2024-10-28 14:54:23Liam gave a wry smile. It seemed that he wasn’t very welcome in the Stevens family. However, to fulfill the promise his grandfather had made, he still had to marry Mia, unless both his grandfather and David agreed to cancel the marriage.
Liam knocked on the door, and a sharp voice came from inside. "Who is it?" The door opened, and a middle-aged woman frowned as she looked at Liam. "Hello, I’m Mia’s fiancé, Liam Moran," Liam greeted politely. The middle-aged woman looked at him with disgust. "Mia doesn’t have a fiancé. Get out of here!" Liam frowned. Just as he was about to speak, he heard David’s voice from inside the house. "Stop this nonsense! Is Liam here? Let him in!" Reluctantly, the middle-aged woman opened the door and allowed Liam to enter. "Well, well, isn’t this Mia’s fiancé? I thought you wouldn’t dare come to our family gathering. For a country bumpkin like you, this must be your first time at such an occasion, right?" Yona said sarcastically as she saw Liam walk in.Liam glanced around the hall, which was already set with a lavish spread of food, including seafood and other luxurious dishes.
The middle-aged woman shot Liam a harsh glare and turned to David angrily. "Dad, Mia can’t marry this stranger from the countryside. There are plenty of suitable men in the city for Yona..." It turns out, this woman is Mia's mother, Melissa! Mia stood to the side, looking awkward. She didn’t want Liam to come to her family gathering at all, but he had still shamelessly followed. Mia quickly walked over and whispered, "Didn’t I tell you not to come?" Liam shrugged. "But Mr. David invited me. How could I not come?" Mia was about to say something else when Yona spoke with a mocking tone, "Mia, what are you whispering to your fiancé?" Mia replied flatly, "What does it have to do with you?"“My daughter cannot marry him!” Melissa Stevens stormed in, her face flushed with indignation.
Her gaze landed on Liam, and her lips curled in disdain as she took in his modest shirt and scuffed shoes.
“Is this some kind of joke? My beautiful Mia with this... this nobody?” Melissa said, her voice rising as she pointed at Liam.
She turned toward Lord David, standing composed behind her, and snapped, “Father, have you lost your mind?”
Lord David’s expression remained calm, though his tone carried a weight of authority as he replied.
“Melissa, enough.”
The tense exchange was interrupted by the arrival of Yona, Mia’s elder sister, who entered hand in hand with her husband, Carl.
Yona’s sharp eyes scanned the room, lingering on Liam before her lips curled into a sly smile.
“Grandpa wants Mia to marry him for real? That’s... I thought he was joking.”
Yona said, her tone neutral but her eyes gleaming with malice.
Melissa whirled toward Yona, her frustration mounting. “Do you hear this nonsense? Your sister marrying that?”
Yona tilted her head thoughtfully.
“If Grandpa believes this is best for Mia and the family, I won’t oppose it.”
"After all, Grandpa just slapped me for...my future brother-in-law, he must have his idea."
Everyone stared at her in disbelief.
So, the old lord had made the final decision? He even slapped Yona, just to show his support to this poor guy?
Melissa’s anger flared further, her voice trembling with frustration as she shouted, “This is ridiculous! What will people think of this family?”
Yona stepped closer to her, she smiled evilly.
Even though she failed to frame Mia for being indecent, but marrying a poor guy like Liam? It was even better for her!
After all, her husband Carl was way better than Liam.
In this way, David Lord would definitely reconsider who would inherit the Stevens family!
“Liam may be poor, but we should respect grandpa's decision, right?”
She smiled hypocritically.
Mia looked at her sister warily, sensing ulterior motives behind Yona’s unexpected support.
Melissa, however, was unmoved, declaring loudly, “This marriage will not happen! Mia deserves someone worthy of our name.”
Lord David raised his hand to silence her, his voice turning firm. “This decision is final, Melissa. Liam is my choice.”
Yona smiled evilly, satisfied that the arrangement would harm Mia’s position in the family.
Feigning concern, Yona said, “But shouldn’t Liam have brought a gift to show his sincerity?”
Her husband, Carl, chimed in smugly, “I gave Grandpa a rare Chinese red emerald worth a fortune. Surely Liam has something to offer?”
Mia lowered her head in quiet embarrassment, the weight of the situation pressing heavily on her shoulders.
"Grandpa, it all happened in a sudden..." Mia tried to explain for Liam.
But Liam smiled faintly interrupting Mia's words.
“My apologies, Lord Stevens,” he said evenly.
“I wasn’t prepared to meet your family so soon, but I hope this will suffice.”
“This card has a credit limit of one hundred million dollars. Please accept it as a gift to the family.”
