xander before. If that is the case, it

    means that Largo indeed introduced Cassify to Xander. So, wouldn¡¯t she feel embarrassed to see Largo?

    ¡°Seriously! They invited everyone except you to John¡¯s Roast Duck. If the reporters take pictures, they¡¯ll

    make up stories, suggesting that you don¡¯t get along with the crew.¡± Feeling that Skr was wronged,

    Hannah got furious once she entered the room.

 Chapter 495

    Chapter 495

    Skr lowered her head to scroll her phone as she answered casually, ¡°Since Cassidy is treating them to

    dinner tonight, I can understand why she doesn¡¯t invite me. Besides, I don¡¯t prefer social dining anyway. I

    can hardly stand it when everyone around me hypocritically pretends to be nice.¡±

    Despite Skr¡¯s generosity, Hannah was still a little disgruntled. She pushed her sses and continued,

    ¡°I know it feels bad to be isted. Imagine some people creating a smaller WhatsApp group to gossip

    andugh at those who are excluded. Well, I think they will gossip about youter tonight.¡±

    Skr repliedughingly, ¡°I¡¯m mentally prepared for it. Do you think people nevermented about me

    in the past?¡±

    The next moment, her smile froze when she was checking the bnce of her debit card.

    After Hannah came closer to peek at it, she eximed, ¡°How can you possibly have only three thousand

    left in it?¡±

    Skr exited the interface and exined awkwardly, ¡°I used most of my money to buy a house. As for a

    hundred thousand that remains in my ount, I gave most of it to my mom.¡±

    Hannah¡¯s jaw nearly dropped upon hearing it. After a while, she eximed, ¡°Are all actresses that poor?

    Besides, Mr. Ford should have given you some money to spend, right?¡±

    Skr massaged her temples upon hearing it. She always had a headache once money came to mind.

    A few secondster, she exined, ¡°I¡¯m a financially independent woman. Anyway, he certainly wishes

    that I¡¯ll be financially dependent on him. That was why he encouraged me to buy a house. By the way, I

    bought the vi with discounts.¡±

    On the other hand, Hannah still couldn¡¯t understand the rationale behind Skr¡¯s action. Since Skr

    can get everything that easily, why does she put herself in trouble?

    As Skr understood Hannah¡¯s doubts, she said pessimistically, ¡°I have the necessary skills to make

    money now. As I used to grow up alone, I know how it feels to be helpless. So, I understand that I can¡¯t

    count on others and have to depend on myself.¡±

    Hannah was heartbroken upon hearing it. A momentter, she handed over a box of milk from her bag to

    Skr and said, ¡°I¡¯m luckier than you somehow, for my parents make enough money to support the

    family. Besides, I¡¯m the only child in the family. My parents opposed it when I said I wished to be a

    celebrity assistant, mainly because they were worried that I would be bullied. For many years, my mom

    only wanted me to be a public servant. Hence, she cried when I went against their wishes. Now,

    they¡¯re relieved that I¡¯m working for a good boss.¡±

    Skr could tell that Hannah¡¯s family pampered her since she was young. Hence, Hannah could hardly

    undergo any hardship. Nheless, Skr was happy to hire her because she was honest, kind-

    hearted, and trustworthy.

    Skr rested her chin on her hand and looked at Hannah. ¡°What is it like to be loved by mom and dad? I

    can¡¯t imagine the feeling of living with parents.¡±

    Suddenly, Hannah perked up and suggested, ¡°Well, you¡¯ll know it by having a child. When you and Mr.

    Ford have a kid, you can experience how it feels like to live with family.¡±

    However, Skr answered hesitantly, ¡°That¡¯ll be too difficult.¡±

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Skr knew that Tobias had alsoe to Dellmoor, yet she hadn¡¯t received any news about him after

    the night closed in.

    Since the others went to John¡¯s Roast Duck, Skr brought Hannah to a barbecue restaurant instead.

    It was said that the barbecue food in the North was delicious. Besides, this area was said to be Skr¡¯s

    food paradise, for she liked rich-vored delicacies.

    After sitting down, she ordered two bottles of beer and some chicken skewers. It was rather cold outside,

    the leaves falling as the wind gusted through.

    ording to the weather forecast, it would snow tonight in Dellmoor. However, Skr still didn¡¯t see any

    snowkes thus far.

    After a while, Skr said casually, ¡°The first snowfall will probably arrive soon. They say that lovers

    should meet and kiss each other during the first snowfall so they will never be apart.¡±

    Hannah was enjoying the chicken skewers as she replied, ¡°You¡¯ve been watching too many TV shows.¡±

 Chapter 496

    Chapter 496

    Skr pursed her lips after Hannah responded. When Skr was young, she was just like most ordinary

    youngdies who loved watching TV shows and envisioned having a romantic rtionship.

    However, she wasn¡¯t the naivedy anymore and became more realistic.

    ¡°Do you have a boyfriend?¡± Skr suddenly realized that she didn¡¯t know much about Hannah.

    Nevertheless, Skr guessed that Hannah was probably dating someone. After all, when Hannah was

    free, she would always smile to herself as she looked at the phone.

    As an experienced woman, Skr knew that only those who were in love would behave like that.

    Of course, she didn¡¯t experience it with Tobias, for he never had the time to text her all day.

    When she was in a rtionship with Jeremy, they texted every night as though they had endless things

    to tell one another.

    Lately, Skr hadn¡¯t heard any news about Jeremy. She only knew that he was about to graduate, yet

    his life wasn¡¯tfortable because he rarely had jobs.

    Although Skr was still upset about what happened earlier, she didn¡¯t hold a deep grudge against him

    now.

    On the other hand, Hannah revealed her private life to Skr after gulping down her ss of wine. ¡°Yes,

    I knew him on the inte, and we¡¯ve been chatting for several months. He said he¡¯lle and meet up

    with me.¡±

    Given that it was online dating, Skr reminded, ¡°Well, you¡¯ve to be cautious because there are many

    scams rted to online dating.¡±

    Now, Skr understood why Hannah was constantly on a diet. Hannah was considered chubby for a

    woman, for she was 5¡¯6 feet but weighed 160 pounds. Nheless, she thought she would appear

    thinner by wearing looser clothes, but the effect was insignificant.

    Although an assistant had to move around all the time, Hannah didn¡¯t be any slimmer. Instead,

    Hannah actually gained weight after the shooting of Empyrean Sword, for the boxed lunch prepared by

    the crew was too delicious.

    Right then, Skr was thinking of giving some makeup tips to Hannah. She could even ask some of her

    stylists to teach Hannah as well.

    After all, Hannah probably had no idea about how to put on makeup to look more attractive.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    There was a time when Hannah thought she had some pretty makeup on. However, when she showed

    up before Tobias, he was just staring at her bewilderedly.

    Before she could ask for his opinion about her looks, Tobias asked straightaway, ¡°I think there¡¯s

    something dirty on your face.¡±

    Nheless, Skr eventually decided to bite her tongue, for she didn¡¯t want to hurt Hannah¡¯s self-

    esteem.

    While eating, Hannah always had her phone in one hand. She kept texting while eating the chicken

    skewers. By the looks of it, it seemed like that guy had also responded her back quickly.

    Ding! She opened the message impatiently once she heard the notification sound.

    On the other hand, Skr checked her phone and only found some notifications sent by the applications.

    She tapped on Tobias¡¯ chatbox, yet there was no message from him at all.

    Shortly afterward, Skr realized that Hannah was taking pictures of her and asked, ¡°Why are you taking

    pictures of me?¡±

    Hannah didn¡¯t respond to it but ttered her instead. ¡°Skr, I envy you. I mean, you always look good

    and don¡¯t even have to apply any filters.¡±

    Skr thought about it and chimed in, ¡°Well, I used to apply filters on pictures all the time. I edited all my

    pictures for a long time before uploading them on Friendster. But I¡¯ve stopped doing it a long time ago.¡±

    After sending Skr¡¯s pictures to her boyfriend, Hannah continued drinking her beer guiltily. She was

    increasingly anxious because she would be meeting her boyfriend soon.

    Hannah hadn¡¯t thought about how to exin to her boyfriend that those pictures were not hers. After all,

    her boyfriend always said that she looked as beautiful as Skr.

    Meanwhile, at John¡¯s Roast Duck, everyone else had arrived in the private room. Just then, Josiah

    asked, ¡°Why hasn¡¯t Skr arrived yet? We haven¡¯t met each other for a long time.¡±

    Avery raised her eyebrows and exined, ¡°I invited her, but she said she doesn¡¯t prefer socializing.

    She¡¯s always been that way since young. That¡¯s why we didn¡¯t force her toe.¡±

    Josiah replied disgruntledly, ¡°How could an actress behave in such a way? I mean, only those who are

    spoiled don¡¯t socialize with people.¡±

 Chapter 497

    Chapter 497

    Cassidy couldn¡¯t eat much because she wanted to lose weight. She picked up a small slice casually and

    replied to Josiah, ¡°Skr probably doesn¡¯t want to see me because we fell out with each other before. I

    mean, she bullied me when she was still a new actress. Back then, I felt depressed and even cried many

    times because of it! Even if she didn¡¯t apologize to me, I won¡¯t force her to since we¡¯re on the same

    team.¡±

    Meanwhile, Largo remained silent and kept drinking his beer. Since a simple dinner had turned into a

    gossip fest, he chose not to get involved in it.

    Largo personally didn¡¯t hate Skr at all, though Skr didn¡¯t have a good impression of him. Besides,

    Skr even used him of being a hypocrite.

    He only felt that it was a pity, for Skr was determined not to sell her body.

    However, he also refrained from messing with Skr, or she would expose his pimping business. Apart

    from affecting his reputation, he might even go to jail for the crime.

    Deep down, Largo always reflected on his actions but still couldn¡¯t control himself. Even though he was

    wealthy, he failed to restrain his desire to make more money.

    As such, he recently thought of going to a psychologist so he could rid of this bad habit.

    At this moment, Largo knew very well that Avery was pretending to be tipsy to nder Skr. After all,

    she applied the same trick to get into his bed and sleep with him earlier.

    Meanwhile, Avery swirled her wine ss and asked Josiah, ¡°Mr. Zimmermann, why wasn¡¯t I the female

    lead? You said that I was the most suitable candidate for the character. Didn¡¯t Skr disappoint you this

    time? I mean, how could she carry the TV show? No offense, but I won¡¯t support her blindly just because

    she¡¯s a Jones.¡±

    Although Avery appeared pitiful, Josiah wasn¡¯t swayed by her. Instead, he opined that Skr¡¯s acting

    skills were way beyond his expectations.

    After shooting the third scene, Josiah strongly believed that Skr was the right person to y that

    character.

    In terms of persona and posture, Skr performed way better than Avery.

    However, because Avery seemed pitiful, Josiah could only pretend tofort her. ¡°You¡¯re an excellent

    actress as well. We can work together next time.¡±

    Avery felt dispirited because she didn¡¯t hear what she wanted. Deep down, she increasingly felt that the

    world was unfair to her. Why does everyone favor Skr instead of giving me a chance?

    Miles away, Skr didn¡¯t lock the door because Tobias said he wouldeter tonight.

    Since the filming crew stayed in the same hotel, Skr was worried that someone would notice Tobias¡¯

    presence. After all, they hadn¡¯t made their rtionship public for now.

    Marcus revealed earlier today that Skr and Tobias were dating. Nheless, they could still keep their

    rtionship a secret, for they knew everyone in the VIP lounge.

    After putting down the food that she packed from the restaurant, Skr said to Tobias, ¡°The food is now

    cold. If you haven¡¯t had dinner, I¡¯ll order takeaway for you.¡±

    However, she felt that her question was redundant as she could smell the alcoholing from Tobias,

    which had even covered the fragrance of his cologne.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    The next moment, Tobias held her waist from behind and rested her head against her neck. After kissing

    her, he said, ¡°I¡¯ve had dinner. Why didn¡¯t you tell me that you¡¯reing to Dellmoor? I wouldn¡¯t leave

    earlier if I knew that you would be here.¡±

    Skr rebutted, ¡°Well, you didn¡¯t tell me either that you woulde to Dellmoor. Anyway, I shouldn¡¯t ask

    too many questions about you.¡±

    Tobias loosened his grip. As he was thirsty, he opened the bottle of soda that Skr had drunk earlier

    on.

    ¡°I know I wasn¡¯t nice to you when we were at the airport. Please forgive me. Anyway, the man¡¯s my

    brother. You should stay away from him, for he is an a**hole like Ingrid.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t dwell on it because Tobias took the initiative to apologize. Given that Tobias always lord

    over everyone, many would feel a sense of dominance whenever he talked.

    Besides, Skr also thought that it was odd how she had gotten used to the way he express himself.

    After all, she was not like other girls, who would often act coquettishly around men like him.

 Chapter 498

    Chapter 498

    Skr was confused when she heard Tobias¡¯ conclusion. She wondered if something was wrong with

    Xander because of the way she had brought his children up.

    Tobias was different from the rest of his peers because he was the mainstay of the Fords. In spite of

    being a member of a renowned family, he was never given the chance to indulge himself.

    ¡°Contrary to popr beliefs, Tobias has it worse because of the things he needs to deal with.¡± All of a

    sudden, Skr recalled something udia once told her.

    She nodded in return because she had no intention to pick on others either. With that being said, she

    had identally offended Ingrid during the attempt to make a name for herself through her rtionship

    with Harry.

    As a result of the incident that had urred, Tobias¡¯ mind was all over the ce since the morning.

    Irked, he asked, ¡°How are you rted to Xander? Why has Marcus brought that up, and what does he

    mean by thirty thousand per night?¡±

    After the long day she had, Skr felt a strong urge to call it a day and have a break.

    Nheless, Tobias red at her, indicating she had to share everything she was conscious of with him.

    As someone who had done a great job keeping her past to herself, she wouldn¡¯t share it with Tobias if he

    hadn¡¯t confronted her.

    In the end, she told him everything, including the part she turned the man down without a second

    thought.

    Tobias had faith in Skr. He was certain she wouldn¡¯t turn her back against him and have an affair with

    someone, should she be in her right mind.

    She wouldn¡¯t need that trivial amount of fortune either. Although Tobias deemed Skr a materialistic

    woman, he knew she wasn¡¯t greedy. To be precise, he thought it was a great cause to keep her

    motivated.

    Actually, he was the reason she had been pretty materialistic ¨C she couldn¡¯t wait to be financially

    independent to prove herself.

    In actual fact, she was as poor as a church mouse. A few days ago, Tobias sent someone to retrieve the

    statement of Skr¡¯s bank ount and noticed she could barely make ends meet.

    All things considered, it wasn¡¯t as bad as it used to be because she could support herself instead of

    groveling herself at her uncle¡¯s mercy.

    Tobias sneered and remarked sarcastically, ¡°I guess it¡¯s true when they say a person doesn¡¯t change,

    huh? I guess he¡¯ll continue messing around with different women until the day he dies!¡±

    Skr couldprehend the rationale Tobias had remarked in such a harsh manner. After all, he was

    upset by his father¡¯s behavior.

    Since she had exined everything, she massaged her sore neck and announced while yawning, ¡°Can I

    call it a day yet? Tomorrow is going to be another long day ahead.¡±

    Tobias was conscious of the meaning behind her double innuendo ¨C she wanted him to stay away from

    her for the night.

    He stopped behaving indifferently and looked at her in the eyes, answering with a rhetorical question,

    ¡°Have I mentioned anything about spending a night with you? Aren¡¯t you aware I need to take a break

    every now and then?¡±

    Skr¡¯s cheeks reddened out of the blue as her statement made her sounded like a lustful woman with

    countless dirty thoughts in mind.

    When she tucked herself in bed once she made her way back to her room, she leaned against the

    headboard and started browsing her phone.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    The moment Tobias heard the announcement of another game beingmenced, he took a peek at her

    phone and asked, ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired after ying for such a long time?¡±

    As her headquarter had been ransacked by her opponents, she announced while having her eyes glued

    to the screen, ¡°You should stay out of my way because I¡¯m the middle of something!¡±

    He responded with a frown and went dead silent since she had made herself clear she didn¡¯t have time

    to spare him.

    After losing three consecutive matches, Skr cast her phone aside andined, ¡°See? It¡¯s your

    fault! You shouldn¡¯t have talked to me!¡±

    Tobias could vividly recall he had merely directed a simple question at her. Hence, he rebuked

    nonchntly, ¡°Are you ming me when you¡¯re not a match to your foes?¡±

    Skr wasn¡¯t able to get herself promoted to the superior ranks, but she announced with a proud look,

    ¡°My skills are on par with those in the superior ranks! It must be myrades¡¯ faults!¡±

    Unconscious of the things she had mentioned, Tobias knew he had to do something about it because of

    the generation gap between them.

 Chapter 499

    Chapter 499

    The multimedia subsidiary of Ford Group had been doing well as the most downloaded games in the

    industry were developed by that particr subsidiary.

    The yers of those games had deep pockets. They were all willing to spend a fortune purchasing items

    in the game, which contributed to Ford Group¡¯s sess as the market leader.

    Ironically, the yers, who had been informed they would have to spend a fortune beforehand, weren¡¯t

    against the idea at all.

    To be precise, they had a hard time resisting the well-developed game with ethereal-looking scenes and

    a surreal storyline.

    When Skr approached him, she leaned on his shoulder and asked, ¡°Why haven¡¯t you yed any of

    the games developed? As the owner of thepany, aren¡¯t you supposed to experience it firsthand?¡±

    Tobias closed his eyes and announced while cing his hand on his forehead, ¡°What kind of theory is

    that? Have you heard of scientists trying the drugs they are developing?¡±

    She was rendered speechless by the man¡¯s reply because his point seemed valid.

    Initially, she wanted to get him to join her for another game, but he broke the silence, announcing out of

    the blue, ¡°I don¡¯t think I can deal with the game because it requires a timely response. Speaking of

    which, aren¡¯t you tired? If you¡¯re not going to sleep, shall we have some fun? I¡¯m sure you¡¯re going to

    have a great time sleeping after some exercise.¡±

    Tobias spent the uing few days dealing with all sorts of things regarding the promotional activities.

    asionally, he would get in touch with Skr through a call when he was free.

    She was d because he had improved aspared to the time they started getting into a rtionship.

    Previously, he would go missing for a fortnight without keeping in touch with her.Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    Thus, Skr came to the conclusion Tobias was a man without any sense of crisis. He seemed to be

    pretty confident she wouldn¡¯t leave him.

    On the other hand, Skr had garnered the attention of the public due to the exposure over the past few

    weeks. Her fans had established an official fan club for her and would show her their support during her

    live show.

    One of the journalists asked her if she was in a rtionship during thest day of the series of

    promotional activities in Dellmoor.

    She replied with a straight face, ¡°I¡¯ll leave that to God because I don¡¯t have time to take those into

    consideration. I mean, I wish to focus on my career since I¡¯m still young. To be frank, I think there are

    quite a few aspects I have to work on.¡±

    The journalists rolled their eyes in disappointment as they were conscious of the things going on behind

    the scenes. With that being said, they were well aware of the reason behind her lie.

    No celebrity would announce their rtionship because their managementpany would stop them. It

    was the same for Skr, a rookie in the entertainment industry. Should she announce her rtionship, it

    would be over for her career.

    Skr received a call from Wesley when she made her way back from Dellmoor. He yelled at her and

    asked her to make her way to his ce immediately.

    She wasn¡¯t close with Wesley at all. Unlike Sharon, Wesley was a hypocrite capable of concealing his

    emotions instead of showing his true colors.

    He has been telling me how much he loves me and how I can always approach him if there¡¯s anything I

    need. However, when I showed up at his ce, he refused to answer the door and turned me down

    without a second thought.

    Skr was conscious that was the first time Wesley had raised his volume against her.

    Initially, she had the rest of her day sorted out, including taking a nap once she was home. Unfortunately,

    as exhausted as she might be, she had no choice but to tell the driver to drop her off at another

    destination.

    On her way to her uncle¡¯s ce, she called Miranda and asked, ¡°Are you aware of the reason Uncle

    Wesley has asked me over out of the blue when it¡¯s gettingte?¡±

    Miranda, who was roused from her sleep, yawned and said, ¡°What else could it be? I¡¯m pretty sure it¡¯s

    because he misses you. It¡¯s not a big deal to pay him a visit since he¡¯s a rtive of ours, isn¡¯t it? He used

    to be your grandmother¡¯s favorite. We¡¯re no longer the same, but we¡¯re not supposed to forget the favor

    they have done us. I¡¯ll talk to you again because I need to sleep.¡±

 Chapter 500

    Chapter 500

    Skr went dead silent when Miranda hung up her call. She couldn¡¯t believe her mother had the guts to

    mention that her uncle missed her. It was evident that her uncle, Wesley, was up to no good.

    Miranda seemed to have forgotten Wesley was the reason Skr had been turned into an outcast of the

    family after Meredith passed on.

    Those were the darkest days of Skr¡¯s life because her life would depend on every single cent she had.

    As she had no one to rely on, she spent some time living on the streets.

    If it weren¡¯t because Penelope had done her a favor, she might have to spend most of her days in the

    middle of nowhere. She had long gotten used to starving because she couldn¡¯t afford any proper meal.

    Miranda dismissed her brother¡¯s responsibilities and thought his wife was the one at fault because he

    had been stripped of the authority to make the call once they got married.

    Once Skr showed up, she noticed Wesley had been anticipating her arrival at the entrance of the

    manor.

    Since he had shown up to show her the way into the ce, Skr thought it must be a big deal.

    Wesley greeted her with a scrunched-up face when she alighted from the car.

    She proceeded to tell the driver to head back without her.

    However, the driver rebuked, ¡°Ms. Jones, I think it¡¯s better for me to stay around! It¡¯s tough to get yourself

    a cab home because it¡¯s gettingte!¡±

    Skr was reluctant to waste the driver¡¯s time because he had been driving since the moment she

    touched down. Thus, she repeated herself, ¡°It¡¯s fine! I¡¯ll hail another cab one way or another! Thanks!¡±

    The driver had grown fond of Skr because of her straightforward personality. He thought she wasn¡¯t as

    indifferent as the rumor had imed her to be.

    In fact, she was one of the most easygoing celebrities he had ever encountered throughout his career.

    Skr didn¡¯t even have the chance to figure out the things going on because Thomas showed her the

    way into the ce once she was done.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    As they made their way through the passage with faint illumination, Skr noticed the handrail of the

    stairs and the benches around had corroded.

    It had been a long time since Skrst made her way there in the middle of the night. As she walked

    down the hallway, she found everything familiar, including the scene and the lingering sensation in the

    air.

    She would only make her way back in thete evening during her high school days. In order to make her

    way through the pitch-ck passage, she had to rely on her pink torchlight.

    Concerned about her granddaughter, Meredith would stay up until Skr was back, no matter how long it

    would take.

    Meanwhile, the moment Skr stepped into the manor, she heard Sharon yelling at the top of her lungs

    again.

    Kevin was seated at the dining table with his head drooping over his shoulders.

    When Sharon noticed Skr had shown up, she got increasingly infuriated and pinched Kevin¡¯s ears in

    front of Skr.

    ¡°What has gotten into your mind? You¡¯re supposed to spend your time studying instead of wasting your

    time and money ying games! Are you aware you have spent the entire family¡¯s fortune just to have

    fun?¡±

    Skr was taken aback because Kevin had always been a top-notch student. As a matter of fact, he was

    a match for Avery in terms of academic results.

    Caressing his swollen ears, Kevin went dead silent, but his frustration was written all over his face. It was

    evident the rebellious young man had no intention to listen to his parents.

    Skr was confused about the reason her proud aunt, who would show off her exceptional son in front of

    others, had summoned her over and taught him a lesson in front of her.

    Wait! Is she trying to get me topensate them? What kind of joke is this?

    When Kevin made his way back to his room, he banged the door shut, indicating he was irked.

 Chapter 501

    Chapter 501

    Skr felt awful when she saw Kevin¡¯s room had been decorated with posters of his choices.

    That used to be her room, but no one could tell she used to stay there. She found herself pathetic

    because she couldn¡¯t even hold on to her grandmother¡¯s keepsake.

    She had moved into different types of amodation since Meredith passed on. Although she had a

    desirable lifestyle, she missed staying there the most because of the time she spent there as a child.

    Sharon mmed the stack of transaction slip on the coffee table and suggested, ¡°Why don¡¯t you check

    on this and tell us how you¡¯re going topensate us for our loss?¡±

    ¡°Why should Ipensate for your loss?¡± Skr asked with a frown.

    Kevin had spent a fortune ying a game with the title of OASIS. Upon a simple glimpse, Skr was

    taken aback by the transaction Kevin had made.

    Wesley and Sharon had been spending in moderation. In fact, Sharon would go to great lengths just to

    save up a few extra cents.

    Unfortunately, Kevin had spent thest three months reloading his ount. The transaction that took

    Skr by surprise the most was the time he transacted thirty thousand within a single day.

    He had spent over a hundred thousand to y the game. OASIS was another game developed by Ford

    Group. It had topped the chart since the day it was introduced to the public.

    Since it was another game developed by Ford Group, it would cost the yers a fortune to enjoy

    themselves.

    Skr returned the stack of transaction slips to Sharon and rebuked, ¡°Did you guys seriously ask me to

    come all the way here just for this?¡±

    The infuriated Sharon yelled, ¡°Tobias is the ultimate beneficial owner! Who else are we supposed to

    approach when you¡¯re his girlfriend?¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t get used to taking a seat on top of the furniture made out of rattan. She could feel her

    bottom aching in spite of the cushion.

    Irked, she rebuked, ¡°If you¡¯re conscious it belongs to Tobias, how am I supposed to help you? Why don¡¯t

    you get in touch with a customer service personnel instead?¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t bother to hold back against them. Thus, Wesley yelled, ¡°Are you getting full of yourself just

    because you have made a name for yourself? A few hundred thousand is nothing for you when you¡¯re

    such famous personnel, isn¡¯t it? I bet you didn¡¯t even flinch when you purchased that mansion for your

    mother!¡±

    Smirking, Skr asked, ¡°Uncle Wesley, were you there when I made the call to purchase the mansion?

    I¡¯m sorry to inform you I have spent the few hundred thousand in my possession to purchase the

    mansion. In other words, there¡¯s nothing I can do because I¡¯m as poor as a church mouse now. Can I

    leave yet?¡±

    Sharon couldn¡¯t suppress the wrath she felt anymore. She started taking things out on Wesley and

    reprimanded, ¡°See? How dare you consider her a close family member of yours? How are we supposed

    to live from now onwards? If they refuse to refund us, we¡¯ll confront those in charge in person for

    scamming a teenager!¡±

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Heaving a long sigh, Skr was disappointed by the selfish duo in front of them. They refused to reflect

    upon their actions and started ming others when they were the ones at fault.

    Skr brought her bag away with her and added with a smile, ¡°Eva is a member of Ford Group, isn¡¯t

    she? Why don¡¯t you guys head over to Ford Group and cause a fuss? Let¡¯s see if her career is at stake

    because of your action!¡±

    Subsequently, Sharon went dead silent as soon as she heard Skr. That was one of her concerns

    because when they approached the customer service personnel, the other party had made it clear

    teenagers above sixteen-year-old would have to bear the consequences of their decision.

    As it was gettingte, Skr thought she should stop wasting her time with them. She suggested,

    ¡°Please approach Eva for help because there¡¯s nothing I can do. I don¡¯t mind footing the bill on Kevin¡¯s

    behalf, but I don¡¯t have that much as of now.¡±

    Once Skr made herself clear and dismissed her liabilities, she walked out of the manor and made her

    way back.

    Heaving a long sigh, Wesley asked, ¡°What should we do? Skr has turned us down, and we can¡¯t

    afford to put Eva¡¯s career at stake! Can you think of something to salvage our fortune yet?¡±

 Chapter 502

    Chapter 502

    Colors had long drained from Sharon¡¯s face. She rebuked, ¡°What else can we do? None of your family

    members are reliable! I guess we¡¯ll have to get in touch with Tobias and get him topensate us for

    our loss! However, we can¡¯t get Eva involved!¡±

    Skr found the incident to be too much of a coincidence as she had just brought up a simr topic in

    front of Tobias some time ago. In the end, Kevin ended up causing a mess.

    When she was on her way back, she recalled her cousin would be sitting for a public examination soon.

    Afraid the incident would adversely impact Kevin¡¯s study, Skr decided to do something since she was

    on good terms with him.

    Thus, she dropped by Ford Group the next day. However, she was worried Tobias would be surprised by

    her presence as she hadn¡¯t informed him beforehand.

    Their rtionship had yet to reach the extent they could barge into one another¡¯s life without informing

    the other party beforehand.

    Skr¡¯s presence had grabbed the attention of thepany¡¯s staff. The onlookers started whispering

    behind her back.

    The woman with shades knocked on the door. To her surprise, Sheldon was the one to answer.

    She removed her shades and stared at the man in front of her with a frown because Tobias was

    supposed to be the one answering instead.

    On the other hand, when Sheldon saw Skr, he beckoned her to join him in the office.

    Skr didn¡¯t bother to hold back and marched into the office as invited. When she started surveying the

    surroundings, Sheldon announced, ¡°Tobias isn¡¯t around.¡±

    ¡°Will he being back today?¡±

    Content provided by N?velDrama.Org.

    Shrugging his shoulders, Sheldon answered, ¡°Actually, I can¡¯t be sure because I¡¯m afraid to poke my

    nose into his business.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll get going as well.¡±

    Sheldon stopped her and suggested, ¡°Hold on, why don¡¯t we talk about something else? Shall we talk

    about the time you use my girlfriend?¡±

    Skr clenched her fists to keep herself calm. She forced a smile and answered, ¡°Oh? Since when have

    I used Winnie of anything? The showdown was inevitable since there can¡¯t be two of us in the

    industry.¡±

    Smiling, Sheldon showed no signs of avenging Winnie either. He added, ¡°I guess you¡¯re the better half of

    Tobias because of something you have inmon with him ¨C you¡¯re both cruel. Anyway, I won¡¯t be

    avenging Winnie because she has brought upon her own misfortune. She shouldn¡¯t have gotten full of

    herself. I¡¯ve told her it¡¯s over for us, but she refuses to stay away from me.¡±

    I guess he¡¯s finally snapped out of confusion and figured out it¡¯s not worth his time and effort to take his

    rtionship with Winnie seriously, huh?

    When that crossed her mind, she asked, ¡°Are you going to hold a grudge against me? I mean, you¡¯re not

    even directly involved in the saga in the first ce.¡±

    Slouching against the chair, Sheldon replied nonchntly, ¡°Of course not! I can¡¯t possibly pick on Tobias¡¯

    girlfriend, can I? I¡¯m well aware of the things I¡¯m capable of after being tormented by the cunning bunch

    in thepany. Since I can¡¯t be much of a threat, I¡¯ll just continue being the useless brat I¡¯ve always

    been.¡±

    A gloomy expression loomed over Sheldon¡¯s face. Thus, Skr was pretty sure being denied must have

    taken quite a toll on him.

    He thought he would achieve his goal after being rebellious for once, but things turned out the other way

    round. His despair was written all over his face.

    After losing himself in a process of thought for a few minutes, Sheldon added with his lips pursed, ¡°As

    compared to Winnie, I find you quite an interesting woman. Actually, I¡¯m conscious of Tobias¡¯

    whereabouts. He¡¯s at a nearby restaurant with Idania. I¡¯ll have you decide on your next best course of

    action, but being deceived is not half bad.¡±

 Chapter 503

    Chapter 503

    Idania had been haunting Skr ever since she was made aware of the woman¡¯s presence. A few of

    Skr¡¯s nightmares were scenes of Tobias wrapping his arms around Idania in front of her.

    In the meantime, the proud and arrogant Idania sniffled and yelled hysterically, insisting to figure out the

    rationale behind his decision. Tobias red at her in return, indicating it was time for her to leave before

    she got on his nerves for real.

    Overwhelmed by tidal waves of emotions, Idania stood right where she was and started spacing out.

    On the other hand, Sheldon added and advised, ¡°Haven¡¯t you gotten used to it? Are you taking your

    rtionship seriously when you know that he isn¡¯t serious about you? Tobias needs an intelligent woman

    who¡¯s conscious of the things he¡¯s up to. Maybe they¡¯re just out for a meal together. I shouldn¡¯t have told

    you, but I was afraid you would be deceived by him and remain a fool throughout the rest of your life.¡±

    Skr chuckled when she heard Sheldon¡¯s remarks. Immediately, she tried to reach Tobias through a

    call, but her effort was to no avail since he didn¡¯t pick up.

    She headed over to the nearby restaurant Sheldon had mentioned, but it would cost her a hundred

    thousand to gain ess to the member-exclusive restaurant.

    As a result, she was stopped at the entrance. When the waiter at the entrance recognized her, he

    greeted her in a courteous manner, ¡°Skr, only members are allowed to dine here. Please get yourself

    registered beforehand.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just here for a friend of mine! I¡¯ll be in and out within a few minutes!¡±

    The waiter rebuked, ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, but that¡¯s not the way things work around here. We can approach the

    friend of yours on your behalf and let you in if he gives his consent. Otherwise, please stop causing us

    troubles.¡±

    Skr frowned because she had no intention to inform Tobias of her presence. After all, she was here to

    catch him in the act.

    In the end, she handed over the card Tobias had given her to the waiter.

    Desperate times call for desperate measures! Since he¡¯s chosen to dine in such a premium eatery, I¡¯ll

    consider this one of his transactions!

    Skr got herself registered as a member within ten minutes. Once she entered the restaurant, she

    marched through thevishly decorated corridor.

    What¡¯s wrong with those from the upper echelon? Why do they enjoy dining in member-exclusive

    eateries so much? Is it because they enjoy feeling superior to others?

    ¡°What are you? A spy?¡± When Skr heard Tobias¡¯ voice, she turned around because things turned out

    slightly different from the one she imagined.

    She thought he would be having a great time with Idania in the dining room, including interacting

    intimately. Should that be the case, she would throw a tantrum and y the victim.

    To her surprise, none of that urred. Hence, Skr had to put on a calm front and asked in return,

    ¡°Have you been anticipating me?¡±

    Heaving a long sigh, Tobias added, ¡°I¡¯m the rightful owner of the card. I received the notification the

    moment the transaction was approved. I once told you to change the contact number, but you turned me

    down.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t believe she had embarrassed herself when she was there to catch him red-handed.

    Nheless, the diffident woman asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you have anything to share with me? Where¡¯s your ex?

    Why do you have time for others¡¯ texts but not my call? Have you been avoiding my calls on purpose?This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    Are you afraid I¡¯m going to get in the way of your session?¡±

    He chuckled and added, ¡°I noticed I had a missed call when I finished checking on the text. Am I

    supposed to revert to you when you have shown up in front of me? She had departed once we sorted

    out the things she was here for. Should I get her to join us, so you can catch me red-handed?¡±

    Skr started flushing as Tobias saw through the things she had in mind and mercilessly exposed her.

    Nheless, she announced with her chest held high, ¡°It has nothing to do with me because I¡¯m here for

    a meal! I can¡¯t possibly dine at a random eatery anymore, can I? Since you¡¯re the one paying, I have

    nothing to lose!¡±

    Tobias was pleased to have her around him. He looked at her in the eyes and announced, ¡°It doesn¡¯t

    really matter as long as you can finish the ordered dishes.¡±

 Chapter 504

    Chapter 504

    Skr showed him the member card she had acquired a few minutes ago and said, ¡°Thanks, but I can at

    least afford a meal. Allow me to turn down the offer since you have finished your meal.¡±

    Out of the blue, Tobias asserted in a serious manner, ¡°Are you sure you haven¡¯t misperceived my words?

    She had paid me a visit for a formal discussion regarding a proposal. In other words, she was here to

    pitch her idea instead of the things you had in mind.¡±

    ¡°Mr. Ford, would you meet others in person? Haven¡¯t you always sent your subordinates to deal with

    prospects? Are you telling me you have always been such an enthusiastic and easygoing man?¡± Skr

    replied with her lips twitching.

    Tobias was irked by the things Skr mentioned and thought something had gotten into her mind.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Indeed, I have agreed to meet her in person because she¡¯s my ex, but the things Skr has in mind

    have never crossed mine!

    Once Skr ced her order, Tobias took a seat opposite her to keep herpany.

    She said, ¡°If you¡¯re serious about our rtionship, aren¡¯t you supposed to act like my better half? I know

    you dislike being nagged the most, but you need to stop picking on me.¡±

    The man opposite her nodded in return.

    A few minutester, he said, ¡°You should be grateful I have stopped picking on you.¡±

    She ced her cutlery aside and stopped savoring her meal because she wasn¡¯t in the mood to eat

    anymore.

    ¡°Why? To begin with, we¡¯re never equal. I have no choice but to listen to you because you¡¯re always the

    dominant one in our rtionship. Unsure if you¡¯re going to dump me in the near future, the thought of

    breaking up and getting into a rtionship with an ordinary man crosses my mind. At least an ordinary

    man will apologize instead of behaving like I¡¯m the one at fault.¡±

    Tobias identally shattered the cup he held into pieces when he heard Skr¡¯s reply. Consequently,

    his palm started bleeding.

    She rushed over and grasped his wrist, trying her best to stop him from bleeding with a napkin.

    ¡°Have you lost your mind? Aren¡¯t you aware of the consequences of your action when you¡¯re an adult?

    How could you hurt yourself?¡±

    It was a serious cut, but Tobias didn¡¯t even flinch. He said, ¡°I guess you¡¯re serious about the part you¡¯re

    no longer the same. You can always tell me when you¡¯re ready to leave because I won¡¯t try to stop you

    as well.¡±

    Skr pinched his wound with all her might when she heard him.

    She regretted worrying about him because his reply had rendered herpletely speechless.

    When she was about to tell him she had no intention to leave just yet, he got ahead of her and asked

    with a frown, ¡°Can you move away from me? Are you trying to get your revenge by hurting me?¡±

    He was irked because she wouldn¡¯t stop pinching his wound.

    After that, she suggested rushing him to the hospital andpletely forgot the initial reason she was

    there.

    However, he rinsed his wound and said, ¡°You need to stop making a fuss out of everything because it¡¯s

    not a big deal.¡±

    His response piqued her curiosity and made her wondered if his tolerance level had something to do with

    his upbringing. When Jeremy identally cut himself back in the day, he would shriek in pain as though

    it was a serious injury.

    However, Tobias didn¡¯t even flinch when it was a deep cut.

    At the end of the session, Skr returned him the member card since he was the rightful owner. On top

    of that, she was never a fan of that particr type of cuisine. She had no intention to hang out around

    the area of Tobias¡¯pany either.

    Once she returned home, Skr retrieved the first-aid kit and started searching for the gauze to bandage

    the wound.

    Standing behind her, Tobias said, ¡°I think it¡¯ll bepletely healed by the time you find it. How many

    times have I told you to keep the items in the first-aid kit organized?¡±

    She startedining, ¡°Stop exaggerating things! I¡¯ll go get one immediately! We need to keep it

    bandaged to stop it from being infected!¡±

    Suddenly, he held her wrist and said, ¡°Just keep mepany for a short while.¡±

 Chapter 505

    Chapter 505

    Skr thought she had something to do, but she couldn¡¯t recall it. When she started browsing her phone,

    she recalled the thing she had in mind.

    Thus, she asked with a frown, ¡°Have you heard of OASIS?¡±

    Tobias gave it a thought and answered, ¡°I do, but what do you want? Haven¡¯t I told you I¡¯m way too old

    for games? I don¡¯t have time for games as well.¡±

    Shaking her head, she said, ¡°I¡¯m not asking you to y the game with me, but I want to know if the

    company has a refund policy for teenagers who have spent the entire family savings to y the game?¡±

    She never once expressed her concerns over his business. Therefore, he was confused by the reason

    she had brought it up out of the blue.

    ¡°Am I really supposed to answer such a simple question?¡±

    She arched her brows in confusion because he directed the rhetorical question at her with a scornful

    look. As a result, she thought something was wrong with their method ofmunication.

    ¡°Dear Mr. Ford, if you have a few minutes to spare, can you please answer the question?¡± She wrapped

    her arms around his waist and asked in a coquettish manner.

    Tobias then told her to cut the small talk because he found her irritating. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just spill it? I

    think it¡¯s better for you to stop wasting our time.¡±

    Since he managed to see right through her n once again, she had no choice but to tell him the things

    that had urred with Kevin, including Kevin¡¯s age.

    To her surprise, Tobias replied, ¡°Technically, he¡¯s no longer a minor. In other words, he has to bear the

    consequences of his action. We won¡¯t be able to refund him. It¡¯s not the sum that matters, but others will

    follow suit if the public is conscious we have made an exception for him. His parents can¡¯t really me

    us either. As a matter of fact, it¡¯s their fault for not educating their son.¡±

    Skr found Tobias¡¯ words reasonable because of the potential consequences associated with refunding

    the amount Kevin had spent. However, she was afraid Sharon would make a fuss out of it.

    Since she wouldn¡¯t stop frowning, he asserted with a smile, ¡°With that being said, I¡¯ll make an exception

    and get someone to refund them, but is it necessary for you to visit me in person for such a trivial

    matter? You can just tell me about it on the phone.¡±

    She let out a long sigh and exined, ¡°I¡¯m so sorry for the trouble I have caused. Initially, I was against

    the idea of refunding, but I¡¯m afraid they¡¯re going to turn our lives upside down if they don¡¯t get the

    refund. I don¡¯t mindpensating them for their loss, but I don¡¯t have the amount they¡¯re demanding.¡±

    It¡¯s gettingte. If we¡¯re going to refund them through the official channel, it will only reach them tomorrow

    afternoon.

    Skr was about to share the news with Sharon and Wesley, but Tobias got up from the couch.

    Upon a glimpse at his watch, he announced, ¡°I need to return to thepany in the evening. Are you

    able to fall asleep when I¡¯m not around? I don¡¯t mind keeping youpany until you fall asleep.¡±

    Skr shrugged her shoulders and said, ¡°Nah, I have long gotten used to sleeping alone because you¡¯re

    only around for a few days in a month. Since you¡¯re working nocturnal hours, what about your assistant

    and secretary? Do they not get to rest as well?¡±

    ¡°What? Are you shocked? You don¡¯t think they get to earn a fortune for doing nothing, do you?¡± Tobias

    asked in return.

    She showed him the way out and took a peek at the cut. ¡°My first-ever historical fiction drama is about to

    y. Why don¡¯t you check on it when you¡¯re free? As my boyfriend, don¡¯t you think you¡¯re supposed to

    show me your support? I can use some help to boost the viewership.¡±

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Smirking, he said, ¡°I¡¯ll check on it if I¡¯m free, but I¡¯m not really a fan because-¡±

    Halfway through his speech, Skr stopped Tobias from finishing his orated and time-consuming

    speech, deeming it a waste of her time.

 Chapter 506

    Chapter 506

    Once Tobias ensured his car was locked, he heard someone behind him. He put his keys aside and saw

    Idania the moment he turned around in the parking lot.

    ¡°Why are you here when it¡¯s gettingte?¡±

    Idania handed over the presentation slides she had printed to Tobias and said, ¡°I want to show you the

    amended proposal! When I was on my way back, I thought of some aspects to be improved!¡±

    Tobias found Idania the stubborn woman he used to know. The duo had many things inmon,

    including their capabilities and the preference to have the issues on their ends to be resolved as soon as

    possible.

    He took over the folder and said, ¡°I¡¯ll revert to you once I finish perusing the proposal. The manager from

    the financial department will take over from now onwards. I¡¯m not supposed to intervene with this in the

    first ce. You¡¯re well aware of the things I¡¯m talking about, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    She gaped at his reply because he sounded as though he couldn¡¯t wait to get rid of her when they had a

    great time in the afternoon.

    Actually, she had been talking most of the time, and asionally, he would direct a few questions at her.

    Idania was conscious Tobias wasn¡¯t interested in the AI pharmaceutical project she had in mind. As a

    matter of fact, she could barely answer the questions directed at her.

    Pursing her lips in an awkward manner, she asked, ¡°Are you on your way back, or have you just

    arrived?¡±

    He asked in return, ¡°Aren¡¯t you aware when you have been waiting for me here?¡±

    Idania¡¯s face turned pale. She queried in a final attempt to stir things up, ¡°Isn¡¯t your girlfriend against the

    idea of you spending the night working? No woman enjoys being neglected.¡±

    ¡°I guess she does, but I can¡¯t be certain. Actually, I need to go because I¡¯m in a hurry. I¡¯ll get someone to

    follow up with the project.¡±

    She was about to say something to stop him, but he had fled the scene before she could say anything.

    Staring at the man¡¯s departing figure, she wondered if they would still be in a rtionship if she had

    made a different decision back in the day.

    The moment Tobias entered his office, Eva stopped him with a dejected look and requested, ¡°Mr. Ford,

    can you please do me a favor? I don¡¯t mind having my wages deducted for the sum required for a refund,

    but please keep my thrifty parents in the dark. My brother has always been obedient. I¡¯m not sure what

    has gotten into his mind. Although it sounds like an absurd request-¡±

    It was way past her working hours, but she had stayed behind to stop Tobias.

    Tobias was stupefied because Skr and Eva had approached him over a trivial issue. It¡¯s merely a few

    hundred thousand, isn¡¯t it? Are they afraid I¡¯m going to go embezzle the fund when thepany has a

    monthly revenue worthy of billions?

    He said, ¡°That won¡¯t be necessary because Skr has approached me for the exact same issue. I have

    gotten in touch with those from the relevant department and instructed them to deal with it.¡±

    Eva was slightly taken aback by his reply as she found it unbelievable. Her parents told her when they

    approached Skr for help, she had turned them down without a second thought and said it had nothing

    to do with her. Thus, Eva deemed Skr a selfish woman.

    As a result, Eva thought it was Tobias¡¯ attempt to do Skr a favor and deemed herself creditable for

    approaching him to resolve the issue on her family¡¯s behalf.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    When Tobias caught a glimpse of thevish-looking bracelet on Eva¡¯s wrist, he thought it was something

    beyond her reach should it be an authentic one.

    In spite of the thought he had in mind, heplimented, ¡°That¡¯s quite a nice bracelet you have over

    there.¡±

    As soon as she heard him, she tried to conceal the bracelet with her sleeves. She was afraid he would

    deem her a promiscuous woman if he found out it was a gift from Brayden. After all, Brayden was a man

    with a family.

 Chapter 507

    Chapter 507

    It turned out Brayden had a thing for her. She had made herself clear and insisted on having the man

    filing for divorce with his spouse if he was serious. Unwilling to be a homewrecker, she wanted the man

    to send his child away as well.

    Penelope is such a foolish woman! Does she really think she gets to live a carefree life just because she

    has given birth to Brayden¡¯s child? He¡¯s never a loyal man, and he would never forsake himself for his

    child¡¯s wellbeing!

    Since Eva wouldn¡¯t move aside, Tobias asked, ¡°Is there anything else? If there¡¯s nothing else, why don¡¯t

    you leave me alone?¡±

    She finally returned to her senses and smiled in return. Susan caught a glimpse of Eva smiling and shot

    daggers at her in return.

    Ever since Eva was promoted to be the assistant of the CEO, Susan felt a sense of insecurity because

    Eva was far more capable in a few different aspects.

    Although Susan deemed Eva a smart woman, she found her too smart for her own good. Susan heard

    rumors of Eva telling others she would take over her position sooner orter.

    However, Eva put on a pitiable front when Susan confronted her in person. The pretentious woman said,

    ¡°Susan, are you kidding me? I would never say that! You have always been a reputable figure I look up

    to!¡±

    As a result of Eva ying the victim, others would deem Susan the one at fault for picking on the

    vulnerable woman for nothing.

    When Susan brought Tobias the evaluation report of Royal Entertainment, she saw him getting rid of the

    cup of cold coffee with a frown.This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    Eva was the one in charge of trivial matters as such, but she had repeated the same mistake more than

    once ever since she was promoted.

    He crossed his legs and started perusing the report that had been handed over to him. As soon as he

    reached Skr¡¯s profile, he noticed she had risen through the ranks.

    Soon, he cast the report aside after perusing Skr¡¯s profile. He massaged his swollen temples and

    asked, ¡°What sort of gift does a woman appreciate on the day of the anniversary?¡±

    Have I been hearing things again? Is he indicating he¡¯s going to get someone a gift? He hasn¡¯t

    mentioned anything about the woman, but I¡¯m pretty sure he¡¯s talking about Skr!

    Susan had a hard timeprehending the reason he was head over heels in love with her when he had

    always enjoyed a sense of serenity.

    After much considerations, Susan suggested, ¡°What about a diamond? No woman can resist the

    temptation of a diamond because it¡¯s supposed tost for eternity. With that being said, it¡¯s a biased

    opinioning from a materialistic woman.¡±

    Tobias answered with a smile, ¡°How can you consider yourself materialistic? If you¡¯re as materialistic as

    you have imed, I¡¯m sure you have stocked up a pile of gold.¡±

    When he recalled the things Skr had brought up in the restaurant in the afternoon, he got infuriated

    because she made herself clear she was irked and told her she once thought of getting into a

    rtionship with others.

    Is she indicating I¡¯m not the loyal man she¡¯s searching for? Hello? I have stopped engaging with other

    women ever since we¡¯re in love! What else am I supposed to do to prove I¡¯m a loyal man? Halfway

    through his process of thoughts, he instructed with a callous tone, ¡°Can you get me something in return?

    I¡¯m not an expert when ites to choosing a gift.¡±

    Susan noticed that something seemed to be bothering Tobias because of his scrunched-up face. Thus,

    she asked in a hushed voice, ¡°Mr. Ford, what sort of ring should I get you? Can a two-carat diamond ring

    do?¡±

    He took a peek at her and answered indifferently, ¡°It¡¯s very thoughtful of you to try to save up on my

    behalf, but that won¡¯t be necessary. Get me one that¡¯s at least ten-carat. I¡¯ll leave the rest to you. As long

    as it¡¯s able to prove my sincerity, it¡¯s fine.¡±

 Chapter 508

    Chapter 508

    When Tobias heard Susan¡¯s suggestion, he recalled Skr had little to no essory to put on her hand.

    On the other hand, Susan deemed the questions she had directed at Tobias foolish because he was

    always a generous man.

    Once she made her way out of the office, she reached for the pack of cigarettes in her pocket and

    started puffing on it. It made her seemed exceptionally alluring in the middle of the night.

    When Eva saw Susan, she put out her cigarette and approached Susan with a bright grin. ¡°Susan, are

    you spending the night working again? I guess you¡¯re not the best for no reason, huh? Mr. Ford doesn¡¯t

    require my help. In fact, he told me to return home because he was afraid I would be exhausted.¡±

    Susan looked at the proud Eva with a deadpan look. Eva had always mentioned Tobias ced great

    emphasis on her in front of others. Thus, the staff, including the managers from different departments,

    were conscious of her identity and would have to take her courteously.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Smirking, Susan said, ¡°You¡¯re so lucky! I¡¯m so envious of you! I hope Mr. Ford isn¡¯t going to forsake his

    loyal subordinate who has been by his side for years!¡±

    As a veteran in the corporate world, Susan had long gotten used to ying pretend in front of others in

    spite of having a different thought in mind.

    Nheless, she couldn¡¯t get used to the presence of the pretentious Eva. Susan was determined to

    stop Eva from being promoted as long as she was still around. As Tobias¡¯ most reliable assistant, she

    was certain it would be nothing more than a piece of cake.

    After onest puff, the sexy woman announced with her chest held high, ¡°Congrattions! Your cousin is

    having a great time with him as well! In fact, Mr. Ford seems to be serious about their rtionship. He

    has just instructed me to get Ms. Jones a diamond ring that¡¯s at least ten-carat.¡±

    Eva snorted and asked, ¡°What does that have to do with me? It¡¯s not like he¡¯s going to purchase me

    one!¡±

    ¡°Are you sure that has nothing to do with you? Don¡¯t you think she¡¯s the reason behind your sess?

    You need to keep in touch with that cousin of yours if you wish to soar in your career.¡±

    A ten-carat diamond ring? That¡¯s going to cost at least ten million! She couldn¡¯t even afford a new set of

    clothes back in the day! The only ones she had belonged to me in the first ce!

    Sharon stopped giving used belongings to Skr because she mentioned it would bring misfortune to

    the family. Hence, Skr had to put on an oversized uniform over the years and patched it up whenever

    it was torn.

    I can¡¯t believe that peasant is doing better in life aspared to me! Does she think she deserves a ten-

    carat diamond ring just because Tobias has a thing for her? No way!

    She scowled and announced, ¡°My cousin was never a fan of fancy jewelry of that sort. I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s

    going to be another futile effort of Mr. Ford again.¡±

    When Susan heard Eva, she frowned and wondered if the pretentious woman had been lying again.

    Nheless, if that was the case, she would have to bear the consequences since she was the one who

    had brought up the suggestion.

    After much considerations, she decided to discuss her next best course of action with Tobias to

    determine the perfect gift. Although she was unconscious of the event associated, she was certain it

    wasn¡¯t a wedding anniversary as she deemed the man overly self-centered to get married.

 Chapter 509

    Chapter 509

    As usual, Eva drove herself back and saw Sharon the moment she reached home. Her mother would

    stay up until the moment she was back.

    Sharon was about to make Eva something to eat, but her daughter stopped her and yelled, ¡°I can¡¯t even

    get myself a parking lot! Mom, when are we moving out of this area? A few of my friends have purchased

    a new ce!¡±

    Irked by her daughter¡¯s manner, Sharon paused and replied in a petnt manner, ¡°Do you think that¡¯s

    possible when your brother has just spent the family¡¯s savings for some stupid game? I can¡¯t wait to

    move out of this area as well, but can we afford it? As much as you earn, you have spent most of it

    buying unnecessary designer items!¡±

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    Eva couldn¡¯t stand Sharon getting overly worked up whenever the same topic was brought up. She was

    conscious her mother was frustrated because Skr had brought Miranda a vi.

    Sharon had alwaysplimented her daughter for being a capable woman and thought she would be

    able to rely on her daughter soon. However, Sharon started picking on Eva and thought it would be way

    more practical to get herself a rich son-inw.

    Eva said, ¡°I have already approached Mr. Ford and resolved the issue on Kevin¡¯s behalf. What the heck

    is wrong with both of you? Skr isn¡¯t even a member of the family! Why have you approached her when

    you¡¯re conscious she wants nothing but the worst for us?¡±

    Sharon returned to her daughter¡¯s side with a pair of gleaming eyes when she heard the great news. She

    asked, ¡°Are you serious? Why hasn¡¯t anyone gotten in touch with us yet? I was against the idea of

    approaching Skr, but I was afraid to get you involved as well!¡±

    ¡°Why would I lie to you? Mr. Ford had instructed those from the relevant department to proceed with the

    refund once I brought it up in front of him.¡±

    Sighing, Sharon asked, ¡°I guess Tobias isn¡¯t half bad, huh? Since you have been working alongside him

    for a few months, can you tell if he has a thing for you? Although he¡¯s currently in a rtionship with

    Skr, we can¡¯t be certain if they¡¯re going to make it till the end. Don¡¯t you think you stand a chance?¡±

    Eva was afraid of letting her mother down. Thus, she replied with her shoulders shrugging, ¡°I¡¯ll try my

    best, but I think it¡¯s a mission impossible because he spends most of his time working. However, his

    good-for-nothing brother has a lot of time to kill. In fact, he has just broken up with his girlfriend.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, hurry up and do something about it because I can¡¯t stand your aunt having the best

    time of her life anymore! I can¡¯t believe she gets to live a better life than mine! Just when are you going

    to make me proud?¡±

    Eva went dead silent and thought of the alternatives she had. As long as Brayden refused to file for

    divorce with his spouse, he would remain a backup n of hers. Conscious of the things awaiting her in

    spite of her capabilities, she knew it was time for her to get herself a wealthy better half. Otherwise, she

    might end up like Susan when she was in her mid-thirties.

    However, she was conscious of the reason behind Susan¡¯s current condition. After spending years

    working alongside the almighty Tobias, it would be impossible for her to fall for those inferior to him.

    That happened to be the case for her because she was longer interested in those inferior to Tobias.

    The next morning, Sharon logged into her bank ount and had her eyes glued to the bnce.

    Throughout their breakfast, she had asked Eva over and over again. In the end, she muttered, ¡°Is Tobias

    going to go back against his promise?¡±

    When Eva heard Sharon¡¯s question, she found herself pitiable to be a member of such an inferior family.

    Upon that, she replied irritatedly, ¡°Why are you in such a hurry? He¡¯s not going to embezzle the mere few

    hundred thousand of yours, okay?¡±

 Chapter 510

    Chapter 510

    Her mother asked, ¡°What do you mean my few hundred thousand? Are you indicating it¡¯s not a big

    deal?¡±

    ¡°Do you really think he cares when his pair of cufflinks cost more than that?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not transferred into my ount yet! I guess it¡¯s time to approach Skr again!¡±

    As Sharon finished her sentence, she saw thetest figures avable and heaved a long sigh of relief.

    ¡°Finally, it¡¯s here! I¡¯m about to pass out if it dys any longer!¡±

    Eva announced with a proud grin, ¡°See? Haven¡¯t I told you Mr. Ford thinks highly of me? He¡¯s doing this

    because of me!¡±

    On the other hand, Sharon called Miranda and started picking on Skr, yelling at her sister-inw

    through the phone.

    Within a fortnight, Empyrean Sword had garnered more than a billion and a half views.

    Simrly, Skr became the second most sought-after celebrity and gained over ten million followers on

    her Instagram ount.

    Meanwhile, Valerie felt awful when she found out Skr had made a name out of herself and generated

    a fortune on Royal Entertainment¡¯s behalf. As much as she was irked, she was afraid to go against

    Tobias¡¯ instructions.

    Valerie got increasingly frustrated because Winnie wouldn¡¯t stop weeping in front of her.

    In the end, she yelled at the weeping woman, ¡°Are you trying to me me when we have given you

    every resource you need? Is crying going to help?¡±

    The frustrated Winnie yelled, ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m the one who has triumphed! Skr is having the best time

    of her life when I¡¯m theplete opposite! Her fans areing after me because of our past conflicts!

    Whenever I post anything on my social media ount, her fans would leave all sorts of nastyments,

    picking on anything and everything, including my look!¡±

    There wasn¡¯t much Valerie could do to turn the tables because she couldn¡¯t possibly put herself at stake.

    Smirking, she said, ¡°Are you ming me? Skr was once an easy target, but that¡¯s no longer the case!

    She¡¯s currently the mainstay of the entertainment industry! How am I supposed to stop her from thriving?

    Am I supposed to send her to host a children¡¯s show? Why don¡¯t you approach Sheldon for help instead?

    Aren¡¯t you going to get married to him soon? What happened to that?¡±

    Winnie could feel her heart wrenching when she heard Sheldon¡¯s name.

    Truth be told, Sheldon told her their rtionship was over. In an attempt to drive her away from him, he

    had stopped picking up her phone and ignored the text she had sent him.

    ¡°How am I supposed to approach him for help when he doesn¡¯t want me anywhere near him? His mother

    is against our rtionship!¡± Winnie¡¯s eyes started brimming with tears because her emotions came

    flooding out as she went on.

    Valerie finally linked the missing pieces of puzzles together when she heard Winnie¡¯s reply. She had

    been wondering the reason Winnie stopped mentioning her rtionship with him. It turned out it was

    over.

