Madeline smirked, irony apparent in her eyes. ‘How can you still say such a thing, Jeremy Whitman? ‘Be it the person I used to be or the person I am now, what did I do to deserve Meredith’s bullying? ‘Is everything she does just correct in your eyes?’ Madeline’s fingers tightened around the stem of the glass while Jeremy remained deep in thought. After a while, he raised his deep gaze to stare at her. “I owe it to her,” he replied. Madeline frowned in confusion. “What do you owe her?” Staring at Madeline’s clear and sparkling orbs, Jeremy’s gaze trailed to stare at the horizon across the sea before them. “I couldn’t fulfill what I promised her. So I thought perhaps I could make it up to her in another way.” Madeline scoffed lowly at his reply. ‘You can’t fulfill the promise you made to Meredith, so instead, you’re now trying to make it up to her? ‘But Jeremy, since when have you fulfilled any of the promises you made me? And since when did you make up for those yo

Jeremy’s pupils contracted. “You mean, last night, we…” Madeline nodded before he could finish speaking. Distress immediately surfaced on Jeremy’s features. He admitted that he was infatuated with the woman in front of him, but he was also clear that such infatuation was an extrapolation of the yearning he felt for Madeline. He meant it when he said he wanted to marry her, but he had never thought of engaging in any form of skin-on-skin relationship with another woman after Madeline. He had approached Vera out of selfishness. He wanted to stare at the features of someone who looked exactly like Madeline a little longer, just so he could ease the guilt within him. Yet right now… He felt like a b*stard. He claimed that he loved her, yet he found himself unable to withstand the allure of another woman in his moment of drunkenness. “Look at you. You seem distressed. Why? Because I remind you of the ex-wife you hated so much? You must feel disgusting and dirty.” Madeline

Meredith was stunned and slightly anxious. “Why are you asking me this so suddenly, Jeremy?” “Did you lose it?” Jeremy pressed on coldly. “No! How could I?!” Meredith immediately ensured, saying, “It’s something you gave me, so I made sure to keep it really well.” Jeremy stared at Meredith with doubt in his eyes. “Where is it?” “...” Meredith halted before breaking into a gentle and small smile. “Are you wondering if I yearned for you all those years? Of course, I did. That’s why everything you gave me is in safekeeping. I can take it out for you now if you don’t believe me!” With that, she ran out the door. Half an hour later, Meredith returned with a small bookmark made from a leaf in her hands.The leaf was real, for it was laminated between two pieces of plastic—still whole and unbroken after all these years. “Look, Jeremy.” Meredith handed the bookmark over with a sweet smile on her face, her tone sounding meaningful. “I really miss how it used to be back then, Jere

Madeline ran toward Jackson without care, completely disregarding the danger of the situation. Her body made the instinctive decision to protect Jackson, even if it meant getting hurt in the process. Holding Jackson in her arms, Madeline had not the time to run. She prepared herself to get hurt as she felt the car coming into contact with her body. In the nick of time, someone shrieked, thinking that a horrible accident was about to occur. However, the car suddenly came to a stop. Meredith swore as she stared at the scene from afar. Oh, how she had hoped the car would rid her eyesores, both Vera and Jackson, from her life with this accident! The car braked, and Madeline felt the world around her grow silent. Carefully, she opened her arms to stare at the little boy buried in her embrace. She could not help the sudden burn around the corner of her eyes. “It’s alright now, Jack. Big Sis Vera promised you, didn’t she? I promised to protect you, so I will.” Madeline raised

Meredith looked at Jeremy with her charming almond-shaped eyes that were filled with grievances as she said angrily, "Jeremy, Jack is our precious son. I wouldn’t allow him to be hurt at all as if my life depended on it. How could I have abandoned him?"Just then, Eloise slowly walked over with Jackson. Her contemptuous gaze was directed at Meredith. "Miss Quinn, I heard that you’re about to marry Jeremy's uncle, so why are you still hanging around here all day long with my daughter’s fiancé? Have your parents never told you that it’s shameless for you to do this?”Faced with Eloise’s sarcasm, Madeline merely gave a tranquil and composed smile. “You’ve asked a good question, Mrs. Montgomery. My parents didn’t teach me this because not long after I was born, they brought someone else’s child home and abandoned their biological daughter due to their moment of negligence."When Madeline mentioned her life experience all of a sudden, Jeremy looked at her unexpectedly.Seeing the elega