Once the board meeting ended, the announcement about Mandy's and Julien's appointment was released to all Lovelace Group employees. Julien exited the meeting room. The moment he entered the chairman's office, he plunged into Jonah's arms. He nuzzled his sweaty face against Jonah's shoulder. He could finally feel at ease, knowing that he was finally back in his lover's presence. He also let go of the confident persona he was putting up and melted into Jonah's embrace."Congratulations, Mr. Julien. You've succeeded in taking over." Jonah lifted his hand and stroked Julien's hair gently. In a gentle and raspy voice, he said, "You are someone with status and a title now. You are the second-in-command in the Lovelace family. I'll have to rely on your support in the future, Mr. Julien." Julien clicked his tongue. "Forget it." Julien let out a long sigh. He said in a coy voice, "If you hadn't bulk purchased Lovelace Group's shares in secret to stabilize our share price, our corpora
Landon was finally done preparing for his wedding with Lauren at Bernardia. He had made arrangements according to Lauren's preferences. Over the past month or so, Landon wished that he could split himself into multiples of himself. He had to look after Lauren, manage Harper Group, and manage the decorations at the wedding venue—from personnel assignments, their wedding photo shoot, and the positioning of even a small pot of flowers—everything had to be vetted by him. He made sure that he was all hands-on. His private plane flew between Bernardia and Solana City multiple times, so much so that he used up a considerable amount of fuel. Jordan was worried that it would all be too tiring for Landon. He offered to go to Bernardia on his behalf to keep watch over the preparations there, but Landon refused adamantly. He would rather see to it himself. He didn't care if he was jet-lagged or that he was losing sleep. He made sure that he went there in person to have a hand in the decora
"Thank you for caring for my wife over this period. I've prepared a gift for you. My secretary has brought it to your office." Landon poured a cup of tea for Robbie. He was no longer the prideful man that he used to be. His speech and mannerisms were much friendlier now. The changes in Landon were indeed drastic. In order to become a brilliant leader like Jasper and for Lauren's sake, he was willing to let go of the man he used to be. "No worries at all, Mr. Harper. It's my job to be responsible for my patients. A gift isn't necessary. I am just doing my job." Robbie paused before continuing in a low voice, "Mr. Harper, we have performed a thorough body check for Mrs. Harper this morning. We found that she has endometriosis." Landon, while carrying a teacup in his hand, froze. His chest tightened. "What's that?" "It's not a major condition or anything. There can be many reasons why one develops this disease. In Mrs. Harper's case, it's a little more serious. "She told me
As Lauren wrote, a soft and motherly glow came across her face. Landon, on the other hand, hid behind her. His face was downcast, and his pale lips trembled uncontrollably. He hugged her from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder. He nuzzled against her longingly. His eyes filled with tears that were so close to streaming down his face. "Darling, didn't you say… that you didn't want to have children?" Landon's voice was unusually low and gravelly. With his lips right next to her ear, he asked, "Didn't you want to study art and be my only woman forever?" Lauren's lashes fluttered shyly. She focused her attention on writing, "That was in the past. That's not what's on my mind now." A lump rose in her throat. "Landon, I know that my physical condition isn't great. I have to take medications and get injections every day. I don't even know when I can be discharged. "It doesn't matter if it's a boy or a girl. I want to have a child whom we can raise together. This way, eve
"Can you come and speak to Mr. Landon? He looks like he's having a breakdown. I'm quite terrified!" Jordan exclaimed. Jasper's chest tightened when he heard that. He turned around and walked toward the door. "Give me the address. I'll head over right now!" …When Jasper arrived, Landon was the only patron in the dimly lit pub. He was sitting by the bar and taking a glass of vodka from the bartender. Jasper asked Jordan to wait outside. Then, he walked over to Landon and sat down by his side. He placed his hand on Landon's shoulder."That's enough, Landon. These strong alcohols are not good for your health. You're about to have your wedding. You need to look after yourself." Landon lifted his head slowly. His drawn and pale face was covered in tears. His eyes were bloodshot. It made Jasper's heart wrench to see him like that. "Why are you crying?" Jasper was astonished. He looked at him intently. "What in the world happened? Don't be like this. Tell me what's wrong, and we
A white winter day with fluttering snow was the perfect symbol of purity and romance. It was Christmas Eve. The time had come for Landon and Lauren's fairytale wedding at faraway Bernardia. The Becketts' and the Taylors' private planes set off. Both families landed at Bernardia Airport one after the other. Then, via Landon's arrangements, they were transported to a fortress where they would stay. Landon had booked the entire historic estate for a whole month. The fortress in front was to be used for their wedding reception, whereas the block behind was the accommodation for friends and family. In other words, if they wanted to stay on to enjoy Bernardia's beautiful scenery after the wedding, they could continue staying there temporarily while they toured around and soaked in the beauty of a foreign land. This estate was a historic site. Over the last century, it had never been rented out for anyone's private use. This was the first time in history and might also be the last.
Landon lowered his eyes and stared at the item in his hand. It was a gold pocket watch that was mounted with ruby and sapphire. He widened his eyes."Dad, this is…""This is a pocket watch that Jasper's great-great-grandfather passed down to his grandfather, Newton. It was then passed down to me." Landon felt like he had just heard a tongue twister, but he understood what was implied. Basically, it was a very precious item!"Now, I am giving it to you." A kind smile came across Javier's face. "This is an antique. It's an item that people at auctions will bid astronomical prices for. Don't underestimate its value." "Dad, this… This is too valuable. I can't accept it." Landon couldn't believe the amount of favor he was receiving. He declined immediately, "This is your family heirloom. You should be passing it down to Jasper. I don't deserve—""You're not an outsider. You are my son-in-law, and someone who's like a son to me. Why do you say that you don't deserve it?" Ja
There was silence. Jasper felt the chilly night breeze at Bernardia blowing across his face. He had an intense look in his eyes, and he could feel his heart pounding. Until today, he still had a glimmer of hope for Justin, who had once saved his life. With his own eyes, he had witnessed how the Schmidt brothers tore at one another and fought to their deaths. He didn't want the same cruelty to replay within the Becketts. "Jasper, I know that I'm unable to take care of myself because of my physical condition. Even so, I have always cared about Beckett Group. I think about Grandpa, Dad, you, and Lauren too." Justin's tone of voice was full of sincerity. "Firstly, I didn't know you were blowing the issue up from behind the scenes. All I did was look at it from Beckett Group's perspective. My intention was simply to protect our family's interests. "Secondly, even if I knew that you were the one behind all that, I don't think I would've done anything differently because everythin