    ¡°You know what? It¡¯s better for you to give up if you wish to stay in the industry. Otherwise, it¡¯s over for

    you if you get on udia¡¯s nerves for real. We¡¯re all aware of the things she¡¯s capable of.¡±

    Unwilling to give up just yet, Winnie rebuked, ¡°What if I don¡¯t? Skr hasn¡¯t given up when she¡¯s in a

    simr situation!¡±

    Winnie was at the top of her lungs. Thus, in spite of the conversation being held in Valerie¡¯s office, Skr

    could hear them.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    I have been wondering the reason my ears are itching when I¡¯m on my way here. It turns out it¡¯s because

    my beloved friends are talking behind me again.

    Skr knocked on the door and made her way into the office without acquiring consent for entrance.

 Chapter 511

    Chapter 511

    Afraid Skr was there to make fun of her, Winnie tried her best to calm herself down and looked at

    Skr in the eyes.

    Grinning, Skr asked in a courteous manner, ¡°Have I gotten in the way of something?¡±

    Winnie scowled and asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s toote when you have barged into the office without our

    consent? Are you going to step out if we say you have?¡±

    ¡°Oh! If I have, I don¡¯t mind waiting until the conversation¡¯s over! I mean, I have plenty of time to kill!¡±

    Skr behaved as though she was about to leave, but Valerie stopped her because she had summoned

    Skr there. The person in charge from Gi had made themselves clear they wanted Skr to

    endorse theirtest items.

    Since Kate wasn¡¯t around, Valerie had to deal with the details of the coboration. However, Valerie was

    afraid Winnie would resort to something silly should she be made aware of the truth.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    As a matter of fact, not even the representatives of domestic brands had any intention to coborate with

    Winnie, let alone globally renowned ones.

    Winnie had turned down the one and only request to coborate with her from a rtively unknown

    automotive brand because she thought she would be chosen to endorse high-end brands.

    When Winnie heard Valerie¡¯s instructions, asking her to leave them alone, she gaped at Valerie and

    thought Skr was supposed to be the one leaving. Has Valerie changed over the night? She¡¯s such a

    materialistic woman! It¡¯s such a cruel world we¡¯re living in!

    On her way out of Valerie¡¯s office, Winnie banged the door shut to take her emotions out.

    As soon as Winnie departed, Skr removed the shades, exposing the dark circles around her eyes.

    She had a rtively pale and haggard look.

    She had been attending countless interviews and taking part in various reality shows since Empyrean

    Sword was aired. In other words, she had no time to rest because of her hectic schedule.

    Valerie handed over a brief introduction of the brand to Skr. After briefly flipping through the

    document, she found it unnecessary because she was familiar with the brand.

    She once owned a pair of Gi sneakers. However, she wasn¡¯t familiar with the brand back then. To be

    precise, she had limited exposure to different apparel brands because of her financial capabilities.

    When Eva, who had always been calm and collected, saw Skr and her pair of shoes, she burst into

    laughter to the extent of shedding tears.

    ¡°Are you trying to doll yourself up with that pair of counterfeit on your feet? You might get to deceive

    others but not me because I¡¯m aware you can¡¯t even afford a shoce from that brand!¡±

    When Skr conducted her due diligence, she found out Eva was right ¨C she couldn¡¯t even afford a

    shoce from Gi.

    Skr was turned down by another globally renowned brand when she was rtively unknown. In the

    end, she had no choice but to endorse a second-rate brand.

    When she saw the fortune associated with the coboration, she thought she had made it in life.

    On the other hand, Valerie deadpanned her warning. ¡°You¡¯re considered one of the most sought-after

    celebrities as of now. If you wish to stay in the industry in the long run, please keep yourself grounded

    and never ever get full of yourself.¡±

    Skr replied, ¡°Thanks for the heads-up, Ms. Fey! I won¡¯t let you down!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯re conscious of the number of people keeping an eye on you. Hence, please mind yourself

    and refrain from doing anything that¡¯s going to ruin your image, including getting yourself involved in a

    scandal.¡±

    Skr had heard simr advice from Kate countless times. She wondered if they had overestimated her

    capabilities of getting herself involved in a nasty situation or if she had underestimated herself.

    The moment she walked out of the office, she saw Winnie waiting for her outside. Burning with rage,

    Winnie red at her in the eyes and stopped Skr from moving forward.

    ¡°Can you please get your fans to mind their manners? They won¡¯t stop picking a fight with my fans! Stop

    getting full of yourself just because you¡¯re famous!¡±

    Skr put on an innocent front and answered, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I have no idea of the things you¡¯re talking

    about because I no longer follow you on Instagram.¡±

 Chapter 512

    Chapter 512

    Winnie¡¯s wrath was written all over her face. She warned Skr with her teeth clenched, ¡°Stop ying

    pretend in front of me! You were the one behind the scenes at the ce of the Fords! You won¡¯t get to

    be one of the Fords because Tobias will never marry you!¡±

    Skr forced a smile and asserted, ¡°Oh? Why would I want to join the household of the Fords when

    Tobias had given me everything I sought? Speaking of which, have you no shame as a fellow woman?

    Why don¡¯t you stay away from Sheldon when he has made himself clear it¡¯s over between you and him?¡±

    Skr had rubbed salt into Winnie¡¯s wound. As a result, Winnie yelled, ¡°Thanks for your concerns, but

    that¡¯s none of your business because we¡¯re just fine! Why don¡¯t you mind your business instead of being

    a busybody, listening to baseless usations from others?¡±

    Shrugging her shoulders, Skr announced, ¡°Am I not supposed to return the favor when you have

    expressed your concerns over my rtionship with Tobias?¡±

    Winnie could barely suppress her wrath and started stomping her feet. She felt a strong urge to take out

    the woman in front of her because she would be having a great time in life if Skr hadn¡¯t gotten in her

    way.

    In the meantime, Skr noticed a bunch of paparazzi had shown up and started following her the

    moment she stepped out of thepany.

    Although it was something she had to deal with being a public figure, she found it unbearable since she

    would have to carry herself in an elegant manner at all times. Otherwise, she would make it to the

    headline for something negative.

    Once she boarded the MPV that was parked nearby, she headed over to Miranda¡¯s ce.

    When Skr showed up, she saw her mother on the couch, watching television with a te of fruits on

    the coffee table.

    Ever since she was released, she became a television addict and binge-watched a few melodramas.

    Little did Skr know it was an attempt to make up for the time she spent behind bars since convicts

    weren¡¯t allowed to have screen time when they were serving sentences.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Skr brought the things she purchased from a nearby supermarket into the kitchen. When she opened

    the refrigerator, she noticed there was not a single speck of dust inside.

    She then turned around and asked the weeping woman on the couch, ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to get

    yourself something to cook? What do you eat on a daily basis when there¡¯s nothing for you to cook?¡±

    Miranda, who waspletely immersed in the melodrama, deadpanned her reply. ¡°It¡¯s quite a hassle to

    visit the supermarket because I don¡¯t have a car. I¡¯ll just get someone else to deliver my meal. It¡¯s not a

    big deal as long as I have my phone with me. Besides, you¡¯re the one paying since your credit card has

    been authorized for payment.¡±

    Why does she behave as though she¡¯s done nothing wrong when her life ispletely messed up

    because of her negligence?

    Well, I guess I¡¯m finally having a taste of my own medicine, huh? Is this how Tobias has been feeling

    whenever I behave in a simr manner?

    Then, Skr started sorting the things she had purchased without taking a breather. On the other hand,

    Miranda had no intention to offer her help.

    When the episode she had been watching ended, she walked into the kitchen and announced, ¡°Our

    neighbors have been greeting me ever since Empyrean Sword airs.¡±

    Skr, who was in the middle of doing the dishes, wiped her hands dry and asked, ¡°They have figured

    out our rtionship because of you, haven¡¯t they? Mom, can you please lie low instead of garnering

    unnecessary attention?¡±

    Her mother found her dramatic and said, ¡°Can¡¯t I be proud of my exceptional daughter? My friends had

    distanced themselves from me the moment I was thrown behind bars! I¡¯m going to prove the realistic

    bunch wrong!¡±

    Miranda had always enjoyed showing off. The years she spent behind bars hadn¡¯t changed that bad

    habit of hers.

 Chapter 513

    Chapter 513

    Skr was horrified by the thought of Miranda announcing their rtionship to the entire neighborhood.

    When Miranda recalled something she had in mind, she summoned Skr over and started nagging her

    daughter, ¡°Skr, can¡¯t you keep an eye on UncleWesley? Sharon has been picking a fight with me over

    the past few days. She told me the things you did, including the part you dismissed her when she

    needed you to do her a trivial favor. Eva had to approach Tobias to sort out the issue.¡±

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    Irritated by the usation that came out of nowhere, Skr rebuked, ¡°What? How could you me me

    when I had asked Tobias to proceed with the refund? Can you have faith in me for once and stop being

    deceived by Eva?¡±

    Unfortunately, Miranda found Skr¡¯s statement suspicious. She thought Skr had been lying to deny

    her responsibilities. After all, it wouldn¡¯t be easy to talk about money.

    Skr had enough of her mother¡¯s skeptical look. She broke the silence, asserting in a callous tone,

    ¡°Take all the time you need to gather your thoughts because I¡¯ll be leaving. If you wish to stay here,

    please keep the ce clean. It gets on my nerve whenever I step into the foyer because the magnificent

    ce seems like a recycling station.¡±

    Miranda sighed because things would end up getting tensed whenever she brought up the topic of her

    brother and his family in front of Skr.

    When Skr was a step away from the entrance, Miranda rushed over and directed an embarrassing

    question at her.

    She leaned over and whispered, ¡°Are you having a great time with Tobias? Have you been taking

    precautionary steps when having raunchy fun with him?¡±

    Skr flushed and asked in return, ¡°Seriously? Mom, is that any of your business? Can you stop bringing

    this up because it¡¯s making me ufortable!¡±

    ¡°I visited a fortune teller and guess what? Your life is about to take a drastic turn for the better if you get

    married and give birth this year. Why don¡¯t you get yourself conceived as soon as possible? At least

    there is something to keep you and Tobias connected. If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll get to rely on you and spend

    a carefree life for the rest of my life.¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you get him to tell you if you¡¯re going to hit the jackpot because there¡¯s no way I¡¯m getting

    pregnant anytime soon. I don¡¯t have time for a child.¡±

    Miranda tapped on her daughter¡¯s head and urged, ¡°You¡¯re such a foolish woman! Your father had filed

    for divorce with me because that b*tch was pregnant back then! Keep that in mind and refrain from

    repeating my mistake!¡±

    Her daughter exposed her without a second thought. ¡°Wasn¡¯t it because of Irene¡¯s wealth? He just

    couldn¡¯t resist the temptation of rising to the throne over the night.¡±

    Miranda insisted that wasn¡¯t the case and med Irene¡¯s son.

    In the end, she stuffed the lucky charm she had acquired from the fortune-teller into Skr¡¯s bag.

    Miranda told her to keep her advice in mind and hurry up.

    Meanwhile, the moment Skr stepped out of the house, she disposed of the lucky charm in a dustbin

    nearby.

    However, she hadpletely forgotten the existence of the bunch of paparazzi. Those buzzards

    ransacked the dustbin as soon as Skr departed.

    #GettingHerselfConceived

    Within an hour they got their hands on the lucky charm, the topic topped the chart of trending topics on

    Twitter. Although the celebrity¡¯s name had been censored, theizens found out it was Skr.

    It turned out the lucky charm included tips and tricks to get a woman ready for pregnancy, including the

    precise technique to be employed during the intimate session with a man.

    When Skr stumbled upon the content that made it to the inte, she was so embarrassed to the

    extent she felt a strong urge to bury her head in the sand.

    No one has ever told me not to dispose of trash in a random rubbish bin!

    Oh, God! Now everyone¡¯s going to think I can¡¯t wait to have a son! Mom, thank you so much for the favor

    you have done me!

    In the evening, Skr received a text from Tobias.

    Tobias: Do you want a son so badly? Whose son are you trying to get yourself conceived with?

    Skr: Argh! It¡¯s nothing but a misunderstanding!

    Tobias: Shall we give it a try? I¡¯ll drop by your ce tonight!

    As she thought it was another one of his attempts to pull her leg, she wrapped up the conversation and

    stopped replying to his text.

 Chapter 514

    Chapter 514

    Skr V: Sorry for causing some kind of panic and wasting everyone¡¯s time. How does one have a child

    without even having a partner, though? p/s: Don¡¯t believe folk remedies?rted to childbirth.

    When Skr updated her social ?media ount, she felt her hands tremble. Taking a step back, she

    decided to reflect on all that happened. Even if Tobias was being indifferent, she did not want toe

    clean about their rtionship. That would definitely affect her career.

    With the awards ceremonying soon, Kate was hinting at her to win the Golden Eagle Goddess.

    Thus, she could not afford any mistakes now.

    Skr was currently in third ce, but there was still hope for her yet. Ironically, the votes seemed to

    consist of a male majority, at seventy percent.

    She seemed to check all of their boxes, where the male appeal was concerned.

    Sheldon, who was seated in the passenger side next to Tobias, chimed in jokingly. ¡°Tobias, Skr keeps

    insisting that she¡¯s single, but I think there¡¯s a bit of an affair happening here. Who is hiding who? Why

    does it seem like Skr is the one trying to keep you hidden? Imagine the tabloids if they catch hold of

    this juicy gossip! The CEO of the Ford Group and popr actress ¨C a secret romance!¡±

    Tobias liked the update Skr posted and nced at Sheldon. ¡°You should consider going abroad. I¡¯ve

    opened a new factory, and you can go there to help run it. A change of pace would be nice, I think.

    Maybe you¡¯ll find someone, settle down, have a few babies. Doesn¡¯t Skr have tips on how to have

    boys? Go on and give it a go. Mom is dying to have grandkids.¡±

    This silenced Sheldon immediately. He shuddered at the prospect of having to date someone foreign. It

    was too intimidating.

    He was still interested in pursuing influencers but did not have a specific target in mind. The few he set

    his eye on looked too different from their pictures.

    Thus, he disliked how prevalent filters were these days. Who knew how many innocent male hearts have

    been broken by this?

    Nheless, Sheldon also epted his fate and acknowledged that there was a pecking order of sorts.

    This was an uphill battle for him. He had been brainwashed by Winnie, and with Tobias making a fuss

    over it, it still resulted in humiliation for him. All of this was made very clear to him now ¨C it was better for

    him to be a hedonist and indulge.

    When he got tired of that lifestyle, then he could very well just find a woman and settle down. The rest of

    his life would then be lived just as artlessly.

    ¡°Marcus is back. I saw him at the barst night, surrounded by these influencers. Man, this dude is living

    the life. Surrounded by people, where even the influencers were strip-teasing for him. Must be exciting.¡±

    Upon the mention of Marcus, Tobias frowned. He was now worried that Marcus¡¯ family would now return

    here as well.

    He did not care as much, but he was concerned that it would affect his mother. Every time they met,

    udia seemed gloomy.

    udia had not remarried for so many years and also bore a deep hatred for Xander. Meanwhile, Tobias

    was eager for the whole family to remain abroad.

    Sheldon sighed aloud. ¡°I do feel sorry for Marcus. Things were alright until that incident when he

    changed so drastically. Wouldn¡¯t you like to clear the air over what happened then? You obviously never

    did anything. Why does he think you did something to his partner?¡±

    ¡°What is there to exin?¡± asked Tobias coldly. ¡°Do I owe him an exnation?¡±

    Sheldon shut up disinterestedly since there wasn¡¯t much he could say anyway. The incident involved the

    suicide of Marcus¡¯ girlfriend, who happened to be one of the prettiest girls on campus. She was twenty-

    two then when she jumped off that expressway and would have been Skr¡¯s age now.

    If not for Tobias, the girl would not have lost her youth. Sheldon thought about her fate regretfully. She

    was even more beautiful than Skr, too.

    Sheldon also recalled how a crazed Marcus rushed towards Tobias with a knife in his hand. However, his

    physique was no match for Tobias¡¯. There was also the matter of his brother¡¯s bodyguards, who have all

    seen war. They would kill with no hesitation whatsoever. Marcus could not get close, let alone stand a

    chance.

    Tobias saw that the driver was en route to their home and requested that he be dropped off at Skr¡¯s

    residence first.

    This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

    ¡°You¡¯re going to her ce at night? Aren¡¯t you worried about the paparazzi?¡± asked Sheldon worriedly.

    ¡°In the past, women would try to pull this sh*t on you and entrap you instead. But now, it¡¯s our Tobias

    rushing to her side. How touching.¡±

    Tobias huffed. ¡°Security there is so tight, even a fly can¡¯t make it past their sensors. I think you¡¯re running

    your mouth, Sheldon. There¡¯s also the matter of Winnie. She¡¯s been looking for people to expose both

    Skr and me, and this has happened more than once, but I¡¯ve managed to keep things down. If it

    happens again, I¡¯m not going to take kindly to your ipetence.¡±

 Chapter 515

    Chapter 515

    Sheldon finally understood why Tobias acquired the real-estatepany near the vi district some time

    back. Did he pull off that Herculean task to make Skr¡¯s life morefortable?

    He was definitely spending way too much just to mess around with women. As for Winnie, Sheldon¡¯s

    hands were tied. He assumed that she was about eighty percent insane. Seeing how well Skr was

    drove Winnie to such jealousy that she even tried to expose their rtionship.

    Sheldon had yet to enter his residence when he was drawn to the sound of Winnie¡¯smentations at the

    park close by.

    From a distance, Sheldon noticed that Winnie was sitting alone on a bench. Loneliness and mncholy

    were written all over her face, just like when Sheldon first met her.

    Men could not resist being knights in shining armor. If not for what happened in the past, Sheldon would

    have had morepassion for Winnie.

    Winnie finally made her way to Sheldon, behaving quite like a spoiled child, and hugged him. ¡°Why are

    you here? I thought you¡¯d be pissed and continue avoiding me. I know what I did was wrong. I only

    wanted Mrs. Ford to like me, that¡¯s all! I wouldn¡¯t dare do it again! You¡¯ve ignored me for too long,

    Sheldon. I promise to be more well-behaved and obedient.¡±

    Sheldon sighed, holding onto thest vestiges of his patience with her. ¡°There¡¯s no point. My mother is a

    very strong-willed person. That ship has sailed the moment you messed up, and there¡¯s no remedying

    that. I¡¯m also not going to turn my back on my mother for your sake.¡±

    Winnie cried louder, her tears staining Sheldon¡¯s shirt. ¡°But I don¡¯t care! You promised that you¡¯d treat me

    well forever, that we¡¯d get married. And now you¡¯re just tossing me aside? What am I going to do?¡±

    Right then, Sheldon wanted nothing to do with Winnie. This woman was clingier than he thought. ¡°I¡¯ll

    think it over. The both of us need some space anyway,¡± said Sheldon with a perfunctory gaze at her.

    ¡°After a while, I¡¯ll give you an answer. How about that?¡±

    ¡°Oh, is that how it is? Every one of you is being mean to me. Do you know what I have to endure? I¡¯m

    getting so much k from Skr¡¯s fans every day, and now all theizens are making fun of me. I¡¯m

    being trampled on because they¡¯re all supporting her. And it got so bad that I went to the hospital for an

    evaluation. Do you know what I was diagnosed with? Depression! He diagnosed me with severe

    depression! I just don¡¯t have the will to go on any longer!¡±

    Content provided by N?velDrama.Org.

    Winnie then fished out a hospital report and thrust it in front of Sheldon.

    Despite that, Sheldon didn¡¯t even spare the report a nce andughed. ¡°You people in the

    entertainment industry. There¡¯s always something wrong with you guys, right? Today, it¡¯s depression.

    Who knows if that¡¯s even true?¡±

    Meanwhile, at Skr¡¯s ce.

    ¡°Why are you here sote? Are we going to make babies?¡± Skr smiled teasingly and took Tobias¡¯ suit

    jacket off him.

    Tobias groaned as he sat down. ¡°You know I am not interested in having any.¡± He managed to

    painstakingly leave the car before settling on her couch. After a busy day, his body felt no reprieve.

    Tobias looked at Skr with a pained expression on his face.

    Whenpared to Skr¡¯s vigor, his fared much worse.

    Madelyn was about to enter the kitchen but was ordered by Tobias to rest earlier. He was simply implying

    that she had no reason to be here thiste and that she was in the way.

    Unfortunately, Madelyn failed to get what Tobias meant. ¡°But I was going to make you something warm to

    eat!¡±

    Tobias was too exhausted to deal with this. Impatiently, he said, ¡°No need for that, just go to bed. We¡¯ll

    be fine.¡±

    Upon that, Madelyn was surprised. Skr, having noticed that Tobias was not in a good mood, merely

    winked at Madelyn. She then left the room.

    As Tobias lounged on the sofa, Skr was flipping through the script that Kate brought her. The show

    was meant to be premiered during the New Year. The Pretty Detective franchise had been quite popr

    in recent years.

    The show was also the director¡¯s way of extending the olive branch to Skr. As such, an audition was

    required, and the follow-up details were finalized.

    Tobias changed his posture andy on his back instead, observing how Skr was so focused on her

    script; it was like nothing else existed.

    ¡°I¡¯m not feeling so good. Can you just give me a massage?¡± asked Tobias, clearly fatigued. The pair had

    been apart for a while, and somehow, Skr seemed a little colder towards him.

 Chapter 516

    Chapter 516

    Only then did Skr set the script aside. She sat on the side of the sofa and massaged him as deeply as

    she could. However, she did not have much strength in her, so each push felt like a mere tickle on his

    back.

    ¡°Were you followed?¡± Since that note was left behind, Skr had been quite paranoid for fear of simr

    incidents happening again.

    Valerie had given her a stern warning. At this stage, Skr had to ensure that she was free of scandals.

    Valerie also persuaded her to allow her male fans some leeway in that they could entertain their

    fantasies of having a chance to date her.

    Even so, Skr dismissed this form of publicity and disapproved of letting the industry force her into

    submission.

    ¡°What are you afraid of?¡± asked Tobias, clearly displeased. ¡°Do you think I will embarrass you? Just let

    them know that you have a man with you.¡±

    Skr huffed and pinched him hard, thinking that he was being quite unreasonable.

    ¡°You¡¯re the one who started it. I¡¯m also concerned about how this implicates you. If word gets out that

    we¡¯re together, it¡¯ll probably affect yourpany¡¯s stock prices. The senior executives are hoping you

    would marry a rich scion, not an actress.¡±

    Tobias waved a hand dismissively. ¡°If I cared that much about this, I would not have handed the

    company over to Sheldon for him to mess up.¡±

    This made sense to Skr. After all, Tobias was a courageous man, and his decisiveness was

    something that few could match.

    Tobias sat up. In spite of Skr¡¯s efforts, herck of strength did nothing to ease his physical difort.

    Back in the bedroom, Skr had Empyrean Sword running in the background, just so that Tobias had

    something to nce at.

    She would normally watch the show on her phone but was met with a barrage of livements. This

    happened often with some of the more famous scenes, where the livements would cause her

    screen tog.

    Tobias sighed, picked up the remote, and turned the TV off. Before he turned it off, the image of Skr

    being held by Largo was disyed on the screen. They were paused amid battle, a sh of snowy white

    and ruby red.

    ¡°Well, can¡¯t you just watch it for my sake and praise my efforts this time!¡± squealed Skr excitedly.

    ¡°Even if you end up only watching two or three episodes.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll make time to watch it. Besides, you yed this episode right in the middle! How will I know what¡¯s

    going on?¡±

    Skry back on the bed. A cursory nce at Tobias told her that she would not be getting much action

    tonight. She noticed that Tobias had pulled out a few pills from the bottle in his trouser pocket and

    swallowed them without any water.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Do men do this? Just take their pills dry? I always need warm water and some fruits to mask the taste.

    Skr shuddered. She had a gag reflex that would react to just about anything. If she swallowed arge

    pill, it would sometimes get stuck, even with water. It was not the most pleasant sensation.

    ¡°Can¡¯t sleep? Do you need sleeping pills?¡± Skr was worried about Tobias as he could never sleep

    well.

    Thus, Skr was unsure if it was caused by stress or just overthinking.

    Insomnia must be terrible.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m not taking those. It¡¯ll leave me in a horrible state of mind the next day, and I¡¯ll be quite dazed.

    I¡¯ve taken painkillers instead.¡±

    Skr could not imagine that Tobias had such a terrible affliction, to begin with. How did he even end up

    with a backache this bad?

    Nheless, that night, he slept like a log, and she had not noticed any difort at the time.

    The whole night was spent apart as the coupley asleep, without even a cuddle.

    For a brief moment, Skr felt like they were an old married couple.

    Tobias¡¯ back was turned towards her, his breathing shallow.

    The silence was then broken by the constant vibrating of Tobias¡¯ phone. A cursory nce at the screen

    revealed that it was Idania, but Skr did not wake him up.

    This woman seemed to appear more and more frequently in their lives.

    She hesitated briefly but then gently picked up the phone and entered the bathroom.

 Chapter 517

    Chapter 517

    ¡°Am I disturbing your sleep?¡± Came a sweet and coquettish voice from the other end of the receiver.

    ¡°He¡¯s not up yet. I can pass on a message for you if you¡¯d like.¡±

    There was silence for a while before Skr heard a response. ¡°And you are?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m his girlfriend.¡±

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s nothing. Just ask him to call me back when he¡¯s awake and remind him about our meeting

    tonight.¡±

    The emotions were clearly written on Skr¡¯s face, despite how superb her acting was on set.

    She exited the bathroom to find Tobias awake. Having had a fitful rest, he was in much higher spirits than

    the night before.

    ¡°You can just view it out in the open, you know,¡± said Tobias, noticing that his phone was in her hand.

    ¡°Why did you have to hide in the bathroom?¡±

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Skr set it on the bed with a wry smile. ¡°I didn¡¯t look at anything. But your phone kept ringing, so I

    decided to pick up on your behalf.¡±

    ¡°Who called?¡±

    ¡°Idania. She wanted to remind you about tonight¡¯s appointment.¡±

    As Skr said this, her eyes carried a hint of sadness.

    ¡°Hmm, I rejected her proposal, but she¡¯s being persistent. Anyway, she¡¯s insisting that I meet with her to

    sort things out. If you¡¯re not happy about it, then I just won¡¯t go.¡±

    Hearing Tobias¡¯ rification, she was not sure if she should have felt happy or sad. Skr assumed that

    Tobias would have liked for her to insist it was fine.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m don¡¯t like it, so don¡¯t go. Exes are just hateful, to begin with. I need you to draw a line with her.

    That shouldn¡¯t be too difficult, right?¡±

    ¡°Of course not. I¡¯ll do as you ask.¡± Tobias smirked at her impishly, which was quite charming.

    Skr wanted to see Penelope, so she left the house in an uneasy state. She tersely reminded him of

    his own words, ¡±Any man who still remains in contact with his ex is trash.¡±

    Tobias put out the cigarette, his dark pupils gazing into her deeply. ¡°I doubt anyone would call me a good

    man. It¡¯s easier to be worse than it is to be good.¡±

    The unhappy Skr then asked when Tobias could learn to be more human and less obstinate.

    After that, She went outside and got into her car. It was quite early, but she noticed that something had

    changed. All the security guards in thepound had been reced overnight. All the familiar, pot-

    bellied, middle-aged men she usually spotted wandering were nowhere to be found.

    Even the colors of their uniform had changed.

    Skr then understood why the residents wereining. Even food deliveries were halted, and their

    comints were met with exnations about a change in management.

    What would possess them to do this?

    Skr had already called Penelope in advance, fearing that Penelope would not be at home when she

    was gone.

    When she arrived, Skr put all the things she brought onto the sofa. She had purchased more than ten

    sets of children¡¯s clothes.

    Children really do grow up quickly. Skr had not seen the child in a while, but they could already sit up

    on their own.

    At that moment, Penelope was still in her pajamas. Her hair was unkempt, seemingly not cared for in

    quite some time.

    Skr observed the child again. ¡°Have you named her?¡±

    Penelope then shook her head. ¡°No. I¡¯ve started calling her Bit since she is the extra bit I gave birth to.

    I¡¯m honestly so godd*mn tired right now. So about that issue that I asked you about, what¡¯s happening?

    You have yet to answer me.¡±

    ¡°Thepany decides on the artist, so this isn¡¯t something I can influence,¡± replied Skr sheepishly.

    She was expecting Penelope to ask her this. ¡°All I can tell you is that you¡¯ll get some minor roles. But you

    won¡¯t make much money out of them.¡±

 Chapter 518

    Chapter 518

    Penelope was visibly disheartened. Skr seemed to be flushed with sess, seeing as news about her

    was something she could not avoid seeing every day. Penelope refused to believe that Skr had no

    influence whatsoever.

    ¡°Are you afraid of being associated with people like me?¡± asked Penelope, her gaze dispirited. ¡°Your

    current circle should include all the famous stars. They rub shoulders with whoever is popr at the

    moment.¡±

    If Skr had not heard these words in person, she definitely wouldn¡¯t have believed that they were

    uttered by Penelope.

    She assumed that their friendship was steadfast and resolute. No matter what happened, they would not

    question each other.

    What Penelope said was sad indeed. To lighten the situation, Skr said, ¡°I can help you build an online

    presence and then help you buy traffic. This is also a way to make money.¡±

    Penelope barely gave a damn about influencers in general. After all, how could influencerspare to

    being actual celebrities? Besides, there was nothing much she could do on her own. Does she want me

    to showcase my own misery? Since I¡¯m a single mom? As if I¡¯m not enough of aughing stock already.

    ¡°Fine. I don¡¯t need your help anymore. I¡¯ll find a way on my own. Looks like I can¡¯t rely on anyone,

    apparently,¡± said Penelope ruthlessly. ¡°You¡¯d best not show up here anymore either, lest the paparazzi

    catch a glimpse of you and your miserable friend. Wouldn¡¯t want to affect your glorious image, now would

    we?¡±

    Skr wanted to interject and exin, but she was cut off by the sound of the child crying. Bit had been

    startled by Penelope¡¯s voice.

    Embarrassed and upset, Penelope promptly unbuttoned her blouse to breastfeed Bit.

    Skr was worried that she was in the way of them and decided to leave. As it turned out, breastfeeding

    was a part of motherhood.

    However, the very concept was foreign to Skr. This was the first time she had seen breastfeeding

    happen in front of her and felt something tug at her heartstrings. Did that not hurt?

    Skr also could not fathom why Penelope rejected the suggestion. Every job had its own distinctions,

    and influencers earned much more than celebrities did.

    Penelope was not keen on capitalizing on her own misery. Skr, on the other hand, did not seem to

    have qualms when it came to earning money. So what if Penelope had to capitalize on her being sad?

    In the old quarter, a dazzling Aston Martin with a prominent license te was parked in a corner.

    The owner of the car had spent the night in her bed.

    Skr opened the door and sat in the passenger seat. ¡°You seem to be able to find me wherever I go.¡±

    She grinned and looked at him again. ¡°Since you¡¯re so free today, are you going to be my diligent little

    driver?¡±

    ¡°Well, I was worried you would overthink the appointment I¡¯m supposed to have. Hence, I decided to

    spend some time with you instead.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ indifference and change in behavior made Skr wonder if the painkillers had set him off,

    somehow.

    Usually, Tobias did not mind her quips. Could it be that I had done something wrong, and it made Tobias

    feel like he was going through some kind of crisis? That seemed even more unlikely.

    Tobias¡¯ face was inches away from her, his breath hot and heavy. She could smell the seductive scent of

    white sandalwood that lingered on his body.Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    Slowly, her lips were captured by his in a dominant kiss. He gently sucked on her lower lips as his tongue

    probed her mouth questioningly before forcing her lips open.

    Skr tried to avoid it, but he refused to let her go. Instead, the air was filled with the heady sense of

    seduction as their breathing intertwined.

    She was afraid of being secretly photographed.

    After a while, Skr¡¯s agitation caused Tobias to pull away from the kiss, feeling dispirited. ¡°I want to kiss

    you now, but why are you so scared? Is your career more important than I am?¡±

    Skr gingerly felt his forehead with the back of her hand. No, he was not feverish and thus decided to

    compose herself in time for dinner.

    Very quickly, Skr pulled up her cor that Tobias had undone, covering her exposed skin.

    Tobias did not say a word. He found that Skr was gradually bing more difficult to control. She

    had also never mentioned the sense of security she hoped to find with him again.

    The steak they bit into was tender and juicy. It was truly worthy of such a delicate cut of meat, and the

    cooking styleplemented that well.

    Tobias noticed that Skr¡¯s table manners were more elegant than before. He recalled how she barely

    knew how to hold certain utensils properly at the beginning.

    ¡°Who taught you etiquette? The first time we had steak, you wanted to tear into it with your bare hands.¡±

    Skr smiled. ¡°Thepany arranged for this, and lessons included things like how to maintain posture,

    where to ce my hands, and whatnot. You don¡¯t seem to pay yourpany¡¯s artists much mind, do

    you?¡±

 Chapter 519

    Chapter 519

    ¡°Won¡¯t this hide your true character?¡± Tobias asked.

    She shrugged in reply. ¡°The entertainment industry doesn¡¯t need true personalities. Previously, when I

    said that Cassidy had a mental problem, it caused such a huge issue for me. Also, what is my true

    personality?¡±

    Her question stunned him. In his eyes, she was a docile little cat. However, she would asionally let

    out her sharp ws and attack others by surprise.

    Seeing that he was not answering her, Skr smiled. ¡°Look at you. You don¡¯t know much about me

    either. Take this back. I don¡¯t need it anymore.¡±

    As she spoke, she took out the ck card from her bag. Usually, she left it there for emergency uses.

    Yet, since the endorsement fee then was so huge, there was no need for such an emergency fund any

    longer.

    His gaze gradually darkened as he asked, ¡°Are you that anxious to be independent from me?¡±

    In response, she showed him the bnce in her bank ount. Although that sum of money did not

    mean much to Tobias, it was an astronomical figure to her.

    He was right. One had to find their sense of security. There¡¯s nothing more reliable than holding money in

    my own hands.

    In the end, Tobias took back the ck card. Since she no longer needed it, there was no need for him to

    be difficult about it. As it happened, it was the first time he wanted to give someone money but was

    unsessful.

    Skr then began to exin her grand n, which included buying some funds. She was familiar with

    the logic of using money to make more money. After all, other celebrities were so active in developing

    sideline businesses because they wanted more money.

    The more she talked about her business, the more she got excited. Thus, looking at her bright

    expression, Tobias could not bear to disturb her.

    The funds she had mentioned were all very popr ones at that moment. Everyone had said that they

    could make a profit without having to lose money. However, Tobias did not tell her that if she invested all

    her money, she would meet with doom as it would fall within the next month.

    She spoke for so long that her throat gradually became dry. Thus, he then poured her a ss of water

    and said, ¡°I¡¯d always thought that you regarded money like dirt. After all, you¡¯ve never bothered about

    whatever I gave you. I even gave you a card, but you also returned it to me. It turns out that you keep

    chasing after money even though your brain¡¯s not working properly. You don¡¯t seem that suitable to go

    into business.¡±

    Hearing his words, she suddenly became solemn. ¡°I¡¯m afraid of being poor. You haven¡¯t experienced

    such a thing. You probably don¡¯t know how it feels when you can¡¯t pay your tuition fees. I¡¯ve been poor

    for so many years. Back in junior high, Grandma couldn¡¯t bear to buy me underwear even though my

    body was developing during that time. So, even in summer, I had to wear a thick jacket to school. So

    don¡¯t put me down. I¡¯m very business-minded.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ tone was a little frivolous as he replied, ¡°You¡¯re as t as a washboard. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s even

    developed after junior high.¡±

    In response, she purposely straightened her posture and puffed her chest out. ¡°Are you mocking me? I

    have a perfect figure, mind you! Big breasts are a burden. I¡¯m small and delicate.¡±

    He looked at her but did not want to continue attacking her then. She was as thin as a stick, only having

    a little bit of fat on her chest and nothing else.

    ¡°I¡¯ll help you massage it more often to help with your breast ergement.¡±

    As soon as he said that, Skr turned red, and her breathing quickened. Although Tobias did help her a

    lot, it was a pity that her body would often lose weight from her chest whenever she was on a diet.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    During dinner, she noticed that Tobias did not eat much. She had eaten most of the steak, while he had

    only taken a few bites of bread.

    Whenever I eat with him, I always wonder if my appetite isrger than a man¡¯s.

 Chapter 520

    Chapter 520

    After dinner, when they got into the car, she turned to look at him. ¡°Are you full? You have such a small

    appetite. How did you even grow so tall? You weren¡¯t born in a difficult time¡­¡±

    Annoyed at her endless chattering, he interrupted her. ¡°I don¡¯t like it when people eat too much. It¡¯ll make

    their minds unclear. Only when people are hungry will their thoughts be clear.¡±

    Such a horrifying level of self-discipline made Skr speechless. No wonder they say that sessful

    people are extremely self-disciplined.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    She whispered, ¡°Is that necessary? You don¡¯t need to think about anything at night.¡±

    Tobias smiled slightly and replied, ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t you need to think? For example, what kind of posture

    should I use tonight so that you¡¯ll be morefortable.¡±

    Even in a normal chat, he misleads the conversation. Skr took out a small mirror and slowly touched

    up her lipstick. She said, ¡°Not tonight. My period¡¯s supposed toe anytime soon. The anticipation¡¯s

    killing me. I¡¯ve been under so much pressure recently that my period¡¯s already beente for over ten

    days.¡±

    He started the car and asked, ¡°Should we go to the drugstore? To get a pregnancy test kit for you.¡±

    Skr frowned. He¡¯s saying it as if this happens all the time. Hmph! He must be used to doing such a

    thing¡­

    ¡°How many women have you bought it for?¡± she asked.

    He frowned at her question. ¡°That¡¯s upsetting. I haven¡¯t bought it for anyone else. Or you can go by

    yourself, and I¡¯ll wait in the car.¡±

    She hurriedly held his arm and smiled tteringly. ¡°Don¡¯t. I¡¯m joking. Come on, why can¡¯t you take a

    joke?¡±

    In reality, she would definitely not go get a pregnancy test by herself. After all, people at the drugstore

    would surely recognize her.

    Furthermore, even if she were not a public figure, she would not go and buy one. Otherwise, it would be

    obvious that she had done something shameful.

    As she was easily embarrassed, she would not be able to stand such a thing.

    By then, Tobias had driven to a twenty-four-hour drugstore. Before getting off, he asked, ¡°What brand do

    you want?¡±

    She leaned against the window with a hopeless look in her eyes. ¡°You¡¯re talking as if I often buy it. I don¡¯t

    know what brand either.¡±

    With the ¡°what is expensive is good¡± principle prevalent in his mind, he entered the drugstore.

    A girl in a white coat was on the night shift at that moment, her eyelids heavy and looking as if she were

    about to fall asleep.

    The moment a tall, handsome man entered, her eyes brightened instantly.

    When the man entered, it was as if a gust of wind followed him as he walked. Essentially, he was the

    type of man women yearned for.

    Thus, the girl¡¯s eyes instantly flickered to him, and she stared.

    The only thing she did not like was his lips, for men with thin lips were thought to be fickle.

    However, it did not matter to her as he was such a handsome and charismatic man.

    ¡°Pregnancy test kit. I want the priciest one.¡± Yet, the moment he spoke, it broke apart all of her fantasies.

    It turned out that a fine man would always have a woman by his side.

    She took out the most expensive test kit and handed it to him. ¡°Thirty-six, please. Cash or card?¡±

    Tobias then took out some cash and gave her a single note. As he was toozy to wait for the change,

    he left the store immediately.

    Afterward, she chased him to the door and saw his car parked by the roadside. It was an Aston Martin.

    She could not help but shout, ¡°F*ck!¡±

    Narrowing her eyes, she noticed that there was another woman in the car. That woman looks familiar¡­

    she looks like Skr.

    Then, turning on her phone camera, she snapped a picture then zoomed in on the figure. Once she did,

    she immediately took in a deep breath. It is Skr!

    Immediately, she sent the picture to the employees¡¯ group chat.

 Chapter 521

    Chapter 521

    Super Beautiful Girl texted: I saw Skr and her boyfriend. His face isn¡¯t clear in the photo, but he¡¯s

    super, super handsome.

    Ari replied: Wow, it is Skr. No wonder she wanted to find out how to give birth to a son. What did her

    boyfriende to our drugstore to buy? Don¡¯t tell me it¡¯s condoms?

    Super Beautiful Girl then replied: A condom¡¯s not enough. He bought a pregnancy test kit. She¡¯s so

    poprtely, but she¡¯s already pregnant? But if I had such a boyfriend, I would too.

    Melody Davis texted: Oh my god, our drugstore¡¯s going to be famous.

    The girls continued chatting extensively in the WhatsApp group. Afterward, someone then posted a

    screenshot of the chat onto Twitter.

    The sudden news caught everyone off guard.

    Content provided by N?velDrama.Org.

    Back at her home, Skr handed the pregnancy test kit with only one bar on it to Tobias. The negative

    result gave her some relief. ¡°Everything¡¯s fine. You can rx now.¡±

    Confused, he nced at it and asked, ¡°What do you mean? Since you¡¯re not pregnant, why are you

    late?¡±

    She sighed. ¡°Maybe I¡¯m just too stressed now. I was suddenly put into this position and had suddenly

    gained so many fans. There have been so many drastic changes to my life. Such a sudden glory

    certainly needs time for me to digest.¡±

    However, he still did not understand what stress had to do with her period. He was not someone who

    understood everything, much less someone who would study up on women¡¯s matters.

    Skr pondered about her situation, nning to drink some herbal tea so that her period woulde

    sooner. If it still did not, she would start to wonder if she had an endocrine disorder. She was confused,

    for she was not married, did not have children, and had not reached menopause age either. If I do have

    menopause at such a young age, what would I do in the future?

    Furthermore, if she went to the doctors, they would prescribe her some hormone drugs. She was more

    afraid of that, for she was worried that she would gain weight after eating them. Weight gained as a

    result of eating hormonal drugs was not easy to reduce, after all.

    She had only just got down to 100 pounds and certainly did not want to gain back the weight.

    The more she contemted the situation, the deeper her frown got. Distracted, she would not have

    noticed that her phone had been ringing for quite some time if Tobias had not handed it to her.

    It was Kate. Skr felt somewhat flustered since she was calling sote. If it was nothing important, Kate

    would usually text her instead.

    As soon as she picked up the phone, Kate rambled on angrily in agitation. ¡°What¡¯s going on with you,

    Skr? I¡¯ve said so many times that you¡¯ve got to be more careful now. You said you were single, but

    you got exposed soon after. You¡¯re really too willful. How are you going to clean this mess up now? Can

    Tobias give you a name or some shares? He can¡¯t give you anything.¡±

    She could feel Kate¡¯s extreme anger through the phone.

    Skr herself did not know what was going on for Kate to question her so angrilyte at night, even

    mentioning her and Tobias.

    Thus, she replied, ¡°I was already very careful. Did someone take a photo and post it online? All I did was

    have a meal with Tobias.¡±

    Afterward, Kate asked her to see the Twitter post herself and said that since Skr could not think of

    anything, someone else would help her recall it.

    Skr then hurriedly hung up the phone and opened the Twitter app. She was first on the trending list.

    Biting her lip hard, she stood in ce as her head became nk.

    The hashtag read: #Skr¡¯s secret boyfriend revealed, buying a pregnancy testte at night, suspected

    uing good news.

    She clicked on the top post, which had a screenshot of a WhatsApp chat. There was also a picture of her

    in the car, with a blurry shot of Tobias¡¯ face.

    On the other hand, her face was clear in the picture.

    She immediately regretted her miscalction. She had thought that she was safe in the car, but it turned

    out that many eyes were constantly on her from everywhere.

 Chapter 522

    Chapter 522

    Ironically, her most recent post was her rifying that she had no boyfriend.

    It was a p to her face.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Noticing that something was up with Skr, Tobias took her phone. The screen was still on the photo

    that had been secretly taken.

    Skr¡¯s face was visibly gradually bing pale.

    She said, ¡°I¡¯m so dead. Everyone probably knows by now that I¡¯m a liar. Why did this suddenly happen?

    What should I do now?¡±

    Inparison, he replied calmly, ¡°There¡¯s nothing much to it. Let me know what you think. I¡¯m fine with

    cooperating with whatever you want.¡±

    She then sped her phone tightly, her actions betraying the extreme difort she felt in her heart.

    ¡°Cooperate with me to acknowledge this rtionship? I can¡¯t do that right now. It¡¯ll bring too much

    trouble. If your identity is exposed, they¡¯ll say that I did dirty things to marry rich¡­ Also, my previous

    public image will copse. I haven¡¯t even stabilized my position in the entertainment industry yet.¡± Since

    she knew what she wanted then, she was firm when she spoke.

    Tobias was upset by her tant despise of him. He had made it clear that even if she publicly admitted

    that they were dating, he would cooperate with her.

    It was the first time he ever took the initiative to do that for a woman.

    However, she did not even think twice before rejecting him. Am I that unweed to her?

    When met with such matters, Skr seemed to have lost her resolve. She was not in thepany then,

    so she did not have anyone to help her monitor the public¡¯s opinion.

    Thus, she could only scroll through thements by herself. She knew that Kate was probably with the

    public rtions team at that moment, working overtime to discuss countermeasures.

    They probably had not thought of a good countermeasure yet. If they had, Kate would have let her

    known by then so that she could follow instructions and cooperate.

    The user Can¡¯t Wake Upmented: It¡¯s good as long as you¡¯re happy. Blessings.

    Another user, Skr¡¯s Sweet Concubine,mented: My hopes are crushed.

    Shiyeeihmented: Hahaha, the embarrassment came too suddenly.

    Peach-vored Jellies wrote: Just a liar who doesn¡¯t even dare to admit she¡¯s dating. What a fake.

    Number Two wrote: My friend knows one of Skr¡¯s previous ssmates. She says Skr¡¯s fierce and

    tough in private. Her new man is a kept man who drives her car and stays in her vi.

    After ncing through thements, Skr eventuallyughed at the one calling Tobias a kept man.

    She said, ¡°The cost of spreading rumors nowadays is really low. As long as you say you have a friend or

    a ssmate, you can create your own story.¡±

    Tobias sat on the sofa and cupped his chin as he stared at her with a deep look in his eyes. ¡°I agree that

    it¡¯s low, but we also have to see who¡¯s the person they¡¯re spreading rumors about. Usually, for small

    news, those will be automatically blocked and won¡¯t be exposed. I¡¯ve already gotten the Twitter system to

    block a few keywords about you. Do you think that this has be such a huge issue only because of a

    few screenshots?¡±

    If he had not reminded her, Skr would really not have contemted who was the one behind

    everything.

    She sat down, frowning. ¡°There¡¯s no news from my manager. I¡¯ve been stuck on Twitter¡¯s trending list for

    quite a while. I¡¯m worried that if this continues dragging on, it¡¯ll turn into an even greater problem. They¡¯re

    all waiting for me to exin now.¡±

    Thinking that she was making a fuss, he asked, ¡°Did they photograph us kissing? Or us hugging?

    There¡¯s none of that, so what¡¯s there to be afraid of? You can say that it¡¯s a friend. Isn¡¯t it pretty normal

    for a friend to apany you to the drugstore?¡±

    Skr was getting increasingly anxious. But that¡¯s a pregnancy test kit.

    He continued helplessly, ¡°Who on earth said you had to be so honest? Besides, it wasn¡¯t even

    photographed, so technically you can just say anything.¡±

 Chapter 523

    Chapter 523

    Although she felt touched and relieved by his words, she could sense that there was something amiss.

    For some reason, he looked unhappy.

    Soon after, he carried her into the bedroom and ced her on the bed. He then seemed to vent his

    anger by biting the softest part of her body.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    Skr yelped in pain, but it was as if he did not hear it. Instead, he simply unbuckled his belt with one

    hand.

    After managing to struggle free, she asked him what he wanted to do.

    He replied that he wanted to do something a couple would do. Since he had to remain hidden in public,

    he should at least be able to do as he wishes at home.

    She did not reply that night, and the matter continued to brew on the inte. After all, she was waiting

    for instructions from the public rtions team.

    Meanwhile, Kate worked through the night with the PR team to discuss on ways toe up with a

    perfect exnation.

    As long as the matter was not handled well, Skr would bebeled as a liar forever. Furthermore, her

    phone was about to be blown up by the media, who were seeking to verify who the mysterious man was.

    Was it like what the inte said that he was Skr¡¯s boyfriend from before she debuted? The one who

    kept spending her money and relying on her, basically being a kept man?

    Amelia arrived at Royal Entertainment early in the morning the next day. Her hair was pulled into a neat

    ponytail, and she was wearing a brown suit thatplimented her figure.

    As soon as Kate saw her, she pinched the bridge of her nose and asked, ¡°Why are you here? Don¡¯t you

    have a shoot today?¡±

    Instead, Amelia took out a paper bag and replied, ¡°Kate, you definitely didn¡¯t rest well. I especially got up

    early to buy this quiche for you. Skr¡¯s also a little too irresponsible. Thepany¡¯s favoring her so

    much, but she¡¯s still so reckless. She caused the problem, but so many people are cleaning up after her.

    I didn¡¯t sleep wellst night because I was feeling sorry for you, that you had to worry so much for us.¡±

    Also angry, Kate said, ¡°What else can I do? What has happened has happened. At least you¡¯ll save me

    from worry and not cause such a scandal. Skr¡¯s young after all and can¡¯t stay calm. She can¡¯t bear

    any burdens. She just got popr but had gotten herself into such a web of mess. It¡¯s disregarding our

    good intentions and actions.¡±

    Amelia then smiled modestly and replied, ¡°Don¡¯t say that. How can Ipare to Skr? Things have

    been going so smoothly for her since she debuted. She¡¯s already been named a young talent. I just don¡¯t

    know how much of an impact this issue will have on her. Will Pretty Detective be affected by this?¡±

    Kate nced at her with a meaningful look. ¡°I don¡¯t think so. The director pointed her out to go for the

    audition.¡±

    In a worried tone, Amelia replied, ¡°But Skr doesn¡¯t really have experience, after all. These types of

    shows are usually released during the new year. Hence, I don¡¯t know if something like this will happen

    again during the filming period, up until the day it¡¯s released. I don¡¯t mean anything else, though. I¡¯m just

    a little worried. After all, I¡¯m also from Royal Entertainment and have to go through this with the

    company.¡±

    At that moment, Kate¡¯s mind was a mess. Amelia¡¯s words did make some sense. Although Skr was

    popr then, there were still many unpredictable parts in her life.

    Nopany would like such a disobedient artiste.

    The contract wrote that the artiste could not announce their rtionship without approval.

    Due to such a domineering use, thepany had broken up countless couples. Some had even been

    dating since they were in school but were forced to break up once they were signed to thepany.

    Among those artistes, there were not many whose rtionships could withstand reality.

    Acting like a couple to gain poprity, however, was different from dating.

    Yet, no one dared to break Skr up from her boyfriend. After all, even Royal Entertainment belonged to

    him.

 Chapter 524

    Chapter 524

    Amelia had to rush over to her morning photoshoot for the sportswear she was endorsing, much to her

    dissatisfaction. She felt thepany was being unfair with how they gave Skr all the good stuff while

    everyone else had to do the grunt work.

    Skr kept receiving offers for endorsements one after another for all sorts of famous brands. She even

    signed a contract with Gi for their children¡¯s collection.

    Meanwhile, the brands that Amelia endorsed were all cheap ones that few had even heard of.

    Amelia said with a smile before she left, ¡°I really envy Skr sometimes. Everyone else is working

    overtime for her sake, and yet she¡¯s sleeping in at this hour? How rude! You should take better care of

    yourself, Kate. It¡¯s not worth ruining your health by getting so worked up about it!¡±

    Kate let out a sigh. ¡°If only Skr was half as responsible as you are¡­ You know what, you should go

    audition for Pretty Detective too. The more candidates we have, the more opportunities we gain.

    Besides, I know you two very well, so it¡¯ll be a lot easier for me to manage this.¡±

    Amelia saw Skre out of a ck Mercedes-Benz when she got to the entrance of the office. She

    then waved at her as the two of them crossed paths.

    Amelia was dressed in a low-cut business suit which exposed her alluring corbones.

    Even Skr couldn¡¯t help but find Amelia¡¯s defined corbones attractive, even though the two of them

    were simr in terms of body weight.

    Of course, Skr¡¯s corbones weren¡¯tparable to hers.

    ¡°You¡¯re all over the news, Skr! Congrattions! The amount of media coverage you¡¯ve receivedst

    night far exceeds what I have throughout my entire career!¡±

    Skr shed her a smile as she said, ¡°Is that a genuinepliment I hear? Did youe to work so

    early just to congratte me?¡±

    ¡°No, Kate wanted me to try auditioning for Pretty Detective, so I came to prepare. She said she had

    already decided on the lead actress herself.¡±

    Skr frowned. I was told that I stood a 90% chance at getting the role of the lead actress, so I

    memorized the entire script for it. Amelia is saying that the candidate has already been chosen¡­

    Judging by her tone and expression, she¡¯s obviously implying that she¡¯ll be the one to get the role!

    With that in mind, she decided to not ask any further and let Amelia have the stage.

    ¡°In that case, I wish you all the best in your preparations for the role, Amelia!¡± she said confidently.

    ording to the data from thepany¡¯s Public Rtions department, a huge majority of theizens

    were alright with the decision, but very few gave their blessings.

    There were even some extreme ones who called her filthy and hurled all sorts of profanities at her. One

    of them even threatened to kill Skr if she announced her rtionship.

    Skr felt a chill down her spine when she read that and eximed, ¡°My goodness¡­ How twisted does

    a person have to be to write such horrible things?¡±

    Content provided by N?velDrama.Org.

    She then proposed a solution to the department staff, which was to deny all the ims and insist that

    they were just friends making a trip to the drugstore together.

    The staff had the same idea in mind and said, ¡°This incident will definitely affect you greatly. Don¡¯t let me

    catch you doing this again.¡±

    Skr was dressed very warmly as she didn¡¯t handle the cold as well as Amelia, who only had on a thin

    business suit.

    The moment Kate saw Skr, she exploded in anger. Right away, she stormed up to Skr and jabbed

    a finger at her as she yelled, ¡°What the hell are you doing? Don¡¯t you know to be a little more careful now

    that you¡¯re popr? Public Rtions has already sent out a statement iming that you two are just

    friends, so, please¡­ Stop letting people get pictures of you two again!¡±

 Chapter 525

    Chapter 525

    The public rtions¡¯ solution to the problem was the same as what Tobias had suggested. ¡°I don¡¯t know

    how this happened, but I will be more careful from now on to prevent it from happening again,¡± Skr

    said.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    ¡°Mr. Ford is here too. I¡¯m assuming he came because of this incident. Did you twoe here together?¡±

    Kate asked.

    Skr didn¡¯t even know that Tobias wasing over, especially since the two of them went at itst

    night.

    Tobias had left after getting a phone call earlier. I didn¡¯t think he¡¯d beat me to Royal Entertainment since

    he never really cares about thepany¡­

    ¡°Where is he? Is he in the CEO¡¯s office? I didn¡¯t know he came over too!¡± Skr asked.

    Kate lowered her voice to a whisper. ¡°I know you probably won¡¯t like what I¡¯m about to say, but I¡¯m telling

    you this for your own good. The only reliable thing in this world is your career, so don¡¯t pin your hopes on

    men! For all we know, he could be here to confront you about the incident! It¡¯s possible that he suspects

    you of working together with the person who took the picture. You know, so that you can force him into

    marrying you and gain the title as his wife. He¡¯s bound to get sick of you sooner orter if you keep this

    up, okay?¡±

    Skr frowned at how much Kate was underestimating her ce in Tobias¡¯ heart.

    ¡°He won¡¯t think of me that way. We¡¯ve been dating for a long time now, so he knows me very well!¡± she

    said confidently.

    Upon that, Kate let out a sigh in disappointment. ¡°You silly girl! He could be plotting so many things

    behind your back without you even knowing!¡±

    Keeping mum, Skr didn¡¯t know how she could convince Kate that Tobias had never lied to her.

    ¡°Why were you buying a pregnancy test kit anyway? Are you pregnant? You¡¯re done for if you get

    pregnant now! Ask yourself this, would men prefer a hot mom or a pure maiden?¡± Kate asked worriedly.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m not pregnant. I was just feeling unwell and went to buy some painkillers,¡± Skr exined

    helplessly.

    Kate wasn¡¯t sure whether to believe her words as Skr¡¯s responses often sounded neutral regardless

    of how she was feeling.

    Meanwhile, inside Valerie¡¯s office, Tobias picked up a picture of Valerie and Susan on her desk.

    It¡¯s been so many years now, and yet my two best assistants are still single? That¡¯s odd¡­ Well, not that

    it¡¯s my concern, though.

    ¡°Mr. Ford, Skr is now working as an artiste in Royal Entertainment, so you two should avoid being

    seen in public or things will be very difficult for us. Why not just marry her and make it official?¡± Valerie

    comined.

    Her courage to speak her mind was the one thing Tobias liked most about her back in the day.

    Valerie had just graduated from university and left her vige to seek a better career prospect in the city.

    Due to herck of experience in dealing with people, she had a hard time adjusting.

    Over time, she gradually learned to be more reserved around people. Apart from her picking on Skr in

    the past, Tobias found no other fault in the way she did things.

    Valerie looked at Tobias expectantly as she waited for his response.

    Truthfully speaking, she had little to no confidence in the possibility of him marrying Skr.

 Chapter 526

    Chapter 526

    ¡°I¡¯m fine with marrying her since she¡¯s been living with me for a long time now. I want you to find out who

    paid these people to spread the news. I doubt two pictures are enough to cause garner that much

    attention. Like you said, Skr is an artiste in ourpany, so I shouldn¡¯t have to remind you of what to

    do.¡±

    Tobias cares about Skr more and more with each passing day¡­ Valerie lowered her gaze in

    disappointment and nodded. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve had someone look into itst night, but it will take some time.¡±

    Just then, Skr came in after knocking on the door, and a faint smile appeared on Tobias¡¯ otherwise

    expressionless face when he saw her. ¡°Wow, it hasn¡¯t even been thirty minutes since I arrived and you

    already know where to find me?¡±

    Despite being incredibly unhappy to see her, Valerie had no choice but to forcefully maintain a smile in

    front of Tobias.

    ¡°I¡¯m not interrupting you two, am I? I came here looking for Ms. Fey. Kate said I should exin everything

    to her so the higher-ups wouldn¡¯t lose faith in me,¡± Skr said.

    She needs Kate to remind her of such simple things? What on earth even goes on in that tiny little head

    of hers? Does that mean she wouldn¡¯t have thought ofing to exin herself if Kate didn¡¯t tell her to?

    I can¡¯t believe it¡­ She¡¯s actually acting like she¡¯s Tobias¡¯ wife! Valerie thought to herself in disdain, but

    kept her tone calm and professional as she spoke, ¡°Mr. Ford has told me everything. All I can say is you

    mustn¡¯t let that happen again, especially since you¡¯re so close to winning the Golden Eagle Goddess

    award. You currently rank second ording to the votes.¡±

    ¡°I need over three million more votes to beat Sophia. Her votes are twice as much as mine, so it¡¯s pretty

    much over for me,¡± Skr replied.

    Valerie sneered. She¡¯s intentionally mentioning the vote count in front of Tobias? What a pretentious

    b*tch! Does she want that award so badly that she would whine about it to Tobias just because the

    company doesn¡¯t intend on giving her a boost with the votes?

    ¡°Seeing as the difference is that huge, why don¡¯t you just give up on it? Why bother concerning yourself

    with something that you know won¡¯t end well?¡± Tobias asked calmly.