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Lucian's Move
After Zion left Aria’s house that day, his mind was made up. There was nothing that he could say to convince her or make her accept his help. He was tired of watching from the sidelines while she kept hurling herself into danger. That morning, he watched the headlines from his apartment window and saw another fire, another protest, and in all of this, he could see clearly that Aria’s grip on the city was slipping, and fast.But even though he tried to keep his mind clear, he knew it wasn’t just the city that bothered him. It was her. The way she’d kissed him… and then pushed him away like it meant nothing. Like they were two strangers playing a dangerous game.But he wasn’t playing anymore, and he was done waiting for her permission. With that flowing through his mind, he threw on his coat and picked up his phone. He knew what Lucian was planning. It wasn’t hard to connect the dots. He knew Lucian was preparing for war, and if Aria was too proud to ask for help, then fine. He’d help i
Zion's Ultimatum
For Zion, the silence had been tormenting. It had been weeks since Aria last spoke with him, and the worst part of all this was that he still did not know what had happened or why this space was so important to her. But he had had enough. It was time to address this space between them once and for all, and with that determination, Zion decided to track her down and find where she was staying.After a long drive, Zion was at Aria’s apartment. He hesitated outside the gate, unsure if this was the right move, but he just as quickly shook his head, dismissing the thoughts. He was done with silence. He had waited long enough.The guards nodded at him, clearly informed of who he was, and let him through. His steps were slow but firm as he made his way to the main door, and he suddenly felt a reluctance. However, he managed to compose himself, and just as he was reaching to knock on the door, the door was pulled open.Aria stood there in a satin robe, her hair loosely tied up, with sharp eye
Silent Tension
After Lucian’s not so subtle threat, the Concord decided that it was time to step in before things got more out of hand. They had tried to pretend it was possible for the two to find peace without their interference, and now they couldn’t imagine how wrong they were. That morning, the city’s diplomats and Concord leaders emerged from the shadows and gathered in the large event hall. The conversations were only towards one topic this time, “reform” and “restoration,” as if those were real things. As if they didn’t already choose a side behind closed doors.The peace gala had begun. But Aria Carpi wasn’t here for peace. She entered the ballroom like smoke, quiet, graceful, but impossible to ignore. Her gown was made of crimson silk, flowing softly down her body, and in her eyes, there was no warmth. Just calculation.John followed a few steps behind, scanning the crowd.’“We shouldn’t be here too long,” he murmured. “There are eyes everywhere, and we don’t need this much attraction now.
In The Shadows
After that night at the gala, Aria had been constantly anticipating Lucian’s move. She had John’s men stalking every corner of the city, keeping their ears to the ground on any information that circulated. She knew Lucian was coming for her and he would strike as hard as he could. She stood quietly on the new rooftop of her apartment. Since her last press conference, she had to change her location. She knew that all her enemies would be coming after her now and she needed to stay one step ahead.Things had changed a lot more from that day. Aria knew she had gotten more deeper into this and though she missed Zion, she had chosen this war over love, and deep down she was afraid that Zion might not recognize the person she had turned into. Suddenly she could hear footsteps slowly approaching her and she turned to see John Doe standing behind her.“We made contact,” he said softly.Aria raised a brow, looking straight at him. “And?”“My agents stirred things up just like you planned. One
The Storm
The next morning, Aria stared out from the glass window of her penthouse, sipping her cup of tea slowly. Below her, she could hear the sound of cars rushing, drones floating past screens, and people moving and going about their day-to-day life, completely oblivious of what was coming.After staring out the window for a while, Aria turned around, her expression calm but her mind sharp. Today wasn’t about memories or heartbreak. Today was about marking her ground. About reminding every name in power that Aria Carpi was no longer hiding.Suddenly, she heard a knock on her door and was immediately pulled from her thoughts. Without hesitation, she walked towards it, and when she opened it, her eyes widened in surprise.“Is everything ready?” she asked, holding the door slightly ajar.John Doe stood in the doorway with his arms crossed and a concerned look on his face. He’d tried to persuade Aria to let go of the idea of the gala since the moment she told him, but she wasn’t budging, and no
Calls That Go Unanswered
Aria’s phone has been blaring with calls since the moment she left the car park, and every time she ignored it. As soon as she got home, she went straight to her room, and again her phone suddenly rang. She chewed her lip and stared at the screen until the call stopped. This was the third time he had called in the last twenty minutes. The first two she’d managed to ignore, but this one lingered longer.When it stopped ringing, Aria slowly sat down at the edge of her bed. Her eyes burned, but she blinked the sting away. She wasn’t going to cry. Not tonight. Not anymore. This was her choice, and she had to handle it with grace.Suddenly, her phone lit up again with a new message, but she didn’t have to open it or even glance at it to know what it said. She knew it was from Zion and surmised that he would probably say something like, “Please talk to me.” Or “I didn’t expect to see you last night.” Or maybe even worse.Aria took in a deep breath and wrapped her arms around herself, closin
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