"Tsk tsk tsk. Just look at your self-righteous mug, Paityn," Poppy taunted. "Can you honestly say you don't like Lorian? Having the man you love become your brother-in-law. It must hurt more than dying, right?"…Paityn's expression remained unchanged. She looked down at Poppy with a slight coldness in her smile. "You're welcome to go crazy at the Sanders Villa, Poppy. The McKinney family isn't behind his decision to not marry you. If you're going to act out, don't do it at our doorstep."With that, Paityn instructed the gatekeeper to close the door. The red lacquered gate slowly shut.Poppy couldn't contain herself and rushed forward. She pounded on the gate with force and continued to hurl insults at Paityn."You hypocrite! You dare not admit you like Lorian. You dare not admit you're also discarded by him!"The gatekeeper looked uncomfortable.Paityn tilted her petite face and muttered under her breath, "She's really out of her mind!"Paityn crossed the courtyard and went

Back at the Sanders Group, Kris saw Lorian coming to work and was quite surprised.She blurted out, "Haven't you just got married, Mr. Lorian?"In the over one thousand square foot CEO's office, the winter sun poured in through the large windows and cast a mosaic of golden light. Lorian sat behind his desk. He looked almost divine as the radiant sunlight shone on him. He heard Kris's question and looked up. Lorian replied calmly, "I still want to personally follow up on the South Yarifa case. Prepare for a business lunch later."Kris nodded but sighed internally.What Lorian did not anticipate was running into Tegan's elder sister, Paityn, at the business club. Paityn was a strong businesswoman. She was dressed in a sharp, professional outfit. She carried a briefcase and scrutinized her new brother-in-law for a moment before speaking with a hint of irony."Am I seeing things? You've just gotten married to my sister, so what are you doing here? Are you looking for young escor

The bathroom was filled with steam. Tegan soaked in the hot water and quietly reflected on what had just happened. Lorian had been very gentle throughout the entire process. However, his gentleness seemed almost formulaic. It was too perfect and reminded her of a robotic husband. With that said, Tegan dared not expect too much. They were in a marriage where they weren't equals. Demanding too much would be considered unreasonable.Tegan didn't soak for long. There were still things she wanted to discuss with Lorian. Once her body felt more relaxed, she got up and wrapped herself in a white bathrobe before stepping out of the bathroom.The chandelier in the bedroom was off. Lorian had left only a reading lamp on. He was leaning against the headboard and holding his phone, giving some instructions to Kris via voice message. When he saw Tegan coming in, he wrapped up the conversation with a few simple words.Tegan took a tube of ointment and sat on the side of the bed, carefully app

Philip did not respond further. Instead, he handed over the gifts to the McKinney family's servants.Jennifer caught wind of the situation and rushed out of the house. As soon as she arrived, she saw Tegan covering her face. Clearly, Theo struck her again.Jennifer couldn't hold back her anger. She gave her husband a cold sneer and said, "Paityn works tirelessly for you at the company, and Tegan married into the Sanders family according to your wishes. "What more could you possibly want? Even if you invested in something, you have to give it some time to bring back the profits."Do you think I don't know your intentions, Theo? You treat Paityn and Tegan as if they’re worthless. All you cared about was the child your mistress had. "You let Paityn and Tegan work for your benefit while you live comfortably. I’ll tell you this. As long as I’m alive, don’t even think about letting that illegitimate child of yours enter this family properly."…Theo felt that Jennifer exposed his de

Silverlake Vila was Lorian and Holly's home once. Now, it was just a house filled with distant memories.The villa had been unoccupied for some time, but it was kept impeccably clean by regular housekeeping. Everything that Holly had used was neatly preserved, such as her clothes and jewelry. They were small trinkets she liked and merchandises from her favorite movie, "Fallen Dust". Lorian picked up a book of concept art and read aloud the lines printed on it. “A single romantic encounter was much more precious than everything in the world.”Lorian repeated the phrase softly to himself over and over again. That night, he reminisced about his past love. He was unaware that the love that had once sparked in Tegan’s heart had long since extinguished. As far as Tegan was concerned, Lorian was not a husband. Instead, he was a man she could never hope to attain.As dawn approached, Lorian lifted his weary eyes.Today was the day of Holly's wedding.…Lorian returned to Brooke