    Valerie almost burst outughing when she heard that. Oh my god! Awkward!

    Tobias had basically spoken Skr¡¯s mind with what he said. She didn¡¯t want topete with Sophia

    whose poprity was the highest in the entertainment industry. Given how loyal Sophia¡¯s fans were,

    Skr would only worsen things for herself if she tried to boost her votes.

    Having said what she came to say, Skr decided to leave Valerie and Tobias alone. She saw the way

    Valerie looked at Tobias, and it was as if she wanted to strip him naked right then and there.

    However, Tobias followed her out of the office, and Valerie¡¯s n to have breakfast with him was ruined

    just like that.

    I can¡¯t believe Tobias took the trouble ofing all the way here just because he¡¯s worried that I would

    pick on her¡­ Talk about being overprotective¡­ Valerie thought to herself as she watched them leave.

    ¡°I¡¯ve taken care of things, so you¡¯re safe now!¡± Skr said half-jokingly.

    Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    Tobias asked seriously, ¡°Why me?¡±

    Skr felt confused as she figured he was the one who wished to keep their rtionship a secret from

    the public.

    ¡°Never mind! So, why are you so free today? I usually don¡¯t see you around here for months on end!¡±

    she asked with a smile.

    Tobias wasn¡¯t sure if she was ying dumb or actually ignorant to the fact that he hade just to help

    her out.

 Chapter 527

    Chapter 527

    A figure suddenly appeared before them as they turned a corner in the corridor, and Tobias wasn¡¯t able

    to step out of the way in time. As a result, he ended up with a huge cup of coffee being spilled all over his

    suit.

    The air was instantly filled with the fragrant aroma of the coffee, and both of them stared wide-eyed at

    the woman before them.

    As she was frantically retrieving some paper towels from her handbag, Skr recognized her as Molly

    Zimmer, a trainee at thepany who was about the same age as her.

    Molly was her neighbor during her childhood days. Her dad started up a hotel after resigning from his

    factory job, and they moved out of the old house when he expanded his business.

    That wealth was the main reason she could afford to be a trainee at thepany as the

    registration fee and uniform cost a bomb.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t see where I was going¡­ This suit must be really expensive, right? I¡¯ll pay for the

    cleaning!¡± Molly mumbled apologetically and tried to wipe the coffee off him.

    Tobias frowned at the sight of his sleeve that waspletely drenched. ¡°That won¡¯t be necessary.¡±

    Right then, Molly exchanged nces with Skr and seemed extremely nervous from how pale her

    knuckles were as she gripped her arm tightly.

    Tobias then leaned so close toward Skr that she could feel his warm breath on her ear as he

    whispered something into it.

    It was unclear what he said, but Skr simply waved goodbye and excused herself after that.

    Tobias walked away momentster, leaving Molly rooted to the spot with her hand held against her

    chest. She was so flustered that it took her quite a while to calm herself down.

    Skr and Molly barely had any time to chat as the former had debuted while thetter was busy

    preparing for her own debut.

    Since childhood, Molly had always been dolled up like a princess with fancy dresses and pretty

    essories.

    Skr, on the other hand, looked like a tomboy with her short hair and dirty old clothes.

    As a result, she used to envy Molly growing up and even saved up money to buy a hair straightener so

    her hair would look better.

    Molly wrapped her arms around Skr¡¯s the moment she entered her office, eager to share her

    experience earlier.

    ¡°When will you be making your debut? I didn¡¯t even know you were a trainee here until a few days ago,¡±

    Skr asked.

    ¡°Given how popr you¡¯ve gotten, it¡¯s only natural that you wouldn¡¯t pay attention to us trainees. Anyway,

    I¡¯ve still got a long way to go before my debut. I spend every day practicing my dance routines, and they

    wouldn¡¯t even let us use ourputers at all! We¡¯re only allowed to use our phones at night, and I have

    to sneak my way through security just to enjoy a cup of coffee! Man, this sure is hellish!¡± Molly replied.

    That was when Skr understood why Molly looked like she was afraid of being caught with the cup of

    coffee earlier.

    Thepany was extremely strict with the trainees when it came to maintaining their body weight. They

    had to be weighed every day, and female trainees weren¡¯t allowed to exceed a hundred pounds, or their

    debut would be postponed.

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    It was very tough being an artist in this era where people glorified skinny body figures.

    The two of them added each other on social media after another brief exchange.

    ¡°It¡¯s been way too long since west saw each other. I remember you being the only one in ss without

    a phone back then, and you would always watch from the side whenever others were ying with their

    phones!¡± Molly said.

    Skr went silent upon hearing that casual remark as she didn¡¯t want to recall the harsh life she went

    through in the past.

    Upon returning to the dance studio, Molly told Cassandra excitedly, ¡°I¡¯ve just added Skr on Instagram!

    See, I told you we know each other! Skr and I used to be neighbors! Now, do you believe me?¡±

 Chapter 528

    Chapter 528

    ¡°I heard that the management was pissed about Skr getting her picture taken. Does she have a

    boyfriend or not? Why is she being so secretive about it?¡± Cassandra asked after seeing a lot of Skr¡¯s

    selfies on Molly¡¯s phone.

    That was when Molly remembered the handsome guy that was standing next to Skr earlier.

    Word on the inte is that Skr has a kept man¡­ If he really is a kept man, then he¡¯s got some guts

    showing up at thepany like that!

    The door to the dance studio was opened, and the trainees stood up immediately when they saw Winnie

    enter.

    None of them dared sit down until Winnie did as they had to show her respect for being their senior as

    well as Sheldon Ford¡¯s fianc¨¦e.

    Winnie shot the trainees a cold re and said disdainfully, ¡°The entertainment industry sure is scraping

    the bottom of the barrel these days¡­ I don¡¯t understand how they even made it in with such ugly faces!¡±

    None of the trainees dared say a word in retaliation.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was still wearing his suit with the huge coffee stain on it as he drove toward his office.

    He hated how sticky it felt, but he didn¡¯t really have the time to get changed.

    He received a call along the way and put it on speaker mode when he saw that it was Skr. ¡°I¡¯m driving

    right now. Whatever it is will have to wait till I get to my office.¡±

    ¡°Are you seriously going to attend meetings with your clothes like that? Wouldn¡¯t it affect your image in

    thepany?¡± Skr asked worriedly.

    I told her I¡¯m driving, so why isn¡¯t she hanging up yet? Is she so immature that she can¡¯t even take a

    simple hint like this? With that in mind, Tobias hung up the phone and carried on driving.

    Upon reaching, he saw Idania standing in front of him with a folder in her hands as he got out of his car

    in the parking lot.

    How long has she been waiting there? Still as persistent as always, I see¡­

    ¡°What are you doing waiting outside my office building on a Tuesday? Aren¡¯t you supposed to be

    working? I told you to contact my people in the investment management department instead ofing to

    me directly, didn¡¯t I?¡± he asked.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    Idania shook her head. ¡°The people in that department of yours aren¡¯t very friendly. They were being

    judgmental and said my proposal was worthless.¡±

    Tobias let out a sigh when he saw how dejected she looked. ¡°All right,e with me¡­ I know you won¡¯t

    give up unless I make it very clear to you anyway.¡±

    Sheldon was waiting in Tobias¡¯ office and saw him return with Idania following closely behind.

    ¡°Oh, my god! It¡¯s been so many years since Ist saw you! Look how much you¡¯ve grown!¡± Idania

    eximed in joy when she saw Sheldon, much to his chagrin.

    What does she mean by that? I¡¯m not a kid! In fact, the difference in our age isn¡¯t even that huge!

    Sheldon took a nce at Tobias but couldn¡¯t tell what was going through his mind from his expression

    alone, nor did he know how Skr would react if she witnessed that.

    Skr is no longer the same woman she used to be now that she has risen to fame. Thanks to her pretty

    face which matches all the beauty standards that men have set for women, countless men have used

    her pictures as their wallpapers.

    Tobias then motioned to Sheldon to get out of his office. ¡°Be careful not to lose control and end up

    reigniting that old spark with her, okay?¡± he whispered on his way out.

 Chapter 529

    Chapter 529

    Tobias shot him a cold re in response, prompting Sheldon to hold a hand over his mouth as he ran off.

    With only Tobias and Idania left in the office, the awkward silence between them made the atmosphere

    thick with tension.

    Instead of showing Tobias the documents, Idania carefully retrieved a red velvet box from her handbag.

    The box looked a little dirty and darker in color from how old it was.

    She then opened the box in front of him, revealing a pair of rings inside. They were simple and elegant in

    design without any additional embellishments nor patterns on them.

    Tobias frowned at her as he found the rings rather familiar.

    Idania shed him a bitter smile and said, ¡°The other reason behind my visit today is to return these rings

    to you. We were going to put them on for our marriage back then, but I don¡¯t think they are of any use to

    me now. You should hand it over to the woman worthy of wearing it.¡±

    Tobias took the box over and examined the rings inside. Both of their names could be found engraved on

    the inside of the ring.

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    He then closed the box with a loud snap and handed it back to her.

    ¡°I gave it to you as a gift back then, so you have the right to do whatever you want with this. Feel free to

    throw them away if you don¡¯t want to keep them. I have no use for them anyway.¡±

    Idania felt hurt by his cold attitude and protested anxiously, ¡°B-But this is different! These are wedding

    rings, and they hold a different meaning as opposed to engagement rings! I can¡¯t be keeping our

    wedding rings now that you¡¯ve got yourself a girlfriend! That¡¯d be unfair for her! You should give this to

    her instead!¡±

    Tobias frowned before breaking into a sarcastic chuckle. ¡°How will she wear it if it isn¡¯t even her size?

    Why are you returning these rings to me now? Are you trying to remind me that I nearly married you

    back then? Take them away. My girlfriend wouldn¡¯t want used goods anyway!¡±

    Idania¡¯s gaze fell upon the pair of rings upon hearing that. Overwhelmed by emotions, her legs gave way

    and caused her to slump against the sofa in front of him.

    ¡°Are you still mad at me for leaving without saying goodbye back then? I had my reasons for doing that!

    You have no idea how sad I was when I left! It could very well be the thing I regret doing the most in life!¡±

    she shouted with a mncholic look in her eyes.

    If she¡¯s looking for someone who loves living in the past, then she¡¯s definitelye to the wrong

    person¡­ Tobias thought to himself as he stared at her.

    ¡°Everyone has their own difficult problems to deal with. I felt nothing when you left back then, and I have

    done nothing to wrong you either, so I hold no grudges against you whatsoever.¡±

    Idania bit down on her lip as her eyes began to tear up. She then whipped out a kraft paper bag from her

    handbag and seemed to havee prepared.

    She had been feeling extremely ufortable ever since she saw the news about Skr yesterday.

    Although the man¡¯s face wasn¡¯t clearly shown in the pictures, she was able to figure out that it must have

    been Tobias.

    That was when she knew she couldn¡¯t just sit around idly anymore. She knew full well what she wanted

    as well as why she had returned. As someone who never admitted defeat, going all out to achieve her

    goals was all she could do.

    Having spent such a long time with Tobias in the past, she understood him very well. Despite being a

    cold and decisive person on the outside, he had a soft spot for women and would easily take pity on

    them.

    That was exactly what happened between him and Skr, as her tragic past aroused his desire to

    protect and care for her.

    Idania took a deep breath and mustered every ounce of courage she had in her as she said, ¡°I left you

    back then because I was sick, and I didn¡¯t want to be a burden to you. I thought I¡¯d get myself treated

    and reappear before you in good health, but¡­ Unfortunately, life seems to hate me, and my sickness

    has rpsed.¡±

 Chapter 530

    Chapter 530

    Inside the folder was a thick stack of Idania¡¯s medical records.

    Idania raised her eyebrows in surprise, her eyes filling with tears with almost perfect timing.

    ¡°Where¡¯s your family?¡± Tobias asked, his tone softer than before. ¡°You should inform them about this as

    soon as possible.¡±

    Shaking her head, she replied, ¡°I don¡¯t have any family left. I¡¯m probably going to end up dying all alone

    at home with no one to ever discover my rotting corpse.¡±

    Both of her parents were simplebor workers, and her father was an alcoholic who would take his anger

    out on his wife and daughter when he was drunk. Tobias was well aware of all of this.

    Thest page of Idania¡¯s medical report stated that she was diagnosed with stage three of recurrent

    breast cancer.

    Idania nced over at Tobias, but she couldn¡¯t tell what was going on in his mind.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me,¡± she said with a bright smile, taking the initiative to break the silence. ¡°Now the

    mood¡¯s gone all bad. I¡¯d only meant toe here to talk about work with you and return the ring; I never

    expected for this topic to be brought up.¡±

    Tobias sighed internally. You were the one who brought the medical records with you though¡­

    ¡°Well, we did date in the past. I¡¯m not going to just sit by and do nothing. You can take your hands off the

    project and focus on regaining your health back. It wouldn¡¯t do you any good to keep working in this

    condition.¡±

    Idania opened her mouth as if to say something, then seemed to have second thoughts and closed it

    again. After a brief pause, she hesitantly probed, ¡°I don¡¯t have any rtives here, nor do I have any

    friends. If you have time to spare, could you apany me for a while longer? I really do feel very

    lonely, and who knows how much longer I have left to live? I didn¡¯t even get to marry someone before I

    die.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll try,¡± the man answered vaguely. ¡°Don¡¯t say such things. As long as you¡¯re still alive, you still have a

    chance at recovery.¡±

    After the whole ¡°pregnancy test¡± incident, Skr had her first public appearance at a business event as

    Gi¡¯s newest brand spokesperson.

    The event started at eight in the morning, but fans filled up the venue before that in hopes of getting a

    glimpse of her.

    This came as a surprise to both Skr and the event organizers, who had to scramble to hire extra

    security guards.

    Skr eventually appeared in front of everyone dressed in casual clothing from Gi¡¯s newest Fairytale

    collection, causing her fans to erupt in deafening cheers and screams.

    Stuck in the middle of the crowd of fans, Idania stared up at the screen that disyed and emphasized

    Skr¡¯s beauty. Her heart squeezed painfully inside her chest.

    She and Skr shared simr-looking eyebrows. Everyone around Idania constantlymented that

    she resembled Skr, and strangers would evenment on the simrity under selfies that her friends

    took with her.

    She was starting to wonder whether Tobias was merely dating Skr because she looked like the past

    Idania.

    ¡°You see? This is everything Tobias gave her,¡± Avery scoffed, wearing sunsses and a baseball cap as

    she stood next to Idania. ¡°The early bird might get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese. I

    feel so sorry for you, Idania.¡±

    Meeting Avery at a banquet had been aplete coincidence.

    Avery only found out that Idania was Tobias¡¯ ex-girlfriend after exchanging numbers with her at the

    banquet. The woman then started aggressively pursuing a friendship with her. Of course, Idania knew

    what Avery was truly after. The two of them entered a mutually beneficial alliance where they each

    nned on using each other for their own selfish intentions.

    Content provided by N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Who cares? It¡¯s not as if Tobias bought her fame.¡± Idania rolled her eyes. From her point of view, no one

    could ever rece her spot in Tobias¡¯ heart.

 Chapter 531

    Chapter 531

    Avery smirked. ¡°You can¡¯t underestimate my big sister too much. She¡¯s got a lot of tricks up her sleeve,

    and they¡¯re going to get married sooner orter. You better seize the chance while you still have it,

    Idania. I¡¯ll even help out if you need me to.¡±

    ¡°No thanks.¡± Idania rolled her eyes, ignoring Avery¡¯s quip. ¡°I know what I should do. I¡¯m Tobias¡¯ biggest

    weakness. I know he¡¯s still not over me. You wanna know why he hasn¡¯t changed his phone number all

    these years? It¡¯s because he¡¯s been waiting for me to get back in touch with him.¡±

    On stage, Skr was enjoying a mini meet-and-greet with her fans. Every candid picture captured of her

    could be used as the cover of a mour magazine.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    ¡°I heard that you¡¯ve liked this brand ever since you were a student, Skr!¡± the host said. ¡°How did you

    feel when they approached you to be a spokesperson for the brand?¡±

    The woman on stage¡¯s smile stiffened for the briefest moment. This host had not done their homework:

    she had been too broke to afford to buy Gi knockoffs as a student, let alone buy any original items

    from the brand.

    ¡°I was very excited when I found out!¡± she replied instead. ¡°Gi has always been one of my favorite

    brands. It¡¯s just that it was out of my league when I was a student, you know? I couldn¡¯t afford it back

    then, so I made it my goal to one day be able to afford it. I remember telling myself that when I grew up, I

    had to buy some clothes from the brand for myself.¡±

    ¡°Fortunately, our prices are all very reasonable, and your dream was easily achieved, no?¡±

    Skrughed awkwardly, her mouth suddenly dry. Gi¡¯s prices were the farthest thing from

    ¡°reasonable.¡±

    At that remark, Avery rolled her eyes. ¡°What a joke. She couldn¡¯t even afford to buy a pair of Anta shoes

    back then, let alone Gi ones.¡±

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t afford to buy Gi back then either,¡± Idaniamented absentmindedly. ¡°Everything branded

    I owned were gifts from Tobias. I think he has some sort of obsession with poor girls, and that¡¯s why he¡¯s

    so infatuated with Skr. He wants to use her as a recement for me.¡±

    Avery kept mum, unsure of how to respond to thatment. Sure, Idania was very confident, but¡­

    When was Idania finally going to steal Tobias away from Skr?

    Skr would be much easier to deal with without that man supporting her, and it would be much easier

    for Avery to steal everything away from Skr and make her pay the price for insulting her.

    After being notified that Skr was scheduled to make an appearance at one of his affiliated shopping

    malls, Tobias took some time out of his schedule to go and visit her.

    He was taken aback when he saw swarms of fans crowding the mall to the point where they were

    hindering business for the other shops on the premises.

    ¡°Since when did Skr be so popr?¡± he asked Susan. ¡°Did these people alle to see her?¡±

    ¡°Empyrean Sword has absolutely exploded in poprity,¡± Susanughed. ¡°Even the little boy living next

    door to me called Skr a ¡®prettydy.¡¯ Weren¡¯t you aware of this before, Mr. Ford?¡±

    Tobias wasn¡¯t. When he scanned over the crowd, he noticed that it was made up of mostly men, their

    gazes trained on his girlfriend on stage.

    He and Susan did their best to push through the crowd and get a spot as near the stage as possible.

    ¡°Skr has really gotten much prettier from when Ist saw her in a big, loose shirt at her school

    dormitory,¡± Susan remarked. ¡°Royal Entertainment did a great job cleaning her up.¡±

    Tobias preferred the Skr from back then. Now, there was a constant, nagging feeling of fear that she

    was growing further and further away from him.

    Skr was halfway through the mini meet-and-greet with her fans, and her cheeks were starting to

    cramp from the smile she was forcing.

    Suddenly, arge figure lunged towards her.

    Before she realized what was happening, someone wrapped their arms around her, and she screamed.

 Chapter 532

    Chapter 532

    A bulky, bald man had broken past the security line and picked her up as easily as he would pick up a

    baby chick. He pressed his puckered lips onto Skr¡¯s face.

    In the midst of all this chaos, Avery nearly doubled over withughter. ¡°See? I told you there¡¯d be a good

    show today! Tobias must be fuming over his girlfriend getting forcibly kissed by someone like that in front

    of so many people!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re such a tease, Avery.¡± Idania hid her chuckle behind a hand. ¡°You can¡¯t do this next time.¡±

    ¡°Look at her face! It¡¯s all contorted with disgust! She looks horrendous,¡± howled Avery, wiping her tears

    away with one hand.

    Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Elsewhere, Tobias was watching everything happen with a dark expression on his face.

    Chills ran down Susan¡¯s spine when she felt a murderous aura emanate off of him.

    All she could do was pray for Skr¡¯s wellbeing. The woman was a victim in this situation, but there was

    no way Tobias was going to let her off the hook so easily.

    Skr, still in shock, watched as the overweight man was dragged off the stage by several bodyguards.

    Taking several deep breaths to calm herself down, she took a tissue and wiped her face, but her smile

    from before was no longer present.

    She took a sip of her water and swallowed her disgust back down. God, I want to go home and take a

    shower. I want to forget that all of this ever happened.

    However, she put on a bright smile and saw the event through until the very end.

    Afterward, she was escorted back into her car with the help of several additional security guards. She

    couldn¡¯t find the strength in her to muster even a nce at any of her fans, no matter how hard they were

    trying to get her attention.

    Once the car doors were closed, the first thing Skr did was pull out a pack of wet tissues and rub her

    face fiercely.

    She vaguely registered Kate going on and on angrily about how the security guards at the mall were all

    useless. She rambled about the consequences that could have urred if the man had been holding a

    knife, and so on and so on.

    ¡°These are some things you¡¯ll have to get used to as a celebrity,¡± sheforted Skr. ¡°Don¡¯t dwell on it

    too much or develop any sort of trauma because of this, okay?¡±

    It was toote for that; the memory of that man rushing towards her shed in Skr¡¯s mind whenever

    she closed her eyes. ¡°That was sickening. How could so many security guards fail to stop just one

    person? I swear I¡¯m nevering back here. God, I think his body odor transferred onto me.¡±

    Kate furrowed her eyebrows. ¡°Do you know whose mall this is?¡±

    ¡°Who cares? I don¡¯t want toe back here.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a mall registered under the Ford Group. Tobias is the big boss of this ce. Don¡¯t be too stubborn,

    alright? Besides, photos of the incident are already on the inte, and that guy should have already

    been arrested.¡±

    Skr did a double-take. It was just her luck that Tobias was somehow involved in this mess as well.

    ¡°The Ford Group has nothing to do with me. It will never have anything to do with me,¡± she huffed. ¡°I¡¯m

    going to go home and scrub at my skin until I¡¯mpletely exfoliated. Maybe I should take a bath as

    well¡­¡±

    Kate knew Skr was a smart girl who usually saw the big picture. That was why she was surprised to

    learn that thetter was not considering marrying into the Ford family.

    After all, marrying Tobias was the dream of countless female celebrities.

 Chapter 533

    Chapter 533

    She tried to give Skr some advice. Besides, the incident was likely only going to make headlines for

    today; it would quickly be forgotten by the public sooner orter. When people searched up pictures of

    the incident, the gorgeous candid pictures her fans took of her would likely also appear in the search

    results.

    All of the security workers stationed at the event that day were called to the Ford Group headquarters.

    With their lowly positions, they would usually never be able to take a single step into this building if it

    weren¡¯t for thepany having specifically requested their presence there.

    All the security guards stood in one line in the conference room,pletely clueless as to why they¡¯d

    been summoned. After a moment, the door to the room suddenly opened.

    All eyes instantly focused on the person standing in the doorway, whom the security detail leader

    immediately recognized as Tobias.

    He stepped forward and bowed clumsily. ¡°Good morning, Mr. Ford!¡±

    Tobias had a scarily gloomy look on his face as he took a seat at the head of the table while everyone

    else remained standing, waiting with baited breaths for what he had to say.

    ¡°Why was no one able to stop that man from rushing onto stage today?¡± Tobias spoke up, his tone as

    cold as ice. ¡°Why was this incident allowed to happen?¡±

    Content provided by N?velDrama.Org.

    The leader didn¡¯t understand why Tobias would suddenly bring this up.

    Lots of celebrities made appearances at the mall, and simr incidents with other crazy fans were

    common urrences. What was so different this time that they had all been ordered here?

    The leader gave Tobias a brief overview of the situation at the mall, begrudgingly admitting that he had

    made some mistakes that led to the incident.

    Tobias was quiet for a minute before he said, ¡°All of you don¡¯t need toe back to work tomorrow. If

    you can¡¯t handle a sudden emergency like this, you might as well not get the chance to handle it at all.

    The Ford Group doesn¡¯t need useless guards like you lot.¡±

    He had been suppressing his anger throughout the drive to hispany, repeatedly reminding himself to

    not get angry at Skr. None of this was her fault.

    Upon hearing that they were all getting fired, the group of security guards broke out into a panic,

    hurriedly exining how much they needed the job and how they had to support their families.

    Unfortunately for them, there wasn¡¯t a shred of empathy left in Tobias¡¯ heart; he didn¡¯t want to see them

    for a second longer.

    Back at home, Avery was watching the video of the ident at the mall over and over again,ughing to

    herself. Her mind was filled with various schemes and plots to get back at Skr from her hiding spot

    within the shadows.

    Hayden also took a look at the video, reminding Avery, ¡°You have to be careful not to rock the boat. If

    you slip up and mess things up, that¡¯ll be on you.¡±

    ¡°Since when did you be such a coward, Hayden?¡± She nudged him with her elbow. ¡°This is all a

    necessary part of my big n. Dad and Mom wouldn¡¯t have ended up this way if it weren¡¯t for Avery, and

    neither would I have ended up jobless. You¡¯re the man of the family; you should be standing up for us!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t need you to tell me that. You remember Skr¡¯s teen cousin, don¡¯t you?¡± A smirk appeared on

    Hayden¡¯s face. ¡°He¡¯s in his rebellious phase, and I spotted him skipping school to bet on racecars. Not

    only did he lose all his pocket money, but he even borrowed money from other people to continue

    betting¡­ He ended up losing several thousand in one night.¡±

    Avery was lost in thought for a moment. She knew Skr¡¯s uncle and aunt were greedy little snakes; if

    anything happened to their darling son, they would most definitely drag Skr into their mess and make

    her pay back the money he¡¯d lost.

    Regardless of however popr Skr had gotten, she was still the Watts¡¯ family¡¯s cash cow. Skr was

    apparently also quite close with Kevin.

    No one would have expected Kevin, with his studious personality and innocent appearance, to be

    addicted to gambling at such a young age.

    If Skr didn¡¯t get involved soon, the media might dig up this story and use her of abandoning her

    family when they were in need, causing irreversible damage to her reputation.

    Avery and Hayden both shared a knowing, meaningful look.

 Chapter 534

    Chapter 534

    Irene descended the stairs, her face as pale as a ghost. The mere sight of her was depressing.

    Ever since Thomas had divorced her, the woman had be a shell of a person, barely taking a step

    out of the house. The only time she seemed to regain energy was when she grew aggravated at the

    sight of Skr on TV. She wanted to smash the electronic device into pieces.

    Avery got up and helped Irene sit down on the couch. ¡°You still haven¡¯t heard anything from Dad?¡± She¡¯d

    never once seen Thomas after the divorce.

    Irene¡¯s eye twitched in annoyance. ¡°He has no right toe back here. Let him spend the rest of his life

    with that witch of a woman and her daughter for all I care. Our house no longer wees him.¡±

    Avery was upset that her parents were still having a cold war with each other. That being said, she didn¡¯t

    harbor any pity towards Thomas; he had been the one to push their once happy family to the brink of

    falling apart.

    Why is he so biased towards Skr? I was the one who¡¯s been his precious, spoilt princess since young!

    Skr lost track of time in the bathroom; her mind solely focused on repeatedly scrubbing soap all over

    her body.

    That had been her first time being so ¡°intimate¡± with such an ugly guy, and she prayed that it would be

    herst. She¡¯d never felt so humiliated before.

    She could hear Madelyn happily greeting Tobias downstairs as she slipped a bathrobe on without

    bothering to tie the ribbon together, letting it hang off of her frame.

    Skr had gotten into the habit of not wearing underwear when around Tobias.

    She¡¯d always hated the constricting feeling of wearing bras, and used to only wear a cotton undershirt

    under her clothes before her debut as a celebrity.

    Drinking in the sight of the woman before him, Tobias spoke up, ¡°Get changed. I¡¯m taking you

    somewhere.¡±

    It was raining outside, and her hair was still dripping wet from the shower she¡¯d just taken. Her legs were

    tired and sore from having stood on stage all day, and the back of her ankles had blisters.

    Do the designers for these big brands think that women have no bones in their feet or something? Their

    shoes are horrible to wear.

    ¡°But it¡¯s gettingte,¡± Skr pointed out. ¡°I just want to rest at home.¡±

    When Tobias reached up to touch Skr¡¯s flushed face, she unconsciously took a few steps back.

    Just the mere motion of someone moving to touch her made her recall the greasy fat guy from the

    morning and caused her to taste bile in her mouth.

    ¡°I¡¯ll drive you there. It¡¯s not like the rain is going to bother us that much.¡±

    Sighing, Skr eventually caved and agreed, worried that Tobias would think she was being

    unappreciative of his kindness.

    How she wished she could be as impulsive as any other ordinary girl and have the freedom to reject his

    advances whenever she wanted.

    When she put on her clothes and went downstairs, she couldn¡¯t find Tobias anywhere. ¡°Mr. Ford went out

    to start the car up,¡± Madelyn informed her. ¡°Perhaps he was worried that it would be too cold for you and

    wanted to start the heater up in advance. How kind of him!¡±Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    Skr honestly didn¡¯t know what Madelyn saw in Tobias, nor why the woman constantly praised him

    whenever he came up in their conversations.

    It felt weirdly like a mother-inw slowly warming up to her future son-inw.

    Skr needed a moment to getfortable after stepping into the car that protected her from the cold

    wind and harsh rain outside.

    If it weren¡¯t for him, I¡¯d be tucked into bed and sleeping soundly right now.

    Afterst time¡¯s lesson, Skr now remembered to put on her sunsses when she went out.

    ¡°What¡¯s with the sunsses?¡± Tobias joked. ¡°Are you pretending to be a legally blind person?¡±

    They soon arrived at his house, not far from the Fords¡¯ old residence.

    He had only brought her here once all throughout the duration of their entire rtionship.

 Chapter 535

    Chapter 535

    Remembering Tobias¡¯ obsession with cleanliness, Skr cleaned the soles of her shoes before entering

    the house.

    When they were inside, the man went to the bathroom to retrieve a warm towel for her. She received it

    and bent down, ready to wipe her shoes off when he suddenly said, ¡°That¡¯s for your hair and face. You

    got wet after getting down from the car, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    After a moment of hesitation, she reached up and used the towel to dry her hair off, hanging it back in

    the bathroom once she was done.

    Her gaze fell upon the toilet. The cover was open, and there were no feminine products by the

    washbasin. Everything that was there was all arranged neatly.

    Knock, knock.

    Skr quicklyposed herself and opened the door, greeting Tobias with a smile. ¡°You did a good job

    at cleaning up the bathroom.¡±

    She didn¡¯t say anything more, but he knew she¡¯d stayed so long in there to check if there were any

    traces of another woman¡¯s presence.

    He led her to the dining room, where she cautiously took a seat down at the table. She felt weirdly antsy

    and not asfortable as she was with Madelyn.

    Opening the kitchen refrigerator, he took out a box and ced it on the table in front of Skr, who

    merely stared nkly out the window and didn¡¯t seem to notice at all.

    Is she still thinking about the incident from this morning?

    The pictures of that ident would likelye up in future web searches of ¡°crazy fan behavior,¡± and

    the story would never beid to rest.

    It was only when Tobias called her name once more that Skr snapped back to reality.

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    Why did Tobias bring me here? He has to know about what happened at the mall today. Why didn¡¯t he

    ask about it or offer any words of reassurance?

    She watched as he opened up the box, revealing the medium-sized cake inside with a ¡°twenty-two¡±-

    shaped candle perched on top of it.

    Oh. She¡¯dpletely forgotten today was her real birthday.

    She¡¯d once briefly mentioned to Tobias that the birthdate on her identity card and her real birthdate was

    different. When registering for the card, she had altered her birthdate to be several months earlier than

    the real date so that she could apply for school early.

    Back then, government background checks hadn¡¯t been as strict, so she hadn¡¯t needed any sort of

    connections to do so. It came as a surprise to her that Tobias still remembered this fact.

    The dark forest chocte cake was clearly an afterthought of his that had possibly been randomly

    bought off a bakery on the street. It wasn¡¯t properly decorated, nor did it look very appetizing.

    He¡¯d likely realizedst second that today was her birthday. After all, she¡¯d forgotten all about it as well.

    Skr had never been one to ce much importance on birthdays ever since she was a child. Her

    grandma would cook a simple dinner for her to celebrate, but that was about it.

    No one else celebrated her birthday, and no one else other than her grandma remembered the actual

    date.

    Skr wrapped her arms around Tobias¡¯ waist, burying her face into his chest and taking in the familiar

    scent of white sandalwood.

    Her vision blurring with tears, she told him, ¡°You¡¯re too nice to me. I didn¡¯t think you¡¯d remember my

    birthday. The cake is a little small, though.¡±

    He gently ran a hand through her hair. ¡°I thought you were on a diet. You wouldn¡¯t be able to finish it all if

    I¡¯d bought arger cake anyway, so I figured a small one would do.¡±

    Skr pouted, moved by how considerate he was being towards her. ¡°Did you get me a birthday gift too?

    Or a card at least?¡±

    She instantly deted when she saw him pull a long, thin rectangle-shaped box out from his suit pocket.

    If it had been a square-shaped box, she could have at least hoped for a ring.

    A Swarovski neid inside the box, and she rubbed at her eyes before holding it up close to

    inspect it.

    It wasn¡¯t that she had expensive taste, but she was surprised to see Tobias gift something that only cost

    several hundred. The ude M he¡¯d gifted herst time nearly cost ten million.

 Chapter 536

    Chapter 536

    Skr stared up at him in a daze, clutching the ne in her hand. If she remembered correctly, the

    price of this ne was about seven hundred when bought online.

    Thinking that she was waiting for him to put it on, Tobias reached out to take the ne from her, but

    she didn¡¯t let go of it.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    ¡°Why did you choose this brand? And why a little ck swan?¡± The blunt words finally left Skr¡¯s

    mouth. She had an inkling that Tobias had not personally picked this ne. He was the kind of

    person who thought the more expensive the gift was, the better. He would not usually even consider

    buying anything that was priced less than a thousand.

    Tobias could tell from her expression that she didn¡¯t like the gift as much as he thought she would. He¡¯d

    asked Susan to help pick the ne out, and all his secretary had told him was that the brand was

    popr amongst young people.

    He didn¡¯t know how much it had cost either; after all, it was thepany¡¯s money, and he couldn¡¯t be

    bothered to care.

    When he firstid eyes upon the ne, he hadn¡¯t been sure if it was gold or silver and didn¡¯t even like

    the pendant on it but felt like he didn¡¯t understand a young person¡¯s tastes enough to question it.

    ¡°You don¡¯t like it? I thought it suited your image; it¡¯s youthful and cute,¡± Tobias exined. He had put

    effort into preparing this gift for her and was slightly hurt that he hadn¡¯t gotten the response that he¡¯d

    been anticipating.

    Skr instantly put her acting skills to good use, a bright smile blooming across her face as she clung

    onto his arm and nuzzled him as a cat would. ¡°Of course I like it. I¡¯d love anything you give me. Help me

    put it on, would you?¡±

    After freezing for a split second, he did as she asked, clumsily fastening the ne around her neck.

    Skr could tell from his grumbling about the thin chain and tinytch that this was likely his first time

    doing such a thing.

    Then, she set about cutting the cake into slices, giving the first slice to Tobias. Sharing cake with

    someone else was one of the staples of celebrating a birthday, after all.

    Without thinking too much into it, Tobias shook his head and rejected the cake. ¡°I don¡¯t like sweet things,¡±

    he said. ¡°Plus, you won¡¯t have enough cake left over if you give some to me. You can go ahead and eat it

    all.¡±

    This birthday celebration was making Skr feel some veryplicated emotions. She once again

    reminded herself to not expect too much from him; it was good enough that he¡¯d remembered in the first

    ce. I¡¯ll just pretend he has diabetes and will get horribly sick if he eats a single bite of cake or

    something.

    Skr was nibbling away at her cake when Tobias¡¯ phone screen lit up with a push notification from a

    social media app. It was a post about the incident that had happened at the shopping mall earlier.

    Her hands trembled as they gripped tightly onto her paper te, her eyes widening as she watched him

    pick up his phone.

    Not bothering to put her cake down first, she instantly got to her feet and shot her hand out to grab ahold

    of his wrist. She didn¡¯t care if she was acting suspiciously; Tobias looking at any of the pictures or videos

    from the event today was thest thing she wanted.

    It would be a humiliating p to her face.

    The man nced at her with mirth shining in his eyes, one hand reaching up to caress the side of her

    face. ¡°What are you so nervous about? It¡¯s not like you were cheating on me. I was there, and I saw

    everything, so you don¡¯t have to exin yourself to me either. This wasn¡¯t something you could have

    prepared for¡­ It¡¯s just¡­ I now understand why my mother kept nagging and telling me she didn¡¯t like

    that your job requires you to make so many public appearances.¡± His tone was deep and sincere,

    tugging at Skr¡¯s heartstrings. ¡±To be honest, I also somewhat regret letting you stay in the

    entertainment industry to chase your own dreams. I put you in a position where you have to face so

    many risks and danger.¡±

 Chapter 537

    Chapter 537

    ¡°You regret your decision? But I can¡¯t give up my career because of you now. I¡¯ve worked so hard to get

    to where I am today.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ heart lurched to the bottom of his stomach. Skr had be someone just like him, possibly

    because he had been a bad influence on her, or maybe because they¡¯d spent too much time together.

    Skr from the past would never have answered this way. Back then, all she wanted was to pursue love;

    she never had any ns for her career or her future.

    She had sacrificed everything for her ex-boyfriend and had even been willing to give up her life for him.

    All Tobias had done was throw out a casual, curious question, and she¡¯d answered without missing a

    beat.

    Skr¡¯s breath hitched in her throat when she saw his gaze grow sharp, his expression seeming to

    darken under the dim glow of the dining room lighting.

    A moment of tense silence passed, and Tobias eventually deleted the push notification.

    It was gettingte.

    Skr hadn¡¯t brought any clothes over, nor were there any of her belongings here at Tobias¡¯ ce, so it

    would be inconvenient for her to stay the night.

    To add to that, there were no women¡¯s hygiene products in the house she could use, and she didn¡¯t want

    to leave the house the next morning looking like a mess.

    She brought this up with Tobias, exining how she had a shoot early the next day. She needed a good

    night¡¯s rest.

    However, the man had no intention of letting her leave. His grip on her waist tightened slightly, the

    warmth of his touch burning through her clothes. ¡°Are you really going to leave me all alone like this?

    Come on¡­ Stay for a while longer.¡±

    Men would say anything and everything they thought their partner wanted to hear whenever they wanted

    to have sex ¡ª the stoic, proud Tobias was no exception.

    Skr internally rolled her eyes; she knew that he wasn¡¯t physically capable of feeling lonely and always

    preferred having his own time and space.

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    His hand slowly inched down her body, settling on her thigh, where he rubbed small circles into her skin.

    ¡°What are you waiting for? Follow me upstairs. Let me give you one of the most memorable birthdays of

    your life.¡±

    The sudden sound of a phone ringing interrupted the moment. Tobias got up to answer it, his warmth

    instantly disappearing as he pulled away.

    Fiddling with her cor, she watched him walk off to one side and furrow his eyebrows, cing one hand

    on his hip in exasperation.

    ¡°Go see a doctor if you feel sick. I don¡¯t know how to nurse you back to health.¡±

    Something about the response gave her an uneasy feeling deep in her gut.

    It couldn¡¯t have been a man calling. Tobias wasn¡¯t gay, and no guy in their right mind would try to go to

    him, of all people, forfort. It had to have been a woman calling.

    The man abruptly ended the call and threw his phone somewhere,ing back to her and lifting her chin

    up so he could look into her eyes. ¡°The night is still young, and I promise to give you plenty of time to

    rest.¡±

    Skr hesitated only for a few seconds before letting him pull her upstairs.

    Elsewhere, Idania nearly threw her phone onto the floor in anger. She¡¯d gone to such lengths to pretend

    she was ill so that she could get back together with Tobias. All she got in return was coldness for her

    efforts.

    She couldn¡¯t wrap her head around how he could bear to be so cruel towards her when they used to be

    in love in the past. I¡¯m sure things would be different if it weren¡¯t for Skr.

 Chapter 538

    Chapter 538

    When she attempted to call him again, all that greeted her was a robotic voice. Idania slumped against

    the couch, staring up at the ceiling with a bitter, sarcastic smile.

    Tobias didn¡¯t care about her at all, even after she¡¯d told him that she was alone and in pain.

    He didn¡¯t care if she died or lived.

    Several hourster, Skr carefully crawled out of bed while Tobias was still asleep, aware that he was a

    light sleeper and an insomniac.

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    Heading for the bathroom, she picked up his toothbrush before setting it back down, remembering his

    OCD.

    Herplicated family background had shaped her into a sensitive people-pleaser who hated making

    other people upset.

    ¡°Remember your roots,¡± her grandma always reminded her. ¡°You don¡¯t have the luxury to be reckless or

    stubborn. You should be grateful to have clothes on your back and a roof over your head.¡±

    All those memories came flooding back to her as she stared at the reflection of the Swarovski ne

    around her neck, and she chuckled.

    She still didn¡¯t know who had picked out this ne, but she guessed that it was a woman.

    There was nothing in the bathroom that belonged to her. So, she picked up some mouthwash and

    gargled it as best as she could.

    When she went back to the bedroom, Tobias was already awake. Even in this dazed, sleepy state, he

    still looked as unapproachable and stoic as ever.

    He nced up at the clock. Why is she packing her stuff at six-fifteen in the morning¡­

    ¡°Wait for me. I¡¯ll send you,¡± he said before he yawned, pushing himself out of bed to draw the curtains.

    Tobias hated getting up early more than he hated not being able to fall asleep. After long periods of

    insomnia, he¡¯d grown to prefer sleeping for as long as he could to escape the stress of his daily life.

    ¡°I think it¡¯s better if you don¡¯t.¡± Skr pursed her lips. ¡°The pictures the paparazzi tookst time are still

    fresh in the public¡¯s minds, and I don¡¯t want to cause any more trouble for thepany.¡±

    He sighed. ¡°Are you worried about causing trouble for thepany or for yourself?¡±

    ¡°Both.¡± She busied herself with putting her hair into a neat ponytail. ¡°We share a mutually beneficial

    rtionship after all.¡±

    He decided to leave it at that. He wanted his rest too, and he knew he¡¯d be in a horrible mood all day if

    he left his bed this early in the morning.

    When he was starting up his business, he had a habit of waking up early and being able to survive on

    two or three hours of sleep daily. However, that was no longer the case.

    Skr bent down and kissed his forehead, just like how he used to kiss hers, and he hummed in

    contentment.

    He settled by the window and watched her stand outside the gates, asionally ncing down at her

    phone. It looked like she was trying to book a car from an e-hailing service.

    There¡¯s no one that¡¯sing around here at this time of the day.

    Minutester, a Rolls-Royce Phantom drove out of the garage and stopped right in front of Skr. The

    car window rolled down to reveal Tobias sitting in the driver¡¯s seat. ¡°Get in. I can¡¯t let you wait forever for

    a taxi that won¡¯t arrive.¡±

    She looked at the time on her phone and back at him before apprehensively getting into the backseat,

    worried that they might get ambushed by paparazzi again.

    The light in Tobias¡¯ eyes dimmed. ¡°You¡¯re acting like a robber slipping into his getaway car. Are we going

    to have to sneak around like this for the rest of our lives?¡±

 Chapter 539

    Chapter 539

    ¡°I¡¯m just looking out for the both of us,¡± she pointed out. ¡°I don¡¯t want to cause you trouble either.¡±

    That sentence shut him up. That¡¯s right. That was what I used to wish for, too.

    The shy car eventually arrived at Skr¡¯s destination and slowed to a stop by the roadside, drawing

    the attention of many passers-by.

    She didn¡¯t even think about saying ¡°bye¡± or ¡°thank you¡± before rushing out of the car and making a

    beeline for the studio.

    The job this time was a photoshoot for a magazine cover. Skr was the main star of the photoshoot,

    while Molly and a few other trainees were the extra models.

    Thest time she¡¯d met Molly, the girl had spilled an entire cup of coffee onto Tobias at thepany

    building.

    Molly approached her as she was getting her makeup done. The trainee was dressed in a schoolgirl

    outfit,plete with white thigh-high socks and ck Mary Janes thatplimented her slim frame.

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but admire the way puberty had helped Molly grow into the beautiful girl she was

    today. Thetter hadn¡¯t lost an ounce of the confidence her family had taught her; she still seemed like a

    spoilt princess wherever she would go.

    Clinging onto Skr¡¯s arm, Molly excitedly told her, ¡°Hi, Skr! I specifically went to buy some

    handmade candy from the shop near our ce when I heard you¡¯d being today! You used to love

    that candy, right?¡±

    There used to be a shophouse in the residential area Skr used to live in that had been popr

    amongst kids for its selection of snacks such as homemade candy, pretzels, and donuts.

    She¡¯d even paid a visit a few days ago and had been delighted to learn that the owner of the shop was

    still the exact same one from when she was younger. Unfortunately, she felt like the taste of the snacks

    sold there had changed greatly.

    Perhaps it was because her preferences had changed after growing up. She recalled with nostalgia how

    she couldn¡¯t bear to finish the candy in one go as a kid and would nibble at it slowly to preserve it for as

    long as she could.

    Sometimes, she would bring the candy back home to eat while watching Powerpuff Girls. Sometimes,

    grandma would appear with a broom and telling her to turn the TV off, going on and on about how

    watching too much TV was bad for Skr¡¯s eyes and that it was a waste of electricity.

    Even in hindsight, Skr never once thought of her grandma as being too stingy. She knew it had been

    hard for her grandma to raise her with a sry of only a thousand a month.

    If only Grandma was still around. I would finally be able to spoil her. I would buy her everything we

    couldn¡¯t afford in the past.

    Skr shot Molly a polite smile. ¡°It¡¯s the thought that counts. Thank you for thinking of me.¡±

    Molly¡¯s grin widened even further. ¡°Don¡¯t mention it! We¡¯re best friends after all!¡±

    Skr¡¯s mind nked. A small voice that sounded like Kate¡¯s in the back of her mind chimed in, ¡°When

    you get popr, the entire entertainment industry is going to want to be your friend.¡±

    Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    Since when have Molly and I be so close that she regards us ¡°best friends¡± now?

    Dressed in a simple white T-shirt and blue skinny jeans, Skr looked perfect under the camera lens.

    There wasn¡¯t a single w on her face, and not a single strand of her shoulder-length dark hair was out

    of ce.

    The photographers kept praising her amazing body proportions, going on and on about how she was

    born to be a star.

    In a small crowd of trainees that stood off to one side and watched the photoshoot, someone whispered

    into Molly¡¯s ear, ¡°You and Skr are friends, right? Do you know if the whole ¡®rags to riches¡¯ Cindere

    story she used to sell is true?¡±

    Molly kept her gaze fixed on Skr, who was posing and throwing a cool look of disdain towards the

    camera. ¡°Of course it is,¡± she replied, smirking. ¡°She led quite a pitiful childhood, actually. Her dad

    abandoned her, so she was raised by her grandmother. Yet, she¡¯s still maintained her values and views

    of money, even after bing a celebrity. You see that ne around her neck? It doesn¡¯t even cost

    a thousand.¡±

 Chapter 540

    Chapter 540

    Smile for the camera. Rx. Give off the clear, gentle aura of a midsummer night¡¯s dream.

    When the photographer and Skrter went over the pictures they¡¯d taken, they quickly discovered that

    she looked like she was forcing a smile in nearly every one of them.

    It was as if someone had been holding a gun to her head and made her do this photoshoot.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take a moment to organize my feelings, and we can do a retake soon after,¡± Skr offered

    apologetically.

    Noticing the ne around Skr¡¯s neck, the photographer shook his head. ¡°I think you should take

    that off and ask one of the stylists to give you a new one.¡±

    She reached out a hand to gingerly touch the ck swan pendant. Though she had grown attached to

    her birthday present, she eventually relented and switched it out.

    It waste afternoon when the photoshoot finally wrapped up. Skr approached Molly right before she

    left, saying, ¡°See you soon. Let¡¯s go out for a meal together next time.¡±

    ¡°When? I don¡¯t want this to be an empty promise.¡±

    She hadn¡¯t expected Molly to be so blunt. Of course, her invitation had indeed been nothing more than

    an empty promise, but she couldn¡¯t go back on her word now. ¡°Tomorrow night. I¡¯ll text you the rest of the

    details.¡±

    This dinner meet-up would be a good excuse for her to invite Penelope out. They hadn¡¯t seen each other

    since Penelope gave birth, and it couldn¡¯t be good for her mental health to stay indoors for so long.

    Perhaps it might ease the woman¡¯s grudge against her if she came out for a breath of fresh air.

    Skr was still truly at a loss as to what she had done wrong for Penelope to get pissed at the mere

    sight of her.

    Meanwhile, Molly was glowing with pride after getting asked out to dinner by Skr in front of so many

    people.

    In her opinion, Skr had been smart to choose her, out of everyone, to be besties with.

    Molly was already prepared to take a picture with Skr after they had dinner. She could post it on

    Instagram and gain more followers.

    Her fellow trainee, Lisa, enviously mumbled, ¡°Skr¡¯s literally untouchable within ourpany. I just

    don¡¯t know where she got such good connections and resources.¡±

    Molly sighed. Rumors were going around thepany about Skr¡¯s close rtionship with the CEO of

    Ford Group and the head of Royal Entertainment, Tobias Ford.

    She had spotted Skr walking together with a man the other day, and had also bumped into him

    herself. Could that have been Tobias Ford?

    She didn¡¯t know what he looked like; after all, she¡¯d never had the right to personally meet the CEO.

    Quickly regaining herposure, Molly replied, ¡°Who cares? As long as you work hard, your efforts will

    be repaid.¡±

    That¡¯s an immature ideal,mented Lisa. It was true that hard work was part of sess, but you couldn¡¯t

    seed in the entertainment industry purely through hard work and without any connections.

    People with and without connections started the race on apletely different starting line. Skr had

    only enjoyed the best opportunities ever since her debut; a far cry from the trainees who practiced from

    day to night daily for a single chance at possibly debuting.

    Skr started going through her bag as soon as she got in the car, flipping out every pocket and double-

    checking everything before smacking her own forehead.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± asked Hannah. ¡°Did you forget something at the studio?¡±

    ¡°My ne¡­¡± Skr reached up to touch her bare neck. ¡°I forgot where I left it. We have to go back to

    find it.¡±

    Content provided by N?velDrama.Org.

    Hannah gave her a confused look. If she remembered correctly, Skr¡¯s ne had been a basic,

    cheap Swarovski design.

    Skr rarely wears jewelry. What¡¯s so special about this particr piece?

    ¡°Was it a gift from your first boyfriend or something?¡±

    Skr furrowed her eyebrows. There was no way Jeremy would be so generous as to gift her a

    ne.

    ¡°No, it was a birthday present from Tobias.¡±

 Chapter 541

    Chapter 541

    Hannah¡¯s jaw nearly dropped. Why did Tobias buy such a cheap gift for Skr? He was loaded; he could

    clearly afford to purchase something much better than a piece of jewelry that must have cost peanuts to

    him.

    Yet, Skr greatly treasured the ne. She¡¯s way too easy to please.

    The driver made a U-turn and headed back for the studio, but none of the staff members managed to

    find the ne.

    The only way Skr couldfort herself was that Tobias hadn¡¯t personally picked out the gift.

    Thus, she could just buy a gift of equal value for Tobias and call it even.

    On the way back, Skr discovered that the video of her getting forcibly kissed from yesterday was still

    trending online.

    I thought thepany already paid people to remove the video from the trending page? Why is it still

    there?

    I¡¯ve been humiliated enough already.

    She chucked her phone back into her bag, closing her eyes as she leaned back against the car seat,

    feeling exasperated.

    ¡°This has to be someone¡¯s doing. Someone working for the social media tforms must have been paid

    off to make the video trend again.¡±

    Hannah hadn¡¯t considered that possibility at all. ¡°I¡¯m sure it must be the same guy from yesterday. Only

    people who are truly sick in the head would have the audacity to do such a thing.¡±Content from N?velDr(a)ma.Org.

    ¡°That¡¯s what you think,¡± Skr huffed. ¡°The situation only appears to have calmed down. Keyword,

    ¡®appears.¡¯ There has to be someone who¡¯s out to sabotage my career.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re being way too pessimistic. People are mostly good ¡ª not everyone harbors evil intentions. All

    we¡¯ve been doing is minding our own business, and we haven¡¯t offended anyone or crossed any lines we

    shouldn¡¯t have.¡±

    At that, Skr rolled her eyes. After so long of being her assistant, Hannah was still way too na?ve and

    innocent.

    In a way, she envied the woman for it. The less you overthink about life, the easier life bes for you.

    After notifying herpany, they helped to remove the video from the trending page once more. Skr

    decided that she would pay a visit to the center where the assant was being locked up and ask him if

    he¡¯d been acting on anyone¡¯s orders.

    Skr saw Miranda and Madelyn chatting as soon as she got home. Unlike her daughter, Miranda was a

    friendly and open person, able to strike up a conversation with just about anybody.

    Upon seeing Skr step through the door, Madelyn got up and headed to the kitchen to make

    preparations for dinner. Miranda then requested for her to cook pumpkin soup in a very specific way that

    she liked.

    It didn¡¯t take long for Madelyn to realize that Skr¡¯s mother was turning out to be quite hard to handle.

    Skr had never once ordered her around like this in all her time of living together. The woman would

    eat anything she cooked.

    What a stark contrast between a mother and daughter.

    ¡°At least let me go upstairs and change my clothes,¡± Skr grumbled when Miranda gestured for her to

    sit down next to her. ¡°Why are you here?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m worried about you,¡± Miranda replied, clutching onto Skr¡¯s wrist and refusing to let go. ¡°I saw the

    news. Was Tobias upset? I really think you should quit the entertainment industry; no one likes to see

    their daughter making public appearances like that, much less your future mother-inw.¡±

    It had just been a lighthearted suggestion, but Skr instantlyshed out at her after hearing it. ¡°Are you

    kidding me? I¡¯m not even married yet! Do you know how much your expenses cost me each month? Do

    you think you¡¯ll still be able to use those Lamer skincare products if I ever lose my job?¡±

 Chapter 542

    Chapter 542

    Skr had to ept the fact that Miranda behaved like a nouveau riche now. Not only was she staying

    in a vi, but she also had housekeepers working for her.

    Skr totally understood why Miranda was willing to spend her money on these. After all, anyone would

    dream of living a stress-free life at this age.

    But Skr did not know how to react when Miranda said she only drank imported premium bottled water

    because she believed the water from the tap was full of contaminants.

    Did she learn this nonsense when she was in prison? Even if her logic made sense, why can¡¯t she drink

    locally manufactured bottled water?

    The thought of it got Skr speechless.

    Miranda continued to diss Skr, ¡°Could it be your personality problem? Are you not worried that your

    boyfriend has no intention of marrying you?¡±

    Listening to her know-it-all bber about marriage gave Skr a headache.

    She ignored Miranda and went upstairs to get her clothes changed. It was when Madelyn told her dinner

    was ready that she decided toe out of the room.

    Madelyn had prepared not only pumpkin soup but also BBQ ribs and a te of saut¨¦ed vegetables!

    Yet, Miranda was not pleased about it. ¡°You expect us to eat three dishes only? I know Skr is a nice

    person, but how could you treat her like this?¡±

    Madelyn contained her frustration and looked at Skr for help.

    Skr stepped in and exined, ¡°Three dishes are just nice. Otherwise, we¡¯ll just be wasting food. When

    I was growing up, Grandma used to heat up leftovers for us too. I don¡¯t see any problem with it.¡±

    Miranda pursed her lips and gave Skr a sullen stare. This girl doesn¡¯t respect my opinion at all.

    Skr diverted her attention to another topic. ¡°I met Molly at the studio today. Do you remember her,

    Molly Zimmer? She used to be our neighbor.¡±

    Miranda froze for a bit and nearly dropped her fork. ¡°That¡¯s the girl who liked to wear dresses with floral

    print, right?¡±

    A line formed between Skr¡¯s brows. What¡¯s with her odd reaction when I mentioned Molly¡¯s name?

    She felt there was something amiss with Miranda. Ever since she got out of the prison, she seemed to

    have been pestering Thomas.

    Miranda was so obsessed with him as if he was the only man in the world. She even forced Thomas to

    file for a divorce from Irene.

    Yet, it had been a while since Skrst heard his name mentioned by her. Skr also found it weird

    that Miranda seemed to be wearing dresses that were in pastel colors. It was as if she was dressing like

    a young adult again.

    It¡¯s either Miranda had gotten over with her obsession, or she had found a new target.

    Skr asked, ¡°Are you in love with someely?¡±

    Miranda almost choked on the pumpkin soup. ¡°Excuse me. Why are you so curious? Just mind your

    business.¡±

    Content provided by N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to stop you from pursuing a rtionship,¡± Skr warned, ¡°But please choose your man

    wisely.¡±

    Miranda ignored her and took a sip of the soup.

    When they were about to finish dinner, Tobias arrived. Skr took a nce at the leftovers on the table

    and said, ¡°You didn¡¯t say you¡¯reing.¡±

    The moment Miranda saw Tobias, she instantly put on a smile. She could not help but think how

    fortunate Skr was to have met him.

    Deep in her heart, Miranda thought an elite like Tobias deserved someone better than Skr.

    Skr didn¡¯te from a prominent family, and she¡¯s such a dork when ites to pleasing her man.

    On top of that, this girl doesn¡¯t like to smile and is constantly emotionally distant. I bet she¡¯ll make Tobias

    happy if she calls him honey in a sweet voice.

    Tobias responded with a grin. ¡°I¡¯ve taken my dinner. Please continue.¡±

 Chapter 543

    Chapter 543

    Despite having a smile on his face, Tobias had no intention of interacting with Miranda.

    Miranda remained all pumped up. ¡°Tobias! I haven¡¯t seen you in quite a while. How have you been?

    How¡¯s your work? Has Skr been good to you?¡±

    Skr felt so embarrassed. ¡°All right, dinner¡¯s over. I¡¯ll get someone to send you home now.¡±

    Miranda instantly shot daggers at her. Is she trying to chase me away? I¡¯m just trying to help her improve

    her rtionship with Tobias!

    Tobias kept his reply short. ¡°Everything¡¯s fine. I have to go upstairs and reply to an urgent email now.

    Catch up with you soon.¡±

    Skr understood why Tobias wanted to stay away from Miranda. I bet he must have had enough of her

    rambling.

    Not only that, Miranda would indirectly force Tobias to make promises that would benefit her.

    It was clear that Miranda wanted to cling on to her wealthy son-inw for the rest of her life.

    Miranda gave Skr a disdainful look upon seeing how aloof Tobias was. ¡°How disrespectful. It¡¯s all your

    fault.¡±

    Skr pointed at herself and did not know how to react to that remark. ¡°My fault? What has his attitude

    got to do with me?¡±

    Miranda sighed and frowned. ¡°Can¡¯t you see how annoyed he was? He¡¯s annoyed because he¡¯s sick of

    you, and that¡¯s why he vented his frustration on me. You have to work harder to make him happy. What if

    he dumps you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll not break up with her. Don¡¯t worry.¡± All of a sudden, Tobias¡¯ voice came from the back.

    He overheard their conversation when he wasing downstairs to retrieve his phone.

    To Miranda, this was the best reassurance he could give her. Everything Skr owned today was

    because of Tobias. Hence, Miranda knew they must cling to him to maintain their current lifestyle.

    Skr could only look at Miranda and shake her head. When will my misery end?

    Skr had been tolerating Miranda¡¯s behavior all this while. She would turn a blind eye to the things

    Miranda did as long as she did not cause problems. Skr understood it would be difficult for her mother

    to get rid of her bad habits at this stage of her life after years of suffering in jail.

    Tobias then ordered his chauffeur to send Miranda home. Before leaving, Miranda reminded Skr to

    start acting like an employer in front of the housekeepers. Otherwise, they would take advantage of her.

    We should never be too kind to all these housekeepers. After all, these ingrates are not our family

    members.

    The remark Miranda made loudly in themon area put Skr in an awkward position. Skr believed

    Madelyn must have heard what Miranda said.

    After Miranda left, Madelyn went up to Skr and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Ms. Jones, I think I should quit. I¡¯ve

    been working as a housekeeper for years, and I¡¯ve never been humiliated like this before. I¡¯ve always

    tried my best to keep the house as clean as possible, and if you¡¯re unhappy with my performance, tell me

    straight instead of talking bad about me behind my back.¡±

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    Skr had always been pleased with Madelyn¡¯s work. Though Madelyn would ck off a little once in a

    while, Skr had neverined about her.

    Madelyn would also indirectly pressure Skr into increasing her pay by convincing thetter that their

    neighbor paid their housekeeper at a higher rate.

    Though Tobias was the one who hired Madelyn, Skr decided to take care of Madelyn¡¯s sry as she

    did not want to take advantage of Tobias.

    The sry Skr offered Madelyn was based on the research she had done.

    Skr believed Madelyn¡¯s monthly sry was a reasonable rate as and there was no need for Madelyn

    to take care of children or elderly folks. Furthermore, Skr did note from a wealthy family, and she

    could only pay Madelyn within her financial means.

    She did not understand why this housekeeper of hers was still unhappy with the pay.

 Chapter 544

    Chapter 544

    Skr tried to exin to her. ¡°My Mom doesn¡¯t have any bad intentions. She doesn¡¯t think when she

    speaks. Just ignore her.¡±

    ¡°You know, my daughter-inw is going to birth soon, and she has been calling me to go home to take

    care of the baby,¡± Madelyn continued to express her dismay, ¡°Even if I don¡¯t get to go home, she hoped

    that I could support her financially. But with my low wage, how much can I give her?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t work here anymore, Ms. Jones. Please hire someone willing to work for the sry you

    pay.¡± Madelyn shot a nce at Skr as if she was trying to test the waters. She knew Skr would not

    want to go through the hassle of hiring another housekeeper, so she waited quietly for Skr to make

    her a better offer.

    Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    Skr wanted to know how much Madelyn wanted because she did not want to deal with another

    stranger in the house.

    But before she could open her mouth, Tobias got downstairs and stood beside her.

    He shot a sullen re at Madelyn, causing her to lower her head. She instantly regretted voicing her

    demand when Tobias was around.

    Tobias must have heard the conversation she had with Skr earlier. ¡°You don¡¯t want to work anymore?

    Pack your stuff and leave right now. Don¡¯t force yourself to work since you¡¯re always tired. Find yourself a

    new employer who can give you better pay.¡±

    Skr was ready to increase Madelyn¡¯s pay, but Tobias decided to get rid of her without any hesitation.

    Madelyn thought she could have her way with Skr, but when Tobias stepped in, she knew she did not

    stand a chance to negotiate anymore.

    She immediately yed the sympathy card. ¡°That¡¯s not what I meant, Mr. Ford. Ms. Jones treats me well,

    and I enjoy working here. I¡¯ll tell my son to take care of their own babyter.¡±

    Skr¡¯s jaw dropped upon seeing Madelyn¡¯splete attitude change.

    What Miranda said to her earlier made sense now. People simply take advantage of my kindness and

    step all over me.

    Thanks to Tobias, Skr finally knew Madelyn was emotionally ckmailing her. She did not intend to

    quit at all.

    Skr had been treating Madelyn like her family member, yet this was what she got in return. This

    incident had caused Skr to lose faith in humanity.

    She went back to her room and sat by the bed. She did not go through the TikTok videos like she always

    did despite having twenty million followers, which the app had supplied her.

    Instead, she reflected upon how soft-hearted she was. All this while, she always put people¡¯s interests

    before hers, and more often than not, she found herself suffered in silence.

    If she were a character in a historical drama about royal family feuds, the viin would have easily gotten

    rid of her by episode two.

    Though the phone kept sending out the low-battery signal, Skr did not bother to charge it. Since

    Tobias did not like to see her ying with her phone, she decided to ignore it.

    It was Tobias who plugged her phone into the charger. Upon seeing the wallpaper on the screen, he

    snorted. It was a picture of a teenage male celebrity. Why did she use a young boy¡¯s photo as her

    wallpaper? Does she know how old she is?

    While Skr was slowly removing her earrings, she noticed Tobias was staring at the picture. She

    smiled. ¡°Is he handsome? This boy is only seventeen years old, can you believe it? These good-looking

    young boys are stealing the hearts of older women like us.¡±

 Chapter 545

    Chapter 545

    Tobias arched an eyebrow in frustration. ¡°Oh¡­ So, you like younger guys, huh? Getting tired of me

    because I¡¯m old now, eh?¡±

    I¡¯m only in my thirties, but I suppose I am considered oldpared to those young guys in their teens¡­

    Skr narrowed her eyes at Tobias and said with a chuckle, ¡°Nah, young guys are way too immature!

    Older men like you are much better at taking care of others. I mean, just look at how well you¡¯re taking

    care of me!¡±

    Tobias had already changed the phone¡¯s wallpaper back to the original one. He had to admit that he

    didn¡¯t really take care of Skr all that well as he had wanted her to be more independent. It was only

    when she encountered problems that she couldn¡¯t solve on her own that he would step in to help her out.

    That was the best way to remind her of how important he was.

    Skr headed over to the police station and pulled some strings to meet the fat guy who kissed her by

    force the other day. Had she not felt something off about the incident, she would never have wanted to

    see his ugly face ever again. If anything, she wanted nothing more than to stitch his mouth up

    permanently.

    The fat guy no longer reacted excitedly when he saw her and simply shot her an indignant re in

    response. From what she heard, the police had kept him there for a week and was going to release him

    in two days, a punishment that Skr deemed too light for his crime.

    ¡°What you did the other day¡­ Did you do it out of your own ord, or were you acting under someone

    else¡¯s orders?¡± Skr asked, her face mask making it impossible to see her facial expressions.

    The fat guy ran his eyes all over her body and broke into a lecherous grin. ¡°I simply couldn¡¯t help myself

    because of how hot you are. Man, everyone¡¯s so jealous of me right now! I mean, kissing a female

    celebrity is something I could brag about for the rest of my life! How was my embrace? Did you like it? I¡¯ll

    be sure to visit you often once they let me out of here!¡±

    Skr clenched her teeth in disgust. ¡°What you just said counts as a criminal threat and can be added

    on to your existing crime if I decide to sue you for it. However, I¡¯ll consider letting you go if you tell me

    who sent you.¡±

    The fat guy snorted in disdain. ¡°Pfft! No one sent me, and so what if someone did? I¡¯ll be out in two days,

    so there¡¯s nothing you can do to me! Do you even know who I am? I¡¯m the king of West Street! There

    isn¡¯t a single woman that I can¡¯t get my hands on!¡±

    I¡¯ve had someone conducted a background check on this guy. His name is Charles Walker. He¡¯s an

    unemployed hooligan and has spent the past few years going in and out of prison, so being held at the

    station for a week means nothing to him. There¡¯s no way I can threaten a ruthless guy like him¡­ Charles

    may not admit to anything, but my instincts are telling me there¡¯s more to this than meets the eye!

    With that in mind, Skr ended the visit in frustration.

    ¡°See? What did I tell you? No one is trying to sabotage you, Skr! I mean, why would anyone do that?

    We haven¡¯t made any enemies in the entertainment industry!¡± Hannah who was with her said with a

    slightly smug grin on her face.

    Skr kept quiet as she began plotting how she would force Charles to talk after his release from the

    police station.Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    Hannah kept her head low and her eyes glued to her phone as she texted with a huge smile the whole

    time.

    She had told Skr about her boyfriend once a while back and never brought it up again ever since.

    However, it was obvious from her behavior and constant texting that she was still in a love bubble at the

    time.

    ¡°Do you and your boyfriend have that much inmon? I haven¡¯t seen you two run out of topics to talk

    about!¡± Skr asked out of concern.

 Chapter 546

    Chapter 546

    Thinking Skr was unhappy about her texting which had affected her level of productivity at work,

    Hannah quickly shoved her phone into her pocket.

    ¡°It¡¯s all right, I guess. I mean, he¡¯s a great guy! He¡¯ll being over to visit me this month because of a

    dy in his job!¡± she replied with a shy smile.

    Most online rtionships tend to end badly the moment the couple meets up in real life, and Hannah¡¯s

    inability to take care of her appearances isn¡¯t helping¡­ She doesn¡¯t trim her eyebrows, she knows

    nothing about makeup, and she¡¯s always wearing sses with those ridiculously thick lenses! Oh, and

    don¡¯t even get me started on those baggy clothes of hers! As much as I hate to say this, I doubt she can

    even get any man interested in her looking like this! Skr couldn¡¯t help but worry at the thought of that.

    However, she decided to not shatter Hannah¡¯s confidence in herself as it was possible that her boyfriend

    didn¡¯t care much about appearances.

    Upon arrival at the restaurant, Skr went up to the second floor and saw Molly waving at her with a

    smile on her face.

    Skr had given Penelope the address, but she didn¡¯t show up and wasn¡¯t replying to her messages,

    much to Skr¡¯s chagrin. She didn¡¯t know what she had to do to help Penelope pull herself together.

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    Despite having grown up in the same neighborhood, Molly and Skr weren¡¯t all that close and had lived

    very different lives.

    As the waiter served up the food, Molly began talking about stuff that happened during her childhood.

    There was even a hint of envy in her eyes as she said, ¡°You looked as cute as a doll when you were a

    child, and everyone in the neighborhood absolutely adored you! Heck, my mom is stillplimenting you

    to this day! That¡¯s crazy, right?¡±

    Skr¡¯s thoughts were all over the ce. Molly¡¯s probably just desperate for attention or something.

    Everyone knows how sh*tty my life used to be! Back in the neighborhood, Penelope was the only kid

    who didn¡¯t avoid me like I was some kind of gue. After all, I am the daughter of a murderer living off

    my grandma¡¯s pension! You¡¯d have to be crazy to envy me!

    Molly¡¯s smile broadened as she continued, ¡°I¡¯m d we¡¯re in the samepany, Skr! I used to feel

    lonely at times, but at least I now have you to keep mepany. I¡¯ll probably be needing your help a lot

    in the future, so I hope you don¡¯t mind! I mean, besties help each other out, right?¡±

    Skr stuffed some food into her mouth absent-mindedly and shed a faint smile at her. ¡°I¡¯m very busy

    and rarely head over to the office, so I wouldn¡¯t be able to help you out much.¡±

    Molly noticed the look in her eyes and knew she was being a little too pushy, but she had to boost her

    poprity to stand a chance at getting the lead role.

    If the rumors are true about Skr and Tobias being close, then I shouldn¡¯t have anything to worry about!

    Noticing the awkward tension, Molly took a sip of her tea and said with a smile, ¡°Come on, let¡¯s not talk

    about work when we finally get some time off. My mom has been feeling downtely because she thinks

    my dad is cheating on her, so I don¡¯t really feel like going home so soon. Let¡¯s spend a bit more time

    here!¡±

    Skr remembered how Molly¡¯s dad used to be very famous in the neighborhood for his handsome look

    as well as how loving he was with his family. On top of that, he was wealthy and fashionable with his

    perms and bell-bottom pants, which made him popr with thedies in the area.

    Grandma used to tell me how pretty Mom was in her younger day. ording to her, Mom had tons of

    suitors back in the day, including Molly¡¯s dad. However, Mom made a bad decision and picked my dad

    instead of Molly¡¯s. I bet life would¡¯ve been great if she picked Molly¡¯s dad instead! s, people tend to be

    blinded by love until marriage gives them a wake-up call.

 Chapter 547

    Chapter 547

    Skr was supposed to go for the audition for Pretty Detective at first, but Amelia managed to steal that

    spot through Kate after pictures of her were spread online.

    To add insult to injury, Skr was thest one to find out that Amelia had reced her as the lead

    actress of the show.

    The sky was already dark and gloomy before it was even noon that day as Skr and Kate sat across

    each other in a caf¨¦.

    Their coffee had turned cold, and neither of them had touched their food much.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t I even get a chance to the audition? I was originally chosen for the lead role, so why is

    Amelia the one holding it now?¡± Skr didn¡¯t want to lose her role as a lead actress without even

    knowing why. She felt the need to bring it up with Kate or she could miss out on even more opportunities

    in the future.

    Kate has found herself a few new facestely, so Amelia and I are no longer the only celebrities working

    under her. Well, Kate was never the type to invest everything into a single celebrity to begin with. She

    wants toe out on top of the food chain in the entertainment industry, so having just one celebrity

    under her simply isn¡¯t enough.

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but feel a little disappointed as her efforts and preparations for the lead role had all

    been for nothing when Kate chose Amelia instead.

    ¡°You were caught going on a date with some mysterious guy, and pictures of it went viral on the inte.

    As you know, the negative publicity was very damaging for your reputation. Amelia, on the other hand,

    has no such issue because she knows how to carry herself in public. Besides, I can¡¯t have you hogging

    all the good stuff while everyone else gets the scraps now, can I? That wouldn¡¯t be very fair to the

    others,¡± Kate replied.

    Skr took a deep breath and said, ¡°You could¡¯ve informed me sooner instead of after I havepleted

    all my preparations. I¡¯ve been promoting myself as the lead actress for Pretty Detective all this while!¡±

    ¡°The young really are green and na?ve, huh¡­ Listen, nothing is truly set in stone until the veryst

    moment, got it? It¡¯s your responsibility to prepare for the audition regardless of whether you get the role

    in the end. Surely you don¡¯t expect to only do the audition for lead roles all the time, do you? The

    entertainment industry is a tough one to be in, so you¡¯d better learn to deal with failure and

    disappointment if you wish to remain. Anyway, it¡¯s gettingte, so I suggest you head on home now!¡±

    Kate said with a chuckle.

    Skr didn¡¯t even realize how dark the sky had gotten until Kate mentioned it.

    She looked out the window and saw pedestrians dressed in thick sweaters and coats as they walked

    under the dim lighting of the streetmps.

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    Kate offered to give her a lift, but Skr refused and insisted on waiting for her driver to pick her up

    instead.

    ¡°The candidate for the Golden Eagle Goddess has been decided and is simply pending an official

    announcement. I found out from someone on the inside that we¡¯re no match for Sophia¡¯s poprity, so

    you¡¯ll just have to try and boost yours to beat her next year,¡± Kate said before leaving.

    Skr wasn¡¯t surprised by that as Sophia¡¯s votes had always been in the lead since the beginning,

    thanks to her beauty and amazing works throughout the past two years.

    After waiting for what seemed like forever, Skr gave her driver a call to see why he had yet to arrive.

    The driver informed her that he was caught in the rush hour traffic which was worsened due to a car

    ident, so it would take him quite some time to get there.

    ¡°May I sit here, Ms. Jones?¡± A voice came from the side, and Skr turned around to see a handsome

    young man in a white down jacket standing next to her.

 Chapter 548

    Chapter 548

    That man was none other than Marcus Ford, Tobias¡¯ half-brother.

    Skr paused for a few seconds in surprise before refusing his request, ¡°There are plenty other empty

    seats around here, so why must you choose to sit across me like this? Go share a table with someone

    else.¡±

    Marcus shed her a faint smile in response and sat right where Kate was sitting earlier.

    ¡°Are you afraid of someone getting pictures of you having coffee with me?¡±

    Skr forced a smile back at him. ¡°Why choose to sit here if you already know that, then? It¡¯s not like

    we¡¯re close or anything.¡±

    Marcus maintained his devilish smile as he replied, ¡°I didn¡¯te here to start a fight. I¡¯ve actually been

    trying to meet you for quite a while now, but never really had the opportunity to. Now that I¡¯ve bumped

    into you here, I would like to apologize for everything my sister has done.¡±

    Marcus had a chiseled jawline and a dimple on his cheek, giving him a devilish yet childish vibe.

    ¡°Apologize? What has Ingrid been telling you? Also, I don¡¯t need an apology for something that has

    happened so long ago.¡±

    Marcus shrugged. ¡°Ingrid almost kidnapped you in the parking lot that day. She¡¯s been spoiled since she

    was a child and can be very extreme and reckless when ites to love. I have given her a proper

    scolding after finding out what she did.¡±

    Skr had been traumatized ever since the failed attempt at boosting her poprity using her scandal

    with Harry, and hearing about Ingrid reminded her of that. I wonder if Harry and Ingrid are still together

    now¡­ Harry has been keeping a low profiletely. He rarely showed up at events and stopped epting

    offers for any other film projects after Unrequited Love. I remember Marcus and Tobias being at each

    other¡¯s throats when we were at the airport the other day, so I can¡¯t even tell if he¡¯s being sincere with his

    apology at all¡­

    ¡°Whatever happened in the past should stay in the past, so I don¡¯t want to talk about it. Regardless, I

    ept your apology. Now, if you¡¯ll excuse me, I need to get going.¡±

    Skr was getting a little anxious as it was pitch-dark outside, and her driver still hadn¡¯t arrived.

    ¡°You¡¯re going back all by yourself? Don¡¯t you celebrities always have drivers or assistants with you?

    What if you run into some bad guy on your way home?¡± Marcus asked.

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    Skr rarely left her house at night, and Hannah was nowhere to be found since five in the evening. In

    addition to that, the thought of how Charles had kissed her the other day caused her courage to waver

    even further.

    Marcus pulled out the keys to his Maserati and ced it on the table. ¡°You can drive my car home if you

    want. I¡¯ll just send someone over to collect itter on. Either that, or I drive you home instead.¡±

    Marcus sure is thoughtful and politepared to Ingrid¡­ Heck, he even offered to lend me his car

    because of how dangerous it is for me to go home alone! Skr frowned at the thought of that.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have a driver¡¯s license, so I can¡¯t drive anyway. My driver will be here soon.¡±

    Marcus gave her a funny look like he had just heard the biggest joke of his life. ¡°You¡¯re dating Tobias and

    you don¡¯t even have a driver¡¯s license? Well, on second thought, it does make sense. There is literally no

    need for you to have one since you never have to drive anyway. It¡¯ll be hard to get a cab at this hour, so

    I¡¯ll just have to send you home instead.¡±

    ¡°No, thank you. I can manage this on my own.¡± Skr refused his offer directly as Tobias had told her it

    was okay to say no.

    ¡°What are you afraid of? Are you worried that Tobias would mind? If so, then rest assured that he

    couldn¡¯t care less about these things. All he cares about are profits and benefits.¡±

 Chapter 549

    Chapter 549

    Skr couldn¡¯t stand having Marcus speak ill of Tobias even if everything he said was true. ¡°He¡¯s a great

    man, okay? I don¡¯t think it¡¯s appropriate for you to talk about your brother like that!¡±

    Marcus chuckled. ¡°Since when has he ever treated me like family? He only cares about Sheldon. Ingrid

    and I are as good as strangers to him!¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t want toment much on Tobias¡¯ family matters, especially since he rarely told her

    anything about it.

    A faint smile formed on Marcus¡¯ face as he saw Skr off. She seems like a really nice girl¡­ It¡¯s a

    shame she chose to be with Tobias. Nothing good everes out of dating him, after all.

    Having received multiple calls from Ingrid asking to see him, Marcus let out a helpless sigh as he drove

    toward Sky Bar ording to the address she sent him.

    Ingrid was the owner of the bar which had just opened recently. Marcus never saw her as a suitable

    businessperson to begin with, and the bar¡¯s horrible location as well asck of customer flow proved him

    right. On top of that, Ingrid had also messed up the bar¡¯s renovation and promotional activities.

    Due to theck of customers, the bar was losing more money than it was making with each passing day.

    However, Marcus turned a blind eye to it as it was their dad¡¯s idea to have Ingrid manage a business.

    That way, she would be less likely to go around causing trouble everywhere.

    Marcus went up the stairs to the second floor of the bar and saw Ingrid sitting in a private room with her

    friends. In front of them stood a row of male escorts dressed in tight business suits and performing an

    erotic dance.

    Having gotten used to Ingrid¡¯s peculiar kinks, Marcus was not surprised by the sight before him as he

    entered the room.

    Ingrid then motioned for everyone inside the room to leave before calling out to Marcus, ¡°Hello, brother

    dearest!¡±

    ¡°Why did you keep calling me?¡± Marcus asked as he sat down beside her and stared at her face flushed

    from intoxication.

    Ingrid frowned as she filled her ss up and said, ¡°Dad will be arriving at the airport tomorrow afternoon.

    I bet he¡¯s going to scold me for causing trouble again¡­¡±

    ¡°Maybe you should¡¯ve thought about that before doing anything crazy, eh? Anyway, where is that boy toy

    of yours? Why didn¡¯t you invite him over?¡± Marcus snarked at her.

    ¡°I had him stay home tonight. Say, do you think Dad will approve of me marrying Harry? Will you please

    help me talk to him about it?¡±

    Marcus made no attempt to sugarcoat things and said, ¡°I think you should forget about it. Given Harry¡¯s

    family background and Dad¡¯s ego, there¡¯s no way he¡¯d approve of this marriage.¡±

    Ingrid clenched her teeth and stamped her feet in frustration.

    It was almost midnight by the time Skr got home. Although she was starving like crazy from walking

    back in the icy-cold weather, she didn¡¯t expect to have a hot meal waiting for her either.

    Even Madelyn¡¯s attitude was a little colder than usual when she greeted Skr at the door, ¡°Have you

    eaten? Mr. Ford is upstairs.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I¡¯m tired, so I¡¯m going to get some rest upstairs,¡± Skr said after giving it some

    thought.

    Of course, she wouldn¡¯t have any appetite for dinner when her man is upstairs¡­ Madelyn thought to

    herself as she watched Skr make her way upstairs.

    Tobias stepped out of the shower when she came into the room. He had a towel around his waist, sitting

    right beneath his perfectly built abs.

    ¡°Why are you home sote?¡± he asked while cing a te of snacks on the coffee table.

    Skr was surprised. ¡°You made me supper?¡±

    Tobias shed her a smile in response. ¡°You haven¡¯t answered my question. Why are you home sote?

    Where have you been?¡±Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

 Chapter 550

    Chapter 550

    Tobias rarely ever cares about my activities¡­ I wonder if he knows about me bumping into Marcus at the

    caf¨¦ earlier? If he knows, then choosing to keep it from him would only lead to him overthinking.

    ¡°I was meeting up with my manager for a discussion, and I ended up bumping into Marcus after that.¡±

    Tobias frowned. ¡°You¡¯d better stay away from Marcus and Ingrid in the future. They¡¯re never up to any

    good.¡±

    Skr had no idea what the grudge between them was about, or if it was actually between their parents

    who got them involved.

    Regardless, she simply nodded and stuffed the snack into her mouth.

    ¡°Did you make this yourself? It tastes amazing!¡± Skr eximed.

    ¡°If you find it amazing, then it couldn¡¯t possibly have been me. My mom was the one who had me bring

    them over,¡± Tobias replied.

    Skr nearly choked when she heard that and went wide-eyed with surprise. udia made me snacks?

    This isn¡¯t like her at all! Now that I think about it, I haven¡¯t seen her in a long time. It was always so

    stressful being around her, especially since she sighs a lot. It¡¯s almost as if she¡¯s disappointed in Tobias

    for choosing to be with me, and she has no choice but to ept me.

    ¡°I¡¯ll pay Mrs. Ford a visit as soon as I have the time. I¡¯ve been so busy with worktely that I can¡¯t even

    come home early,¡± Skr said.

    Tobias was quick to stop her. ¡°I suggest you don¡¯t go and see her unless she invites you. She isn¡¯t

    exactly right in the head these days, so there¡¯s no telling what nasty stuff she might say to you while

    you¡¯re there. You¡¯ll end up in a foul mood and fight with me. So, I don¡¯t see any point in you doing that.¡±

    At that moment, the screen of Tobias¡¯ phone lit up as tons of messages came in one after another,

    catching the attention of Skr instantly. Judging by how aggressively the person is texting him sote at

    night, it¡¯s either from someone he owes money to or a woman!

    Skr¡¯s gaze was so obvious that Tobias noticed her peeking at it. ¡°Are you that curious about what¡¯s in

    my phone? You can go through it if you want.¡±

    ¡°W-Why would I want to do that? I don¡¯t care who¡¯s texting you!¡± Skr stammered and looked away

    after being caught in the act.

    Despite what she said, her curiosity got the better of her, and she reached for his phone anyway.

    Naturally, Tobias made no effort to stop her. However, the expression on Skr¡¯s face changed the

    moment she saw Idania¡¯s name on the screen. She then looked up at Tobias and asked, ¡°Why are you

    still in contact with her? You told me you would never go back to your ex!¡±

    Tobias was not expecting for Idania to text him at all.

    Idania: I¡¯m not feeling well, and I don¡¯t know how much time I have left. I used to think life was boring, but

    now I realize how beautiful it is.

    Idania: Are you busy? Make sure to reply when you see my message, okay? Your coat is still here with

    me. When will youe to collect it?

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    Idania: I¡¯ve only had a bit of soup throughout the entire day as I didn¡¯t have the appetite for anything.

    Ah¡­ Do you remember how much I loved eating fried beef cutlets? It tastes really good with a crispy

    layer on the outside. I wonder if they¡¯re still avable these days¡­

    Idania: Could youe over and see me when you¡¯re done with work? I¡¯m scared of being all alone.

    Idania: I had to stop working so suddenly, and I¡¯m still not used to having so much free time. If I get

    better, I¡¯m definitely going back to work as soon as I can! Do you happen to be in need of a secretary, Mr.

    Ford?

    Skr¡¯s frown deepened as she read through the messages. What the hell is she ying at? Is she

    trying to gain his sympathy or something by acting all pitiful? Please, I¡¯ve tried that before many years

    ago! Whenever Jeremy wouldn¡¯t reply to my texts, I¡¯de up with all sorts of excuses to make it sound

    weak and in pain, but he just ignored me and kept on gaming! Oh, well¡­ I suppose we all meet a

    scumbag or two at some point in life. All we can do is hope we don¡¯t spend the rest of our life with them!

    She then tossed the phone toward Tobias so he could see it for himself.

 Chapter 551

    Chapter 551

    Tobias caught it in the air and frowned as well when he saw Idania¡¯s texts. He knew how hard life had

    been for her ever since her parents died. To make matters worse, she had no friends to depend on and

    could practically die alone at home and no one would know.

    However, her actions had caused him a lot of problems indirectly, especially after Skr saw her

    messages as he had no idea how he could exin it to Idania either.

    Skr red coldly at Tobias with a sarcastic smile as she asked, ¡°Well? Aren¡¯t you going to give me an

    exnation? I don¡¯t quite like being lied to, as you know. Since when you got so close with your ex-

    girlfriend, hmm?¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t like being used of lying and said calmly, ¡°You¡¯re overreacting. She¡¯s been having some

    problems with her healthtely, so she needs my help with stuff. I¡¯m only helping her out of respect for

    our previous rtionship. That¡¯s all.¡±

    Skr tried her best to be big-hearted and understanding about it but still found herself feeling disgusted

    no matter what.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like you being in contact with her. We¡¯re not living in the past where men could have a few wives,

    so leave me if you still have feelings for each other,¡± she said with her back facing Tobias while lying

    down in bed.

    Tobias couldn¡¯t help but find her statement a little ridiculous. Skr was the pessimistic type who would

    overthink and jump to the worst possible conclusions whenever she got emotional.

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    He then sat down beside her on the bed and whispered into her ear, ¡°I know. Don¡¯t worry. I haven¡¯t done

    anything that would count as cheating on you.¡±

    Tobias sure knows how to pick his words! I can¡¯t believe how casual he is making this all sound!

    Skr could barely sleep at all that night. Her repeated tossing and turning got so intense that even

    Tobias who was fast asleep frowned and put his arm around her.

    Eventually, Skr decided to take his phone while he was still sleeping and deal with Idania¡¯s messages

    herself as she knew Idania wouldn¡¯t stop texting him until he replied.

    With a cold look in her eyes, Skr skimmed through all of her messages and saw that thest one

    came in at half past three in the morning.

    She had thought about replying her for him, but figured she was probably asleep by then.

    Skr heated up the leftover snacks fromst night for breakfast in the microwave and made herself a

    hot cup of coffee to go with it. At that point, having some hot food in her tummy was her only source of

    comfort.

    Tobias was dressed in a navy-blue suit and a white dress shirt with the first button undone, exuding an

    icy-cold aura wherever he went.

    Skr called out to him when he was at the front door and held her hand out as she said, ¡°Give me your

    phone. Some people do not belong in your WhatsApp contacts, and I¡¯m going to clear them out for you.¡±

    She had been up all night thinking about it and felt she was being too lenient with Tobias.

    To her, staying in contact with one¡¯s ex was a bad idea, regardless of the reason.

    Tobias shot her a cold re and said, ¡°Quit messing around, will you? Do you not trust me at all?¡±

 Chapter 552

    Chapter 552

    Skr furrowed her eyebrows in response. Before she saw the earlier message, she could still trust him.

    However, now that Idania hade in between them, her trust could only be earned if he blocked

    Idania.

    With a resolute gaze, she asked, ¡°Can you show me your phone? If she isn¡¯t feeling well, she can look

    for someone else instead ofining to you in the middle of the night.¡±

    Tobias snapped, ¡°Don¡¯t think that this is absurd? Have I spoilt you? You are making a fuss over nothing.

    There¡¯s nothing going on between us. It¡¯s up to you whether you believe it or not.¡±

    Skr stared nkly at Tobias¡¯ silhouette as he left. She had expected him to react badly to her actions.

    However, she didn¡¯t imagine that it would be to that extent.

    Having watched both of them quietly, Madelyn cleared her throat and casuallymented, ¡°Throughout

    my years of working as a maid, I have seen such cases one too many times. Men always behave this

    way. But, I admire all their wives for tolerating it. As long as they received their monthly allowance, they

    would turn a blind eye to their husband¡¯s infidelity and live their lives in denial.¡±

    Skr was still staring intently in Tobias¡¯ direction while suppressing the exasperation in her heart.

    Cognizant that making a big fuss would be detrimental to their rtionship, she chose to restrain herself.

    Nheless, Tobias still looked at her as if she was crazy.

    He really doesn¡¯t know how to spoil a woman at all.

    Skr retorted, ¡°Why must I live in denial? I ended up in this situation precisely because I did that

    previously.¡±

    Since Tobias wasn¡¯t going to block Idania, she decided to act decisively by meeting the ¡°pitiful¡±dy

    herself. Given that she knows Tobias has a girlfriend, why must she seekfort from him in the middle

    of the night?

    Meanwhile, the posters that Skr had shot for Gi had been put up in all their branches. In it, she

    was dressed in period-style spring wear matched with a maroon-colored wig. The inspiration for her

    makeup was from medieval pce courts. entuating her features, helped her exude an air of old-

    world charm and nobility.

    Standing in front of the posters, Avery clenched her sleeves and gritted her teeth.

    She couldn¡¯t stand how someone who couldn¡¯t afford Gi had now be its regional spokesperson.

    Meanwhile, Charles emerged behind her breathing heavily. Without the need to look, Avery knew it was

    him the moment she smelled the intense body odor he emitted.

    Holding her nose, she turned around in resentment. ¡°Why can¡¯t you put on some cologne before you

    come and see me. The stench you¡¯re emitting is absolutely disgusting.¡±

    Raising his bby arms, Charles smelled his armpit. ¡°It¡¯s not as bad you make it out to be. I have spent a

    week at the detention center and forgot to bathe before I came.¡±

    Avery was utterly disgusted. If not for Charles, she would have never known that men were capable of

    being so filthy.

    However, that¡¯s why he ispatible with Skr. After all, birds of the same feather flock together. When

    he ambushed her during one of her events, both of them looked perfect together.

    The more Avery thought about it, the more she felt Skr had gotten off too lightlypared to a famous

    scandal some time ago.

    Back then, a famous actress was kidnapped by mobsters. They took nude pictures of her and took turns

    to sully her. Furthermore, the whole process was caught on video. Twenty yearster, one could still find

    it on the inte.

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    The actress was devastated after the incident. Later on, shemitted suicide at home by overdosing

    herself as she could no longer bear the humiliation.

    If only Skr and Charles could be put together. As the image of both of them shed across her mind,

    Avery couldn¡¯t resist but smile in glee.

    Just as Charles was digging into his burger, Avery rolled her eyes at him. She had bought him lunch but

    didn¡¯t order anything herself. She had lost her appetite just by looking at his face.

 Chapter 553

    Chapter 553

    ¡°Once you¡¯re done, I¡¯ll pay you three hundred thousand.¡± Avery forced herself to smile and desperately

    tried to refrain from puking at the sight of his face.

    Charles snorted, ¡°Now that Skr is so famous, what you¡¯re offering is too little given what you are

    asking me to do.¡±

    Avery rolled her eyes. ¡°Just think about it. If you sleep with her, you will be the envy of everyone in town.

    I heard that she is still a virgin. So, only a masculine man like you deserves to plow that fertilend of

    hers.¡±

    Avery¡¯s words had piqued Charles¡¯ interest. Ever since he kissed her thest time, his desire for her

    intensified. After all, every man fantasized her body. If he could be the first man to sleep with her, it would

    definitely be a heavenly experience for him.

    He asked excitedly, ¡°How do you know she is still a virgin? Hasn¡¯t she slept with anyone else in the

    entertainment industry? I want to make sure you¡¯re not lying to me.¡±

    Avery reassured him with a smile, ¡°She is my sister. So, it¡¯s definitely not a bluff. Now that she is famous,

    she will definitely keep the fact that you have slept with her a secret, despite how miserable she feels

    about it.¡±

    Charles began to feel upset. ¡°She won¡¯t feel miserable at all. Come on, all the women I have been with

    were impressed by my performance in bed.¡±

    Just as Charles¡¯ breath blew across her face, Avery couldn¡¯t stop herself from retching at the stench.

    Unable to stand the sight of him any longer, she hurriedly concluded, ¡°Now that it has been decided, I will

    transfer three hundred thousand to your ount then. As to when the opportunity will arise, I¡¯ll inform

    youter.¡±

    Charles seized upon the opportunity to stroke Avery¡¯s hand. ¡°Alright, prettydy. I¡¯ll wait for your call.¡±

    The moment Charles left, Avery dashed into the bathroom. She scrubbed her hand so hard that her skin

    became blistering red and painful.

    Meanwhile, Skr had gotten someone to find out where Idania lived.

    When she found out that Idania¡¯s address was just a kilometer away from Tobias¡¯ residence, she

    wondered if it was chosen on purpose. It was so close that one could reach her house by brisk walking

    for a few minutes.

    As for Idania, she wasn¡¯t surprised when she received Skr¡¯s call. In fact, she wondered why it took

    Skr such a long time to finally call her after all the trouble she caused. Nevertheless, it was betterte

    than never.

    Coincidentally, Avery had also called her to inform her that she had arranged a potential marriage partner

    for Skr.

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    Furthermore, Idania believed that Tobias would soon be sick of Skr. The way she saw it, Tobias wasn¡¯t

    someone who was particrly faithful.

    After she finished work, Skr arrived at a small restaurant near Idania¡¯s house. It was a venue that

    Idania had chosen.

    Inside her car, she suggested to Idania over the phone, ¡°The ce is not convenient for me as there are

    too many people inside. Why don¡¯t we find somewhere else that¡¯s quieter.¡±

    Idania replied, ¡°I¡¯m already here, Ms. Jones. Can I trouble you to bear with me? I¡¯m still weak and can¡¯t

    walk far.¡±

    Skr squirmed her lips. How shameless can she be to im that she¡¯s feeling weak? She certainly was

    very energetic when texting in the middle of the night.

    However, since Idania had made the request, Skr felt that it would look bad on her if she refused.

    Hence, she had no choice but to proceed as agreed.

    When Skr saw Idania, she realized why she had insisted to meet at that particr restaurant.

    The restaurant¡¯s blue signboard was so old that its name was covered by the oily grime that stained it.

    The moment she entered, she was greeted by a gamey smell so heavy that it overpowered her perfume.

    Inside, they were the only customers, causing Skr to heave a sigh of relief. She was worried that there

    would be a crowd which would be an inconvenience.

    Freedom was now a luxury for her.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, please sit.¡±

    As Skr had just gotten out of the car, her hands were still freezing cold. This was also the first time

    she met with Idania in such close proximity.

    She noticed that Idaia and her resembled each other a lot. Both of them had slightly knitted eyebrows

    and almond-shaped eyes. Idania too had a gentle demeanor which added to her charming allure.

 Chapter 554

    Chapter 554

    When Skr saw the wrinkles at the corner of Idania¡¯s eyes, she reminded herself to apply her eye

    cream every night. After all, she might look worse than Idania by the time she turned thirty.

    ¡°Tobias and I used toe herest time. He doesn¡¯t really like pork. Hence, he enjoys the fried beef

    cutlets served here as it suits his tastes perfectly.¡± Idania let out a gentle smile as she handed Skr the

    menu with one hand.

    Receiving the menu politely, Skr raised an eyebrow. ¡°You probably haven¡¯t eaten with him in a while.

    Now, he stays away from oily food. Just a few days ago, we went to have beef wellington. I didn¡¯t enjoy it

    but he liked it very much. Anyway, he doesn¡¯t like me visiting fly-infested restaurants like this. After all, I

    have a weak stomach and he worries that I¡¯ll get sick.¡±

    Idania¡¯s smile slowly faded. ¡°One feels blissful when one is dining with a loved one. It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s

    in a ssy restaurant or a dirty one.¡±

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    Skr nodded with a smile. ¡°That¡¯s true. That¡¯s why he enjoys the spaghetti I make. Anyway, I¡¯m not

    familiar with this ce, so you should order on my behalf. Don¡¯t order whatever he likes. Instead, order

    whatever he hates the most.¡±

    ¡°How can two people with such different tastes live together? Tobias and I have simr preferences for

    food. He likes his food with lighter seasoning.¡± Idania squinted her eyes at Skr as she insisted on

    ordering Tobias¡¯ favorite food.

    She wasn¡¯t lying to Skr. Tobias used to visit the restaurant very often with her. At that time, he was so

    busy that he didn¡¯t care about what he ate, as long as he could fill his stomach. Neither did he have the

    patience to waste time on the kind of fine dining which Skr had just mentioned.

    Hence, Idania had suffered through the difficult days of old alongside him. However, Skr was now

    enjoying the fruits of theirbor. After having achieved wealth and influence, Tobias had reced her

    with someone younger and prettier.

    Nevertheless, she had faith that the memories Tobias and her shared were irreceable. Therefore, she

    considered Skr to just be a fling of his. Or else, there was no reason for him not to make their

    rtionship public after so long.

    Skr replied confidently, ¡°I won¡¯t change my taste for someone else. I will not be happy if I have to lose

    myself for the sake of being with someone else. Ms. Gand, my purpose here today isn¡¯t to discuss

    what my boyfriend¡¯s tastes are nor what he likes to eat.¡±

    From the moment she received her call, Idania knew that Skr didn¡¯te with friendly intentions.

    Thinking back tost night, she figured Skr must have seen the message she sent to Tobias.

    Is that the reason why Tobias didn¡¯t reply to my messages? From the beginning, Idania had never

    expected Tobias to reply to her messages. Putting aside the fact that they had broken up for such a long

    time, Tobias behaved the same way even when they were still together.

    In fact, he would disappear for no reason for a long time. He wouldn¡¯t contact her nor reply to her

    messages at all. Hence, it was impossible for her to feel secure with a boyfriend like that.

    Consequently, it was rather frustrating to be with someone like that. However, after breaking up, she was

    utterly heartbroken and couldn¡¯t forget him still.

    Amidst the quiet but incendiary atmosphere, Idania meekly stared into Skr¡¯s eyes and saw the mes

    raging within them.

    ¡°Though I¡¯m a few years older than you, you can call me Idania. I don¡¯t want to make enemies of you

    since there¡¯s hardly any animosity between us. Ms. Jones, please go ahead with what you havee to

    say.¡±

    Skr hated it when Idania tried to y victim when she was obviously the one who started to cling onto

    Tobias. Now, those not in the know would assume that Idania was the one who had suffered some

    injustice at Skr¡¯s hands.

    When the food was served, neither of them touched anything. Skr couldn¡¯t bring herself to dine at the

    same table as Idania.

    She raised her eyebrow. ¡°Let me be upfront then. Stop contacting Tobias as he already has me. If you

    are sick, please get yourself treated. My boyfriend can¡¯t cure you because he isn¡¯t a doctor. You should

    go to the hospital and get yourself checked up. Otherwise, who will you me in the event that

    something happens to you?¡±

    Just as Idania¡¯s eyes widened, she held onto her chest while her face turned pale.

    As Skr had graduated from drama school, she could easily tell when someone was acting. From the

    looks of it now, Idania seemed to be trying too hard.

 Chapter 555

    Chapter 555

    Furthermore, Skr couldn¡¯t see why Tobias fancied her back in the day. Although, she had to admit

    Idania did seem like a capable woman.

    Feigning innocence, Idania defended herself, ¡°I am not trying to get in the way of your rtionship. Ms.

    Jones, isn¡¯t it too much for you to bully me just because I¡¯m sick? Are you cursing me so that my

    condition worsens? One should always be kind or you will reap what you sow.¡±

    Skr was puzzled by Idania¡¯s reaction. After all, she was just being objective by asserting her stand

    calmly.

    After all,pared to the usual way mistresses were confronted, which usually turn into violent catfights,

    Skr assumed that she was being civil by speaking face to face with her.

    Nevertheless, she figured it was time to stop for fear that Idania would dramatically copse on the spot.

    By then, her reputation would be damaged beyond repair.

    She replied calmly. ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t understand what I¡¯m trying to say now. You can think about my

    words when you¡¯re back home. After all, I have said what I came here to say. I heard that your sickness

    is pretty serious. Therefore, you should get more rest. Staying upte will just inhibit your recovery.

    Besides, there¡¯s no point texting after midnight especially when you¡¯re not going to get a reply.¡±

    Idania felt her heart tighten as she shed Skr a jealous re. She even sneered at herself for having

    sunk so low as to end up being ridiculed by a young immature girl.

    After Skr paid and left, she was recognized on the street. A few young girls had surrounded her and

    were screaming in excitement.

    Standing at the restaurant entrance, Idania¡¯s jealousy intensified at the sight. Watching with disdain,

    Idania felt that Skr was nothing but a pretty face. After all, she was just a student from drama school.

    How could one with such qualifications even bepatible with Tobias? They don¡¯t even have anything

    inmon to talk about. Hence, she is just an empty vessel riding on her youth and beauty.

    After Skr left, Idania proceeded to Avery¡¯s home. Avery had sent Idania her address a few days ago.

    When she arrived, Idania realized that Avery¡¯s family was wealthy too. Given the luxurious residential

    area they were staying in, every vi there would cost at least thirty to forty million.

    Moreover, she did hear about Quest Group¡¯s takeover by Ford Group, and the scandal involving the

    chairman¡­

    The Jones family are indeed embroiled in many controversies.

    When Idania entered the vi, Avery was chatting with her mom.

    After the shock she felt thest time, Irene felt apprehensive when she saw a stranger enter her home.

    Hence, she maintained a cold and unweing expression.

    When Idania greeted her, Irene pretended not to have heard and gradually climbed up the stairs instead.

    Avery glowered. ¡°Look, this is what that b*tch has done to my mom. Our family is now in shambles. Not

    to mention that my career is destroyed. Until now, no director has dared to touch me with a ten-foot

    pole.¡±

    Idania squinted her eyes. ¡°I just met her and we parted on bad terms. She is evil and intimidates

    everyone she meets.¡±

    Avery raised her eyebrows. ¡°I told you that she¡¯s no good. Now that Tobias has her back, she is lording

    over us. For now, let¡¯s tolerate her behavior. But, we will soon hold her ountable for everything that

    she has done.¡±

    Idania sighed. ¡°As long as you help me break them up, I can get back together with Tobias. When that

    happens, I will make sure that you be a highly coveted actress once again.¡±

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    Avery didn¡¯t understand how Idania could be so confident. She behaved as if she was destined to be

    with Tobias as long as he broke up with Skr.

    When Idania read the notice after she sent Tobias a message, her heart sank. Tobias has blocked her on

    WhatsApp by set a filter on his WhatsApp. Which meant, one needed to send him a friend request; no

    message could get through before being epted as a friend.

 Chapter 556

    Chapter 556

    ring furiously at the screen, she surmised that Skr must be behind it. After all, Tobias wouldn¡¯t

    have acted so cruelly given that he knew how sick she was. He couldn¡¯t have blocked me because he

    knows that he will regret it if something happened to me.

    Meanwhile, Tobias was surprised when he saw Idania appear at his office. When he looked at Sheldon

    who was standing beside her, he immediately understood how she got there.

    Sheldon pulled Tobias aside and whispered, ¡°I ran into her downstairs. She told me that she needed to

    see you urgently. When I saw that she didn¡¯t look too good, I decided to let her in. After all, she looked as

    if she was lost in the street.¡±

    Tobias raised his eyebrows at Sheldon to express his disapproval of his unnecessary helpfulness.

    Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    The next moment, Sheldon made an excuse and disappeared in a sh. Thest thing he wanted was to

    be dragged into his brother¡¯s messy rtionships.

    ¡°Why did you block me?¡± Idania gave Tobias a sad and puzzled look.

    ¡°No reason in particr. I just feel that it¡¯s pointless for you toin to me every day. You should look

    for someone else,¡± Tobias replied with an indifferent expression as he was very busy. He didn¡¯t want his

    personal affairs to affect his progress at work.

    ¡°Today, your girlfriend came and said many nasty things to me. The words she used were so vulgar that I

    couldn¡¯t believe she actually said them. She is such a feisty person and doesn¡¯t even care that I¡¯m sick.

    Don¡¯t you think she has gone overboard by doing that? Can you please put a leash on your girlfriend?¡±

    Idania lips trembled as she spoke. The more she exined the more aggrieved her tone became.

    Tobias furrowed his eyebrows and questioned, ¡°Did she really? She¡¯s not capable of something like that

    nor scolding anyone. She¡¯s also not as eloquent as you, and yet you use her of being nasty? I don¡¯t

    believe you.¡±

    Idania snorted. ¡°Do you trust her that much to think that I¡¯m lying? Just because I have nowhere to turn

    to, she rubs salt in my wounds. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m asking for much, and I don¡¯t intend toe between the

    both of you. Why does she need to treat me that way? Even if I¡¯m an ordinary friend, she shouldn¡¯t have

    crossed the line by saying all those nasty things.¡±

    Tobias sped his hands together while seated on the sofa. Lowering his head, he replied with a smile,

    ¡°I understand how you feel. For now, you should focus on getting better as I¡¯ll make sure she won¡¯t

    bother you anymore. I have contacted some specialists on your behalf and will send you their contacts.

    All you need to do is to make an appointment with them.¡±

    Sensing an opening, Idania raised her voice, ¡°I want her to apologize to me. My sickness is

    unpredictable and now, whatever good mood I have is gone.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t reply. Instead, he was thinking of something else. How is it possible that Idania is bullied by

    Skr? Since when has Skr be so capable?

    Despiteing over on purpose, Idania didn¡¯t get much support from Tobias. Instead, he quickly

    ushered her out by excusing himself for a meeting.

    The more she thought about it, the more her heart sank. She realized that he no longer cared about her

    and couldn¡¯t wait for her to leave.

    Last time, he promised me that he will take care of me. Has the passage of time caused him to forget his

    word?

    Ever since he parted with Skr on bad terms in the morning, Tobias had not contacted her. Also, his

    phone had also been quiet and didn¡¯t contain any unread messages.

    Hence, he regretted notpromising with her the night before. If he had blocked Idania there and then,

    the matter wouldn¡¯t have escted to what it was now.

    With a gloomy expression, he noticed that his mood was gradually being swayed by his feelings for her.

    Given that Idania hade over, it gave him an excuse to call Skr and clear the air.

    However, despite calling three times, she ended his calls consecutively. When he called again, no one

    answered it.

 Chapter 557

    Chapter 557

    Guessing that she was throwing a tantrum, he had no choice but to go over to Royal Entertainment and

    try his luck.

    Skr seems to be growing out of her shell and out of my control.

    Meanwhile, Susan entered and handed thetest financial statements from the marketing department

    over to Tobias. Checking her watch, she reminded, ¡°Mr. Ford, you still have ten minutes before the

    meeting. When I walked past the meeting room just now, I noticed that everyone has arrived.¡±

    At that moment, Tobias remembered that he still had a routine meeting to attend at six-thirty.

    Without any hesitation, he postponed it. ¡°Tell them that the meeting has been canceled and they can go

    home early. There¡¯s something I need to attend to.¡±

    Susan rified, ¡°However, the agenda of tonight¡¯s meeting is to discuss the demolition of the western

    district. Do you still want to cancel it?¡±

    Tobias frowned. ¡°Did I not make myself clear?¡±

    Susan nodded in trepidation when she sensed that Tobias was in a bad mood.

    It baffled her as to what had caused it as it was rare for him to express any emotion.

    Despite it being eight-thirty, the Royal Entertainment building was still brightly lit. There were many

    reporters lingering at the entrance every day, waiting for a scoop.

    Whenever the security guard chased them away, they would scurry away like mice. However, once he

    was gone, they would return to their positions.

    Just when Tobias arrived, he ran into Kate.

    Kate¡¯s face lit up when she saw him. ¡°Mr. Ford, are you here to see Skr?¡±

    Why is she asking the obvious? Given howte it is, does she think I¡¯m here to see Valerie about work?

    I¡¯m not that concerned about Royal Entertainment.

    Tobias answered, ¡°Where is she? Is she here?¡±

    Kate shook her head. ¡°She¡¯s not here as there¡¯s nothing scheduled.¡±

    Without another word, Tobias turned and left the lobby.

    Meanwhile, Amelia was standing beside Kate. When she greeted Tobias earlier, he didn¡¯t respond or

    even bothered to nce at her.

    When she watched him leave, she sighed, ¡°Skr sure is something. Even Tobias has toe

    personally to see her.¡±

    Kate then sent Skr a message but didn¡¯t receive a response. She grumbled, ¡°I really don¡¯t know what

    she has been up to every day. She keeps leaving her phone on silent and it¡¯s really hard to get a hold of

    her.¡±

    Giggling, Amelia quipped, ¡°Nowadays, it¡¯s hard to find acquiescent employees like me that will appear at

    a moment¡¯s notice whenever I¡¯m needed.¡±

    After he returned to his car, Tobias called Skr again. However, no one picked up still. Feeling

    frustrated, he ced one hand on the steering wheel and smoked a cigarette with the other.

    He then sent her a message filled with question marks.

    In fact, he was even worried that she had somehow met an ident.

    As Tobias had a habit of being vignt, he would always consider the safety of those he cared about.

    For example, given how obtuse Sheldon was, Tobias would always worry about him getting into trouble

    or an ident whenever he got drunk.

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    After getting someone to trace Skr¡¯s phone signal, Tobias headed to herst known location. If he

    didn¡¯t see it with his own eyes, he wouldn¡¯t believe that she was drinking beer and eating skewers with

    another young man.

    The moment he saw her, Skr was stuffing a chicken wing in her mouth. The man was looking at her

    with a smile, telling her to slow down or else she would choke.

    ¡°Is it delicious?¡± Skr thought that she was hearing things.

    When she turned and saw Tobias, she froze with the chicken wing in her mouth.

 Chapter 558

    Chapter 558

    The young man looked at Skr awkwardly and asked, ¡°Is he your boyfriend? I thought you were single.¡±

    When Skr recalled the nature of James¡¯ job, she was worried that he would bring it up in his idle

    chatter with his colleagues. Hence, she denied immediately, ¡°I don¡¯t have a boyfriend yet. He is a friend

    and my superior at work.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ eyes squinted in response as he watched Skr lie through her teeth.

    ¡°Hello, my name is James Jackson. I¡¯m Skr¡¯s friend from high school. She used to sit in front of me,¡±

    James introduced himself warmly and he stood up to shake Tobias¡¯ hand.

    Holding a wooden skewer in his hand, Tobias broke it in half with a push of his thumb, sending a chill

    down Skr¡¯s spine.

    As he stared at James coldly, James¡¯ hand was still extended awkwardly.

    ¡°Are you done eating? There¡¯s something urgent at the office. Come back with me right away.¡± He turned

    his gaze toward Skr.

    Usually, she would feel uneasy in my car because she wanted to avoid suspicion or was worried about

    being photographed.

    But now, she can brazenly drink with another man, with a reddened face and a bunch of empty beer

    bottles beside them.

    Skr recent actions and behavior never ceased to amaze him.

    As James retracted his hand awkwardly, he scratched his head and replied, ¡°You should go deal with

    whatever you need to. Anyway, I¡¯ll work on what you have asked of me and talk to my boss know when

    I¡¯m back at the police station.¡±

    Skr replied gratefully, ¡°I appreciate it.¡±

    When she prepared to pay, the waiter informed her, ¡°A man has paid for you.¡±

    Smiling awkwardly at James, Skr remarked, ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have done that. How can I allow you to

    pay? After all, I was the one who asked you for help.¡±

    James answered, ¡°It¡¯s not me. I didn¡¯t manage to pay in time.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ expression was just as sullen given that Skr acted as if he was invisible.

    When James denied that he paid, Skr turned toward Tobias. Her expression changed from one that

    was all smiling to one that was icy cold.

    As one of the top graduates from the police academy, James¡¯ keen observation told him that Skr¡¯s

    rtionship with her boss wasn¡¯t as simple as it appeared.

    Skr¡¯s wless face was entuated by her exquisite features, glowing underneath the dim moonlight.

    Therefore, James would always take another look if he could. When they were studying, he regretted not

    noticing her early enough. Hence, she ended up getting together with Jeremy. Consequently, he had

    even seen many of their couple photos in Friendster.

    Life was like a show, and it all depended on how well one could act.

    After James left, Skr immediately kept a safe distance from Tobias. She didn¡¯t even pretend to be

    cordial.

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    After all, she was still holding a grudge over the fact that Tobias had called her crazy for the sake of his

    ex.

    When a man called a woman crazy, it was no different from swearing at her. Therefore, Skr wasn¡¯t

    going to give in to Tobias¡¯ persuasions this time, at least not until the matter with Idania was resolved.

    Meanwhile, Skr had brought Hannah along to the dinner, so as to avoid being photographed dining

    alone with James. However, Hannah had left halfway to take a call.

    Until now, she still hadn¡¯t returned, causing Skr to feel annoyed. After all her job was to help Skr

    avoid unfounded rumors from being started. However, Skr didn¡¯t expect Hannah to be so busy that

    she had no time for dinner.

    Picking up her handbag, Skr requested the restaurant staff to pack the leftovers so she could have

    them for breakfast.

    Tobias snapped, ¡°Have I mistreated you to the extent that you have to eat someone else¡¯s leftovers?¡±

 Chapter 559

    Chapter 559

    Skr pretended not to have heard as she packed the leftover boxes into her bag. ¡°Wasting food is a sin.

    Besides, no one has touched the food before. So why can¡¯t I eat it?¡±

    Tobias replied, ¡°Suit yourself. Come home with me. I have something to ask you.¡±

    The moment they stepped out of the restaurant, they ran into Hannah. Underneath her thick sses, her

    eyes were all red. It was obvious that she had just cried very hard given how swollen her face was.

    Leaving Tobias, Skr grabbed Hannah¡¯s arm and asked softly, ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Your eyes are all

    swollen from crying. Wasn¡¯t everything fine just now? Who has bullied you? Did you bump into some

    hoodlums? Tell me.¡±

    When Hannah saw that Tobias was there, she refused to tell Skr what happened. Instead, she took off

    her specs and wiped her tears.

    She had just revealed to her boyfriend that she was Skr¡¯s assistant. Previously, she lied to him

    because she wasn¡¯t confident of herself and her looks. Hence, she was worried that he would think less

    of her.

    However, her boyfriend told her that he needed to reevaluate their rtionship. Furthermore, he finally

    understood why the pictures she had sent him all looked like Skr.

    Just like a mute, Hannah didn¡¯t respond no matter how much Skr asked.

    As Tobias entered the car first to wait for Skr, Hannah quickly followed them. From the moment she

    got in, she could no longer control her emotions and began to vent, telling Skr that she was on the

    verge of a breakup.

    Hannah¡¯s cries at the back of the car irritated Tobias. ncing at Skr from the rearview mirror, he

    wondered if she would be bawling the same way if both of them were to break up.

    He had never reconciled after a breakup. However, Tobias figured that if Skr cried to this extent, he

    would likely waver if it wasn¡¯t over a matter of principle.

    Skrforted her, ¡°Is he worth you crying so much for? Men are all pigs. Why should we care so

    much about them? Don¡¯t dwell on it so much. After all, there is plenty of fish in the sea. If you¡¯re not

    happy, change your boyfriend. Most importantly, you should learn how to let go.¡±

    Feeling the sting from her words, Tobias inly asked, ¡°Are youforting her, or are you trying to get

    on my nerves? Tell me, if I made you mad, would you change me off just like that?¡±

    Skr was stunned. Since when did he get so edgy? I didn¡¯t say I was talking about him.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you have any sympathy? How can you feel annoyed given how hard she was crying?¡± Skr

    grumbled after they had dropped Hannah off. At the same time, she was rummaging through her bag.

    Tobias furrowed his eyebrows at her as he wondered what she was looking for.

    The bag was in a mess. Despite how pretty and neat she looked, she was essentially a messy person.

    Tobias had heard thatdies nowadays behaved that way. All they cared about was their appearance.

    ¡°Why should I have any sympathy? Isn¡¯t it just a breakup? Why does she need to cry so hard about it?¡±

    By the time Tobias stopped the car, Skr had found what she was looking for: the house key.

    The keypad lock on her door had been broken for a long time, and she had forgotten to call the

    repairman. Also, it was Madelyn¡¯s day off; hence, no one was there to get the door for them.

    Before Madelyn left in the morning, Skr caught her using her facial cream without her knowledge.

    Realizing that she had been caught red-handed, Madelyn made an awkward excuse that Skr always

    came homete.

    Therefore, having to wait up was detrimental to her skin. As ady, she too needed to maintain her look

    with proper skincare.

    After all, she was meeting her friends, and it would be bad for Skr¡¯s reputation if they saw her pale

    expression and assumed that she was badly treated by her employer.

 Chapter 560

    Chapter 560

    When Skr heard Madelyn¡¯s preposterous excuse after being caught using her skincare products, she

    couldn¡¯t help but burst intoughter before giving the leftover cream to Madelyn. After all, she didn¡¯t like

    sharing something so personal.

    At that moment, she realized that the number of little quirks she had seemed to have picked up. She had

    forgotten that she used to wear hand-me-downs from Eva. Moreover, she never had a pair of new shoes,

    let alone clothes.

    Upon entering the house, the living hall was in a mess. The sofa cushion had fallen onto the floor while

    the leftovers from her morning breakfast were still on the coffee table. Furthermore, the trash can was full

    as no one had taken it out.

    After throwing the breakfast away, Tobias took out a napkin and wiped the oil stains off the table.

    Meanwhile, Skr came back downstairs after getting changed. Taking off her hat, she revealed her new

    hairstyle: maroon-colored shoulder-length hair.

    Her goddess-like side bangs were now reced by air bangs. When she wasn¡¯t wearing makeup, Skr

    would look even younger. Only then did Tobias noticed that she changed her hairdo.

    ¡°Did you confront Idania? Why did you do that?¡± Tobias looked at her intently.

    Tobias didn¡¯t approve of Skr¡¯s new look. He felt that it was too young and girly. Therefore, they would

    look out of ce standing together.

    Don¡¯t I look like an uncle standing next to my niece? All this while, Tobias was not bothered by the

    difference in age. But this time, he was concerned by it.

    Fidgeting with her hair, Skr felt ufortable with its awkward length. She replied, ¡°No wonder you

    called me so many times. Are you trying to interrogate me? However, I don¡¯t think what I did was wrong.

    Your hate people who like to express their jealousy. Unfortunately, I have be one of them.¡±

    Skr wasn¡¯t sincere in her admission at all. She gave Tobias a cursory response and didn¡¯t intend to

    dwell on the details.

    Opening the window to get some fresh air, the cool night breeze blew across her exquisite-looking face.

    Tobias looked displeased. ¡°Since you obviously know I don¡¯t like it, why must you insist on doing it? Also,

    are you having dinner with that guy just because you wanted to get on my nerves as revenge?¡±

    Suddenly, Skr realized that Tobias¡¯ impression of her was that she was someone childish.

    She didn¡¯t want to tell him what she saw James for. After all, it was a trivial matter that she didn¡¯t want to

    bother Tobias with. It was better left to the police.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t. I was just catching up with an old friend from school. Anyway, can you tell me how your ex

    ended up using me of bullying her in front of you?¡±

    Tobias¡¯ expression was grim as his deep gaze met with Skr¡¯s clear eyes.

    The next moment, Tobias stood up and headed upstairs, as if there was nothing to exin. As the dim

    light shone on his back, it made him look exceptionally cold.

    Skr tsked in frustration. She had wanted to discuss the matter calmly with Tobias but instead, he

    walked away in the middle of their talk.

    With such an attitude, he would never have been able to get a girlfriend if he were any poorer or uglier.

    Closing her eyes, she leaned against the sofa. She was totally exhausted. She didn¡¯t want to go to bed

    early, as she would just be walking into the lion¡¯s den, allowing Tobias to have his way with her.Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    After all, men could always separate sex from emotions. No matter how angry Tobias was, he would still

    remove her clothes to satisfy his desire. After that, he would continue giving her the cold shoulder as if

    nothing had happened.

    She had expected Tobias to be furious at her for going to see Idania. After all, no one was able to control

    that temper of his. In fact, if she had insulted his precious Idania, he would insist on her to apologize to

    Idania at once.

    However, Tobias¡¯ reaction was a lot calmer than she expected. Ever since he entered the house, he had

    not said anything nasty to her.

    Can it be that I have overestimated her viciousness and that she didn¡¯t go crying to Tobias?

 Chapter 561

    Chapter 561

    When Skr didn¡¯te up after a long time, Tobias took a peek from the top of the stairs. He saw her

    lying on the sofa while ying with her phone.

    To him, it was as if she was addicted to her phone and would go crazy if it was taken away from her.

    ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. Shouldn¡¯t you be in bed?¡± He urged, cognizant that Skr was avoiding him.

    Without even looking, Skr continued surfing TikTok. ¡°I¡¯m not sleepy. You don¡¯t have to wait up as I¡¯m

    still busy.¡±

    Given how brazenly she had ignored him, Tobias snatched her phone away and flung it onto the sofa.

    Before she could react, he picked her up and pressed her against the coffee table.

    As he gently kissed and nibbled her on her neck, she felt the cold from the table pierce her skin.

    However, the burning sensation from his breath somehow kept her body warm.

    His hands made quick work of her pants and threw them behind the sofa. After that, he unbuttoned his

    own and unzipped it in haste.

    As there was no avoiding the inevitable, Skr looked at the ceiling in despair. She was filled with

    conflicting emotions, as both lust and the desire to refuse him dueled against each other.

    ¡°Be gentle¡­¡± she uttered meekly.

    ¡°Mmm-hmm.¡±

    Caressing her slender thighs roughly, his actions became gentler as he gradually moved upward.

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    ¡°Here or upstairs?¡± Tobias asked when he saw her grimacing. Given how hard the coffee table was, it

    was no different than having hery on top of freezing cold marble.

    ¡°Upstairs¡­¡± she replied softly. She had sat up and wrapped her arms around Tobias¡¯ neck, waiting for

    him to carry her up.

    As the sun shone on her face, she gradually opened her eyes and realized she was covered by a

    nket. Rubbing her eyes, she saw that it was already eleven and Tobias was no longer beside her.

    She assumed Tobias had already left as he was too busy to sleep in with her.

    Recently, Skr had a lot more free time. Other than a fewmercial shoots and a reality show, she

    didn¡¯t have much else on her te. Kate was also busy screening through scripts so as to find her a new

    urban drama to act in.

    The scripts that Kate had shortlisted revolved around office romance. After going through them, Skr

    couldn¡¯te to a decision.

    Yawning as she walked down the stairs, Skr was surprised to see Tobias still there. After all, she had

    woken up at eleven. By the time she brushed her teeth and washed her face, it was already past twelve.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you have to go to work today?¡± The moment she asked, Skr realized her question was

    redundant. As the boss, Tobias could work wherever and whenever he wanted.

    Tobias replied, ¡°I don¡¯t feel like it. So, I¡¯m taking the day off.¡±

    Taking a sip of milk, she nagged at Tobias, ¡°When are you leaving?¡±

    Tobias furrowed his eyebrows. ¡°What? Are you upset that I¡¯m here? Why are you chasing me away?

    What is your n for the day?¡±

    Skr squinted her eyes. ¡°I¡¯m not chasing you out. You can stay however long you like. I¡¯m going over to

    Uncle Wesley¡¯s house. He called early in the morning and I have no idea what he wants.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t know what to say in response. From his perspective, the mere mention of Skr¡¯s rtives

    meant trouble.

    After all, Skr and her uncle never met for chatters. Worried that her rtives might cause Skr

    trouble, Tobias decided to tag along.

    Before she went over, Skr didn¡¯t think much of it since the incident with Kevin¡¯s game credit reloads

    had been resolved.

    Nevertheless, she knew it would definitely not be Wesley expressing his gratitude by inviting her over for

    a meal.

 Chapter 562

    Chapter 562

    After all, Wesley and Sharon were the kinds that always felt they were self-deserving and therefore,

    entitled to be treated well.

    From Wesley¡¯s perspective, he was the one that raised Skr. If not for her, Meredith¡¯s pension would

    have been given to him instead. After all, he was Meredith¡¯s son.

    Skr could still remember what happened when Miranda had just been sent to prison. Wesley was the

    first one to make his position known.

    She had assumed he wanted to take her in given that Miranda was his sister.

    Instead, Wesley suggested to Meredith to have her sent to either her dad or an orphanage.

    However, Meredith rejected the idea about sending Skr to the orphanage while Thomas refused to

    acknowledge her as his daughter.

    Worried that Skr would be bullied by her stepmother and stepsisters, Meredith decided to raise her on

    her own.

    Consequently, Wesley¡¯s rtionship with Meredith became strained and it took them a few years to

    reconcile. After that, Skr would move between families as if she was a ball being kicked around.

    Ever since Meredith died, Skr felt lonely no matter how luxurious her home was. She would feel

    miserable and empty as it didn¡¯t give her a feeling of home.

    Meanwhile, when she saw Kevining downstairs, she noticed his stubble and all the pimples on his

    face. A boy going through puberty was when he would experience the peak of male hormone secretion.

    Skr asked, ¡°Where are you going? Don¡¯t you have school since it¡¯s a weekday? Since you¡¯re already

    in high school, you have to be more serious about your studies.¡±

    Kevin nodded without a reply. Holding his bag with one hand, he looked at Tobias in the dark building

    they were in.

    ¡°Are you rich?¡±

    Thinking that he was asking her, she replied with a frown, ¡°Have you been ying games on your phone

    again?¡±

    Kevin continued, ¡°Skr, I¡¯m not asking you. I¡¯m asking the one beside you if he is rich.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ expression darkened as he wondered why a high school student would want to know.

    He replied, ¡°You can say that.¡±

    Kevin¡¯s expression changed from one of despair to hope. Now, he had to leave it to his parents while all

    he wanted to do was hide.

    Just when she was bewildered by the question, Tobias asked her, ¡°How old is your cousin?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s in high school, but I¡¯m not sure about his exact age. Despite being Eva¡¯s brother, don¡¯t you think

    they don¡¯t resemble each other at all?¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t care about their resemnce. He was more concerned with why Kevin didn¡¯t look like a

    student.

    When Sharon saw that Tobias hade along with Skr, she was suddenly filled with hope. She

    quickly grabbed onto Tobias¡¯ arm in front of Skr.

    She was overwhelmed by emotion as Tobias¡¯ arrival felt like a light that illuminated the darkness that was

    their despair.

    As Sharon clung onto Tobias tightly, he tried to shake her off as soon as he could.

    ¡°Skr, your cousin was tricked and lost a lot of money. This time it isn¡¯t about the game credits. Can you

    help him out again?¡±

    Sharon sounded as it was Skr¡¯s responsibility to deal with it.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    When she nced at Tobias, she could see the look of contempt on his face.

    Nowadays, it wasmon for one to ask about one¡¯s rtives before marriage. They would like to know

    the number of one¡¯s rtives and what they do for a living.

    Skr finally understood why this was so important before one got married. No one wanted to have

    troublesome rtives anyway.

    Hence, she regretted letting Tobiase along. After all, he had already helped out thest time.

    However, of all days, he had to choose not to go to the office that day.

    This time, Skr wasn¡¯t going to let Tobias get involved anymore.

    She admonished them, ¡°Can¡¯t you keep an eye on Kevin? Didn¡¯t you learn a lesson fromst time? How

    can he be involved in gambling at such a young age?¡±

 Chapter 563

    Chapter 563

    Sharon felt humiliated given that she had to be reprimanded by Skr for her son¡¯s sake.

    For most of her life, she had always looked down on Skr. But now, all she could do was acquiesce to

    her.

    Furthermore, she had already asked Eva for help. However, when Eva heard the amount involved, she

    responded by saying there was nothing she could do other than let her brother suffer his fate.

    Holding that thought, Sharon was devastated at how cruel Eva¡¯s words were despite being family.

    Meanwhile, Wesley took out a box of exotic cigars and offered one to Tobias.

    Tobias epted it out of courtesy.

    Nevertheless, Skr didn¡¯t even want to know how much Kevin owed.

    Sighing, Sharon asked, ¡°Kevin is not even eighteen yet. Hence, can you get his creditors outside to

    cancel his debts?¡±

    Skr was dumbfounded at Sharon¡¯s repeated requests for help.

    She snapped, ¡°Even if he kills someone now, he is old enough to be locked up in a juvenile detention

    center. Therefore, do you think they will forego his debt? Not everyone is as easy to persuade as

    Tobias.¡±

    ¡°The creditors are already knocking on our door. Skr, given that you have always been close to Kevin,

    can you bear to see his life ruined at such a crucial stage?¡±

    Tobias remained silent as he knew that by helping out, he would actually be truly ruining Kevin.

    When Sharon revealed that Kevin¡¯s debt was more than two million, Skr was stunned. At that very

    moment, she resolved to draw a line between herself and them.

    She was puzzled as to how daring Keven was to even lose two million at gambling. Even if he had the

    guts to do so, it was surprising that someone else had the courage to loan it to him.

    Therefore, Skr suspected that someone must have set a trap to ensnare Kevin on purpose. However,

    Kevin¡¯s family wasn¡¯t rich and neither were they getting a windfall from having their property redeveloped.

    Hence, it didn¡¯t make sense for him to be targeted.

    Feeling conflicted, she replied, ¡°I can¡¯t help you this time after having done it once.¡±

    Sharon retorted angrily, ¡°What happened to Kevinst time had nothing to do with you. It was Eva who

    had asked Mr. Ford for help. However, Eva is at her wit¡¯s end this time. Skr, before your grandma

    died, she told you to treat Wesley as family. By refusing to help, aren¡¯t you disappointing your grandma?

    It looks like you have forgotten your roots after having struck it rich. Do you still remember how often you

    ate at our house and all the hand-me-downs from Eva we gave you? You really should learn to be

    grateful.¡±

    Putting out the cigar in the ashtray, Tobias scanned the old house. Based on the location, it would likely

    fetch at least two million. However, it was a pity that they hadn¡¯t sold it earlier, it would fetch a much

    higher price then. The recent zoning rules drawn ording to the schools in the vicinity had caused the

    price to drop significantly.

    Previously, the Ford Group had the intention of redeveloping the area. But, given how sentimental Skr

    was to the house, Tobias had dyed the project indefinitely.

    When Skr was cornered by Sharon from the moral high ground, Tobias stepped in with a solution.

    ¡°Sell the house and the money you receive will be enough to pay off the debt. In fact, you will still have

    some leftover.¡±

    Engulfed with emotions, Skr protested, ¡°No, the house belongs to Grandma.¡±

    Tobias looked at Skr affectionately. At the end of the day, she just puts up a strong front. When it

    comes to settling problems, she still behaves just like a child.

    If she was his employee, she would have been sacked at once. After all, she shouldn¡¯t have revealed her

    stand the moment he suggested selling the house.

    Now that she had done so, Wesley and Sharon would use the house to threaten her even if they weren¡¯t

    serious in wanting to sell it.

    When they realized how attached Skr was to the old house, they knew that they had found her

    weakness.

    Sharon put on a pitiful expression. ¡°Looks like we have no choice but to sell the house. The loans that

    Kevin took are all high-interest loans, where the interest will keep piling up the longer we drag this out.

    My God! Looks like we will be sleeping on the streets soon.¡±

    Feeling desperate, Skr questioned, ¡°What right do you have to do this? This ce belongs to

    Grandma too.¡±

    Sharon replied, ¡°We are left without a choice. Of course, we wouldn¡¯t sell it if we had the money. When

    your grandma was still around, she would keep the house spick and span.¡±

    Squatting by the corner, Wesley buried his face in his hands. Just thinking about Kevin caused him to

    feel like breaking his legs as punishment. He couldn¡¯t understand how Kevin could have gotten into so

    much trouble during his teenage rebellion.Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

 Chapter 564

    Chapter 564

    Kevin was an honest boy when he was little and had no trouble at school. However, things changed

    dramatically when he entered high school. He would often y truant and mix with the wrong people.

    When Skr was about to leave, Sharon even looked for a property agent¡¯s contact in front of her, to

    express her desperation in selling the house.

    Meanwhile, Skr caught Kevin smoking by a flower bed. He was still in his school uniform but he puffed

    as if he was a seasoned smoker.

    Beside him, there was a young girl wearing a baseball jersey and cap. Her hair was kept short and she

    had a slightly plump figure.

    When she saw them approaching, she pushed Kevin¡¯s shoulder in disbelief. ¡°You¡¯re actually telling the

    truth. Skr is your cousin indeed.¡±

    Despite how worried his family was and his mom wallowing in despair, Kevin was smiling as if nothing

    had happened.

    The scene provided further insight to Tobias on the subject of having children. Why should one have

    children when all they do is cause trouble?

    Having children is a game of luck. If my son ended up like Skr¡¯s cousin, I would probably not be able

    to watch him grow up and I would have died of a heart attack before that.

    Kevin looked smug as he threw his arm around the girl¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I told you my cousin is beautiful but

    you insist that I was boasting.¡±

    The girl jumped to her feet and dusted her butt. She then gave Skr and Tobias a suspicious re.

    Hmm? If I recall correctly, Skr had imed that she was single during her interview. Is he her

    manager?

    He is really charismatic and would fulfill every woman¡¯s fantasy.

    Meanwhile, Skr had the urge to give Kevin a p and send him back home right away. However,

    suppressing her anger, she asked, ¡°Why aren¡¯t you home? Your parents are worried sick about you and

    yet, you¡¯re here dating? Do you have a conscience, Kevin? They are nning to sell the house to pay off

    your debt.¡±

    Kevin wasn¡¯t bothered with what Skr said until herst sentence when he quickly cleared his throat to

    sidestep the topic.

    It would be a disgrace to him if Lauren heard that his family was selling their home to pay his debts.

    However, it was toote. Lauren took a deep breath of her electronic cigarette and glowered at Kevin.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you tell me not to worry because your parents can easily find the money? Why do they need to

    sell the house over such a small sum of money? Don¡¯t your family even have any savings?¡±

    To maintain his pride, Kevin ignored the fact that Skr was standing there and lied, ¡°My family is buying

    a new home. Hence, they need to sell the old house first. Besides, we are not that poor.¡±

    Skr smirked at how Kevin lied through his teeth.

    Looking at the girl, Skr felt that she was materialistic despite her young age. Shouldn¡¯t they be at the

    stage where love is still innocent?

    Kevin dered, ¡°Skr, I know I messed up. Can you bail me out this time? I¡¯m aware of how badly my

    parents treated you. Therefore, it¡¯s embarrassing for me even to ask you for help. However, my examsContent rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    areing soon. When I start work next time, I will pay you back little by little. I¡¯ll even write you an IOU,

    alright?¡±

    Filled with remorse, Kevin¡¯s attitude was a lot more sincere than his parents¡¯.

    As it was already nightfall, Skr began to waver. If she didn¡¯t help, Kevin would likely hate her for life.

    For a student from an ordinary family, one could stillpete fairly in school. However, given how fast-

    paced and demanding society had be, just graduating from high school alone was no longer

    enough.

    When Kevin sensed that Skr was wavering, he pressed his advantage. ¡°Skr, give me a chance to

    return to a normal life. I don¡¯t know what had gotten into me to have done such a thing. The more I lost

    the more I had to urge to win it back. After all, I was just one step away from turning my luck around.

    However, I didn¡¯t expect the matter to turn into such a big mess.¡±

    Tobias whispered into Skr¡¯s ear. ¡°Come home with me first and I will tell you how to solve the problem.

    After all, you¡¯re not thinking straight right now and won¡¯t be able to make a sound decision.

 Chapter 565

    Chapter 565

    However, Skr felt that her mind was as clear as day. If Wesley sold the house, it would be tantamount

    to selling off her childhood memories.

    Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    Before Grandma passed away, she was worried about the house too as that was the only thing she had

    left behind.

    After Skr left, Lauren asked Kevin, ¡°Who is the man beside Skr? He looks really handsome.¡±

    Kevin replied, ¡°He¡¯s Tobias Ford, CEO of Ford Group, and her boyfriend.¡±

    Seventeen-year-old Lauren gaped. It took her a long time to regain her senses.

    She must be thinking of bing a celebrity with this information.

    Reading Lauren¡¯s mind, he tapped gently on her head. ¡°Don¡¯t get any funny ideas. Tobias is not

    someone we can offend. Despite openly moving around together, no one has dared to expose their

    rtionship. I¡¯m sure you know what that means. Besides, even if we revealed it, it¡¯s not like we¡¯re going

    to get a reward. In fact, it might be the opposite.¡±

    Just when Lauren thought of using the opportunity to be famous, Kevin nip her idea in the bud.

    She then elbowed Kevin in the chest. ¡°When will you be able to pay your debt? From the looks of it, your

    cousin doesn¡¯t seem to be willing to help you. Furthermore, the creditors aren¡¯t going to give you time.

    Given that they are gangsters, they are certainly capable of doing anything.¡±

    Kevin smiled confidently. ¡°When we were kids, Skr and I were close. During that time, my family

    looked down upon her because her parents were not around, and she wasn¡¯t good at her studies.

    Furthermore, she spoke bluntly and didn¡¯t know how to curry favor the adults. Given that she looked like

    a tomboy then, no one expected her to be so famous today. Don¡¯t worry, she is soft-hearted and will

    definitely help me. After all, I¡¯m her cousin, and she won¡¯t bear to see me suffer.¡±

    However, Lauren still wasn¡¯t convinced. ¡°But still, it¡¯s arge amount of money. It would be possible if it

    was two hundred thousand. But two million? Where would she find the money? Besides, even your own

    sister doesn¡¯t want to help you, let alone your cousin.¡±

    Nevertheless, Kevin didn¡¯t feel that two million was going to be a problem for Skr given that she was

    living in a vi with a housekeeper to tend to her needs. From his perspective, Skr must be earning a

    lot.

    Even if her pay from acting wasn¡¯t enough, Tobias had been together with her for some time now. The

    amount of profit the Ford Group made every year was definitely staggering.

    As Tobias was filthy rich, two million would likely be peanuts to him.

    Annoyed by Lauren¡¯s nagging, he threw his cigarette onto the ground and stubbed it out with his feet.

    ¡°You should head home first. I¡¯m not escorting you home as Eva is about toe back. Given the chaos

    my family is in I will probably be reprimanded when I return home.¡±

    Lauren raised her heels to bring her lips close to Kevin¡¯s ears. ¡°Tomorrow night, there will be another

    round. So, will you being? Perhaps, it¡¯s your chance to turn things around and win back all the

    money you have lost. If you do, you won¡¯t need to get anyone else to bail you out anymore. Besides, I¡¯ve

    pleaded with one of them to loan us more money.¡±

    Kevin replied without hesitation. ¡°Of course, I¡¯ll be there. I have a gut feeling that luck will be on my side.

    I even won a couple of hundred at the lottery yesterday.¡±

    When Lauren heard Kevin¡¯s answer, her mind was put at ease.

    After Kevin had left, she made a call to Hayden and told him that the fish had taken the bait.

 Chapter 566

    Chapter 566

    Lauren wasn¡¯t aware why Hayden was interested in Kevin given that it had nothing to do with her

    anyway. After all, she would be paid fifty thousand every time she brought him there. And that was a lot

    more than she could earn working in a cafe. ¡­

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    Before Kevin went back upstairs, he had mentally prepared himself. Taking a deep breath, he pushed

    open the door and saw that Eva was home.

    Without saying a word, Eva rushed over and pped him hard on his face.

    Feeling heartbroken, Sharon looked toward her and reprimanded, ¡°Eva, why did you p him? He isn¡¯t

    sensible because he is still young. He already feels bad enough. There¡¯s no need to p him at all.¡±

    Eva snapped, ¡°Why are you still protecting him given how dire the circumstances are? So what if he is

    still young? He shouldn¡¯t have gotten into that kind of trouble. He keeps making mistakes because you

    have spoiled him. Kevin, you should have just stuck to ying with your phone. Why did you start

    gambling? What makes you think that you can win given that you have never made any money before?

    We have never ced any hope on you to be sessful, but at the very least, you shouldn¡¯t be holding

    us back.¡±

    Eva hated how her parents spoiled Kevin just because he was a boy. They were so biased that it didn¡¯t

    matter what he did wrong.

    However, Kevin reacted appropriately this time. He dropped to his knees suddenly and cried. When no

    tears came out, he could only dere in remorse, ¡°Mom, Dad, Eva, I know I have messed up. I have

    been cheated and didn¡¯t want this to happen either. I will definitely turn over a new leaf, so don¡¯t be angry

    at me anymore. I know I deserve to be punished. I only acted that way because of the stress from my

    studies. Therefore, I don¡¯t n to continue with my exams. Instead, I¡¯ll start working to pay back all the

    money I owe.¡±

    Reaching out his hand to help Kevin up, Wesley remarked in disappointment, ¡°Your actions have caused

    us to feel disheartened. Your sister is right, you really aren¡¯t sensible. Given how young you are, how

    dare you act so brazenly. Tell me, if you don¡¯t continue your studies, what else can you do?¡±

    Eva was worried that she too would be dragged into Kevin¡¯s problems given that her phone had been

    ringing non-stop since the morning. Kevin¡¯s creditors had started to call her and demand their money

    back brutishly. In fact, even her colleagues received the calls, causing her to feel humiliated.

    Infuriated, Eva bellowed, ¡°What¡¯s the use of apologizing? You should go and pay back your debt instead

    of dragging your family into it. Do you think money grows on trees in our family?¡±

    When she saw how furious Eva was, Sharon tried to assuage her anger, ¡°There¡¯s no need for you to be

    so angry. Skr would definitely help us as she is worried that we will sell the house. By using it to

    threaten her, she will definitely cough out the money willingly.¡±

    Eva was dumbfounded at the fact that they assumed Skr would be so easily convinced.

    She sneered, ¡°If Skr really treated us like family and felt grateful to us, she wouldn¡¯t have ignored us

    thest time.¡±

    Sharon furrowed her eyebrows. ¡°Skr told me today that she was the one who helped Kevin with the

    game credits thest time.¡±

    Eva smirked. ¡°I was the one who resolved it. Did you think she would have helped? Looks like we have

    to force her hand by going to the press. We can use her of forsaking her family after bing

    famous. She would then be left with no choice. But, I have to make it clear that this matter cannot be

    linked to me. After all, I work at the Ford Group. If my boss knows that I am involved, I will hate all of you

    for the rest of my life.¡±

    Eva¡¯s gaze was both cold and cruel. As Wesley and Sharon exchanged nces, they felt that her idea

    sounded like a workable n.

    After all, every celebrity treasured their reputation, and Skr would definitely not want the matter to

    blow up.

 Chapter 567

    Chapter 567

    As Skr had invested all her money, she hardly had any cash left. Pacing around frantically, she was

    overwhelmed by anxiety. She just couldn¡¯t ept that there might be strangers living in her old house. If

    Grandma knew about it, she would turn in her grave and use me of failing to protect her home.

    Tobias had expected her to deal with the matter calmly. But given her current reaction, he knew she had

    be a bundle of nerves.

    He exined to her, ¡°Your cousin¡¯s problem is akin to a bottomless pit which you can never fill. You

    shouldn¡¯t have helped him thest time as it has caused him to feel that there are barely any

    consequences to his actions. Do you understand what I mean? If I were you, I would notpromise

    even if his creditors tried to kill him.¡±

    Furrowing her eyebrows, Skr asked helplessly, ¡°Is there really no other way other than selling the

    house? Why are children so frighteningly rebellious nowadays. If he was my son, I would have given him

    a good beating.¡±

    Tobias couldn¡¯t imagine what Skr would be like as a mother. Given how soft-hearted she was, the

    children would definitely take advantage of her good nature.

    ¡°By selling their house to you, wouldn¡¯t the problem be solved? After all, haven¡¯t you always coveted their

    home. Now that you finally have the opportunity, why don¡¯t you seize it? If you don¡¯t have enough money,

    I can help you out,¡± Tobias borated casually while Skr walked out of the kitchen with some snacks.

    The world is just too depressing. But, I can cheer myself up with snacks. However, they will make me fat,

    which makes me even more depressed.

    Passing some of them to Tobias, she opened a bag of chips while checking the mutual funds she bought.

    However, all of them were in the red.Content provided by N?velDrama.Org.

    If she liquidated them to buy the house, she would lose a ton of money. A few million would go up in

    smoke just like that.

    Feeling lost, she exined her situation honestly, ¡°I don¡¯t have enough money to buy it. Even if I did,

    Uncle Wesley wouldn¡¯t move out if he knows I¡¯m the owner. He won¡¯t even change the name to the title

    deed.¡±

    Looking affectionately at Skr¡¯s frowning face, Tobias replied with a smile, ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell them.

    Furthermore, they wouldn¡¯t sell the house so easily too. So, there¡¯s no need for you to feel anxious as

    they should be the ones feeling the heat. Given the amount of money borrowed, it must definitely be from

    loan sharks. As they have very harsh methods, your uncle would likely not be able to hold up for long.¡±

    However, Skr began to worry that the creditors might even ask her for the money. Just the morning

    itself, she had received a few calls from unknown numbers. However, they had all been blocked by her.

    She finally understood why many celebrities had to break ties with their own siblings. Everyone treated

    her like a cash cow because they thought celebrities made a lot of money. Furthermore, they assumed

    they were all entitled to spend it just because they were her rtives.

    Tobias reassured her calmly, ¡°You had better calm down and give it some proper thought. There will be a

    solution. You can¡¯t just waver and help him like thest time as you will end up harming him instead. If he

    were my brother, I would have let him resolve it himself. In the event he is unable to pay back the money,

    I will let him sleep in the bed he made.¡±

    That was how Tobias treated Sheldon. He allowed Sheldon to do whatever he wanted as long as he

    doesn¡¯t involve the Ford family. Whatever trouble he got into, he would have to deal with them himself.

    As Skr munched on her snacks, her eye stared nkly in thought. The more she thought about it the

    more it didn¡¯t make sense to her. How did Kevin get to know these people as he is still a student? He

    must have been targeted by someone who wanted to trick him.

    But why are they interested in him? Usually, they are only interested in those whose properties are

    earmarked for redevelopment. Knowing that these people would bepensated, the scammers would

    ensnare them with gambling.

    After all, bing rich overnight had caused many people to lose their rational minds.

    Meanwhile, Skr promised Wesley that she would think about it and give them an answer in three days.

    However, she still couldn¡¯t decide after giving it a lot of thought.

 Chapter 568

    Chapter 568

    During the call, Sharon shrieked, ¡°Are you helping us or not? If not, can¡¯t you just tell us directly?¡±

    Skr had to move her phone away from her ear.

    She felt that she should take Tobias¡¯ advice as this was clearly a bottomless pit.

    Meanwhile, Kate could sense that Skr was distracted. After all, Skr didn¡¯t notice her presence

    despite standing behind her for a long time.

    All Skr did was stare nkly into space.

    ¡°Have you familiarized yourself with the script of Love In 1978? The director is demanding an answer

    from us about the contract.¡±

    Given that she was lost in thought, Skr was given a fright when she heard Kate¡¯s voice. Holding her

    hand over her heart, she turned around to face Kate.

    As Kate had been busy with Amelia¡¯s matters recently, Skr found it difficult to meet her. Every time

    she called, Kate would reply that she was busy and end the call abruptly.

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    Hence, Skr was upset with Kate¡¯s half-hearted attitude toward her. By focusing on Amelia, she felt that

    Kate had neglected her. Although Kat couldn¡¯t be everywhere at once, Skr still expected her to carry

    out her basic duties well.

    Biting her lip, Skr shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t feel like epting the role. The plot just isn¡¯t engaging

    enough. Given that they are rushing toplete the movie in time for the holiday season, it would likely

    be a flop at the box office. I do not want such a stigma on me in my very first movie as the lead.¡±

    Kate didn¡¯t argue as Skr was right about the script. It wasn¡¯t as good as Pretty Detective in terms of

    theme and plot. Furthermore, the director was rushing toplete it before the holidays.

    However, her intention was to get Skr a piece of the holiday film market.

    Disappointed, Kate furrowed her eyebrows. ¡°I feel that the scripts that suit you the most now are low-

    budget movies like this. It¡¯s easier for you to be a dark horse given the low expectations. Besides, you

    can¡¯t say that it¡¯s a definite flop yet.¡±

    Skr could sense Kate¡¯s displeasure. If she continued to be picky, she would likely end up with no work

    before the holidays.

    Given how obvious Kate had made it, Skr decided to take a gamble. Perhaps, she could still use her

    connections to get the screenwriter to make some amendments.

    Having gone through the script, she found it to be boring. Even the jokes didn¡¯t sound funny.

    Skr asked candidly, ¡°Kate, why have you been focusing all your efforts on Amelia recently? Have I

    done something to upset you?¡±

    Staring at Kate¡¯s increasingly short hair and the ring on her finger, Skr suddenly recalled that Amelia

    had shown off a simr ring in a selfie on her Instagram.

    Given that both Kate and Amelia were wearing the same ring and Kate saw Amelia as a star, a sudden

    realization dawned upon Skr.

    If what she assumed was true, it was a signal that she was falling behind the times.

    Kate replied with a shrug, ¡°Thepany¡¯s focus changes all the time. Given how important the Pretty

    Detective is to them, I would definitely have to keep a close eye on it. Besides, Amelia started acting

    earlier than you did and is a good actress in her own right. Hence, there¡¯s nothing wrong with promoting

    her.¡±

    Recovering her intense gaze, Skr gave Kate a perfunctoryugh. ¡°Alright then, Kate.¡±

    While waiting for the car in front of the office, Skr somehow felt that she was being followed. Over the

    last few days, thendline at her house would ring inexplicably at midnight.

    Madelyn was so frightened by it that she lost her rationality, saying that the house was haunted. Not

    daring to answer, she hid in her room and refused toe out.

    After a few consecutive days of it urring, Skr could no longer take it and rushed out of the bedroom

    to answer. When she heard chillingughter over the phone, it caused her hair to stand on end.

    Other thanughing, the caller didn¡¯t say anything else.

    Meanwhile, when the bone-piercing cold wind blew across her face, she quickly stuffed her hands into

    her pockets when she felt them freezing in the cold.

    As the driver had yet to arrive and Hannah had gone on a date with her online boyfriend, she was left all

    alone.

    Just a few days ago, Hannah was crying over her breakup. Later on, Skr found out that Hannah had

    been using her photo to catfish her boyfriend online.

    Skr was infuriated when she first heard about it given what Hannah did was wrong. However, Skr

    let the matter slide after censuring her.

    Furthermore, Skr told Hannah that someone like that wasn¡¯t worth her time. Hence, breaking up was

    the right thing to do.

    At that time, Hannah had promised her that she would not contact her boyfriend. However, in just two

    days, both of them had reconciled and wanted to meet each other.

 Chapter 569

    Chapter 569

    From then on, Skr swore not to get involved in the rtionship of others. Besides, she didn¡¯t know

    how Hannah¡¯s date went.

    When the driver arrived, Skr got into the MPV. From the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of

    Charles¡¯ bby figure from afar as her vehicle quickly passed him by.

    Despite asking the driver to turn around and check, Charles was nowhere to be seen. However, she was

    sure that she wasn¡¯t seeing things.

    Ever since Charles was released from the detention center, she had gotten someone to keep an eye on

    him. Her objective was to find out who paid him off to ambush her during a public event, humiliating her

    in the process.

    Sensing that Charles wasn¡¯t done with her, she had requested for James¡¯ help to keep a tab on Charles¡¯

    movements.

    Despite feeling unsettled, she wasn¡¯t willing to get Tobias involved. In the event he did, Charles would

    likely disappear forever.

    Tobias¡¯ methods were too cruel for Skr too ept.

    Before she entered her house, Kate had sent her a screenshot from Twitter.

    Her message read: Congrattions, your name is trending again. I was wondering how many poor

    rtives you actually have. Now, it seems your cousin ising to im his share by using you of

    being heartless.

    When Skr erged the picture Kate had sent, she almost burst a vessel.

    ¡°F*ck¡­¡± Skr cursed as she was filled with anger.

    Given that her name was now trending, all the details about her family were being exposed to the public.

    The incident undoubtedly dealt a blow to Skr¡¯s reputation.

    Kevin wrote:

    Dear all, firstly I would like to apologize for taking up your time. I¡¯m Skr¡¯s cousin, Kevin Watts. I am

    currently a burden to my family because I suffer from Thssemia. My family has spent a few million to

    treat my disease and has never forsaken me. Just when I had lost all hope, I was given a lifeline when a

    bone marrow match was found. However, much of my family¡¯s savings have been wiped out by my

    medical bills¡­

    Content provided by N?velDrama.Org.

    Before Skr finished reading, she saw her own hands trembling.

    Did Kevin write this? She couldn¡¯t believe how despicable he had be.

    Although Kevin didn¡¯t mention anything about her refusing to help, tagging her Twitter handle caused

    thousands of her fans to see the post.

    Despite not bringing it up, the fact that he was raising money in public was a p in the face for her.

    What was even more humiliating was that attached to his post, there was another picture of her was

    taken from the airport.

    In it, she was holding a Herm¨¨s bag that cost three hundred thousand, which was a gift from Tobias.

    Skr tried hard to contain her anger. By the time she arrived at Miranda¡¯s ce, her Twitter ount

    had been bombarded by fanments.

    Jean is My Girlfriend: Your cousin is asking for your help to get treated. Given that you can afford a

    Herm¨¨s bag, why aren¡¯t you able to help him?

    Crazy Louis: Your cousin didn¡¯t leave a donation link because he wants to preserve thest of your

    dignity.

    Cracker: No wonder people say that it¡¯s better to depend on your neighbors than your distant rtives in

    times of emergency.

    Skr¡¯s Bunny: Skr isn¡¯t wrong. After all, he isn¡¯t her own brother, and she too is having a tough time.

    Squinting her eyes, Skr read through the heatedments on Twitter. There was even one guy who

    started a poll on whether she was obliged to help Kevin pay for his medical bills.

    The result was: Yes: 80%; No: 15%; On the fence: 5%.

    Knitting her eyebrows, Miranda was disappointed in her brother¡¯s family. She snapped, ¡°How can they do

    this? Since when was Kevin sick? Their greed for your wealth has caused them to sink to such depths.¡±

    Skr sighed as her family never failed to surprise her.

 Chapter 570

    Chapter 570

    Leaning on the sofa with her legs crossed, she sneered, ¡°They really are desperate. I told them that I will

    give them an answer in three days, and it has only been a day and a half since then. They just want to

    put me in a difficult spot, thinking that I will waver due to my pity for Kevin. However, given what he has

    done at such a young age, he doesn¡¯t deserve my sympathy at all.¡±

    Miranda was peeved at how Wesley¡¯s family was threatening Skr. After all, she knew Skr didn¡¯t

    have that much money.

    Grabbing Skr by her arm, Miranda pulled her up from the sofa. She suggested angrily, ¡°Let¡¯s go and

    confront them. I want to know why they are ckmailing us. All this while, they have always boasted

    about how capable their daughter is. But now that they have a crisis, why aren¡¯t they banking their hopes

    on her? Instead, they chose to victimize you.¡±

    Miranda had blown her top off. It wasn¡¯t until she heard the doorbell, that she let Skr go and opened

    the door.

    Sitting on her sofa, Skr¡¯s eyes widened in shock. Although Miranda had pushed the person out, she

    caught a clear glimpse of who it was. He was none other than Molly¡¯s father.

    Skr¡¯s gaze darkened as she questioned Miranda, ¡°What are you doing with Molly¡¯s dad?¡±

    Smiling awkwardly, Miranda replied, ¡°You must have gotten it wrong. It was just the milkman. He just

    informed me that he was out of strawberry-vored milk, and he only has fresh milk left. I told him that I

    don¡¯t want any then.¡±

    When Miranda continued to lie tantly, Skr suddenly remembered Molly grumbling to her that her

    mom suspected her dad of having an affair.

    Closing her eyes, Skr took a deep breath as she could feel how suffocating her life had be. Not

    only does my family not provide any support, but they also seem intent on holding me back and won¡¯t be

    happy until they have destroyed my reputation.

    Despite Skr¡¯s questioning, Miranda was adamant in her denial and insisted Skr had made a

    mistake.

    As of now, Skr wasn¡¯t sure if Molly was trying to get close to her because of her fame or if she had a

    different agenda instead.

    Given how Miranda had always gotten herself into trouble because of love, Skr warned her not to

    cause any trouble and reminded her to have some decency.

    Irritated by Skr¡¯s lectures, Miranda quickly got her to leave.

    Meanwhile, without prior notice, Tobias came to pick Skr up, saying that he wanted her to return to the

    Ford residence with him.

    Skr asked nervously, ¡°Why do you need me there? I am not prepared, and the makeup on my face is

    starting to cake. Can we go tomorrow instead?¡±

    ncing at her, Tobias replied with a smile, ¡°You look gorgeous. If you still want to freshen up, there are

    some wet towels in the car which you can use.¡±

    Skr was dumbfounded. Using a wet towel to wipe a face full of makeup will only make things worse.

    Does he even know anything about girls?

    When they arrived at the Ford residence, Skr was still mentally unprepared. Every time she met

    udia, she would always feel that she was put on trial.

    It didn¡¯t help that udia had a cold look. She would always look aloof and dignified, just like ady of

    noble birth in the olden days.

    Given that Tobias had taken after udia, he emitted the same frosty vibe as his mom.

    As it was already nightfall, Skr wasn¡¯t sure if they were going to have dinner or supper.

    The food that greeted them looked exquisite and scrumptious, just like pieces of art. Skr felt that it

    was indeed wonderful to have a chef at home.

    Meanwhile, Skr knew it was rude to touch the cutlery before udia did. Seated beside Tobias, she

    felt as if she was sitting on pins and needles.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, you seem to have been very popr recently. I keep seeing you in the news every other

    day.¡±

    Skr forced herself to smile. ¡°Sometimes, it¡¯s necessary to have some publicity. As the reports are

    largely baseless, I don¡¯t pay too much attention to them.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t know what his mom was up to when she insisted on having dinner with Skr.

    Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    He had already rejected her many times, with the excuse that Skr was busy. But, udia was

    adamant in wanting to see her.

 Chapter 571

    Chapter 571

    Tobias cleared his throat while trying to ease the situation for her. ¡°Don¡¯t take everything on the inte

    too seriously.¡±

    udia smiled with content as she felt her son had be more consideratepared to before. Years

    ago, he would not blink even if someone were to die in front of him.

    She was aware that the inte was full of lies. With the freedom of speech, anyone could fabricate any

    story they wanted without considering the consequences. Thus, she did not pay much attention to the

    information she saw online.

    If she did note across that news today, she would not have even thought of having dinner with

    Skr. If everything said by her cousin was true, she felt it was necessary to reevaluate Skr¡¯s

    personality.

    In udia¡¯s opinion, she always felt families and rtives should look after each other¡¯s back. It was the

    minimum quality that any human should have.

    Hence, if Skr were the type who forgot about her close ones after she got famous, udia would

    certainly not be able to ept it.

    Skr was stunned when udia asked about Kevin, as she did not expect thetter to be so well

    informed.

    She must think I¡¯m a selfish person who abandon my own family.

    Just then, Tobias¡¯ finger poked Skr¡¯s thigh gently below the table, signaling her not to exin too

    much.

    Before Skr could open her mouth, Tobias got ahead of her. ¡°Kevin¡¯s fine and healthy. It¡¯s just that he

    has lost some money and could not pay his debt. That¡¯s how the whole event was twisted.¡±

    udia furrowed her brows deeply as she began to grow a prejudice towards Skr¡¯s family.

    She said with despise. ¡°I hope this won¡¯t happen again, regardless of the reason. Ms. Jones, you should

    reflect on what kind of rtives you have.¡±

    Skr did not respond but just disyed an unnatural smile.

    She could notprehend what exactly udia meant by that. What should I reflect my rtives for?

    It¡¯s not like I can choose my rtives.

    Skr took a few bites, but she seemed to have lost her appetite, even though the dishes were mainly

    her favorite.

    A momentter, udia picked up a piece of fish and put it in her mouth. Her expression turned

    displeased as there was chili in the dish.

    It was not a coincidence but was deliberately instructed by Tobias to the chef, as Skr loved spicy

    foods.

    udia expressed pickily, ¡°Why¡¯s the food so spicy today? My age cannot take such spices anymore.

    Ms. Jones, please eat more. Don¡¯t starve yourself every time you dine here.¡±

    Skr nodded submissively and resumed her pace of eating. The rain was bing heavier outside,

    along with the strong cold wind.

    After dinner, as Skr was getting ready to leave, Tobias persuaded, ¡°It¡¯ste, and it¡¯s raining outside.

    Why don¡¯t you stay here tonight?¡±

    Skr gazed at the stormy night outside the window. At that instant, she recalled that Madelyn was on

    leave, so she would be alone if she returned home.

    Thinking of the disturbing midnight calls and the spookyughs, her heart skipped a beat.Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    She whispered hesitantly, ¡°That¡¯s a little inappropriate. We¡¯re not married yet.¡±

    Tobias let out a faint smile. ¡°Are you seriously worried about this? Do you think that if you leave now,

    people will believe your innocence?¡±

    Skr was somewhat offended by Tobias¡¯ment.

    However, she did not insist on leaving. As udia had gone upstairs to rest, Skr did not mind staying

    for the night.

    She followed Tobias to his room. What weed her was a room of elegant cold grey pigment with

    extraordinary simple interior design.

    It was a total contrast with the fancy luxurious design in the living room.

    Skr spotted the small bed in the room, which only had around one meter half in width.

    ¡°What kind of man still uses a single bed? How are both of us supposed to sleep in it?¡±

 Chapter 572

    Chapter 572

    Tobias gave a confused look. ¡°Who says that a man cannot sleep on a single bed? The home¡¯s just a

    ce for sleeping. It does not look like I need to do anything on it.¡±

    Skr raised a brow at him. ¡°That sounds so sad. Do you not feel any love in this house?¡±

    Tobias pondered for a while. No, I don¡¯t. Long before he and his brother turned ten, udia had been

    busy working all the time. And now, he was the one who seldom left his work.

    ¡°Stopining. Just make do with it. If you don¡¯t like it, I can sleep in the guest room. There¡¯re plenty

    of rooms in this house, and you can choose the one you like.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Skr shook her head firmly. She refused to step out of his room as she worried that

    she might run into udia.

    She scanned the room, and her eyes locked on the enormous bookshelf at one side of the wall. She

    stood on her tiptoes and randomly reached for an old photo album on the upper shelf.

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    ¡°Can I have a look?¡± Skr asked for permission from the owner.

    Tobias could hardly remember what was in the album. ¡°Suit yourself. I¡¯m yours anyway, so is everything

    in this room.

    Skr¡¯s face blushed upon hearing that, as it was rare for Tobias to say something so romantic.

    However, a second after Skr opened the album, her curiosity seemed to vanish. She shut the album

    right away and threw it on the table.

    Confused, Tobias walked over and picked it up to look inside. After a few pages, he realized a photo of

    him and Idania at the tennis court.

    Idania was dressed in a white polo shirt and a pink cap, while Tobias¡¯s hand was ced around her

    waist.

    Idania¡¯s smile was indeed warm and pure, just like the first sunlight in the spring.

    Skr observed Tobias¡¯ expression closely while his eyes were staring at that particr photo for almost

    a full minute.

    At that moment, Skr¡¯s heart was filled with expletives, while a string of curses flew past her mind.

    ¡°Are you done? It was such a good memory, wasn¡¯t it?¡± Skr uttered coldly.

    Not responding to her question, Tobias took out the only photo of his and Idania from the album.

    Looking at his action, Skr felt as though a thousand needles were stabbing through her heart.

    She spoke in despair. ¡°Tobias, can you stop treating me like this? Why¡¯re you taking out that photo? Do

    you want to put it somece you can see? Look at me. I¡¯m not dead yet, okay?¡±

    Staring at Skr¡¯s jealous expression, Tobias started tearing the photo into pieces and then threw it into

    the trash can.

    ¡°Stop overreacting, would you? I¡¯m not particrly eager to keep the memory in the past. Are you happy

    now?¡±

    However, Skr was far from satisfied. It was not the photo that mattered to her, but the fact that Tobias

    had brought Idania to y tennis.

    Compared to that, most of the time she spent with Tobias was in bed. Tobias had brought her to the golf

    club once, but she ended up picking the ball most of the time. And it could hardly be considered a date,

    as Tobias was talking business with someone else.

    Trying to clear her thoughts, Skr walked over to the bed and sneezed on the bedsheet. To her

    amazement, it was the scent of white sandalwood, without a smell of man¡¯s sweat.

    Skr could notprehend why Tobias was so into this kind of perfume. The scent reminded her of the

    smell of incense.

    The one-meter-half bed was too small for the two of them. Skr¡¯s sleeping posture was poor, either with

    her thighs resting heavily on Tobias¡¯ stomach or identally pping him in the face.

    For a moment, Tobias even suspected she was pretending to sleep but grabbing the opportunity to beat

    him.

    At that point, Skr was hugging his head like a pillow. She looked highly seductive wearing his shirt, as

    he could smell her body scent through the thin cloth.

 Chapter 573

    Chapter 573

    For several times, Tobias felt like tearing Skr¡¯s underwear apart and let his lustful beast within him run

    free.

    As Skr was hugging his head tightly, it made him feel rather challenging to breathe. But he tried his

    best not to move and let the former rest deeply in her sleep.

    Just then, he heard a knock on the door.

    Tobias held Skr¡¯s head like he was holding a time bomb and ced it gently on the pillow.

    He tiptoed to open the door. It was Millie, the housekeeper. ¡°Mr. Ford, Mrs. Ford asks for you.¡±

    Tobias nodded and followed Millie, leaving his room.

    Speaking of Millie, she had been a housekeeper for a long time, even though she was just in her

    twenties. She had a pretty clean face and a soft voice, and he heard that she did not finish high school.

    Tobias had tried to send her away more than once, but Millie refused to leave no matter what.

    And little did udia know that Millie had been Sheldon¡¯s who*e for quite a long time.

    Whenever Sheldon was drunk, he would surely pay a secret visit to Millie¡¯s room.

    Even when Sheldon was still together with Winnie, Millie became pregnant with the former¡¯s child.

    The incident nearly got out of hand while Millie went after Sheldon in desperation. Eventually, Sheldon

    had no choice but to ask for Tobias¡¯ help not to solve the matter before Mrs. Ford find out about it.

    Thinking about all the messes that Sheldon had caused over the years, Tobias let out a long sigh.

    In the end, Millie was brought secretly to the hospital to abort the baby.

    The moment Tobias entered udia¡¯s room, she was lying rxingly on her couch, with a mask on her

    face.

    Tobias¡¯ eyes widened as udia¡¯s night style went contrary to her usual image.

    udia asked without turning her head. ¡°Did you let Skr stay here?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I did.¡±

    udia sighed in disappointment. She was dissatisfied with Skr, but she could not be frank with

    Tobias as she feared that she might offend him.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not the best way to keep your rtionship in the grey zone. I guess it¡¯s about time to get

    serious. I¡¯m even willing topromise with this rtionship. What¡¯s else are you waiting for? It¡¯s fine if

    you don¡¯t want to get married, but at least give me a grandchild.¡±

    udia¡¯s patience was approaching its limit, as she wanted to make sure his son¡¯s woman was at least

    capable of producing some children.

    Not to mention, she had a lot of opinions regarding Skr¡¯s body. In her opinion, thetter seemed too

    skinny and seemingly not the optimum type to bear children.

    However, this was precisely the conversation Tobias had been trying to avoid. He could sense udia¡¯s

    eagerness in this matter, as she would even allow him to have a baby before marriage.

    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.

    Tobias did not try to disguise his frustration anymore. He felt utterly resentful whenever udia brought

    up the subject of him having a baby.

    He replied indifferently, ¡°If you are so desperate for a grandchild, I¡¯ll go to the orphanage tomorrow to

    adopt one. I could even adopt two if that pleases you.¡±

    udia had almost passed out upon hearing that. I¡¯m already old, and I want a grandson. Is that too

    much to ask?

    Apparently, her wish seemed impossible to be fulfilled at the moment.

    Shemented furiously, ¡°What¡¯s the point if the child is not your blood? Why do you resist having a child

    so much?¡±

    ¡°Kids are too noisy. I prefer a quiet life.¡±

    udia was stunned momentarily. ¡°Then, you¡¯ll regret it when you grow older. You should die alone.¡±

 Chapter 574

    Chapter 574

    Skrined that she did not sleep well the previous night, most probably because of the small

    bed.

    Tobias did not respond to her as he felt she wasining because she wanted to leave early. If her

    sleepst night could not be considered good, then he could not imagine what a good sleep was

    supposed to be.

    Skr got up unusually early, and the first thing she did in the morning was checking on her messages.

    Kate had been asking her about the statement Kevin published, but Skr was still deciding on how to

    answer her question.

    She was afraid that if she exposed the truth, Kevin¡¯s life would be ruined for good.

    She felt the need to see Kevin for onest serious talk. If he let her down once again, then she would

    have no choice but to be mean and expose his lie.

    By that time, Skr had dressed up neatly, and she tied her hair into a tall ponytail. It was Tobias¡¯ favorite

    style.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you didn¡¯t have a good sleep? Why don¡¯t you get some more sleep?¡± Tobias asked

    confusedly.

    Skr looked somehow energetic. ¡°I¡¯m a guest in your house. It¡¯s not appropriate to sleep until sote. I

    won¡¯t want any more criticism from your mom.¡±

    Tobias caressed her hair gently. ¡°Let¡¯s go downstairs for breakfast then. I need to head to thepany

    early today too. So will you be able to handle your cousin¡¯s matter alone?¡±

    Skr fell silent upon hearing that. It was such a dilemma for her as her decision would decide Kevin¡¯s

    fate.

    Tobias spotted her hesitation and said in a low voice, ¡°Sometimes we need to be selfish and know when

    to draw a line. No matter how good the reason might be, we must never allow others to take advantage

    of us.¡±

    Skr was fully aware of what he said, but she was afraid she did not have the gut like Tobias.

    udia had woken up earlier than any of them. When they walked downstairs, Skr greeted the former

    with a bright smile.

    udia¡¯s gesture was, howeverck of warmth. ¡°Ms. Jones, are youfortable staying here?¡±

    Skr was stunned momentarily and responded swiftly. ¡°Yes¡­ everything¡¯s great.¡±

    The breakfast for that day was sd, French toast, and ck coffee.

    Frankly, Skr was not a fan of French toast. She preferred croissants with soy milk. Besides, the ck

    coffee today tasted very bitter.

    Just then, Sheldon emerged from nowhere, still drunk. He wandered recklessly towards the dining table

    and sat down beside udia.

    Tobias put down his cup of coffee, sounded utterly displeased. ¡°You bast*rd! When can youe home

    without getting drunk?¡±

    Skr held her breath as she was shocked by Tobias¡¯ rage.

    She took a side nce towards Sheldon. He seemed rtively unconcerned while putting some cherry

    tomatoes into his mouth.

    ¡°Tobias, I went for a business discussionst night. Could you please don¡¯t get mad at me early in the

    morning?¡±

    At that moment, Millie approached and handed a warm towel to Sheldon. They exchanged eyes for an

    instant. Millie¡¯s eyes seemed utterly sincere, while Sheldon¡¯s was filled with disdain.

    udia was trying to take Sheldon¡¯s side, as she knew he had been trying his best. To be precise, she

    had epted the fact that thetter did not have a talent for doing business. Even after he got into Ford

    Group with his brother¡¯s help, he had not shown any achievement so far.

    She urged with concern, ¡°Go and take a shower, then get some sleep. Please don¡¯t go out to drink again

    tonight.¡±

    With that, Sheldon stood up abruptly and almost lost his bnce. Millie hurried to support him and

    escorted him upstairs.

    At that instant, Skr¡¯s side-eyes spotted that Sheldon¡¯s hand was grabbing Millie¡¯s ass. Such intimate

    gesture had once again confirmed their forbidden rtionship.

    udia had lost all her appetite. ¡°Ms. Jones, I apologize for Sheldon¡¯s misbehavior. Let Tobias send you

    home after breakfast.¡±

    Skr smiled back courteously, pretending as if nothing had happened.Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

 Chapter 575

    Chapter 575

    Before Skr left the house, udia instructed a housekeeper to hand her a package of health

    checkups.

    Skr was left in total puzzlement. ¡°Is this necessary? I am in good health.¡±

    She scanned through the checkup list, including items like a premarital checkup and recessive gene

    screening.

    Seeing that Tobias was not around, the housekeeper spoke frankly, ¡°This is Mrs. Ford¡¯s order. She wants

    to make sure your body is healthy.¡±

    Even though it appeared to be an act of care, Skr felt humiliated. Needless to say, after she

    completed the checkup, she would be required to hand the result back to udia. Who is she to expect

    that I¡¯ll do everything she says?

    Eventually, Skr handed the package back to the housekeeper.

    Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    ¡°Thank you, but I¡¯ve justpleted the annual body checkup conducted by thepany. Anyway,

    please thank Mrs. Ford for me.¡±

    The housekeeper advised, ¡°If you don¡¯t take it, I¡¯m afraid Mrs. Ford will not be happy.¡±

    However, Skr had made up her mind that she would be bow down to anyone for whatever reason.

    She replied with a smile. ¡°Please exin to her for me then. I have anemia, so I cannot conduct

    checkups too frequently. It can wait till the time if we¡¯ve decided to get married. I think she¡¯ll understand.¡±

    Tobias, who was waiting in the car, was confused about what was taking Skr so long. The next

    moment, he impatiently honked twice.

    Upon hearing that, Skr turned and walked out of the house, ignoring the housekeeper.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you wait for me in there?¡± Skrined the second she got into the car.

    Tobias gazed at Skr innocently. He came out earlier to start the car engine to warm the car. It has

    been raining the entire night, so the inside of the car was freezing.

    ¡°Why? What¡¯s there to be afraid of?¡±

    Skr almost cursed. Your mom suspects that I¡¯m not clean and asks me to go for a checkup.

    She swallowed back her anger and had second thoughts about discussing the matter with Tobias.

    If udia finds out that I mention it to Tobias, she will think that I¡¯m petty and trying to ruin their

    rtionship.

    With that in mind, Skr decided to drop the issue. She took out her phone and key in the location of

    Kevin¡¯s school. ¡°Could you drop me off there? I can¡¯t wait until he gets off school.¡±

    ¡°Do you really think he¡¯ll be in school after all this?¡±

    Skr furrowed her brows. ¡°Where else can he go? I¡¯m sure he won¡¯t be at home.¡±

    ¡°Cybercaf¨¦ or underground casino. Let me ask someone to check it out, and I¡¯ll apany you there.

    You should not go to such ces alone.¡±

    Skr¡¯s lips curled into a smile. ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate me. Do you know what my nickname used to be?

    I¡¯ve been called the Cyber Princess.¡±

    ¡°Is it something to be proud of? Being addicted to yingputer games with your boyfriend and

    getting intimate in cybercaf¨¦s.¡±

    Skr¡¯s face blushed from embarrassment as Tobias¡¯ prediction could not be less urate. Everyone

    has a past.

    However, in Skr¡¯s understanding, Tobias was hardly a man with a past. Surely he would not

    apany his girlfriend to a cybercaf¨¦, would he? He would see that as a waste of time.

    Tobias led his life like an older man, as he did not even know how to use a smartphone properly.

    Skr found it hard to believe that the founder of an online gamepany did not have any game app

    on his phone.

    As expected, Tobias¡¯ men found Kevin inside one of the cybercaf¨¦s. Tobias was worried about letting

    Skr go alone. Hence, he canceled his morning meeting and apanied her there.

 Chapter 576

    Chapter 576

    Pegasus Cybercaf¨¦ was near Kevin¡¯s school. This cybercaf¨¦ had been in existence for quite some years.

    Skr had been there when she was still a student.

    Back then, she used to spend the whole night at the cybercaf¨¦ with Jeremy. Skr still remembered the

    price. The fee was fifteen¡ªall night unlimited use.

    That time, Jeremy liked to y CrossFire. He wore a headset and cursed at theputer a lot.

    He was really good at gaming. At that time, Skr thought that was love.

    However, it felt terribly ufortable especially during the morning hours at cybercaf¨¦. The pungent

    odor, dust in the air, hunger for food, and a face covered in sebum.

    What came up next was the voice of the boss.

    Wake up. It¡¯s morning now.

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    Skr was lost in thought. She was never a delicate girl who had the best time of youth, but an ordinary

    person who lived a in life. If it wasn¡¯t for Tobias, she would just kept on muddling through her life as

    she used to day in and day out.

    There was an empty instant noodles bowl on the table when Skr finally found Kevin. He was wearing

    a headset andmanding his teammates in the game.

    ¡°Can someone give me a Kar98k? F*ck! I can¡¯t find any vehicles!¡±

    ¡°Who the f*ck is aiming at me?¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t won a game tonight¡­¡±

    Skr found it hard to believe that Kevin used to be an excellent student with good manners and top

    results when she saw him there.

    Kevin¡¯s grades had always been good. He even won first ce in National French Contest during his first

    year of high school. How did he end up like this in such a short time? Could it be the peer pressure from

    growing up?

    Skr had been standing behind him for quite a while. If Tobias didn¡¯t remove the headset from behind

    Kevin, he wouldn¡¯t even notice her existence.

    He immersed himselfpletely in the game.

    Kevin couldn¡¯t recognize Skr at first because she was wearing a baseball cap and face mask. He was

    about to curse but quickly swallowed the words on the tip of his tongue.

    Lauren, Kevin¡¯s girlfriend was there too. She put down herputer mouse and got up from the sofa.

    Tobias looked at Kevin¡¯s girlfriend. She was about Kevin¡¯s age. She had her hair in colorful dreadlocks,

    wearing a goth makeup with smoky eyes. One of her arms was full of colorful tattoo.

    These roguish hooligans were such an eyesore to Tobias.

    Then, Skr took the two kids to a restaurant nearby with private rooms where they could have their

    privacy.

    She had covered herself well from head to toe, but many people were still looking at her direction.

    She wasn¡¯t sure if they had recognized her, or they were actually looking at Tobias. She just couldn¡¯t tell.

    It was time to eat. Kevin was still hungry as the noodles he ate earlier had already been digested.

    Lauren looked rather nervous and cautious aspared to Kevin. She sat beside him, biting her lips.

    Skr ordered some food. As soon as the first dish was served, Kevin couldn¡¯t hold himself and began

    to stuff his mouth with food.

    Meanwhile, Lauren hadn¡¯t started eating. Skr looked at her and asked, ¡°Kevin is your boyfriend, isn¡¯t

    he?¡±

    Lauren nodded.

    Skr somehow felt that that girl didn¡¯t deserve Kevin.

    This time, Skr went straight to the point, ¡°Why did you do that? Why must you push me into the

    corner? What could you possibly gain from doing this?¡±

    Kevin didn¡¯t dare to tell Skr that the idea was actually instigated by Eva. He had no choice but to bear

    the consequences. ¡°Because I have no money, and you¡¯re not helping me either. That money means

    nothing to you at all. You even endorse Gi. Besides, you¡¯re also one of the A-list celebrities. You get

    paid well for every single show. Do you really have the heart to see me end up in the ditch?¡±

    His tone was devoid of any guilt or shame. Tobias thought he was probably influenced by his family

    upbringing. They tended to take others for granted as if they deserved it.

    Skr was infuriated. ¡°How could you be so shameless to say these words? Did I force you to gamble?

    You¡¯re still a student. Aren¡¯t you supposed to study hard¡±

    Tobias poured a cup of tea for Skr. None of Skr¡¯s words were on point. Still, she was too weak. She

    was giving Kevin a chance to seek sympathy.

 Chapter 577

    Chapter 577

    Kevin looked like he was about to cry. ¡°I wish for the same too! But how do I go to school now? The debt

    collectors even waited for me outside the school. If I didn¡¯t solve this issue as soon as possible, I would

    be expelled from school. I didn¡¯t even say anything bad about you on Twitter. I was just sad fishing online

    and hoping to get some donation.¡±

    Feeling guilty, Lauren kept on lowering her head. She chewed the dish for a long time but did not

    swallow. She was afraid that Skr would notice it was her who had been bringing Kevin for gambling.

    Finally, Tobias could not take it anymore. He said with a cold tone, ¡°Do you think you deserve

    sympathy? You wouldn¡¯t be so calm to post anything on the inte if you were really that desperate to

    find a solution. You are just forcing Skr topromise. You know that she would help you sooner or

    later. It didn¡¯t cost you much for making mistakes. By the way, Skr is not your parent. So, it¡¯s not her

    responsibility to clean up your mess for you.¡±

    Kevin was afraid of Tobias. He lowered his head when Tobias was talking and didn¡¯t dare to say anything

    back.

    Skr suddenly remembered Tobias saying that Kevin was unrepentant. He had no regret for whatever

    he had done. Instead, Kevin would think that Skr was a selfish person who betrayed her own family if

    she refused to help him.

    Hence, she decided to be selfish for once. She put all of her cards on the table. ¡°I won¡¯t post anything on

    Twitter for rification. This is thest chance I am giving you. I don¡¯t want your life to be ruined by public

    opinions at such a young age. However, I won¡¯t give you money either. This is your parents¡¯ business. I

    couldn¡¯t care less even if you¡¯ve been driven into a corner.¡±

    Skr was very determined. The situation turned out to be entirely different from how Kevin had

    expected it to be. He said, ¡°This is beyond humiliating. Selling the house is not going to help this time. I

    lost more than one million against night. It¡¯s all my fault for being too greedy. I was eager to win all my

    money back in one shot.¡±

    Skr closed her eyes and took a deep breath. What do I expect? Tobias was right about it. Kevin was

    hopeless. It was as if he fell down and got stuck in the mud. Nobody could help him get out.

    Tobias felt something off in Kevin¡¯s words. It is almost impossible for a student who doesn¡¯t have the

    ability to pay off his debts to ce bets in the millions. There must be something fishy.

    Skr mmed her hand on the table. She was bursting with anger. ¡°Why can¡¯t you just learn your

    lesson? Why do you have to do this to yourself?¡±

    Kevin propped his face on his hand, with a serious and painful expression on his face.

    There was nothing Skr could do. She said, ¡°You¡¯re on your own. You must own up to your mistakes.

    Don¡¯t ever try to pull any tricks on me.¡±

    As soon as she finished talking, Skr heaved a sigh of relief. It was not as difficult as she expected to

    reject him. She felt much more relieved after saying those words.

    Tobias was d that Skr had finally learned the lesson well. Now, he needed to get someone to buy

    over that old manor and transfer it to Skr.

    Since she treasured that old manor that much, then he must let her have it.

    Kevin red at her with resentment in his eyes. ¡°Skr, aren¡¯t you afraid that I¡¯ll hate you for the rest of

    my life? Obviously, it was not a big deal for you. You¡¯re pushing me into a corner.¡±

    Tobias reprimanded him coldly, ¡°You¡¯re too young. So, I can¡¯t really treat you in a formal way as if I¡¯m

    dealing in business. Stop putting Skr in a difficult position. She is your cousin, not your sister; so that¡¯s

    different. You can totally seek help from your sister.¡±

    Kevin felt a strong sense of defeat. He had never felt so helpless in his life. He was getting out of luck.

    He couldn¡¯t win at all.

    After Tobias and Skr left, Lauren only dared to speak loudly. She stared angrily at Kevin, ¡°Wake up!

    Your Twitter post doesn¡¯t help at all. Skr didn¡¯t seem to care about you at all. It¡¯s too easy for being

    your cousin.¡±

    Clenching his fists, Kevin furiously punched the table. His punch was so powerful that even the cups on

    the table moved a little due to the vibration.

    ¡°Keep this card with you. There¡¯s three million in the card. Use this money to buy over the old manor.

    Then, go look for someone who is reliable and put the house under her name.¡± Inside the car, he took

    out the bank card from the armrestpartment and handed it to Skr.Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

 Chapter 578

    Chapter 578

    Skr was stunned. At first, Tobias suggested selling the house. Then, he asked Skr to not interfere

    with his n. It seemed like Tobias had it all nned out.

    She stared at the dark blue bank card. She shook her head and sighed. ¡°Huh, I don¡¯t want to use your

    money. Besides, I can¡¯t find anyone who is reliable. I know that I don¡¯t have many friends, let alone a

    best friend. Penelope is my one and only friend. But she has been in trouble herself until now. She can¡¯t

    even save herself, not to mention helping me with this.¡±

    Looking at how disappointed Skr was when she said that, Tobias said generously, ¡°If that¡¯s the case,

    I¡¯ll take care of it. I¡¯ll transfer the house to your nameter. Don¡¯t worry. Wesley won¡¯t notice it.¡±

    Still, Skr shook her head. Indeed, Tobias¡¯ offer sounded so tempting to her. There was no way she

    could refuse it.

    However, she couldn¡¯t always be so shameless to take everything from Tobias. udia looked down on

    her, so she would definitely think Skr was a materialistic woman if she found out about it.

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    But that was not the thing that she should be worried about it for the time being. She squinted her bright

    eyes. ¡°Can you help me to find out who kept lending Kevin money? For some reason, my instinct tells

    me that someone purposely set the trap for him. That¡¯s why he ended up in this state. Moreover, did you

    notice his girlfriend¡¯s essories? None of her bag or her shoes was cheap. I¡¯ve never heard about

    Kevin¡¯s girlfriend before. What if he mixed with the wrong friends?¡±

    Skr sounded like she was trying to defend Kevin.

    Tobias snorted scornfully. ¡°Don¡¯t you think your family is really good ating up with excuses to protect

    the person who is at fault? There¡¯s no smoke without fire. He doesn¡¯t deserve to be forgiven as long as

    he was the one who made a mistake.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ words made her feel ufortable. How could he tar the entire family with the same brush?

    What does he mean by that? Is my family nothing but trash in the eyes of the Ford family?

    Skr put the bank card back to where it was.

    Tobias pulled over at the side of the road where no one passed by. Then, he turned off the engine.

    He unbuckled his seatbelt and raised her chin with one hand. His thin lips got closer to her. ¡°Can you

    stop treating me like a stranger? Let me do something for you. Have you thought this through? If you

    don¡¯t ept my offer, the house will be put up for sale. Don¡¯t regret it if someone bought it over.¡±

    Skr looked away to avoid Tobias¡¯ gaze. His gaze was always sharp, giving her a lot of pressure.

    She said stubbornly, ¡°Uncle Wesley won¡¯t sell the house. They are not young anymore. They can¡¯t

    possibly be renting a ce to live in the future. That ce is their house.¡±

    Skr was so naive. Tobias found her rather silly and adorable. She thought others would naturally care

    about the same thing as she did.

    ¡°Parents will do anything for their children when they are desperate. This is themon weaknesses of

    every parents. On top of that, your uncle and aunt will do anything for their son, even if it¡¯s meant to take

    the me for him. Unfortunately, they are only destroying him by doing so¡­ And what makes you think

    they will be homeless? Your mother would certainly take her brother in.¡±

    Skr squeezed Tobias¡¯ hand so tightly to the point where her veins were bulging from the back of her

    hand. She could formed a vivid image in her mind.

    She could imagine Uncle Wesley and Aunt Sharon moving into the vi that she had spent all her

    savings for. She had to take care of the entire family every single day from then on.

    As a sister, Miranda loved her brother very much. She would definitely go soft on Wesley if he started

    shedding tears in front of her.

    It would be such a terrible and sad scene.

    Skr was close to having a mental breakdown, she said, ¡°Then, what am I supposed to do? I don¡¯t

    know if I should help him or not. No wonder your mother would look down on my family. This is indeed

    quite annoying.¡±

    Tobias smiled faintly and said, ¡°Rx. Just keep this money and quickly buy over the house first.

    Actually, you have nothing to lose but own another property under your name. At least, it would solve the

    most urgent problem. As for where Wesley will be staying in the future, it¡¯s really up to your mother now.

    After all, it won¡¯t affect your everyday life.¡±

    In the end, Skr epted Tobias¡¯ card in a confusion. She couldn¡¯t think straight at that moment.

    She finally got to experience how outstanding Tobias was as a boss. He was so good at brainwashing.

 Chapter 579

    Chapter 579

    After epting Tobias¡¯ money, Skr thought she should at least express her gratitude. Hence, she

    pandered to his desires as Tobias hinted at something with his eyes.

    She came closer to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Then, she kissed him gently on the corner

    of his lips. The hand around her waist tightened a little, pressing his lips against hers and sucking it

    passionately.

    His ran his tongue along her lips and explored every inch of her mouth. He slowly swirled his tongue

    along hers.

    Tobias led Skr to the backseat. Fortunately, it was a secluded alley. No one was passing by for a long

    time. However, Skr was still on the tenterhooks.

    There was only a small space inside the car. Tobias turned over and pressed her down. He held her

    waist tightly and pulled her closer to him. Skr could even hear his racing heartbeats.

    ¡°I should¡¯ve changed a more spacious car next time. That would be much more convenient to do it inside

    the car.¡±

    Tobias slid his icy cold hand in her shirt from the cor. The sudden coldness brought Skr back to her

    sense. She was panting as she said, ¡°We can¡¯t do this here. I would be done for once someone takes a

    picture.¡±

    Tobias answered in a low and raspy voice, ¡°I can go somewhere further. Nobody would noticed you in

    the middle of wilderness.¡±

    Still, Skr was afraid and worried. Meanwhile, Tobias lowered his head and took a bite on her soft skin

    with her shirt still on. ¡°You¡¯re getting more tensed.¡±

    Skr could feel his displeasure in his words. He was domineering and wouldn¡¯t take rejection from an

    answer.

    However, he courteously stopped himself from carrying on and sent her to the filming site.

    Skr reported to work in advance, getting prepared for The Bad of 1978. She was actually reluctant

    to film the movie.

    The main role had already been picked over by Amelia. There were only small roles left for her. It was

    not a blockbuster, and it wasn¡¯t favored by the industry. They couldn¡¯t even guarantee a basic rate of

    screening in the movie theaters.

    The first person Skr met was not the director but Marcus. She had just gone on a date with the demon

    king, and not she bumped into the little demon.

    Skr didn¡¯t know why Marcus was there.

    She decided to y dumb, lowering her head and hurriedly walking forward. However, Hannah showed

    upte and shouted her name out loud.

    And now she had attracted Marcus¡¯ attention.

    Marcus walked towards Skr. She greeted him indifferently, ¡°Why are you doing here? Have you

    entered the entertainment industry?¡±

    Marcus had a warm smile. It waspletely different from his lunatic sister. But, Skr wouldn¡¯t be

    fooled by his appearance.

    She could really hold grudges. Skr still remembered the way Marcus provoked Tobias before, saying

    something about her market price for a night.

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    He clearly didn¡¯t have great personalities for ndering her like that.

    ¡°I dropped by to visit my sister. She is here too.¡±

    It had been raining all night long. Hence, the weather today was nice. All of a sudden, Marcus¡¯ words hit

    her like a thunderp.

    She couldn¡¯t believe her ears, she asked, ¡°How did your sister end up acting in a movie? She is not in

    the entertainment industry.¡±

    Marcus shrugged. ¡°She is kind of unpredictable. She used to study performing arts for two years when

    she was in Anndur. Aftering back to the country, she is interested in Harry. Besides, she is a

    competitive person. She is trying to outdo him in terms of career. Therefore, she got herself a role in the

    movie.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t help but shudder in fear when she thought of Ingrid. She was such an arrogant and

    spoiled woman.

    She would have gone on strike if she had not signed the contract. Skr didn¡¯t want to be in the same

    crew with Ingrid.

    However, she was stuck in a difficult position now.

    Marcus smiled and asked her on purpose, ¡°You look a little bit unhappy. I know that you and my sister

    are not on good terms with each other. But you have nothing to do with Harry. So, I think she won¡¯t be

    picking on you.¡±

    Skr pretended to be calm and sneered, ¡°What¡¯s there for me to be unhappy? This is my job. I don¡¯t get

    to choose who to act along with.¡±

 Chapter 580

    Chapter 580

    Marcus raised his brow. At the same time, his smile faded away. ¡°Oh, right. There¡¯s such a strong person

    to back you up. My sister won¡¯t cross the line. After all¡­¡±

    Skr interrupted Marcus coldly before he could finish his sentences, ¡°Are you trying to say that one

    should always check who the owner is before beating a dog? By the way, I¡¯m not a dog, and I won¡¯t sit

    there and get beaten up.¡±

    The atmosphere became tense. Marcus simply looked at her as if he was wishing her good luck.

    Hannah asked curiously, ¡°Who is that? He is so good-looking.¡±

    Skr stared at Marcus¡¯ back as he walked away, saying in an annoyed tone, ¡°What¡¯s the point of being

    good-looking? That siblings are out of their mind. They acted like they¡¯ve been through some childhood

    trauma.¡±

    Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    By the time Tobias went back to thepany, there were already stacks of documents on his desk.

    Then, he asked Eva toe in.

    Eva had just finished answering a call from one of the debt collectors. She got furious and cursed at

    those people through her phone.

    How she wished she could kill Kevin. Aren¡¯t siblings supposed to help each other? But my brother is

    nothing but a burden to the family.

    Standing in front of Tobias¡¯ office, Eva took a deep breath and rposed herself, trying to be

    professional and putting on a fake smile on her face.

    After entering his office, she turned around and quietly closed the door.

    ¡°You look like you¡¯re in a good mood. You still manage tough despite what happened to your family.¡±

    Tobias gave her a cold-eyed stare.

    He suddenly thought of Skr¡¯s gloomy face. On the contrary, Eva didn¡¯t seem to be bothered at all.

    Eva¡¯s smiling face vanishedpletely. Immediately, she pulled a long face.

    Eva exined, ¡°Mr. Ford, I won¡¯t let my personal issues affect my work. This is the basic quality of a

    good employee.¡±

    Tobias frowned his dark brows. He was annoyed to see Eva ttering herself.

    Then, he asked, ¡°How much do you love this job?¡±

    Eva was stunned for a moment and answered without any hesitation, ¡°I love my job very much. I think

    thepany is just like my family. I¡¯m willing to sacrifice forpany.¡±

    Tobias had heard enough of those words. He had lost count of the number of people who told him the

    same thing, saying that they were willing to give their everything to thepany. There were just too

    many of them.

    ¡°Let me give you a choice. Your brother was still underage. I would take that as he doesn¡¯t know how to

    make life choices. Both of you are rted by blood. So, I¡¯ll leave this to you. Your parents and brother

    have been pestering Skr. I¡¯ll give you two options. First, turn a deaf ear. Second, stop your parents

    from pressuring Skr. At the same time, get your brother to rify the matter online.¡±

    She clenched her fists tightly. Obviously, she was nervous. Her forehead was covered with a thinyer of

    sweat. ¡°Mr. Ford, I can¡¯t control what my parents want to do. I¡¯ve tried to persuade them to not go too far.

    I even told them not to put Skr in a difficult position. My brother is immature and ignorant. They are

    being unreasonable too. You don¡¯t even know I was about to sever ties with them because of this issue.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ gaze gradually darkened. ¡°I¡¯m not interested in your nonsense. What¡¯s the point of telling me

    this? It¡¯s not like I could understand anything you told me. Have I not made myself clear enough? If your

    brother doesn¡¯t make a rification on the inte, then you don¡¯t have toe back for work anymore.

    Skr is soft-hearted. She is afraid that your brother¡¯s future will be affected. Unfortunately, I¡¯m not like

    her.¡±

    Eva felt so regretful. She was just trying to give Skr a little bit of pressure that time. Hence, she came

    out with the idea. She never thought that Tobias would intervene in that matter.

    Of course, she knew Skr¡¯s weakness. Therefore, she would definitely suffer in silence until Kevin

    finished his exam.

    However, she forgot about how merciless Tobias was. He was cruel enough to threaten her with her

    career. Therefore, she could only choose between her brother¡¯s future or her career. Otherwise, she

    would lose her job.

    Everypany out there would do anything to hire employee who worked for Ford Group before. Apart

    from that, headhunters would also be calling them.

    On the other hand, one would be treated differently if one were terminated by apany. Bigpanies

    would never hire someone who was fired by the Ford Group.

    If she left Ford Group, there were not manypanies left for her to choose from. She could only work

    in some smallpanies that offered a much lower sry. Then, she would remain poor for the rest of

    her life.

    After a few minutes, Eva was still unable to make up her mind.

 Chapter 581

    Chapter 581

    Chapter 581 The Grudge

    Tobias ran out of patience and his voice turned cold, ¡°You may leave now. But remember, if I don¡¯t see

    your brother¡¯s rification post on Twitter tomorrow, I¡¯ll have someone email a letter of dismissal to you.

    Alternatively, you may also pack your things and leave in advance today.

    Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    ¡°Hey, have you heard? Skr¡¯s cousin brother is in trouble. However, she decided to turn a blind eye and

    not help him. She owns a Herm¨¨s bag, yet she¡¯s so calctive. I believe karma would hit her when she

    least expects it.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t me her though. It¡¯d make sense for her to spend wisely as she didn¡¯t grow up in a wealthy

    family.¡±

    ¡°She seems to have a bad personality. I mean, not to mention her appearance, she looks like a

    pretentious person. I bet she probably puts on an innocent act whenever she¡¯s with her fans.¡±

    Skr was weed with rumors about her as soon as she arrived at the filming set. Her assistant,

    Hannah overheard the crew whispering among themselves about Skr and decided to spill the beans

    to her.

    However, Skr ate her meal calmly in the motorhome. She was unfazed by their words.

    Hannah was enraged and said, ¡°Skr, why don¡¯t you say something about it? Perhaps a post on

    Twitter? They¡¯re saying an awful lot about you and I can¡¯t stand it anymore.¡±

    ¡°Rx, I¡¯ve always been the queen of scandals and I¡¯m practically immune to it. There¡¯s no need for me

    to rify myself, someone else would do the job. Besides, the paparazzi aren¡¯t dumb. They¡¯d probably

    have caught many pictures of him hanging out by the cybercaf¨¦ and underground casino all day. Would

    that convince the public that he was seriously ill? Furthermore, I would seem like a selfish person if I

    denounced our rtionship now. How would I also face my rtives?¡±

    I have a feeling Kevin wasn¡¯t the one behind this, so I wonder who would it be? If the culprit was Eva,

    then she was a terrible sister indeed. She didn¡¯t weigh the consequences that might inflict upon Kevin.

    The public may sympathize if it was the truth. In contrast, they won¡¯t let one off easily if it was for clout.

    She threw the leftovers into the trash can, touched up on her makeup, and participated in the opening

    ceremony to bless the shoot.

    Hannah was admiring the opening ceremony for Pretty Detective next door. She was very impressed

    with their setup. Even the roastmb that they had for the ceremony was visiblyrger than the one in

    Skr¡¯s filming set had.

    Skr noticed that this filming crew was low on budget. Everything from its filming location, costumes,

    and filming crew were iparable to Empyrean Sword.

    I can¡¯t bear to do anything else right now. I just want to take a nap in the motorhome. She rubbed her

    temples and yawned tiredly.

    Hannah noticed how tired she was and asked, ¡°Are you sick? Look at your dark circles, even a few

    layers of concealer won¡¯t do the trick to cover it. You have to stop staying up all night, or else you¡¯d get

    nasbial folds.¡±

    Skr yawned once again, ¡°Well, some crazy guy has been calling myndline at midnight every day. It¡¯s

    like I¡¯m in a horror movie, Saw. I think you¡¯d know about that movie. Every time I pick up the call, the

    other end would let out a coldugh. So, I unplugged thendlinest night, thinking it would be a

    peaceful night but my phone rang at midnight. Damn it, I have no idea who this crazy guy is.¡±

    The heater in the motorhome was on, yet Hannah shivered as she could feel cold chills going down her

    spine.

    She widened her eyes and said fearfully, ¡°Do you think it could be some obsessive fan of yours? I¡¯ve

    heard of scary stories where they¡¯d hide under your bed. Hence, I think it¡¯d be best to be careful.¡±

    Skr couldn¡¯t bear with the thought anymore and replied, ¡°Who knows? But, I¡¯ve got someone to check

    the number. However, it turned out to be an inte call. Nheless, I have a mahogany ax hidden

    under my pillow. It helps ward off evil spirits, but only time will tell, right?¡±

    Unfortunately, Tobias hasn¡¯t been home but I¡¯m very thankful to have Madelyn around in the house. Yet,

    she had be rather nervous ever since the calling incident urred.

 Chapter 582

    Chapter 582

    Chapter 582 Public Dating Is A Okay

    Besides that, Madelyn had asked for a pay rise as well. Skr agreed to raise a sry by the end of the

    year.

    I would like to think that I¡¯m a rather kind employer. After all, cash is king. I have also found out about the

    reason behind her request.

    Apparently, the housekeepers had their own WhatsApp group where they gossip about their employer

    and who gets a pay rise, etc.

    I¡¯ve told Madelyn not to reveal who her employer was and her rtionship with Tobias. I don¡¯t want any

    complications or trouble to arise.

    Skr wore a ck Nike jacket and a pair of baggy jeans during the ceremony.

    As the saying goes, less is more. Hence, her casual outfit paired with her long and slender legs was very

    eye-catching.

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    She was warm andfortable, unlike the other actors who were shivering in skirts.

    She noticed Ingrid wearing a light blue ruffled cor chiffon dress as a gush of wind blew past her.

    She eyed Ingrid a couple of times and wondered if she had offended both hair and costume stylist. The

    dress she wore exaggerated her short figure. Consequently, she looked even shorter.

    Ingrid paled out amongst the others. She looked less appealingpared to the men in the Ford family.

    The men from the Fords were suave and handsome. Yet, Ingrid did not inherit their good genes. It¡¯s a

    shame she wasn¡¯t as good-looking as the men in the Ford family. Perhaps then she wouldn¡¯t be criticized

    as a chubby person.

    Both Skr and Ingrid locked eyes. Ingrid showed no emotions on her face, yet she stared back at

    Skr sharply. She reminds me of the character, Gam*ra, from Guar*ians of the Gal*xy. Skr thought

    to herself.

    Skr stood a little closer to the male lead during the picture-taking session with the media.

    The male lead was a rookie named Maxim. He was a C-list star who was about Skr¡¯s age.

    One can predict the expectation of the public and potential market value of the movie from the number of

    media reporters who turned up. Sadly, most of the mainstream media weren¡¯t there.

    In contrast, almost every mediapany in the city had sent a team over to cover the ceremony when

    Pretty Detective started filming. Hence, Skr could easily sense the huge difference in an instant.

    ¡°Skr, do you have any expectations towards the character you are taking on this time?¡±

    ¡°Could you give us a response on the recent rumors online?¡±

    ¡°How¡¯s Kevin doing?¡±

    ¡°Are you expecting the movie to be a big hit?¡±

    The paparazzi asked Skr one question after another as their camera shutters clicked away frantically.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, folks. But we¡¯ll only answer questions rted to the movie and nothing else.¡± The director

    came to her rescue.

    Skr smiled and answered, ¡°I¡¯m not sure of the situation. However, he¡¯ll definitelye to me if he

    needs any help. There¡¯s no need to discuss this online. Lastly, I hope you may focus your attention on

    our uing movie.¡±

    Suddenly, one of the paparazzi asked her a question. ¡°Skr, could you tell us if you¡¯re rted to

    Tobias? There are rumors that the both of you are secretly dating. In fact, it¡¯s an open secret in the Ford

    Group.¡±

    Skr¡¯s eyes gleamed in amusement at the question. The reporter who asked her the question was from

    Phoenix Media.

    It wasn¡¯t a secret that Skr was funded when she debuted. However, no one knew who her investor

    was.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to answer any questions that are rted to my personal life. However, if I do end up falling

    in love, I¡¯ll definitely announce it to the public.¡± Skr remained smiling.

 Chapter 583

    Chapter 583

    Chapter 583 Are You Worthy

    Skr wanted to keep her options open and wait for the right moment before she agreed with Tobias to

    publicly announce their rtionship. However, she didn¡¯t think that that would ever happen.

    ¡°Are you acquiescing to the dating rumors?¡± the reporter asked.

    ¡°You¡¯re misinterpreting what I mean,¡± Skr defended.

    ¡°Well, you¡¯re a frequent guest to the Ford Group, am I right? So, which upper management are you

    dating then?¡± the paparazzi pressed on.

    Skr¡¯s expression darkened by his continuous questioning. It was obvious that this paparazzi came

    prepared.

    She locked eyes with him and warned, ¡°I see that you¡¯re quite interested in my private life. Why don¡¯t you

    come to me and we can have a chat when you¡¯ve gotten hold of solid evidence?¡±

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    Maxim noticed the tension in the air and intervened, ¡°Hey now, let¡¯s not ask irrelevant questions. Skr is

    my girlfriend now.¡±

    Maxim¡¯s gentle tone caught Skr¡¯s attention as she observed him for the first time. Oh wow, I never

    knew he was so handsome. However, that¡¯s the only thing I see in him.

    After the ceremony ended, Skr told Hannah to not allow any paparazzi from Phoenix Media to enter

    the filming set.

    ¡°Are you sure about this? You might offend them though,¡± Hannah said worriedly.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not afraid of these unscrupulous paparazzi. They were the ones responsible for the chaos in

    several other interviews. To be honest, I wonder what the reporter was trying to get out of me when he

    hurled so many questions at me like a machine gun.¡±

    She hugged her jacket tightly around her body. The weather was getting colder by the day and Skr

    shivered as the cold wind hit her.

    Ever since I¡¯ve gone on a diet, my tolerance for cold has significantly decreased. I¡¯ve never been a fan of

    the cold and often had cold hands and feet.

    To add on, the old folks would also say that no one would love a woman with cold hands and feet.

    Hence, Grandma often said I was born ill fate.

    Ingrid was one of the investors to the movie, hence she was provided with the best facilities among

    everyone else. Her luxurious motorhome was coincidentally parked right beside Skr.

    Both Skr and Ingrid got off their respective motorhomes at the same time and came face to face. ¡°I

    admire how you can lie without batting an eyelid. It is indeed a fact that you¡¯re dating Tobias. So, why did

    you say that you¡¯re single? A woman who lies as naturally as you do disgusts me.¡±

    ¡°Who knew you were such a hypocrite? Aren¡¯t you secretly dating Harry yourself? Too bad no one cares

    who you¡¯re dating,¡± Skr snapped.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare behave so arrogant towards me just because I y a minor character in this movie. I¡¯m

    only doing this because I¡¯m a rookie whocks experience in this industry?¡± Ingrid retorted.

    Skr noticed how difficult it was for Ingrid to speak as her facial features would twitch unnaturally. She

    took a closer look and realized she had underbite teeth. No wonder she was struggling to speak. Yet, it

    didn¡¯t stop her from spitting spiteful words at me.

    ¡°Does it matter? Isn¡¯t it obvious enough? I¡¯m the female lead in this movie, not you. So what¡¯s the point of

    having this conversation?¡± Skr smiled.

    Ingrid clenched her fists angrily. I would have pped you on that filthy mouth of yours if there was no

    one around.

    Skr shifted her gaze towards Ingrid¡¯s clenched fist.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do our best in our shoot. Although I must say, you¡¯re only going to embarrass yourself if you carry

    on with this act. Are you going to hit me? If you do, word will spread like wildfire. You do know that the

    filming crew can¡¯t keep a secret, right?¡± Skr smiled faintly.

    Ingrid¡¯s expression hardened and growled, ¡°Oh, we¡¯ll see how it goes. Don¡¯t forget, we have many

    scenes together. So watch out.¡±

    ¡°Really? Whatever.¡±

    Ingrid hates it when things don¡¯t go her way. Thus, she returned to the vi unhappily.

    Ingrid was stunned when she saw Xander as soon as she entered the vi. ¡°Dad, why didn¡¯t you tell us

    you wereing home? We could have picked you up from the airport.¡±

 Chapter 584

    Chapter 584

    Chapter 584 The Ungrateful Child

    ¡°I came back for business. Oh, speaking of which, when did I allow you to enter the entertainment

    industry? I don¡¯t think you¡¯re cut out for it. Why can¡¯t you do something else?¡± Xander scolded.

    Ingrid¡¯s mood instantly turned sour. ¡°Can¡¯t I give it a try? This is something I want to do. Besides, did you

    come back alone? Where¡¯s mom?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s busy.¡± Tobias cut open the tip of a cigar and held it to his mouth.

    Marcus did not say a word the entire time. On the other hand, Xander had signed the divorce agreement

    papers abroad and the assets had been notarized.

    Marcus was not surprised by his decision and knew this would happen one day. Who could stand their

    own husband having an affair with another woman? Besides, she was a mistress herself. Hence, she

    was the ssic example of karma.

    ¡°Dad, are you here to settle matters of thepany? It seems like ZY Group is not doing well thanks to

    the Ford Group. Are you here in search of a way out?¡± Marcus asked.

    Xander eyed him and said, ¡°The best thing you can do now is to spend less of my money.¡±

    Ingrid started toin at the mention of Tobias. ¡°Marcus, you can decide who bes the female

    lead since you¡¯re the producer of the filming crew, right? Why did you allow Skr to act in it? Are you

    going to watch her bully me like that?¡±

    Marcus frowned, ¡°I doubt anyone can bully you considering how much you weigh.¡±

    Xander was surprised to hear Skr¡¯s name. I¡¯ve seen her from pictures and Largo even introduced her

    to me. He mentioned that she was an ordinary girl who wanted to get involved in the entertainment

    industry.

    I always thought I could get her. However, there was no news of her after some time passed.

    Marcus knew what was on Xander¡¯s mind and said with contempt, ¡°Dad, stop it! Why¡¯re you thinking

    about a girl in her twenties when you¡¯re a sixty-year-old man who could perfectly be his grandpa.¡±

    ¡°What nonsense are you babbling about?¡± Xander snapped angrily.

    Marcus did not n to expose Xander. He was aware that the conversation would lead to nowhere.

    Moreover, he was a womanizer and would get into trouble one day.

    Ingrid noticed no one was paying attention to her. Hence, she spoke up once again. ¡°Marcus, you have

    to give me more air time. I¡¯m not going to be a supporting role to Skr. I want to take revenge for what

    she did to me.¡±

    ¡°Did you really think that she would fall in love with your good for nothing toy boy?¡± Marcus pointed out

    helplessly.

    ¡°Do you have a crush on her or something? Why¡¯re you speaking as if you favor her?¡± Ingrid questioned.

    Marcus closed his eyes as he recalled the tragedy in the past. He couldn¡¯t help but shudder at the

    memories and muttered, ¡°I¡¯ll never fall in love with another woman ever. Yet, no one can stop me from

    going after his woman either.¡±

    Kevin:

    I pretended to be sick to gain public attention out for fun. Hence, I hereby would like to apologize to all

    theizens for my reckless behavior. I¡¯m healthy as a horse. I would also like to apologize for all the

    trouble that I have caused my cousin, Skr Jones. She didn¡¯t once me me nor publicly reprimanded

    my action. Instead, she endured all the rumors and spection which have affected her career quietly for

    the sake of my future. Once again, I apologize to everyone humbly.

    Kevin posted a tweet on Twitter to rify the matter. He exined the situation with simple words and

    had led to a hugemotion on the inte.

    Skr was shocked when she saw the post on Twitter. I was waiting for the media to clear the air.

    However, Kevin beat them to it. Has he finally found his conscience? Obviously not.

    Thus, she decided to call Kevin to find out.

    Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    Kevin¡¯s apology post online wasn¡¯t bad, yet his attitude to Skr was very bad. He sounded as if he was

    the victim instead.

    ¡°Are you happy now, Skr? Now everyone online actually wants me to fall sick. I can¡¯t even go back to

    school without having a single person calling me a liar and a retard. To add on, my girlfriend also wants

    to break up with me.¡±

    ¡°Look, I didn¡¯t force you to post that on Twitter nor did I exined myself to the public. I wasn¡¯t even

    nning to take any action since you¡¯re a young boy. Yet, you¡¯re ming me?¡±

 Chapter 585

    Chapter 585

    Chapter 585 Put To Shame

    Kevin snickered, ¡°Of course, you don¡¯t need to do anything. You and Tobias are indeed a simpatico pair,

    ying the ¡®good cop, bad cop¡¯, huh? He threatened me with Eva¡¯s job. You know how selfish Eva is, so

    it¡¯s impossible that she¡¯ll sacrifice her job for me. If I don¡¯t post that on Twitter, she is never going to

    forgive me. I really shouldn¡¯t have counted on you to help me.¡±

    Skr finally got her head around it. No wonder Kevin admitted so soon. It turns out that he was under

    Tobias¡¯ coercion. Skr was really disappointed in Kevin¡¯s attitude.

    Looks like it¡¯s time to cut ties with him and make a clean break. Kevin had exhausted thest strand of

    sympathy Skr had for him.

    Hanging up the phone, Skr could hear someone calling out her name. Hence, she handed her phone

    to Hannah.

    Hannah took over the phone and was notably excited. ¡°It¡¯s an ill wind, isn¡¯t it? You were right to remain

    silent and not rify or exin anything. Now everyone is saying that you¡¯re gracious and big-hearted.¡±

    Nevertheless, Skr wasn¡¯t pleased at all. Watching Skr¡¯s cid countenance, Hannah pursed her

    lips, covering up her own smile.

    Skr changed into a workshop uniform from the eighties and a pair of green rubber boots. She didn¡¯t

    have bountiful hair, so the stylist put on hair extensions for her which were two thick and dark braids.

    Looking at her own reflection in the mirror, Skr found herself looking very identical to Meredith when

    she was young. Meredith used to work in a sand quarry, doing the most tiring and physical works that

    men do, and never really had a good life.

    She took out her phone and sent a selfie to Tobias on WhatsApp, just to find that the message could not

    go through.

    Skr¡¯s eyes widened in surprise. What¡¯s happening? Have I been blocked by Tobias?

    She hurriedly made a call to Tobias before the filming started.

    As soon as it was picked up from the other end, Skr raised her tone and questioned, ¡°Why did you

    block me? I didn¡¯t offend you, did I? Was it because I didn¡¯t satisfy your lust in the car that day? Tobias, I

    didn¡¯t know you¡¯re such a petty man. Why aren¡¯t you talking? Fine, since you¡¯ve blocked me, then don¡¯t

    unblock ever again.¡±

    She despised being blocked or cklisted from someone¡¯s contact the most, especially if the blocker

    was her closest friend or rtive. Hence, she justshed out without thinking much.

    However, as soon as she said that, she was repentant. She nced about and was relieved that there

    was no one around. She felt that her temper had worsened due to her tight schedule andck of rest. A

    little displeasure could trigger her easily, setting her on rage.

    It was only yesterday that Tobias joked that she was like a woman on menopause, so naggy and chatty.

    Tobias¡¯ phone was connected to the projector screen in the conference room. When Skr texted him on

    WhatsAppst time, it was just like a live stream.

    Therefore, this time around, he was preparing to block and then unblock her again after the meeting, but

    he didn¡¯t expect that Skr would be so generous to let everyone in the conference room know that he

    wanted to hump in the car.

    The air in the conference room froze all of a sudden and the atmosphere was so tense one could cut it

    with a knife. The senior managers of thepany drooped their heads lowly and some couldn¡¯t help but

    laugh secretly.

    Whoa, so Mr. Ford who usually looks decent and even abstinent on the veneer has such a kinky taste.

    Tobias closed his eyes and drew in a long breath. His face looked extremely grim in that instance.

    Seeing as Tobias didn¡¯t say anything, Skr thought that he was having a bad signal so she ended the

    call.

    Eva was preparing the meeting agenda and minutes on the side, and as she saw the gloomy expression

    on Tobias¡¯ face, she was secretly delighted.

    No matter how morous Skr looks, she isn¡¯t really sophisticated, and now that she has cheesed the

    boss off, she won¡¯t be able to get away with it.

    Eva couldn¡¯t wait to see Skr being dumped by Tobias. Let¡¯s see how long she can go about

    swaggering and showing off.

    Tobias started cidly after a while, ¡°Let¡¯s get this meeting started and end earlier, hurry up.¡±

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    With that, he asked Susan to disconnect his phone from the projector, in case Skr called again.

 Chapter 586

    Chapter 586

    Chapter 586 You Are Really Something

    Norman Simpson, a manager at thepany, projected the n of Old Town and the demolition and

    relocation nid out by the government.

    Eva¡¯s heart skipped a beat when she saw that her house was within the area. That feeling was like

    hitting the jackpot, and a huge amount of reward would be within reach.

    Their family was anxious to sell their house to settle the problem caused by Kevin. Who would have

    expected such a windfall all of a sudden?

    If the area was demolished, they would be allocated three units of property for relocation purposes.

    Tobias looked at the huge area of old residences and sunk into deep thoughts. In fact, that piece ofnd

    had fallen into his hands many years ago, but there had never been any development n initiated for it.

    Currently, the construction of G60 Carlos Bridge and the biggest duty-free store in Aploth under Ford

    Group was about tomence around the area.

    The construction would start from the old residential area. Hence, relocation of the residents and

    demolition was imminent. Initially, he had thought that he could bypass that area. But right then, it didn¡¯t

    really seem realistic.

    Eva listened very attentively as they discussed the matter, and her lips couldn¡¯t help but curl up in

    excitement.

    Tobias asked, ¡°Is there any way we can circumvent Harbourside and leave that area out, keeping it intact

    without demolishing it?¡±

    Norman had never considered that before, but then Tobias had pointed out the residential area in

    particr.

    ¡°Hmm, that¡¯s quite challenging. If we leave Harbourside out alone, it would form a ring-shaped

    construction area, with ourmercial area encircling the old residential buildings as its core. Well¡­ the

    impact would be really huge.¡±

    The smile on Eva¡¯s face disappeared. She didn¡¯t understand why Tobias wanted to bypass Harbourside.

    Desperately, she chimed in, ¡°Mr. Ford, I¡¯m living in Harbourside, and all my neighbors around have a

    strong urge to relocate. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a need to keep that area.¡±

    Tobias shot Eva a look. He knew all too well the n was brewing in her mind.

    Ignoring Eva altogether, he insisted, ¡°Draw up a new n and try as best as you can to avoid

    Harbourside. Don¡¯t worry about the construction yet.¡±

    Eva knew how obsessed Skr was about the old manor. She could even foresee that if they sold the

    manor, Skr would definitely acquire it.

    So, is that why Tobias tries to keep Harbourside out of the development n? Is he helping Skr to

    keep the repository of her memories? Never would Eva have imagined that this ce would involve such

    a major interest in the project. The cost of pleasing a woman is a little too high, isn¡¯t it?

    ¡°Ms. Jones, you¡¯re really something today, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    Skr frowned in puzzlement. She didn¡¯t really remember what she did that day other than giving him a

    call, asking him why he blocked her.

    ¡°You happened to reveal to all my senior managers that I wanted to make love with a woman in the car. I

    shouldn¡¯t have answered your call,¡± that said, Tobias didn¡¯t really me Skr.

    Skr¡¯s face blushed in a second. ¡°What perverted fetish of yours is that? Why must you be on speaker

    mode? How would I know that?¡±

    Tobias let out a sigh and returned, ¡°I didn¡¯t know you would call me at that hour either and even spoke

    about something like that.¡±

    Skr was having a semi-meltdown. How embarrassing is that?

    And she was still bothered by the fact that Tobias had blocked her on WhatsApp. It was only after Tobias

    gave her his exnation that she finally understood.

    Feeling a little ashamed of herself, Skr said, ¡°I thought you were dumping me. It seems that I was

    overthinking. Anyway, now that I think about it, such petty behaviors as abandoning someone by

    cklisting and bailing on her aren¡¯t something that you would do.¡±

    Tobias replied helplessly, ¡°Is that what I¡¯m like in your opinion? An irresponsible jerk who would block

    your number after sleeping with you? I¡¯m not a phnderer who cheats for sex.¡±

    Skr set down her script and stood behind the sofa, eagerlyying her hands on Tobias¡¯ shoulders, and

    began massaging lightly.

    Tobias took out a stack of bills from his briefcase and handed them to Skr.

    ¡°Kevin¡¯s matter was rted to Hayden. All his loans went through Hayden and amounted to over two

    million.¡±

    Tobias was quick to get to the bottom of it. However, Skr didn¡¯t expect that it was Hayden behind it.

    He went through all these troubles just to give me a hard time and humiliate me. That¡¯s a little too

    extreme.

 Chapter 587

    Chapter 587

    Chapter 587 Tell Me If You Want Me

    In the end, Kevin¡¯s matter was indeed rted to her. The Jones siblings clearly didn¡¯t want to see her

    living a good life. As long as she had a difficult time, they would be happy.

    Skr wondered if she had ruffle their feathers in her past life to get such treatment from them.

    Skr said in a little guilty tone, ¡°If it wasn¡¯t because of me, Kevin wouldn¡¯t have ended up this way. His

    future is almost ruined now. I heard that he was even expelled from school and wouldn¡¯t have the chance

    to go to college anymore. He¡¯ll stay this way all his life.¡±

    Seeing the altruistic ways that Skr went about things, Tobias came to learn by degrees that if he

    wasn¡¯t by her side, Skr would have a very difficult path ahead of her. He would rather Skr be more

    selfish and not consider too much. In fact, it would be best if she could be self-centered.

    ¡°I¡¯ll arrange for someone to get the money back. I would take back exactly how much Hayden had taken

    and I would force him to surrender it. What do you n to do with the money?¡±

    Skr knew that Tobias was hoping to hear a satisfactory answer from her.

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    Nevertheless, it didn¡¯t go as he wished. She spoke her mind, ¡°Just return it to them. Let them use the

    money to pay for what they owed, then they wouldn¡¯t need to sell the house anymore. It¡¯s fine to let them

    stay in the old manor.¡±

    Tobias watched her dazed expression and asked, ¡°This is one of the rare opportunities to make Wesley

    sell the old manor. Isn¡¯t it important to you?¡±

    Skr nodded. ¡°It is, but I can¡¯t take advantage of them. When Grandma was still alive, the only person

    she was reluctant to leave behind was Uncle Wesley. She said that he didn¡¯t aplish anything even

    as he was getting old. If I continue to press him on like this, Grandma would definitely me me. Even

    though the manor was important to me, I don¡¯t mind who is living in it. As long as it remains there, I¡¯ll be

    at ease.¡±

    Tobias was eager to find out Skr¡¯s stance, but the answer Skr gave him wasn¡¯t what he desired to

    hear.

    If Skr had told him that the manor was only a material possession and didn¡¯t matter as much, he

    would instruct his staff to initiate the construction right away, and Harbourside would be razed to the

    ground, paving the way for hismercial area development n.

    Nevertheless, it didn¡¯t turn out as what he had wished for. Hence, he had to preserve Skr¡¯s obsession

    and restructure his n for themercial area development.

    Despite that, he didn¡¯t feel the need to divulge everything to Skr.

    As with the sum of money in Hayden¡¯s hands, since Skr had mentioned that she wanted to help

    Wesley¡¯s family; he would definitely respect her decision. It just seemed like everything was back to

    square one after all the twists and turns, and Skr had also missed the chance to acquire the old

    manor.

    It waste at night, and yet Tobias didn¡¯t seem to be leaving at any point. Skr let out a breath of

    relief. It¡¯s almost twelve o¡¯clock.

    With Tobias around, she prepared to have a good night¡¯s sleep. She had been mentally tortured in the

    past few days, and the biological clock within her body would wake her up at twelve midnight every day.

    Sometimes, she couldn¡¯t even discern whether she was asleep or awake. She feared that she would

    wake up to a horrifying face on which a pair of spooky eyes would be staring back at her in the middle of

    the night.

    Just as she entered the bedroom, her clothes were quickly taken off by Tobias. Since that day in the car,

    his unsatisfied desire had been building up within. Now that he was finally free, he would certainly make

    up for what he missed.

    As all their clothes were taken off, Tobias immediately nibbled the softest and puffiest part of her body,

    making some sexy yet ambiguous sounds, and wouldn¡¯t stop pecking.

    Skr ran her fingers rather helplessly on his dark and rough hair, as though she was grabbing and

    holding on to a nk of wood for survival while stranded at sea.

    ¡°Do you want it? Tell me and I¡¯ll make love to you.¡± Tobias returned to his usual pattern and began

    kissing her earlobe gently and unhurriedly. His tender breath rendered her body soft and spineless.

    ¡°No,¡± replied Skr briefly.

    Nheless, her physical reaction contradicted that of her verbal one. She wrapped her arms around his

    neck in response.

 Chapter 588

    Chapter 588

    Chapter 588 Your Tone

    The phone rang all of a sudden; it was like a dreadful reminder to Skr. She gazed at the clock on the

    wall. It was twelve midnight.

    Tobias put her down on the bed, and his hand was already reaching for the buckle of his belt when the

    incessantly ringing phone extinguished his desire.

    In that instance, Skr could only hear buzzing around her ears. Even the way she looked at Tobias had

    changed since the phone started ringing.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you answering it? Is it because I¡¯m here so it¡¯s inconvenient for you?¡± Tobias gazed at her

    with aplicated look in his eyes.

    ¡°It¡¯s a pervert. He calls every night at this hour. If I don¡¯t answer it, he¡¯ll keep calling, and if I answer it, I¡¯ll

    only hear his snicker through the call, which was very scary.¡±

    Looking at the series of unfamiliar digits beaming on the screen, Skr bit the bullet and picked up the

    call in order to prove that she wasn¡¯t lying.

    She had also switched on the speaker mode. As expected, as soon as she answered the phone, his

    snigger came from the other end.

    ¡°Baby, did you sleep well? It wouldn¡¯t take too long before we can sleep together. Baby, why aren¡¯t you

    talking? Without me hugging you at thiste hour, would you be able to fall asleep? I miss you¡­ every

    single cell in me is thinking of you.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ countenance turned extremely gloomy. He snatched the phone from Skr and asked, ¡°Who are

    you?¡±

    There was a brief moment of silence before his snicker came from the other end again. ¡°It¡¯s sote now.

    Why are you still with another man at this hour? I¡¯m going to punish you dearly when the timees.¡±

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    With that, the phone was hung up.

    When Tobias called the number again, no one picked up.

    With a pucker between his eyebrows, Tobias turned to Skr and asked, ¡°Who¡¯s this person? Do you

    know him?¡±

    Skr shook her head. Recalling the words that the person said over the phone just a while ago, she

    was spooked and had goosebumps all over her. Unnerved, she replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know him either. He calls

    every day to harass me, and I can¡¯t identify his voice. He¡¯s using a voice changer. He spoke more

    tonight. He normally just sneered and snickered over the phone.¡±

    Tobias replied, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me about this earlier?¡±

    Skry back on the bed. Knowing that Tobias was turned off by then, she tossed the opened box and

    condom into the bedside drawer.

    ¡°I¡¯ve asked someone to check the call records, and they¡¯re allwork numbers that can¡¯t be traced. I

    didn¡¯t think it was important, so I didn¡¯t tell you.¡±

    Skr¡¯s exnation was not epted by Tobias nevertheless. He was a little displeased as he said, ¡°I

    should be informed promptly about anything that concerns your safety. You can¡¯t distinguish well

    between what¡¯s primary and significant from what¡¯s not.¡±

    Skr looked up at him. ¡°Is this how you show your care for me? Your tone doesn¡¯t sound right.¡±

    ¡°Then, who else shall I care about? Never go out alone next time. I¡¯ll send some bodyguards to protect

    you.¡±

    Skr didn¡¯t really want to be guarded by Tobias¡¯ bodyguards. All of them were retired mercenaries from

    overseas who had blood in their hands, and each one of them was more ruthless than the other.

    Though she was reluctant to ept Tobias¡¯ arrangement, she had to give in. She loved going around,

    but things were looking good for her under such circumstances.

    ¡­

    The phone call dashed the sensual atmosphere the night before, and Skr got up from Tobias¡¯

    embrace in the morning. Still dazed, shey her head against his chest, and with her dopey eyes, she

    looked at Tobias who had already woken up, resting his head on his palm and ncing sideways at her.

    Skr got up from the bed. Tobias¡¯ gaze was rather pampering and earnest, instead of distant and cold.

    ¡°I should go to the filming crew soon, so I better get going now.¡± She lifted the nket and got out of bed.

    She was so sleepy that her eyes looked misty.

 Chapter 589

    Chapter 589

    Chapter 589 Not Much Expectation

    Tobias took a nce at the little clock on the bedside drawer. It wasn¡¯t even seven o¡¯clock yet. The sky

    was still dark outside, and the first light of dawn just started creeping on the horizon.

    ¡°Why are you going there so early? What have you been doing recently?¡±

    Skr¡¯s motion of putting on clothes slowed down. Tobias doesn¡¯t even know what I¡¯ve been busy about

    these days.

    Skr bent over to put on her pants. ¡°It¡¯s a holiday film. They¡¯re in a rush to film the characters, as it

    would be sent to the Motion Picture Association for screening, and we¡¯ll finish shooting soon. Do you

    know who¡¯s our second female lead? Take a guess.¡±

    Tobias was not bothered. ¡°I¡¯m not interested in celebrities. So, it doesn¡¯t matter to me at all.¡±

    Skr found that chatting with Tobias was extremely humdrum. This man has not even a bit of curiosity.

    She replied, ¡°It¡¯s Ingrid. Surprised, huh? I¡¯m in the same filming crew with her right now.¡±

    Tobias frowned, and it was the reaction Skr was hoping to see. That indicated that he actually paid

    attention to what she said.

    ¡°Why is she even in the entertainment industry? She looks like a pig.¡±

    Amused by Tobias¡¯ merciless yet urate description, Skr answered, ¡°Well, a princess needs to be

    showered withpliments. Now, the entire filming crew is praising her look, saying that she¡¯s pretty,

    and she thinks she¡¯s brilliant, too.¡±

    Tobias was a little worried about Skr mingling with Ingrid, so he said in concern, ¡°You¡¯d better not

    interact with her too much. Ingrid is spoiled, and she¡¯s insolent as well as ignorant. She¡¯s not a kind soul

    since young, and she hasn¡¯t changed much.¡±

    Skr acted tough and assured him that she would not be taken advantage of. However, she wasn¡¯t

    certain about that. Ingrid was just like a ticking time bomb with extremely unstable emotions.

    Skr left in a hurry without even having breakfast. Before she left, she packed two buns in her bag.

    Usually, with her appetite, she could actually eat four, but in order to control her weight, Skr couldn¡¯t

    even remember when thest time was she ate until she was full

    When Tobias came downstairs, Skr had already left. She saw two men in ck standing at the door.

    Tobias¡¯ efficiency and efficacy were heightened to a dramatic extent when it came to anything concerning

    Skr and she was under the impression that he was only mentioning it casually the night before.

    Who would have expected to see the bodyguards already on duty early in the morning?

    Skr looked at the two tall and strongly built men. Small eyes, fair skin, and short eyebrows; they had

    sharp features.

    ¡°Ms. Jones, you can just call me Cinque. We¡¯re here to take care of your safety.¡±

    Skr forced herself to look at the two of them. The other man didn¡¯t introduce himself. He just stood

    there without saying a word, and there was a jarring scar on his face. This must be a man with a story.

    The news that there were two bodyguards protecting Skr was spread among the filming crew. In fact,

    it wasn¡¯t something new that celebrities, regardless of their gender, walked about with bodyguards

    protecting them.

    The key was that someone recognized that the two bodyguards were the bodyguards of the CEO of Ford

    Group, and that person was certain that she didn¡¯t mistake them for someone else.

    And that particr person was Ingrid.

    The fact that Tobias let his bodyguards protect Skr would give rise to all kinds of spections.

    The bodyguards were considerate and understanding. When Skr left for the filming site, they would

    wait in the MPV and never go far away from outside the set.

    Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    The particr scene that day was filmed at a hospital, and their filming location was People¡¯s Hospital.

    The Bad of 1978 was a story of the female protagonist, Lindsay, who was a middle-aged woman with a

    sessful career, but miserable personal life. Her life did look good on the veneer, but her marriage was

    a failure. Her husband had an affair whereas her son was in his rebellious phase, and everything was in

    a mess. On her fiftieth birthday, no one was there to celebrate with her. Her husband was busy

    celebrating the anniversary of his first meeting with his mistress while her son treated her with verbal

    bashing, asking her to die.

    Triggered, Lindsay went up to the rooftop, trying to end her own life. Nevertheless, she woke up just to

    find that she had time-traveled back to the year 1978¡­

    Skr didn¡¯t have much expectation on such a script. There had been too many motion pictures with

    such themes being filmed locally and overseas.

 Chapter 590

    Chapter 590

    Chapter 590 You Did Not Learn Well

    Skr and Ingrid shared a dressing room. However, thetter had more backing resources and was

    more popr.

    ¡°Oh dear, your hair is so silky smooth! Any type of hairstyle will look good on you.¡±

    ¡°Your features are very stunning. They entuate your regal dignity.¡±

    ¡°Your skin is wless. I don¡¯t think you even need to apply any foundation or make-up.¡±

    Skr felt so uneasy listening to a series of false tteries. How could the stylist praise Ingrid so blindly?

    Skr was confident of her sense of taste and sense of aesthetic. No one will ever regard Ingrid as a

    beauty unless that person is visually impaired.

    Ingrid, on the other hand, was over the moon to hear others singing praises to her. She even queried the

    stylist, ¡°Take a good look at my features. Do I need to go under the knife? I¡¯m quite satisfied actually.¡±

    The makeup artist replied, ¡°Please don¡¯t consider stic surgery. You have that natural beauty that

    everyone covets. You look amazing just the way you are.¡±

    Ingrid took a nce at Skr, who was obviously being left out in the corner. Her makeup artist was

    applying concealer to cover her dark circles.

    ¡°One¡¯s beauty and aura are God-given. Nowadays, you might be scared out of your wits when you see

    some actresses in the entertainment industry without any makeup on,¡± Ingrid mocked while staring at

    Skr.

    Ingrid is so full of herself. Doesn¡¯t she know better? I guess not. Otherwise, she won¡¯t simper smugly

    when others praise her to the skies. Skr felt that Ingrid was ridiculously arrogant.Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    Ingrid and Maxim were childhood sweethearts in the movie.

    Lindsay Rachford traveled back in time to 1978 and met Maxim, the male lead who shared the same

    name onscreen and in real life.

    In Lindsay¡¯s previous life, Maxim pursued her persistently during their younger days. Lindsay rejected

    him due to his poor background and married her colleague, Adrian Lakeman.

    However, Maxim had always been the love of Lindsay¡¯s life. Faced with a terrible marriage, she would

    often miss Maxim.

    Skr despised the female character whom she thought was very pretentious and selfish. Lindsay

    dumped her poor boyfriend for money and wants him back when her marriage was in a mess. What

    gives? She deserves it.

    Anyhow, the movie had a happy ending and multipleedy effects which catered to the needs of the

    festivity.

    During break, Ingrid approached Skr to go through the script and rehearse a scene they both shared.

    Holding the script, Skr was verymitted to her work. She said her lines professionally whereas

    Ingrid¡¯s speech was very vague, as if she was speaking while eating sweets.

    Skr tried her best to decipher what she was saying.

    ¡°Can you be more serious?¡± Ingrid blew a fuse and chucked the script aside. She almost hit Skr in the

    face.

    Frowning, Skr retorted, ¡°I¡¯m doing my very best here. You¡¯re the one who¡¯s having trouble with your

    lines. Why don¡¯t you go ahead and recite the ABCs? After all, they¡¯ll dub it for you during post-production

    editing.¡±

    Ingrid refuted, ¡°I learnt acting in Anndur. Don¡¯t you dare doubt my skills.¡±

    Skr shot her a contemptuous gaze. ¡°It seems to me that you didn¡¯t learn anything from the

    Anndurns.¡±

    Furious, Ingrid threatened, ¡°Don¡¯t be so proud. I can ask my brother to remove you from the set at any

    time. He¡¯s the producer.¡±

    Skr was delighted. ¡°Hurry up and do that please, I don¡¯t feel like acting in this show anyways. Who

    likes to bite the bullet and not want their own movie to be a hit?¡±

    Baffled, Ingrid did not understand what Skr meant. To her, it was a great movie. She was very certain

    that it would be a box office sess if she was the female lead.

    As soon as Ingrid walked away, Hannah and Skr gossiped about her, ¡°Does this princess not have a

    mirror at home? Where does she get her confidence from?¡±

    Skr shrugged her shoulders. ¡°Born with a silver spoon, she¡¯s been livingvishly her entire life.

    Everyone butters her up and tells her what she wants to hear. Therefore, she¡¯s got no idea what she is

    worth, thinking she¡¯s the fairest of them all.¡±

    Hannah smirked. ¡°I think I look better than her. Kate has gotten Amelia the deal with Prada, to be their

    ambassador. Conversely, she¡¯s been indifferent to us. This is so unfair!¡±

 Chapter 591

    Chapter 591

    Chapter 591 Fights

    Skr recalled seeing Kate and Amelia wearing couple rings and that had deepened her suspicion.

    There were some shocking dark sides of the entertainment industry where people would pretend to be

    queer in order to get what they wanted.

    She continued saying, ¡°I can¡¯t always appear to have it all, can I? Previously, Amelia had never had any

    endorsement deals, not even for an electric bicycle. So, it¡¯s not surprising to give this contract to her

    now.¡±

    Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    Hannah fretted. ¡°I¡¯m afraid Amelia will rece your status in the industry. You know, the Golden Eagle

    Awards is just around the corner. Amelia is getting some high-endbels to customize her gown, but

    there¡¯s no news from your sponsors yet. How are you going to beat her on the red carpet?¡±

    Right then, the director had started urging everyone on set to take their ces and get ready. Swiftly,

    Skr buttoned up while Maximy on the bed with a casted food.

    Skr took the props handed to her. It was a basket filled with two cans of fruits, yellow peach, and

    hawthorn.

    In the past, those were the standard must-bring items when visiting a patient. Now, it was expected for

    visitors to add a card or a love gift as an additional courtesy.

    Maxim was sent to the hospital due to an injury that urred during a basketball match. He was cared

    for by his childhood sweetheart, Renee Crowe, yed by Ingrid.

    Skr yed the female lead character, Lindsay, who was jealous when she saw Maxim and Renee

    showing affection to each other. Lindsay forced Maxim to choose between the two women and the man

    chose love.

    ¡°Action!¡± yelled the director.

    Within a split second, Skr had entered into her role. Batting her entrancing eyes and dressed in a

    pompous manner, she made the b*tchy charactere alive.

    Except for Ingrid, everyone who was present on-set thought that Skr was extremely gorgeous. She

    was nothing like the newbies who were amateurish in their acting and coy about their appearances. Her

    demeanor and mannerisms were beyond her age.

    That was probably why people say, ¡°A child from a poor family often matures at an early age.¡±

    Ingrid stared at Skr nkly. I guess I know now why Tobias has stayed with her for such a long time.

    She has an exceptional physical appearance¡­ Ingrid turned green with envy.

    Throughout the shoot, Ingrid had to repeat multiple takes of each scene because the director was not

    satisfied with her artiction. He was seriously considering dubbing her voice, but Ingrid insisted

    otherwise. She felt that her intonation was better.

    Due to the fact that Ingrid invested in the production of the filming, the director acquiesced to her

    demand.

    After eating the canned fruits umpteen times throughout the series of failed scenes, Maxim had been

    going back and forth, to and from the bathroom a few times. Heined, ¡°Director, I can¡¯t do this

    anymore. I¡¯m going to suffer from a stomachache.¡±

    Skr observed from a distance and checked the time on the wall clock on and off. If this drags on, I

    won¡¯t be able to get off work on time to meet with Miranda.

    Knitting her brows, Ingrid threw a tantrum and reprimanded Skr, ¡°Can you speak more slowly? You

    need to give me time to respond.¡±

    Skr pointed at herself and questioned, ¡°Are you implying that it¡¯s my fault?¡±

    ¡°If it¡¯s not you, then who? Do be more professional and don¡¯t dy others.¡± Ingrid cast a look of haughty

    disdain.

    Skr was rendered speechless. She recalled a reminder from Tobias to keep her distance from

    Ingrid. He told me that Ingrid isn¡¯t doing well mentally and emotionally. Seems like she¡¯s having it worse

    than Cassidy.

    Faced with Ingrid¡¯s appalling behavior, Skr could not be bothered to argue with her. One shouldn¡¯t

    lose one¡¯s dignity and self-worth by engaging in meaningless fights with a fool. Karma will hit her one day

    for all the outrageous things that she¡¯s done.

 Chapter 592

    Chapter 592

    Chapter 592 Waiting To Devour Her

    All Skr wanted was to finish the shoot as soon as possible. To her, that particr movie had achieved

    its fullest potential and it could no longer bring her greater value. In fact, she felt that her poprity was

    being taken advantage of. If Kate keeps doing this, I will have toe up with something.

    She continued to demonstrate a steady performance for the subsequent scenes. She had a superbly

    strong foundation inmunicating her acting lines clearly. Even the boom operator enjoyed listening to

    her.

    Had it not been for Ingrid¡¯s terrible acting, the director would not have wasted the entire afternoon on just

    a few simple scenes.

    Hannah had Skr¡¯s phone with her and it kept on ringing. During break, she handed the phone to

    Skr. ¡°Mr. Ford has been looking for you. He¡¯s made more than ten calls.¡±

    Skr was shocked. Did Tobias get the wrong number? Usually, he¡¯ll only make one more call if he

    couldn¡¯t get me the first time. He¡¯s never made a series of calls.

    Worried that something might have happened, she called back.

    When the line was connected, Tobias grumbled, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you answer my calls?¡±

    Skr exined, ¡°I was filming and the phone was with Hannah. I just noticed your missed calls. What¡¯s

    wrong? Is there something urgent?¡±

    Tobias requested for her to make a trip to the Central Hospital, where Thomas was hospitalized.

    Stunned, many questions crossed her mind. Why is he at the hospital? How did Tobias find out about

    this? Did the Joneses contact Tobias?Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    Reluctantly, Skr went. She once swore that she would never shed a tear even if Thomas died.

    Therefore, she was rather calm upon hearing the news.

    She was sick and tired of her father. In fact, she felt disgusted when people told her blood was thicker

    than water.

    When she arrived at the hospital, she saw many of the Joneses at the hallway, including the

    grandparents whom she had hardly ever met.

    As soon as Tobias saw her, he hugged her tightly. ¡°He¡¯s still in the emergency. I¡¯m not sure if you¡¯d want

    to be here, but it¡¯s only right that I inform you about this.¡±

    Leaning in his arms, she asked, ¡°What happened? Why was he taken into the emergency room?¡±

    Before Tobias could answer her, Irene spotted Skr in the midst of the rtives, and she ran to her like

    a madwoman. She yelled hysterically, ¡°I¡¯m telling you now. I won¡¯t forgive you if anything happens to him.

    It¡¯s all your fault! You¡¯re a jinx.¡±

    It was never Tobias¡¯ wish for Skr to go through an awful family feud. However, he had no choice but to

    inform Skr when he learned that Thomas might not survive this episode. He did not want Skr to live

    with regrets although he was not exactly sure if both the father and daughter had a good rtionship with

    each other.

    Blocking in front of Skr, Tobias uttered sternly, ¡°Now it¡¯s not the right time to be talking about this.

    What rights do you have to say these to Skr? I dare you toy a finger on her.¡±

    Hayden approached them and held Irene while staring daggers at Skr.

    Suddenly, Skr became the main target of usations and criticisms amongst the Joneses. Yet, she

    had not the slightest clue what was going on.

    She waspletely baffled at the condemnations received. What gives? Why am I responsible for

    whatever that¡¯s happened to Thomas?

    When the crowd retreated, Tobias enlightened her, ¡°After your father admitted tomitting adultery as

    well as abandoning his wife and child, the paparazzi have been invading into his privacy to discover

    more juicy news. Bearing a bad name, he suffered from tremendous psychological pressure and drank

    pesticide to end his life. They¡¯re trying to rescue him now.¡±

    Pursing her lips, she fell silent. She had never expected Thomas to be so feeble and ending up

    committing suicide.

    It was a rare asion for Skr to meet all of the Jones family. However, they sharp, unfriendly gazes

    were fixated on her, as if they were ready to devour her.

 Chapter 593

    Chapter 593

    Chapter 593 Karma

    Avery had told tales about Skr in the family chat group, framing Skr as the culprit who forced

    Thomas to admit his wrongdoings in the past.

    As a sessful entrepreneur, Thomas was a prideful person. When the scandal went viral on social

    media, his reputation was totally ruined. Consequently, the family business started going downhill

    henceforth.

    Skr sat quietly on the hospital bench. Wearing only a thin ck wool sweater, her face was as white

    as a sheet even though the temperature was not very low.

    Tobias put his jacket on her, worried that she might catch a cold.

    She asked, ¡°Why did they contact you?¡±

    He replied, ¡°They couldn¡¯t reach you, so they called mypany. They wanted you to sign the

    session rejection agreements and a letter to formally cut off ties with the Jones family.¡±

    Skr did not know how to respond to that. How ridiculously ironic is this that they¡¯re already scheming

    while that man isn¡¯t even dead yet!

    Finally, the door to the emergency room was opened. A doctor stepped out along with two nurses.

    Everyone scrambled forward, except for Skr and Tobias.

    The doctor informed the family members, ¡°The patient is out of danger now, but his condition still needs

    to be monitored. Fortunately, he didn¡¯t consume arge quantity of pesticide. If he was sent anyter, the

    oue would have been very severe.¡±

    Upon hearing that Thomas was saved, Tobias felt sorry for what Skr had to put up with at the hospital.

    Avery did not rush to see Thomas. Instead, she wailed loudly while walking toward Skr and pointed

    her finger at thetter. Avery used her, ¡°Are you happy now? If it weren¡¯t for you, Dad won¡¯t end up in

    this state. My career won¡¯t hit rock bottom either. You¡¯ve destroyed my family!¡±

    Skr maintained herposure. Her gaze was resolute and cold. She believed in karma.

    ¡°If you didn¡¯t expose my identity, how could it develop into such a horrible mess? It¡¯s fated. You can¡¯t

    me it on me.¡±

    Avery went ballistic. Skr was like a thorn in her flesh.

    ¡°You¡¯rementing about your acting career while your dad is still lying on the hospital bed?¡± Tobias

    questioned.

    Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.

    Avery did not dare to offend Tobias. She had been plotting to taint Skr¡¯s reputation in order to make

    Tobias hate her. Avery had been patiently waiting for Charles to take action. However, she was told that

    the time was not right because Skr was hardly seen hanging out ale at night.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going in?¡± Tobias rose to his feet. The Joneses had entered the ward, leaving an empty

    hallway.

    Skr shook her head. ¡°Why should I? Knowing that he¡¯s alive will suffice. I can¡¯t be bothered with

    anything else. Even if he died, it¡¯s got nothing to do with me.¡±

    She looked at the documents given to her by her rtives, requesting that she signed them to voluntarily

    renunciate her inheritance.

    Even at this critical moment, the Joneses will only reunite for one thing¡ªmoney talk. They¡¯re afraid that

    the daughter of Thomas¡¯ former wife might get a slice of the pie.

    Skr did not have any reason to sign the document. So, she kept it in her bag.

    Right before leaving, someone called out to her. She turned around and saw an elderly woman with a

    ruddyplexion taking steady steps toward her.

    If she remembered correctly, that was her grandmother, Colleen Chord.

    ¡°The family is now panic-stricken after facing such an emergency. Don¡¯t take things to heart. You don¡¯t

    have to sign the agreement.¡±

    Skr opened her mouth, but she could not bring herself to address her grandmother.

    She did not have much impression about Colleen, who had been living in the countryside with her

    grandfather, Dave Jones. I heard that the houses there are huge.

    The only memory she had about her grandmother was that she would give thetter some money

    annually to get some new clothes.

    However, Colleen never epted her money. She must have her reasons. At least, she recognizes me

    as her granddaughter.

 Chapter 594

    Chapter 594

    Chapter 594 Give It All To Me

    Miranda and Meredith would always talk about Colleen with gritted teeth. They would harp on the past,

    ming Colleen and Dave for forcing Thomas to marry Irene, who had aparatively better family

    background. Otherwise, Thomas would not have divorced Miranda.

    Feeling somewhat distant, Skr replied, ¡°I know what to do. You take care of yourself.¡±

    Skr could tell that Colleen was reluctant to part with her. Seeing her eyes turning red and glistened

    with tears, Skr¡¯s heart softened.

    ¡°What? Committed suicide? How¡¯s he now? Dead or alive?¡± Miranda was worked up when she learnt

    the bad news.

    Skr told her everything she knew. Miranda¡¯s heart wrenched.

    Taking a deep breath, shemented, ¡°s, this happened. Does he think that killing himself would

    resolve all of his problems? I have¡­¡±

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    Miranda faltered. The unspoken words fell dead on her lips because Tobias was present. She did not

    want him to know about the truth as he was an outsider, after all.

    Skr noticed that Miranda was simply shocked to the core. There was no sign of sympathy or sorrow

    in her expression, leading to only one possibility. Hence, she concluded that Miranda had no more

    feelings for Thomas.

    Perhaps this is a good thing. I¡¯d dly ept that at any time, as long as she doesn¡¯t wreck another

    family. No matter how old a woman gets, she¡¯ll always long for someone who knows her best to be by

    her side.

    Skr took out the agreement. The Joneses was worried that Thomas might make another attempt

    since he was emotionally unstable.

    Thomas was diagnosed with depression after failing in both his business and marriage. In addition, his

    reputation ispletely ruined. Which of these isn¡¯t a tough blow for him to take?

    Skr asked, ¡°Do you have a pen? I¡¯ll sign it.¡±

    After scanning the contents, Miranda stopped her. ¡°Are you stupid? Why are you signing this? He might

    not be doing well now, but there¡¯re still a lot of benefits for you. Do you know how much assets

    does he have? You¡¯re his daughter too. Why must you give up on your inheritance? You deserve your

    share.¡±

    Skr had never wanted to take advantage of the Joneses. She stated firmly, ¡°I¡¯m not in need of

    money. Why do I want to share a piece of the pie? If something happens to Thomas and I be the

    beneficiary, do you think the rest of them will let me live peacefully?¡±

    Tobias was sipping his tea, showing no intention of getting involved in the mother-and-daughter debate.

    Mirandamented, ¡°Why are you afraid when you have Tobias backing you up? None of the Joneses

    will dare to bully you.¡±

    Skr¡¯s smile stiffened. How long will Tobias be on my side? The greediness exemplified by the Jones

    family will only get greater. They¡¯re probably waiting for the day Tobias breaks up with me, then tackle

    me with despicable means.

    Seeing that Tobias was silent, Miranda spoke even louder to make sure she was heard, ¡°Don¡¯t sign it.

    You don¡¯t want it, but I do. Tobias will treat you well, so you won¡¯t mind not having any inheritance. Just

    give them all to me. Who in their sane mind wouldin about having too much money?¡±

    Skr felt so embarrassed. It¡¯s obvious what Tobias thinks about this whole situation. Does she not see

    it?

    Tobias uttered calmly while subconsciously rubbing his knees, ¡°Go ahead and sign it. It¡¯s good to cut off

    all ties.¡±

    Miranda was dumbfounded. Though Thomas is bankrupt, Skr can still get a few million. It¡¯s easy for

    Tobias to say so because he has deep pockets and the money has got nothing to do with him.

    Horror-stricken, Miranda was a bundle of nerves. ¡°No, don¡¯t sign it. We deserve all these. They owe it

    all to me!¡±

 Chapter 595

    Chapter 595

    Chapter 595 I Do Not Want You To Get Involved

    While Tobias¡¯ reaction was expected, Skr regretted telling Miranda about Thomas.

    She gave up arguing with Miranda and pacified her, ¡°Okay, I won¡¯t sign it. Stop shouting, my hearing has

    been very poortely as I have to listen to the loud speaker at the filming set every day.¡±

    During dinner, Skr did not have much appetite. After having only a few mouthfuls, she left with Tobias.

    Back at the residential area, Skr saw Molly¡¯s father, Patrick Zimmer.

    It was not her first time running into him. Thest time they met, he appeared at the entrance to

    Miranda¡¯s house.

    Wearing a ck-framed sses, Patrick looked elegant, graceful, and handsome as always. Even at an

    old age, he was still rocking a modern perm.

    He seemed to be in a hurry, but stopped in his tracks when Skr called him. He looked rather awkward.

    ¡°Skr, it¡¯s been a while. You¡¯re still as beautiful as ever.¡±

    She replied courteously, ¡°What a coincidence, Mr. Zimmer. Why are you here? Do you stay nearby?¡±

    He nodded, but quickly shook his head afterward. ¡°My friend lives here. I¡¯m here to look for my friend.¡±

    Then, they had a short small talk. If Tobias was not urging for her to leave, Skr had wanted to ask

    Patrick if he came to see Miranda.

    Upon entering the car, Skr found a pen in the glovepartment. Without any hesitation, she signed

    the agreement. She screwed the cap back and flicked the document with her finger, looking relieved.

    She smiled. ¡°You know very well that I don¡¯t need the inheritance. I¡¯m sure you think that it¡¯s not

    necessary, right?¡±

    Tobias took the agreement from Skr, folded it into half and kept it in the glovepartment. ¡°It¡¯s not

    that I know you well; I did it for my own sake too. I don¡¯t want you to get involved too much. My mom

    won¡¯t be pleased to find out about the bitter conflicts in your family.¡±

    Skr heaved a long sigh. Turns out, Tobias isn¡¯t afraid to face any trouble; he just doesn¡¯t want me to

    trouble him. I should thank him for his honesty.

    Feeling rather ashamed, she muttered, ¡°I¡¯m sorry that I often trouble you because of my family affairs.¡±

    He held her hands and said gently, ¡°There¡¯s no need to apologize. I just can¡¯t bear to see you feeling

    aggrieved.¡±

    She sighed again. Over the years, she had grown numb toward the series of unfortunate events befalling

    her. Had it not been for her ability to withstand stress, she would not be able to survive it all. Conversely,

    she might have chosen to end her life by jumping off a building too¡­

    Meanwhile, Thomas was resting on the hospital bed. Feeling weak and lethargic, he had not recovered

    much.

    Colleen felt so bad seeing her son in agony. ¡°Why did you give in to the negative thoughts and choose to

    consume pesticide? Did you think about your mom and dad?¡±

    With his eyes shut, Thomas said hopelessly, ¡°Mom, what¡¯s there to life besides high debts? Since Quest

    Group has been acquired by Ford Group, they oppressed us step by step for their own benefits. The first

    thing Tobias did was to kick me out of the board. He¡¯s a vicious cannibal!¡±Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    Thomas leaned on the pillow to obtain support. Colleen was bbergasted to learn how bad the

    company¡¯s situation was.

    She had heard about the acquisition by Ford Group. However, she naively thought that Tobias helped the

    Jones family because of Skr.

    No wonder Skr wanted to sign the agreement without thinking twice and Tobias did not stop her either.

    If Thomas was dead and all he left behind was huge debts, where would there be any money to pass

    down to his children?

    Thomas smiled wryly. ¡°I¡¯ve been in a high and lofty position all of my life. Now, I¡¯m down in the dumps

    because I¡¯ve reached an all-time low. It¡¯s better for me to die than to drag others down with me.¡±

 Chapter 596

    Chapter 596

    Chapter 596 Needs Change

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    ¡°What kind of trashy movie are you filming? The director is unknown, and the movie had barely gotten

    any investments. Why did you pick a script like this? Aren¡¯t you afraid that your market value will drop?¡±

    Tobias rarely showed concern toward Skr¡¯s work. He only casually flipped through the script as it was

    laying on the desk in the study room.

    However, Skr was very serious about her work. She had marked some lines and made some notes in

    red, including the emotions she needed to portray, as well as the unique characteristics of the role she

    was ying.

    But Skr¡¯s handwriting was a huge contrast to her pretty face. Her handwriting was all over the ce

    and barely legible. It was hardly better than an elementary school student¡¯s handwriting.

    After hearing Tobias¡¯ disdainfulment, Skr threw the script into the drawer and replied, ¡°It was the

    company who epted this job for me. Because of a crop-up, I missed the auditions for Pretty

    Detective. As such, this is the only option I have left for movies that will be screened during the festive

    period. The cast is not that bad. There¡¯s a cameo appearance which should help with increasing the box

    office revenue for the film.¡±

    The one making the cameo appearance was Ruben, who was currently the most popredy actor

    in the industry. Naturally, he was the focus of the promotional efforts for the movie so far.

    Skr had a strong feeling that the director would be bashed when the movie was screened as Ruben¡¯s

    cameo in the movie was merely having his face on a poster!

    Audiences who watched the movie especially for him would definitely feel cheated after seeing his

    almost nonexistent cameo.

    ¡°Well, I only trust my own judgment. It wouldn¡¯t even be easy for your movie to break even. The script is

    some and terrible. It¡¯s just pure nonsense.¡±

    Skr felt very hurt by Tobias¡¯ straightforwardness. She wished that he could be more tactful and make

    her feel better about herself. That way, it would be easier for her to feel a little more hopeful about the

    situation.

    ¡°Where¡¯s your manager? Nowadays, I only see you with your assistant. What¡¯s going on with Kate?

    Doesn¡¯t she filter the scripts for you?¡± Tobias asked as he took out a cigarette. Not wanting Skr to

    inhale second-hand smoke, he only lit the cigarette after opening the windows.

    Upon that, Skr did not know how to answer Tobias. She couldn¡¯t possibly say that Kate was busy

    dating, could she? After all, she was not certain of that.

    As such, she replied, ¡°There¡¯s no harm for me to try. Who knows, there might be a miracle.¡±

    Tobias stubbed out his cigarette after taking a few puffs. He hade to a conclusion long ago that

    Skr did not have the best of luck. Even if there was really a miracle, it would not happen to her.

    He lifted the woman¡¯s chin, and his gaze lingered on her smooth neck and rosy lips. In a hoarse voice,

    he said, ¡°I¡¯ll move in with you in the next few days since I¡¯m worried to leave you here alone. After all,

    that¡¯s what you¡¯ve always wanted, right?¡±

    Skr remembered that Tobias had said the same thing previously but never did it. He merely treated

    her ce like a hotel and only visited when he had needs.

    At that thought, Skr broke free from the man¡¯s grip and turned her face away before replying, ¡°I¡¯m

    already used to living alone. Besides, our schedules are different, and I¡¯m worried that I might affect your

    rest. I often sleep after 3 a.m., and that would definitely affect you.¡±

    Tobias chuckled and said, ¡°I¡¯ll give you some time to consider. You don¡¯t have to think about my

    schedule. I can match yours.¡±

    Skr rested her head on Tobias¡¯ chest and replied, ¡°Why does it feel like you¡¯ll never be able to leave

    me? You¡¯re someone who needs so much alone time. Besides, I¡¯m sure that you will have issues with a

    lot of my daily habits.¡±

    ¡°No one needs another person to survive. There are just different needs at different stages of life. Just

    treat it as I can¡¯t stand my mom¡¯s nagging and have no other ce to go.¡±

    Feeling slightly hurt, Skr¡¯s smile faded as if she had just been pricked by a needle.

 Chapter 597

    Chapter 597

    Chapter 597 The Story Of A Celebrity And Her Sugar Daddy

    Skr was aware that udia had been urging Tobias to give her a grandchild. He must have gotten

    scared of hearing that.

    Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org.

    The health checkup slip that udia gave her was still untouched. Skr knew that she was the

    woman¡¯s current target. udia did not want her to marry into the Ford family, but rather, she just wanted

    to make use of her to give birth to Tobias¡¯ son to carry on the family lineage.

    There had been countless female celebrities who had children out of wedlock with the hopes of marrying

    into the purple. However, there were only less than a handful of them who actually managed to do that.

    Those families would usually take the child but not the child¡¯s mother.

    Even if Tobias finally sumbed to his mother¡¯s nagging and decided to have a baby with Skr, Skr

    would never agree to that.

    She would be risking her future and her fate. After all, she was not confident that she would win such a

    gamble.

    At that moment, Tobias wanted to kiss Skr, but the woman struggled to get away from him. She knew

    that Madelyn, who was preparing dinner downstairs, would being upstairs to let her know that dinner

    was ready anytime soon.

    However, as Tobias was much stronger than Skr, he ended up getting his way. Right then, only kissing

    sounds could be heard in the room, in addition to Skr¡¯s soft panting.

    Madelyn, who had already arrived outside the door, could hear everything clearly. She could barely

    suppress her urge to share with her friends on social media that her employer was a celebrity and tell the

    story of a celebrity and her sugar daddy.

    After a long kissing session, Skr was feeling so dizzy that she had difficulty standing up. Tobias

    tousled her hair and removed her hair tie before saying, ¡°I like it when you let your hair down. Don¡¯t tie

    your hair when you¡¯re with me next time.¡±

    Tobias massaged Skr¡¯s neck softly with her hair covering her neck, and that turned him on. The next

    second, he was kissing her on her lips once again.

    Even though Skr resisted, the man did not let go of her.

    After Madelyn reheated the food three times, Skr still had note downstairs.

    The housekeeper could not help but post on social media: Youngsters have really good stamina. My

    employer and her man have been going at it for almost three hours upstairs. She¡¯s indeed a little devil

    who¡¯s out to suck the life outta him!

    At that point, Skr was already famished. Yet, instead of having dinner, she was pinned on the bed by

    Tobias.

    While Skr was still immersed in the feeling of intimacy with Tobias, the man withdrew his embrace and

    stood up.

    ¡°I¡¯lle backter. I have something to attend to and I¡¯m runningte.¡±

    Skr lifted her head and asked, ¡°Your phone didn¡¯t ring at all just now. Why are you in such a rush?¡±

    It¡¯s not even nighttime yet, and I¡¯m already overindulging in debauchery. No wonder the dark circles

    around my eyes are getting more and more obvious. Tobias thought as he stared at the mess they made

    in the room.

    It was also the man¡¯s wish to continue lying on the bed andze around. However, he had already made

    an appointment with someone and was unable to make such ast-minute change.

    Skr hugged his waist loosely and said, ¡°Come back soon. I¡¯m gonna have dinner without you.¡±

    Tobias noticed that Skr¡¯s attitude was much softer than earlier on and teased, ¡°It seems like I¡¯ve

    served you well in bed. You¡¯re so gentle now. Be a good girl, and I¡¯ll bring back some food for you. Do

    you have any cravings?¡±

    ¡°Doughnuts, hot dogs, roasted chestnuts¡­¡± Skr answered immediately. Since the man had offered,

    she would not stand on ceremony.

    Tobias frowned and replied, ¡°Why are you always craving junk food? I¡¯ll try to hurry back before you

    sleep. Send me the address of your favorite food stalls, and I¡¯ll go get them.¡±

    Skr loved eating junk food. However, she had barely eaten any after getting together with Tobias.

    Besides, she also needed to watch her figure since she was a celebrity.

    Skr noticed that her metabolism had decreased, and it was getting easier for her to put on weight,

    unlike before. She used to be able to eat four tes of pasta for one meal and still maintain her weight.

    Nowadays, she couldn¡¯t even eat one spoonful of pasta without worrying about the effects on her weight.

    Previously, the woman had even asked Kate, ¡°Can¡¯t I just be happily fat?¡±

    Kate answered, ¡°You can. You just won¡¯t get any jobs, and that¡¯s the reality of this industry.¡±

 Chapter 598

    Chapter 598

    Chapter 598 More Alone Time

    Skr wasn¡¯t particrly in a good mood that day after what happened to Thomas, and eating was her

    way to make herself feel better.

    Meanwhile, Tobias waste by almost an hour for his meeting.

    When Gavin saw the man, he smiled and said jokingly, ¡°Mr. Ford, it seems like you are losing your sense

    of time.¡±

    If not for the hickeys on Tobias¡¯ neck, Gavin would have thought that the man was dyed due to a

    meeting at his office.

    Tobias unbuttoned his suit and replied, ¡°Sorry, I was held up just now.¡±

    Gavin poured Tobias a ss of wine and handed over the financial documents of ZY Group to him. ¡°I¡¯ve

    alreadypleted the task you entrusted me with. Your dad has strong financial resources. The reason

    he returned to the country is for the new energy project. New energy is developing rapidly in our country,

    and it¡¯s just normal that he would also want a share of the pie.¡±

    Tobias appeared to be deep in thought as he studied the assets belonging to his dad. Momentster, he

    spoke coldly, ¡°Seems like I¡¯ve underestimated him. He¡¯s more persistent than I thought! Since he wants

    to y this game, let¡¯s have some fun with him.¡±

    Gavin and Tobias had known each other for years, since their younger days, and Gavin had seen Tobias

    built his empire from nothing.

    He knew that Tobias harbored a deep grudge against his dad, but he was in no position to judge as it did

    not concern him.

    ¡°There¡¯s also something else. I¡¯ve found out that your dad had recently divorced. He¡¯s quite something to

    force that woman to leave the marriage with just a vi in the suburbs of Summerbank and nothing else,¡±

    Gavin shared while adjusting his spectacles.

    Tobias had already heard rumors about Xander¡¯s divorce. With a trace of disdain in his voice, he replied

    coldly, ¡°Leaving the marriage with nothing is not as bad as leaving with problems.¡±

    Gavin knew a little about Xander¡¯s affairs. However, Xander was an elder after all and Gavin felt that it

    was not appropriate to gossip about him. Besides, his education and upbringing did not allow him to do

    that as well.

    Xander was a true blue Casanova. He had toyed with countless women, including several celebrities.

    Though it was hard to imagine that a man who was over sixty could still have so much stamina.

    It was rumored that Xander was dating someone newtely. The woman was in her twenties, and

    Xander was obviously robbing the cradle.

    At that moment, Gavin looked toward his te and concentrated on cutting his medium-rare steak.

    He had wanted to have some soul food at a local joint as it was not easy to find those eateries overseas.

    However, Tobias chose a ssy restaurant as the location for their meetup.

    ¡°I heard that you were getting married some time back. You¡¯ve even gotten engaged, but you broke off

    the engagement?¡± As Gavin had not caught up with Tobias for quite a while, he was not updated with the

    latest happenings.

    In fact, he had only heard about the news recently and was not exactly surprised.

    After all, Tobias was of marriageable age, and it was time for him to settle down. However, he did not

    expect that Tobias would even agree to the engagement in the first ce.Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    Gavin had the impression that Tobias was amitment-phobe and that marriage was never in his

    cards.

    He could also clearly remember what Tobias said during a previous conversation. ¡°Marriage is nothing

    but a burden. I can¡¯t imagine facing the same woman every day, without any personal space. I prefer

    having more alone time.¡±

 Chapter 599

    Chapter 599

    Chapter 599 Skr Is Your Ex

    Tobias did not respond to Gavin¡¯s question. He wanted to avoid the topic as he did not wish to discuss

    his romantic life with others.

    However, Gavin was certain that, even though Tobias had broken off his engagement, thetter was

    seeing someone new.

    The hickeys and scratches on his neck exined everything.

    During the brief chat with Tobias, Gavin had also mentioned that he did not intend to leave the country

    anytime soon.

    Even though Tobias did not ask for the reason, Gavin offered it willingly as he began to air his

    grievances. ¡°My mom has started to arrange for my marriage. She kept saying that I¡¯m already over

    thirty, and it¡¯s time for me to settle down. She has even threatened to sever all ties with me if I don¡¯t do

    that.¡±

    Tobias could empathize with how Gavin felt. Marriage of convenience wasmon for families like

    theirs. After all, for businesses, it was all about cooperating to achieve mutual benefits.

    Happily ever after only belonged to fairy tales. In reality, the most important thing was that both families

    were of simr social status.

    There was ady whom Gavin had dated for a few years. Tobias had even met her a few times. She was

    an attractivedy, but the both of them still broke up in the end.

    With a hint of sorrow in his voice, Gavin smiled and said, ¡°When I told my mom that I wanted to marry

    Laurel, she said that other than bringing endless trouble into my life, marrying her would not bring me

    any benefits. Her family is not well-to-do, and we belong to two separate worlds. Due to our different

    upbringings, we wouldn¡¯t have any simr values. Even if I gave her a credit card, she wouldn¡¯t even

    know what to spend on.¡±

    Tobias fell silent as he recalled that he had a simr conversation with udia previously. udia had

    also questioned him about Skr¡¯s value in his life.

    However, Tobias had never needed to rely on anyone, much less a woman.

    Gavin became increasingly dejected as he spoke. As Tobias promised Skr that he would be back

    before she slept, he got up to pay the bill. Noticing Gavin¡¯s slightly drunken state, he asked, ¡°Will you be

    able to get home yourself?¡±

    Gavin nodded and replied with slurred speech, ¡°How can I let Mr. Ford send me back? I¡¯ve already called

    for a driver. Where are you heading to? Do you need a lift?¡±

    Gavin¡¯s house was just a short distance away from Tobias¡¯, so he had assumed that they would be

    traveling home together.

    However, Tobias replied inly, ¡°My girlfriend is waiting for me at home. I¡¯ll be going to her ce.¡±

    Gavin¡¯s eyes lit up when he heard that. It was the first time he had heard Tobias mentioned the word

    ¡°girlfriend.¡±

    Teasingly, he replied, ¡°Which girl¡¯s heart are you going to break again? When do you intend to break up

    with her?¡±

    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    Tobias shot a nce at his friend and said, ¡°Do you really think I¡¯m a yer?¡±

    After knowing Tobias for over a decade, Gavin knew Tobias¡¯ character very well. ¡°You¡¯re not a yer,

    you¡¯re just heartless. After a breakup, I¡¯ll take more than a year to truly move on, but you probably won¡¯t

    even feel anything at all,¡± Gavin replied.

    Tobias did not respond and merely let Gavin carry on with his story.

    A whileter, Tobias followed the address sent to her by Skr and found her favorite food stalls, located

    at the back gate of the woman¡¯s high school.

    Even though it was alreadyte at night, a few stalls along both sides of the road were still brightly lit,

    providing supper for people returningte.

    Skr had requested doughnuts, roasted chestnuts, and a hotdog. Tobias thought that since he was

    already there, he might as well buy more.

    As such, he also bought some fried chicken and pizza.

    ¡°I used to bring my ex-girlfriend here very often. As I did not have much money then, she always said

    that we should juste here once a week. She loveding here with me. Whenever we are here,

    she would want to sit next to me instead of us facing each other.¡±

    Tobias narrowed his eyes as he looked toward the young couple, who were sitting at a table at the kebab

    stall.

    The woman was resting her chin on her hand as she listened attentively to the man talking about his ex-

    girlfriend. It was obvious from the look in her eyes that she was very in love with him.

    ¡°Is your ex-girlfriend really Skr? She¡¯s so pretty and elegant. Herplexion is so smooth and fair as

    well.¡±

    ¡°Of course! I won¡¯t lie to you. This is Skr¡¯s favorite stall. However, that¡¯s all in the past. She¡¯s so

    famous now, and we no longer belong to the same world. You¡¯re not jealous, right?¡±

    The woman smiled coyly and replied, ¡°Why would I be jealous? I¡¯m not that petty.¡±

 Chapter 600

    Chapter 600

    Chapter 600 Immature Young Girl

    When Tobias heard Skr¡¯s name, he took a closer look at the man and realized that it was Jeremy,

    Skr¡¯s first boyfriend!

    It was a small world indeed. The odds of Tobias bumping into Jeremy were extremely low, but they still

    met under such circumstances. Tobias should actually be grateful to Jeremy because, without Jeremy,

    Skr would never have to use her body to exchange for that man¡¯s life, and Tobias himself would never

    get to know her.

    Skr was, in fact, considered rather lucky. After being together with Tobias for so long, he had not done

    anything that would hurt her. In fact, he had been treating their rtionship rather seriously.

    As Jeremy tilted his head up while taking a sip of soda, he spotted Tobias and spat out his drink at once.

    The man turned pale and swallowed a lump in his throat. He was so intimidated by Tobias that he felt like

    his life was being threatened at that moment.

    However, Tobias remained expressionless and ignored Jeremy.

    He said his ex-girlfriend loveding here with him. Tobias thought.

    ¡°Mister, do you want it spicy? You need any cutlery?¡± The owner of the food stall asked as he picked up

    the chili kes container.

    Tobias nced at the food that was already prepared and without saying a word, he made payment

    before turning around and left.

    The owner of the food stall froze for a second before shouting, ¡°Hey, mister! You forgot your food.¡±

    Tobias replied without looking back, ¡°Please throw them away! She doesn¡¯t like these anymore.¡±

    Tobias had the air of a big shot and did not seem like someone who was mentally unstable. Not knowing

    what was going on, the boss of the food stall frowned. What a strange man! He waited in the cold for the

    food to be prepared and even paid for it. Why did he leave without it?

    Still slightly in shock, Jeremy finally heaved a sigh of relief after Tobias left and forced a smile at his new

    girlfriend.

    Noticing that beads of sweat had umted on his forehead, the woman took a piece of tissue and

    leaned forward to wipe the sweat off for him.

    ¡°What happened to you? Are you not feeling well?¡±

    Jeremy took a deep inhale and replied, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Let¡¯s just quickly finish eating and leave.¡±

    When he saw Tobias, Jeremy was reminded of his nightmare once again. At that time, Tobias had only

    given him two options. He could either choose to hand over that three million or die.

    Until the present day, Jeremy still dreamed of that scene often. To him, it was even scarier than when he

    found out that he was ill.

    Meanwhile, Skr, who was almost falling asleep, heard the rumbling of the car engine that disturbed

    the quiet night. Immediately, she stood up and walked toward the window.

    She could see Tobias smoking in the garden. Apart from the cigarette between his fingers, he was not

    holding anything else.

    Skr tiptoed in order to take a closer look. As the windows had no grills, the woman almost lost her

    bnce and fell out of the window.

    She had assumed that Tobias must have left the food in the car.

    Thus when Tobias walked through the door empty-handed, Skr could not help but feel disappointed.

    ¡°How can you break your promise? I especially waited up for you.¡±

    With a grim expression, the man replied, ¡°You should stop eating so much junk food. You¡¯ll be a

    useless piece of junk yourself if you keep on eating.¡±

    Skr grumbled under her breath as she wondered why the man was acting in such a weird manner. It

    was him who suggested that he brought food back for her. As such, she was speechless at what he said.

    Even her stomach started rumbling in protest. The woman let out a yawn and said, ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have

    waited for you. Gonna go sleep now.¡±

    Tobias stared at Skr with a prating gaze. He was unable to forget what Jeremy said about Skr

    always wanting to sit next to him and not facing him. Was there not enough space? Did she love him so

    much that she had to stick to him at all times?

    Tobias did not remember Skr behaving that way toward him.

    Content (C) N?v/elDra/ma.Org.

    At the same time, Madelyn saw that Tobias was still standing downstairs. In fact, she had already noticed

    the tense atmosphere between Tobias and Skr earlier. That did not surprise the housekeeper at all,

    given the age gap between the couple. After all, Skr was still young and immature, but Tobias already

    had his eyes set on her.

 Chapter 601

    Chapter 601

    Chapter 601 Someone Easy To Get Along With

    Skr purposively did not switch her phone to silent mode. Her eyes widened without the slightest bit of

    sleepiness as she stared at the time disyed on her phone. The sudden change in Tobias¡¯ demeanor

    moments ago had caught her off guard. It¡¯s going to strike twelve. Oh no! The pervert will surely call me

    again!

    She had called Holden up during the day to ask about thetest updates. Before that, she had already

    lodged a police report, iming that someone had been threatening her.

    Thetter only replied cidly, ¡°I bet it must be a prank yed by one of you fervent fans. Isn¡¯t it

    common for celebrities?¡±

    Skr could not help heaving a sigh resignedly. I requested his help and even bought him a meal. But he

    obviously thinks that I¡¯m overreacting! A prank yed by one of my fervent fans? How could he jump to

    such a hasty conclusion? It seems that nothing much can be done even after the case is filed. Simrly,

    the chances of getting the money back for an inte fraud are slim even after the report is lodged.

    As the door opened abruptly, the sound broke Skr¡¯s reverie. Taken aback, she clutched her chest and

    snapped after taking a deep breath, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you knock on the door before entering?¡±

    Tobias caught a glimpse of his watch instinctively, only to find that it was almost midnight. He asked

    quizzically, ¡°Huh? Why should I do so? This is my house too. Why do I need to knock on the door upon

    entering my woman¡¯s room?¡±

    Deep down, he reprimanded Skr for being hard-hearted. If not for her, I won¡¯t need to stand guard

    here till midnight! Apart from that, he had asked someone to trace all the unknown callers. Nevertheless,

    he was informed that those were inte calls, and they had no means to track down the calls.

    After getting Skr¡¯s phone from her, he lowered his voice while reassuring her, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I believe

    you won¡¯t be receiving any prank calls soon. Trust me!¡±

    Furrowing her brows, Skr asked in bafflement, ¡°Were the calls really made by my fervent fans?

    Anyway, my gut instinct tells me that someone is causing me trouble so that I¡¯ll have an emotional

    breakdown.¡±

    The following day, Hannah ryed the director¡¯s message to Skr when she joined the event of DI

    brand. ¡°Mr. Lynch mentioned that you didn¡¯t do well for some scenes yesterday. Thus, he needs to

    reshoot all the affected ones.¡±

    Apart from being as busy as a bee alongside Skr, Hannah was upied with dating. The hectic life

    tended to wear her down, causing her to be forgetful. Subsequently, Skr had to use post-it notes

    as reminders for her. Thus, the former had no choice but to hire another assistant.

    The moment she heard that the filming crew had to reshoot her scenes, her expression darkened.

    Undeniably, she would usually be in a better mood whenever she was not with the filming crew at the

    filming site.

    At that moment, Skr was eating takeaway backstage. Laurel cast her eyes on the former¡¯s face with

    exquisite makeup. Unavoidably, her lips were slightly smeared with the oil from the food. Even though

    she had not yet reapplied lipstick to touch up, she still looked as gorgeous as ever with her unmissable

    luscious lips.

    Laurel only advanced toward Skr to introduce herself after thetter had finished her food. ¡°Mdm.

    Jones, nice to meet you. I¡¯m Laurel Reed, your new assistant.¡±

    In the meantime, Skr was engaged in scrolling Twitter on her phone, barely even blinking her eyes.

    Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    Astounded by how Laurel addressed her, she put her phone away and lifted her head instantly.

    ¡°Ah! I didn¡¯t expect that you¡¯re such a prettydy. Just call me Skr,¡± she responded briefly in a

    standard way with a hint of unmissable hypocrisy. All the while, she had been addressing other females

    as prettydies too.

    Even though Laurel looked rather in, she was exuding the vibe of an aloof yet morous supermodel.

    ¡°Mdm. Jones, it¡¯s been quite a while since Ist had a job. Thus, I need a few days to adapt to it. But I

    promise that it won¡¯t take long for me. Mdm. Jones, I hope you won¡¯t mind that,¡± Laurel uttered warily.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. Just take your time. I¡¯m not someone who¡¯ll easily make a fuss. If there¡¯s anything

    you¡¯re not sure about, don¡¯t hesitate to ask Hannah. She has worked for me for quite a long period,¡±

    Skr responded casually with smiling eyes.

    Laurel nodded as she looked intently into Skr¡¯s eyes. Even though thetter proimed herself as

    someone easy to get along with, she could not help feeling tensed up. Hmph! There are hardly any

    celebrities in the entertainment industry that are easy to deal with! But what choice do I have? I wouldn¡¯t

    have taken up this job if I didn¡¯t break up with Gavin and need to earn a living!

 Chapter 602

    Chapter 602

    Chapter 602 Are You Still A Virgin

    As Skr buttoned up her cor, the makeup artist helped to touch up her makeup. A surge of fear

    started to well up within her again as snippets of the previous incident during GUCCI¡¯s public event

    shed across her mind. She could never erase Charles¡¯ disgusting face from her mind.

    Tobias did not seem to be dwelling on the incident. Nheless, she found various types of new facial

    foam in the bathroom since then. Evidently, he was hinting to her to wash her face clean. But why

    doesn¡¯t he tell me directly?

    The moment Skr caught sight of Charles on the stageter, she almost unleashed her wrath.

    Thetter even sent her flying kisses under the stage and whipped out his phone to gesture to her. She

    glowered at him in exasperation as something came to her mind. D*mn it! Is he hinting something at me?

    Could it be that he was the one making prank calls on the dot every night?

    Tampering down her simmering fury, Skr put on a smile and replied to the host¡¯s questions patiently.

    When asked about her usual skincare routine, she retracted her re from Charles and exined in

    detail based on what she had memorized earlier.

    Skr¡¯s fans were flushed with excitement and kept calling her name fervently under the stage. Halfway

    through, she turned off her mic, waving at Cinque and Lionel. Without hesitation, they hopped onto the

    stage and advanced toward her.

    She whispered to them, ¡°Do you see that hefty man in a checkered shirt and sses? Chase him away

    discreetly and keep an eye on him. I¡¯ll confront him after the event.¡±

    Hearing that, they got down from the stage swiftly and headed toward Charles with a flicker of ferocity in

    their eyes.

    On the other hand, Skr turned on her mic again casually and continued to share her skincare routine

    with the host. Thetter kept gasping admiringly at her wless skin, emphasizing that her pores were

    unnoticeable even when they were standing close to each other.

    Recently, Skr¡¯spany had arranged for her to be the spokesperson for three brands, ranging from

    an international luxury brand to a brand affordable for students. Thus, there were big contrasts,

    especially in terms of the contract signing fee for the three brands of different standards. Hmph! Kate

    Lowe, I wonder how long you¡¯re going to do this to me!

    After the event ended, Skr bowed to the fans with a ny-degree incline before waving them

    goodbye. She had no choice but to cancel the autograph session as there were too many of them on the

    spot, and she had a tight schedule.

    Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    Meanwhile, Cinque and Lionel had taken Charles into a ck car owned by thepany.

    Skr instructed them to take him out of the car, repulsed by the idea of being together with him in a

    small and enclosed space, breathing in his revolting breath.

    To avoid attracting attention from the paparazzi, she chose to deal with him in the secluded basement

    car park of the mall.

    Even so, Charles was not the slightest bit intimidated by such a predicament. In fact, he scrutinized her

    lecherously with a revolting expression on his face.

    Skr shed him a subtle smile and cut to the chase. ¡°So, were you the one calling me every night?¡±

    At that moment, her smile was exceptionally captivating, like blooming red flowers. It was as though

    there was a hint of inexplicable viciousness amid her alluringness. Notwithstanding, Charles could not

    help drooling over her.

    ¡°Are you still a virgin?¡± he piped up subconsciously.

    Stunned, Cinque and Lionel shifted their gazes away in embarrassment.

    Pfft! You¡¯ve finally exposed yourself by asking this question! Skr could remember vividly how the

    unknown caller asked her the same question that night.

 Chapter 603

    Chapter 603

    Chapter 603 Snap In Tears

    Right that instant, she was sure as h*ll that Charles was the one making the prank calls.

    Her face turned grim instantaneously as she fumed, ¡°Cut the crap. What on earth are you trying to do?

    Why are you bothering me every night?¡±

    Drooling over Skr in silence, Charles felt that the gorgeous woman was turning him on. No matter

    what, I¡¯ll make her mine!

    Skr was well aware that the repulsive man would continue to turn a deaf ear to her questions.

    Instead ofying a finger on him, she asked Cinque and Lionel, ¡°When you used to be mercenaries, did

    you happen to know any methods of torturing someone without leaving visible scars? I¡¯ll give you half an

    hour to get him to pour out everything.¡±

    Nheless, Charles did not chicken out at all. ¡°One of my best friends is a paparazzi. I¡¯ve told him to

    come and look for me if he doesn¡¯t see me half an hourter. I¡¯ve even sent him my location earlier,¡± he

    hissed with a smirk.

    Skr felt her temples start to throb. D*mn it! This sc*mbag seemingly has a sense of vignce and is

    not easy to deal with.

    She signaled to Cinque and Lionel to release him at once. ¡°Well, let¡¯s see who¡¯ll have thestugh then.

    From now onwards, I¡¯ll keep a watchful eye on you all the time. Let¡¯s see how you can continue to cause

    trouble for me!¡± She snickered.

    Content (C) N?v/elDra/ma.Org.

    After that, she reminded them to keep an eye on him. To her, he was like a time bomb that would go off

    at any moment.

    After heaving a sigh of relief, Skr stepped into the washroom before heading for the filming site.

    Momentster, a woman¡¯s icy-cold tone sounded abruptly. ¡°What is there for us to talk about? What¡¯s the

    point of notifying me that you¡¯re getting married? It only reminds me of how I used to be blinded and act

    foolishly!¡±

    Skr had a hunch that it was someone she knew as the voice sounded familiar. The moment she

    pushed open the toilet door, Laurel came into view. Despite her heartless mockery a while ago, she was

    wiping her tears and restraining herself from crying. Though she put up a front, Skr had caught sight

    of her dishevelment.

    Sensing Skr¡¯s gaze, Laurel put her phone away and took a deep breath. Next, she shed the former

    a bright smile as though nothing had transpired. ¡°Mdm. Jones, you¡¯ve to be back at the filming site within

    one hour. You really have a tight schedule.¡±

    Knowing that she was only bottling up her emotions, Skr queried gently, ¡°Are you all right? If you¡¯ve

    something on, you can go back first. Anyway, I only need to retake some scenester. There¡¯s nothing

    important.¡±

    Laurel was not sure how much Skr had overheard a while ago. She tried to reassure thetter, ¡°Mdm.

    Jones, I¡¯m fine. I was just chatting with my ex-boyfriend.¡±

    Obviously, that was not a so-called casual chat. However, Skr refrained from asking further, knowing

    that she should not intervene in others¡¯ personal affairs.

    Thus, she zipped her mouth and turned to look into the mirror to touch up her lips. Surprisingly, she still

    looked gorgeous wearing hot pink lipstick. After tying her hair up, she looked exceptionally young and

    lively with her striking lips.

    She recalled how Tobias had once asked her doubtfully, ¡°Why do you need to buy so many types of

    lipsticks? Don¡¯t you look the same after applying them?¡±

    Skr could not help but wonder if he had color blindness. Or perhaps, he never cared to notice the

    different colors of my lips?

    By the time she was back at the filming site, the filming crew was taking a break for dinner.

    Skr caught a glimpse of Marcus at the entrance of the studio.

    He was chatting with the director with one hand in his pocket. At the sight of his tall figure and his

    chiseled profile, Skr could not helpmenting inwardly. If all the men of the Ford family enter the

    entertainment industry by forming a group, I bet they will be able to shoot to fame effortlessly with their

    devastating good looks!

    Nevertheless, Skr shook her head instinctively when she thought of Marcus¡¯ poor judgment in

    investment. She doubted if he could even regain the money invested in the current movie. Regardless of

    how well the directors and how talented the actors and actresses were, the preposterous plot was

    undeniably a failure.

 Chapter 604

    Chapter 604

    Chapter 604 Ingrid Is Given The Priority

    Soon, Marcus advanced toward her and teased, ¡°Ha! You¡¯re really on the dot! It seems you¡¯re here

    knowing that it¡¯s time for dinner! Anyway, you should eat more. Don¡¯t you know you¡¯re as thin as a rake

    now?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t like the food provided by the filming crew,¡± Skr refuted.

    Marcusmented resignedly, ¡°Ah! Beautiful women like you tend to practice impressive self-discipline.

    That¡¯s why you¡¯re not used to the food provided by the filming crew. On the contrary, my sister can

    gobble down two packs of food at one time. No wonder she¡¯s putting on weight!¡±

    Skr twitched her lips stiffly as she walked away, having noment for Ingrid¡¯s appetite. Good

    gracious! Does Ingrid Ford realize how she looks now? Not to mention, there¡¯s a theory saying that one

    seems to appear five kilograms heavier on screen. Thus, I presume she¡¯ll appear to weigh approximately

    eighty-five kilograms on screen!

    ording to the plot, the male lead¡¯s childhood sweetheart had a frail figure as she was from a poor

    family and had been starving.

    Skr was convinced that it was not out of the director¡¯s willingness to let Ingrid y the role of the male

    lead¡¯s childhood sweetheart. After all, thetter¡¯s appearance was a stark contrast to the one set in the

    plot. How could Ingrid Ford convince the others by ying the role of a pitiful girl who had malnutrition

    due to poverty? It¡¯s absurd that one who has been starving could have such a figure like hers!

    Only when Skr was a distance away did Marcus call out to her, ¡°Hey! Skyler, are you free tonight?

    Let¡¯s go for a movie.¡±

    Skr turned to shoot him a nce before mocking, ¡°I don¡¯t wish to shoot myself in the foot by drawing

    unwanted attention from the paparazzi. For instance, by having a meal with the producer.¡±

    Marcus quickened his pace to stand in her way and stretched out his arm. ¡°I hope I¡¯m not overthinking.

    But you seem to be keeping a distance from me, aren¡¯t you? I don¡¯t see anything wrong with an actress

    having a meal with the producer. You can even ask your manager to join us.¡±

    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    Skr took off her sunsses with her slender fingers, exposing her charming eyes. ¡°If you¡¯re able to

    ask my manager out, I¡¯ll thank you for that!¡±

    At the same time, she nced obliquely at Marcus¡¯ arm. Only then did he put it down reluctantly to let

    her get through.

    At the sight of Skr, who finally showed up, the directormented apprehensively, ¡°My beloved Mdm.

    Skr, didn¡¯t you promise you¡¯ll be back by half-past five? Do you know what time it is? Don¡¯t you know

    how much loss the filming crew will sustain just because you¡¯rete for one hour? Time is money!¡±

    Skr headed for the fitting room obediently without retorting his words. In fact, she only had herself to

    me for beingte. She had rushed all the way from the mall after the previous event but was

    unexpectedly stuck in a massive traffic jam for almost one hour.

    It only struck her at that moment why Tobias usually only dropped by to meet her in the evening.

    Apparently, he was avoiding the peak off-work hour.

    Momentster, the filming crew proceeded with the scene retake session for Skr. Under a close-up

    shot with a high-definition camera, everyone could barely take their eyes off her wless and youthful

    dainty face.

    Fastening his gaze on the camera screen, Shay whispered to the assistant director, ¡°Undoubtedly, Skr

    has stunning good looks. But too bad, she still needs to polish her acting skills and improve her stiff body

    language.¡±

    Nevertheless, the assistant director had a different stance and did not echo his statement. He felt Shay

    was being too strict with the actors and actresses. To him, Skr had decent acting skillspared to all

    the other young actresses of the new generation.

    Other than having an odd temperament, she tended to stay aloof from the others. Therefore, he hardly

    saw her jesting with others at the filming site.

    Whenever any shooting of a particr scene was done, she would retreat to a quiet corner to take a

    breather. Normally, she would either scroll on her phone or go through the script.

    Inevitably, many in the filming crew started talking behind her back, iming she was putting on airs.

    While Skr was burying her head in the script, Laurel stretched out her hand from behind to pass her a

    cup of hot chocte from McDonald¡¯s. ¡°You look worn out. Drink something to invigorate yourself for the

    sessionter.¡±

    Skr took it over from Laurel quizzically. It was a norm to take coffee for invigoration. Hence, it never

    urred to her that anyone would take hot chocte as refreshment.

    Laurel opened up a foldable stool and sat next to Skr. Resting her chin on her hands, she observed

    how Ingrid read out her lines as though she was rapping.

    She had seen thetter a few times previously and was utterly speechless when she caught a glimpse of

    her figure on the screen. Money really works wonders, huh! That¡¯s how she¡¯s still given the chance to

    y the role regardless of how she looks!

 Chapter 605

    Chapter 605

    Chapter 605 The Odor Of The Costumes

    Deep down, Laurel snorted sorrowfully. If I were from a wealthy and prestigious family, Gavin would be

    marrying another woman.

    Meanwhile, Skr had already finished the hot chocte. Initially, she thought of notifying Tobias that

    she had to stay back to work overtime with the filming crew at night.

    Nevertheless, she held herself back after pondering for a while. After all, he had never asked her

    anything when she worked overtime with the filming crew previously. Hmph! What an uncaring boyfriend!

    Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    Momentster, Hannah was seen carrying bags of various sizes containing costumes sent by the fashion

    designer. Feeling exhausted and out of breath, she shot Laurel a look of sheer indignance. Why should I

    be the one rushing here and there while she¡¯s savoring her hot chocte here?

    The moment she approached Skr with the bags, Skr¡¯s nose caught a whiff of an odor. She

    instinctively bent down to sniff the bags one by one and discovered that the odor was from the costumes.

    It seemed like those were someone¡¯s unwanted old costumes thrown aside for ages.

    Perplexed, she asked right away, ¡°Are these new costumes?¡±

    Hannah ran off to double-check with the particr person in charge and rushed back in a short while to

    exin breathlessly, ¡°The costume section exined that these are the costumes that the filming crew

    prepared for actresses of previous movies. Mr. Lynch pointed out that this set of costumes is meant to be

    for you. ording to him, it matches your body size as though it was custom-made for you, so alteration

    is unnecessary.¡±

    Skr took out the set of costumes mentioned by Hannah and grimaced at the odor that seemed to have

    be stronger. She sneered in dismay, ¡°It never urred to me that the filming crew would try to cut

    down their expenses this way. I bet it¡¯s unbelievable to others that even the costumes worn by a female

    lead are old ones!¡±

    Hannah drew closer and whispered into Skr¡¯s ear, ¡°I heard that Ingrid Ford should be the one wearing

    this set of costumes, but she couldn¡¯t fit into them. Thus, she asked someone to alter the set of costumes

    initially prepared for you by the filming crew. She¡¯s now wearing your costumes instead.¡±

    Skr got all riled up and glowered ferociously at Ingrid, who was in a scene with Maxim. Thetter had

    obviously squeezed herself into the female lead¡¯s costume. The blouse was gaping, and the two buttons

    above her chest looked as if they would pop out at any moment. Apart from that, her tire belly was utterly

    visible.

    In a split second, Skr even felt that the hot chocte she savored a while ago was not sweet

    anymore. She reminded herself to be on a strict diet, fearing that she would end up putting on weight like

    Ingrid.

    Her temper ring, Skr tossed the costumes back into the bag. After wiping her hands with wet tissue,

    she instructed, ¡°Tell them that I refuse to wear it for fear that I¡¯ll have an allergy. They shouldn¡¯t ask me to

    wear old costumes with the odor of someone¡¯s sweat. Since others have new costumes, why should I

    give in to wearing old ones?¡±

    Hannah knitted her brows and stated indignantly, ¡°Ingrid Ford insisted on wearing your clothes. After all,

    her elder brother is the producer of this movie, and nobody in the filming crew dares to step on her toes.

    She¡¯s a typical socialite trying to ¡®experience life¡¯ her way here!¡±

    An infuriated Skr refused topromise. She realized the others would continue to take advantage of

    her if she went with the flow all the time.

    When Shay overheard that Skr refused to give in, he unplugged his earphones and rushed over to

    talk her into changing her mind. ¡°Mdm. Skr, all the clothes are the same to match the movie

    background set in the eighties. Just spray some perfume to get rid of the smell, okay? Why make such a

    big fuss? The props crew has made a mistake, and we¡¯re racing against the time. Could you please be

    more tolerant?¡±

    Skr pointed at the cor of the costumes and fumed, ¡°My goodness! Don¡¯t you see the disgusting

    stain on the cor? How could you pester me into wearing it? Where is the fairness? Do I deserve to

    wear old costumes just because I¡¯m usually the one to relent?¡±

    Rendered speechless, Shay could only try to talk things out with Ingrid. He was numb to the politics

    among actresses at the filming site throughout the years. However, that was the first time he came

    across actresses fighting over costumes.

    Needless to say, Ingrid was not easy to deal with either. She insisted on snatching everything given to

    Skr by the filming crew. Subsequently, the duo blew things out of proportion unendingly.

    Paying no heed to Shay¡¯s request, Ingrid raised her voice disdainfully. ¡°Pfft! Why should I take off the

    costumes? Can she fit herself in it? Look at how skinny and t-chested she is!¡±

 Chapter 606

    Chapter 606

    Chapter 606 Mutual Intolerance

    Since Skr refused to change up, the filming crew was at an impasse, and proceedings for the night

    shoot had also grounded to a halt.

    Ranting and raving on set, Shay was blowing his top as well, ¡°I can¡¯t understand what¡¯s going through

    the minds of you young¡¯uns. Just can¡¯t seem to take a little hardship and more pompous than your level

    of fame warranted.¡±

    Those words were obviously directed at Skr, who was splitting hairs as she could not stand the way

    Ingrid kept tripping her up and how the director silently abetted it.

    Just because her brother is the producer, she saw it fit to be cocky and deem everyone beneath her.

    Skr loosened up her own hair and regarded Laurel. ¡°Gather my things. I¡¯m not feeling well today and

    won¡¯t be able to continue.¡±

    Laurel had no idea what had gotten into Skr as it did not seem like a big deal to her.

    While it is annoying to have one¡¯s wardrobe tampered with, she could have just tolerated it. Skr

    shouldn¡¯t have kicked up such a fuss over a trivial matter like this, to the point that she even pissed off

    the director.

    Shay stopped the departing Skr in her tracks. ¡°After making the filming crew wait on you the entire

    day, are you going to bail on them just like that? Don¡¯t take this too far now, Skr Jones, taking

    advantage of your own poprity and showing no respect for anyone whatsoever.¡±

    At that moment, Skr looked frigid and distant, as she felt that Shay had been seriously prejudicial right

    from the get-go.

    It was understandable that she had to do retakes since her scenes did note out well.

    However, she thought Shay had been downright shabby toward her. When he was not criticizing her

    acting, he was suggesting that she was ditzy and slow-witted.

    In contrast, he always smiled at Ingrid fawningly, no matter how many bad takes thetter had.

    During her scenes with Ingrid, Shay would chastise her all the same when it was obviously Ingrid who

    was at fault, while thetter got to stand on the sidelines and tantly look on in glee.

    The situation with the wardrobe was merely the straw that broke the camel¡¯s back.

    Skr cast an impassive smirk in Shay¡¯s direction. ¡°I¡¯m taking the day off. Will be back tomorrow as soon

    as the props crew has my new costume ready.¡±

    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    Shay was left bbergasted while Skr, who had no heed of anything he had just told her, casually

    strutted off. Why should the onus be on me to try and ovee the hardships that Ingrid has been

    causing me?

    After exiting the studio, Skr got straight into the car. Close behind, Laurel and Hannah briefly

    exchanged nces with each other.

    It was in to see that Hannah did not look upon her new colleague too fondly. She thought that she

    herself was sufficient in her role as an assistant and saw no reason why Skr needed to hire another.

    ¡°If this got out to the press, they would surely say that you were being a diva. That is not going to go

    down well with many fans,¡± Laurel noted gloomily.

    Skr¡¯s lusciousshes fluttered as she lifted her hand to admire the silvery band around her finger.

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t bother me one bit. I haven¡¯t been making the headlines recently, so I could use a boost of

    publicity, no matter what form it takes.¡±

    With a slight wistfulness in her eyes, Laurel gazed toward the neon lights and bustle beyond the window,

    which were the signature of this international metropolis.

    She then bit her lip tightly in a seething outrage. ¡°It isn¡¯t surprising at all how everyone would indulge

    those youngdies born into privilege and let them snatch up whatever they want and behave as they

    please. Even though Ingrid was really too much, Skr, it isn¡¯t worth falling out with the director over

    her.¡±

    Irked, Hannah immediately retorted, ¡°Could you stop being so negative? Is someone rich that different

    compared to someone who isn¡¯t? What is there to be envious of? If you don¡¯t have money, you jolly well

    get out there and earn some for yourself. Are you begrudging your parents for not raising you in a well-

    to-do family? Even a dog wouldn¡¯t do that.¡±

    Laurel, too, got very emotional when she exined herself, ¡°I didn¡¯t mean it that way, so don¡¯t try to read

    too much into what I said, all right?¡±

    Things were getting quite heated inside the MPV between these two assistants of hers who were already

    at loggerheads with each other in spite of not having worked together very long. Skr watched as they

    spitted and snarled, stopping just short of rolling up their sleeves and getting into fisticuffs.

    ¡°Enough, both of you. You¡¯re giving me a headache. Can¡¯t you just grant me some peace and quiet for

    once?¡± she spoke up in intervention.

 Chapter 607

    Chapter 607

    Chapter 607 A Failure Of An Investment

    Laurel regarded Hannah like thetter was a fool. Look at this girl. It¡¯s obvious that she must have been

    born with a silver spoon in her mouth, and that¡¯s why she has absolutely no idea what I¡¯m talking about.

    Having grown up shielded by her own privilege, Hannah was probably unable to fathom how one¡¯s fate

    was often dictated by the conditions of one¡¯s birth.

    Skr understood what Laurel meant, though. As someone who had simr experiences, she was better

    able to rte to the things Laurel said.

    The car had not strayed too far when Skr heard her phone ringing. Pulling it out, she saw that it was a

    call from Kate.

    After she swiped the call through, Kate questioned before she could say anything, ¡°Since when have you

    be acquainted with Marcus Ford? He said that you¡¯ve agreed to have lunch with him but only on the

    condition that your manager is present. Hence, he wanted me to go along too.¡±

    Skr was speechless as she did not expect Marcus to hit up Kate when she only mentioned thetter in

    passing. ¡°Sorry for bothering you. I was really just kidding around and didn¡¯t think that he would take me

    so seriously.¡±

    ¡°Word has it that Marcus is Tobias¡¯ younger brother, so it wouldn¡¯t necessarily be a bad thing to ept

    his invitation. This could help build your connections in the entertainment industry, so don¡¯t be such a

    hermit. Put yourself out there and make some new friends.¡±

    Skr reacted with a frown. Going out to dine and make friends? That¡¯s easy for you to say, Kate.

    If she and Marcus were to be photographed in each other¡¯spany outside, Kate would definitely

    demand that she exin herself for feeding the tabloids again.

    Following that, Skr smiled and replied genially, ¡°That sounds great. I¡¯ll see to the arrangements as

    soon as possible. Who would resent being well connected?¡±

    Kateughed heartily in the belief that her counterpart wasing around. ¡°That¡¯s the spirit. Nothing to

    lose from making conversations over a nice meal. Just be careful that you don¡¯t get photographed doing

    it.¡±

    Wanting me towork and, at the same time, protect myself? She really has everything worked out.

    Though she was chuckling away, Skr¡¯s expression had only grown increasingly dour by the minute.

    As she was about to hang up, she heard a soft female voice echo in the background.

    ¡°Do you mind helping me with the body lotion, darling¡­¡±

    Kate had hurriedly hung up before she could hear the rest of it.

    Skr rescinded her smile. That voice was so sharine that it gave her diabetes. There were not many

    voices as girlish as this one in the entertainment industry, and Amelia¡¯s happened to be one of them.

    The two of them together thiste into the night, with Amelia asking Kate to apply body lotion for her¡­

    Skr was honestly shocked. I bet Amelia has been sleeping with my manager. I wouldn¡¯t be as

    surprised if it were a man and a woman, but now it¡¯s two women¡­

    Content (C) N?v/elDra/ma.Org.

    Prior to this, she could not tell at all that Kate was a lesbian, but now the truth was bing increasingly

    clear.

    Judging from Kate¡¯s assertiveness, it¡¯s obvious who¡¯s the butch and who¡¯s the femme in this rtionship.

    Skr went on to share her big discovery in its entirety with Tobias, who had just moved his stuff in and

    was now formally cohabiting with her.

    Coming through the door, she did not even kick off the Yeezys on her feet. Like an entertainment page,

    she just stood there and rabidly unloaded that expos¨¦ onto Tobias.

    In truth, what Skr revealed was not exactly news to him.

    Although he was not one for gossip andcked the enthusiasm for things that did not concern him, it did

    not mean that these sorts of things would not automatically reach his ears.

    Tobias had some regrets about allowing Kate to represent Skr, to begin with. Based on the arbitrary

    manner by which she quoted her fees, she should already have been dropped from consideration.

    He was not exactly pleased with the results yielded after having Skr in her charge for so long and felt

    that Kate had not proven herself to be worth the money he sshed out for her services.

    When assessed from a business standpoint, there is no doubt that this is deemed a failure of an

    investment.

 Chapter 608

    Chapter 608

    Chapter 608 Sleep Is All About Comfort

    Tobias sat through all the talking Skr did rather expressionlessly. He then paused before replying,

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired from standing out there for so long? Why don¡¯t youe inside to have something to

    eat?¡±

    With her eyes widened, Skr blinked. ¡°Don¡¯t you find this surprising in the least?¡±

    ¡°Not really. This is how the entertainment industry has always functioned. You could change your sexual

    orientation or the way you pick your partners just to get ahead. Everyone will do what they must in order

    to get what they want. You¡¯lle to see this in time,¡± Tobias said.

    Skr bent down to take off her shoes before she ced them neatly on the rack. In the past, she would

    usually leave them by the door. Whenever Tobias saw her do that, he would unfailingly help to pick them

    up and put them away.

    Having no one pointing it out was no excuse to remain oblivious. A couple of timester, Skr already

    made it a habit to ce her own shoes in their proper ce.

    ¡°Since you are already aware of Kate¡¯s sexual orientation, aren¡¯t you worried about her trying to seduce

    me?¡± Thinking back on it, Skr found an odd fixation about the manner Kate looked at her sometimes.

    Maybe she had been overthinking it, and perhaps thetter was not even interested in her.

    Unhurriedly, Tobias gently exined, ¡°That was why I¡¯ve always made it clear to her that you¡¯re my

    woman. Even if she grew a pair, she wouldn¡¯t dare harbor any funny ideas toward you.¡±

    Skr exhaled and appeared to be deted.

    Having long known about Kate, Tobias had already taken all these precautions while she had been left

    out of the loop and groping in the dark, only to realize it now.

    That made her even more convinced that she would not be able to get the most out of her coboration

    with Kate, especially with Amelia now being thetter¡¯s love interest.

    Thoughts of changing managers started to cross her mind. The timing may not be right at present, so this

    would probably have to wait until filming wraps up.

    Upstairs, the man had already made his presence felt inside the bedroom and at the basin.

    When she opened the closet, she saw that half of it had been filled with Tobias¡¯ formal clothes. Alongside

    these, there were only a few sparing pieces of casual wear inside.

    In the past, this ce had only been Tobias¡¯ temporary abode where he often walked around with only

    his pants on. Now, it felt more like home to him.

    Skr sat herself down by the bed. The freshlyid pink sheets trimmed withce were evidently

    Madelyn¡¯s kind of aesthetics.

    Many more basic household essentials had also been purchased in Skr¡¯s stead, as thetter had

    been hampered by indecision and did not have too much free time.

    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    In retrospect, I should have gone and made these purchases online myself.

    For a moment, Tobias thought this was something that Skr was recently into and wanted to respect

    her choices, but the pink bedsheets became a bit of an eyesore for him whenever he walked into the

    bedroom. Even the material itself felt cheap to him.

    ¡°Do all girls fancy the color pink?¡±

    Under the impression that Tobias was referring to her lipstick, she was quite thrilled that he had finally

    noticed how rosy her lips were.

    She nodded in affirmation. ¡°Yeah, I do. Every girl dreams of being a princess.¡±

    The sight of the pink sheets only increasingly got on Tobias¡¯ nerves. ¡°You¡¯re no longer a little girl.

    Compared to a princess, I¡¯d much prefer ascivious whore in bed.¡±

    Whatever good mood Skr was in was left in the dust immediately. Tobias sifted through the cab

    and found a set of gray-colored sheets that was visually subtle and morefortable to sleep on in the

    buff.

    Now that he was living with Skr, there would be ample opportunities to go to bed naked. If they were

    to use a material that stung to the touch, it would definitely not be cozy.

    ¡°Why are you changing out the sheets? It was only put on this morning,¡± Skr asked him.

    Tobias was smiling from ear to ear. ¡°In preparation for the night. Pure cotton feels morefortable, and

    isn¡¯t sleep all aboutfort? What¡¯s the point of making the sheets so garish?¡±

 Chapter 609

    Chapter 609

    Chapter 609 Sharing Experiences Of Annulling Marriages

    Skr wrapped her hair up into a neat bun. Coupled with her minimally made-up face, there was an

    indescribably insouciant sense of beauty to her. Even without even eyeshadow, this simple look was able

    to entuate the snowy fairness of her skin.

    Tobias unraveled the ck stic band she had on. ¡°I told you before that I like the way you look with

    your hair loose.¡±

    Wrapping that stic band around her wrist, Skr intended to wait until Tobias left before tying her hair

    back up. He has no idea how hot it is having my hair let down.

    She wanted to talk to Tobias some more, but he had already shifted his attention elsewhere and turned

    away in search of his earpiece.

    Skr briefly looked at the Bluetooth earpiece Tobias was wearing and his sleeves that were rolled up

    halfway. Inferring from that, she guessed that he was preparing to drive out and make a work-rted call

    along the way.

    He continued to stay on the line even when she stepped outside the door and made no indication that he

    meant to send her to work.

    After having his offers to drive her on a couple of asions turned down, Tobias seemed to have taken it

    as a given that she did not need him as her chauffeur.

    Though she had been standing in the doorway for some time, Tobias seemed to have overlooked her

    existence and no longer spared her any extra time that he might have.

    Even if she did not understand the content of the work he was discussing, his assertive disy was one

    that was unique to those who were used to being in high ces.

    Although his tone was stern, it never came across as unapproachable.

    She did not bid him farewell before she bundled up her own hair and departed.

    That sicko Charles did not callst night. Skr did not know what to do about him but opined that that

    man would sooner orter be a problem if he was not taken care of.

    Unable toe up with a good solution, she filed a police report. Though he was called in for

    questioning, Charles was released less than two hourster.

    There was little she could do apart from putting a tail on him. After all, she could not possibly have him

    killed on a personal whim!

    When Skr exited the house, she saw that Cinque and Lionel were already waiting outside. These two

    statuesque, strappingds were like her guardian angels, and she felt much safer having them around.

    Judging from their physical stature, she assumed that they should not have any problems individually

    taking on five opponents at the same time.

    Skr took up the seat to the rear of the front passenger seat as that was the most secure position to be

    in, even in the event of an ident.

    She was not sure what time Tobias left the house. As a boss, his schedule was more flexible than typical

    white-cor workers.

    Gavin had waited all night. It was only then that Tobias had time to return his call and arrange for them to

    meet at the office.

    However, the former looked crestfallen. Though the sky was clear and the sun shone brightly outside, he

    pulled out a cigarette and settled himself down in a smog of mncholy.

    ¡°Laurel¡¯s back. I told her that if she was willing, we could still continue dating even after I got married. But

    it has be apparent now that she wants to cut ties with mepletely. Women are a real pain in the

    ass.¡±

    Tobias snuffed out the cigarette in the ashtray. ¡°Really? Did youe over here this early just to gripe

    about that one woman? What advice can I possibly offer you?¡±

    The fingers that Gavin used to prop up the cigarette trembled. ¡°You¡¯ve already gotten yourself a girlfriend

    now, Mr. Ford! I just wanted to tap on your experience of getting a marriage annulled.¡±

    Gavin held Tobias¡¯ past heroics in much esteem, as he heard that udia had nearly passed out in a fit

    before everyone present back then.

    He knew well how domineering the old matron was, being one who never took no for an answer. Tobias

    also had a reputation for being a filial son who rarely went against his mother¡¯s will.

    Word had it that udia was full of praise for her then chosen daughter-inw with everyone she

    encountered. Hence, he wondered why nothing eventually came of it.

    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    It was only after Gavin returned to the country that he heard about Tobias¡¯ infidelity through the

    grapevine. As for who the third party was, no one seemed to have a clue.

    However, Gavin was not surprised either. Tobias had always been an aloof person, quite unlike himself

    who was steadfast and tried everything to bridge the distance between Laurel and himself in spite of

    everything.

    How Gavin wished that he could carry out such a valorous act too! In the past few days, he had been in

    regr contact with his future spouse.

    At no point did he ever feelfortable in thepany of the woman whom he found to be nothing but

    pretentious. If he had to spend the rest of his life with this person he did not fancy, Gavin was afraid that

    he might lose his mind.

 Chapter 610

    Chapter 610

    Chapter 610 Without Care for Her Standing

    With his long legs crossed up on the edge of the coffee table and his head tilted slightly back, Tobias

    stretched himself outzily on the couch. Not quite recovered from his exertions the night before, he had

    his eyes closed as he spoke ndly, ¡°I just didn¡¯t want to get married, so no matter who I was attached

    to, I knew that I¡¯d bound to regret it! At first, I thought I¡¯d just muddle through it, butter on, I came to the

    realization that such things simply cannot be forced.¡±

    Gavin massaged his own throbbing temples. ¡°I bet your current girlfriend would surely be saddened to

    hear that. You¡¯re totally wrecking her dreams, man.¡±

    Tobias opened his eyes. ¡°She¡¯s just a little girl. Besides, she¡¯s never brought this up for discussion

    before.¡±

    That only piqued Gavin¡¯s curiosity even more. What sort of woman is she to be able to win the

    recognition as Tobias¡¯ girlfriend?

    Seeing Laurel¡¯s iing message prompted him to tap on it immediately.

    Laurel: You¡¯ve left some stuff behind. I¡¯ll have them sent back to you by courier.

    Gavin frowned. These past few days, he had been contemting using picking up his things as an

    excuse to visit, but Laurel had eliminated that possibility and resolutely refused to give him that chance.

    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    Scheduled to field a meeting at nine, Tobias tapped on his watch in a gesture that Gavin understood

    immediately. Thetter puffed out the smoke from his mouth and got back onto his feet. ¡°I¡¯m out of here.

    My family¡¯s watching me really close as they¡¯re afraid that a grown man like me would try to flee from a

    wedding.¡±

    Tobias merely waved his hand. At the office door, Gavin nearly ran headlong into Eva who was sending

    in some files that were required at the meeting.

    Eva bowed apologetically.

    Gavin regarded the beauty in the corporate dress with her hair worn up in a bun. The female secretaries

    who worked under Tobias were nevercking in quality, especially Susan, who stayed by Tobias¡¯ side for

    many years and reputedly remained single to this day.

    The file on top of her pile contained thetest ns conceived for the business district, which Eva had

    taken a peek into before she came in.

    Primarily, the focus of the n revolved around how to skirt around Harbourside. Three solutions were

    proposed by the design team, but no matter what was tabled, the end result of the development would

    still bepromised so long as Harbourside remained intact.

    It takes only one bad fish to spoil the broth.

    Eva was positive that a perfectionist like Tobias would not ept this sort of proposal, and it would only

    be a matter of time before her family got evicted from their home.

    Before he entered the conference room, Tobias had already reviewed these three proposals, and during

    the meeting, he roundly rejected all three of them.

    The atmosphere in the meeting room became tremendously suffocating.

    While she continued to take notes, Eva had already inferred Tobias¡¯ stance from the expression on his

    face.

    Sweating it out inside, she was just waiting for Tobias to demand the addition of Harbourside into the

    parameters for redevelopment himself, believing that all that was needed was a little nudge. The

    marypensation for their relocation from that house was no small sum.

    In the end, Eva was left disappointed by the conclusion of the meeting, as Tobias only requested the

    proposals to be reworked. Harbourside was going to be retained in its entirety, regardless.

    Having her hopes dashed left Eva infuriated. If not for Skr¡¯s sentimentality and reluctance to part with

    the old manor, there would not have been so much trouble.

    In her esteem, Skr was a jinx who had only caused her grief at every turn.

    Meanwhile, the new costume had already been delivered to Skr¡¯s dressing room. Even though Shay

    was still miffed about that fiasco from yesterday, he had to make concessions.

    If Skr were to find even more excuses to dy their progress, the filming crew would overrun their

    budget. It seems that that brat does not care much about her own standing amongst the crew members.

    For the life of him, he was still unable to understand why the usually reserved and amiable Skr had to

    throw such a hissy fit over that one issue with the costume.

 Chapter 611

    Chapter 611

    Chapter 611 No Help

    Ingrid knew the clothing wouldn¡¯t fit her, yet she still fought over it.

    It wouldn¡¯t be surprising if the costume had been branded, but it was merely a factory uniform, and Ingrid

    wouldn¡¯t look any prettier dressed in it.

    Admiration filled Shay as he studied Skr¡¯s beautiful and delicate face.

    s, it¡¯ll be tough on her since she doesn¡¯t have any connections with the production team. Sadly, that¡¯s

    how the world works. Capitalism runs it.

    Marcus dropped by for a visit that evening and gained praises from the filming crew. Despite his status,

    theyplimented his looks and humbleness foring to the filming site.

    While he distributed coffee and desserts to the entire crew, Ingrid proudly walked in with her head held

    high like an arrogant swan and clung to Marcus.

    Laurel passed a cup of hottte to Skr. Holding the cup of coffee, Skr walked toward the trash can.

    ¡°The coffee is not poisoned.¡±

    Skr¡¯s fingers tightened around the coffee cup. ¡°I didn¡¯t say I would throw it. That would be such a

    waste.¡±

    In the middle of the crowd, Marcus had one of his hands stuffed into the pocket of his jeans. From his

    denim jeans, white sneakers, and branded coat, one could see the difference between the usually

    solemn Tobias and him at a nce. His looks were a perfect fit to be part of Sheldon¡¯s inner circle.

    The scent of cologne that lingered on him was strong, but Skr preferred Tobias¡¯ scent.

    In terms of responsibility, Marcus was slightly better than Sheldon. At the very least, Marcus took part in

    managing his career while Sheldon was the same old Sheldon, living life carefreely.

    ¡°Kate agreed to dinner with me. I¡¯ve reserved a table at the restaurant. I¡¯ll send you the time and location

    later.¡±

    However, Skr didn¡¯t respond to him. She intended to let Kate deal with Marcus on her own as she had

    no care for his connections and resources.

    By the end of the day, there was a bangle of a bruise on Skr¡¯s wrist. She got it from a dispute scene

    with Maxim earlier. As a novice actor, he still needed more training in controlling his emotions and

    strength. Her lean wrist and supple skin were defenseless against the brute strength of a man.

    Skr kept flexing her wrist, trying to relieve the pain after the scene as Maxim continued to apologize.

    She wondered how long it would take for the discoloration to fade as she stared down at it.

    Not taking the matter to her heart, she returned a friendly smile at Maxim¡¯s apologies, hoping he would

    let the matter go.

    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    When Skr reached the exit, she saw Kate leaning against Marcus¡¯ blue Maserati as she took off her

    sunsses and beckoned for Skr to approach. At the same time, Skr noticed that Amelia was

    standing right next to Kate.

    She knew she couldn¡¯t reject Kate outright, so she got into the car.

    The minute she did so, a st of warmth from the heater enshrouded her, warming her up.

    Right then, Amelia and Skr exchanged nces. Thetter was wearing a white sports jacket and

    jeans. She was oozing fresh and young vibes, showing off her forehead and slender neck with a bun on

    her head.

    Looking at Skr¡¯s style, Amelia had to admit she would lose to Skr in terms of age no matter how

    young she tried to dress. The majority of the public would prefer Skr¡¯s looks over hers.

    ¡°How are you getting along with Marcus¡¯ sister?¡±

    ¡°Pretty good.¡±

    ¡°You need a few friends in the entertainment industry. You can¡¯t always be a loner. Otherwise, a scandal

    will emerge saying you have bad character, hence yourck of friends.¡±

    Kate continued having small talks with Skr while Amelia sat silently, rolling down the window to watch

    silhouettes of passing trees and dim streetmps.

    Amelia was badly craving a break after a whole day of work, but she couldn¡¯t reject Kate¡¯sst-minute

    invitation to dinner. Without a choice, she obedientlyplied. Kate nagged at her throughout the entire

    ride to get closer to Marcus because hispany had recently purchased the rights to existing

    intellectual properties.

    Amelia¡¯s brows furrowed at the conflicting feelings rising within her.

 Chapter 612

    Chapter 612

    Chapter 612 Domestic Violence

    The restaurant¡¯s location was rtively remote. The first thing they saw when they got out of the car

    were the grizzled wall, a greenstone bench, and a vintage red wooden door with two lion statues on

    either side guarding it.

    The server led them to a private room Marcus had reserved. The second Skr stepped into the room,

    she could feel Marcus¡¯ gaze on her.

    ¡°It¡¯s difficult to ask you out,¡± he joked, but there was an undertone of somberness beneath it.

    Skr¡¯s menstrual cramp was giving her a hard time. Moreover, she suspected the cold air from the

    ground had chilled her due to the thin soles of her shoes. Her grandmother had always warned her of the

    cold air that could travel from the ground into one¡¯s body.

    After her grandmother was gone, she had no one fussing over her anymore.

    Grandma used to check the weather report the night before and tell me to n my outfit ordingly for

    the next day. She always insisted that a girl has to stay warm.

    Meanwhile, Marcus and Kate were engaged in a low conversation. Not interested in it, Skr simply sat

    quietly and focused on the boiled fish in front of her.

    As she scooped up a piece of fish, her sleeve was pulled back along with her movement and revealed

    the bruise on her wrist. The purple bruise had turned darkerpared to earlier.

    Despite being engaged in a conversation with Kate, Marcus caught the discoloration on Skr¡¯s wrist.

    The room was warm, but it felt suffocating for Skr, so she excused herself and got out of the room.

    As the chilling night breeze hit her face, she shuddered from the coldness and quickly wrapped her arms

    around herself.

    Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    ¡°Did he hurt you?¡± Skr looked over her shoulder at the question and saw Marcus standing behind her

    with only a wool sweater.

    Skr smiled. ¡°Why are you asking me such a strange question? Who do you think hurt me?¡±

    With his hands tucked in his pockets, he said, ¡°The bruise on your wrist was his doing, right? You can

    always ask for my help if you need any.¡±

    Right then, she realized Marcus assumed that her bruise was Tobias¡¯ doing.

    It seems that Marcus doesn¡¯t have a good impression of Tobias.

    ¡°No,¡± Skr answered without borating. Her bare face was a stark contrast to the night.

    Marcus¡¯ eyes darkened at the sight. At that moment, he finally understood the reason Tobias broke off

    his engagement and chose to be with her.

    He cleared his throat and warned, ¡°Careful not to fall too deeply for him, or you¡¯ll get hurt.¡±

    However, Skr was indifferent to his words. Her heart had numbed after hearing simr warnings so

    many times. She had heard many people liken her to a short-term stock and warn that Tobias was ready

    to dump her at any minute.

    Meanwhile, Amelia gulped down ss after ss of beer in the room. By the time Skr returned to her

    seat, Amelia had consumed quite an amount of alcohol.

    Despite that, Kate didn¡¯t stop her, and Skr merely watched from the sidelines. Suddenly, Skr

    noticed that Amelia wasn¡¯t as arrogant as before. In fact, she seemed to be in low spirits. There was a

    permanent crease on her forehead as she continued chugging sses of beer down her throat as if she

    had a lot on her mind.

    After the dinner ended, Kate tried to carry the drunken Amelia away. Looking at Kate¡¯s futile attempt,

    Skr noted Amelia¡¯s intense unwillingness to leave the beers on the table.

    Right then, Kate whispered something in Amelia¡¯s ear, causing her eyes to dte from fear. She then

    shot to her feet and quickly stumbled away.

    After settling the bill, Marcus stood with his hand in his pocket as he lighted a cigarette with the other. He

    blew a puff of smoke as he waited for Skr at the exit.

    ¡°Let me drive you home. It¡¯s dangerous for a woman to go home alone at night. More so for a celebrity.¡±

    In response, Skr tipped her chin at a car nearby. His gaze followed hers andnded on the driver and

    bodyguards in the car.

    Marcus recalled a woman¡¯s voice in his head. ¡°Marcus, Tobias will be fetching me tonight. His driver and

    bodyguards will be here too. What do you think I should wear? I hope he likes it.¡±

 Chapter 613

    Chapter 613

    Chapter 613 Will You Be Back Tonight

    Marcus forced himself to forget about the face of the woman in his mind, for she happily went for a date

    but ended up losing her life.

    Marcus could still remember that she had chosen a white floral dress and proudly exined to him her

    reason for choosing it.

    At that unweed memory, he flung his lit cigarette to the ground, stomping on it as he watched Skr

    leave.

    Skr had a petite frame that would rouse men¡¯s urge to wrap her in their arms.

    Marcus felt it was a waste for such a beautiful and innocent girl to be spreading her legs for Tobias at

    night.

    Skr had drunk a few sses of beer, so she had the scent of alcohol lingering around her. Afraid that

    Tobias would smell it, she rolled down the window, letting the cold breeze into the car to wash the scent

    away.

    The car waspletely silent. Cinque, Lionel, and the driver didn¡¯t say anything throughout the ride. The

    only sounds were the wind blowing and the friction between the tires and gravel.

    Suddenly, she remembered the adult toy in Kate¡¯s purse. It was a quick glimpse, but she could tell that

    the toy was a dildo with barbs.

    Skr couldn¡¯t help butpare the toy¡¯s length to Tobias¡¯. After doing so, she concluded that the toy

    lost.

    Skr broke out in a cold sweat as she imagined Amelia on the receiving end of the toy. She couldn¡¯t

    believe that Kate had such a fetish, and the reason for the despair on Amelia¡¯s face finally clicked into

    ce.

    Is it truly worth it? I don¡¯t understand why Amelia chose to jump into the dark abyss when she had other

    options.

    By the time the car stopped, Skr hade up with an exnation for Tobias for herte return. After

    a nce at the clock, she noted it was already a quarter after eleven.

    The lights were still bright in the living room. When Madelyn heard the door opening downstairs, she

    came down.

    ¡°Where is he?¡± Skr bent down to pick up her shoes. She noticed the pair of blue house slippers sitting

    on the rack beside the leather boat shoes.

    ¡°Mr. Ford is not back yet.¡±

    Skr lowered her eyes at her reply. Tobias sure was good at talking me into moving in with him but

    didn¡¯t even send me a text about noting back.

    If a couple moved in together before getting married, the elders would usually look down upon the girl.

    Despite that, she had chosen to ignore the humiliation for Tobias¡¯ sake. After all, she wasn¡¯t the daughter

    of a wealthy family. Her background was nothing in the eyes of the Fords, to begin with.

    Initially, she thought moving in together would be the start of a perfect life. Instead, disappointment filled

    her as she realized it was no different from before.

    Plopping onto the couch, she rested her chin on an avocado-shaped pillow and dug through her purse

    for her phone. Then, she toggled to her call history and found Tobias¡¯ number.

    A deep voice came from the phone. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Is there a problem?¡±

    His question was so direct that Skr couldn¡¯t manage a response. At the same time, she could vaguely

    hear a man¡¯s and a woman¡¯s voices in the background.

    ¡°If the bank doesn¡¯t adjust the interest rate, all our efforts will go down the drain. Split the funds into

    three¡­¡±

    ¡°But Mr. Ford, the regtorymission¡­¡±

    Skr listened to the broken conversation as she nced at the clock. It was nearly one in the morning,

    yet Tobias was still busy with work.

    At that thought, her resentment dissipated slightly. After all, she had imagined hearing a woman¡¯s voice

    saying that Tobias was still in the shower.

    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    She wondered how to react to that.

    ¡°I¡¯ll hang up if there¡¯s nothing important.¡± Tobias didn¡¯t have a lot of patience for her that night.

    Skr could tell that he was busy, so her tone brightened slightly. ¡°Will you being back tonight?¡±

 Chapter 614

    Chapter 614

    Chapter 614 Give Up The Girls

    ¡°Go to sleep first, and I¡¯ll try my best to be home soon.¡±

    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    ¡°Okay. Don¡¯t work too hard sote into the night. You need rest too.¡±

    Tobias¡¯ lips tilted into a smile as he hung up the phone. She knew workingte into the night was bad, yet

    she still stayed upte.

    She¡¯s one of the few women I have ever met who leads a callous life. Health is thest of her priorities. I

    have seen her working herself to the bone on many nights.

    Following that, he delved back into work as he picked up the papers on his desk with an exhausted look.

    His eyes were bloodshot as they scanned the papers.

    ¡°Let¡¯s call this a night.¡±

    The few employees in the office snapped their heads at Tobias. It was unusual for Tobias to leave before

    finishing work.

    Ignoring their stares, Tobias grabbed his coat and massaged his throbbing temples.

    Susan asked softly, ¡°Should I book a massage session for you since your back has been hurting for the

    entire day?¡±

    It was a routine of Tobias¡¯ to go for a massage session before going back home after working overtime.

    Tobias stopped Susan with a hand gesture. ¡°I¡¯ll be heading to Skr¡¯s tonight, so you can get off work

    already.¡±

    Susan nodded with saying anything else.

    Exiting his office, Tobias saw Eva waiting outside. He looked at her with a probing expression. ¡°It¡¯ste.

    Why are you still here?¡±

    Eva tightened her grip on her purse strap. ¡°My car broke down. Can you give me a lift home? I¡¯ve asked

    a few other colleagues, but my house is out of their way.¡±

    Tobias didn¡¯t agree or reject her. Instead, he merely cast an indifferent nce at the woman. Eva took his

    silence as an agreement and followed behind him.

    The man¡¯s dark green shirt entuated his broad shoulders and straight back, which exuded the charms

    of a sophisticated man.

    A wicked thought crossed her mind. Why would such a perfect man undress in front of Skr? Is there

    any spot on him that she hasn¡¯t touched before?

    Brayden is so disgusting and repulsivepared to Tobias.

    Her steps slowed as she stared at his back.

    Eva wanted to figure out her feelings for him, but she couldn¡¯t control them. The longer she stayed by his

    side, the more entangled she was in the web of feelings she had for him.

    Suddenly, Eva realized that she had left a document in the office. With a guilty look, she asked Tobias to

    wait for her at the underground parking lot while she went back up to retrieve it.

    When she quickly rushed back downstairs with the document in hand, she saw him leaning back against

    his seat with his eyes shut through the rolled-down window.

    His coat was thrown haphazardly onto the passenger seat over portfolios and papers.

    Eva tried to open the passenger door lightly, but Tobias¡¯ eyes snapped open at the sound. With a

    disinterested gaze, he looked at Eva sitting in the passenger seat.

    Tobias had regrly driven the Porsche. Even though he had many cars, Eva noticed he drove that car

    most of the time.

    Tobias dug out his phone from his pocket and hurled it into the storage under the armrest. With that, Eva

    saw the womanly items in the storage.

    There was a tube of YSL lipstick, a Givenchypact, and a pinkpact mirror with a Hello Kitty

    design.

    She knew whom those items belonged to.

    As Tobias pulled out of the parking lot, his phone rang.

    Eva quickly reached into the armrest and retrieved the phone for him. In the process, she caught Idania¡¯s

    name on the screen.

    Eva knew the name belonged to a woman from a nce. She had always known that a man with status

    and power like Tobias would have many women clinging to him.

    Hence, Eva refused to believe Tobias would give up all the girls for Skr. He is just like any other man.

    Nine of ten men are scious, and the one that isn¡¯t must be gay.

 Chapter 615

    Chapter 615

    Chapter 615 Unreasonable

    When Tobias saw that the call was from Idania, he declined it without any hesitation. Freeing a hand

    from the steering wheel, he took the phone and tossed it into the center console box.

    He drove on and did not even ask Eva for her address. He had been to that house numerous times and

    could easily find his way there without the help of GPS navigation.

    ¡°Are you still in contact with Brayden?¡± he asked solemnly in his deep voice.

    Why is he asking about my personal life? Is it because of my rtionship with Skr?

    Eva unconsciously preened herself and tucked away some stray strands of hair behind her ears as she

    contemted the question.

    ¡°I have no interest in Mr. Scott. My upbringing and decency would not allow me to get involved with a

    married man.¡± She decided she had to make her stand clear.

    Tobias let out a small wry smile and did not probe further. It was ironic to him that Eva seemed to be

    proud of her upbringing, as he felt her parents had pretty bad table manners.

    After entering the neighborhood, Tobias slowed down and brought the car to a smooth stop. Eva was

    mesmerized by the masculine contours of his face as she watched him turn off the engine.

    ¡°Thank you for the ride, Mr. Ford. Have a safe drive home,¡± she thanked him and got ready to alight from

    the car.Content (C) N?v/elDra/ma.Org.

    ¡°How is your brother? Is he still addicted to gambling?¡± Tobias asked.

    ¡°I am to be med for that. I have been too busy with work and did not give him enough attention.¡± Eva

    frowned lightly as she spoke, sounding self-reproachful.

    Tobias knew what she was trying to get at, but chose not to respond to that.

    Eva really wanted to invite Tobias to her ce for a drink, but knowing her parents would be in, she could

    only bury that wishful thinking and alighted from the vehicle with regrets.

    Skr was awoken by the sound of the door opening. The house was dead quiet at night, so she could

    clearly hear every movement, including the sound of the keys being ced on the table

    She closed her eyes again and pretended to be sleeping.

    Tobias switched on the tablemp and despite it being on its dimmest mode, Skr seemed to be woken

    by it.

    She rubbed her sleepy eyes as if she had just woken up and murmured, ¡°Oh, you are back. I waited up

    tillte and I thought you will note back, so I went to bed. Have you taken your dinner?¡± she asked.

    Tobias bent over to give her a kiss on her forehead and softly said, ¡°Get back to sleep.¡±

    He sat down on the bed, leaned against the headboard, and pulled her into his embrace.

    Skryfortably in his arms, taking in the familiar white sandalwood scent on him.

    After a while, she opened her eyes and stole a peek at him. His upper body was on the bed but his long

    legs were still resting on the floor. Despite the ufortable posture, he was fast asleep. He seemed to

    be tired after a long day and had fallen asleep instantly, still dressed in his work attire. The glow of the

    warm dim light softened the outline of his sharp features, and the tired look on his face actually made

    him more charming and irresistible.

    As she watched him sleep, memories of their first encounter came back to her vividly. Tobias was not in

    her good books when they first met. She lost her virginity to him during their first meeting and she

    thought they would never meet again. At that time, no one would have predicted their rtionship would

    develop so quickly and they would soon be living as a couple.

    Skr pulled over a nket and gently put it over Tobias. The sky was getting lighter and soon he would

    be waking up.

    She had no idea when she drifted off to sleep, but when she woke up again in the morning, Tobias was

    nowhere to be found. The crumpled bedsheet was a clear sign that he had been back and it was not a

    dream.

    She took a quick shower and put on an oversized shirt over her undies. She had no ns to get out of

    the house and decided to dress casually andfortably. Since the house was heated and cozily warm,

    there was no need to bundle herself up.

    She walked down to the dining hall and realized Tobias was still around. He had not left as she had

    expected.

    His hand tightened around the ss of milk he was holding as he gave her a scrutinizing look from head

    to toe. His gaze lingered on her exposed long legs, and she could sense his anger even before he

    spoke.

    ¡°Is that a top or a dress? Cover yourself up and stop showing so much of your legs! Who are you trying

    to seduce?¡± he hissed. After they got close, he had be a control freak who would demand her to

    dress conservatively.

    That was the same man who had no qualms about stripping her naked and confining her to the

    operations table for an examination when they first got acquainted. Eva could only sigh at the

    unreasonable double standards that seemed to be second nature to most men.

 Chapter 616

    Chapter 616

    Chapter 616 So Close Yet So Far

    Madelyn was not in, so Skr came up close to Tobias and nted her long sexy leg on his.

    She could feel his warmth on her bare skin.

    Tobias caressed her thigh sensuously as he smilingly jested, ¡°What is that for? Trying to seduce me this

    early in the morning?¡±

    Skr yfully rubbed her foot against his inner thigh to tease him but was stopped by him.

    Content (C) N?v/elDra/ma.Org.

    He held on lovingly to her foot and said, ¡°Stop fooling around. I have to leave soon after breakfast. We

    won¡¯t have enough time for it.¡±

    He may be rejecting her, but his gaze and tone were clearly doting and indulging.

    Skr withdrew her foot, wore her slippers, and walked behind him. As she bent down to whisper in his

    ear, her long flowy hair fell close to his face, and he could smell the fresh cherry blossom scent of her

    shampoo.

    ¡°Can you be back a little earlier today? You came and ejected in me that night. I couldn¡¯t bring myself to

    ask anyone to help me get the pills, and I can¡¯t possibly go buy it myself.¡± She spoke inly without a

    hint of shyness, her tone light and matter-of-fact.

    Tobias put down his fork and softly said, ¡°Why did you not tell me earlier? I could have brought it for you

    last night. Is it still in time?¡±

    Skr wasn¡¯t sure if it was beyond forty-eight hours, but nheless, she nodded and said, ¡°I¡¯ll take the

    pill no matter what. If it is toote to be effective and I get pregnant, I will go for an abortion. I promise

    you will not have to be responsible for that.¡±

    She made light of the matter as if aborting the baby would not be a big deal to her. Deep in her heart,

    she knew how much the baby would mean to her and that she was only putting on a brave front to

    assure him.

    Tobias gently caressed her firm and toned stomach, but his silence spoke volumes about how he felt.

    Skr had no disillusion about her future with Tobias. Even though they had been together for quite a

    while already, she knew they had no future together. He might have indulged in her and made her feel

    that he could be trusted and depended on, but she knew he was never reallymitted to their

    rtionship.

    She would love to keep the child if she were blessed with one. However, knowing he would be reluctant,

    she would not want to make things difficult for him.

    ¡°What¡¯s the name of the pill?¡± It was an innocent question from him, but she felt hurt and disappointed

    when she heard that. It was a clear confirmation of his stand and she was rudely robbed of the faint hope

    that he would think otherwise.

    She took a deep breath to rid herself of the disappointment then told him the name of the morning-after

    pill, and he carefully noted it down. Just then, his phone rang, and she instinctively hushed up so he

    could take his call. She would never utter a sound whenever he was on his phone. Even if she cut

    herself on the finger, she would not let out a whimper to make her presence known. That was the price

    she had to pay for having a secret rtionship with him.

    He had to entertain many calls during the day, and he usually let the caller do most of the talking and

    replied briefly when necessary. Even if he were to speak at length, she would not understand what they

    were talking about. Those business matters were not of interest to her, and she knew she would be of no

    help to him.

    She had a poor appetite since a few days ago, and the French toast on the table could not entice her.

    She also tired easily and was constantly craving sleep.

    She went online to read up and found that those were symptoms of the early stage of pregnancy.

    However, based on her calctions, that was highly improbable as it was only a couple of days ago

    when they had unprotected sex.

    Two nights ago, Tobias was in a very horny mood and demanded sex when they were on the couch. He

    lay down on the couch and held her close to him. He was so aroused that he ced his hands on her

    hips and guided her to mount on him before she could draw the curtains or remove their clothes.

    Recalling the raunchy details of that night as she watched Tobias take his call at the other end of the

    room, her face and ears turned red.

    His strong and sharp features were prominent, and even the warm morning sun couldn¡¯t soften his

    sculptured look. He stood with a hand on his hip, his head lowered in concentration as he took the call.

    Even though his white business shirt was not fully buttoned up and he was dressed casually without a

    tie, he was the presence of power and sess.

    She was enchanted by him, but at the same time, keenly aware of their seemingly unbridgeable

    differences.

 Chapter 617

    Chapter 617

    Chapter 617 Three For One

    After he ended the call, Tobias turned around and saw that Skr had not touched her food. ¡°Are you on

    a diet again? It is bad to skip breakfast. Your health will be affected!¡± He frowned slightly as he gently

    chided her.

    Skr forced herself to pick up the fork, but the sight of the greasy French toast made her give up the

    feeble attempt.

    ¡°I¡¯ll pass on this. I really do not have an appetite for this early in the morning. And by the way, in the

    future, please let me know if you areing backte, so I won¡¯t have to wait up for you,¡± she said.

    Tobias made a low grunt half-heartedly in acknowledgment. He was used to living independently and

    was having difficulty reporting to her his movement and ns.

    Skr¡¯s simple request was a reminder to him that they were a couple and no longer two independent

    individuals.

    She was already standing in front of the door, getting ready to head out. Tobias found his car keys and

    asked, ¡°Should I give you a ride? Or do you prefer to go with the chauffeur?¡±

    She chose to be driven by the chauffeur, keen to avoid drawing any unnecessary attention to both Tobias

    and herself.

    As she turned to leave, she felt a grip on her hands. He was standing so close to her that upon looking

    up, all she could see were his white shirt and his sensuous Adam¡¯s apple. She felt his warm breath on

    her face as he bent down to give her a passionate French kiss.

    Skr was immediately lost in that intense kiss and responded with equal passion. The two of them

    totally forgot about Madelyn¡¯s presence.

    Madelyn herself had been through that youthful passionate age and was secretly envious of their exciting

    sex life whenever she saw the evidence in their trash can. That reminded her of her own youthful days.

    Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    After Skr got into the car, she checked her phone and saw many missed calls from Miranda. She had

    to take a deep breath to calm herself down before talking to Miranda.

    ¡°We are going to be rich, Skr! We are going to be rich!¡± Miranda was shouting in excitement on the

    other end of the phone.

    Skr rubbed between her brows to destress as she answered, ¡°Did you strike the lottery?¡±

    ¡°Oh, Tobias had not spoken to you about it? Our old house will be acquired for redevelopment soon, as

    the area is rezoned as amercial area. Ford Group bought thend, and they are offering three units

    of recement housing for every unit sold to them!¡±

    Skr¡¯s slender fingers clenched tightly around her phone in distress when she heard that. She was

    taken by surprise as Tobias had not told her about the acquisition.

    ¡°That house is the only memory I have of Grandma. How can you be so excited, knowing it will be torn

    down?¡± she cried out, aggrieved.

    ¡°Are you out of your mind? Your grandma had passed on and will not know about the demolition. Why

    are you harping on that? I am sure she will be happy to know that if she is still with us. Anyway, I have a

    share in that house, so I am entitled to at least one of the recement units!¡± Miranda chided her.

    Skr clearly remembered there were rumors of redevelopment when her grandma was still alive.

    Meredith red and reacted strongly against that. She angrily hit her walking stick on the ground and

    dismissed the idea. ¡°Over my dead body! Don¡¯t they dare set eyes on my house!¡±

    Skr became frustrated and was in distress after the conversation with Miranda.

    When she arrived at the filming location, Laurel started briefing her on the scenes scheduled for the day.

    She was a fast learner and more efficientpared to Hannah.

    Skr absent-mindedly yed with her hair while Laurel was doing the briefing. Her mind was

    preupied with the thought of her grandma¡¯s house being demolished.

    Suddenly, she blurted out a strange question to Laurel. ¡°Do you have an old manor in your family?¡± she

    asked.

    Laurel was briefly taken aback by the unexpected question. Despite being puzzled by the seemingly

    random question, sheposed herself quickly and duly replied Skr. ¡°Ie from a poor family, so

    my family has always been staying in the same old house. We cannot afford one of those new houses. I

    have lived in that old house in Springwyn since I was born. I don¡¯t see anything wrong with old houses. If

    we have to move from our house someday, I am sure I will miss it.¡±

    I will miss it.That was exactly how Skr felt about her grandma¡¯s house.

    ¡°Is your house being acquired for redevelopment? Congrats! That means you will get a big sum of

    money!¡± Laurel happily congratted Skr on that.

    Skr shook her head, and she was not lying when she said she was in a financially tight situation. Her

    finances were in a mess as she did not have a financial adviser to help her with her investments. Her

    money was invested in mutual funds and property, and she did not have much cash.

    Even if her grandma¡¯s house was torn down for redevelopment, she would not get a single cent in cash.

    She knew it was a selfish wish, but she would rather keep the old house than make her other family

    members happy.

 Chapter 618

    Chapter 618

    Chapter 618 Charming All The Men

    Sharon had been looking forward to the redevelopment of the area. Every year, she would try to ask

    around to see if any developers had taken an interest in their area.

    Time and again, her hopes were dashed, as most of the developers could not afford the massive

    investment needed to redevelop that area.

    However, the most recent offer had great potential as Ford Group was involved. Tobias had the financial

    means and also the savvy business mind to make things work.

    Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

    ¡°Once that house is demolished, all my fond memories will be lost too. Whenever I feel down, I always

    go back to the house, and memories of the happy times I had there will cheer me up. In the future, I will

    not have warm recollections of the ce. All that is left will be a pile of cold steel and concrete,¡± Skr

    mumbled softly.

    Laurel couldn¡¯t judge what would be best for Skr, but she could empathize with her emotional

    attachment to the old house. Some people treasured their old stuff because of the fond memories

    associated with them. She knew many people would keep their old phones even after getting a new one,

    and they could not bear to delete all the old photos and data in the old phone.

    ¡°Which neighborhood is up for redevelopment? I am a local here, but I have not heard of any news of

    potential redevelopment projects around this area!¡± Laurel curiously asked.

    Just then, Ingrid appeared and threw a paper bag at Skr. She haughtily held her head high, not

    looking Skr in her eyes, and begrudgingly said, ¡°Take it! It is from Marcus.¡±

    Skr opened the bag and found a tube of ointment for bruises. She examined the bruises on her wrist,

    and they were still fairly visible.

    She did not expect Marcus to notice those bruises and make Ingrid bring her the ointment. She was

    positive even Tobias had not noticed her injury.

    She handed the bag back to Ingrid and said, ¡°Please thank Marcus for me. I am fine, and the bruises will

    go away after a couple of days. I appreciate his kindness but I have no use for this ointment.¡±

    Ingrid looked her up and down and snorted at her. ¡°Anyway, I have done my part and brought it to you as

    Marcus had instructed. I don¡¯t care what you do with it!¡±

    Skr did not want the ointment, so she handed the bag to Laurel and told her to do as she deemed fit.

    Ingrid sent Marcus a text message. ¡±Stop trying to suck up to her. Your effort is not appreciated.¡±

    Marcus: ¡°All you need to do is to deliver it to her.¡±

    Ingrid was never a nosy person, but she felt that by paying too much attention to Skr, Marcus would

    give other people an impression that he was out to fight with Tobias over a woman.

    Moreover, she could not bear the sight of all the male filming crew gushing over Skr¡¯s look, looking up

    to her as a goddess.

    She thought Skr had the look of a vixen and was out to seduce men with her alluring gaze. Besides,

    she was certain that Skr¡¯s intentions were never good. She counted herself lucky that she discovered

    Skr¡¯s plot to seduce her man and managed to nip it in the bud before things went wrong.

    Harry was still openly infatuated with Skr and could not get his eyes off her.

    If Tobias was not backing Skr, Ingrid would have taught her a lesson and made her stop seducing

    Harry.

    After she finished her filming, Skr turned on her phone and was greeted by a video call from Miranda.

    Miranda asked her to attend a family gathering. It was for a discussion on how to split the potential

    Skr was tired after a long day of shooting and had wanted to nk out the issue of the house and not

    think about it. Unfortunately, Miranda was not about to let her have her way.

    ¡°Will Tobias be joining us tonight?¡± Miranda asked.

    ¡°He is busy.¡± Skr brushed her off impatiently.

    Miranda shared that Wesley offered to host the dinner for the get-together, which was a big deal for a

    stingy man like him.

    He wanted to show his appreciation for the help given to Kevin when he lost all the money. Skr was

    skeptical and doubted Wesley and his family would be thankful and appreciative. She was sure they had

    other motives.

    Many of the extended family turned up for the gathering. It had been a long while since the whole family

    got together, and the kids were having fun fighting and ying with one another.

    They invited many to the gathering, but Sharon only prepared a measly number of simple dishes. She

    split the food into small tes to fill the table.

    ¡°It is a good thing that the house is going to be redeveloped. Wesley, you can finally move to a better

    ce. This house is too old and rundown.¡±

    ¡°Where do you n to move to after this ce is torn down? The three recement units should be

    worth at least ten million, and with that money, you can get a vi in the suburb!¡±

    ¡°You are blessed with so many pieces of happy news this year! I heard the recement units from Ford

    Group are very good and spacious, unlike those from other developers.¡±

    Skr quietly sat by the side and listened as the rest of the family talked about the redevelopment. She

    munched on a piece of pickled carrot as she looked around the room. Sharon was in the seat Meredith

    used to upy.

 Chapter 619

    Chapter 619

    Chapter 619 How Could A Lover Not Know

    The cushions on the rattan couch were the same ones that Meredith had painstakingly sewn by hand,

    and the lights in the kitchen had the same antiquated switch. The only change in the house was that the

    family had switched to using low-watt energy-saving bulbs.

    The doorknob turned, and it was Eva who had returned. The cold air gushed in as she opened the door.

    Winter had arrived, and the temperature was getting lower by the day. The wind was biting, especially at

    night.

    Eva threw Skr an intent look, watching her mouth move as she munched on the piece of carrot. Eva

    started to wonder what acts that mouth had performed on Tobias.

    Skr moved a little to make space for Eva, but she ignored that and turned to ask her mother, ¡°Where

    is Kevin?¡±

    ¡°He had gone to do revision in the library,¡± Sharon replied as she came out of the kitchen with a set of

    cutlery for Eva.

    Eva knew Kevin was a troublemaker and did not believe he had finally settled down and focused on his

    studies.

    ¡°We are talking about renovations. When we get the new house, we have to do some proper renovation.

    Your mom and I nned to spend the rest of our lives in the new house!¡± Wesley was grinning from ear

    to ear, rejoicing at the prospect of getting a brand new house soon.

    Eva stole another look at Skr and found that she seemed to have a nonchnt attitude toward the

    subject. She thought Skr was being pretentious.Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    Rumors abounded about the redevelopment of their neighborhood, and everyone was specting about

    it as not much information was publicly announced. Everyone had high hopes that they would soon get a

    windfall, and the gambling den in the town was doing brisk business because many had started spending

    their unearned fortunes.

    ¡°Eva, you are working in the Ford Group. Could you give me some insider information and let me know

    how much thepensation will be?¡± A rtive from the same neighborhood anxiously asked Eva.

    Eva casually redirected the question to Skr by saying, ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask Skr. She sleeps with my

    boss every day, so she should know better.¡±

    Skr felt awkward being put in the spotlight in that manner. Although it was a fact that she and Tobias

    were living together despite not being married to one another, it was an unweedment from Eva.

    Everyone suddenly turned their attention to Skr. They were used to ignoring her presence since she

    was young, and had forgotten that she was no longer the wallflower she previously was.

    Miranda nudged Skr and asked, ¡°That¡¯s right, Skr. Did Tobias say how much we will be getting in

    exchange for our house?¡±

    ¡°I have no idea.¡± Skr put down her fork and shrugged her shoulders.

    ¡°What is wrong with you? How could you not pay attention to such an important matter?¡±

    ¡°How is it you do not know anything? What are you trying to hide from us?¡±

    ¡°I heard we will be getting three recement units. Which benchmark are they using for the valuation?¡±

    The rtives were hounding Skr for answers until Eva spoke up. She looked squarely at Skr and

    said, ¡°Are you sure you do not know anything about this? Ford Group has made multiple changes to their

    development ns because of your objection to redeveloping this old house. You even told Mr. Ford that

    the residents here are greedy and will make things difficult for them by asking for highpensation. As

    such, Ford Group had tentatively decided to bypass our area and leave us out of the redevelopment

    ns!¡±

    Her revtion stunned everyone present, and their smiles froze and then faded from their face. Instantly,

    their attitude toward Skr turned hostile.

    ¡°How can you do that, Skr? How can you be so selfish and inconsiderate? I know you cannot bear to

    see this house go, but you have no right to do this!¡± Miranda was the first to scream at Skr.

    Wesley angrily flung the wine ss in his hand onto the floor and said, ¡°What a f**king bad karma! Looks

    like I am destined to die a pauper.¡± He was out to make Skr feel bad.

    Eva stirred up their emotions and made Skr themon enemy of the family. Skr tried to calm

    herself down and then exined, ¡°I have no idea what you are talking about. Eva, did you verify all those

    information with Tobias?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I heard it straight from the horse¡¯s mouth. If you don¡¯t believe me, just wait for the

    redevelopment notice!¡± Evan smugly said.

    ¡°I did not know I have such a huge influence on him!¡± Skr smiled and joked about it.

    Eva only used a few words, and Skr instantly became the sinner who had betrayed the family. The

    fact that she said she would miss the house had destroyed everyone¡¯s dream of getting their hands on

    quick riches.

 Chapter 620

    Chapter 620

    Chapter 620 Old Enough To Be Your Dad

    Staring at the dark clouds outside the car window, Skr heard the sky rumble, as if a thunderstorm was

    approaching.

    She was listening to Miranda nagging about money.

    Sick of hearing it, she stuffed her ears with her earphones, which were quickly taken down by an

    exasperated Miranda.

    Miranda red at her. ¡°Skr, can you at least show some concern? Setting aside the matter of how

    much of the redevelopmentpensation is mine, you can¡¯t go on offending every single person within

    the family. What¡¯s the use of leaving the old manor there? Will it bring your grandma back? Wake up, and

    stop dreaming.¡±

    Skr averted her gaze away from Miranda¡¯s scowling face, for she knew thetter was just worried

    about being humiliated in front of their rtives, making things awkward for her going forward.

    Evidently, Miranda wasn¡¯t aware that those same rtives had ridiculed her during her time in prison.

    They had never shown her any respect, to begin with.

    In fact, she was nothing but the butt of their jokes.

    ¡°Skr, your mom has been locked up for so long, do you miss her?¡±

    ¡°Going forward, remember not to reveal to anyone that your mom is a convicted murderer. If you do, no

    one will be willing to marry you due to your family history.¡±

    ¡°Despite how pretty your mom was back then, look at how she ended up? You had better not follow in

    her footsteps.¡±

    Back then, she too wondered if she would manage to find a husband because her rtives did have a

    point. No ordinary family would be willing to ept someone like her.

    Skr remarked casually, ¡°I don¡¯t care if you believe it or not, but I wasn¡¯t aware of this matter. What else

    can I do when you rather believe your niece over your own daughter?¡±

    Having heard Skr¡¯s response, Miranda began to be filled with doubt and asked, ¡°Did you really not

    know about it?¡±

    Skr replied, ¡°I don¡¯t. Tobias seldom chats with me, let alone about something rted to his work.¡±

    In the face of Skr¡¯s strange behavior, Miranda gaped in shock and confusion.

    ¡°Are you serious? Since when do couples rarely talk to each other? Are you a mute? You should take the

    initiative to make conversation. Nheless, I do understand that you might not havemon interests

    due to the fact that Tobias is a lot older than you are. If he wasn¡¯t rich, I would have hoped that you find a

    partner who¡¯s closer to you in age. I gave birth to you when I was neen, and you¡¯re now twenty-one.

    Since he is older than you by twelve years, he is old enough to be your dad if you add on a few more

    years.¡±

    Skr was tickled by Miranda¡¯s sense of humor, for she could imagine the look on Tobias¡¯ face when he

    heard those words. After all, he was very particr about his age.

    In fact, he had evenmented before that he felt as if he was raising a child.

    After sending Miranda home, Skr breathed a sigh of relief.

    Before she left, Miranda reminded her, ¡°Go back home and talk to him properly.¡±

    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.

    Since it waste, Skr returned to find Tobias sitting on the sofa. He was wearing a white shirt tucked

    into a pair of navy blue pants. With his jacket ced on the side of the sofa, his ck metal belt buckle

    looked inconspicuous without a brand logo.

    The sight of him reminded her of the time she got to know some boys while working in the hotel. They

    loved to wear tight-fitting jeans and show off their belt buckle which was the shape of an ¡°H.¡±

    Even then, the vibes they exuded weren¡¯t evenpatible with their fake Herm¨¨s belts.

    When Tobias heard the sound of footsteps, he turned the television off with his remote control. While

    doing so, the Patek Philippe watch on his hand demonstrated his masculine aura.

    He didn¡¯t ask her why she waste that evening. Instead, he took out a box of morning-after pills and put

    them on the table.

    Blushing in embarrassment, Skr swiftly picked the box up.

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